OurFaves - Toronto
OurFaves is TorStar Digital's attempt to create a social network and is surprisingly good. Although still in its infancy with just over 400 members, the site has huge potential. The premise is simple... share your favourite Toronto "things" with other members through the use of tags. The interface is very simple yet open enough to allow for a little bit of creativity. You can share anything from your favourite burger joint to your favourite cheap date. Check it out!
StumbleUpon
StumbleUpon is the online equivalent of channel surfing... only much, much smarter. The program learns your surfing preferences and interests to help you discover new sites. There is also a nifty social networking component that links you to other users with similar interests. This is a great way to kill a couple of hours on a Wednesday afternoon.
Twitter's premise is simple... Answer the question of "what are you doing" in 145 characters or less. Sounds pretty basic but it is surprisingly addictive. You'll soon find yourself updating 4,5,6 times a day and checking back every 10 minutes to see what your friends are up to. There has been a lot of talk about Twitter over the past months but still hasn't really extended beyond the tech community. Please! What are you non-geeks doing? We need to know!
I'm in Like with You
IILWY is still in beta and available by invitation only but if you can get a hold of an invite, it's like totally worth it! This site is nothing more than a new way to flirt with people you'll likely never actually meet but what the hell? It's fun! And completely unique.
Joost
Joost is also still in "by invitation only" beta but users have unlimited invites available to send so it shouldn't be hard to get yourself hooked up. In fact, just send me your e-mail address if you want to check it out. Joost is a super slick desktop app for viewing online video. It has the potential to change the way we watch television and is making new content deals all the time. This is definitely one start-up to watch (pun intended).
UpComing
Upcoming is one of the latest social networks to get snapped up by Yahoo! It's a well designed site to help you keep track of your events, your friend's events, and events happening in any city. Like most of these networks, it is populated mainly by the tech community but has the potential to be much bigger. Do us a favor and sign up now.
Last.fm
Last.fm is a wonderful music discovery, streaming radio, and social networking tool. This is a must for any music fan or anyone with functioning ear drums for that matter. This is the best of the best. You'll love it! I promise.
If you haven't yet discovered Facebook, unplug your modem and consider living a life of solitude in the Himalayan Mountains... This is by far the fasting growing online network and is shaping our culture at an alarming rate. If you're not on Facebook, you basically do not exist.
