Why Friendster Profile Layouts Suck

Actually, the article Is 'Ghetto' a Design Choice? discusses MySpace, but it's pretty much the same thing, except for the phenomenon that more Americans are on MySpace, and more Filipinos are on Friendster.

Here's the theory:

"My best guess is that it follows the eBay design model. My theory is that eBay was a success due to its crappy design because it gave it that flea market feel and when you went there you felt like you getting a deal. Go to Tiffany & Co. and you don't get the feeling that you are getting a bargain because you shouldn't.

What's the point I was making? Not sure, but the design sucks them in. In a way it also causes a bit of lock-in. Once you learn the interface that is time invested that you don't want to lose. That's why many people will never leave MovableType because they understand how it works inside and out."

Well, yea. For view-layer buffs like moi, it's one of the things I care for the most. Maybe you caught me doing a shoutout on Friendster a few weeks back, screaming something like Bakit ang papangit ng mga layout ng mga profiles ng mga tao dito?!

In a similar sense, the idea can be drawn out further to how 'bad' looks good (easiest case - William Hung!). And in slightly the same vein, one can infer that either people look beyond the crappiness and go for content — or people simply have no taste whatsoever.

But while in some part of the world this is the heated discussion, are these 'Spacers or that 'Sters even paying attention? Probably not. Having their profile page as a virtual playground for their freedom of expression is a great thing, yes. It's not the primary reason they're hooked (a hint!) on these social networking sites though.

This guy's comment on the post puts it plainly and simply:

"Because it's a hookup site."

Bravo.