The capabilities of technological innovations on social networks
Foremost, technological innovations such as cloud-hosted social networks, interactive multimedia content and accessible platform interfaces have allowed billions of people to readily share their information and photographs through social networks. Platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Wechat have allowed individuals to upload information and photographs of their personal lives, and to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and parties with their friends and family. Cloud-hosted social networks have allowed these platforms to scale access to such information hosting services to billions of users, by supporting large volumes of information, photographs and media. Furthermore, accessible platform interfaces and interactive multimedia content have made these platforms highly engaging. For example, users on Twitter can like, share and comment easily on the photographs and information of their contacts, while Facebook and Snapchat support photographic filters, emoji icons and other features that make sharing such information fun and addictive.
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There are several advantages to the use of social networks to share information and photographs. Foremost, such sharing has allowed friends and family members to stay connected and up-to-date with the lives of their loved ones. This has become particularly important in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, where shelter-in-place orders and lockdowns have led to a state of prolonged isolation for many people in the world. Such isolation has had significantly negative effects on the mental health of people under lockdown, and has fortunately been alleviated by their ability to connect and engage with others on social media. A 2021 study by Hajek and Konig (2021) found, for example, that grandparents could use social media platforms as a way of viewing the photographs and information of their grandchildren and loved ones, which help to mitigate the loneliness and social isolation they may face (Hajek & Konig, 2021).
Furthermore, social media has provided a way for people to keep in touch with an extended network comprising not only their close family members and friends, but also their acquaintances, colleagues and schoolmates. This has allowed for the development and fostering of relationships over time, and for individuals to stay up-to-date on the developments in their social circle in a convenient and accessible manner.
Finally, social media has allowed individuals to make new friends and connect over shared interests. Groups related to interests such as craft coffee, environmental conservation and yoga have flourished on Facebook in recent years, and this has allowed individuals to share their individual moments and photographs as a way of connecting with strangers with the same set of interests.
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