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"What we found was that students using social networking sites are actually practicing the kinds of 21st century skills we want them to develop to be successful today," said Christine Greenhow, a learning technologies researcher in the university's College of Education and Human Development and principal investigator of the study.

"Students are developing a positive attitude towards using technology systems, editing and customizing content and thinking about online design and layout. They're also sharing creative original work like poetry and film and practicing safe and responsible use of information and technology. The

Web sites offer tremendous educational potential."

Even Google has failed to extend its golden touch to social-networking sites. In 2006 Google paid MySpace $900 million to place ads on its pages. The search giant also operates its own social network, Orkut, which has been growing, especially outside the US. But in a February call with financial analysts, Google cofounder Sergey Brin conceded that the investments “didn’t pan out as well as we had hoped…. I don’t think we have the killer best way to advertise and monetize the social networks yet.”

“People clearly, especially on the social networks, [are] not particularly interested in clicking on the ads,” says Mr. Brooks, who as editor of socialnetworkingwatch.com has followed the online industry for a decade. “Advertising needs to evolve, and social networks are forcing this change. People are really tired of being assaulted [by ads], but they still love to buy.”

As users share personal information within their networks, companies have an opportunity to capture and employ this data for targeted marketing. Social networks are building huge databases about where users go and the people they connect with, says Fred Stutzman, a doctoral candidate at the University of North Carolina who studies social networks.

SHARETHIS.addEntry({ "title": "Changes at MySpace Signal a Move Away From Social Networking", "url": "http://www.thewrap.com/article/2736", "published": "1240950792" }, { "button": true })ShareThis yahooBuzzArticleHeadline = "Changes at MySpace Signal a Move Away From Social Networking"; yahooBuzzArticleSummary = "Sign of the times: One senior executive for comedy at MySpace has 1,403 friends on Facebook."; yahooBuzzArticleCategory = "entertainment"; yahooBuzzArticleType = "text"; thewrapcom49:http://www.thewrap.com/article/27363 votesBuzz up! Slideshow Depeche Mode's Traffic-Stopping Concert Depeche Mode celebrated the release of its 12th studio album, "Sounds of the Universe," with a free concert on Hollywood Boulevard Thursday evening -- which literally stopped traffic. The performance, which also appeared on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" later in the evening, drew a reported crowd of over 10,000. (Photographs by Jonathan Alcorn) Keywords Facebook news corp MySpace Chris Van Natta

My (Liz B. Davis ) Summary of Key Points (All are quotes directly from the article): Online "Predators" and Their Victims. Myths, Realities, and Implications for Prevention and Treatment. by: Janis Wolak, David Finkelhor, and Kimberly J. Mitchell - University of New Hampshire and Michele L. Ybarra - Internet Solutions for Kids, Inc.

The publicity about online"predators" who prey on naive children using trickery and violence is largely inaccurate.

adult offenders who meet, develop relationships with, and openly seduce underage teenagers

Scrabulous aside, there may be an educational upside to social networking websites like Facebook and MySpace.

"Students using social networking sites are actually practicing the kinds of 21st-century skills we want them to develop to be successful today," said Christine Greenhow, a learning technologies researcher in the university's College of Education and Human Development and lead investigator of the study. "Students are developing a positive attitude towards using technology systems, editing and customizing content and thinking about online design and layout. ... "The websites offer tremendous educational potential."

Most agencies manage sensitive citizen data: addresses, Social Security numbers, financial records and medical information. You name it, some state or local office has it, and probably electronically. The problem? Many theorize that the Millennials' penchant for online openness could unintentionally expose private information, leaving it ripe for the picking. Millennials bring innovative ideas about technology's use, but for that same reason, do they also pose new security risks?

Anti-virus vendor Symantec released a study in March 2008 assessing this issue. Symantec commissioned Applied Research-West to execute the study, and 600 participants were surveyed from different verticals, including government. Survey participants included 200 IT decision-makers, 200 Millennial workers and 200 non-Millennial workers born before 1980. The data revealed that Millennials are more likely than workers of other ages to use Web 2.0 applications on company time and equipment. Some interesting figures include: 69 percent of surveyed Millennials will use whatever application, device or technology they want at work, regardless of office IT policies; and only 45 percent of Millennials stick to company-issued devices or software, compared to 70 percent of non-Millennials.

How might young people be workplace assets? Could all that time typing or texting make them speedy typists, able to whip up memos at the drop of a hat? Does familiarity with new and emerging technologies have its benefit? You bet, according to Dustin Lanier, director of the Texas Council on Competitive Government. The council brings state leaders together to shape policy for government departments, including IT. "I think they've built an approach to work that involves a lot of multitasking," Lanier said of the Millennials. "Something will be loading on one screen, you alt-tab to another application and pull up an e-mail, the first process loads, you flip back, start a new process, flip to a forum and pull up a topic. It's frenetic but normal to that group." Lanier doesn't think Millennials present more of an IT threat than their older co-workers. After all, young people don't have a monopoly on being distracted in the office. "I can't tell you how many times I've walked by people's desks of all ages and seen Minesweeper up," he said. He thinks employers should embrace some Web 2.0 applications. Otherwise, Millennials might be discouraged from sticking around. According to Lanier, this younger work force comprises many people who think of themselves as free agents. Government should accommodate some of their habits in order to prevent them from quitting.

The annual Mobile Life report, commissioned by the Carphone Warehouse and the London School of Economics, says that 11 per cent of children aged 11 to 18 have had sexually explicit conversations online, with 28 per cent admitting they have accessed adult websites.

Many often pretend to be doing homework when in fact they surfing the internet, with 49 per cent saying that they lie to their parents about what they are doing online.

The reports, compiled from a survey of 6,000 people, also analysed the difference between American and British teenagers, with children in the UK emerging as much more sophisticated. For instance, 53 per cent of British youngsters have communicated by webcam, something that just 18 per cent of their American cousins have done.

16% posted personal interests 15% posted information about their physical activities 20% gave out their real name 5% posted information about their school 6% posted their home address 6% posted their phone number 9% posted a photograph of themselves