Alison HarmanDeputy Features Editor
They came in droves one summer day — unstoppable, proliferating — they snuck into laptops and PCs worldwide.
And while some refuse to use them, others have embraced the newcomers with open arms, or even a hug.
“Facebook applications have taken over the lives of college and high school students everywhere,” said Amanda Gardner, a sophomore in biological sciences.
“I don’t feel any certain way about [the applications]. Personally, I don’t use them, but I think some of them are kind of funny,” Gardner said. “I get all the invites from my friends, and I just press ignore on all of them.”
Gardner did, however, add one application for a few days.
“I had the iLike application [created by iLike, Inc.] to say I was going to a show,” she said. “But then I deleted it because I didn’t like it.”
Maggie Hennessy, a sophomore in environmental engineering, said the only application she kept is the Daily Bible Verse application [created by MyChurch.org], which selects a different verse from the Bible and adds it to the user’s Facebook profile daily.
“I added the My Questions application [created by Jeremiah Robinson], but I’ve never posted questions,” Hennessy said. “The Bible Verse one gives me something to look at when I’m randomly clicking around Facebook.”
But though Gardner and Hennessy are roommates, their opinions diverge on the subject of how much the applications affect their time on the site.
“I think [the applications] are dumb,” Hennessy said. “They annoy me a lot. They’re very silly. Sometimes I see one and I’m just like, ‘what is the point of that?'”
Hennessy said she disagrees not only with frivolous applications but also with ones that impress negative influences upon other Facebook users.
“I don’t think buying your friends drinks online sets a good example for high school students,” Hennessy said. “Because that’s who they’re targeting. It doesn’t set a good example for college students either, for that matter.”
Gardner said even though she doesn’t add any applications to her Facebook profile, she still spends more time on the Web site than she ever intends.
“I’ll sit down and sign on Facebook and say, ‘I’ll just check my Wall.’ Then 45 minutes later I’m still staring at it and I don’t know why.”
Brian Mathis, a junior in business management, said he enjoys checking Facebook for comment or application updates, such as new garden gnomes or flowers for his My Garden application [created by Greg Thomson].
“When I ‘Facebook’ — I can use that as a verb, right? — that’s one of the routine things I check,” he said.
However, Mathis said he hasn’t always been fond of the applications.
“I was hesitant at first to add them — they seemed like Myspace,” Mathis said. “I don’t like Myspace; I like Facebook; it’s simple. Some of the applications are really flashy, though.”
Before adding any of the applications, Mathis said he looked through them and decided to add the Honesty Box [created by Dan S. Shadow, Erik Giberti, Yael Eligoulachvili and Dan Peguine] and the Video application [created by Facebook], among others.
But Mathis isn’t just excited about being able to use these new applications.
“I was most excited about students being able to code and make applications,” he said.
Jeremiah Reid, a senior in computer and electrical engineering, is one of those students. He said he has been developing an application game called Immutable Assassin.
“It means ‘unchanging.’ It’s about the nature of the game, how it varies from the typical assassin game,” Reid said. “Instead of a game going until everyone’s eliminated except for one player, there’s a new game every week, and the games will be campus-wide.”
Though he has many ideas for the game, Reid said his main idea is to keep track of disputes among players.
“It’s kind of like eBay. Being a third party, you don’t know if someone is being dishonest, but if one person has many disputes you know they’re probably a dishonest person,” Reid said.
Reid said he tries to keep the number of applications he adds to his Facebook to a minimum.
“I think [the applications are] cluttering up the site a little bit,” Reid said. “But it’s a good opportunity for users.”
One application Reid said he likes is LOLcats [created by Brian Phillips and Andy Triboletti]. Users who add this application get a box on their profile that features pictures of cats and their respective laugh-inducing headlines.
“LOLcats is simple, and it adds a minute amount of interactivity to make it fun,” Reid said.
Though Reid uses other applications, his own is still in its developmental stages.
“I’ve just played around with it. I could probably finish it in a couple weeks if I had nothing else to do,” he said.
Reid said the applications are completely free to make, and anyone who develops an application gains experience that can be used in the software industry.
“[Facebook] is allowing everyone to have access to a social networking site,” Reid said. “It’s opening it up to the masses. I don’t think [Mark] Zuckerburg would have any problems with that.”
Design Co-Editor Matt Wilson contributed to this story.
How to create a Facebook application:
1. Add Facebook’s developer application. It allows users to manage settings and make a new application.2. Download a library of files and then start building the application’s foundation.3. Learn the documentation. The information is a bit sparse, but it covers everything.4. Start coding. 5. Submit for review.
Source: Jeremiah Reid, application developer
LOLcats
Though superstition has it that cats have nine lives, there is no known limit to their personalities. The LOLcats application has harnessed hundreds of cat pictures affixed with humorous headlines personifying the cat’s expression or action. Users choose from a collection of these pictures and once chosen, attach it to their Facebook profile.
70,971 users
Creators: Brian Phillips and Andy Triboletti
Graffiti
The Graffiti application, like the Free Expression Tunnel, provided a place on Facebook where users can display their artistic — or lack thereof — talents. Those who add the application can draw, write or color on friends’ walls, whether the end result depicts an inside joke or an event invitation. Users who wish to connect their tablet with the application can do so.
6.6 million users
Creators: Mark Kantor, Tim Suzman and Ted Suzman
iLike
The iLike application allows users to add song excerpts to their profile, find local concerts and play the Music Challenge, a game that tests one’s music reflexes — players have seconds to correctly identify the song or artist being played — the more time it takes, the fewer points allotted. Users accumulate points and compare scores between friends.
6.5 million users
Creator: iLike, Inc.
Where I’ve Been
Want to travel the world? With the Where I’ve Been application, users map out places — states, countries, continents — where they’ve been, want to go or have lived and display them in color-coded-map form on their profiles. Once users create a personalized map, they can compare their maps with those of friends.
2.5 million users
Creator: Craig Ulliott
The Sorting Hat
Get sorted! Following a personality quiz involving a series of possible situations, the Sorting Hat sorts users who add this application into one of four Hogwarts Houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. Once sorted, users can add the House badge to their profile, chat in the Common Room and cast spells on friends.
611,018 users
Creator: Danny Tran
