There was a phrase I heard watching Discovery Science this Chinese New Year. It goes something like, “technology is the key to the future but what is the key to technology”. It’s an inspiring start to what we could term as innovation. Therefore, browser bookmarks aren’t the exceptional tools left out of innovating our Internet experience.
So, what does social bookmarking mean?
Social bookmarking is a method for Internet users to store, organize, search, and manage bookmarks of web pages on the Internet with the help of metadata.
Source: Wikipeida
Some quick examples of social bookmark services; Del.icio.us, StumbleUpon, BlinkList, Reddit, Fark and more. But why will social bookmarking soon replace browser bookmarks?
Some of the key factors I’ve observed using social bookmarking tools like Del.icio.us are:
- Accesible anywhere, anytime
Your bookmarks are no longer limited to a single PC of your own. The data is stored on the Internet, in their server which you may access wherever at whatever time. - Search capable
No more worries about organizing or forgetting to organize your bookmarks in the browser using folders. Even if you misplaced the bookmark, a quick search will help you locate them again. Not to mention, you can search for other similar websites added by others. Ah, the power of user-generated content. :) - Tags
Another form of organizing a library now is; tags. Imagine putting numerous sticky notes to describe a single bookmark. For example; Websites Made Simple is about website design, web 2.0, danny foo. These words or phrases can be used as tags though it’s a broader scope of a search. - Search Engine Optimization (SEO) via social sharing
Another wonder of user-generated content is helping others discover you. I wouldn’t say this is completely (SEO) because it’s part marketing too. However, the idea is being able to share your findings hence creating a viral response to what you have had found with others. - Awareness from SEO
As previously mentioned, when your website or blog found becomes more identifiable by others it’ll create it’s own self-viral campaign.
But social bookmarking has its setback(s) as well. The one I’ve experienced is:
Cookies required to remain logged in
Because social bookmarking services are not tied directly to a browser at the moment, we rely on add-ons or plugins to maintain our social bookmarks. Maybe as social bookmarking becomes the norm, Firefox would be the first browser to replace it’s bookmarks with Del.icio.us in a partnership. ;)
Nonetheless, social bookmarking by far is one of the revolutionary Web 2.0 tools created for a better Internet experience. What’s your opinion on this matter?
I think social bookmarking is the best way to bookmark your favorite website. Last time when I’m still not aware of this technology, I often rely on my trusty firefox browser bookmark. But when my pc attacked by virus and corrupt my windows. I formated my pc and all my bookmarked website gone. Hate to say this, I have to start everything over again. Gosh! But now, thanks to delicious, i don’t have to worry about that anymore. Also like you said, social bookmarking is another platform for you to market your website. Yes it does! It helps me a lot for online marketing.
I can so imagine being thankful I can restore my bookmarks or don’t have to as I’ve a backup online at Delicious. :)
I love social bookmarking website that imports browser bookmarks
That’s definitely a necessity, Rashid. Especially if they’re new because new users will want to store their current bookmarks too. :)