Stop Making Social Networks, Facebook Won

I would argue that people need to stop making generic social networks. But take a look at sites like StackExchange: It is definitely a "social network", even though it doesn't have friend requests, only recently added photo uploads (and only kinda), and doesn't even have a Farmville-killer. But it's incredibly useful, highly successful, and might one day even be very profitable.

Facebook started by billing itself as a "social utility." Focus on the latter part while admitting the former, and you, too, can build a successful business.

That's dangerous thinking right there. I'm hoping Diaspora takes off. People need to own & control their own info.

iPhone kills other phones now, but in 10 years an open alternative will do better. Facebook kills other social networks now, but in 10 years an open alternative will do better.

Stop making search engines, AltaVista won.

This assessment couldn't be further from what I think is the case: Keep building social networks -- there is a huge audience of people that love to interact with others online.

Additionally, this sentiment is contrary to what drives innovation. Nickpp touched on this with his AltaVista comment, but giving up this early in the game is not only stupid but is not going to happen: The market is too young and too rich to not explore.

Facebook may be a behemoth today as Yahoo was before Google. But Google innovated the shit out of one niche part of what Yahoo was doing and cornered the market, later taking over most of the parts that Yahoo sacrificed search to be good at. In the same vein, I have no doubt that there is going to be a replacement for Facebook -- it might not be a social playground or an explicit network, it could be an online reputation or identity platform, it could be a standardization of personal and social data -- but Facebook, like all things, will fade, change and eventually be considered antiquated.

"(boy remember when Classmates was the place to be?)"

No.