Feeling Too Old for MySpace?

A new social network has launched today. Do you think you don't need another one? I still think it won't hurt reading on - this may be something that you will really like if you don't think that MySpace is the right place for you.

UbiPlanet is a France-based startup that clearly states its purpose: a network for people aged from 25 to 50 who really care about their online privacy - they even call them “normal people”. The network is intended to introduce “the level of trust” from your real life into your Internet life. So what they offer is combining all our Internet life in one place (blogs, photos, videos, IM, email) BUT with total privacy control.

So how do they deal with privacy? Rather simple: they choose an invitation-only way for you to build your network. And when you build your network of trusted real-life friends, you can share your activities with them. For instance, you can create your blog posts, send them to your friends and invite them to join a discussion. And no other user outside your network will be able to read your blog posts. This does make sense if you are not totally sure your opinion is worth sharing with the rest of the world.

So I have signed shortly after I received a press release from the UbiPlanet team and received a confirmation email in a matter of minutes. What actually impressed me is AJAX-based interface here: you start toying with it when choosing your country (United States is the default option so US visitors, I really recommend you to try and change it - it's worth playing). And AJAX is everywhere - it looks beautiful, works fine but do you really think this colorful interface is not intended for younger users? I really think that MySpace should do something like this with its interface - it will actually be perfect for something younger-generation oriented.

To tell you the truth, I really enjoyed testing features of this brand-new network. Everything is dragged and dropped here - something I know many of us enjoy just for the process of dragging and dropping.

Group uploading of photos is possible (though I am quite tired already of uploading my pictures to various photo sharing sites) and the speed is something absolutely incredible.

WYSIWYG for writing new posts is rather simplified - but fine enough if you only blog for your friends and definitely enough for the target group they are thinking of. Besides, you can even drag and drop pictures from your pictures area to the blog post you write. Chat with your friends right within UbiPlanet is also possible.

Calendar is promised to be available soon to arrange events with your friends. This feature is something to be expected - though I find it funny when someone launches a new feature with some features absent but promised.

Sure, something does not work absolutely correctly right now - I have found the language switched to French in several sections of my profile though I clearly remember choosing English for my language.

And again, it seems like no one counts on exclusive (revolutionary, unique) features when trying to draw first users: here you've got a chance to win a digital frame or a photo printer for drawing 30 and 40 users respectively. Interested in joining my network there?