Online social platforms are very popular these days. Your computer teacher wants you to write an article in the school newsletter about the functions of these platforms, why they are popular, and how to be safe when using them.
Where do teenagers hang around the most nowadays? Haven’t you seen people physically in one place but mentally in another? Whether we like it or not, online social platforms like Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram have changed the way we live. Hence, it is worth the time to give a deeper thought to the use of these irresistible temptations.
The functionality of online social platforms is simply magical. First of all, users can update their status to express their feelings. You can type just a few lines or even select an emoji to tell your friends how you feel. As the saying goes, “Shared joy is a double joy; shared sorrow is half a sorrow.” Besides, youngsters love to share photos and videos frequently. You can tag your friends and add locations as well. Last but not least, chatting on the phone is relatively old-fashioned compared to texting on the go. There are many instances that it would be more appropriate to text friends rather than to phone them. For example, when you are in the middle of a boring meal or stuck in noisy traffic, these platforms would often come to your rescue.
Being multi-functional doesn’t always necessarily make a product popular. But, bringing convenience an stylishness together would often do. At present, countless celebrities are using an app called “17” for live broadcasting and the audience can leave comments or give a like to it. It opens up a new world of communication. With the advance of mobile phones and broadband service, we can get in touch with almost anyone anywhere at any time by just a touch of our fingertip. Some platforms such as Facebook has more than 1 billion active users. Making new friends on these platforms just couldn’t be made easier. Undeniably, the quality of being sociable has been redefined.
Still, everything comes at a cost. Most of these platforms are a big room without partitions and it is better be safe than sorry. To begin with, we need to pay full attention to the disclosure of our personal information. Do not expect anything to be kept private once it has been uploaded. What’s more, it is not a strange thing to encounter strangers on the Internet. While some people might have a weird illusion on this kind of affair, everyone ought to have the awareness of cyber crimes. Also, the importance of changing passwords regularly should never be neglected. Of course, choosing passwords with a high degree of security is just as important.
To conclude, we could barely live without these online social platforms, could we? Yet, under any circumstances, precautions are needed for enjoyment. These powerful tools are as addictive as chocolates, but they are sometimes sweet, sometimes bitter.
3A(8) Grace Li
HHCKLA BUDDHIST CHING KOK SECONDARY SCHOOL
