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This chapter takes a look at the Social Web. Humanities scholars are, by and large, a fairly social group. Attend any of the Modern Language Association conferences and you will be inundated with invitations to attend events hosted by publishers, groups within MLA, universities, and alumni organizations. The way we now include apps as an inherent part of our socialization, however, is changing and evolving as a result of some of the tools that are to be associated with the digital humanities, albeit not necessarily as apparently so as some others. This chapter explores the familiar players like Facebook™, Google+™, Twitter™, and others and discusses how they are being used by those in the field, contextualizing them within a variety of disciplines in the humanities through case studies while situating the category alongside theories that make sense of their use. Not as commonly used in academic social networks are vlogging applications along with student blog sites, which are also examined in this chapter. It is in this and subsequent chapters where augmented reality enhancements will be used. Please follow the directions at the beginning of Chapter 2 to access these additions.

The study aims to investigate the level of awareness and use of Web 2.0 tools by librarians in university libraries in Nigeria.

A questionnaire was used to collect data from 176 librarians in 49 university libraries in Nigeria.

It emerged that the librarians were more familiar with social networking sites, instant messaging, media sharing sites, blogs and wikis. The popularity of these Web 2.0 tools made them the most frequently used by the librarians. Web 2.0 tools like Flickr, RSS feeds, podcasts, social bookmarking, were among the least used. The study revealed that librarians use Web 2.0 tools mostly for reference services online, library news/events, training resources, and image and video sharing. Lack of facilities such as computers with internet access, lack of skills, and lack of time were indicated as some of the barriers in the use of Web 2.0 tools by librarians in university libraries in Nigeria.

These research results can be consulted by interested librarians as they plan to implement Web 2.0 applications in their libraries.

This study draws an overall picture of Web 2.0 applications in Nigerian university libraries and attempts to provide helpful information to better understand how librarians elsewhere are utilizing Web 2.0 technologies in rendering library services.

The purpose of this paper is to focus on college students, users of online social networks, as main sources of information that helps advertisers understand the ways in which advertisements are perceived online.

Results were reached through qualitative research. Personal in‐depth interviews, utilizing Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET), were conducted among 20 college students. Interviews consisted of using screenshots of advertisements in online social networks to uncover respondents' reactions.

It was generally concluded that the users of online social networks do not dislike advertisements, but they simply do not notice them. Other content found in online social networks mitigates the attractiveness of the advertisements. Hence, the respondents reported that the brand recognition in online social networks was found to be much lower than the one created through other media channels.

Advertising in online social networks is a major unexplored advertising area. Interactivity on the internet shifts the ways in which users perceive advertising, and whether they perceive it at all. The paper discusses content that catches users' attention and its relation to advertisements.

Through literature review it has been revealed that no similar research exists. The findings of this research will aid advertisers in recognizing the possibility of advertising to the online social networks' population, taking into consideration different needs, and preferences of such users.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the possible gaps in use of Web 2.0 tools and human resource (HR) functional performance, and to identify the potential areas of future research for the upcoming researcher and industry practitioners.

By having a thorough literature review on the said Web 2.0 and HR functions’ concepts, the study develops a conceptual model with seven propositions that assist in answering two major research questions, i.e., whether Web 2.0 tools can benefit the four major functions of human resource management (HRM), and to what extent Web 2.0 tools help HR Managers to reap maximum (efficiently and effectively) out of four major functions of HRM. By identifying the possible gaps in use of Web 2.0 tools and HR functional performance, the study identifies potential areas of future research for the upcoming researcher and industry practitioners.

HR 2.0 regime (right alignment of Web 2.0 tools and HR functions) will allow both the ends (employee and employer) to drive the organization toward sustainable, long-term business success. Excellence in HR functions following the HR 2.0 concept, can lead the organizations get best desired HR and business outcomes across sectors and industries. Though using Web 2.0 tools in HR functions can encounter various challenges as management of bulky information, time wastage, personal conflicts, threats of losing information confidentiality, etc., but these potential threats can be made less risky by transforming organization culture.

As the scope of the study was limited to the use of Web 2.0 tools in HR practices, the study provided a generic view of the use of Web 2.0 tools in HR domain. Thus the findings should be used only in HR domain in a variety of contexts.

The current study adds value to in the exploration of the link between Web 2.0 and HRM in a systematic way because of the fact that Web 2.0 tools as drivers or facilitating tools can play a vital role in execution of HR practices and processes in a secure, effective and efficient manner. The current study also paves the way for the HR practitioners and researcher to extract manifold benefits from the use of Web 2.0 tools in all of its functions with the right understanding. Critical role of HR can be favorably facilitated by Web 2.0 in favor of both, i.e., employees and the employers which could ultimately enable them to create a competitive edge in the market place. The organizations in general (whether private or public, manufacturing or public, small and medium enterprises or MNEs) can extract the real benefits from the right use of Web 2.0 while performing any of their HR function. Enhanced decision making may also be gained using the right mix of Web 2.0 tools and HR practices in any organization. The study also provides a track to the researchers to excavate more associations among the said constructs and to test these relationships in different industries so that maximum HR challenges may be addressed related to the employee and the HR process.

Social implications of the current study can be derived as the main focus is HR practices which are executed by the employees, who if are positively addressed, may gain economic and social up gradations. As for the employers use of Web 2.0 tools in their HR functions not only will bring economic prosperity for themselves but for the employees and the society.

Conceptual analysis of links between the use of Web 2.0 tools and HR functions to draw the attention of HR practitioners to benefit both employers and employees. Though the use of Web 2.0 is being popular in various other business areas but not for internal employees regarding HR functions. Paper provides the conceptual link of Web 2.0 applications, i.e., blogs, wikis, folksonomies, RSS, podcasts and online social networks with human resource functions.

To illustrate the need for social network metadata within semantic metadata.

Surveys properties of social networks and the semantic web, suggests that social network analysis applies to semantic content, argues that semantic content is more searchable if social network metadata is merged with semantic web metadata.

The use of social network metadata will alter semantical searches from being random with respect to source to direct with respect to source, which will increase the accuracy of search results.

Suggests that existing XML schemas for semantic web content be modified.

Introduction and overview of a new issue.

Foundational to the concept of the semantic social network; will be useful as an introduction to future work.

Digital cameras and social networking have made photo-taking and photo-sharing more ubiquitous than ever before. In recent years, scholars and the popular press have raised concerns over the practice of posting photographs on social networking sites, especially when the images contain problematic or incriminating content. These concerns are often directed toward college students, who are among the most active users of social media. To that end, this chapter offers a comprehensive overview of the extent and emerging research pertaining to college students' photo-sharing habits on social networking sites. Much of our attention focuses on Facebook, which has emerged as the largest and fastest growing photo-sharing Web site in the world. While research on text-based disclosure will be addressed, a greater emphasis is placed on college students' photo-related behaviors, including uploading, viewing, tagging, and untagging photos. Further, this chapter discusses research on problematic or damaging content in college students' photos posted on Facebook, including depictions of alcohol use, drug use, and sexual promiscuity. This chapter provides a glimpse of some recent data (collected by the author) from a national sample of U.S. college students, which further shed light on their experiences and attitudes regarding their photo-related Facebook behaviors, the types of incriminating photos they report posting, and the consequences they have experienced due to visual images shared by themselves or others on Facebook. Finally, this chapter concludes with a discussion of the strategies utilized by college administrators, faculty, athletic coaches, and others within higher education to address the concerns and consequences often associated with college students and the photographs they share on Facebook and other social networking sites.

This paper aims to investigate the level of awareness and use of Web 2.0 tools by librarians in university libraries in Africa.

A questionnaire was used to collect data from 140 librarians from 16 leading university libraries in Africa.

The study revealed that librarians in Africa are mostly familiar with Web 2.0 tools such as social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), blogs, instant messaging and wikis. It was also found that the most frequently used Web 2.0 tools by the librarians in university libraries in Africa are Facebook, instant messaging, blogs, Twitter and wikis. The study revealed that the librarians use the Web 2.0 tools for the purpose of announcing library news/events, online reference services, training resources, blogging and image and video sharing with users. Finally, lack of skills, power failure, lack of facilities such as computers with Internet access, lack of time and lack of interest were mentioned by the librarians as some of the challenges to using Web 2.0 tools.

These research results can also be consulted by interested librarians when they plan to make Web 2.0 applications in their libraries.

This study draws an overall picture of the Web 2.0 applications in university libraries in Africa and attempts to provide these libraries with helpful information to better understand how their colleagues elsewhere are utilizing Web 2.0 technologies in rendering library services.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate information communications technologies (ICT)‐mediated inclusion and exclusion in terms of sexuality through a study of a commercial social networking web site for gay men.

The paper uses an approach based on technological inscription and the commodification of difference to study Gaydar, a commercial social networking site.

Through the activities, events and interactions offered by Gaydar, the study identifies a series of contrasting identity constructions and market segmentations that are constructed through the cyclic commodification of difference. These are fuelled by a particular series of meanings attached to gay male sexualities which serve to keep gay men positioned as a niche market.

The research centres on the study of one, albeit widely used, web site with a very specific set of purposes. The study offers a model for future research on sexuality and ICTs.

This study places sexuality centre stage in an ICT‐mediated environment and provides insights into the contemporary phenomenon of social networking. As a sexualised object, Gaydar presents a semiosis of politicised messages that question heteronormativity while simultaneously contributing to the definition of an increasingly globalised, commercialised and monolithic form of gay male sexuality defined against ICT.

This paper aims to investigate any cultural impacts on end‐users' web page design in weblogs.

The design preferences of 201 weblogs in Malaysia have been collected using content analysis method and the existence of Malaysian cultural traits on the web pages tested.

The results confirm that there is no cultural impact on weblog designs, which is contrary to existing studies that reported cultural traits in static web page design. This paper concludes by suggesting the increased social interaction among webloggers as one of reasons of weakened cultural impacts in weblog design behaviour.

Culture has been considered as one of major factors that affect the design behaviour of static web pages which mostly support one‐way interaction between information providers and information consumers. On the other hand, the recent adoption of Web 2.0 technology enabled bi‐directional interaction between information providers and consumers and it is not known if there is still a strong cultural impact on web page design based on this new technology.