1. Proactive Connections
Benjamin N. Waber
Signals, Truth, and Design Fall 2007

2. LinkedIn Somewhat proactive Links are explicitly signaled
Introductions explicitly requested
Large time investment

3. Serendipity
Bluetooth

4. Recognizing Relationships
RFID Badges
Mobile Phones, PDAs
Sociometric Badges

5. Augmented Social Reality (ASR)
Sensors detect f2f relationships
Profiles and mined information yields expertise/interests
Give people information on how to help their friends
Let the community choose social structure

6. ASR Usage
Why?
People don’t know who they should be talking to or their friends’ needs (Eagle et al. 2004, Lin et al. 2007, McCarthy 2007, …)
Other systems don’t take into account social information
How?
An ASR system alerts intermediaries if it appears useful under SN criteria
Sensor data allows suggestions of opportune locations for the introduction
Who?
Intermediaries (friends) decide whether or not to make an introduction
Knowledge Management is a $5 billion dollar a year industry (Eagle et al. 2004)
Ching-Yung Lin, Kate Ehrlich, Vicky Griffiths-Fisher. Small Blue: Making Big Blue a Small World with social sensors, expertise search and social network analysis. Sunbelt 2007.

7. Issues Privacy Vertical Ties Adoption Allow users to edit friend list
Privacy modes/zones
Vertical Ties
Assess relative power from speaking style
Downgrade importance
Adoption
Wearing badges (free iPhone)?
Making introductions (prizes)?

8. Thanks!
Questions?

9. Inefficient Network
Bavelas, 1950