Why is PTT Distinctive from Other Social Media?
Followings are some significant special features of PTT that, in my opinion, make it stand out among other social media in Taiwan.
* 1. A abundant collaboration of different online activities
Even though the essential form for PTT to operate as a social medium is forum--a place where people exchange and discuss information as well as experience--the activities taken place there are rather versatile. As I mentioned above, the boards in PTT cover almost every part of one's life. What's more, human beings are creatures with amazing creativity; people are utilizing PTT very differently and creatively. They are making friends, organizing study groups, playing detective games, co-writing stories, selling/buying second-hand stuff, and so on and so forth. When there is a crucial baseball or basketball game, or even just a very popular TV show, people would go online and open up a "Live Post" for instant reporting and discussion. The things one can do in PTT is versatile beyond believe. Like I said earlier, it is really easy to find a comfortable spot in PTT; sometimes it is also fun to just observe things happening there.
In addition to the forums, PTT offers some different functions for its users. The most popular and beloved one should be the function of giving comments right below each post. Users give out their comments with one simple line (they have to give another comment code to write another line), and they can choose between "tuei" (I agree, I approve), "shi" (I disagree) and "-->" (not taking sides) to show their opinion before giving out the comment. Somehow it looks a little bit similar to Twitter, probably because the limit of the length of each comment. And as usual, people never use the tool only as what it is supposed to be used. It has become a common thing to chat in the "string of comments," either surrounding the topic of the post or not. People also use the comment function to sign up for activities (the first fifty people to give comments can get a spot), to play games (give out answers via comments), and sometimes even to make images with the string of comments. Besides the comment function, there are also chat rooms, instant messages, mailing function (even to other BBS sites, or to the email addresses that are set in the www region), recreation zone (virtual pets, poker games, chess games), just to name some.
* 2. A contradiction in being disguised and being crystal clear
In PTT, people seldom use their real name as their user ID, and they seldom fill in real personal information when they register. Unlike that of Facebook, MySpace or some serious blogs, the ruling logic in the world of BBS is to be disguised (not that every people put their real identity out there in the former social media, of course). People interact with one another behind the image they have created in the online world. They chat, they discuss, they argue, they share, and gradually, they become friends, or at least, acquaintances. They build up connections with each other behind their PTT ID. Broadly speaking, these connections can be viewed as a sort of "weak ties" that bridge different groups of people, thus bringing in networks that one might not otherwise have been able to reach. The values of weak ties are well-discussed in Mark Granovetter's "The Strength of Weak Ties: A Network Theory Revisited", so here I won't go into that direction. But it is rather clear that PTT, because of the prevalence of the site itself and the generally accepted unspoken rule of having obscure identity, has helped to build up these weak ties.
However, there are also quite a lot of users have chosen to be crystal clear, under certain circumstances. By "crystal clear" I don't mean that they show everything to everyone, but that they bring a part of PTT into their real life, and let certain peers to know who they are in the offline world. A way to do this is to arrange offline meet-ups. The basic routine is to have a meal, or some coffee together. Of course, there are advanced versions. Meet-up participants can go to concerts, watch movies, have lessons, attend TV show programs, or go work out together. And the meet-ups can be anywhere, and have been held in many other countries, since the users in PTT don't necessarily only dwell in Taiwan. With frequent offline meet-ups and contacts outside PTT, people are bringing in the virtual world to their real life circle. It's likely that they can build up connections stronger enough to be the so-called "strong ties".
While weak ties are bridging different networks and carrying in various flows of information and resources, strong ties are working as the solid base for the stability for the survival of each forum, by building up powerful connections that link active participants tightly and firmly. This contradictory situation of being able to be disguised and to make overlap with the offline world in PTT for me is a key element that keeps it being so popular and prosperous in Taiwan, because that situation creates tons of weak ties but also gives space for strong ties to grow.
* 3. Absolutely noncommercial
Even since the very beginning, PTT has clearly stated itself as an always noncommercial BBS site for college/university students. Persistently it has kept its promise till now, despite the fact that there is enormous potential for profits in PTT. Any marketing, advertising, or profit-making activities are officially banned. With the technical as well as equipment support from school brothers and sisters in NTU, donation from certain companies, and money raised by concerts and other fundraisers, PTT has managed to survive and keep growing. Compared to the long commercialized BBS site KKCity, which has a more wild and sophisticated collection of forums, PTT appears to be more "school-like" and "naive". The absolutely noncommercial quality of PTT is a very important factor contributing to its popularity, because it is rather rare to find a spot without ads flying around in the cyberspace nowadays.
PTT's potential of making big profits is pretty well-noticed, and that has aroused many attempts to try it out: placement marketing, personal sales, disguised ads, and even frauds. Some of such examples will be discussed in the next section where I would like to talk about the impacts PTT has on the local society.
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