“We don’t really have an attitude of competition,” Hughes said. “I’ve seen the FaceNet website and it looks fine. It looks like an interesting website. But we’re not worried or competitive. That’s not our attitude at all.”
Greenspan originally launched the Universal House Facebook on the HouseSYSTEM website in October of last year. This site integrated individual House facebooks into a comprehensive online facebook.
When Greenspan realized that students were willing to disclose a great deal of personal information on thefacebook.com, he decided to add the new FaceNet features onto his universal facebook.
Thefacebook.com has capitalized on its success at Harvard by expanding to other universities, including Yale, Stanford, Columbia and MIT.
And Sherman said that he thinks the popularity of social networking websites at Harvard and other schools is not simply a fad.
“I think they have staying power. It is an easier way to get in touch with people that you otherwise may lose touch with,” said Sherman.