Monday, August 18, 2014

Orkut


Orkut users take a trip down memory lane as D-Day nears

 
Orkut users take a trip down memory lane as D-Day nears

 

 

 

 

The sugar-coated testimonials, see-all scrapbook, endless communities — all this and more will cease to exist, come September 30. Internet giant Google has announced that it will shut down its first social networking site, Orkut, in September this year.

While social networking now is all about 'likes', 'comments', 'hastags' etc, there was a time when being on Orkut was cool. This social networking site was like valium to the janta hooked on to the internet as it helped them connect with friends and like-minded individuals.

The news of its inevitable shutdown took many past users down memory lane, to the days when they made their debut on the social networking world with this site.

Back then, users lived in a no-app zone and very few owned smartphones with internet connection. So, for many, this site was their first step towards social networking.

Tadasha Mishra, a management student, says, "I think I was 13 when I logged in and it was my first social networking experience. It was a hot discussion in school and everyone bragged about it so much."

Explaining how it had become an important part of life then, Tadasha recalls, "I remember during my birthdays, the first thing I would do was log in and check how many people wished me."

The site was people's first initiation into social networking and the habit of spending hours, even sleepless nights, interacting with people, first began here. "We were just out of high school when we signed up for Orkut. It was the 'in' thing then. I remember going online in the evenings, and chat late into the night with friends I made there," recalls Rachel Ankita D'Rozario, a musician.

And who can forget the testimonials that people wrote: "I absolutely loved the testimonials section. I wish Facebook had one of those" laughs Rachel.

In a way, testimonials were a reassurance to users about their goodness, their looks etc. "I made sure all my friends wrote testimonials about me. I even ended up fighting with some who didn't write nice things," says Sandeep Khosla, an HR professional.

IT professional Subhojit Chatterjee recalls how his friends forced him into writing testimonials. "People used to reach out to others only so that people write good testimonials and they could show it off on their accounts. Even new themes, scrapbook and profile page was a big deal. We spent a lot time in updating all these on weekends," recalls Subhojit.

Relationships too saw twists and turns, thanks to the social networking site ? lost friends found, new friends made. "I found many school friends, who I had lost touch with, on Orkut. We could also see who all visited our profile — it was really cool," says city-based animator Upendra Sharma.

And thanks to the 'who saw your profile' notification, many got in trouble too! "People used to check if their exes or crushes have viewed their profiles. Also, boyfriends tried to hack into their girlfriends' accounts trying to see if they are having an affair," says Subhojit.

While Orkut gets ready to be buried in the graveyard of dead products, the memories of our first social networking initiation will always remain strong.

Twitter, too, was thronged with RIP messages for Orkut. Those who hadn't logged in to Orkut for years posted screenshots of their Orkut profiles. Here are some tweets"





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