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There is something spectacular about the internet, and no it's not about commerce or anything that has to do with generating money. What makes the internet wonderful is the way it facilitates global human connection, communication and information exchange. From anywhere on this planet, with a computer and an internet connection, you are never alone.
The idea of personal networking on the internet isn't a new concept, but somehow I found that what was available online was in many ways flawed. There was something cheap and insignificant about the other online networking sites, which I found crass and unexciting. I wished for something better. This is why I decided to create Hipty.com. I wanted to create an online network that was built for a purpose, that aspired to be, rather than the most popular website, the most important one to its users.
Although there is some value in frivolity, because we all need our freedom to be fast and loose, I wanted to create a site that was built upon an idea that there is real drama in everyday living, that information and communication could be shared honestly without being colored, and that the lessons to be learned in life were out there, being lived in every moment of every day by all of us. I wanted to find those stories and shine a light on them, and have their light shine back onto us.
Life is difficult, life is joyous, life is special and it's banal. There are lessons to be learned from all of it. Our blogs are the expressions of ourselves and they express our lives and ideas in words and sometimes pictures. It's amazing. So many lives occurring at the same time all around each and every one of us, yet we are privy to so little of what's happening. No matter how close you stand to anyone, no matter how hard you press against one another, you are always separated by your skins. Hipty.com is the tool by which we will surpass this obstacle. I want Hipty.com to be the connecting factor, the tool through which we may connect with one another on a significantly deeper level.
When we create windows into our lives, people do peer in. And although that might sound horrible to some, sinister to others, because of the control we have in what we allow to be seen, there is no real danger, just the beauty of human connection. The internet is many things and serves myriad purposes in our daily lives, but none have more importance than its ability to allow one human being to feel more connected to other human beings. The world is a big place, and sometimes even anonymous contact makes it smaller.
What’s more, with this digital age upon us now, as the internet becomes more and more an integral part of our lives, both socially as well as professionally, I wanted to provide people with a home, a base from which one might anchor down in this vast sea of information. If the internet is a universe, your Hipty homepage can be at the center of it. It can be the place from which you explore outward onto the net, or the place where you gather with friends and family to keep in touch.
People will use Hipty.com for many reasons. Whatever you're here for, I hope you have fun above all else. I hope Hipty.com is simple and frivolous and fun to some, while desperately important to others. To me, it's all of that and more. Some may come simply to network, others to stay in touch with friends. Some may come to make new friends, while for some this site may be a look out past whatever boundaries exist in their lives. All together, these varied experiences will translate into a rich user, visitor and most importantly human experience.
I envision a site that will be teeming with life, vibrating with the energies of its members and inviting the world to explore its pages. As I write this statement now, I don't know how it'll end up. I don't know how my words will sound if the site proves to be wildly unpopular and ridiculously boring. But I believe that Hipty.com can be a very special place. This site has a soul, and I believe it has character. Now all that's left is for it to have life through its members. I want this site to share the pain and joy, the anger and glee, the boredom and hope with its members. We all experience these things each and every day. I know this because we're alive and life will allow us to live no other way. As I planned and conceived of Hipty.com, one thing never left me: I wanted a place for all of this vibrant humanity to occur. There is something spectacular about the internet, and I want Hipty.com to be a part of that, maybe even facilitate that. If we can come anywhere close to this goal, this site will be a very interesting place to spend your time and hopefully, in some large or small way, you'll leave Hipty.com with a better understanding of who the heck is out there in this vast world of ours.
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