Apr
15
Ning Is No Longer Free!
It was announced today that the do-it-yourself social network Ning will no longer be free. If you aren’t familiar with Ning, it’s a platform that anyone could create their own social network. You may not even be aware of some groups you are on are run on Ning. The Homeschool Lounge and Twitter Moms are two popular ones that I’ve really enjoyed.
Although I don’t have much time for too much social networking, if you work online, you know it’s one of those things you must (should?) do. So when you choose your hangout, you want it to fit your personal style and needs. Ning offered such a HUGE variety of networks to choose from, anyone could find exactly what they were looking for. I’m sure many of those groups will now disappear.
How much this change will affect your favorite groups will depend on several factors, so don’t panic yet. (like you are…) However, it’s just another great free service that those starting a business on a shoestring will either have to pay for or do without. Ning is offering several affordable options that you can read more about on Tech Crunch.
Here’s the story straight from Ning’s creators: http://creators.ning.com/forum/topics/ning-update
Anyone know of another free alternative to Ning?
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April 23rd, 2010 on 2:47 pm
You can create your own group over at MothersClick.com. You can set the group to public or you can create a private group where only invited members can see the activity.
Groups offer event calendars, hosting of photos, videos and a discussion board.
To start a group you go to the POST CONTENT button in the upper right and choose group and it will walk you through the steps.
April 23rd, 2010 on 6:30 pm
Thanks Cynthia, that looks like a good option, especially for moms!
May 3rd, 2010 on 12:06 pm
Another free alternative is mixxt.com, offering functionalities very similar to Ning but with some additions.
Here are the most prominent advantages of mixxt:
- Strong Community Management features (e.g., newsletter system, access control)
- Powerful sub-groups
- Full collaboration features including wikis, image albums, file systems, event-management and CMS
- Advanced customization
mixxt’s philosophy is different from Ning’s: it is based on White Labeled solutions for large institutions and enterprises, as well as Freemium services.
mixxt networks are especially popular among education, work-related and event networks.
Users wanting to import their Ning network to mixxt find a useful tool in our Ning importer (http://bit.ly/ningalt).
Give your own mixxt network a try for free here: (http://mixxt.com)!
May 3rd, 2010 on 3:51 pm
Looks like it could be a really good option for ex-Ningers!