I wrote earlier about the degree to which MySpace sucks as a model for staying in touch. Truth is, I really don’t care. MySpace is in it purely for profit, so it only makes sense that they’d try to confuse the hell out of their users while assaulting them with ads. That’s my perspective, at least.

Not everyone sees it my way, though. We get the “how does facebook do it?” question all the time. The answer is typically, “they do it wrong,” but I get the thought process behind the question. One would only assume that social networks have built their [user] experience around [user] behavior and that popularity demonstrates a successful implementation of [user] interface.

So, I give you MySpace, the most popular social network. Its user interface is most definitely not built around user behavior. Requiring 6 – 21+ clicks to send a friend a message should be sufficient proof of that.

Think facebook is any better? Nope. They just save you the effort of looking for the log in form by requiring you log in before you do anything at all.

So, the next time you find yourself asking how the popular sites “do it”, step back and also ask how you should be doing it. I like to think the latter is the better question.

Moral of the story: beware what you clone. We’ve all seen Multiplicity.

Related to the moral of the story: man, I wish I had my copy of Multiplicity with me last weekend while I was getting coffee.

Plot: I want to send a friend a message but don’t have their email address. I do know that they’re on MySpace. Should be pretty simple to ping them over there, right?

Scenario 1

This person is already my friend on MySpace.

1. Fire up myspace.com.
2. Search for the name.
3. Click on the profile link.
4. Click “Send Message” in contact options.
5. Take a minute to figure out that you’ve just been bounced back to the front page.

If you spot the “you must be logged in to do that” message, proceed to the next step. Otherwise, start over.

6. Log in.
7. Use the form to send a note to your friend.

6 page views, 37 ad impressions to send a note. Assuming, of course, that I remember my password and don’t wander.

Scenario 2

This person is not yet my friend on MySpace.

1. Fire up myspace.com.
2. Search for the name.
3. Click on the profile link.
4. Click add to friends.
5. Submit form.
6. Wait for friend to accept me. (This will take him 3 page views to do.)
7. Receive authorization from friend by via MySpace.
8. Log in
9. View automated acceptance message.
10. Click on profile link.
11. Click “Send Message” in contact options.
12. Use the form to send a note to your friend.

11 page views, something like 54 ad impressions to send a note.

Scenario 3

I don’t have a MySpace account.

1. Fire up myspace.com.
2. Click sign up.
3. Proceed through 5 – 7 pages of profile information.
4. Submit.
5. Check email for confirmation request.
6. Click confirmation link.
7. Search for the name.
8. Click on the profile link.
9. Click add to friends.
10. Submit form.
11. Wait for friend to accept me. (This will take him 3 page views to do.)
12. Receive authorization from friend by via MySpace.
13. Log in
14. View automated acceptance message.
15. Click on profile link.
16. Click “Send Message” in contact options.
17. Use the form to send a note to your friend.

18-21 page views if I know exactly what I’m doing, fill out all information immediately, and do not add any photos. I also have two trips to my email client and cause my friend to 6 page views to accept my request and then read my note. Ad impressions will vary slightly depending on the path, but I saw approximately 80.

Let’s not forget that these are 6 to 21 of the most cluttered pages you’ll find on the Internet. It takes serious dedication to not wander off.

Maybe it’s time for an outside review.