I'm getting a severe case of deja vu here, because a lot of these new cutting-edge Web sites look a lot like those portals that were supposed to be the future of the Web ten years ago. Companies have never stopped looking for the one-stop-shop model that will capture eyeballs and drive revenue. Only now instead of just getting sports scores and weather forecasts, you can go deeper and develop a virtual personality. I'm curious to see if it works. Either way, I agree with the author about MySpace. I hate its ad-heavy layout and constant come-ons from "friends" looking for a good time.

Yeah, its funny how the same archetypes are reused over and over again. I am the rare 20-something without a myspace or such equivalent. I think it's great - its not only a conversation starter, but I don't have to digitally check my messages, or post photos of myself holding a guitar or a cup of beer. I don't spend a whole lot of time on that site, but it seems to me that the more kids try to make the space "theirs", all these web pages start to look the same.

I'll do without a phony airbrushed digital alter-ego, thank you.