Buzzed About Apps

 The apps "Fade" and "Yik Yak" have recently become extremely popular throughout campus' across the US. It's questionable whether or not this is a good or bad thing. Molly Coyne describes "Fade" as, "... a collection of pictures posted by people on your campus. You can use your identity or make up one and you also get one anonymous post each day. The picture remains on the app for 24 hours and the time goes up and down from there depending on the up or down votes it gets. If it gets a ton of ups then it goes in the “Hall of Fades” which everyone can see from campuses around the country." This app is very similar to "Instagram" the difference between the two is that "Fade" actually allows its users one anonymous post a day. Yes, that can be a fun feature to take advantage of, but are people taking a little too much advantage of that perk? I think so. Now, "Yik Yak" on the other hand is much like "Twitter" set up in the same manor but, keeps all posts anonymous, which is quite scary to me actually. 

 The apps can be used in positive ways and just for fun, but I feel like people are starting to use them for negative things, such as bullying. People post rude things even when they aren't kept anonymous, now that they can hide behind a screen without being given a name I think that this has opened a whole new door. I also don't think that people quite grasp that although these posts are considered to be anonymous to the public there are always ways to find out who has posted what. Users don't seem to understand that these things can be traced. I find it quite funny that the "Fade" apps slogan is "Nothing Lasts Forever," making its users feel safe and more secure to post what they please. In reality it may fade away from a time feed, but it definitely does not just completely fade away into thin air. I do have both of these popular apps, but I am more of a follower when it comes to these, I like to be able to see what others post, but I honestly do not post much at all myself. I more so have them to stay in the loop and up to date on things happening.
 An article I recently found pertaining the app "Snapchat" displays a perfect example of how what we think is private can be made public. Although these should be a fun way to share things with others we the users need to keep in mind that what is posted can also become very hurtful to others. Not only can it be hurtful to just their feelings, but these posts can also alter their public image and cause them hardships in the future.