Power Rec: Six Recommended Entertainment-Related Social Networking Sites

The internet has been streamlining a lot of daily tasks. Websites like Remember The Milk and GoogleApps use social networking to make tedious groupwork a lot more efficient, but more and more we’re seeing how entertainment and media can be enhanced by the features of Web 2.0. If you’re the type of person who can’t just enjoy a book, movie, or album but has to discuss, review, and recommend the hell out of it, check out this list of ten entertainment-related social networking sites that I use and enjoy:

1. Shelfari – For book nerds who enjoy fantasizing about their own private library to showcase (read: show off) the books they have read, the virtual shelving on Shelfari is a satisfying digital alternative. Shelfari allows you to organize a list of books you have read, are reading, and want to read. Their searchable database allows you to browse books and read reviews, while the shelves themselves allow you to record your own reviews, reading status in terms of page numbers, and star rating. You can also send book recommendations to friends or ask the community whether or not you should read a book. Plus the wooden shelf-styled interface is fancy lookin’.
2. Good Reads - This is sort of a sleeker version of Shelfari. Since the site is more text-based, it’s good for the no-frills kind of person or for anybody with a slow connection speed.
3. The Sixty One – This music site is great both for artists and listeners. Musicians can upload songs while listeners can gain points for actively recommending and/or commenting on artists. As listeners gain points, they gain “reputation,” basically identifying themselves as having good taste in what will become popular. The community seems very positive and is newbie-friendly.
4. Humble Voice – Humble voice boasts itself as an artist community, but it’s also a great for fans of the arts. The site hosts music, video, photography, and visual arts. It has a hip vibe, and the occasional whiff of pretension is overshadowed by a high quality of indie artists. It’s also one of the more elegant-looking sites out there.
5. Netflix – OK, so this might seem an odd choice, but the social networking features on Netflix can be pretty darn handy. You can allow friends to view your queue and then look at theirs… Which means it’s easy to give and receive movie recommendations that you can instantly add to your queue as you wish. Definitely nifty if you have a lot of film buff friends.
6. Flixter – Don’t want to spring for the Netflix subscription? Flixter is like the Shelfari of movies. In addition to the sort of features you’d expect from a social networking site (shared reviews, taste comarison, etc.), you can also take quizzes and play games. No more boredom for you!

Hope you find that useful. Now go be bored socially!