Sites like Flickr are a great way to share our photos and creations with the world. When we upload our photos we are allowed to tag them with whatever words we feel like so that people will be able to find them when they type the tags into the search bar. However, is this system always accurate and more to the point, what does it say about people online?
If two people uploaded a picture of the same car, but tagged it differently it would respond to different searches. For example, one person might know alot about cars and tag the photo as the exact model and specific details. But, the other person might just tag it as a "red car". If someone searches for a particular model, that car would not come up because of it's tagging.
So, how does the tagging represent a person online?
People who know what they're talking about will tag a photo specifically and type in the specific words when they want to find something. However, if you're just a normal browser then it won't matter to you what type of thing you're looking for as long as it includes the tags that you have selected. The different tags that people use show how much they know about a certain subject and how they want their items to be viewed. Other users who have the same ideas of how things should be tagged will find their content much easier than those who don't.
Furthermore, those who upload the same types of content show what their main interests are. Using the above example, if someone uploads loads of pictures of cars, then it is obvious that it is what they are interested in sharing and finding. This also allows them to be targeted by people/companies who are involved with cars themselves, especially if they are doing a search on a search engine like google which scans your keywords to bring you adverts. Therefore, tagging can determine our online identity because it can lead us to adverts that are specifically tailored for us. It allows companies to target us through our tag searches so that they gain a specific audience that they know will be interested in their products/services.
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