Group-Specific Social Networking Profiles with Custom Fields
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Solution Overview
Problem
Social networking sites currently use a single user profile for each user, which can be problematic when users interact with different circles of people, as certain profile information may not be relevant to one group but is relevant to another.
Innovation Solution
A system that allows users to create unique profiles for each group they join, with customizable fields specific to each group, enabling users to maintain different profiles based on group-specific templates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a single user profile is used for each user, then the system structure is simple and easy to manage, but the profile information becomes irrelevant to certain user groups while being necessary for others
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the single user profile into multiple group-specific profiles. Each profile is divided into sections that can be independently configured for different user groups, allowing relevant information to be displayed to appropriate audiences while maintaining system manageability through modular structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by allowing different portions of the profile to have different visibility and relevance characteristics. Specific profile sections can be tailored to be relevant to certain user groups (e.g., professional information for colleagues, personal interests for friends) while keeping other sections private or irrelevant, thus optimizing profile quality for each local context.
2Loss of information
If multiple group-specific profiles are created for each user, then relevant information can be presented to specific groups, but the system complexity and data management burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements universality by creating a multi-functional profile system that can serve multiple user groups simultaneously. The profile structure is designed to be universally applicable across different groups while allowing local customization, reducing data management burden through shared underlying data that is selectively displayed based on the viewing group.
3Loss of information
If all profile information is made visible to all user groups, then complete information sharing is achieved, but user privacy and data security are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by assigning different visibility permissions to different profile sections based on the user group. Sensitive information can be restricted to specific groups or made completely private, while non-sensitive information is shared broadly, thus achieving complete information sharing where appropriate while protecting privacy where needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism (privacy controls and group-based permissions) that mediates between the user's complete profile information and the various user groups. This intermediary selectively filters and releases information based on group credentials, achieving both completeness of information retention and selective sharing to protect privacy.
Data Source
AI summary
A social networking system enables users to join multiple user groups and create separate profiles for each group they join on the site. Each profile has a default set of user fields and a set of customized, administrator-created fields. Members of a group may create a profile when joining a particular group and may create the profile using a custom profile template generated for each group. Thus, if the same user joins a second group, they can create a new profile for the second group based on a profile template that is unique to the second group. The system may use information from the first profile to auto-populate the second profile if the second profile includes one or more of the same fields as the first profile. However, users may be able to edit the auto-populated information in the second profile to make it more specific to the second group.