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The social networking sites of Facebook and MySpace need no introduction. Even if you’ve been living in a cave for the last 80 years with no electricity, you probably have at least 1 social networking page, and you’ve probably SuperPoked someone in the last 24 hours as well.

MySpace launched August, 2003. Facebook come along about a half-year after in February, 2004.

At the start of the social networking wars, MySpace took a dominant lead with users. It was the most publicized and talked-about SN site on the net. However, over the past year, things have started to change…

In July 2008, 132 million people visited Facebook as opposed to 117 million for MySpace. From looking at many different statistics, it seems Facebook is beginning to win the SN battle. Some analysts have no idea why this change in trend has occurred, but I have several suggestions as to why Facebook has become more popular than MySpace:

1. Security/Privacy
Let’s be honest: The name “MySpace” carries the connotation of perverts, pedophiles, and sexual predators in many circles. We’ve all seen it in the news–men posing as young boys to lure teenage girls. MySpace does not do much to police itself. Even though there are security checks, they are easy to bypass and it is very easy to pose as someone you are not. Privacy is also diffifult to come by. Facebook on the other hand has not had notable problems on this front. It exists more as a way to connect with people you already know rather than as a way to meet new people. Plus, all information is hidden unless you grant someone the right to see it. Facebook respects privacy and security.

2. Graphic Advertisements
Yes, both sites are guilty of them, but one is more extreme than the other. Facebook runs through a program that takes a look at your interests and tries to market to those interests. For example, I often see ads for David Crowder’s new DVD or conservative political blogs. MySpace ads go right after the sexual mind. The majority of ads for guys have a scantily dressed girl on a laptop who is wanting you to join a dating site so you can “chat” and “cam” online. Apparently if you’re a girl, you see ads with shirtless guys, or something like that. And at the top of the page is the infamous banner with ducks or targets floating by, with a promise of a PS3 if you knock down so many. Advantage: Facebook!

3. Fewer Shutdowns
It seems like MySpace has to shutdown every few hours for maintenance. It’s annoying. I can’t think of a time in the last 6 months when Facebook did not work. The site may run slow at times, but it typically works.

4. Viruses/Phishing
Ever opened a message or bulletin on MySpace and clicked the wrong button and suddenly you were sent to a porn site and that message or bulletin was sent to all your friends with your name on it? Yeah, me too! Had someone phish your account so you had to go back and change your password? Me too…too many times! Ever had this happen on Facebook? It’s possible, but doubtful. So far, Facebook has been very secure and has only encountered a few problems of this sort.

5. Nicer Look and Faster Loading
I know a lot of people hate the new Facebook. All of you have already invited me to join your group. But you have to admit, Facebook pages still look a lot nicer than MySpace pages. Facebook pages are laid out nicely and orderly. MySpace pages can tend to look like your redneck neighbors, who never take their Christmas lights down and have car parts scattered across the lawn. Plus, the HTML coding makes loading times sooooo slow!

6. Facebook Chat
MySpace started the revolution a couple years ago with MySpace IM. However, it required a download, didn’t work on Macs, and was not easily accessible. Facebook has fired back with Facebook Chat, an easy interactive way to talk to all of your friends without having to navigate away from the page. Or, if you wish, you can use Pop-Out Chat. It is by no means perfect. It seems like everyone is offline to everyone at every time…but it’s a start and a nice step up from IM services.

7. Applications
There’s tons of junk you can do on Facebook, from Fantasy Football to virtual pets to Visual Bookshelf to pretty much anything. MySpace is trying to catch up, but still lagging behind.

8. Sophisticated Yet Easy to Use
Facebook has a more sophisticated feel to it. In overall look and design, Facebook to MySpace is like comparing an office in a Fortune 500 Company to the room of a 15 year old girl. Maybe this is why the older audience has embraced Facebook. I’ll admit, it’s a little weird when I get a friend request from my mom or my best friend’s grandparents. But hey, they can understand it, and they know how to use it. It doesn’t require adding code. It just requires signing up.

9. Ability to Find Friends
If you want to find friends on MySpace, you have to go to someone else’s page to find them. Or, if you’re feeling really lucky, you can try to search by email address (Does anyone still use an email address or have SN sites made them obselete?). Facebook makes it much easier to find friends. You all already provided with the “People You May Know” sidebar. At first, I tried to turn it off because I thought it was annoying. Sure, you might not want to constantly see pictures of ex-girlfriends or the kid who stole your lunch money…in college but it provides an excellent way to see who is new to Facebook and friends you might want to add. Also, finding friends is as easy as searching through the Facebook Database of your school. Since you’re required to enter either your high school or college information, finding friends is very easy.

I know there are many more, but those are a few reasons why Facebook now trumps MySpace. Will it always be this way? Who knows? As long as safety, security, and privacy are a factor, probably so!

Tags: Facebook, MySpace