‘‘It also allows group conversations to send important information,’’ says Taranto. ‘‘You can learn a lot more about friends who you don’t get to see very often and communicate with people who live a long distance away.’’

Point Cook psychologist Claudina Garcia says as long as people are communicating, the online revolution is a good thing.

‘‘When you have existing friends, but, because of the lifestyle and business of everyday life, you can’t get to see them all the time it helps these relationships,’’ says Garcia. ‘‘If it wasn’t for the help the internet has given, you wouldn’t be in touch with them more than once a year. But you will probably know what they’re doing once a week because of the photos they are posting online.’’

But like anything, bad things can happen.

Garcia says the anonymous nature of online communication provides an opportunity for people to take advantage of others and be someone they’re not. She adds that becoming a slave to the internet can affect relationships in the home.

But despite the negativity, she says the positives of its potential far out weigh the negatives.

‘‘At the end of the day it’s all about human beings and interactions,’’ says Garcia. ‘‘It’s not different [than being face to face]. Whenever there’s human beings interacting there’s going to be conflict. Online isn’t any different, but there’s a potential for more things to happen.’’

‘‘[But] when one thing takes over another thing you used to do then there’s a potential for a problem,’’ she says. ‘‘This is the line between addiction and using it. If it’s an addiction it will have negative consequences.’’

Salesian College student Laura, 15, says Facebook is great for catching up with friends, but she is aware of the security risks involved.

She’s not allowed to take the computer into her room so her parents can monitor her internet use. And she would never use the ‘check-in’ feature, notifying friends of your location via a map on the site, if she was at home or by herself.

‘‘I don’t like a lot of the security settings,’’ she says. ‘‘They need to fix them.’’

Social media is not only a tool of communication, it has become an effective way to influence social change.

No one has seen this better then Melton’s Narelle Bowden, one of four moderators of the ‘Duplicate Melton Hwy Now!!’ group on Facebook.

‘‘We have definitely been able to make connections with many people across the community,’’ says Bowden. ‘‘It has also allowed us to join forces with the local police and become involved in road safety campaigns they have been running.’’

The online call for change was sparked by a personal tragedy for Bowden. Her five-year-old nephew was killed in a head-on collision at the Kororoit Creek section of the highway in December last year.

Each administrator updates the page daily with news, upcoming events on the campaign and to keep up exposure. They have also been able to co-ordinate events on short notice through the page.

‘‘Actions can be seen quicker and it helps build [the campaign] momentum at a faster rate,’’ says Bowden.

‘‘It’s also very cost effective, we’re not relying on printing or postage costs and we can reach a broader community in a shorter timeframe by going not only local, but worldwide. I would recommend it to anyone looking at setting up similar pages.’’

On her blog, Cheree Robinson writes about causes, parenting, family life and everything in between. She was even offered a job through her Facebook page.

The Point Cook mother of three started two years ago when the phenomenon took off.

‘‘I don’t do it for money. It is my release,’’ says Robinson. ‘‘A lot of bloggers write every day, but I write when I feel like it. ’’

Robinson has met many local friends through her blog, forums, Twitter and Facebook and even found out things about existing friends she didn’t know.

‘‘I’ve only been in Melbourne for five years, it was a good way to make friends,’’ she says. ‘‘Before my oldest daughter went to school it was so hard but with my online friends I can go to them when I have a bad day and talk.

‘‘I read a friend from school’s blog and she’s just been diagnosed with post-natal depression. I don’t think she would talk to her friends about that.

‘‘I replied to her blog and said I’d had it. She said she would never have known.’’

In the blogosphere, writers develop a reputation and become admired by other bloggers. Robinson wants to be one of them.

‘‘There’s a lot of competition out there,’’ she says. ‘‘You have to be able to sell yourself and I don’t think I’ve got anything to sell at the moment being new to blogging.

‘‘I’m always nervous when I walk in to a room full of bloggers. They’re a massive author because they get 100,000 hits a month whereas I might get 600. I’m tiny compared to them. But there are people who do less than me who might look up to me but I still think I’m nobody. But I’m not doing it to be someone.’’

@CharlotteAA9< p>Charlotte Azzopardi