Thoughts on design

Whenever I use social network sites or browsing other websites, it makes me think about the words on the member pages. It says “My Account, “My Photos”, but the other websites say, “Your Account”, “Your Photos” etc. After I login or sign-in, the content becomes mine, the navigation and menus say “My xxxxx.” On the other website, this is expressed as, “Your xxxxx.”

There is a relationship between user and websites. Behind the website, there is a company which actually runs it for the visiting user. First of all, if the website says “My xxxxx” after the login, the site becomes the user’s possession. The relationship exists between the user and the service. Secondly, there are 3 entities with a user, a website (service), and a company (distributor). In this situation, the company holds they are the distributor of the service and content even if the user controls the functions. Lastly, websites don’t use possessive at all.

I don’t have an exact answer for which is the best for the users yet. But it never makes users confused when using the services. Whichever relationships are formed, the service must be clear with the system and content for users.