I haven’t been a member of a social network other than Twitter for two years now I think. I left Facebook in 2009, and since then I’ve tried a couple of others; I know I have accounts all over the place, but I am using them only for checking things out and staying current with the trends in regards to user experience design, and such things.

Than came Path, and roughly at the same time I got a new iPhone (I messed up my old, beat up 3G by jailbraking it), and I was tempted to try it out. Also everyone was buzzing about the—now famous—circular menu, which I am not all that excited about to tell you the truth. The beauty of Path lies much deeper inside it within the little details, although the menu was an excellent marketing move to get the early adopter nerds raving about it. Genius.

The Timeline

The main reason I wanted to try out Path (at the time thinking I will just be testing it) was it’s timeline. I was interested in checking it out because we are experimenting with a new Web application in–house that is based on a timeline (but has an entirely different purpose). Seeing Facebook implement their timeline profiles—and now Path—seemed like a good validation of a rather unusual approach. Unconventional to say the least. We’re still in development but really close to be able to test it and see how it will perform.

My Social Circle Is Mine

One other reason I was drawn to Path was that I knew I could control my social circle. This is very important to me, and the main reason I left Facebook. Accepting friendship requests out of courtesy—which is a norm on Facebook—is something I despise, yet a norm over there. Twitter is also heading this path lately; meaning that some people start following someone, and if they don’t follow back, they get unfollowed immediately. That’s ridiculously vain behavior.

The Interface And The User Experience

Another thing about Path—it’s so fucking well designed. The timer that appears alongside the scrollbar is my favorite feature, one of those when you say “I wish I had thought of that.” The entire app has that “it just works” feeling that makes it a joy to use.

What Path Is For Me, And What It Isn’t

I can see myself using Path alongside Twitter, but I don’t see it replacing it any time soon. Path is for close friends, Twitter is for the public. I feel confident posting private stuff on Path, and being more open about personal things because I know who’s on the other side. Not so much on Twitter.

I love the fact that I can choose what I want to make public through Twitter, though. That’s a cool thing for me as I am primarily using Path now for photos. The 4S has a fine camera, I’ll tell you that, and Path’s filters are cool.

One thing I don’t really like about Path are the public pages, they just feel overdesigned. It’s a personal opinion, and a matter of taste, but that’s really the only thing I can hold against it at the moment.