We’re all social networking nuts here at the @rcade, well all of us except for the “Technophobe”! We are pokers and farmers on Facebook, we join totally apt groups depending on our moods and forget about them a day later and we stalk people that we used to or that we want to get to know… We update our status every time we have something to eat, what our plans are for the night and how many pints we’ve guzzled back on a night out on the town.
We really can’t get enough of boring our five hundred friends about how awesomely boring our lives really are! Thankfully one man has now thought of a new twist to social networking and like any good man from Ireland, there’s a very nice Irish twist to the whole thing.
Noel Lackey is the creator of Craicbook.com, a social networking site dedicated to all things Irish. Whether you were born here or you great great great grandfather left Ireland or you simply just love the Irish you are going to want to sign up to this new site! Noel sits down with us here at the @rcade to explain the website and what sets it apart from all the rest.
Where did the idea come for ‘Craicbook’?
I saw a gap in the Irish market for a social network like this. I thought the word “Craic” is distinctively Irish and the word book would associate it with social networking so I put it together to form “Craicbook”.
Can you tell me a little bit about your involvement with the site and how you set it up?
I spend a lot of hours per day on the site. I found a hosting company online that specifies in social network so they have been very helpful to me too. The setup took about 2 months and is still an ongoing process trying to see where things can be improved and added.
Everybody is social networking these days between Facebook and MySpace and now Bebo disappearing, is there enough room ‘Craicbook’ to find its place?
I believe there is room for Craicbook to find its place as it is uniquely Irish. Nowhere else on the world wide web is there a site like Craicbook.
What separates your site from the others?
The Irish sense of humour! For example one of the most popular groups on the site is called “Getting Locked”… people would not understand that on another site in the world. In addition to that the site offers, chat rooms, blogs, forums, video chat and a whole lot of other things to be discovered within… we are like an all in one site.
The site is aimed towards Irish people, now is it just for people from Ireland and the Irish abroad or can fans of the Emerald Isle join too?
Anyone can join. The base of the site is Irish but anyone wanting to come in and experience the Irish way is more than welcome to do so.
What sort of response are you getting about the site?
I have received nothing but good feedback so far. It has been great. People are thanking me for setting up the site and they said they are having fun.
What are your plans for ‘Craicbook’ – is there anything you can tell us to look forward to?
Well I have a lot of plans but I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag yet in case some of them do not materialize. One feature I can mention though is that an iPhone app is currently being worked on. Other than that, my plan is to keep growing and have people enjoy their time there. I would like to see the site become the number 1 in Ireland.
Finally, if you were trapped in an Arcade for eternity, what one game would you play to pass the time?
I would play Smackdown! Vs RAW.
Craicbook.com is free to sign up to so get yourself over there!
