User blog comment:RusMan/PERMANENT HANGOUT,FOR MB WIKI?/@comment-3444778-20130608043316

Official? No. Unofficial? Maybe. Welcome to an internet safety rant, by Sherm.

What is the point of video chat, outside of the realm of connecting with people you already know in real life? It depends on the participants involved and the motive for attendance. The way I see it, there are only really two ways to use video chat in this scenario (that which excludes people you already know).

One of these ways is as a marketing tool. This is the way we see video chat used in social networking sites. Examples of this is people going into chat because they're curious, they want to show off, or they want to "market themselves" (essentially I mean flirting, but it's a bit broader; think something more like trying to become popular, especially among those of the opposite gender). This is where safety becomes a big issue. People that are normally cool-headed become more boisterous and risky. People that are normally boisterous and risky flock to these social events, and things rarely don't get out of hand. So if you want to participate in a video chat for any of the reasons above, to gain popularity, or just because you're curious about what other people look like, please refrain. When you join these, you put your safety in the hands of all other participants, and you have no control over what they do.

The other way to use video chat is much more restricted, much more controlled, and how I believe video chat should be used. Sometimes there are people you really know and trust, and you wouldn't have a problem with meeting face-to-face in real life. Sometimes you get to know someone so well that typed conversations can only carry things so far. And it's in situations like these that a video chat would seem like an ideal communication medium. If you're really feeling limited in your ability to communicate with a close friend, or even a group of them, then there shouldn't be an issue extending your methods to video chat.

Video chats are a powerful tool, and can be dangerous when used incorrectly. You have many cyber crimes stemming from usage of such internet communication, including identity theft and a handful of things I don't think it would be appropriate to mention here. But on the other hand, in the hands of someone you trust, using a webcam is the next best thing to chatting with them face-to-face; and you speak with people face-to-face everyday, often to strangers. If the fact that it's through the internet is the only thing that's holding you back from contacting a trusted friend, maybe it's time you try stepping out of your shell.