Social Network vs. Collaboration

I see social networks as a place to get to know folks and to interact with them. It's like meeting folks at school or at a recreational event.

Social networks let me get a feel for you and you get a feel for me. No more commitment than that. They are great for sharing information with a group of any size without having to email every body one at a time.

But sometimes after I meet someone, I may want to do something with just them.

In the physical world this would be like going to a restaurant for a meal. Not everybody, just two of you.

In business this would be like going back to your office to talk about things I really do not want everyone else involved in.

This is more what I think of as collaboration.

I know social networks have give you the ability to set up Groups and some other private area's, but I want to be able to move further away from the network than that. I want to be able to meet you through social network tools, but I want to be able to do business with you in the privacy of your office.

I think this is the giant missing piece in social networks currently.