MemeStreams now requires a New User Password in order to create an account. If you want the NUP, and you know me, ask, and I'll give it to you.

Although it isn't visible to most users, MemeStreams is flooded with thousands of spam related accounts every day. New users who join have little chance of being noticed by the community because their posts are drowned in a flood of spam. As a consequence, MemeStreams hasn't been growing in a long time.

I think that spam is an important element in the development of social networking sites. MySpace faded from the limelight because Facebook was better protected from spam and scams. On Facebook, you only get messaged by your friends. Not businesses that you may or may not have a relationship with. Facebook has not just killed off MySpace - it has killed off personal email, too. My personal email is now mostly mailing lists and messages from companies that I do business with. Recently, Google+ came on the scene, but it hasn't resonated with users. I suspect that the lack of a feature for privately messaging people is part of the problem. You're supposed to use Gmail, and Gmail has spam.

Spam has certainly had a negative impact on MemeStreams. Putting an NUP in place is the first step toward taking control of this community. Once the spam is totally cleaned out, we'll be able to move toward inviting people who we want to participate and who have an interest in participating.