It's out there

When us mere mortals are looking to join an online community to connect with the rest of the world, we get an enviable long list of choices like Friendster, Multiply, hi5 and such.

For the Really Rich & Fabulous set, they are quite content with just a single option - aSmallWorld.

A private online community of the world's jet-set elite, and renowned for its very restricted membership, aSmallWorld features an exclusive mix of business tycoons, American socialites, old-school family names, nouveau-riche newcomers and minor European royalty, and of course, celebrities.

In other words, if you happen to find yourself invited to aSmallWorld (membership is strictly upon invitation by existing members), you are likely to find yourself two or three friends away from a direct connection wtih Herbert William Hoover IV - from the clan whose family name is synonymous with vacuum cleaners, Ivanka Trump, daughter of Mr. Donald "You're Fired" Trump, and Quentin Tarantino, among other big personalities.

Your friends' profiles will typically feature photos taken at shoots for renowned magazines too, probably Vogue. And instead of in-your-face ads that say "Lose 30 lbs in 30 days", you will be greeted by sleek advertising from companies that want to introduce a gorgeous new toy to your existing yatch collection.

Just to illustrate the point further, a typical question on the forum will be along the line of, "Is Dior having its St Tropez party again this year?". Note: This will be posted by people who are not asking out of plebian curiosity, but real insiders who are expecting a personalised invitation.

All these may take a little bit of getting-used-to, of course. Especially if you have grown very accustomed to friends who insist on assuming online identities like TechnoFreak, Barbie or DarthVader, complete with profiles that see them giving a death-stare while straddling their bikes, or looking up coyly at camera-phones held 15cm above eye-level.

There's no hurry, though. Most of us will probably need a few lifetimes before we get anywhere near anyone who has the clout to invite us into this inner sanctum. Well, unless Ivanka Trump happens to descend in Singapore for a backpacking trip (just to experience the simple life, you know), get lost in Chinatown, and form a strong girly bond with me when I happen to be at the right place and at the right time to offer some assistance.

Oh forget it - I am happy with Friendster.


P.S. Obviously, I couldn't go beyond the Welcome Page of aSmallWorld.net. But from what little I had seen, I can't help but ask - although money can't buy you taste, surely it can buy you the services of a good web designer?

               Ivanka Trump                          Quentin Tarantino