By Sherwin Loh

IT SOUNDS like the coolest thing to do - rubbing elbows with new friends and old over the mobile phone.

Truth is, making sense of the social networking services takes some figuring out.

Not least because the apps do not work as well on the phone as they do on the PC, for which they were first created.

Take the Facebook app: the Windows Mobile version allows users to check the phone numbers of the friends they have listed on Facebook.

The iPhone version allows chatting between PC and iPhone Facebook users.

However, neither version allows you to play Facebook games or access Facebook events and invitations directly. This can be done only on the PC browser.

While there is a Google Talk app for the BlackBerry, Nokia handset owners must download a third-party app to enable Google Talk connectivity.

We slash through the jungle of social networking services for a clearer path to mobile schmoozing.

Facebook
Free
Available on: iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, Windows Mobile phones and select models like INQ Mini 3G, Nokia N97

From posting updates to checking what your friends are up to, the Facebook app is one of the most comprehensive software built for mobile devices.

Differences from Web version: Updates and comments are grouped in blocs - by individuals - and not listed as a long thread.

To read the comments for each update, you have to click on the comments for it to load, whereas on the browser, you can see the latest replies upfront.

Functions like creating events and inviting friends to them are not possible on the phone. However, updating Facebook with your latest snaps is easy.

Take a shot,look for the option to upload the image via Facebook and post a comment on it. It saves you the hassle of transferring the image to a computer and then uploading it to Facebook.

Twitter
Free and paid
Available on: There is no single Twitter app for smartphones. Instead, each platform has its own third-party software. For example, there is free UberTwitter for BlackBerry, Motweets and Twikini for Windows Mobile and Gravity ($14.99) for Nokia.There are also Twidroid and TwitteRide for Android and over 30 Twitter apps including TweetDeck for the iPhone

Think of it as a free surrogate SMS service.

Post any message you want within Twitter's 140-character prerequisite. People who like your tweet then 'follow' you, allowing a direct link between you and your friends.

Twitter also allows you to send messages to and receive them directly from your Twitter contacts. (This is provided both parties have the app installed on their phones.) On UberTwitter for the BlackBerry, you can set it to ring whenever such messages come in.

This works great when the other person is living overseas. Send him a private message via Twitter and his phone will notify him.

When he replies via Twitter, your phone will ring, working just like an SMS message, but without the global roaming charges.

Differences from Web version: Truth be told, Twitter on the browser is a crippled service: you must be constantly in front of a computer to tweet.

On a phone, however, you can post on the move and re-tweet a friend's post immediately. Some of the mobile apps are also colour coordinated.

So your posts appear in one colour whereas direct messages appear in another colour. This makes scrolling past hundreds of posts daily a breeze.

Windows Live Free Available on: BlackBerry and Windows Mobile. For the iPhone and other smartphones like Android-based handsets and Nokia phones, users must use third-party software like Palringo, Fring, Meebo and Nimbuzz

One of the oldest and most widely used instant messaging services around. The mobile version works almost the same way as the PC version.

Learn to reply in short sentences, though. Hammering out lengthy discussions on a touchscreen or small Qwerty keyboard can be painful.

You can send files like photos, but do this only if you have a well-priced or unlimited mobile data plan. Otherwise, data charges may break the kitty.

Differences from the PC version: The latest Windows Live allows for multiple log-in, for uninterrupted conversation threads on different PCs. Say, you log in at the office to chat with a chum. You can continue the conversation at home, with threads intact in both computers.

The mobile version, however, supports only one log-in point. So if you are logged in elsewhere, your mobile app gets cut off immediately.

RSS (Really Simple Syndication)
Mostly free
Available on: Like Twitter, apps that serve as RSS aggregators (or update gatherers) are mainly third-party software. Windows Mobile handsets use SmartRSS and Viigo, which also supports BlackBerry. Nokia phones can use the free FlyScreen while Android-based handsets use the AndRead. For the iPhone, there are Pro RSS Reader and Manifesto.

RSS aggregators track website updates for anything from news to stock quotes.

Once you register for a site's RSS feed, say, for Top News, the service tracks what you want and compiles all latest headlines in a list.

So instead of visiting 10 websites to get up to speed, you simply head to the RSS app and catch up on your reading there.

A good RSS will link up with social networking tools, which is what Viigo does.

Say you read an interesting piece of entertainment gossip via Viigo on a Windows Mobile phone. It allows you to post a note about that gossip on your Twitter or Facebook page. You can then access the Twitter and Facebook apps on your phone to read what your friends and followers think of the news.

This way, you do not have to worry about copying the URL, shortening it and posting it on Twitter separately.

sherwinl@sph.com.sg

This story was first published in The Straits Times Digital Life.

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