i don’t think that the social object model applies to linguistically-mediated interactions. It is too limited, it lacks a real action model, and it subordinates communication to object and context. In other words, it presumes that communication around a social object is communication about the object. As we all know, it often has nothing to do with the object, and everything to do with a shared context — if an object is subordinate to context, then, there’s no need for an object at all, just for context.

Timeline sharing is not social object creation. it is perhaps context creation. If I share an object, and you share the object, we have both shared the same object. But we did so for our own reasons, to our own friends, etc. We have nothing in common with each other. The logical fallacy is common. Amazon and other companies are built on it: I like X, you like X, therefore we are *alike*. False.

Timelines are stream modification and as such are a step forward in the engineering of frames of communication. But they don’t require that communication be about a shared object (whether that object was shared by several people during a period of time, or whether the people have shared interests, objects aside). These frames of communication permit multiple interactions to develop: between people about each other; between people about an object; to a person but aggregated with other comments to a different person (collected into a story).

The point will be, I think, to engineer multi-faceted communication so that real estate is created for the purpose of supporting and related ads and promotions. So any means necessary: allow people to communicate, be it post, share, like, comment, etc. Facebook is reframing interaction. I don’t think it’s got do with objects. It’s got to do with social.