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Show Facebook.com provides online social networking for students social networking site, according to Comscore. And these are loyal users: Even during the slow days of summer, more than half signed in every 24 hours. Facebook is now the top-ranking Web site for the hard-to-reach college demographic: The 18- to 24- BY MATT MARSHALL AND ANNA TONC KRT When college student Valerie Wang meets a cute guy, she goes right to her dorm and calls up a Web site called Facebook. She looks at what fraternity he's part of. She finds out if he plays sports, if he's in a relationship and, if so, if his girlfriend is pretty. "It's an easy way to figure out information about someone without talking to them," said Wang, 18, of Palo Alto, Calif., a sophomore at the University of Michigan. Facebook, based in Palo Alto, is one of a handful of Silicon Valley start-ups that have tried to crack the hyped but elusive world of online "social networking." But while some others are either foundering or still working toward success, Facebook is seeing steady-even surprising-growth. It has become so addictive that some students find themselves browsing it for hours. "I wake up and check my e-mail, then I go to Facebook," said Tiffany Chang, 17, of Palo Alto, who goes to the University of California-Davis. "At night, I do the same thing. ... Facebook is like an ice cream sundae because you can do anything with it, and no matter what, it's still fun." It's still too early to tell whether Facebook, founded in February 2004, is here to stay or is more like the flavor of the year. But for now, it's on a roll. Facebook has 3.65 million users. In March, while school was still in session, Facebook had about four times as many visitors as Friendster, another year-old future-and in some cases current-spenders. Not surprisingly, advertisers have caught wind of Facebook's attractive audience. Companies like Victoria's Secret, Apple Computer and Electronic Arts have formed sponsored groups where students can discuss their products. Between 75,000 and 100,000 users have participated in each of these groups, according to Matt Cohler, the 28-year-old who runs daily operations. And they're paying enough money that Facebook became profitable earlier this year, according to Cohler. That was before the venture capitalists arrived. In May, Palo Alto's Accel Partners pumped $13 million into Facebook, and encouraged the company to focus on further expansion before stressing too much about profits. The magic recipe: Facebook has firmly rooted itself in the offline lives of its members. Facebook fans go to the site for daily activities like planning parties, finding the room numbers of classmates and just gawking at the lives of others. Here's how. You fill out a profile, listing your favorite music, books and hobbies, for example. You can form or join groups, which may represent real-life clubs or may simply bear cheeky names such as "Ridiculously good-looking people." Each person's page has a "wall" where friends _ and enemies _ get to write what they think of you. And Facebook lets students know which of their colleagues is up for "dating," or maybe even "random play." Facebook has become so pervasive on college campuses that if two students begin dat- ing, their ."coupledom" is only considered official once they 'fess up on Facebook. "One of my friends had been dating someone for awhile, and then one day I went on Facebook, and it said they were together," said Tim Pittman, 21, a senior at Harvard University and one of the site's first users. "And then I was like, wait a second, this is serious!" Even the campus police in East Illinois recently used the site to shut down plans for some beer-bout parties. Facebook works partly because its community is focused, said Dave Edwards, Internet analyst at American Technology Research in San Francisco. It's also an Internetsavvy community. "It's catering to a demographic which is much more used to online interaction," he said. One limiting factor to introducing... ^Bri PRECISION • BEAUTY • FOREVER I V Ncedham Brilliant is known for precision, beauty and lasting value. There is no otlu-r diamond like it. These diamonds come with a special diamond grading report, a precise cut to <issurc maximum light return and .i laser inscribed identification number for security purposes. You m.iy also personalize your diamond with a lau'r inscription seen only under magnification. 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