Pinterest: Create Virtual Pinboards

Discover Pinterest: A New Way to Share and Organize Visual Content

For those who frequently utilize Tumblr for photo sharing, a new platform has emerged that may prove even more appealing. Pinterest, described as a social catalog service, empowers users to curate and share images sourced from across the internet, or directly uploaded from their devices, on personalized Pinterest pages.

This site, structured as a collection of virtual pinboards, extends its appeal beyond Tumblr enthusiasts due to its diverse functionalities. Functioning as a bookmarking tool, a photo-sharing platform, and a personal online catalog, Pinterest simplifies the creation and distribution of collections with friends.

Getting Started with Pinterest

Currently in private beta, Pinterest has generously provided MakeUseOf readers with 100 exclusive invites. Details on how to secure an invite are available at the article’s conclusion.

Account creation is streamlined through connections with either Facebook or Twitter. Following this, users are prompted to establish several boards to begin organizing their content.

To assist users, Pinterest offers helpful suggestions for initial boards, such as “Books Worth Reading” and “Favorite Places and Spaces.”

The platform then suggests individuals to follow, and also provides an option to invite up to five friends to join.

A convenient bookmarklet is offered for easy sharing of photos and links directly from your browser. Alternatively, images can be uploaded directly to the website, which is useful for sharing content lacking prominent visuals, like articles or songs.

Managing Your Pinterest Boards

New boards can be added at any time via the top menu. Users can assign a name, select a category, and determine whether to allow collaborative contributions from other users.

This collaborative feature allows teams to efficiently share links and images.

To share an image found online, utilize the bookmarklet or paste the link directly onto the site. Each image, or “pin,” is accompanied by a description and relevant tags.

You can designate the board for inclusion and even specify a price when sharing products. The original link is automatically included, unless the image is uploaded directly. Link addition for uploaded images requires editing the pin post-sharing.

Interacting with the Pinterest Community

Similar to Tumblr, Pinterest allows users to ‘repin’ content from others, as well as comment on and like images.

Images can also be emailed directly to your Pinterest account using a unique address found in your profile settings. You can specify the destination board during profile editing.

While Pinterest is a new service, the potential for a dedicated mobile application to enhance accessibility is anticipated.

Connecting with Social Networks and Discovering Content

Linking your Pinterest account to Twitter or Facebook facilitates finding and following friends. However, the platform currently automatically follows your Twitter or Facebook connections without initial user selection.

When following others, you have the option to subscribe to all their shared content or selectively follow specific boards. This allows for a tailored experience, focusing only on content of interest.

Pinterest offers various browsing options, including content from followed users, all shared images, and the most popular pins. Content can also be filtered by category, with nearly 20 options available.

Profile and Board Structure

Profile pages feature a sidebar containing a bio, links to external websites, Twitter or Facebook accounts, and an RSS feed. Recent activity is also displayed.

Boards are presented in a grid layout.

Within each board, images or pins are arranged in a grid format.

Selecting an image provides options to share it on Facebook, Twitter, via email, or on your blog.

Pinterest: A Versatile Tool for Organization and Inspiration

The possibilities for collection creation are limitless, ranging from product wishlists to personal style guides. Pinterest is an excellent resource for home redecoration, wardrobe updates, gift ideas (with a dedicated ‘Gift Guides’ category), and general sharing of interesting content.

Access to Pinterest is currently available to the first 100 individuals who sign up using this link.

How do you envision utilizing Pinterest? Share your thoughts in the comments below.