We have all heard about Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, YouTube as well as Twitter. These are the leading "brand names" for the rapid changing realm of social networking or some call it as social media. There are in fact thousands of social networking sites out there.  It’s amazing, really. Just look at this list from Wikipedia, then you’ll understand what i mean.  Here, I’m going to introduce to you the not so popular social networking sites that you might not even heard of. They are however equally effective. Perhaps, it’s only a matter of time for them to be among the top players.

1. Plurk

Plurk is, at its heart, very much like Twitter, but, as you can see from the screenshots, the interface is radically different.  Plurk displays new messages on a left to right scrolling timeline, with new messages appearing on the left. Plurk also has some other features you would expect from a Twitter-like service, with direct messaging functions, but also the ability to comment on items, something Twitter does not allow for. Like Twitter, Plurk also has an SMS and an IM interface.

2. Fubar

Fubar is the first “online bar” which has it’s own set of currency. There are profiles, shoutboxes, profiles, a message system, music players, games, gifts and numerous other features. The interface may not look decent but if you’re looking for a place to hangout online, you might want to try Fubar.

3. Flixter

Flixter offers the benefits of a Netflix-like community without having to subscribe. It’s a social movie site that lets users rate movies, discover new movies, and share their reviews with friends. It’s something like a social network for movie goers.

4. imeem

When social networking meets personal private networking, the result looks a lot like Imeem. This free service invites users to share blogs, photos, files, and messages, either privately or publicly. It’s hardly a new idea; established online communities like Friendster and Grouper work similarly. But Imeem provides a broader range of privacy options and incorporates peer-to-peer technology for better security and unlimited bandwidth.

5. Orkut

Orkut is a social networking tool (owned by Google) designed to help you maintain your friendships and meet new friends. Orkut was named after its original programmer, Orkut Buyukkokten (a Google employee). It’s very popular in India and Brazil. The site has all the usual features that you would expect from a social networking site, such as the ability to display personal information (and hide it from certain people) and interests, the ability to post videos and photos as well as a blog. As Google also owns YouTube, the integration between YouTube and Orkut is excellent, and posting YouTube videos to your profile or blog is simple. You can also join community groups based around shared interests and browse lists of friends of friends, to see if you can find anybody you know.