I like the concept of being able to build your own social network. Currently we have Facebook as an option, but from what I've seen, the personal aspect of it can be much too distracting. While you can build groups in Facebook that serve well for certain things, you must open yourself up where students or colleagues can view your personal side. I found this unattractive and ended up dropping my work group because I was not comfortable with their "working" comments being viewed by all on my Wall. A few friends even commented, "Dude, what's with bringing work onto Facebook?"
Ning offers a good alternative to keep the personal stuff out. The group can focus on the objective of the group without being distracted. One thing though, by opening it up to so many, comments can get out of hand. For example, I saw one post with over 900 comments, that is just too much.
Now the resources available from the Educator Ning were good though. I enjoyed the classroom 2.0 site and the options it has. Again, the volume gets expansive, but at least it is focused on that area.
For simplicity, I might want to start with a Wiki for the class to focus on our classroom assignments and projects. I understand you can start a Ning with a limited group, but I find the editing components of a Wiki a bit more useful for student collaboration on a given topic.
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