Principle: Dewey didn't think there were set universal standards for things. He believed that the standards were what we liked and things were "good" if things seemed right in the specific context someone was engaged in. In other words, he believed that standards couldn't be decided on for a specific situation until they were tested out.
Application: Social websites should be tested before users begin to explore. And as users explore, there should be change and adaptation as the current standard fails to meet their needs.
Heidegger:
Principle: Heidegger viewed technology as an extension to man.
Application: We don't have to believe Heidegger completely to understand that he was onto something with this concept. Every day we walk around with our cell phones, drive in our cars, work on our computers, etc., etc. Our every day experience is intertwined with technology. Because of this there is a high bar for those creating social websites. Your users may not be experts on web design, but they are expert users. Almost everyone that will view their site has seen thousands of sites in their lifetime, and most can tell when a site is easy to navigate or not. Design your site with the expert status of your users in mind. Remember that technology is almost literally an extension to man these days.
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