Published: Wednesday, 11th August, 2010 6:00pm

Athlone native sets up Irish rival to Facebook

An Athlone native has set up a new social networking site with a particularly Irish slant entitled craicbook!

Two months in the making, founder Noel Lackey from Abbey Road, Athlone officially launched the new site at www.craicbook.com in the last fortnight and has already clocked up over 500 members from as far afield as America, Canada and Serbia.

Always interested in computing and web design, the 25-year-old, who has been teaching English to Spanish students in the Shannon Academy over the summer, started messing around on his computer in the evenings as a hobby noticing that there was a need for a social networking site tailored specifically to Irish people and our particular sense of humour.

"I heard rumours that bebo was closing in September and I just thought there was a gap in the market there and people would need an alternative," Noel told the Westmeath Independent this week. "There is another Irish networking site called nimble but it's very quiet, with very few members."

Boasting all the features that people will be familiar with on facebook, the new craicbook site is colourful and whimsical, with room to upload photos and videos, start a group, chatroom or blog or even check out the Irish jokes, play games or comment in different forums on topics as diverse as the GAA and going to college.

"I think it's a lighthearted site for Irish people to go, nothing too serious. You can have the craic online," he said. "I'm hoping people continue to sign up, I don't think it will take over from facebook who have half a billion members but a fraction of that would be nice," he joked, pointing out that a recent mention on 2FM helped to drive up membership and get the name out there.

Having spent a few months travelling last year in Thailand, Noel knows how important the social networking sites are when you are abroad, to keep up with the news of friends and family back home, and with so many people emigrating for work, he hopes www.craicbook.com could become a bit of a home from home for the Irish overseas.

"When I was away I was constantly on facebook. I'm hoping soon people will be saying did you see such and such on craicbook, the same as facebook soon enough.

It's a great way to keep in touch," Noel, who is son of well known local DJ Noel Lackey and his wife Ann. "The feedback has been very good so far and the ages of the membership has been very varied from people in their twenties to fifties.

It's like facebook and you add the craic that makes it uniquely Irish," he concluded.

For further information check www.craicbook.com