Time is distorted in the digital world. Facebook - launched to the world in the middle of the last decade - has already become part of the internet furniture. For anyone under the age of 18, there has always been a Facebook, and maintaining a profile is just one of the things you do. 

But what about the man behind Facebook? At 26 he now masterminds one of the most powerful communication tools we use today, and his single minded vision about what social media is, and how we should use it has guided the principles of Facebook from day one. Yes, there have been mistakes and dead ends - but for all the grumbling about privacy and commercialisation, billions of people still continue to promote themselves to the world through Facebook. 

In some ways Zuckerberg represents the archetypal internet nerd: Fiercely intelligent, slightly socially awkward and highly driven. In other respects he is has strong ideas that fly in the face of everything we thought we knew about online social dynamics.

I'm still undecided about Facebook. As a user I blow hot and cold, sometimes updating my status several times an hour ("Just eating a sandwich - yum!"), other times leaving it dormant for up to a fortnight ("Gone to bed ...zzz"). It is undeniably useful as a marketing tool, but I dislike the attitude that Facebook is the de facto standard for social networking. 

So is he a true social philosopher or just a tech-nerd with a very successful product? Check out the Mark Zuckerberg interview with Jose Antonio Vargas that appeared in the New Yorker recently, and make up your own mind.

See also: The march of Facebook continues