VISIT PINTEREST AND YOU'LL HAVE A HARD TIME LEAVING

As analysts reassess Facebook's draw and durability in the wake of its flagging IPO performance in the past week, there's one social network site drawing rave reviews from a rapidly growing and wildly enthusiastic fan base: Pinterest.

Named one of the 50 Best Websites of 2011 by Time magazine, Pinterest seems to be striking a strong chord with users. One visit to the site will make it apparent why.

Pinterest is a marketplace of wishes, ideas, photos, suggestions and brief commentary served up by a global community of users. There is virtually no topic off-limits and it could not be easier to use.

Just log on to pinterest.com and begin browsing. You'll become immersed in a seemingly endless roll of images covering every imaginable topic.

Recipes, fashion, travel destinations, do-it-yourself projects, nature, architecture, pets entering search terms on the site; I couldn't find a topic for which there wasn't an abundant stream of images.

You can zero in on a specific topic or let Pinterest randomly display entries. The site centers on images; users generally add a few words to pictures they find online, and a link is automatically added so viewers can go to the original source to read more about an item. Alternately, users can easily upload their own images and add their own brief descriptions.

If you see a cool photograph on a Web page that you want to share with others, you simply click a "Pin It" button from your browser (installed when you register, for free, at the site) and the image will be posted on Pinterest, available for all to see.

Let me caution you: This site is quite addictive. I made several visits to Pinterest, expecting each to last a few minutes. But in every instance, I looked at the clock and found a half-hour or more passed while I became lost in exploration each time.

One morning last week, I found myself perusing dozens of images of my father's hometown of Debrecen, Hungary, and then my old neighborhood in the Bronx; I unearthed sensational chocolate chip cookie recipes and then moved onto great suggestions on backyard plants that help repel mosquitoes.

I also enjoyed looking through scores of photographs in HDR mode, a popular approach to obtaining brilliant color from multiple-exposure photographs merged into one.

The creators of Pinterest gambled that if they took a simple idea, implemented it in an attractively designed website and invited the world to join in, they'd have a hit on their hands. It was a sure bet.

Barely two years since its debut, Pinterest has amassed 20 million users. It recently bypassed Linked In to become the third most popular online social network, trailing only Facebook and Twitter in the number of users.

It's attracting users in droves: Traffic has increased 145 percent just since January.

There are no ads on Pinterest, but online retailers are seeing green. A recent study by Shopify found Pinterest users are 10 percent more likely to buy items on commerce sites they discovered through links from Pinterest than users directed there from other sites, including Facebook and Twitter, and they spend 20 percent more than users from other sites.

All pins include links to their sources, so users who spot a great gluten-free cupcake recipe, for instance, can visit the originating site for details and additional recipes.

Much of the allure of Pinterest is it allows users to have an online presence without having to navigate a thicket of rules or learn arcane terminology, requisite components of Facebook and Twitter.

All you need to do is "pin" an item that interests you and assign it a topic name. You need only enter search terms to find people or topics.

If you find a poster who frequently pins items you enjoy, you can "follow" that individual and have their postings displayed when you log on to your main pages. You can save pins you like and share them, with a single click, among friends through Twitter, Facebook or email.

Have a little time to spare? Check out this engaging site at pinterest.com. Just don't be late for work.

Credit: Contact Peter Grad at [email protected]