Yahoo opens up social networking site

San Francisco (CA) - Yahoo has launched a beta version of Mash, its latest attempt at social networking.

According to the site’s official blog, the service allows users to create their own profile using a variety of custom design tools, and they are able to interact with their friends’ profiles as well. These are the same basic features that outline Myspace and Facebook. Yahoo Mash also lets users create "starter profiles" for their friends to make it easier for them to get started with the service.

"Of course, there are extensive privacy controls in Mash and you set the boundaries that you’re comfortable with," said Yahoo Mash developer Will Aldrich.

Currently Mash is in a beta stage and it is open only to people who have received an invitation. Those enrolled in Mash can also send invites to any other Yahoo user, much in the same fashion as when Google’s Gmail service first launched.

This is not the first entry into social networking for the online company. Yahoo 360 in the early part of 2005, but it failed to capture much of the fire that spread into Myspace and Facebook. Yahoo has not announced any plans to shut down Yahoo 360, so for now both it and Mash are actively supported.