Ning, the social network-creation utility favoured by NextGenTeachers and Classroom 2.0 is now advert-free for educators. This is largely thanks to the work of Steve Hargadon who lists the following steps to setting up your own ad-free Ning:

1. Create a social network, if you don’t already have one.
2. Go to http://help.ning.com/?page_id=27
3. Use the subject line: “Ad Removal Request for K-12 Education Site”
4. Put in your social network ID at the beginning of the “Describe your issue” box, then just give a one-sentence description of how you are using the social network for education purposes.

I think this, and the fact that you can make your social network login-only, means that Ning is now as useful – if not more useful – than Wikispaces for use with students and colleagues!