That didn't come off as condescending to me at all, I appreciate the comment. I'm not entirely sure if my classmates use it to gain popularity or simply use it for fun but then again I'm not exactly "popular" myself so I'm not sure.
While I can't speak for your personal experiences I've noticed that Vine is becoming increasingly popular with my High School classmates (I'm a sophomore). Many of my friends I wouldn't necessarily consider "techie" found Vine and are enjoying it. Maybe age is playing a role in its adoption?
What I'm curious to know is, is it shatter or crack-proof? I don't know anyone who has "scratched" their phone screen but I see people all the time with shattered screens (or backs of phones) because they dropped their phone. To me it would be revolutionary if you could drop your phone without it cracking. "Cases" would be a thing of the past (and rightfully so).
Thanks, I actually began teaching myself HTML and CSS two years ago and a few months after, I learned PHP. I created a few projects and feel PHP is currently my strongest language. I'm now learning RoR and taking a Java class in my High School but it's fairly easy because I already have some experience with C++. I'm also in an HTML class currently (not my choice) and the teacher recognized that I already know the curriculum so she lets me use her Lyna.com subscription to learn things that interest me (currently RoR). My first impressions of RoR are that it's awesome! Each video I watch I think to myself, "Wow, this simplifies some of the things I used to do in PHP immensely." Anyways thank you for the advice, I definitely plan on going to college and I've already been looking at some schools. I've also already created a few websites for some local businesses. I believe the company MediaFire is actually based in my town so I was considering possibly reaching out and asking them if I could be some sort of intern. Thanks for the comment!
As a fellow 16 Year old I too have noticed a trend, especially in the popular iOS games. Last spring it was Temple Run then Draw Something. The game going through the school now is Bike Race. If you guys have any questions about what trends kids at my school are following feel free to ask but it's pretty much on par with the original article.