Certainly, I can't be the only one..

[pinkytoe]

I recall just such feelings when I had a little one many years ago. For some inane reason, we bought a house in one of those far-flung new suburbs where no one talked to each other. As the years passed and we lived in various houses closer and closer to the center of the city, that aspect changed. Currently, we are in the middle of a huge city in an older neighborhood where everyone "communes". We walk together, talk together, have gatherings, a neighborhood list serve, 4th of July parade for the kids, tree-planting group and on and on. I really do think it is the locale one lives in that makes a difference. I think all humans need nature and community but are so often ignorant of that aspect. Our modern world connects us technologically but I don't know if that satisfies the soul. Shopping malls need to go away...

[domestic goddess]

I can't answer many of your questions, but I would say that you probably don't need to be so worried about your son. 14month old children really don't have "friends", as most of us understand the word. They can play contentedly next to one another, but they usually are doing their own thing. Cooperative play comes later. And the mall probably isn't a good place to try to find playmates for him. People go to the mall with their own agendas, which usually involves getting what they came for and getting out, and a child who wants to be friendly is just going to make that more difficult, and their child may very well throw a tantrum when the two have to separate. No parent wants to go through that! So they scoop their kids up and head on before such a thing becomes likely. Your are more likely to meet people who are looking for socializing if you go to some sort of children's activity, as has already been mentioned. Everyone is there for the same reason, and the implied social contract is different than a chance meeting in a mall, on a busy day when people have other things going on.
I don't know where you live, but if there is a zoo nearby that is something that can fascinate a toddler for hours. So will a near-by park, botanical garden or forest preserve. He probably isn't as bored as you think; young children can spend hours observing an ant. He is more likely picking up on your dissatisfaction. If you can resolve some of the issues you have raised, I think you will find that his will just fall into place.
BTW, your son's social skills aren't "rocky". They are pretty normal for his age.