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Facebook - helpful or waste?

BE recently announced a new Newsletter over in this thread and decided to do it via a FB presence. Immediately following the announcement were a number of posts from people looking for an alternative to FB since they still wanted to read what Rob had to say.

Michelle chimed in with the following question & comment:
I'm sure I'm opening pandora's box, but sheesh why such a disdain for facebook? I've found it to be such a useful tool. I use it every day to learn about new science discoveries, my hobbies such as CPs, astronomy, as well as instant news. Its like denying the telephone when it first came out. Yes its often used for talking to friends, but its also a great business tool and a great way to learn as well. You guys should try it out. I can lead you in the right direction if you'd like ;) Down the direction of science and learning instead of "OMG did you see what she wore last week?" hahaha
I was actually quite amazed at how many other people do not go on FB (since I thought I was almost alone in not riding the tsunami). My reasoning for staying away:

- FB is another massive time-suck that I can not afford at this point in my life
- FB is notorious for sharing private information with other entities (most of whom I'd prefer did not have it). In addition, they regularly make changes that share info by default and only after they've implemented said changes do they offer a way to opt out. They've conclusively shown (imho) that they care much more about the income they receive than protecting personal info.

With that being said, I still suspect that I will succumb to the inevitable at some point in the coming years. :crazy: There was a similar FB thread back in 2009 -- but that's ancient considering how quickly things change. FB is obviously a very polarizing creation. I am curious to hear what people enjoy and find useful about the site or why they (like me) stay away from the place? :scratch:
 
I just have like, 30 friends on Facebook right now, all of them close and whom I see on a daily basis in some way or another. IMO, it is a great method of communication. I don't post as much as I used to, but I usually put up a status update every few days. I don't find it to be a time suck, mostly just check it once every few hours for a few minutes (big advantage to having few friends). That said, I don't like the privacy policy, but it is where my friends are, and therefore it is where I am. :p

I personally prefer other social media. Twitter is my favorite. That site rocks...
 
Okay, now as most may not know, I am a grandmother and therefore OLD for being on this website :lol:

-I find that FB is a major time saver for me. My entire extended family is within my circle of friends and we are able to more easily stay in touch, share pictures, etc. two years ago when the three blizzards hit in a row we all shared pics up and down the coast throughout the day. When hurricane Sandy hit we were able to easily and quickly, via mobile posting, let everyone else know we were okay.

-I have my privacy settings set to the max, but even then I use a "throw away" email address, one not used for anything else in my life and I do NOT accept offers to join any of the games or apps often associated with FB.

-I also never, never, NEVER post a single word, link or image that I wouldn't want my mother, my children, my boss or clergy to see. Nothing is posted that can come back to bite me in anyway.

-I find that by following favorite events, companies, organizations, I am able to easily keep up with the info I need in one place.

I need to add one more thing. Recently I had some family members visiting Israel when the bombing in Gaza started (again). There ability to post real time updates, for free with hotel wifi, allowed everyone to know they were safe without the need of old fashioned "phone trees" every day.
 
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I wouldn't join facebook for all the tea in China. My life is not an open book to share with the world and I find the whole concept petty and narcissistic. I think it's sad that our society has sunk so low as to employ such a plastic mode of communication. Like my Nana used to say......"Fools names and monkey's faces can always be found in public places."
 
I do not have a personal Facebook or Myspace page but I do have "professional" pages setup for Battle Helm Magazine and Metal Hell Records.

These pages are linked to their corresponding Twitter sites so I or the other guys can post magazine or label news on one or the other page and they will show up automatically on the other sites so we don't have to bother re-posting the same crap everywhere.
 
I acknowledge the utility and shortcuts it offers, but I still don't have one. I have enough nosy relatives to begin with and I see my personal life as private and not something I can easily display for the whole world to see.

If you want to contact me I'd be more than happy to give you my cell number, email, or IM screen name. We don't have to do it in the eyes of other people.
 
I acknowledge the utility and shortcuts it offers, but I still don't have one. I have enough nosy relatives to begin with and I see my personal life as private and not something I can easily display for the whole world to see.

If you want to contact me I'd be more than happy to give you my cell number, email, or IM screen name. We don't have to do it in the eyes of other people.

Okay, I fully understand, and respect what you are saying. I offer you the advice that I gave my brother when he complained that he never saw pictures of hsd nephew because they were only on FB and never emailed to him.
It is not on display for the whole world to see unless you want it to be, but, if you have relatives, friends, etc who post their photos and other things you'd like to see or know, then get a facebook account, set it to as private as possible, use a throw away gmail or yahoo email account for it.
Once there just become friends with those who you feel the need to keep up with such as your weird cousin to be sure she's not planning to visit you. BUT, do not post anything yourself. just log in, look around to be sure you're up to date with your family as far as pictures, illnesses, whatever they may be posting, and log out.
 
1) time suck, and 2) unacceptable "moving target" privacy policy. And I'd add a third to the list: 3) abysmal signal-to-noise ratio.

It has nothing to offer me, especially given that an account requires continuous monitoring to avoid sharing data against ones wishes.
 
I fought signing up to Facebook for a long time. I needed to communicate with a large group of people and found creating a group on Facebook was the easiest way to do it. I don't like sharing information at all either. All you need to sign up is an email address and a name. If all you wanted was to read Rob's newsletter you wouldn't even need to use your real name. Facebook can only share what you give them. The phone book has more info on me than my Facebook page. I do agree that it would be nice not to have to sign up just to read the newsletter though.
 
  • #10
- FB is another massive time-suck that I can not afford at this point in my life
- FB is notorious for sharing private information with other entities (most of whom I'd prefer did not have it). In addition, they regularly make changes that share info by default and only after they've implemented said changes do they offer a way to opt out. They've conclusively shown (imho) that they care much more about the income they receive than protecting personal info.

For me, I typically only go on facebook when I'm bored, like waiting for the bus, a break during work or school or lying in bed not being able to sleep. So it doesn't really suck any time that I wouldn't just be staring into space anyway. I do also post a lot of pictures, but photography is my hobby and its a way for me to show my friends and family what I'm doing. (I'm talking about real pictures not just pictures with the iphone)
I do agree that for some people, usually in the teenage category, it is a big time sucker. I know many who are completely addicted and its their whole being. They can't go a minute without posting where they are, what they've eaten, or that weird guy that just talked to them.

I also use it to keep in touch with friends (the real kind) and family. Infact about 75% of my close family I don't even know because I'm stranded on an island. I've now connected with them and now can say that I at least know them some what :)
Also, back in the day when facebook was brand new (and many years after) they only allowed college students with a valid college email address to be apart of facebook. It was to keep in touch with your fellow students and professors and create networking for future business, or to just keep in touch. And like for me it was to keep in touch with all the kids I went to school with when I studied abroad. Cause we all know how expensive it is to send snail mail or make a phone call to Europe :0o:

As for sharing my private information. I dunno, my age, sex, and interests don't seem to be anything that I don't mind sharing. Yes if it was my bank account, my passwords or health records. But the other stuff? Thats just used for advertising IMO. Maybe I'm wrong though? ???

For me I enjoy facebook the most because of the pages I subscribe to. I really enjoy when I'm bored I can go on FB and know what the latest scientific discoveries are, or what to look for in the sky tonight. Meteor shower maybe? I also subscribe to news pages and get to see whats happening in the world instantly(well if I'm looking on FB). And like I said before I love photography so I have fellow friends who are photographers that I draw great inspiration from because they post their pictures as well.

I dunno, for me its less of a gossip site than it is a tool that I enjoy. But its all in what you make it ;)
 
  • #11
TF is my Facebook and don't have a need for any other form of online socialization such as Facebook :-D

Privacy is one of the main issues I have with Facebook and would much rather talk with my very small "circle" of friends and family in private through email. There are plenty of other places online I can get education and news. If a business requires me to have a Facebook account to do business with them, then they don't need my business.
 
  • #12
^^ What fullcollapse said... Alot of people i know sign up with fake names, and one time use email addresses. If you dont put your info on FB, there's nothing for them to share. You can log in, read what you want, Friend who you want to friend and follow, and have minimal risk of those security/info sharing risks you hear about. Its pretty simple IMO to avoid all that. With Facebook such a huge place now days, more and more businesses are using it for exposure and whatnot.
 
  • #13
Yup I only use it for online business presence and I don't have to share any personal info this way since there are relatives I'd rather avoid who do use these social media sites.

I think I had to give them my birth date when I registered the company pages but no personal stuff like: name, sex, dating, movies, etc... To get facebook.com/mycompanyname I had to give them my cell phone number to get a confirmation code by text. Why they can't send it by email I don't have any idea. But I haven't been spammed or telemarketed (yet) concerning facebook.
 
  • #14
I use it for my artwork, mostly. I only have 2 or 3 friends where I live right now, so it's helpful for staying in contact with the rest of them that live on the other side of the state, or country, or world.
 
  • #15
I wouldn't join facebook for all the tea in China. My life is not an open book to share with the world and I find the whole concept petty and narcissistic. I think it's sad that our society has sunk so low as to employ such a plastic mode of communication. Like my Nana used to say......"Fools names and monkey's faces can always be found in public places."

I think this is one of the common misconceptions of facebook. Its possible to make it open to the whole world, but really most people have private sites that can only be seen by the people you want to see them. Infact I don't personally know anyone who has an open site like you describe. Except maybe for Kim Kardashian?!?

I agree though, it is very sad that our society has dwendled down to this as a form of "relationship" thats acceptable. I often find it frustrating that friendships have become so superficial. I have many so called friends now that won't take the time of day to see me in person, but will constantly talk to me on facebook. This is not a real relantionship IMO, and its becoming far to common. Even my one friend that I've known since 3rd grade has become this way. I'm not too amused by this -_-

But like I said before, its all in what you make it to be.
 
  • #16
And quite honestly FB is no different then this forum, just a different name. And instead of posting on your page and others, you just post on the forum. Same info is required, same effort.
 
  • #17
Facebook is a great tool, but it has it's drawbacks. Over time I've found it's gotten too personal, especially when you see that one of your relatives liked a certain page. That has happened a few times in my family and has caused several conflicts over the years. It's one reason I barely go on anymore. Facebook also seems to have increased the gossip and drama status at home and abroad. It amazes me that one thing posted on Facebook the night before can cause drama to erupt in such a wide circle of people the next day (like high school). Still, Facebook has it's benefits as well. It's quite possible that some of our fellow CP vendors that use Facebook to advertise wouldn't exist if Facebook didn't exist. It also offers the ability to join foreign CP groups and observe different techniques and see what is growing on overseas :). It's really whatever suits you. I can see both sides to liking and not liking FB. I'm just glad that I go on every once and a while and not every day like most of my friends do. I get to focus on other things like caring for my plants.
 
  • #18
Decided not to reply earlier, but now that there is a legit debate, I guess I'll chime in...

I like Facebook because I've been able to build relationships with acquaintances. Now they're really nice people to talk to when you see them around. Not like hanging out all the time, but always talking when you do see them. Another reason I like Facebook is because you can see who is online and chat them to get info on classes or figure out how to do a homework problem. You can also do group chats which are easier than texting group chats where everyone has to have an iPhone and you can't see who is at their phone. Facebook is like the best smartphone that anyone could ever make, but for your computer.

I think a lot of older people have no use for it rather than to just catch up with old friends and talk to family that aren't close. For younger people, they may find the games on Facebook fun. I was obsessed with Farmville when I first joined Facebook. Now I just use it to talk to people and build relationships as stated in the first paragraph.

So the older you get, the more pointless Facebook should be to you...
 
  • #19
i actually joined in back in 2005. back then it was supposed to be a college only networking site---ie, you needed a university email to join. the purpose was simple, to bring student life and events happening around campus at your fingertips so you'd be in the know of what's going on. lots of cool stuff--follow different clubs and interests, inside jokes within the campus like "the old man deNeve and crusher appreciation network" <--no one here gets what im saying here right? facebook was actually useful back then--not so much anymore.

how ironic that they introduced the "college network" which allows you to connect with others from the same school....wasnt that what is was in the first place?
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  • #20
Decided not to reply earlier, but now that there is a legit debate, I guess I'll chime in...

.

I think a lot of older people have no use for it rather than to just catch up with old friends and talk to family that aren't close. For younger people, they may find the games on Facebook fun.

So the older you get, the more pointless Facebook should be to you...

I'm gonna get you for those ageist remarks pine :lol:
I just realized another major use for FB that Pine reminded me of. My son is in Afghanistan right now as a contracter. Text messaging and calling are very expensive. When I am on line I keep my FB page open but minimized. My computor volume is turned on. When he has some spare time he logs in to FB and if he sends me a private chat, even just to say a quick hello, my alert chimes and I can chat real time, not wait for email or a time when we can both sitdown and skype. I only do this at home, FB is not allowed, and rightly so, at work. (along with twitter, chat rooms and other forms of "social media")
 
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