Why Facebook isn't for adults...

[BoberFett]

Originally posted by: DarrelSPowers
Also, its a cougar vehicle for hunting down younger boys to cheat on their husbands with.

Where do I sign up?

 

[threeringbinder]

Originally posted by: yllus
Personally, I'm pleased with the ease in which Facebook lets me get in touch with various groups of friends I have. Most everyone I know keeps up-to-date contact information in their profile which lets me look up their phone number or address quickly and easily, even from my mobile phone if needed. It also reminds me of upcoming birthdays, something I'm terrible about keeping track of.

It's also a really useful party planning device - it's very easy to send out party invites and keep track of who's coming and who's not to arrange rides, number of seats, sleeping arrangements and so forth. My coworker also runs a music blog in his spare time that puts on events every few months and Facebook is indispensible for figuring out his costs and profits.

Frankly, I think the major reasons AnandTechers are down on Facebook boil down to A) it's cool to hate what's popular or B) they don't have enough friends or interesting events going on in their lives to make the site useful. Or a combination of the two. I don't exactly live on Facebook like some people I know do (or did, I think the initial craze has worn off) but I certainly enjoy my once a day read to see what's going on and where I might want to head this weekend.

Edit: Grammar.

i agree with this. or should i say, "I like this" :thumbsup:

plus, i log on to play poker and other game widgets...

 

[Fingolfin269]

Originally posted by: threeringbinder

Originally posted by: yllus
Personally, I'm pleased with the ease in which Facebook lets me get in touch with various groups of friends I have. Most everyone I know keeps up-to-date contact information in their profile which lets me look up their phone number or address quickly and easily, even from my mobile phone if needed. It also reminds me of upcoming birthdays, something I'm terrible about keeping track of.

It's also a really useful party planning device - it's very easy to send out party invites and keep track of who's coming and who's not to arrange rides, number of seats, sleeping arrangements and so forth. My coworker also runs a music blog in his spare time that puts on events every few months and Facebook is indispensible for figuring out his costs and profits.

Frankly, I think the major reasons AnandTechers are down on Facebook boil down to A) it's cool to hate what's popular or B) they don't have enough friends or interesting events going on in their lives to make the site useful. Or a combination of the two. I don't exactly live on Facebook like some people I know do (or did, I think the initial craze has worn off) but I certainly enjoy my once a day read to see what's going on and where I might want to head this weekend.

Edit: Grammar.

i agree with this. or should i say, "I like this" :thumbsup:

plus, i log on to play poker and other game widgets...

Yup, I like Facebook too. If I didn't like it I would just delete my account and not tell anyone about it but that's just me.

 

[PingSpike]

I'm not sure why you expected everyone to willingly air all their dirty laundry to the entire internet. I love reading about other people's fuck ups as much as anyone, because judging people is human nature...but you do understand why people aren't going to write shit like "my life is a failure, I married a shaved ape that raped the baby sitter and we're going bankrupt!" on their facebook page. People generally do not want to be humiliated.

 

[MrMatt]

Originally posted by: meltdown75
i'd like to rejoin and rebuild my friend list. there are a bunch of highschool friends / acquaintances that I don't really care about but they got added during the facebook craze.

i probably won't though.

what i do now is... when someone's birthday comes up... if it is someone that i don't really talk to or see on a regular basis, I just delete them from my list. Happy Birthday, GTF off my friend list.

it's the great facebook friend list cull of 2009. i have 292 people on there. i'd like to get it down to 100 or so if possible.

people that never update or post anything bug me. so do people that post / update too much. they will also be deleted.

all i do on there is play poker anyway.

yeah, I agree. I know a guy with 3000 friends. Do you REALLY talk to 3000 people on a consistent basis? Do you even hear from 2700 of them on a YEARLY basis? No. You don't. Delete like 2700 of those friends, mr. popular.

 

[Stuxnet]

Originally posted by: meltdown75
what i do now is... when someone's birthday comes up... if it is someone that i don't really talk to or see on a regular basis, I just delete them from my list. Happy Birthday, GTF off my friend list.

ROFL

I have about 150 friends so far 75 are current friends, family, or professional contacts, another 50 are people from HS/college that I honestly wanted to catch up with, and 25 are random damn strangers who added me because they know someone on my list and I was too pussy/wet-behind-the-ears to decline the request.

Those 25 strangers are going to go sooner rather than later. I also like the birthday cleansing. I'll be applying that to the phonies who refuse to let their guard down long enough for me to get to know them again.

 

[AreaCode707]

Counterpoint: My recent status messages include that I've had 6 hours of sleep in the last 48 hours and that dropping a boiling hot cup of tea on your lap causes 2nd degree burns

<--- does not have perfect life and doesn't care who knows it

 

[Stuxnet]

Originally posted by: Fingolfin269
If I didn't like Facebook I would just delete my account and not tell anyone about it but that's just me.

I find that hard to believe, since if you didn't like the topic you would simply pass by and not tell anyone about it.

I find it strange how a few people have taken such an odd offense to a rather benign rant. Several have even tried to make it personal.

I'm curious as to why.

 

[PingSpike]

So I only joined facebook because I noticed an old friend of mine I hadn't really hung around with for awhile actually lived in a nearby town. But I friended a couple other guys I used to hang out with.

I've noticed during a few snooping scans of others friend lists that there seem to be a lot of people that are "leveling up" with friends. At least, I have to guess thats what is going on. I see people with 300 friends and stuff. I have to ask...as I'm a fairly introverted person, is it actually possible to give two bat shits about 300 people? I know I sure as fuck couldn't.

But these massive friend lists seem to be the norm...or at least fairly common.

 

[imported_Imp]

They're probably taking offense cause you're indirectly calling everyone who happilly uses it a faker/phony.

I've thought about setting up an account, but I really don't give 2 shits about most of the people in my past. If anything, there are only 2 or 3 friends that I lost touch with from highschool and college that I'd like to find; my googling has found that they are indeed on Facebook (is it wrong to admit that?).

Originally posted by: PingSpike
So I only joined facebook because I noticed an old friend of mine I hadn't really hung around with for awhile actually lived in a nearby town. But I friended a couple other guys I used to hang out with.

I've noticed during a few snooping scans of others friend lists that there seem to be a lot of people that are "leveling up" with friends. At least, I have to guess thats what is going on. I see people with 300 friends and stuff. I have to ask...as I'm a fairly introverted person, is it actually possible to give two bat shits about 300 people? I know I sure as fuck couldn't.

But these massive friend lists seem to be the norm...or at least fairly common.

Social stigma. I've been to some forums loaded with introverts who actually ask "Do I look like a loser with only 4 friends on Facebook?".

 

[mugs]

Did you go to a religious school?

 

[Fingolfin269]

Originally posted by: jbourne77

Originally posted by: Fingolfin269
If I didn't like Facebook I would just delete my account and not tell anyone about it but that's just me.

I find that hard to believe, since if you didn't like the topic you would simply pass by and not tell anyone about it.

I find it strange how a few people have taken such an odd offense to a rather benign rant. Several have even tried to make it personal.

I'm curious as to why.

I'm not taking offense at all. I'm curious as to why you would think my disagreeing with your assertion that Facebook isn't for adults is in some way reflective of 'taking offense'?

And believe me, I don't plan to tell anyone that I posted in this topic.

 

[Stuxnet]

Originally posted by: Fingolfin269
I'm not taking offense at all. I'm curious as to why you would think my disagreeing with your assertion that Facebook isn't for adults is in some way reflective of 'taking offense'?

That was the implication when you essentially said "why bother writing about it if you don't like it."

Because this is Off Topic and I felt like it.

Originally posted by: mugs
Did you go to a religious school?

Negative

Originally posted by: PingSpike
I've noticed during a few snooping scans of others friend lists that there seem to be a lot of people that are "leveling up" with friends. At least, I have to guess thats what is going on. I see people with 300 friends and stuff. I have to ask...as I'm a fairly introverted person, is it actually possible to give two bat shits about 300 people? I know I sure as fuck couldn't.

But these massive friend lists seem to be the norm...or at least fairly common.

To the contrary, I consider myself rather extroverted. I hate sitting by myself and not interacting with others. However, I don't see how it's remotely possible to care one way or the other about 300 people. But then again, despite being an extrovert, I've always gone to lengths to maintain a small circle (10 - 20) of "really close" friends rather than amassing 50 - 100 acquaintances.

 

[TuxDave]

Originally posted by: JLee
Your friends suck.

ding ding ding, it's a friend problem, not a facebook problem. My friends keep it real and use it to vent.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

As many others in this thread have noted, you seem to be the exception with regards to friends' statuses. Most people in my status feed are being pretty truthful about how much work sucks, they're tired or they're excited to go snowboarding this weekend.

I have found Facebook to be excellent for sharing pictures. I have posted pics from road trips and vacations I've been on, and since going away to Europe for 3 months, I have Facebook friended most people on the Contiki tour I was on. We don't talk very often, but it has been great to see each others' pics - everyone seems to catch a different angle for the same shot.

Really though, Facebook is overused by teens and college kids. Some of my cousins seem to be on there constantly, posting about the most recent episode of Gossip Girl or how they got bitched out by their parents when they came home shit-blasted at 4am last weekend. Seems like a waste of time to me; although I post regularly on AT, so does that make me a hypocrite?

On another note, I am on the friend cull as well. Under 180 now.

 

[irishScott]

Originally posted by: PingSpike
So I only joined facebook because I noticed an old friend of mine I hadn't really hung around with for awhile actually lived in a nearby town. But I friended a couple other guys I used to hang out with.

I've noticed during a few snooping scans of others friend lists that there seem to be a lot of people that are "leveling up" with friends. At least, I have to guess thats what is going on. I see people with 300 friends and stuff. I have to ask...as I'm a fairly introverted person, is it actually possible to give two bat shits about 300 people? I know I sure as fuck couldn't.

But these massive friend lists seem to be the norm...or at least fairly common.

300 isn't massive at all. I have 232, and that just encompasses most of my acquaintances/friends from high school and college. You should see some of the sorority chicks I know. 450+ friends, with a few nearing 1000. :roll:

 

[thegimp03]

I find that a lot of people I'm in contact with on FB update their status constantly and they use it as a brag mechanism when stuff is good or as a way to get sympathy when stuff is bad. These people LOVE attention, but I don't let it bother me. Usually I just ignore it.

 

[TuxDave]

Originally posted by: irishScott

Originally posted by: PingSpike
So I only joined facebook because I noticed an old friend of mine I hadn't really hung around with for awhile actually lived in a nearby town. But I friended a couple other guys I used to hang out with.

I've noticed during a few snooping scans of others friend lists that there seem to be a lot of people that are "leveling up" with friends. At least, I have to guess thats what is going on. I see people with 300 friends and stuff. I have to ask...as I'm a fairly introverted person, is it actually possible to give two bat shits about 300 people? I know I sure as fuck couldn't.

But these massive friend lists seem to be the norm...or at least fairly common.

300 isn't massive at all. I have 232, and that just encompasses most of my acquaintances/friends from high school and college. You should see some of the sorority chicks I know. 450+ friends, with a few nearing 1000. :roll:

<-- 90 on my list. Maybe 5 of them that I knew but wasn't really close so I made a special friend list that restricts how much they see in my profile.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: IcebergSlim

My experience so far has been that the hot shots in high school were only that. They peaked in High school.

Didn't you graduate within the last 3-4 years though?

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: irishScott
300 isn't massive at all. I have 232, and that just encompasses most of my acquaintances/friends from high school and college. You should see some of the sorority chicks I know. 450+ friends, with a few nearing 1000. :roll:

Many of those with 1000+ don't know any of them. I try to keep mine to those I have known or boned.

I have close to 200 people, went to a couple parties and now I need a text plan on my phone because chicks are sending me them.

I may attend a few meet-and-greets for high schools that my middle school class went too. They had a get together last month that was awesome and all our 20 years are coming up. I don't know if any of you know the band L.U.N.G.S. or Collapsed Lung, but two of my good friends went on to form that...just neat stuff to chill and talk about.

 

[olds]

Originally posted by: MrMatt
what an informative post. Thanks for your contribution to the anandtech off-topic forum

wwybywb?

 

[LtPage1]

It's like smarmy Christmas Card letters. Facebook is an engine for drunk pictures and party coordination. Anything else is a waste of time.

 

[JDub02]

So you're blaming facebook for how much your friends suck?

 

[Stuxnet]

Originally posted by: JDub02
So you're blaming facebook for how much your friends suck?

Yes, that's exactly it. You've hit the nail right on the head. Congratulations!

 

[OnePingOnly]

jbourne,

How is it really any different from day to day reality? People would rather put up a "white picket fence" front due to insecurities they may have. Also, many people have professional contacts on there; it's not really behooving to post ridiculous shit that the college kids cling to. Honestly, Facebook is merely a portal to get in contact with someone and see a few pictures, etc. If you really dislike Facebook I advise you to delete your account.