Facebook

[Amelia...]

Hey everyone.

I was just wondering what everyone thinks about Facebook, or any social networking site. I was probably the last person on earth to sign up for facebook (seriously, my dad got a Facebook account before I did. I've been on for less than a year) and I have to say that I am still not entirely sure what the point of it is. It's really cool that you can connect with people you haven't spoken to or seen in a really long time. But honestly, once you've friended (wow, new verb,,,,) them and realised that there was a reason you hadn't spoken to them since you were seven years old, the fun wears off. I find myself checking my facebook page at least ten times a day, and am constantly frustrated by the fact that NOTHING EVER HAPPENS. Nothing changes! Sure a friend will occasionally put a post up on my wall asking if I'd like to hang out on the weekend, but that could have been accomplished by emailing, texting, or phoning me. Half the stuff people write in their statuses (stati?) is so stupid and pointless that I just want to reach through the computer screen and punch whoever wrote it. There really is nothing fun, productive, or interesting about Facebook.

 

My question then is, why is everyone with a computer, including me, TOTALLY ADDICTED TO IT? I mean, I spend time on facebook that I could be spending on my reading and coursework, not to mention the great Canadian novel that I have been aspiring to write and publish since I was ten years old. What is it about social networking that sucks people in and glues them to their computer screens? What makes people stop listening to a prof in a lecture to answer an MSN message, text, tweet, or wall post? How addicted to social networking are you? What do you think it does to personal relationships and communication?

 

Ok so that was more than one question, but I want to hear your thoughts! Thanks!

[Amelia...]

no one? :(

[Gwin]

Well, I have a lot of friends living far away because of the camp I go to every summer. It's hard to keep in touch with all of them, so facebook is a nice way of periodically seeing what they're up to, keeping them in my thoughts, and occasionally sparking a conversation. That sentence was far too long.
Plus some of the games are fun. What I really don't get is Farmville...

[Leanne]

Okay, first of all, your hyperboles are making you sound really catty, like the kind of person who would try to peer pressure others into doing stuff.

Second of all, no wonder you think nothing ever happens. You're checking it too often. If you don't like it, don't do it. Stop blaming the platform for your own choices.

I think Facebook, like most things, is best in moderation. It's rather convenient if you want to use it to communicate with people, especially if you're just asking someone you barely know about the homework, but once you involve yourself in superfluous fluff like farmville, you're just wasting your time.

[Amelia...]

The point of my post was to show that even though I think it's stupid, I still check facebook all of the time. I am by no means the only one who does this. People spend hours every day on facebook and other social networking sites, despite the fact that nothing ever really happens. I was wondering why that was and attempting to illustrate the ridiculousness and pointlessness of the situation. Our society is addicted to social media and I wanted to hear other people's thoughts on the matter.

I really don't know how you got from hyperbole use to me being a catty, peer-pressuring b*tch. I'm sorry you don't like my writing style but I find that a bit of a stretch, not to mention a highly offensive one. If you found my question so irrelevant, if you believe that I'm "blaming the platform for my own choices", then why bother to reply at all? Unless of course I peer pressured you into doing it with my bump message.

I do agree with both you and Gwin that Farmville is ridiculous. Apparently, Farmville players outnumber real farmers in the US 60 to 1. Might be problematic???

[Allie]

"NOTHING EVER HAPPENS!" is a hyperbole. "TOTALLY ADDICTED TO IT?" is too.
You also say that you probably the last person to get on Facebook and that "everyone" is on it.

Not being about to control your capitalization is what made your writing annoying, and Leanne did not use the word bitch, you added that yourself.

If you found my question so irrelevant, if you believe that I'm "blaming the platform for my own choices", then why bother to reply at all? Unless of course I peer pressured you into doing it with my bump message.


She didn't say your question was irrelevant, and you said in your original post that you wanted to hear people's thoughts. You can't control people's thoughts & you shouldn't be so offended by people who may or may not have a negative opinion of your post.

[Shelby]

Okay, first I need to say that farmville is completely ridiculous. I was into it before it exploded all over facebook. Then I realized it was insane and made me feel quite pathetic. So I stopped. But I have friends that ask to use my computer so that their plants don't wither. *Sigh*

But as for Faebook as a whole, yeah, I'm addicted. It sucks, I hate that I look at it so often because I also get upset that nothing happens (because nothing has time to happen when you are on in every hour). I have considered getting rid of it, but don't have the will power. Our society, especially the younger generation (which I am a part of) has become very centered around each other. There are so many ways to keep contact with people-- instant messaging, text messaging, phones, email, facebook.. etc. That our world revolves around each other. I think that's why people are so obsessed with it. We want to know what everyone else is doing, to feel connected to other people.
It actually makes me kind of sad. We are so reliant on each other that we don't step out and do things on our own. Instead of going outside and going for a walk, or doing something productive, we sit on our computers endlessly checking facebook. Waiting for someone to post pictures or write on our wall.

[Catrine]

I still haven't joined facebook, because of a combination of paranoia and fear of the well-known addiction.
But I think people are getting addicted to these sites. Like my friend asked my last week, if I was going to this party, I told her I knew nothing of the party, and her answer was: "well, it's just difficult 'cause you don't have facebook." I don't see what's so hard about texting me instead? I do get if you like live far from each other or are old friends, but people are seriously getting too depended of these sites.

Oh well, I guess I sound really old, but I think society is becoming less personal by the minute.
That being said, Nerdfighters was where I went the second I got home .. :)

[Trick]

I'm not on Facebook either, and I've had a similar problem - when my friends are organising things, they tend to send out a message on Facebook to the relevant people, which means it's pretty easy to forget me. Someone normally lets me know but sooner or later I'll probably get left out of something. I wonder if I should get it, to make life easier for people, but they have other ways to contact me. I know full well that at least one of my friends has free texts, so that shouldn't be an issue!
I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I function perfectly well without Facebook. Why should I have to get it just because everyone else has?

[Frances]

I don't have facebook either. I only have a few friends far away, and I can just email them if I want to talk to them, so there's no point in getting facebook just for that. I honestly don't see the point in using the internet to talk to people I see every day, and I totally agree that sites like facebook are making life a lot less personal. If I want to talk to a person, I can just talk to them, or phone them if I live far away. I have seen people who spend so much time talking on facebook that when they actually meet their friends in person, they don't know how to talk to them, and have nothing to talk about, so they all just sit there, it's really sad. I think that as my generation gets older they will reallize what a waste of time facebook is. I hope so, anyway!

[anobsessiontoofar]

IMO, FB is actually a good thing, even if it is slightly 'addictive'. FOr me, it's helped keep in contact with friends after we all left for uni, as well as being the easiest way for me to talk to my sisters, and lets me keep up with what's going on in their lives.

The thing I find is that it is nice to just have fb on, just another window on the internet. I can stay on there for hours, but that doesn't mean that I'm just staring blankly at the screen, I'm usually working, talking to someone, or doing other internety stuff (usually centering around fanfiction.net or deviantart).

I think the general obsession with fb is the ability to stay in contact with people. I never spent this much time on it before I moved away from my home and my friends, when I saw them everyday and knew what was happening in their world, now, being so far away from them, fb is useful for us to organise get togethers for a large group where everyone has different time scales and is home at different times.

[Amelia...]

Thanks for all the great posts everyone.

Just to be clear I don't think facebook is a bad thing; it does help me stay in contact with friends and with my university as well (they have a facebook group. it's really good to go to if you have a question; someone will answer it within hours instead of you waiting days for an email response). I just think the fact that everyone is addicted to is bad. Catrine, good for you for holding out on joining. I did for a very long time - I didn't get facebook until right before I came to uni this year. A good way to be less addicted to facebook if you do get it is not to do any of the quizes, use any of the apps, or play any of the games. Aside from making sure you need to come back to facebook regularely, these things also rip your personal information and take it to some undisclosed place. Scary?!

[Meeka Mason]

I understand what you mean. I'm on Facebook 24-7 almost and I'm ashamed of this addiction. You're right--nothing happens, at least something worth caring about most of the time. But I think people do it is because it's quicker to post something on Facebook than to call someone up when you "don't have the time." I personally believe that FB feeds into people's instant gratification. We human beings want quick results and FB gives us that. The good side of that is that FB does hook you up with friends you don't see on the regular. The bad side of it is that FB makes relationships more and more artificial. Sure, you may have 1,000 friends on FB, but how many are those people are going to have your back when you need them the most? I'll give you a hint--not all 1,000 of them.