Facebook--pros and cons

[beakkeeper]

Hey y'all. I'm looking into getting a facebook page, and I would like all of your wise opinions on the matter. I've heard some terrible stories of broken hearts and lost relationships because of the facebook craze but I've also seen great friendships last through a long absence because of it. Photosharing, chatting with people I never see, and putting important information out are good things for me, lack of privacy, potential for hurt, and addiction are cons for me. How about all of you? What sorts of things do you like? hate?

Thanks.

 

[DuckLady]

Pro

I keep in touch with family and friends
I have gotten back in touch with family who are across the country
Ditto with friends I had lost touch with
I can be politically incorrect and it is not against the rules.

I control who I interact with

Con
Friends posts that might offend me, but I can just hid them and not see their posts on my home page if I don't want to.
The privacy controls can be obscure, but they are your best defense.

 

[Doodle_Doo]

i like i can make new friends..ive made friends from others on here and also
from others that have similar interests..keep in touch with long distance people

 

[WriterofWords]

I enjoy the chatting and such and keeping up with friends but I try and keep co workers far away from it! The only thing that bothers me really is the inappropriate things and pictures some post but like Terrie said you can hide it, and if they get too frequent or bad I let the friend know I am unfriending them and why. I can be a little conservative for some people but I like a good joke as well as the next person. I love playing a couple of the games on there. NEVER take as gospel anything anyone posts though.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Ditto on everything Terrie and Kate said.

And

Pick your friends wisely.

 

[debilorrah]

I really enjoy the conversation with people, and I too never friend co-workers or family. Ken's family yes, but my own??? No freakin way. I need to vent about them!

 

[Wolfwoman]

Quote:
If you are silly enough to let a website page ruin your real life, well then, I'm guessing you deserve it!

I use Facebook for MANY things, selling & marketing, keeping in touch with family and friends, sharing pictures, and relaxing by playing games.

BUT I can also NOT go to Facebook if needed. That is the key.

 

[Zahboo]

Pros: I get to talk to people, be random, and play Frontierville/Farmville

Cons: PEOPLE take it way too serious. Why didn't you respond to my comment? Accept my request. I got a phone call at FOUR IN THE MORNING, "hey I need a nail for my chicken coop can you send me one. I'll send back one" I flipped. And toooo sensitive. They don't know how to move on.

 

[Beekissed]

Maybe I just don't get it, but I find it tremendously boring and of little use. It seems to be a way for folks you used to know to be nosey about what you are doing now or how you've aged/gained weight/etc. I was getting all kinds of friend's requests from people I barely knew from school and my old friends...all asking for a pic.

I don't have anything to hide, but it was quite obvious what was expected there...so I just posted on my wall that I have aged, gained weight and that everyone else looked way better than I do at this age. Guess what? My friend requests dropped from forty a day to one, then to none. They were just curious and nosey...they didn't really want to be my "friend". As soon as they realized I wasn't playing their game, they lost interest.

I like to have real friends...ones who are not too busy to call you if they want to "catch up". I don't need to play Farmville....I'm doing it in real life. Someone tried to give me a chicken...it wasn't real. What a disappointment.

I really don't see it as a way to "catch up" or "keep in touch"...unless you call a small line here and there real communication. If people truly cared they would call you up in real time or make an effort to visit, not narrow your communication down to whenever they can manage to "catch up" on FB.

And, to be quite frank, I'm pretty selective about my friends now....I really do not want to be friends with the world and people I have not seen in 25 years....if I/they were a priority, it wouldn't be 25 years since we last talked.

I guess it would be nice for people too busy or too self-centered to actually make human contact with "friends".

All cons from my viewpoint.

 

[Tala]

I'm a facebook junkie.

The only real con that I have found is that if you allow "friends of friends" to see your stuff, strange things happen. I *highly* suspect that my boss is on FB under another name and must be friended to one of my friends (it's a small town.....I friended a BYC-er and then found out that her son went to highschool with and is FB friends with another of my FB friends!!) anyway, I changed all my settings to strictly "friends ONLY" so yeah, the privacy settings are your best friend even if they do seem a little complicated.

Doesn't bother me though. In fact, it's kinda nice to say somethin and see who finds out about it, find out where the loose lips are

Kindof like telling 3 different friends 3 different tales to see which one you hear back first lol I never really say anything THAT sensitive. I mean, half my in-laws are on FB so you know