Hello all,

I'm pretty sure more or less everyone here has heard about Facebook and knows what it is so I'll spare the introductory description.

I would hazard a guess and also bet that the majority of users on here have heard about the recent Facebook "scandals" what with pedophiles grooming their victims over the site.

My question, albeit a simple one, what is the attraction of Facebook?

Personally I cannot stand the site, I do not have an account on it and I definately have no intention of ever creating one.

From personal experience it seems like people are neglecting the usual methods of communication i.e. phone call, text message, face to face meeting and they are prefering to contact via Facebook.

I really cannot understand why grown adults would want to create a Facebook network, sorry but my personal opinion is that its childish in the least and absolutely ridiculous at the worst.

Like I said, the site is being abused and pedophiles are using it to groom their victims. I have no problem with this, not the fact that innocent people are being decieved obviously, but I know as a realist that any system will be abused by the corrupt eventually.

I really do not see the attraction to Facebook and I was just wondering about the general feelings about the site from the users on this site.

Your thoughts welcome.

[edit on 19/3/10 by Death_Kron]

What is your attraction on coming to ATS?

I think you'll find that those who don't share such obscure tastes still like to keep in touch with one another about what they think is important in life.

It's not a biggie - and it's certainly not a goodie, but it's part of the social animal.

-m0r

I find Facebook to be a very convenient tool to keep in touch with busy friends, send out and receive invitations to social events, keep friends and family current with online photo albums of our travels and children, and reconnect with people I haven't seen in years. I must admit that I am a supporter of this social platform, and though it may replace phone conversation, text message, etc., where is the harm in that? We don't live in a world that moves at horse-drawn carriage pace anymore. We move at a rapid pace (good for us or not), and the accessibility that Facebook gives us to stay abreast of current events in friends and families lives is fantastic. It is really no different than reading news online as opposed to in a paper.

Originally posted by m0r1arty
What is your attraction on coming to ATS?

I think you'll find that those who don't share such obscure tastes still like to keep in touch with one another about what they think is important in life.

It's not a biggie - and it's certainly not a goodie, but it's part of the social animal.

-m0r

I'm attracted to ATS because I can debate, enquire and share my views about alternative subjects and theories that unfortunately I cannot with the people I know in physical life.

Maybe that sounds a little depressing or is a reflection on my social circle but majority of my friends wouldn't have a clue if I tried to speak to them about any of the things I talk about on here.

I have no problem with people communicating and as a IT/Telecoms professional I'm always interested in new ways of communication.

I just personally don't see how Facebook has grown from a relatively unknown site to an almost viral infection that every man and his dog seems to use.

i really like having facebook. im easily able to keep in touch with so many more people that i never would probably communicate with otherwise. it also allows me to easily keep in touch and up to date on my family, as i have family all over N America, and i cant afford long distance phone calls. and on facebook i can see their pictures they upload and all kinds of things. plus theres a lot of games and stuff thats accessible right on facebook. its entertaining and a really easy way to keep in touch

There are two types of people on facebook. There are people like me, who spend on average 5 minutes a month on it. These people probably have a few dozen friends.

Then there are the people who spend on average 5 hours a day on it. These people have hundreds, sometimes thousands of "friends." These people think you are interested in every little mundane act they do like buying a cup of coffee or building a chicken coup in farmville.

There needs to be some sort of social network that is in the middle. It can be a place where you can keep tabs on on old friends, but there should also be limits on what you can broadcast. I am always excited to hear old friends announcing major events like the births of children, but I should not have to sift through a hundred posts about Bejeweled Blitz scores or people's opinions on some TV show they watched last night before I get to the major announcements.

Originally posted by hotpinkurinalmint
There are two types of people on facebook. There are people like me, who spend on average 5 minutes a month on it. These people probably have a few dozen friends.

Then there are the people who spend on average 5 hours a day on it. These people have hundreds, sometimes thousands of "friends." These people think you are interested in every little mundane act they do like buying a cup of coffee or building a chicken coup in farmville.

There needs to be some sort of social network that is in the middle. It can be a place where you can keep tabs on on old friends, but there should also be limits on what you can broadcast. I am always excited to hear old friends announcing major events like the births of children, but I should not have to sift through a hundred posts about Bejeweled Blitz scores or people's opinions on some TV show they watched last night before I get to the major announcements.

Star for you,

I think you have hit the nail on the head here and identified my problem.

The majority of the people I know spend a considerable amount of their time on facebook, spending more time looking at the photographs of their friends than actually living their own lives.

I find that quite strange to be perfectly honest...

both? My problem with it, and i know its "public", is that I have seen not only my brother but law enforcement use facebook, myspace and others as tools.
My brother used to work at a private school in North Carolina, oh what the hay, christ school, outside asheville. He would check out his students profiles and see if they posted anything "bad" like off campus drinking, being with girls, etc. etc. I know its public info, but I think that was crossing a line.
I have a friend in Georgia who went to a probation hearing and the judge asked him about pictures on his myspace page with beer cans in the back ground because he was not supposed to be drinking...crazy!

Facebook should be shut down.

any user is allowed to put anything they want in a headline without any consequences.

Its high time we limit these people from being allowed to spread their propaganda. There are no mods that monitor what people write in their status and rarely are they banned for this disruptive behavior.

Facebook should have been shut down ages ago. In order to have freedom in this world we need to be on the same page. Too many people just say what they please without consideration for society.

Politicians need to start reigning in this kind of abuse by shutting down those sites that allow people to freely post information without any disregard for society. Be an american and stand up to this menace united facvebook can be shut down for GOOD!

Well, for me, it's helped me to get in touch with relatives that I haven't seen for years. It helps people with far-flung families keep in touch.