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[Varche]

I haven't got either facebook or twitter but watched a programme last night on Zuckerberg with fascination. I previously used to think there is a big divide between folk with or without Internet. Now I realise that there is a staggering divide between facebook and the Internet.

Two things that struck me of the many gems highlighted by the programme.

LIKE button which when you click it triggers a whole load of stuff behind the scenes to help companies push their stuff to a very targetted audience. Why would you help a company target you with ads or worse let you endorse them on someone elses facebook?

The overwhelming success of Facebook virtual games? that users play. The poor sod that they featured had become so good at one game that he had managed to garner some very rare duck poo. And the best bit was that he paid for a virtual case to display it in. You couldn't make that up. Can you imagine the software writers brainstorming session. "and we will have this addictive game that if you don't play regularly you will be penalised and we will charge people who successfully aquire virtual rare animal poo to display it in a virtual case they have to pay real money for".

I just have to face it, I am so out of touch. I bet someone will invent a portable phone with no cables next. 

 

[cem_devecioglu]

 guess who financed/helped Zuckerberg ?

[marrus69]

wot no facebook,its the only way to find out what my kids are up to,

[Nickbat]

guess who financed/helped Zuckerberg ?

Please enlighten me.

Is this another conspiracy theory in the making, Cem? 

[cem_devecioglu]

guess who financed/helped Zuckerberg ?

Please enlighten me.

Is this another conspiracy theory in the making, Cem? 

 
 
unfortunately , this is not a theory..  its known who are the financers ..for some reason you can understand , I wont share any link.. just type the keywords in google and you will find interesting info
 
must add though, its a large people database with data mining facilities.. and some others..

[Kevin Wood]

LIKE button which when you click it triggers a whole load of stuff behind the scenes to help companies push their stuff to a very targetted audience. Why would you help a company target you with ads or worse let you endorse them on someone elses facebook?

I wouldn't. That's why I block them (you don't actually have to press the "like" button, BTW. The fact that your browser has connected to Facebook to load it tells them all they need to know).

The overwhelming success of Facebook virtual games? that users play. The poor sod that they featured had become so good at one game that he had managed to garner some very rare duck poo. And the best bit was that he paid for a virtual case to display it in. You couldn't make that up. Can you imagine the software writers brainstorming session. "and we will have this addictive game that if you don't play regularly you will be penalised and we will charge people who successfully aquire virtual rare animal poo to display it in a virtual case they have to pay real money for".

Yeah, that's nice for him.

I've never used Facebook. Had I known I could have bought a virtual display case full of sh1t, however.... Well, isn't that what Facebook is all about?

I must admit, I did once use idiotter. A local incident was unfolding, and, to an extent, it affected me, so I wanted to know what was going on. I thought this was exactly where such a service would excel. Needless to say, 98% of the "tweets" on the subject contained nothing but total and utter "dangle berries" and came from people who had not the first idea what was going on, but loved the sound of their own "tweets" as they speculated away, in a different continent to where the reality was unfolding, yet their cr@p was repeated verbatim by the local media.

[Shackeng]

Agreed, I am at a loss as to why anyone would wish to expose all their personal activities with everyone else, given that in this wired world there are millions of wolves out there waiting to snap up any useful morsels with which to scam you. Equally, I am not interested in what others - particularly slebs - are up to. I realise it is an age thing, and I am more than happy to use the internet to access information, but not to broadcast mine!

[Richie London]

i deleted my Facebook account last night. i may rejoin next yr but very doubtful. 

[Kevin Wood]

Agreed, I am at a loss as to why anyone would wish to expose all their personal activities with everyone else...

Well, I've come to the conclusion that, for certain individuals, it somehow makes them feel good to imagine that anyone else gives a **** what they are doing. 

I have a friend who documents his life, seemingly down to every bowel movement, on a couple of forums and mailing lists of which we are both members, along with twitter, facebook, and anywhere else he can open up a web page and type total drivel. It's been pointed out several times that many of us mutual friends receive the same cr@p duplicated from several directions, and aren't interested anyway, but still it continues. Why he can't have the whole lot in one blog that we could ignore instead, I don't know. It seems that he can't deal with the thought that there is a corner of the universe where someone doesn't know where he had lunch.

It might not be so bad if he were a "celebrity", and just might therefore have a following of x-strictly-out-of-here types who actually care about his every move, but he's just an average bloke.

I can understand "social networking" of the type we are doing now, with people who are friends in reality, or share a common interest, but I really can't see the point of clogging up the internet with unsoicited bile of this nature. Oh, well. Guess I must be missing something.

[Nickbat]

Agreed, I am at a loss as to why anyone would wish to expose all their personal activities with everyone else, given that in this wired world there are millions of wolves out there waiting to snap up any useful morsels with which to scam you. Equally, I am not interested in what others - particularly slebs - are up to. I realise it is an age thing, and I am more than happy to use the internet to access information, but not to broadcast mine!

Strangely, this place is full of threads about what we've been up to (what TV programme we just watched, what we had for dinner, what booze is on special down at Asda and so on) and it is open to anyone on the net to read. Personally, I don't have a problem with that, at all. But it is ironic that some slag off Facebook for containing uninteresting snippets when it is less open to all and sundry and is mainly only shared between real friends/family/ acquaintances.

In any event, Facebook is useful in many ways. My school, for example, posts information about upcoming exams/events and so on. Same goes for the RPO, so I know what the orchestra's up to. (Both these contacts are ones I have chosen to become networked with). Effectively, then, I can see what people and organisations are up to without clogging up my email inbox. Makes it easier for them, too.

Yes, there is plenty of drivel on there, but you always have the option of hiding posts by uninteresting people!


At the end of the day, though, it is American and hugely successful.

...which is why some people simply hate it. 

[Richie London]

well said nick.

[Dishevelled Den]

I think part of the problem lies with people now starting to believe that they can't do without social networking sites such as FaceBook and Twitter (to name but two) which, in my view, is a bad thing.

Of course it’s handy for the authorities to keep an eye on particular people/groups (and to motivate them should the need ever arise) and of course for business to identify likely targets for their advertising.

Electronic communication has been a godsend for certain elements within the establishment and I’m sure that they’re grateful to the millions who willingly publish information about themselves, their circumstances, their friends and associates just to keep up with the current trend where people now feel the need to push buttons and burble in order to consider themselves part of society.

Happy days for the watchers - as information is power.

[Varche]

I am glad someone has said something positive about facebook too before the thread swang into total negative territory.

I am seriously thinking of running a business out here as I am expecting savage austerity messages for next year here in Spain and need to make enough dosh to go back to the dole Britain. Something along the lines of exporting siestas and mananas or maybe even tourism . I suspect that facebook can be a useful tool in such scenarios. I have a couple of nephews who don't have E,mail just facebook so it might be useful there too. Does facebook help in a business environment?

[TheBoy]

Given its a gay dating site, I've never felt the need

[Richie London]

Given its a gay dating site, I've never felt the need

Id say this was more of a gay site if you go by the percentage of male and female users.  and the management on Facebook don't go around insulting things they don't dislike either.