What’s The Point Of Facebook?
February 21, 2009 15:56 | Comments (2) | internet |
I just created a Facebook account. I’m not proud of it, but it’s out there. I’ve been resisting the siren’s call for years now, because I just didn’t see the point. I figured it was just a fad (you know, like grocery shopping online?), and I’m still not convinced it isn’t — they said AOL would last forever. But it has stuck around long enough that just about everyone I know has an account now. I was in line at the post office the other day and overheard two gentlemen in front of me (who had to be about 10 years older than me!) discussing how they had used it to reconnect with some old high school buddies.
Okay fine, Facebook, you’ve shamed me into joining, but I still don’t see the point. I don’t need you to host my web site (obviously), or to store my photos, or my videos, or any of that other stuff. I realize some people do, but I don’t. Now I have yet another account and password that I have to keep track of and I’m going to feel obligated to login every so often.
I thought at least I could connect with a couple of people with whom I’ve lost touch over the years. They show up in Google searches, but without an account, I’ve never been able to view their profile. Well, guess what? I just went searching for one of those people, and their profile still doesn’t show up!
So you had better be on your best behavior, Facebook. I will have no qualms about deactivating my account! Everybody knows that Facebook is for old fogies, anyway, and I’m not sure I want to be lumped in with that crowd just yet.
I fully understand where you are coming from. I initially had the “what’s the point” stance on facebook, but I finally took the plunge and created an account.I can now say that I enjoy it, and it sort of takes on a life of its own after a while, due to the connected nature of the site. It tells you what people are doing, you can see what others are up to, and it really encourages interaction.I think facebook accomplishes wonderfully what web sites of this nature should strive for: interactive content that isn’t a huge time sink.
I agree with your last statement. The software is well designed and it doesn’t require a lot of time to stay on top of what is going on. Having said that, it still takes time. And there are aspects of the interactive experience that just aren’t for me.