Facebook - to join or not to join, that is the queztion

Started by austinbob, March 18, 2018, 07:47:53 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

austinbob

Ok. There are often comments about whether to use Facebook or not. I am of the school, and probably generation, that avoids anything that involves using Facebook and have vehemently rejected any thoughts about signing up.
My preconceptions are that its trivial, unsafe and intrusive.
The recent thread about NGF Facebook have made me wonder (but only a bit) whether I might just be missing something on this Facebook lark.
What to do??? Whaddya think? Should I have a crack at it - and why? Or why not?
Oh, and keep replies clean, civil and friendly please.  ;)
:beers:
Size matters - especially if you don't have a lot of space - and N gauge is the answer!

Bob Austin

njee20

Try it. It's a way to consume information. If you don't like it then delete it again. You lose nothing. A lot of people dislike it for no reason whatsoever IMO.

ntpntpntp

There is a lot of drivel posted, but you don't see the vast majority of it unless you go looking for it.  Ignore any that does come up, and just stick to reading and posting on groups you like (eg. NGF) and maybe communicate wiith a few friends and relations.  Simple, perfectly safe and is a useful tool used that way.  Not intrusive at all.

Like I said on the other thread, I didn't bother with it until I had a use for it.
Nick.   2021 celebrating the 25th anniversary of "Königshafen" exhibition layout!
https://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?topic=50050.0

Tank

I say join up.  Facebook is great!

Like all websites, some people will hate it based on their own experiences, but the vast majority will enjoy it.

austinbob

#4
I know nothing about Facebook njee (and other posters) In your opinion, how do I go about signing up in a safe and minimalist way. How easy is it to delete an account and not still get hassled by unwanted communications?
:beers:
Size matters - especially if you don't have a lot of space - and N gauge is the answer!

Bob Austin

ntpntpntp

#5
Quote from: austinbob on March 18, 2018, 07:58:10 PM
How easy is it to delete an account and not still get hassled by unwanted communications?

I wonder what these "unwanted communications" are that you're so worried about?  I don't get any, never have.  I might get a "friend request" once every few months from someone I've never heard of (at least don't think I've heard of, I'm very bad with names!) I just refuse/delete those.

Facebook likes to put up reminders every so often to check your privacy settings, they tend to be phrased in the style of "It looks like you've just done abc. We care about your privacy. Did you know you can do xyz to limit stuff?" and it give you a link to follow if you feel you need to change something in your settings.
Nick.   2021 celebrating the 25th anniversary of "Königshafen" exhibition layout!
https://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?topic=50050.0

austinbob

Quote from: ntpntpntp on March 18, 2018, 08:07:05 PM
Quote from: austinbob on March 18, 2018, 07:58:10 PM
How easy is it to delete an account and not still get hassled by unwanted communications?

I wonder what these "unwanted communications" are that you're so worried about?  I don't get any, never have.  Those most I might get is a "friend request" once every few months from someone I've never heard of (at least don't think I've heard of, I'm very bad with names!) I just refuse/delete those.
Probably just one of my preconceptions Nick. I'm hoping to be educated sufficiently, in this thread, to make a more objective decision about whether to sign up..
:beers:
Size matters - especially if you don't have a lot of space - and N gauge is the answer!

Bob Austin

njee20

Yep, I agree with Nick. I'm the generic Facebook user - it appeared whilst I was at university, I had about 500 'friends' at one point, but have gradually reduced it. I now use it more for forums like the NGF, for which it's great. I like seeing what some friends are up to too.

I've never consciously had any unsolicited messages or notifications or anything like that, and it has never once hassled me. I can't remember the last pushed notification I received. If I log in then it tells me about posts that people have responded to or whatever, much like on here. You don't get hassled.

silly moo

I've got Facebook set up so that I get a lot of railway news both model and the real thing. Quite a few preserved railways have pages and there are lots of model railway groups as well as sales pages. I even get a bit of family news too.

The best way to avoid aggravation is to avoid anything even vaguely politically related.

:NGaugersRule:

austinbob

Interesting that all the posts so far are fairly positive about Facebook. I was expecting some anti Facebook posts.
I might have to give it a crack if no good reasons come to  light for not signing up.
:hmmm: :hmmm:
Size matters - especially if you don't have a lot of space - and N gauge is the answer!

Bob Austin

emjaybee

Quote from: austinbob on March 19, 2018, 11:26:24 AM
Interesting that all the posts so far are fairly positive about Facebook. I was expecting some anti Facebook posts.
I might have to give it a crack if no good reasons come to  light for not signing up.
:hmmm: :hmmm:

I used to be on Facebook, spent three years putting up with all the dross that came with it, then spent 12 months trying to get out/off of Facebook (which I have finally succeeded at).

Read into that what you will.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

:thumbsup:
Brookline build thread:

https://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?topic=50207.msg652736#msg652736

Sometimes you bite the dog...

...sometimes the dog bites you!

----------------------------------------------------------

I can explain it to you...

...but I can't understand it for you.

NTrain

I use Facebook as an easy option to keep in touch with family and friends. I also have a Facebook page for N-Train, where I post updates, because it is quick and easy to use.

I do not get caught up in endless debates, or sharing posts and pictures, and do not get drawn into playing games.

I get more hassle from my N-Train website, with spam e-mails, than I ever do from Facebook.

port perran

For many years I was anti Facebook but....   in the last six months I have started to use it.
I restrict Friends to just a very few and don't look at any of what I call sensationalist or (to me)uninteresting topics and I never ever get involved in debates that can get un-necessarily heated.
It is useful for keeping up with interesting news from he few sources that I follow, including some railway related ones.
The only thing I would comment on re Facebook is that on this forum, comments can be in depth, on Facebook the comments are often only one or at most two sentences and are, in my very limited experience, not very informative.
I guess forums and Facebook have two very different roles to play.
Just my opinion but Facebook is more useful than I ever thought.....just use the bits that interest you.
My only other comment is that starting from scratch, it is not at all intuitive. For such a major software player, it could do well to make itself easier to use and understand. I needed help to get started with it!
I'll get round to fixing it drekkly me 'ansome.

Newportnobby

The OP made me ask myself the question "Would my life change for the better if I sign up to Facebook?" and from the replies so far the answer is a resounding 'NO!'
If I need to contact friends and/or relatives I use that ancient contraption called a phone (it's good to talk) or the less ancient e mail system.
I use t'interweb to keep up to date on things, and this forum is far better than most sources in imparting news as it happens about things railway related I'm interested in,
Sorry, but no one has convinced me Facebook is a 'must have'

red_death

Very few things in life are must haves, so the question should really be is FB useful? To which the answer is clearly yes otherwise it wouldn't be used so widely. It is incredibly useful for sharing news quickly amongst friends in a way that would take hours to phone the same people to tell them news. If you're not interested in hearing what someone is posting then there are plenty of ways to either mute them, block or unfriend them etc.

Of course some people overshare or use the tool poorly but that doesn't make FB unuseful

Cheers Mike



Please Support Us!
March Goal: £100.00
Due Date: Mar 31
Total Receipts: £77.34
Below Goal: £22.66
Site Currency: GBP
77% 
March Donations