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What should you think about when using Facebook?

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Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#31

Post by anondon »

jgrahamc wrote: post #15

A related question is "Should you sign up for Facebook today?". Five years ago I killed my Facebook account (and LinkedIn and G+) and it hasn't bothered me, but... am I missing out on something?

You are not missing out on much.

The only productive use of Facebook is to keep in touch with people. If you do this using alternative methods (Whatsapp, email or direct phone calls) then you save yourself from the continuous stream of garbage that is the news feed.

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#32

Post by siegecraft »

daemonk wrote: post #21

Can someone make a browser plugin that will send fake data to facebook? Instead of hiding your own behavior, might as well poison their database.

I like this idea (a sort of adnauseum for facebook) but I wonder how trivial it would be for facebook to filter out obviously random/fake/noisy data given the mammoth set of real data they already have. Maybe introduce some more subtle off-by-one errors into their data or just make it a tiny bit fuzzier? Hopefully one wouldn't need a detailed knowledge of their data structures to do something impactful, although the action itself might be a useful symbolic gesture even if it doesn't have an actual impact on their data collection.

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#34

Post by funkyy »

sdiepend wrote: post #18
spraak wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've wondered this too. I have friend suggestions for my work colleagues, even though my Facebook email is my own private address and I've never emailed them from that address. It's amazing and bothersome

Have you used it on mobile and shared your contacts? Might they have had access to your location(GPS or maybe to which wifi you're connected). Interesting article: http://fusion.net/story/339018/facebook-psychiatrist-privacy...

Or they just suggest people based on common locations that you and they visit and where they spend their time.

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#35

Post by mydpy »

I think it's interesting that despite deep and widely-publicized privacy concerns, Facebook's users have mostly been loyal to the platform. Myself included.

Data collections seems necessary to monetize the platform. Are there any alternatives, or do we just need smaller more close-knit social networks?

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#36

Post by anondon »

Genuine question : do you think a privacy oriented social network where users pay a small annual fee (around $5) would work? Think Whatsapp (use phone number as an id, no native discovery, only connect through phone contacts, encrypted user data only to prevent database leaks from causing damage) + Facebook (feed like feature, share photos, videos, direct messaging, group messaging). No user tracking, no ads, just a no bullshit social network where the average Joe would feel right at home and also one which the HN crowd would use, assuming social networks have a place in their lives.

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#37

Post by afandian »

This is an excellent blog post, though it made me sick reading it.

I recently made the switch. I went from trying to limit how much I log in (to once or twice a week), to actually not logging in. I've been cold-turkey for two months (except for a couple of times when I had a very specific reason to check something).

I thought it would be difficult. Turns out it's not so hard, and it's the fear of reduced social contact (or dopamine withdrawal more likely) that was stopping me. If you have a plan to replace the social interactions with other forms, you realise that the rest is just dross. If I really want to know what my friends had for breakfast I can phone them up and ask. On balance, I'd rather not.

I'm not at the point of deleting the account yet. Small steps.

Here were my reasons FWIW: http://blog.afandian.com/2017/01/why-i-am-giving-up-on-faceb...

If you're reading and considering whether or not you can withdraw from Facebook, you can do it!

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#38

Post by sp332 »

vgy7ujm wrote: post #12
sp332 wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That said, WhatsApp is a pretty good secure messaging app even though they got bought by Facebook.

Can you trust anything by FB? Signal seems ok. Haven't looked too closely at it though.

Whatsapp adopted Signal's security mechanism last year. https://whispersystems.org/blog/whatsapp-complete/

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#39

Post by bluGill »

jgrahamc wrote: post #15

A related question is "Should you sign up for Facebook today?". Five years ago I killed my Facebook account (and LinkedIn and G+) and it hasn't bothered me, but... am I missing out on something?

Facebook it the only way I see my second cousin's kid's piano recital. It is a valuable way for me to know something like that happened (they live more than a thousand miles away). It lets me keep up some of the people who I went to high school with - we were not really friends but we had a connection. Facebook is the easiest way to ensure my parents (300 miles away) see pictures of their grandkids doing cute things.

Unfortunately it sucks me into political fake news and lots of other bad things. Blocking all games helped greatly.

On balance the real purpose of Facebook: keeping up with distance family and friends; is a very useful part of life. Thus it is worth it.

Re: What should you think about when using Facebook?

#40

Post by macintux »

afandian wrote: post #37

This is an excellent blog post, though it made me sick reading it. I recently made the switch. I went from trying to limit how much I log in (to once or twice a week), to actually not logging in. I've been cold-turkey for two months (except for a couple of times when I had a very specific reason to check something). I thought it would be difficult. Turns out it's not so hard, and it's the fear of reduced social conta…

I found it interesting for the opposite reason: I've avoided Facebook up to now, but there are enough inconveniences that my resistance is wearing down.
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