Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#361

Post by anonu » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 10:17 AM UTC

frereubu wrote: post #198

Carpetsmoker wrote: post #141

No. I actually created a Facebook account in 2018. The problem is that without Facebook you will miss out. Sure, close friends and family will invite you to their social events, but more distant acquaintances will not; you know, the bloke you met at the pub last week and had a 20 minute chat with, or that cute girl you talked to but then she suddenly she was dragged off to a birthday party by her friends. By missing…

I missed my friend's 50th birthday party because I wasn't on Facebook (haven't been for around 3-4 years), and he assumed that everyone he wanted there was. That stung enough for me to think about it, but whenever I see people scrolling through their feeds there's so much drivel that I immediately go off the idea again.

This is the most important thing people cite when the subject of removing Facebook comes up. I've certainly missed events because I logon to Facebook every few months... Then I spend a few minutes responding to people letting them know to email me instead. I think email is the go to place for invites 9 out of 10 times now...

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#362

Post by squirrelicus » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 10:24 AM UTC

I deleted mine in 2010, though I've made plenty of dummy accounts for work purposes.

I did this because I noticed my ability to write and communicate was degenerating.

In some ways I'm still recovering since I still use IM

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#363

Post by smir » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 10:33 AM UTC

Yes, and my life is better already.

Sure I missed some events, but if FB is the only way to communicate with me, then we actually have no real relationship/friendship.. etc

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#364

Post by ionised » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 10:33 AM UTC

I deleted in 2017.

2018 just confirmed that it was the right decision.

Can't say I feel like I'm missing anything either.

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#365

Post by iddqd » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 11:29 AM UTC

Just did, thanks for the reminder. Had to first show my parents some alternative ways of messaging me outside of Facebook, but no I’m all set.

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#366

Post by ryanmercer » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 11:33 AM UTC

No and see no reason to. I've 100+ Facebook friends that are fellow strength athletes, 99% of the time you find out about competitions via facebook friends sharing or expressing interest in attending.

It's how we plan social events at the facility I barbell at, the local Atari club I belong to etc.

It's how I find out about local shows without having to monitor local venue websites which may or may not be updated (some haven't been updated in years).

Most of my friends no longer live anywhere near me in Indy. I have friends in Australia, New Zealand, Florida, San Francisco, Germany, England, Hungary... Facebook is how I see what is going on in their lives and Facebook messenger is how I keep in touch with all of the ones now outside of the United States.

I don't mindlessly scroll through. People and pages that are important to me are marked as 'see first'. When I open Facebook I'll scroll 5-10 posts (a few times a day) unless I'm waiting on an appointment/oil change/whatever and then I'll scroll past that.

As far as privacy concerns... yeah I don't care. My domain is my name, my username just about everywhere is my name, if I share it online I don't care if every single human being alive sees it. If I don't want people seeing it, I... don't share it online.

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#367

Post by tim333 » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 11:34 AM UTC

No, and I keep a fb tab open. I actually quite like Facebook and the messenger thing is handy in that it works on the laptop with a real keyboard rather than being forced to poke at a bit of glass on the phone like many apps.

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#368

Post by pmlnr » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 11:52 AM UTC

Carpetsmoker wrote: post #141

No. I actually created a Facebook account in 2018. The problem is that without Facebook you will miss out. Sure, close friends and family will invite you to their social events, but more distant acquaintances will not; you know, the bloke you met at the pub last week and had a 20 minute chat with, or that cute girl you talked to but then she suddenly she was dragged off to a birthday party by her friends. By missing…

> The problem is that without Facebook you will miss out.

Yes, you will. You will miss out on things that are completely fine to miss out.

We need to learn that we can't and shouldn't be everywhere, know about everything, get constantly updated about everyone.

Go to meetups. Find classes. Sign up for a (make|hacker)space instead.

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#369

Post by bigato » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 11:52 AM UTC

john61 wrote: post #323

krn wrote: post #238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> but it just enables the behaviour of selling out your entire social circle to Zuckerburg. If that's the main reason to quit Facebook, the question should have been: "Did you delete your Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp accounts in 2018?". Yet, somehow nobody asks that question.

"Did you delete your Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp accounts in 2018?" Not possible, because I did not have any of these accounts in the first place. And I have a pretty normal social life with lots of technology, friends and activity.

Would mind elaborating about what part of the world you live in, and what are your strategies to finding out about events and interesting things to do? Because here in my country, more and more people use facebook to spread the word about events.

Re: Ask HN: Did you delete your Facebook account in 2018?

#370

Post by frereubu » Mon, Dec 24, 2018, 12:16 PM UTC

seppin wrote: post #199

frereubu wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I missed my friend's 50th birthday party because I wasn't on Facebook (haven't been for around 3-4 years), and he assumed that everyone he wanted there was. That stung enough for me to think about it, but whenever I see people scrolling through their feeds there's so much drivel that I immediately go off the idea again.

> I missed my friend's 50th birthday party because I wasn't on Facebook Hate to break it to you, but he's not really your friend. You would have known about it directly or through someone else if so. Facebook is for finding out about events / people who aren't close to you, but you're still interested in. That's its value.

Funnily enough I can categorically say that's not true. He's one of my closest friends, was extremely upset that I wasn't there, and was kicking himself for months afterwards for the lazy assumption. The almost total ubiquity of Facebook leads to an assumption that everyone is on there. Hopefully that's going to change over the next few years, but there are hard lessons along the way.