Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#1

Post by johnnewell » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 8:29 PM UTC

Privacy is cited a lot but I'm curious if there were other reasons that prompted you to stop using Facebook.

P.S: Please clarify whether you've deleted your account completely or just stopped using it.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#2

Post by mariuolo » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 8:32 PM UTC

Keeping up with it is a full-time job and I already have one.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#3

Post by o0-0o » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 8:32 PM UTC

Exclusivity. Facebook feels a lot like eating a burger at McDonald's. It's just not that great.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#4

Post by hawkice » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 8:48 PM UTC

I shut down my facebook account about two years ago.

I did it because I can't figure out why I should spend time reading something that no one cares whether I read or not.

Since I left, I noticed something. I think the word 'poser' has been overused and turned into a bizarre cliche, but surely there is a lot of posturing on facebook. I think the I-know-you-knows are a lot of the appeal, and that element is certainly lost with IM/Email. Personal tastes vary, and spending a lot of time on cheap social signals seems to be a pretty human passtime, but I just don't enjoy it.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#5

Post by Red_Tarsius » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 8:50 PM UTC

I have a facebook account, but I don't use it anymore.

I hate to see how awesome other people's life seems. I can't stop but get envious and disappointed. Yet, I kept coming back for more. I had the unhealthy compulsion to keep scrolling through the happy stuff, while feeling bad for my "mundane" living.

I stopped using facebook. I feel much better.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#6

Post by fatjokes » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 8:50 PM UTC

It made me feel sad. FOMO and all that. At the end of the day, I just didn't like who I was after using it. I'm a happier person without it.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#7

Post by MilnerRoute » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 9:00 PM UTC

I'm trying to avoid Facebook as much as possible. Partly because it cuts into productivity. (The "rabbit hole" effect, where a few seconds of reading a blurb lead to a longer article or video...)

But I also do believe the gist of that study which claimed that people feel more depressed after using Facebook. If you're craving human contact, visiting Facebook is a temporary distraction at best -- and the second you leave, you're no better off than you were before. In fact you probably feel worse, because now that temporary distraction is also suddenly gone....

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#8

Post by carlchenet » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 9:02 PM UTC

Closed my account a while ago. Now using Diaspora* and quite happy with the result.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#9

Post by partisan » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 9:02 PM UTC

Lack of meaningful connections.

Also, I don't want to participate in their facial recognition database. I find this to be the worst in terms of the privacy I give up because I can be tagged in a picture without ever posting a thing. Anonymity goes away once anyone can identify anyone else through a simple picture. Then they can see who you work for, where you live, your family life, your sexual orientation, political beliefs, and so on. The downward spiral goes on from there.

Re: Ask HN: Why are you off Facebook?

#10

Post by junto » Wed, Mar 25, 2015, 9:06 PM UTC

Here's a number of reasons why I (like the author) am not on Facebook anymore (permanently deleted account 2 years ago):

http://saintsal.com/facebook/