Advice for FaceBook newbie?

Don’t put any emotion on your page, especially when it comes to family. There have been more fights and misunderstandings when it comes to facebook than I could have imagined. I am also learning to keep my politics to myself.

You will get tired of the news feed. I hardly ever look at other people’s profiles except for one look when I first friend them (or they friend me).

I’m fucking addicted to Facebook.
I’m not saying it’s a good thing. Au contraire. But come on let’s be realistic here, it’s just not possible to ignore Facebook once you’re not a noob.
Look.

Don’t. Use. Apps.

Just don’t.

I may go to Facebook once a month. Facebook is loaded with viruses. Each time I visit FB, I have to thoroughly clean my computer of viruses from FB.

Many relationships have been ruined because of FB. Its so easy to cheat by using FB as a communication tool.

Better to stay away from it.

I check in from time to time. Aside from the cryptic crossword forum I am on, it all seems silly and often pointless to me. The self-referential stuff is for what purpose?

Make your profile private. You surely don’t want everyone (strangers) to stalk you and your profile aside from your friends and family.

Facebook is a great way to stay in touch with friends and family that are not close by. There are very few people who go through the initial addiction phase, so plan on it. Some tips that I’ve learned:

1.) Unless you plan to use it for your career, keep your Facebook personal life separate from the work world.
2.) Only ‘friend’ people you really care about. As @marinelife points out, the news feed will get cumbersome with information you have no interested in with the more friends you have.
3.) As simple as it may appear, you will soon learn that it isn’t. The Help site is fairly helpful. I recommend calling on someone who uses the site to come over and walk you through the basics.

Enjoy it! It’s been great fun to see the images/videos of family members, as well as reconnect with high school classmates.

@john65pennington – Viruses – eek! Anybody else want to speak to that? Would it make a difference that I am not using apps?

Just don’t use Internet Explorer and keep your antivirus software on, and DON’T USE APPS. You’ll be fine.

Also, FB has many small items it wants you to click on. If you are not familiar with that site or a question being asked to you, then never click on it.

The Trojan is waiting around the bend.

Stop. Right. Now.

damn it ragingloli had the same advice I was going to give…

I have ZERO information on my profile, not even a picture of me. I ONLY interact with people that I know in person, mostly a handful of relatives and a few close friends that live far away. I don’t FB with friends that live nearby. I either see them in person, e-mail them or call them on the phone.

I don’t play games or fiddle with any apps and I use the custom button everytime I post anything, to make sure that what I am sending out only goes to those people who I want to see it, instead of sending it out to everybody.

I only post photos (and I’m sure to make sure that the folks in the photos are OK with being posted before I post them, especially when children are in the photos. Some people do not want photos of their kids being posted online for a variety of reasons). Sometimes I’ll post a silly little piece of info about something that happened to me and I also post little mini reviews of restaurants around town that I’ve been to or pictures of food that I have cooked.

I stay away from posting anything about politics or religion. I already know where I stand and it’s not my place to try to influence anyone else what to think or believe. If I see controversial stuff that’s been posted by other people, instead of arguing with them, I just ignore it, or even block it.

I usually check it once a day, to make sure I keep up with my family’s comings and goings and to check messages (usually about family events that I’m attending or news about my family).

Don’t get caught up in people’s requests to play games or deal with apps, just decline. If anyone asks you about it, just tell them that you use FB in a very limited manner. If you get any “friend” requests from people that are not close to you, simply decline. Again, if any of these people ask you why, tell them that you are really limited with your FB use.

Never post anything that you’d be embarrassed for your parents or your children to read/see.

I make good use of the privacy settings too. Facebook can be useful and it’s not necessary to get all caught up in the drama, if you use it wisely. Good luck : )

Don’t. Go. Any. Further.

It’s not too late to delete your account.

And there’s no point, unless you want to swap pictures, or waste tons of time with stupid games, it’s worthless.

P.S. it is also way too depressing when you realize how few friends you actually have.

Don’t play the games. They’re pointless. Do not check it every day. Do not post updates. No one cares nor should you. .

@wundayatta – Don’t worry, I already have a pretty good handle on who my “real” friends are.

Just be careful what you post – because it NEVER goes away. Always think before you use it.

Befriend only friends!

I had a friend from30 years ago who paid me back for a loan I forgot! $250. So FB is not totally bad and so nice to keep up with old friends.

FB is fine for quick posting of pictures or updates you want everyone to know.
Stay away from Farmville, Pirate and Mafia games, or any apps.
Use it as a 3 minute a day update with friends. More than that, and it’s just sad.