Sunday, December 23, 2007

Facebook: Yay or Nay?

I never really jumped on board the social media trend. I signed up for Friendster several years ago, but didn't put much time into it, and I don't think anyone uses it anymore. Myspace didn't pique my interest- primarily because of their terrible design- clashing colors, ugly fonts, business, ugh! It makes my eyes burn, and I'm not even that particular about layouts. That site must be like kryptonite for graphic designers. Plus, isn't it mostly for teenagers?

Last week, one of my coworkers showed me his Facebook page and I must admit, I was intrigued. The layout is rather serene, and people I know actually use it. A lot of them! I had fun perusing friends' pages, and I'm now considering setting up my own. However, a part of me feels that I spend enough time screwing around on the internet (namely, this blog and all the blogs I read), so do I really need another portal for procrastination? Probably not.

So, I'm asking for opinions and feedback. Do you use Facebook? Do you like it? Do annoying people from your past start contacting you, or is it a good way to reconnect with people you actually like?

Should I, or shouldn't I?

Related: a humorous essay from The Morning News about Facebook

10 comments:

Kris said...

I'm on both myspace and Facebook, but just so friends can find me and get to my blog. I log in maybe once a month. I don't use any of the extended features on either of them. I reject every Facebook notification from a friend that requires me to install some sort of application. I don't update my mood. I don't play Scrabble. I don't leave messages on people's "walls." I accept the occasional Friend request (and only when it's someone that I actually physically know) and everything else gets binned. I'm pretty happy with this system.

J.R. said...

yeah, i'm about on the same page as kris. but it's easy to upload photos and i used it to keep people abreast when i went to europe. and it is sort of fun to find people from your past on facebook and easier than the random google search.

Kevin said...

Eileen, you defo have to get on Facebook. It's fairly decent and you do find some random blasts from the past. After a while, the novelty fades and you don't have to spend too much time on it, maybe checking it once a week or so.

Rob said...

I was peer pressured into it, and am very glad I did. It's been fun to catch up with people I haven't seen/spoken to in 10+ years.

And if for nothing else it helps me keep track of everyone's birthday!

eileen said...

All right- you guys have convinced me. Stay tuned for my Facebook unveiling.

Anonymous said...

Haha, Liz uses Friendster!! I might be in trouble for this comment, but I couldn't resist

Anonymous said...

What? You sayin' I'm old? jeez beth! :)

eileen said...

You know, I only signed up for Friendster because of Liz!

Anonymous said...

you are too old for facebook. the end.

eileen said...

Too late, "someone."