Just deleted my facebook account

That’s all fair enough, but I can’t see it being a negative whatever they choose to do with the fact that they know what I look like.
I’m not being difficult, I just honestly can’t see a downside to Facebook being able to match my Face to my Name ?
If someone can point out a potential downside, I would be happy to listen.

Simples, think if how much more effective a Terminator is now that it doesn’t just have the phone book to use!!

They’re only in business for one thing, and that’s to make money.

Um, that’s generally why companies exist in the first place, n’est-ce pas?

Too much information! I’m not sure what is more disturbing….. The fact that you think that or the fact that you actually posted it on a forum.

What’s more disturbing is he appears to have realised I’m doing it.

Never been interested in anything like Facebook; I’d rather lean over the fence and have a yarn with my neighbours.

Fencebook 🙂

I binned mine a while ago and it doesn’t seem to have made any difference to my life really.

I think it’s probably a great tool if you make the effort to update and use it proactively but I could never be bothered so figured it’s better to have no account then an account lying dormant.

Please note that I do not think I am really cool or subversive for deleting my account, I’m sure there are plenty doing it and I have nothing against Facebook at all.

I can’t imagine having an account or not actually affecting anyone’s social life though unless you’re 15 or something- nobody I know actually arranges nights out or anything via Facebook and even if they did they would just text or phone me anway.

whats facebook 8)

I can’t imagine having an account or not actually affecting anyone’s social life though unless you’re 15 or something- nobody I know actually arranges nights out or anything via Facebook

Part of the reason I finally relented and got an account was that I realised I was missing out on hearing about stuff that my mates were up to.

They’d posted it all on FB, with photos and videos, so “everyone” knew.

Back in the day we’d send emails. These days I rarely email anyone I know well, it is 90% through Facebook.

And yes, we arrange nights out etc through Facebook – currently planning a get-together at a festival next month in fact.

I’m not 15, I’m 37. 🙂

Fair enough, but surely they weren’t excluding you from being invited to stuff purely because you weren’t on facebook?!

Too much information! I’m not sure what is more disturbing….. The fact that you think that or the fact that you actually posted it on a forum.

whats disturbing is that you’ve obviously never received messages from teh ladies informing you that they’ve been doing it to your photos….

if you’d seen darcy you’d know he’s not ‘thinking’ that, he’s knowing that

#toocutetobegay

Fair enough, but surely they weren’t excluding you from being invited to stuff purely because you weren’t on facebook?!

My mates are all at least a three hour drive away. Some a require a flight.

So no, it wasn’t that I was invited down the pub with them on a Friday, more that I didn’t know about things happening in their lives that “everyone” else did.

So when we did manage to meet up the conversation would go:

Mate 1: “Hey, saw the video and photos of your trip to Islay. Looked great.”

Mate 2: “Yeah thanks. It was a great trip.”

Me: “You were in Islay?”

Mate 1: “I was pissing myself at that bit where you nearly stacked your road bike into a sheep”

Me: “You have a road bike now??”

Mate 1: “And your wife was looking quite merry at that distillery!”

Me: “Wait. You got married??”

etc etc

So when we did manage to meet up the conversation would go:

Mate 1: “Hey, saw the video and photos of your trip to Islay. Looked great.”

Mate 2: “Yeah thanks. It was a great trip.”

Me: “You were in Islay?”

Mate 1: “I was pissing myself at that bit where you nearly stacked your road bike into a sheep”

Me: “You have a road bike now??”

Mate 1: “And your wife was looking quite merry at that distillery!”

Me: “Wait. You got married??”

etc etc
Have you got the hint yet? 😉

On the subject of privacy, anyone who’s interested in this stuff (and if not, why not?) may benefit from completing my mate’s survey I posted a few days back. It tells you a few interesting things that you probably didn’t know about Facebook and data.

I’ve looked into this at length and am coming to the conclusion that, from an informed point of view, I really don’t care all that much. Facebook (arguably) provides a useful service, and its users ‘pay’ for that service by allowing FB to build a profile of you for things like targeted advertising. If I’m going to see adverts, it seems sensible to see ones that might be vaguely relevant to my interests.

I’m not a big fan of FB, truth be told, but I find it useful to have an account as it’s often a common denominator when organising things involving disparate groups of people.

Its games and apps are annoying, but once blocked they do stay blocked. I find as well that the bulk of the twaddle comes from a minority of prolific, uh, twaddlers, so it’s sometimes more effective to deal with that at source. So what I’m trying to say I think is, it’s not the tool iteself which is inherently faulty, it’s the tools on your ‘friends’ lists who are using it.

IMHO, etc.

Your friends are still posting photos of you on Facebook. They’re still tagging them as you. They’re still mentioning you in status updates.

But now you have no control or knowledge of it. Well done.

On the subject of privacy, anyone who’s interested in this stuff (and if not, why not?) may benefit from completing my mate’s survey I posted a few days back.

Just did it. Decent survey that.

I find as well that the bulk of the twaddle comes from a minority of prolific, uh, twaddlers

I blocked my cousin a few year ago for that reason. She’s now 19 and a lot more interesting, so she’s unblocked 🙂 Her brother otoh is 15 and very funny in a cool way, and doesn’t spam.

The “Acquaintances” list is quite useful for people you don’t want completely block but don’t want to hear from every day either.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/252348/use_facebooks_acquaintance_list_suggestions_to_simplify_your_antisocial_friendsorting.html

Your friends are still posting photos of you on Facebook. They’re still tagging them as you. They’re still mentioning you in status updates.

But now you have no control or knowledge of it. Well done.

And I haven’t deleted my Facebook account, but rarely log in… What’s the difference?

Your friends are still posting photos of you on Facebook. They’re still tagging them as you. They’re still mentioning you in status updates.

But now you have no control or knowledge of it. Well done.

Your friends could do all of these things in real life when you’re not there without Facebook. I.e they may talk about you in the pub when you’re not there, you get mentioned in stories and anecdotes when you’re not present. What’s the difference?

Plus it would be a bizarre reason to have a fb account based purely on the fact you’re worried what your friends may say or do when you can’t see.

Dezinald, i’m going to find you on facebook and touch you in places you didnt know existed

they may talk about you in the pub when you’re not there… What’s the difference?

The landlord of the pub isn’t recording it all so he can show it to your other friends and family (and their friends) and sell it on to advertisers and other interested parties?

Well at least not in my local anyway. yours might be different.

The landlord of the pub isn’t recording it all so he can show it to your other friends and family (and their friends) and sell it on to advertisers and other interested parties?

Well at least not in my local anyway. yours might be different

I suspect the landlord in my local probably is into recording stuff but that’s another story.

It’s a fair point but if you’re worried about privacy and Facebook, surely it is essentially counterproductive to actually have an account only to keep track of what is being said/posted about you because you’re so worried about said privacy. Seems contradictory.

Seems paranoid.

I never bothered with Twit book, or whatever its all called.

What am I missing for not having twitterface ?.

What am I missing for not having twitterface ?.

If you are not interested in what your friends, family and other people or organisations you like are up to, then not much really. 🙂

Graham_S.

I genuinely appreciate the answer / explaination.
Believe it or not, I never really knew what all that pullarva was about and in one sentence you’ve wrapped it up for me brilliantly.

And you’re correct, I need not apply.
Cheers.
😀

The other aspect may be that Facebook is quickly becoming the “Internet Login”

i.e. rather than having their own login system many sites now require you to log in with a facebook account (or Google+ or OpenID).

Facebook currently seems to be winning this battle hands down (shame cos OpenID is “better”/less corporate)

So for some people it might be worth having a bare bones facebook account just for that. (No idea if that applies to you Solo, prob not by the sounds of it).

The other aspect may be that Facebook is quickly becoming the “Internet Login”

Don’t make me leave the internet 🙁

many sites now require you to log in with a facebook account
😯

Sounds a bit risky to me.
surely there will be folk who might want to purchase an item or a service and will not take kindly to being forced to create an F/B acc ?.

My initial, perhaps unenlightened, reaction would be to say ” Stuff you ” Mr whoever you are forcing me to have an F/B acc.
I’ll go else where.
😐

surely there will be folk who might want to purchase an item or a service and will not take kindly to being forced to create an F/B acc ?.

My initial, perhaps unenlightened, reaction would be to say ” Stuff you ” Mr whoever you are forcing me to have an F/B acc.
I’ll go else where.

whilst i’ve never been asked to log in using facebook to buy anything, i do feel the same… if i’m asked to log in via facebook or download a facebook app to read a news item for example, i’ll shut it down and go elsewhere. no you can’t have access to my profile information, you dont need it.

surely there will be folk who might want to purchase an item or a service and will not take kindly to being forced to create an F/B acc ?.

True, but for every one of them there are another ten who like that they can just press “Login with Facebook” instead of creating yet another website account, filling out yet another set of users details, and remember yet another username and password.

Some example sites off the top of my head: Endomondo, Strava, Stack Overflow/Exchange, Khan Academy, Get Satisfaction, Gizmodo, LifeHacker..

Apps too are doing this: e.g. Draw Something and Infinity Blade II both use Facebook to authenticate and find your friends.

if i’m asked to log in via facebook or download a facebook app to read a news item for example, i’ll shut it down and go elsewhere.

Yeah, some companies don’t quite get it yet…

– from http://theoatmeal.com/comics/state_web_spring

True, but for every one of them there are another ten who like that they can just press “Login with Facebook” instead of creating yet another website account, filling out yet another set of users details, and remember yet another username and password.

And this may well become the societal norm. Which will make my visiting of ‘fringe’ websites which allow anonymity the societal equivalent of living in a tent in the woods.
I’m going to be “that guy” aren’t I?

Most(?) sites that offer a FB login do just that – offer a FB login. I can’t offhand think of any where it’s mandatory.

no you can’t have access to my profile information, you dont need it.

It’s the other way around, actually. What the site sees is (theoretically) strictly controlled, the flow of information is to Facebook, not from it.

LOL at GrahamS. That’s exactly what I do with linked pages from various sites….

Arguably, security through FB isn’t wholly a bad thing, certainly compared to other sites’ practices.

As an example, I got an email from a website the other day trying to get me to revisit their site. Included in the email, in plain text and unsolicited by me, were my user ID and password. Now, the fact that this is even possible is Very Bad, stored passwords should be held with one-way encryption, but then choosing to send them to me on a whim in about the most insecure method possible? Suddenly, having Facebook know I bought some brake pads last week doesn’t seem all bad.

Wow !.

It strikes me now that the gloves are really coming off, with companies turning the internet to their business centred will.

Seems a bit dark.

Don’t like.

Most(?) sites that offer a FB login do just that – offer a FB login. I can’t offhand think of any where it’s mandatory.

It’s coming. Gawker Media (Lifehacker, Gizmodo, Jezebel, io9, Deadspin, Kotaku etc) recently made it compulsory for commenters to log in with a Facebook, Google or Twitter account.

It’s coming.

One company trying it does not mean anything is ‘coming’. It’s been tried before and people vote with their feet.

Matters not a jot in the grand scheme of things though, it’d take me less time than writing this post to create an alternate disposable Twitter or Facebook account.

Thinking about it, I might do that anyway. Then I can use their convenient SSO facilities without any privacy concerns at all.

One company trying it does not mean anything is ‘coming’. It’s been tried before and people vote with their feet.

One massive media company with a family of popular websites.

There are plenty of others too, plus as I said, phone apps etc that need facebook (or similar) to be activate functionality or play aspects of the game.

Thinking about it, I might do that anyway. Then I can use their convenient SSO facilities without any privacy concerns at all.

Yep not a bad plan. OpenID is an much better system too. Vote with your feet by favouring that over Facebook when you are given a choice. If you are a proper geek (and I know you are Cougar) you can even run your own OpenID server so you know exactly where your data is.

EDIT: (Post deleted cos I’m talking nonsense)

Yes, FB log-in from other sites is optional for convenience, not mandatory.