Anyone else anti-social networking?

[reversepolarity]

I know how many people love F.book and others, so if you're one of them, this isn't the thread for you!
As for me I find it's so annoying, everywhere I turn I hear about it, and get nagged to sign up - but why would I want to type everything I'm doing to let Microsoft and all my friends know what I'm doing every second of the day (and vice versa).

I can't understand the fascination with it all, my phone delights in telling me the GPS signal can be used by my buddies/friends/contacts (or whatever) to locate me if I so choose- what a nightmare!

I'm amazed how people let something so invasive into their lives, operated by a private company, but at the same time scorn the idea of a simple government run ID card! Even George Orwell's 1984 couldn't forsee a world where people would optionally give out such extreme detail about themselves.

Maybe it's just me? Any other haters out there?!

 

[BlobVanDam]

Even though I quite like Facebook, I agree with all of your points. Too many of these sites, and they're all linked. I don't want to get bugged to share something I saw on every other site. Every site seems to have a Facebook box so I can share it. If I wanted to do that, I'd actually go to Facebook, dangit! And why do people make Facebook updates announcing to everyone their exact location? Sure, in theory only your friends would see it, but if it's on the internet, there's always a way for someone to see it.

I think the idea of social networking has a lot of pluses, but it's definitely getting too invasive a lot of the time, and a lot of people just go along with it.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

I suspect some people are so massively insecure about their inherent worthlessness that they have to constantly broadcast the fact that they are still breathing and doing "stuff".

 

[The Boy Who Cried Worf]

I don't know how I feel about it. I actually have a Facebook account although in a fake name and I don't use it. My girlfriend wants me to friend her though so I am going to do that. My main reason is just being a life-long depressed and socially anxious person I am not big on letting a lot of people into my daily existence(which is of course why I post on an Internet message board everyday). I am just rather embarrassed about myself and would rather not share it with others especially people I used to know well. Maybe I might enjoy Facebook though, I don't really know much about what goes on there. Twitter is what seems like the silly thing to me.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

Twitter is what seems like the silly thing to me.

The clue is in the word "twit".

 

[BlobVanDam]

I suspect some people are so massively insecure about their inherent worthlessness that they have to constantly broadcast the fact that they are still breathing and doing "stuff".

Or they're so self centered that they feel that people actually want to read about what they ate for breakfast, or where they are right now. Did they really need to announce that they're at home? If I'm this close to someone and wanted to know where they are, I'd call them.

 

[Ood Sigma]

I also don't like the social networking. I don't have a Facebook or Twitter account and I never will.

I don't like being that connected to everyone. I don't want to know what everyone else is up to or hear their opinions on every subject. I don't want to connect with long lost friends or classmates. I have the people who are most important to me and I connect with them on a real level. I'm a private person and I share my life only with those I choose to.

Also, I used to be part of another pre-FB social networking site, and while at the time I thought it was fun, in the end it caused nothing but drama and problems. I see the destructive powers possible in it, and I continue to see those issues when my wife encounters them with hers. It's not for me, though in her case she uses it to promote her business and so the good outweighs the bad for her.

 

[JarodRussell]

My telephone activities had been replaced by email, now my email activities are replaced by private messages on "social networking sites". No difference in principle. I'm still "organizing" my friends and activities the same way I did decades ago.

 

[JoeZhang]

Twitter can actually be very handy for quickly getting links to a rapidly occurring event - I don't use it for networking however. As for facebook, I use it to keep in touch with close friends and it's fine for that.

 

[Servo]

I use Facebook and Twitter for different reasons.

I use FB to keep in touch with RL friends who I don't see everyday. It's great for organising events, remembering birthdays and other random stuff.
I use Twitter to keep in touch with online friends that I don't have on FB. It's also great for gaming news, as most game devs posts updates direct to Twitter, so you get the jump on the actual news sites. Also, game devs give away promo codes or free DLC codes over Twitter, so it's always worth following them if you're into that kind of thing.

I would agree that there are some people out there who over use Facebook by posting too much info, or too many status updates, but do you know what's worse than "Facebook whores"? People who claim they don't use Facebook or Twitter, then act like they're somehow better than all the other peons who use social networking sites. Yeah, you're real cool.

 

[Pingfah]

I know how many people love F.book and others, so if you're one of them, this isn't the thread for you!
As for me I find it's so annoying, everywhere I turn I hear about it, and get nagged to sign up - but why would I want to type everything I'm doing to let Microsoft and all my friends know what I'm doing every second of the day (and vice versa).

Well, you don't have to do that you know, it doesn't force you to update your status every 5 minutes.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

No.

 

[Jetfire]

I don't use any of this crap. Cause I am a loser.

 

[RandyS]

I don't use any of this crap. Cause I am a loser.

I don't use any of this crap because I'm a winner.

Also, it's all pointless.

 

[reversepolarity]

I don't use any of this crap. Cause I am a loser.

I don't use any of this crap because I'm a winner.

Also, it's all pointless.

Well said! I'm glad to see other people who don't worship it

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Also, it's all pointless.

No more or less so than most social interaction. Certainly no more pointless than posting in a topic about it on a Trek board.

 

[Jetfire]

I don't use any of this crap. Cause I am a loser.

I don't use any of this crap because I'm a winner.

Also, it's all pointless.

Apparently if you don't have FB or Twitter or whatever else is out there...there is something wrong with you...at least that is how some people act. I had a MySpace page back in the day and the novelty wore off quick...same thing with Twitter. I just don't see the point...and have no use for these things.

 

[Servo]

I don't use any of this crap. Cause I am a loser.

I don't use any of this crap because I'm a winner.

Also, it's all pointless.

Well said! I'm glad to see other people who don't worship it

Why is it one extreme or the other? You can either worship it or hate it, but no inbetween is allowed?

 

[Jetfire]

If people find these things useful...then more power to them...I liked the MySpace page I had back in the day...but I am not feeling these type of things now.

 

[Amaris]

I don't use any of this crap because I'm a winner.

Also, it's all pointless.

Well said! I'm glad to see other people who don't worship it

Why is it one extreme or the other? You can either worship it or hate it, but no inbetween is allowed?

Bingo. Yahtzee. Scrabble. Connect 4. You sank my battleship. Hungry Hungry Hippo.

I think most people just use it to stay connected with friends. I use it occasionally, sometimes more, sometimes less, and I also use Facebook to promote my business. There's a nice, large swath of in-between there.