The effort required to tweet tells me that someone thought it was important. And I do care about that.

— via Mike Loukides

12.05.2011 | aside | People, Social Media | , | Feedback (0) Posted from: Adams Morgan, D.C.

More privacy issues with Facebook

I clicked on my Facebook timeline this morning to make sure I had properly adjusted the privacy settings associated with the Washington Post’s Social Reader app, and I was greeted by an interesting surprise: I have two Facebook subscribers!

First thought: Clearly, I’m famous.

Upon further inspection of my subscribers’ identities, though, I found they were the two people who had recently requested to be my friend and been denied.  One old acquaintance from high school and one account I think is some type of bot.

Let down. And, concerning.

This looks like the latest confusing aspect of Facebook’s increasingly complicated environment. When we ignore or otherwise do not approve a friend request, we get the feeling that we’ve made our intentions clear – this person shouldn’t be able to see what I post. Dumping them into the subscribers bin so they get notified of any public post is a bit disingenuous, methinks.

There are, to be sure, a number of ways in which this might not be a big deal – if you don’t publish any public updates, for example, your subscribers won’t see anything. Facebook, though, keeps making it tougher for its users – especially the nontechnical ones – to fully grasp the intricacies of its new products. Above all else, that’s just bad customer service.

For now, it’s prompted me to turn off all subscribing. Unfortunate.

11.05.2011 | post | Social Media | , , | Feedback (2) Posted from: Adams Morgan, D.C.

What prospective employers hope to see in your Facebook account: Creativity, well-roundedness, & ‘chastity’.

— via Nathaniel Miller

10.03.2011 | aside | Social Media | | Feedback (0)

A few thoughts on ‘The Social Network’

Just saw it. Some reflections are below:

  1. Is the genesis of Facebook and the Winklevoss’ lawsuit not the greatest testament to Matt Waite’s ‘demos, not memos‘ advice? Without being an expert on intellectual property nor researching the intricate details of the suit (for another time), Zuckerberg appears to be the de facto winner just by building the fucking thing. As Aaron Sorkin (writer crush) says in the screenplay, “If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you’d have invented Facebook.” Put simply: If you have an idea, turn it into something tangible. Or if you’re like me and can’t program, get a friend who can and build it together.
  2. I’m a sucker for a good story (and I recognize that much of the movie’s truth is stretched) but I was really struck by the implicit power and opportunity in Facebook’s beginnings. A few 20-year-old kids in a dorm room started to build something and it ended of dramatically changing the world. College kids drinking beer and riffing on ideas. That’s me –(okay, a few months ago.) But it’s not people we see on TV or read about anymore. It is not at all a stretch to say that the people I’ve come into contact with or communicate with daily may be the creators of the next big thing in media and technology. It always used to be ‘other people.’ Not anymore.
  3. Once again setting aside the film’s fictional insinuations about how Facebook was built as one big plot to fit in and get girls, it does a good job of telling the truth about why technology matters. Digital tools help us improve our physical lives, which we tend to forget are still very much analog. The feeling you get when you relive a fond memory by looking through your old Facebook photos is quite literally an analog impulse being triggered by your brain and nervous system. Sure, you could experience that memory without the photo, but the photo makes it more vivid. The digital technology improves your analog world. (By the way, check the title tag of this blog’s homepage. I’ve been sitting on this idea for a while and really ought to write more about it.)

There is certainly much more to say, but that comes later. See the movie. Reactions have been mixed and polarized, but Sorkin makes you think – and you’ve got to love a story that makes you do some serious reflecting.

10.01.2010 | post | Lifehacking, Social Media | , , , , , | Feedback (0)

Social media: How much is too much?

Used under a Creative Commoms license via Gary Hayes

That was the question du jour at the Poynter chat I attended today. I hadn’t participated in one before today, but when I heard about it (via Twitter, of course), it seemed like it’d be a gathering of the top young minds talking about Twitter, Facebook, and the like. It was.

There were plenty of good points made, but guest host Greg Linch had an interesting answer to the one question I asked: With Twitter taking over as the premier social network, how can you still use Facebook to your benefit?

Says Greg:

I think Facebook is still very relevant, but for different reasons. I don’t find it nearly as useful as Twitter on a day-to-day basis, but I think it’s an important long-term tool for keeping in touch with friends and longer-form communication.

A good point indeed. Facebook is the primary way I keep in touch with friends from across the country, and my Twitter habits are much more professionally-based. It does beg the question, though: If Facebook is more of a personal-life app, then what’s the point of a newspaper (or other company) having a fan page? I get my news via Twitter/RSS – an additional redundancy seems a little much.

As for how much is too much, I gotta think it varies person to person. If it distracts you or in any way prevents you from accomplishing your goals in the analog world, then it’s no good. But used as a proper digital tool, it should actually be a boost for professional/personal productivity and advancement. Agreed?

06.18.2009 | post | Social Media | , , , | Feedback (0)