Create your own Facebook news story

How long, do you think, before newspapers realize there are better things to do than pay writers to troll through Facebook looking for interesting groups? Is there anything less useful than a Facebook group? All you have to do is click to join. Sure, that means there is now a list of people with a common interest, and you can send emails to them to try to harness real-world protest. But does anyone really think this is very effective?

Here is your typical Facebook news story:

1) Headline: Facebook group formed to protest/publicize/decry/celebrate XYZ.
2) People upset about XYZ have formed a group on Facebook.
3) The group has X number of members.
4) The founder of the group says he/she created it in order to raise awareness etc.
5) A spokesperson for someone else said that the group would not affect their decision.

There. Now you can be a cutting-edge tech reporter too.

Or am I just bitter because the one and only Facebook group I created is tiny and has gotten no media coverage? (Join up! It's called "You're Gone! A Ted Tevan Group" and it took me all of a couple of clicks to create.)

Gone Surfin': Facebook edition

(This post has been updated)

Here's my latest Gone Surfin' web column, this time about Facebook. A couple of non-Facebook users have told me that reading it finally gave them an idea of what FB is and how it works.

Due to overwhelming popular demand (OK, me responding to the first request I got), here is the full text of the Facebook column. No more downloading a pdf to read it.

Oh, and "local" if you're wondering, refers in this case to the South Shore of Nova Scotia.

Getting Some Face(book) Time

My Montreal friend Tony Pompeo (not his real name) was making his way home from work the other evening – and if you checked his Facebook profile, you could follow along with him:

10:57 PM: Tony is at Bonaventure Metro.

11:25 PM: Tony is almost home.

11:28 PM: Tony is walking down the street.

Facebook is a fast-growing social networking site that allows users to post photos and information about themselves, join networks related to geography, schools, or workplaces, and participate in online groups dedicated to just about anything you can imagine.

Tony had just discovered Facebook's mobile features and was – as he would admit – overdoing it as he used his cellphone to keep updating his page.

Facebook, which had 19 million active users as of April, used to be available only to students. But it recently opened up to the general population (leading to the formation of groups such as “Help!!! Old People Are Invading Facebook!”). The site is especially popular in Canada, with Canadians making up about 10% of users.

Here's how Facebook works. To access the site at all, you need to register (it's free). Once you've registered, you can search for people you know, and then ask them to be your “friends.” When you are friends with someone on Facebook, you can see their profile, along with the information about themselves they've chosen to post. You can also receive updates on their “status” (what they are saying they are doing), see photos and links they've posted, and invite them to upcoming events.

Facebook is a great way to connect with friends. You can stay up-to-date on what old college roommates are up to, without having to email and ask. And in a rural area, it's a handy way to keep a far-flung group of current friends in the loop about local happenings.

Don't know who to invite as a Facebook friend? Joining a network (such as Halifax, Bridgewater High School, or Scotiabank), connects you with a group of people who have some kind of shared interest. In addition, there are user-created groups devoted to pretty much any topic imaginable. Local ones include “I'm From Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia and I'm Not Ashamed to Admit it”, “In Memory of Jillian Paige Snair” (for a local teen killed in a car crash in January), and “East St. Margarets Elementary School.”

Are there any negatives? Of course. For one, Facebook can be addictive. Do you really want to track down everyone from elementary school and add them to your friends? Then there's the privacy question. Facebook will ask you for all kinds of information when you register. But there is no obligation to provide it all. You could enter a fake name (there are eight Facebook users going by the name of heavy metal guitarist Zakk Wylde), but that defeats the purpose if you are hoping friends will find you.

Instead, keep it simple. My profile, for instance, is fairly minimal, and the date of birth I entered inaccurate. And when I want to communicate with friends directly, I use my own email address, not my Facebook mail. There is also no reason to accept Facebook's default privacy settings. Instead, click the “Privacy” link and change your settings to a level you are comfortable with.

© Philip Moscovitch, 2007. All rights reserved.

The Facebook photo

If you have a Facebook account, you'll probably notice that the profile pics people choose fall into a couple of broad categories.

Here's a quick field guide:

• What's wrong with your shoulders: This is the photo people take of themselves, by holding the camera out in front of them. You can't see their arms, but it seems there is something weird about the shoulders -- until you realize they're like that because the arms aren't hanging down but are held out in front of the body instead.
  
• Half a face: Extreme close-ups. There's half a face, part of the face, the face at a weird angle. Not good if you have zits, I suppose. Then again, what else is Photoshop for?
  
• On the beach: Maybe it's because I live in Atlantic Canada. People shot from the middle distance. Another variation: on holiday, or just relaxing and looking like you're on holiday.
• Copyright infringement: Photos of cartoon characters (The Flintsones), famous people (Ozzy Osbourne, Zakk Wylde) and so on.
• With the kids: Young parents, mostly. I am cool and I have kids too!
• The pet: Close-up of a cat or dog's face. Is it your cat? Your dog? Are you too closely identified with your animals? Or are you being savvy about your privacy?
• The glamour shot: I am so sexy!
• The self-conscious: A bad photo. Generally comes with comments from the profile's owner about how bad the photo is.
• The illustration: For the artistes among us.
  

Then, of course, there are the people who change their photos every day. Or several times a day. Many of them, it seems, writers. Procrastination anyone?