Facebook debuts, social-networking stocks fall

Skybird · 05-21-12, 04:46 AM

No chance I will ever join it. Call me a relic of the paper-notebook era, but I am far less dependent that way than if I always need to carry smartphone or laptop around with me. Facebook also does not offer me what real vis-a-vis meeting, or a paper letter that actually needs some time, heart and energy to be written down, are offering. It is an instant quicky disguising itself as a "social life". And in the end, it turns people into products to be sold.

When I hear from a close friend's husband (who is school teacher) that pupils refuse to join a school trip holiday if there is no guaranteed internet access (a spreading phenomenon that I recently also read about somewhere in the media), then I think something goes totally wrong.

Friends on facebook are no friends. Social networks are not really social. A circle of friends counting by the hundreds or even thousands, is an erosion of the term. - what remains of Facebook when you substract what I criticise, is nopthing that you also could not run and maintain in your real life, via phone, skype, or real meetings.

Plus you get not profiled inside out by people of whom you know nothing what they do with your data and profiles. If I should join Facebook and sell my data, then they have to pay me. With more real value than just this cheap strange "service". If I am seen as a product, than at least a more precious one.

And no, I am not headed back to the stoneage and am no principle enemy of technology, by far not. I just do not loose my head over running blindly after it.

Sailor Steve · 05-21-12, 05:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skybird

Friends on facebook are no friends.

Bull. While I agree completely with almost everything you've said, including the whole hundreds-of-friends crap, it depends on how you use it. My friends on FaceBook are exactly the same as my friends on Subsim: Friends. Either some one I know or have known personally, people I've worked with online or seen post enough online to consider them actual friends. FaceBook is my only regular contact with my kids, and with friends in other cities. If you can't tell the difference then you should stay away from it.

Unfortunately you're right for the most part. Most people don't seem to be able to tell the difference, so they do have hundreds of "friends" whom they don't know and don't really care to. All my friends are people I care about.

Platapus · 05-21-12, 07:29 AM

Perhaps a better way of wording it would be that facebook-only friends are not actual friends.

It is like that old joke: How can you tell how many friends a facebook user has?

Don't worry, they will tell you.

Facebook is a great way to maintain contact with your real friends and family. I get a bit leery when people claim to make "friends" with people they have never actually met or talked to.

It all boils down to what each person's definition of "friend" is.

To me, a friend is something really special. I only have about 2-3 friends and I consider myself very lucky. I have a buttload of acquaintances. But they are not the same as friends.

But, other people have a more liberal definition of friend. And that's ok.

Betonov · 05-21-12, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

All my friends are people I care about.

Thanks

It helps if you run a bit of an alter-ego online. Don't tell people everything. Don't show people everything. While I am a product, I am a useless product. FB is for me a communication tool, not a broader ID card. I don't feel they taken advantage of me. More like vice-versa.

Gerald · 05-21-12, 08:38 AM

FB will certainly gain more ground after the stock market debut.

nikimcbee · 05-21-12, 09:06 AM

There aspects of FB that are just creepy. I deep-sixed my personal FB account and I finally remembered my PW for my backup account. In my backup account, there is no personal info about me, and it is still able to "recommend" people I actually know

.

So I added one friend to that account, and look out, here come the ads!

STEED · 05-21-12, 10:56 AM

Going down...

Quote:

Facebook shares dropped below their debut price of $38 (£24) in trading on Monday raising concerns about the stock if its lead underwriter Morgan Stanley stops propping it up and investors who were hoping for a surge in price decide to pull out.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/facebook-sh...--finance.html

kraznyi_oktjabr · 05-21-12, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nikimcbee

-snip- In my backup account, there is no personal info about me, and it is still able to "recommend" people I actually know

. -snip-

I was quite shocked when FB recommended my doctor to become my new "friend". No common friends, no profile information with any clue that I even knew him.

kranz · 05-21-12, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kraznyi_oktjabr

I was quite shocked when FB recommended my doctor to become my new "friend". No common friends, no profile information with any clue that I even knew him.

maybe you have your doctor's email in your gmail's address book?

Skybird · 05-21-12, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

Bull. While I agree completely with almost everything you've said, including the whole hundreds-of-friends crap, it depends on how you use it. My friends on FaceBook are exactly the same as my friends on Subsim: Friends. Either some one I know or have known personally, people I've worked with online or seen post enough online to consider them actual friends. FaceBook is my only regular contact with my kids, and with friends in other cities. If you can't tell the difference then you should stay away from it.

Unfortunately you're right for the most part. Most people don't seem to be able to tell the difference, so they do have hundreds of "friends" whom they don't know and don't really care to. All my friends are people I care about.

My fault. I lacked precision on the "friends" part. I wanted to refer to the infamous "friends" button that makes strangers your so-called "friends".

Sailor Steve · 05-21-12, 11:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skybird

My fault. I lacked precision on the "friends" part. I wanted to refer to the infamous "friends" button that makes strangers your so-called "friends".

I agree for the most part. I just get defensive where my kids are concerned. Yes, the "friends" button is an invitation to disaster.

"I have eight hundred and seventy-two friends! I've only met three of them, but you know..."

Onkel Neal · 05-22-12, 12:02 AM

If FB falls enough, I'll certainly load up on it.

kraznyi_oktjabr · 05-22-12, 03:54 AM

What I don't get in this is that based on Finnish media Facebook is not planning any dividends in near future (if ever). What is a point in owning a company which does not generate any income for you? How such company can be more valuable than many industrial corporations?

Facebook's "stock" sounds more like chip in poker table than legitimate trade instrument. Gambling on imagined value.

Onkel Neal · 05-22-12, 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kraznyi_oktjabr

What I don't get in this is that based on Finnish media Facebook is not planning any dividends in near future (if ever). What is a point in owning a company which does not generate any income for you? How such company can be more valuable than many industrial corporations?

Facebook's "stock" sounds more like chip in poker table than legitimate trade instrument. Gambling on imagined value.

FB generates tons of money, how could it not? It has over 500 million active users.

Yes, investing in any business is a gamble. You are taking a chance that the company will succeed and create value and profit. Just imagine you and I are neighbors, we live in a town where there is no taxi service and a lot of people who don't own cars. I may make a study and show that a taxi service would be a valuable addition to the town. I ask you to help me buy 4 cars, hire drivers, and radio equipment. You invest an amount with an agreement to share in the profits. If I run the business well and I am right about the demand, we make money and the town has a taxi service. A gamble? Sure, so is life.

05-21-12, 04:46 AM	#1
Skybird Soaring Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: the mental asylum named Germany Posts: 42,660 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	No chance I will ever join it. Call me a relic of the paper-notebook era, but I am far less dependent that way than if I always need to carry smartphone or laptop around with me. Facebook also does not offer me what real vis-a-vis meeting, or a paper letter that actually needs some time, heart and energy to be written down, are offering. It is an instant quicky disguising itself as a "social life". And in the end, it turns people into products to be sold. When I hear from a close friend's husband (who is school teacher) that pupils refuse to join a school trip holiday if there is no guaranteed internet access (a spreading phenomenon that I recently also read about somewhere in the media), then I think something goes totally wrong. Friends on facebook are no friends. Social networks are not really social. A circle of friends counting by the hundreds or even thousands, is an erosion of the term. - what remains of Facebook when you substract what I criticise, is nopthing that you also could not run and maintain in your real life, via phone, skype, or real meetings. Plus you get not profiled inside out by people of whom you know nothing what they do with your data and profiles. If I should join Facebook and sell my data, then they have to pay me. With more real value than just this cheap strange "service". If I am seen as a product, than at least a more precious one. And no, I am not headed back to the stoneage and am no principle enemy of technology, by far not. I just do not loose my head over running blindly after it. __________________ If you feel nuts, consult an expert.

05-21-12, 07:29 AM	#3
Platapus Fleet Admiral Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 19,379 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 0	Perhaps a better way of wording it would be that facebook-only friends are not actual friends. It is like that old joke: How can you tell how many friends a facebook user has? Don't worry, they will tell you. Facebook is a great way to maintain contact with your real friends and family. I get a bit leery when people claim to make "friends" with people they have never actually met or talked to. It all boils down to what each person's definition of "friend" is. To me, a friend is something really special. I only have about 2-3 friends and I consider myself very lucky. I have a buttload of acquaintances. But they are not the same as friends. But, other people have a more liberal definition of friend. And that's ok. __________________ abusus non tollit usum - A right should NOT be withheld from people on the basis that some tend to abuse that right.

05-21-12, 08:38 AM	#5
Gerald SUBSIM Newsman Join Date: May 2008 Location: Close to sea Posts: 24,254 Downloads: 553 Uploads: 0	FB will certainly gain more ground after the stock market debut. __________________ Nothing in life is to be feard,it is only to be understood. Marie Curie

05-21-12, 09:06 AM	#6
nikimcbee Fleet Admiral Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Patroling the Slot. Posts: 17,952 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	There aspects of FB that are just creepy. I deep-sixed my personal FB account and I finally remembered my PW for my backup account. In my backup account, there is no personal info about me, and it is still able to "recommend" people I actually know. So I added one friend to that account, and look out, here come the ads! __________________

05-22-12, 03:54 AM	#13
kraznyi_oktjabr Sea Lord Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Republiken Finland Posts: 1,803 Downloads: 8 Uploads: 0	What I don't get in this is that based on Finnish media Facebook is not planning any dividends in near future (if ever). What is a point in owning a company which does not generate any income for you? How such company can be more valuable than many industrial corporations? Facebook's "stock" sounds more like chip in poker table than legitimate trade instrument. Gambling on imagined value. __________________ You talk to God, you're religious. God talks to you, you're psychotic. - Dr. House

05-22-12, 12:02 AM	#12
Onkel Neal Born to Run Silent Join Date: Jan 1997 Location: Cougar Trap, Texas Posts: 21,385 Downloads: 541 Uploads: 224	If FB falls enough, I'll certainly load up on it.