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I also dont get all that hate either. Just use it as a tool for what its good for. For me that is mainly to stay in the know about (1) events hosted by friends,

I also dont get all that hate either. Just use it as a tool for what its good for. For me that is mainly to stay in the know about (1) events hosted by friends, (2) activities in common interest groups, (3) the life of friends and family overseas. - Dont use your real name, gender, nationality, etc. Just create a random identity. - Dont post pictures, ask friends to not post pics of you. Remove all tags. NEVER EVER POST PICS OF YOUR KIDS. - tailor your news feed: Aggressivly remove/unfollow people/groups that add only trivial noise and no interesting content. In doing so, I actually started to enjoy my thinned out feed. - comb through your friend list once a year (I always do after New Years) and clean house. Some people collect friends like trophys and are proud of their 1254 contacts. Instead, do the opposite: Try to keep it as small as possible. Ask yourself, do I really need and care for this contact? Remove people that do not add value to your life. - Dont use the messanger app. Turn off all notifications. EDIT: Why jump through all these hoops? FB gives me a unique value. The trick is to fold all the virtual social network back into real life. This is especially useful when you are in multiple disjunct groups. Most of my social activities are organized through FB: - arrange the next casual soccer kick - see when is the next social dance and who is going - friend organizes a christmas dinner party - other friend goes to a science slam, I might join - who wants to go bouldering this weekend? - see this neat trick in the "Upcycling" group how to reuse an old ... - oh, this old cafe in my borough is getting kicked out. Friends are organizing a solidarity march. Since almost everybody is on it, organizing/getting this info would be so much harder without FB. I also like to keep people in my feed that have a contrairian view point to mine. Keeps you sharp and sometimes you learn that your viewpoint might not have the best argument...

vog 9y ago
With all those caveats to keep in mind, and more caveats to come in the future as Facebook "evolves" ... isn't it much simpler not to subscribe to Facebook in the first place?
- splittingTimes 9y ago
  See my edit.
losteric 9y ago
> I also dont get all that hate either. Well, start with reading your list. That's a nice list of reasons to hate Facebook. People shouldn't have to tip toe around abusive data harvesting and dark patterns... Your list sounds like a symptom, not a solution.
- wu-ikkyu 9y ago
  Agreed, the first point reads like the OP is evading the Stasi >Dont use your real name, gender, nationality, etc. Just create a random identity
  - splittingTimes 9y ago
    Funny that you mention it. I actually grew up in East Germany before the wall came down.
git-pull 9y ago
> Ask yourself, do I really need and care for this contact? Remove people that do not add value to your life. I do a different test. It's called "Do you care about me?" If I got in a car crash over the weekend, would you even know? If you found out, would you visit me in the hospital? If the answer is yes: but they're family, I already have their contact info. For non-family, that group fluctuates, and more often than not, it's zero. I'm fine with the number staying there. Benefits include: Less drama, breakups, regrets, and more time to get work done. If the answer is no, which it mostly is: I feel I save time and am more self-honest not connecting with them. But as I get closer to 30 I feel less interest in connecting with others. The only exception is when I travel abroad and the surroundings are more intriguing. On the other hand: Social media is a great marketing tool. I'm fine if people use Facebook however they choose. And I also agree with pruning boring content in favor of subscribing / liking manually.
- amha 9y ago
  Organizing your life to minimize "drama, breakups, [and] regrets" and maximize "time to get work done" is a good way to end up unhappy and lonely. Work is important, but your work can't love you back.
  - ArialAnemone 9y ago
    Or you can find sane people to have a relationship with. Most women my age (late 20s and down) have been utterly ruined by smartphones. When you come across compulsive narcissism, you run. No man can compete with the self-esteem hugbox that makes the (small) moral panic over helicopter kids, a decade ago,seem quaint. Most of the drama is done either by women on birth control, women on antidepressants, and bipolar women. If you find "drama", run. They will never change.
  - tenpies 9y ago
    > Work is important, but your work can't love you back. Work is where we spend the majority of our time and I suspect that >50% of adult friendship originates at work. It is important to think of work as a social activity and put some effort. Even if you are very much a "work to live" person, it is worth knowing your co-workers well enough to decide if you want to pursue them as friends.

vog 9y ago

With all those caveats to keep in mind, and more caveats to come in the future as Facebook "evolves" ... isn't it much simpler not to subscribe to Facebook in the first place?

splittingTimes 9y ago
See my edit.

losteric 9y ago

> I also dont get all that hate either. Well, start with reading your list. That's a nice list of reasons to hate Facebook. People shouldn't have to tip toe around abusive data harvesting and dark patterns... Your list sounds like a symptom, not a solution.

wu-ikkyu 9y ago
Agreed, the first point reads like the OP is evading the Stasi >Dont use your real name, gender, nationality, etc. Just create a random identity
- splittingTimes 9y ago
  Funny that you mention it. I actually grew up in East Germany before the wall came down.

git-pull 9y ago

> Ask yourself, do I really need and care for this contact? Remove people that do not add value to your life. I do a different test. It's called "Do you care about me?" If I got in a car crash over the weekend, would you even know? If you found out, would you visit me in the hospital? If the answer is yes: but they're family, I already have their contact info. For non-family, that group fluctuates, and more often than not, it's zero. I'm fine with the number staying there. Benefits include: Less drama, breakups, regrets, and more time to get work done. If the answer is no, which it mostly is: I feel I save time and am more self-honest not connecting with them. But as I get closer to 30 I feel less interest in connecting with others. The only exception is when I travel abroad and the surroundings are more intriguing. On the other hand: Social media is a great marketing tool. I'm fine if people use Facebook however they choose. And I also agree with pruning boring content in favor of subscribing / liking manually.

amha 9y ago
Organizing your life to minimize "drama, breakups, [and] regrets" and maximize "time to get work done" is a good way to end up unhappy and lonely. Work is important, but your work can't love you back.
- ArialAnemone 9y ago
  Or you can find sane people to have a relationship with. Most women my age (late 20s and down) have been utterly ruined by smartphones. When you come across compulsive narcissism, you run. No man can compete with the self-esteem hugbox that makes the (small) moral panic over helicopter kids, a decade ago,seem quaint. Most of the drama is done either by women on birth control, women on antidepressants, and bipolar women. If you find "drama", run. They will never change.
- tenpies 9y ago
  > Work is important, but your work can't love you back. Work is where we spend the majority of our time and I suspect that >50% of adult friendship originates at work. It is important to think of work as a social activity and put some effort. Even if you are very much a "work to live" person, it is worth knowing your co-workers well enough to decide if you want to pursue them as friends.