5 ms·

I don't see any products, there. I just see a couple of lame features. Skype and group chat. Skype already does Skype, so I'm not sure why I'd load up Facebook

by pstack 15y ago

I don't see any products, there. I just see a couple of lame features. Skype and group chat. Skype already does Skype, so I'm not sure why I'd load up Facebook just so I could skype through a webpage, instead. My IM client has done group chat for years, so I'm not sure why I'd load up facebook just so I could chat with a group of those people, either. This kind of falls in line with my confusion as to why people ruin their websites with all these components and hooks into Facebook. They claim that they need Facebook Likes and Logins and Discussions in their websites, because Facebook drives traffic. Even if they hate it, they have to succumb to it. You know, for generating traffic. My question remains - why do you want to try appealing to a group of people to whom Facebook is "the internet" and who do everything through Facebook? Those people aren't going to make a point of going to your website again, unless someone links them to it a second time down the road. It seems like a lot of resources (not to mention website screen real-estate) given up for very little desirable return.

ugh 15y ago
It’s for people who already spend a lot of time on Facebook. They don’t have to bother anymore using dedicated software. Simple as that. You are looking at it from the wrong perspective.
- pbhjpbhj 15y ago
  He's clearly being purposefully obstructive in his comments. Obviously if you're on FB already then why open Skype, why open an IM client, that's how integration works. The parent is asking the equivalent of why you'd add maps to google when you have a perfectly good road map out in the car.
  - WalterSear 15y ago
    Typical parent.
    - pbhjpbhj 15y ago
      Lol. I should know, I am one.
- swaits 15y ago
  FB chat has a jabber interface. It can be used by those of us who don't sit on FB all day too. Pretty convenient. Now, I hope they'll get the group chat working via jabber too.
smackfu 15y ago
Don't need a Skype login, or need to know anyone's Skype login.
- r00fus 15y ago
  That is a killer integration feature. I wonder how this works...
  - tejaswiy 15y ago
    Skype has an internal login with Facebook feature?
  - nbm 15y ago
    There is some detail in https://www.facebook.com/notes/philip-su/building-video-calling/10150229123673920 https://www.facebook.com/notes/philip-su/building-video-call... about how the interface between Skype and Facebook works and about the browser plug-in behaviour.
    - deleted 15y ago
      [deleted]
ThomPete 15y ago
I think you are setting up a false premise here. There are many people (including me) who have been using the internet for a very very very long time and don't see facebook as the internet even though we use it. And I can see that I get quite a few sign-ups to my service that way. Also the problem is not as much whether people use it for traffic generation. The problem is when they only use it for that. I am actually beginning to consult my clients on how to build their own digital ecosystems so that they don't leave all the value inside the gates of facebook, twitter etc. but rather attempt to get the value transfered back inside their own ecosystem. Once you start seeing it that way things start to look very different. I made a longer argument about it here: http://000fff.org/how-to-think-like-facebook-and-twitter/ http://000fff.org/how-to-think-like-facebook-and-twitter/
phillco 15y ago
When I was in high school, almost everyone used AIM. Then Facebook Chat came out and practically crushed it. Why? It wasn't better (it was far, far, worse, actually — you couldn't chat with somebody without one of you complaining about it), but everyone was there. It became the defacto way to reach people. It was successful for the same reason Facebook was successful.
- pavel_lishin 15y ago
  > everyone was there This is exactly why I turned chat off. I have no desire to be contacted by old high school classmates who happen to be bored and browsing facebook, and see me pop up.
  - nbm 15y ago
    You can set up a friends list, and turn on chat only for that friends list, if you like. Set up the friends list at https://www.facebook.com/friends/edit/ https://www.facebook.com/friends/edit/ and then click the little settings icon at the bottom right (in the new chat design) and choose "Limit availability...". With the old chat design, choose chat at the bottom right, then the "Friend lists" menu item in the chat window, and add the friends list you want to affect chat availability, and then turn availability on/off to particular lists. Useful for parents and work colleagues who don't use other IM or who you don't want to give your personal IM accounts to.
    - pavel_lishin 15y ago
      I think this discussion made me realize that I want there to be a minimum barrier to contacting me in a way that requires instant feedback. I don't care who has my e-mail address because I can reply to e-mail on my own time and terms, but I'd rather people have to do a little work to contact me via IM, and I want it to be pretty hard for people to casually call me just to chat.
  - siddhant 15y ago
    Yes but people who are bored and browsing Facebook and don't follow technology minute by minute, outnumber people like us by a huge margin. Facebook launching these three (not so new) features just means that its making video calling more accessible to other people, which means its probably going to work for them. (Personally, I still feel surprised whenever I see anyone even using Facebook chat.)
jmjerlecki 15y ago
You are very right about certain groups of people thinking Facebook is the Internet.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
sbochins 15y ago
Yea I was surprised they put the "show most chatty friends in chat list" as a product. That seems like a very small feature. Adding people to group chat? I thought you could already do this, but I don't really use Facebook chat too much. Seems very underwhelming to say the least.
nasht 15y ago
It looks to me like GOOG FB and Apple are trying to get to video calls and own them before the phone companies wake up and realize how valuable their own social graph is. So far the carrier's have had a gold mine and wasted the opportunity.
- Nagyman 15y ago
  The carriers would have had to work together to seize the social space. Instead, they'll just charge $15/month for the "Unlimited Social Package" E.g. http://www.bell.ca/shopping/en_CA_ON.Unlimited-Social-NetworkingBlackBerry/BISSOCLN.details http://www.bell.ca/shopping/en_CA_ON.Unlimited-Social-Networ...
temphn 15y ago
All your friends are on Facebook, so you don't have to search/find them on Skype. N-to-N video communication is now much easier. Default will be to use FB rather than the Skype client, especially once they add voice calls, conference calls, and group video chat.

by pstack 15y ago

ugh 15y ago

It’s for people who already spend a lot of time on Facebook. They don’t have to bother anymore using dedicated software. Simple as that. You are looking at it from the wrong perspective.

pbhjpbhj 15y ago
He's clearly being purposefully obstructive in his comments. Obviously if you're on FB already then why open Skype, why open an IM client, that's how integration works. The parent is asking the equivalent of why you'd add maps to google when you have a perfectly good road map out in the car.
- WalterSear 15y ago
  Typical parent.
  - pbhjpbhj 15y ago
    Lol. I should know, I am one.
swaits 15y ago
FB chat has a jabber interface. It can be used by those of us who don't sit on FB all day too. Pretty convenient. Now, I hope they'll get the group chat working via jabber too.

smackfu 15y ago

Don't need a Skype login, or need to know anyone's Skype login.

r00fus 15y ago
That is a killer integration feature. I wonder how this works...
- tejaswiy 15y ago
  Skype has an internal login with Facebook feature?
- nbm 15y ago
  There is some detail in https://www.facebook.com/notes/philip-su/building-video-calling/10150229123673920 https://www.facebook.com/notes/philip-su/building-video-call... about how the interface between Skype and Facebook works and about the browser plug-in behaviour.
  - deleted 15y ago
    [deleted]

ThomPete 15y ago

I think you are setting up a false premise here. There are many people (including me) who have been using the internet for a very very very long time and don't see facebook as the internet even though we use it. And I can see that I get quite a few sign-ups to my service that way. Also the problem is not as much whether people use it for traffic generation. The problem is when they only use it for that. I am actually beginning to consult my clients on how to build their own digital ecosystems so that they don't leave all the value inside the gates of facebook, twitter etc. but rather attempt to get the value transfered back inside their own ecosystem. Once you start seeing it that way things start to look very different. I made a longer argument about it here: http://000fff.org/how-to-think-like-facebook-and-twitter/ http://000fff.org/how-to-think-like-facebook-and-twitter/

phillco 15y ago

When I was in high school, almost everyone used AIM. Then Facebook Chat came out and practically crushed it. Why? It wasn't better (it was far, far, worse, actually — you couldn't chat with somebody without one of you complaining about it), but everyone was there. It became the defacto way to reach people. It was successful for the same reason Facebook was successful.

pavel_lishin 15y ago
> everyone was there This is exactly why I turned chat off. I have no desire to be contacted by old high school classmates who happen to be bored and browsing facebook, and see me pop up.
- nbm 15y ago
  You can set up a friends list, and turn on chat only for that friends list, if you like. Set up the friends list at https://www.facebook.com/friends/edit/ https://www.facebook.com/friends/edit/ and then click the little settings icon at the bottom right (in the new chat design) and choose "Limit availability...". With the old chat design, choose chat at the bottom right, then the "Friend lists" menu item in the chat window, and add the friends list you want to affect chat availability, and then turn availability on/off to particular lists. Useful for parents and work colleagues who don't use other IM or who you don't want to give your personal IM accounts to.
  - pavel_lishin 15y ago
    I think this discussion made me realize that I want there to be a minimum barrier to contacting me in a way that requires instant feedback. I don't care who has my e-mail address because I can reply to e-mail on my own time and terms, but I'd rather people have to do a little work to contact me via IM, and I want it to be pretty hard for people to casually call me just to chat.
- siddhant 15y ago
  Yes but people who are bored and browsing Facebook and don't follow technology minute by minute, outnumber people like us by a huge margin. Facebook launching these three (not so new) features just means that its making video calling more accessible to other people, which means its probably going to work for them. (Personally, I still feel surprised whenever I see anyone even using Facebook chat.)

jmjerlecki 15y ago

You are very right about certain groups of people thinking Facebook is the Internet.

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

sbochins 15y ago

Yea I was surprised they put the "show most chatty friends in chat list" as a product. That seems like a very small feature. Adding people to group chat? I thought you could already do this, but I don't really use Facebook chat too much. Seems very underwhelming to say the least.

nasht 15y ago

It looks to me like GOOG FB and Apple are trying to get to video calls and own them before the phone companies wake up and realize how valuable their own social graph is. So far the carrier's have had a gold mine and wasted the opportunity.

Nagyman 15y ago
The carriers would have had to work together to seize the social space. Instead, they'll just charge $15/month for the "Unlimited Social Package" E.g. http://www.bell.ca/shopping/en_CA_ON.Unlimited-Social-NetworkingBlackBerry/BISSOCLN.details http://www.bell.ca/shopping/en_CA_ON.Unlimited-Social-Networ...

temphn 15y ago

All your friends are on Facebook, so you don't have to search/find them on Skype. N-to-N video communication is now much easier. Default will be to use FB rather than the Skype client, especially once they add voice calls, conference calls, and group video chat.