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One thing that puzzles me: why people (still?) use Facebook? What's so good about it? There are dozens of platforms where people can post their thoughts, like a

One thing that puzzles me: why people (still?) use Facebook? What's so good about it? There are dozens of platforms where people can post their thoughts, like and be liked. I feel like something's evading me. Is it because I'm an old fart?

seeEllArr 5y ago
Their friends/communities are on it. At least, that's why I haven't uninstalled, I just aggressively unfollow/block things I don't want to see.
vmception 5y ago
People believe they get value from the groups This has largely replaced forums Facebook tried to make a separate groups product for people that just want groups and not the rest of Facebook Just like Messenger can be used without a full Facebook account It is higher value for users than the newsfeed other social network experience, but it mostly sucks too
- olyjohn 5y ago
  Groups are a disorganized mess of the same repetitive trash over and over. It's the same problem in every group. Just miles and miles of random posts with no way to organize them, and a shit search feature. The only reason it killed forums is because they lowered the effort barrier. Forums were great because it required logins, and a minimal level of competency in order to use it. Only people who really wanted to be part of the forum would join. A simple login was enough barrier to keep out people who didn't want to put in any effort to their contribution. Facebook made it so that you can just go click a button and upload a picture and contribute a shitpost with no effort.
mensetmanusman 5y ago
Facebook is the Internet for millions of people.
Enginerrrd 5y ago
In my experience, Facebook is the platform which is most tied to people you actually have interacted with in real life, and that's by a large margin. I know the reddit account of like 1 person I know IRL (I don't even know my wife's account). ...but my facebook friends consist of basically everyone I know that still has a facebook. A lot of that is just the network effect and momentum, but still.
- chillingeffect 5y ago
  even my best friends wont tell me their reddit IDs and I don't tell them my alts.
chillingeffect 5y ago
the abundance of real names, the relative absence of juvenile spazzes. my gen X buddies and I and our families can share family-friendly/public-safe info with a great signal-to-noise ratio. Also the Groups are emerging as the most useful part of it. It's not good for edgy discussion, but consider this: social media platforms are more like: "which platform is good for what type of interaction" vs. "is this a good social media platform or not?" When I want spazzy bullshit I go straight to /b. I avoid twitter, tumbler, and tiktok like that plague because I don't want to be a human garbage filter looking for diamonds in the rough. I go on Instagram sometimes for pretty stuff from people I kind of know.
emtel 5y ago
For most people, Facebook is the only place where they can stay in touch with their family and friends. My friends and family are not and never will be on mastodon or diaspora or anything like that. Also, private special interest groups on Facebook are really excellent. There's nothing else like it. Sub Reddits are good for anonymous/psuedonymous general discussion, but for actually meeting and interacting with people who share your interests, and especially for sharing pictures/videos, I haven't seen anything better than Facebook. I'm a member of several music related Facebook groups - they get far more high quality participation (and fewer flame-wars) than comparable old-school web forums.
- AlexTWithBeard 5y ago
  > For most people, Facebook is the only place where they can stay in touch with their family and friends. I don't understand what's wrong with a group chat in <your favorite messenger>? Not arguing. Just lost. Completely lost.
- mike00632 5y ago
  Facebook Marketplace is also really convenient.

seeEllArr 5y ago

Their friends/communities are on it. At least, that's why I haven't uninstalled, I just aggressively unfollow/block things I don't want to see.

vmception 5y ago

People believe they get value from the groups This has largely replaced forums Facebook tried to make a separate groups product for people that just want groups and not the rest of Facebook Just like Messenger can be used without a full Facebook account It is higher value for users than the newsfeed other social network experience, but it mostly sucks too

olyjohn 5y ago
Groups are a disorganized mess of the same repetitive trash over and over. It's the same problem in every group. Just miles and miles of random posts with no way to organize them, and a shit search feature. The only reason it killed forums is because they lowered the effort barrier. Forums were great because it required logins, and a minimal level of competency in order to use it. Only people who really wanted to be part of the forum would join. A simple login was enough barrier to keep out people who didn't want to put in any effort to their contribution. Facebook made it so that you can just go click a button and upload a picture and contribute a shitpost with no effort.

mensetmanusman 5y ago

Facebook is the Internet for millions of people.

Enginerrrd 5y ago

In my experience, Facebook is the platform which is most tied to people you actually have interacted with in real life, and that's by a large margin. I know the reddit account of like 1 person I know IRL (I don't even know my wife's account). ...but my facebook friends consist of basically everyone I know that still has a facebook. A lot of that is just the network effect and momentum, but still.

chillingeffect 5y ago
even my best friends wont tell me their reddit IDs and I don't tell them my alts.

chillingeffect 5y ago

the abundance of real names, the relative absence of juvenile spazzes. my gen X buddies and I and our families can share family-friendly/public-safe info with a great signal-to-noise ratio. Also the Groups are emerging as the most useful part of it. It's not good for edgy discussion, but consider this: social media platforms are more like: "which platform is good for what type of interaction" vs. "is this a good social media platform or not?" When I want spazzy bullshit I go straight to /b. I avoid twitter, tumbler, and tiktok like that plague because I don't want to be a human garbage filter looking for diamonds in the rough. I go on Instagram sometimes for pretty stuff from people I kind of know.

emtel 5y ago

For most people, Facebook is the only place where they can stay in touch with their family and friends. My friends and family are not and never will be on mastodon or diaspora or anything like that. Also, private special interest groups on Facebook are really excellent. There's nothing else like it. Sub Reddits are good for anonymous/psuedonymous general discussion, but for actually meeting and interacting with people who share your interests, and especially for sharing pictures/videos, I haven't seen anything better than Facebook. I'm a member of several music related Facebook groups - they get far more high quality participation (and fewer flame-wars) than comparable old-school web forums.

AlexTWithBeard 5y ago
> For most people, Facebook is the only place where they can stay in touch with their family and friends. I don't understand what's wrong with a group chat in <your favorite messenger>? Not arguing. Just lost. Completely lost.
mike00632 5y ago
Facebook Marketplace is also really convenient.