Facebook, Twitter, and the "Me" Generation

[xCourxCorex]

Twitter is totally "me" focused.
Facebook is more social networking/less me
and I think MySpace is somewhere between the two, mostly because you can customize your entire page (background etc) with MySpace, but not with Facebook.

And I totally do not get Twitter. Just posting status updates all day long, no pictures, no "walls", no games? Dumb!

 

[autumnpalm]

I have Facebook, but not Twitter of Myspace. With the exception of my profile picture, I have all my other pictures hidden and I rarely post status updates. My profile is pretty boring! I mainly use my account to keep in touch with friends from school, though, so it serves its purpose.

I have to say that I LOVE reading celebrities' Twitter pages though! Especially Mindy Kaling and Rainn Wilson from The Office, theirs are so fun.

 

[ilovehuhu]

I only have Facebook

 

[LittleBlue22]

I have Facebook, but not Twitter of Myspace. With the exception of my profile picture, I have all my other pictures hidden and I rarely post status updates. My profile is pretty boring! I mainly use my account to keep in touch with friends from school, though, so it serves its purpose.

I have to say that I LOVE reading celebrities' Twitter pages though! Especially Mindy Kaling and Rainn Wilson from The Office, theirs are so fun.

I'm curious, do celebrities really post their own tweets or their publicists (or some one else)? I don't know, it just makes me wonder.

On Facebook, I try and leave status' that are focused on the reader instead of myself. I'll write something like, I hope you have a Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious day. I try to take the focus off of me.

If 'friends' leave too many annoying status updates or quizes, etc. you can reduce how much information you want to view of that person without defriending them. I have a couple friends who are virtually invisible.

Overall, I like Facebook very much, as a busy mom, its my chance to communicate with other adults or younger people I know.

*Just a fun tip, if you go to language settings on FB, you can switch it to English (Pirate). Its loads of laughs! yarr!

 

[snarlingcoyote]

I facebook but do not twitter or myspace.

Facebook helps me connect with my birth-family and stay connected to friends I don't see outside of certain times of the year.

 

[bicker]

Well posting it's a crappy day might not be something you shouldn't post except when it's the same person posting it every day.

Must suck to be them!

 

[LaraK]

Crud...maybe I should delete that update I just posted on Facebook!

Nah!

You know what I like? My "friends" that include family, old friends from my childhood, college friends, and internet friends all start posting together. It can be really funny. I posted last night that I was packed for my trip today to the "happiest place on earth"....my family asked if I was going to the beer store, my Disney friends started wishing me well with the mouse. It was super funny and the story of my life.

 

[Eeyore'sthebest]

I don't mind if people post about things going on in their life. But I have one friend that posts when she has sex with her DH. Yeah, I kind of figured she was having sex with the man but do I need to know about it every single time.

My stepdaughter posts all the time from work about hating her job, having a headache, wanting to leave work because she's bored.... Hmm, wait a minute - she got fired yesterday!!! I think I might know the reason!!!!!

 

[MichelleVW]

I like Facebook but it does make me wonder about other people sometimes. I will on a very rare occasion update my status. But mostly I post pics of my DD that I wouldn't send to every single friend, but that they can look at if they are interested. I have some "friends" that post WAY TOO MUCH and is very "me" oriented in my opinion. Do you really have to post EVERY day that you are on your way to work.....that you are taking your lunch break....that it's a crappy day.....and you are on your way home? Seriously??

I probably update my status every few hours with random things...yep, boring things like "watching the Rangers game" or "taking the dog a walk"....and my friends comment on my random statements and we keep in touch!

I care
I like knowing whats going on in my friends lives, even the simple things

Same here...I had a friend that wanted me to get on Twitter so she could keep up with what I was doing.

Twitter is totally "me" focused.
Facebook is more social networking/less me
and I think MySpace is somewhere between the two, mostly because you can customize your entire page (background etc) with MySpace, but not with Facebook.

And I totally do not get Twitter. Just posting status updates all day long, no pictures, no "walls", no games? Dumb!

You can post pics on Twitter, I do it all the time. I love love love Twitter and now that DH has a blackberry I update when we're out. It's fun and I'm pretty much addicted.

I love keeping up with my kids on Twitter...they tweet all the freaking time from their Ipod touch. I know when they are in chemistry class, and if Ryan was in class that day (DD16's crush) etc. It's just an easy way to keep in contact with my kids.

oh...and I even had a dream last night about meeting the Jonas Brothers (my girls are addicted to them) and talking to them about their Tweets!!

 

[MoniqueU]

If you can't IM me we weren't that close. I am not in to any of those sites and don't prefer to read things not in real time as a form of communication. I have no desire to reconnect with people I knew years ago, I have changed so much I can't imagine having anything in common with them.

I saw my cousins myspace page at one point befote she set it to private and it was all about her and her divorce and nothing about her kids who she pics up of. I know that is just one persons page but it really turned me off of it.

Not a fan.

 

[MichelleVW]

If you can't IM me we weren't that close. I am not in to any of those sites and don't prefer to read things not in real time as a form of communication. I have no desire to reconnect with people I knew years ago, I have changed so much I can't imagine having anything in common with them.

.

See....I freaking hate it when people IM me....I would rather see an update on Facebook or Twitter and talk back and forth that way. That way I can do it on my own time schedule not instantly. I really hate talking on the phone too, but I like to keep in touch with people...so these sites are great for me. Plus I share all my pictures on Facebook and that saves me tons of emails to my family and friends.

 

[TangaroaTiki]

I care
I like knowing whats going on in my friends lives, even the simple things

I agree

 

[ckay87]

I don't mean to criticize, but I admit that I'm somewhat baffled by the people on this board who don't "get" Facebook, but readily come on here and post all kinds of things to thousands of complete strangers. Here we put all kinds of effort into producing well-thought-out, clever, helpful posts when really, why should we care what all of these unknown people think? Why should we help them? Why should we "laugh" at their jokes? Facebook essentially functions the same way these boards do, but you are posting to people you actually know/knew.

Side note....I had yet another reunion last night, driven by re-connections I made on Facebook. This has to be the 4th dinner with old friends I've had in 6 months. Great for the social life, not so great for the waistline!

 

[NMAmy]

It can be really funny. I posted last night that I was packed for my trip today to the "happiest place on earth"....my family asked if I was going to the beer store.

Well, did you go to the beer store? What does one pack for such an excursion?

 

[Heather1101]

Don't Twitter, so can't comment on that one, but I do think MySpace is more prone to that than Facebook. I am a 35 year old mom that has Facebook and none of my 70 friends on there are "me" oriented at all....we all use Facebook as a way to keep in touch. DH and DS14 1/2 use Facebook the same way, as well. I see MySpace as more of a way to pimp yourself and Facebook more as a way to keep in touch with friends and family.

 

[alexandria674]

I don't mean to criticize, but I admit that I'm somewhat baffled by the people on this board who don't "get" Facebook, but readily come on here and post all kinds of things to thousands of complete strangers. Here we put all kinds of effort into producing well-thought-out, clever, helpful posts when really, why should we care what all of these unknown people think? Why should we help them? Why should we "laugh" at their jokes? Facebook essentially functions the same way these boards do, but you are posting to people you actually know/knew.

Side note....I had yet another reunion last night, driven by re-connections I made on Facebook. This has to be the 4th dinner with old friends I've had in 6 months. Great for the social life, not so great for the waistline!

ITA

I am not an avid facebook user, I have a myspace and don't Twitter, but I do use my social networking sight to talk to old friends. These sites help me connect to people I wouldn't be able to find somewhere else, like an old friend from high school or to long distance family members.

 

[browneyes106]

I agree sometimes social networking sites do allow some people to be narcissists but most times people use them for communication with friends and family. I like Facebook a bit more than MySpace. The main reason I still use MySpace is because a lot of my friends from high school and some of my relatives are more into MySpace and really haven't gotten into Facebook. Most of my Facebook friends are people I met in college and former coworkers. I never gotten into posting "what are you doing" statuses on either Facebook or MySpace. I do have a Twitter account but I haven't really gotten into that. A lot of people are getting Twitter accounts mainly to follow celebrities.

 

[SeeDisney]

actually, I enjoyed Facebook very much. I love to read what other people are up to in their lives. Especially the folks I haven't in my 20 years or so.

What don't get is when my friends who have over 200 friends and yet they never ever yet post anything on their wall. I don't get that? Why even bother then.

 

[Sir Robin Hood]

I think it's great for those that enjoy it but I'm good with telephone calls and email.

Call me old fashioned but I agree 100%. I have some friends who use Facebook as their main source of communication. Makes me wonder if 40 years from now, one of my grandchildren will approach me and say "Grandpa, what was the cell phone like?" The Pixar film Wal-E made a good point about future generations' addiction to technology, and socializing solely via computer. Pretty sad if you think about it.

I have found social networking sites to be helpful in reuniting with long lost friends. But like some of you have mentioned, some of the personal...um...too personal information given out in status updates, Tweets, etc are getting way out of control. (By the way, I had Mexican food for lunch and will be headed to work at 3:00pm.)

Great input.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I am not on any of those sites.

All the communication sites are just new forms of communication, I do not consider them "high technology". You use what applies to you.

Until I can have my virtual computer combo, everything else is nothing.

I want that instant makeup thing from "Fifth Element".
The nail deal from "Total Recall".
Star Trek's food replicator.
Oh and a robot to clean my house, like Rosie in the Jetson's.

I am the opposite of old fashioned. It is not futuristic enough for me.