6a. Personal Networking – Facebook

The What

Facebook is the largest social networking site in the world. Half of its more than 350 million users log in every day. The Facebook motto is “Facebook helps you connect and share with the people in your life.” Facebook is not the product of some huge software company; it was created in 2004 by Harvard student Mark Zuckerburg who had an idea to start a website based upon the paper “face book” that professors receive at the beginning of the year to help them identify new students. Originally Facebook was only for college students, but in 2006 it opened up to anyone 13 years and older with a valid email address. In addition to personal pages, more than 700,000 local businesses have active pages on Facebook.

The Why

Most of Facebook’s features are based on the idea that there are people in your life, such as best friends, family, coworkers or new acquaintances that you would like to stay in touch and connect with. Facebook members can share links, photos, notes and short status posts that reflect what they are reading, watching, thinking about or feeling. Members can join a group and get started in the discussions. In addition to personal Facebook pages, businesses (including libraries) are using Facebook to find new customers, build online communities of fans and collect demographic information.

The How

Discovery Exercise

  1. Set up your own Facebook page if you don’t already have one. (After completing this exercise, you will have the option to delete your account.)
  2. Learn about Facebook’s privacy settings by reading A Guide to Privacy on Facebook and watching Facebook’s New Privacy Policy Video.
  3. Set your privacy preferences. (For more information on privacy settings, see below in “More for the Curious.”)
  4. Add a friend or two. You can search by name for acquaintances or use the Friend Search.
  5. Search for the Colorado Association of Libraries Facebook page and become a fan.
  6. Search for the Colorado Library Consortium (CliC) Facebook page, become a fan and post on their wall. Hint: you can always mention that you’re taking the web 2.0 classes.

More for the Curious

Facebook Privacy Settings

Facebook is designed to make it easy for users to share information with anyone they wish. Users decide how much information they feel comfortable sharing on Facebook and can control it through their privacy settings.

Facebook Applications

One of the things that distinguishes Facebook from other social networking sites is that it allows third-party developers to create Facebook applications that Facebook users can enjoy. Some applications allow Facebook to be used productively in education and business while others focus on entertainment.

Applications used in Facebook will access your information in order for them to work. For example, a review application uses your location in order to generate restaurant recommendations. The application may access any information you have made visible to everyone as well as your publicly available information. This includes your Name, Profile Picture, Gender, Current City, Networks, Friend List, and Pages. The application will request permission to access any additional information it needs.

Social Networking Isn’t for Everyone!

Part of social networking is opening up to those you know and those you just met. Some people don’t like the idea of their name, photos, and thoughts being displayed for others to see. If you decide Facebook isn’t the place for you, you can deactivate or delete your account in a few simple steps.

  • Deactivate your account
  • Delete your account

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    Social Networking Home | Next up: 6 b.Professional Networking – LinkedIn

    About the Author

    Dedra Anderson

    Dedra Anderson

    After working in both circulation and reference, Dedra Anderson became a district trainer for Douglas County Libraries in 2006. When she’s not in a library she’s probably either reading (her favorites are serial killers and Tudor history but not in the same book!) or working on her readers’ advisory websites, The Romance Reader and The Mystery Reader.