By Brian Jennings
Facebook is one of the most popular social networking websites, as well as one of the most popular ways to keep in touch with friends, family, classmates, coworkers and people you knew way back when. Ever since it was launched in February 2004, Facebook’s popularity has grown substantially, now with more than 500 million active users.
Facebook is everywhere. This social networking global giant is so popular that you can now access it through your smart phone and receive status updates and notifications about your friends anytime you want on-the-go. Although Facebook is one of the most popular resources for social networking, it still has its ups and downs.
Facebook gives you the freedom of speech, to say or share whatever you please with the rest of the Facebook community. Whether you want to gossip about the kind of day you are having or just want to brag about the new, high-priced, latest and greatest electronic gadget on the market that you just got, Facebook gives you the opportunity to do so. And if you ever feel the need to talk urgently to any of your friends, Facebook gives you the power of instant messaging through live chat.
One of the great things about Facebook is the fact that talking to your friends is right at your fingertips. I think this is the one area where Facebook shines.
Facebook is useful because it displays live news feeds about your friends as they update their profiles to notify you about themselves. You always know what your friends are doing, their likes or dislikes and what is on their mind. You also have the option to say that you like their status, or give your own opinion on their status by commenting on it, creating a living conversation before everyone’s eyes.
I like the different kinds of features Facebook presents. Not only are you able to share messages, but you are also able to share photos, videos, events, links, ads and pages, and you can even create your own group. Facebook has plenty of games and applications, and it even acts as a marketplace where you can purchase things too.
Facebook can be a helpful tool for employers. Some businesses use Facebook as a guide when viewing information about potential employees.
Facebook supplies you with a lot of great stuff, but it does have its downside. Having the freedom to speak your mind is great, but only to a certain extent. You must always watch what you put on Facebook because it could harm you in the end. Once it’s on the internet, it’s on there forever. So, if you get into an argument with one of your friends, for example, don’t fight them on Facebook because everything you say may be there forever, which could ruin your reputation or your chance to get a job from a future employer.
The biggest issue with Facebook is privacy. Your privacy is never safe on Facebook. When you put personal information in your profile for others to view, it could serve as a problem. You don’t know what kind of people might be looking at your profile. Facebook does give you the option to make your status updates, uploads, birthday, contact information, comments and posts private. However, just because you set your profile or certain information in your profile to private, does not mean that the people you don’t want to see will not see it. People still find ways of getting that information. I do like the block list application and the fact that Facebook is committed to protecting minors until their eighteenth birthday.
It is possible for someone to hack into your account or see your information through other people’s accounts with whom you might be friends. From time to time I will see my friends post in their status that their Facebook profile got hacked into, or that something in their profile was changed that they didn’t remember changing. It’s quite hard to stay private on Facebook. Protecting your privacy and identity is very important, especially on the internet.
Facebook does not have any limitations on what you post, whether they are photos, videos or a status update. Facebook obviously does not want you to post any inappropriate material, but that’s not to say that you can’t physically upload any video you want. People can flag you for the material you post, which goes to the administration’s choice to take it off of Facebook or not. However, you still have the capability to post whatever you want, appropriate or not. There is no age limit to who can or can’t have a Facebook account, which means that minors could be watching uploads you are posting.
I am a Facebook user and overall, it is a great socializing network.
