On MSNBC just now: Can Facebook Ruin Your Life?

[Sugarcoated]

As I had just logged on to Facebook, LOL. So far, so good for me. Anyone want to share?

[Chubb Rock]

1. My work doesn't allow me to have a Facebook account...

maybe it's for the best afterall...

[Heidi]

2. You could get back-traced.

That's all I'm sayin'.

[Haole Girl]

8. I believe that.

But, then again, I've heard all the mods here have our real names and addresses.

There is really not any privacy or anonymity anywhere on the internets these days.

[Heidi]

9. You heard wrong.

I was a DU Mod for about six terms. The only information the Mods have about members is what members give them. Anyone who thinks the DU Mods spend their volunteer time trying to dig up personal information on members is existing in an alternate reality.

[Haole Girl]

12. I didn't get this information from an "altered reality"

Unless you consider the two DUers who told me non-existent.

No, I won't name names. And, no, I don't think mods have to "dig up" anything. From what DUers have told me, the information was, at one time anyway, readily available for all mods to see.

And, btw, I know what "back-trace" is.

[Heidi]

15. You still heard wrong.

Your two sources provided you with misinformation. What you choose to believe, of course, is up to you. :shrug:

[Posteritatis]

19. Those two DUers were almost certainly wrong. (nt)

[Heidi]

11. "Back-traced" is a referenced to an internet meme

about a tween who gave out far too much personal information in her internet video posts and became a victim of 4chan among others. (The consequences will never be the same.)

Know Your Meme

[cwydro]

14. i didn't know what back-trace meant.

And who or what is 4chan?

[Heidi]

16. Love or hate 'em, 4chan members have their fingers on the pulse of the internet.

I don't like that they bully 11-year-oldkids, but I very much enjoy LOLcats, thought rickrolling was preyy funny the first couple of times, and would never have known "Chocolate Rain" otherwise. :D

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4chan

[Call Me Wesley]

17. This:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4chan

Just don't let them back-trace you! ;)

[cwydro]

20. Interesting.

I never knew all those memes came from there.

Now I'm curious and have to go check it out...

[Call Me Wesley]

21. Don't ...

At least clear your cache afterward. :hide:

[Kat45]

25. oops - deleting post

[nickinSTL]

29. did you give DU your real name?

I don't recall ever giving DU mine.

If they have it, it's because they've been digging to look for it. And I can't imagine they really have time to dig up that info on all DUers.

[Brickbat]

3. It can, just like just about anything in this world can.

As someone who works at home, I use it to keep in touch and have conversations with actual grown-ups during the day. It can be a time waster, but I've had a lot of fun on it.

[peekaloo]

4. one for the "yes" column

http://www.theledger.com/article/20100723/NEWS/100729928/1410&tc=omni

:eyes:

[Blue Diadem]

5. Some people are unaware of the settings. One of my friend's friends had a problem with her husband

and posted a picture of herself on some page asking if people thought she was still sexy. It was a FB page where several other women had posted their pictures. Apparently her husband had hurt her feelings about her looks just prior to her posting. She said they were supposed to be working on their marriage after she discovered he'd had an affair a year or so prior. So she went to facebook to ask others about her looks but she thought it was going to be strangers who saw the pic/story and not her friends. She was in modest lingerie thank goodness. It showed up on my livefeed. When her friends began to comment on her picture she was shocked and embarrassed that they were able to see it.

I was going to mention it to my friend but forgot all about it until now. If I could see it, I wonder if my friend's friend's husband(who was her friend on FB too) could see it as well as many of his friends.

[Auggie]

6. Divorce lawyers: Facebook tops in online evidence

Associated Press

Forgot to de-friend your wife on Facebook while posting vacation shots of your mistress? Her divorce lawyer will be thrilled.

Oversharing on social networks has led to an overabundance of evidence in divorce cases. The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers says 81 percent of its members have used or faced evidence plucked from Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and other social networking sites, including YouTube and LinkedIn, over the last five years.

SNIP

Facebook is the unrivaled leader for turning virtual reality into real-life divorce drama, Viken said. Sixty-six percent of the lawyers surveyed cited Facebook foibles as the source of online evidence, she said. MySpace followed with 15 percent, followed by Twitter at 5 percent.

About one in five adults uses Facebook for flirting, according to a 2008 report by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. But it's not just kissy pix with the manstress or mistress that show up as evidence. Think of Dad forcing son to de-friend mom, bolstering her alienation of affection claim against him.

LINK: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iWnQ4EizNKHmuBQjKn5l7orGUGKQD9GKGO800

[av8rdave]

7. I've enjoyed getting in touch with people from my past on Facebook. But like anything else public..

You have to be careful. My understanding is that anything you post on Facebook becomes property of Facebook. In my mind, that means you lose control over that content.

Never, EVER post anything there that you wouldn't want your spouse, lover, kids, parents, teachers/professors, boss or prospective mates or employers to see. Because any of them can. That can even include excessive attention paid to those Facebook "games."

I probably even have more there than I should, such as political philosophy ("mostly progressive") and religion ("undrafted free agent"). However, I don't go into any more detail than that. If I want an in depth discussion with a friend, I do it via email or the phone.

[Tikki]

10. Signed on and signed out in short time..

Too much all over the place and I felt oddly exposed.


Tikki

[Bennyboy]

13. Facebook is a stupid idiot!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDHb4wewAIQ

[Call Me Wesley]

18. LOL! Great!

Thanks for sharing!

[Minimus]

22. I really enjoy facebook...

I was a Navy brat so moved often and left friends behind in many states. I have reconnected with friends from Elementary, Junior High, High School and College. I have also friended many DUers and have got to know them much better. Actually have become very close to a few and plan on one day, very soon, meeting them in person. My family is spread out all over the country and several serve in the military so facebook has been a wonderful tool for all of us to keep in touch and see what is happening on a daily basis... and to share pictures! Also on some of the political pages I have become acquainted with some great liberals and activists that share some of the most informative posts.

It is important to make sure your security settings are set appropriately otherwise friends of friends can get to your page. It is best to make everything viewable by friends only and you can adjust your security settings by individual. You can even make it so you can post something and choose who you want to see it. I have my friends grouped so it makes it very easy. Also, I have friended complete strangers from all over the world for certain games... since I don't know them or their politics I keep what they can see to a minimum. As well, I hide feeds that I am not interested in seeing.

Like anything, facebook is what you make it, and I have made it a very enjoyable experience.

[Bennyboy]

23. I love it too.

I hardly ever use email now. I got tons of friends, have a few groups going and have my business up on there now too.... And once I figured out how to ignore my ex there, (and here too)I love it.

[Common Sense Party]

26. Yes, there are parts of FB that can be extremely annoying, but

since we have moved around several times, it has been very helpful to keep somewhat in contact with past friends and associates. I have many friends from Argentina that I haven't seen in 20 years, and we wouldn't be likely to stay in contact any other way.

[grace0418]

24. Just like anything on the interwebs, don't post anything, anywhere, that you don't want

become public knowledge. You can hide behind screen names only so much, if someone wants to track on you online bad enough, they can and they will. Some of the stuff people post on Facebook boggles my mind. Even here, I think people post way too much information (and I've been guilty of it myself on occasion).

[cwydro]

27. My experience has been mixed.

I have met some wonderful people through Fb and especially loved being able to connect with international friends. Thanks mainly to Fb (but also DU), I have a lot of traveling planned for the next few months.

On the other hand, I found it just a bit too public for my liking...reminding me of that Emily Dickinson poem about the frog, lol.

Also had the unpleasant experience of someone I considered a friend acting as a "spy" (her words and she bragged about it) for my ex who I had blocked. Found that rather off-putting and so I'm giving it a rest for the time being. There are many other venues for chat etc...so I haven't really missed it. I do miss a silly little app I played on there.

[KG]

28. only if you let it.

i have three FB accounts, 2 of which have no mention of my name or anything about me.

[nickinSTL]

30. if you say stupid things or don't know how to manage

your privacy settings.

Don't do stupid $h!t on FB, and it's not a problem.

Morons will get themselves in trouble.

SEP.

[Heidi]

31. Or their hearts broken because

they don't get the kind of attention they want. It's not specifically a Facebook phenomenon as much as a "double-edged sword" associated with the immediacy of the internet as a medium and the illusions of intimacy and control that many users have, despite all evidence to the contrary about authentic intimacy and control. This is exactly what happened with Kerligirl13, and it has been painful to watch.