Lurkers, Likers and Other Facebook Species

So, Facebook. At this point, most people are on it, aren't they? Not everyone, admittedly.  Like, not my Dad. But I think he would actually enjoy Facebook, as a Lurker/Liker (see further down). But almost everyone else.  At this stage many people not on Facebook, are virulently anti-Facebook. Like a lady I recently asked. She is someone who I see as a potential friend, but we don't get to see much of each other. Perfect for a Facebook link, surely... We can get glimpses of each other's lives and comment and share accordingly. But her response when I asked if she was on Facebook was almost comical! You would have been forgiven for thinking I had asked her if she regularly took cocaine. 'No!' she exclaimed in horror, 'and I never will be!' 

It never ceases to amaze me how radio stories or newspaper columns which mention social media seem to be hosted or written by people who have no clue about it! They often imply that you are opening yourself up to having your whole life exposed and your security compromised by using it. If you based your view of Facebook on the news, and had no other experience with it, you would probably think it was for folk who liked connecting with hundreds of people they didn't actually know in real life, giving a wildly unrealistic impression of their daily lives and engaging in a fair amount of cyber-bullying. And getting fired all the time for posting things about their job. Yes, of course all those things do happen, but in a limited way, surely, and only because Facebook can't prevent stupid people from using its services.

I recently read an article which asked the question if social media is leading to further isolation of people, or in fact, lessening this isolation. One quote which really struck a chord with me was comparing someone's perception of social media with that of tv: '... if all you watch is reality TV, you might come to the conclusion that it’s a shallow form of media. But if you change the channel, there’s the History Channel or the Discovery Channel, and all of a sudden your perception is very different.' (http://www.usatodayeducate.com/staging/index.php/campuslife/social-media-doesnt-mean-social-isolation) That is a brilliant example! Just like with tv, social media is as good or as bad as the people consuming it.

Well, I am a huge fan. I have found Facebook a brilliant addition to other socialising. Not a replacement, but a great extra. I am in touch with people that I do know in real life, absolutely. But these are in many cases people I used to work with or went to university with. I wouldn't get to see them often and wouldn't be likely to email or phone them. But I love seeing what they are doing in their lives and being connected with them. In one case, this is someone I have never actually met.  But she is a friend of a friend, and in an online discussion of books, it became apparent that we have a ridiculous amount of tastes and thoughts in common. With the notable exceptions of sewing and the Tour de France. I feel like I could meet her for a coffee, which makes her pretty much a genuine friend, even if we haven't officially met.  Except it would almost certainly end up being lunch and dinner as well.

It is fascinating to me how people use Facebook differently! I think it's safe to say that some people are very good at Facebook. The friend I have who is one of the best at it is someone I last spent time with as a teenager, when we both lived in Holland. Now she lives in Philadelphia and I live in Ireland. Yet I see pictures of her kids almost every day and laugh out loud (but only using the 'lol' acronym ironically of course) at their brilliant phrases and jokes. I love that we can keep in touch so easily! She posts a lot, but not too much - as the content is generally witty, well phrased and real. She is SWGF: Someone Who Gets Facebook. 

Here are a few other users:
The Lurker: I have quite a few friends who I just assume don't bother to log on and check their posts, ever. That is, until I meet them in a different context, and they say: 'Oh, how did Matthew get on at his goalie camp?' Or 'Your holiday looked terrific!' and it turns out they read absolutely every last post but never ever comment on anything. Or even like anything.

The Liker: They share certain Lurker characteristics - they rarely post anything themselves, but enjoy reading what others share. The difference is that they join in to an extent, by liking things they have found good.  I am not sure why they never post anything themselves, but at least they aren't hiding, like the Lurkers.

A sub-species is the Periodic Liker. This is someone who is only ever on Facebook every 14 days or so and then has a frenzy of liking all kinds of things that have happened in that time. You suddenly get a mad influx of notifications, all from one person liking things you posted ages ago. I have a friend who does this - she has two very young kids and I guess she just literally doesn't have the head space or time to check Facebook very often, however she does like updating herself with what is happening, but in catch up mode.

Another sub-species to the Liker is the Gullible Liker. This is someone who likes all kinds of crap. You know the posts I mean: 'Like this if you think bullying is A Bad Thing.' 'I know only 10% of my friends will bother to read this, so Like this to show that you are one of the good people in life and that you think flowers are nice.' Or something. You know the kind of stuff...  I personally don't understand how anyone could think that liking something on a website will end world hunger or child abuse or whatever. Maybe I am missing something! Some of these are funny, see below, but I think we can all agree that there is an awful lot of dross out there!

Of course even worse than the Gullible Liker is the Gullible Sharer - less is more sometimes! But then I guess it depends what you are in to and someone else's dross is my amusement and vice versa... Perhaps half of those on my friends list have limited what they see from me cause they think I share and post way too much rubbish. But here's the thing - more power to them! It's so easy to change settings and vary what you see from people that I guess it doesn't really matter what they like or share. 

 A personal bugbear of mine is the Text Speak Poster. This is someone who hasn't quite worked out that phones no longer limit you to a tiny amount of characters and that No1 txts like dis NEmor unless dey R well over 40.  Never mind posts like this on Facebook. Please stop.

So who are you on Facebook? A Lurker? A Liker? A Periodic or a Gullible Liker? A Gullible Sharer? A Text Speak Poster? Or, as I am sure you all are, or hope you are at any rate: SWGF. 

Have I missed any categories? And can we all agree that the first picture below is cute, but the second one is genius?