Delete Facebook

[eyesonthehorizon]

I am wondering how much of a distinction it makes to actually delete one's account vs just basically eliminate any activity. I saw in one of the Facebook Papers articles this week that Facebook is worried that, although their user number is still increasing, there's been a sharp decrease in rate of posting content.

I never deleted my account but stopped using it some years back - I intentionally maintain a browser I use ONLY for the purpose, so there's no cookie crossover or tracking implications related to my profile, check in on it a couple times a year or if someone asks me to look at something, etc. FB is absolutely HOUNDING me to log back on - it's almost funny how hungry they are for your data (when you bother to open the spam filter you consign their emails to.) If you're not generating data via usage, they have nothing to sell except the handful of ads you'll see when you next log on, & they've put a lot of thoughtful work into enticing people back on.

I am SO GLAD that Buy Nothing is creating their own app. Even if that's a privacy nightmare (real names paired with locations do tend to be), at least it's purpose-specific (less to leak) & not banking on profiting by the end of democracy.

[sui generis]

I am wondering how much of a distinction it makes to actually delete one's account vs just basically eliminate any activity. I saw in one of the Facebook Papers articles this week that Facebook is worried that, although their user number is still increasing, there's been a sharp decrease in rate of posting content.

I never deleted my account but stopped using it some years back - I intentionally maintain a browser I use ONLY for the purpose, so there's no cookie crossover or tracking implications related to my profile, check in on it a couple times a year or if someone asks me to look at something, etc. FB is absolutely HOUNDING me to log back on - it's almost funny how hungry they are for your data (when you bother to open the spam filter you consign their emails to.) If you're not generating data via usage, they have nothing to sell except the handful of ads you'll see when you next log on, & they've put a lot of thoughtful work into enticing people back on.

I am SO GLAD that Buy Nothing is creating their own app. Even if that's a privacy nightmare (real names paired with locations do tend to be), at least it's purpose-specific (less to leak) & not banking on profiting by the end of democracy.

I got an email fron the BN people asking for donations to support their app/effort, which I may make a contribution to. 

So far, it's off to a slow start, not helped by the fact that the Facebook groups are so successful and the admins of those groups aren't connected to the BN app-making people and so have a vested interest (if only for maintaining their hobby of admining their respective groups) to NOT give updates about the app or encourage folks to try it out, much less migrate to it completely, so that's a bit of a bummer. 

I have a georgraphically super tiny FB BN grouup because it is so successful and I've set the BN app to cover basically like two cities and still don't see nearly as many posts on the app as on the FB group.

[RetirementDreaming]

I joined Facebook this year. We moved and unfortunately it is how my daughter's girl scout troop communicates. It is the only thing I do on Facebook.

[ChpBstrd]

I saw in one of the Facebook Papers articles this week that Facebook is worried that, although their user number is still increasing, there's been a sharp decrease in rate of posting content.

Perhaps that's because the number of ads and sponsored videos has skyrocketed. FB today looks less like a feed of comments from your friends and more like a dozen TV's running distracting junk at the same time. It's becoming something you "watch" rather than something you "do", and they're moving that way because they realized TikTok was more addictive than FB. Perhaps the end point of any new media technology is to end up where daytime television ended up - ultra-low-value content that keeps a certain segment of the population glued to it.

[FINate]

]Perhaps the end point of any new media technology is to end up where daytime television ended up - ultra-low-value content that keeps a certain segment of the population glued to it.

This gave me a good laugh. I think you're correct. My FB account was deleted in Nov, don't miss it at all.

[sui generis]

I'm making good progress on this and it seems like Facebook is trying to grab onto me like a desperate lover that didn't treat me very well and is now trying to impress me with what I may be losing.

I started by unfollowing friends and pages and most groups every time I saw them in my feed.  My browsing got shorter and shorter.  Last week, I got a new phone and I didn't log into the FB app on it. So now I'd only use it from my actual computer. \ [I feel pretty confident about being able to stick with this, since my FB password is on LastPass and I don't have the mobile version of LastPass, so I'd have to really go out of my way to look my pw up on my computer and enter the random 13-digit pw onto my mobile.]  Browsing even less now.

But what I've noticed in the last 4-5 days is that every time I log on, I have more notifications than ever waiting for me.  FB is notifying me about things it's never notified me about before.  New posts in my group.  George has posted a photo.  Jane checked in at Park City, UT.  Mike posted an update.  WTF?  I never got any of these.  Today, I came home from being offline for less than 36 hours and it gave me 9 notifications, all of which are of those type.  That's more than I used to get in that time when I used to post updates and photos regularly!  So now, while I'm still continuing on my long quest to unfollow (almost) everyone, I have to start telling FB to not give me these notifications.

It really feels like desperation on their part.

Which, happily, is making me want to visit even less.


Also happily, the Buy Nothing app seems to be picking up.  It's taking a while and it's still nothing compared to the acitivity levels of the Buy Nothing FB group, but it's getting somewhere!

[Drink Coffee And Stack Money]

Facebook as a whole is a dumpster fire.

I don't care to see where everyone is checking in, or what meal they're eating, or all the crap they've bought, or what President they support, or the 1,471 photos they post of their kids. I've joined and deleted Facebook three times in the last 15 years, and I'm on account number four now (facepalm). I keep coming back for the groups. I collect a lot of stuff and have specific hobby interests, and I've found 5-6 amazing private groups for these hobbies that have thousands of members and great content. Other than these groups, nothing on Facebook interests me. This time last time around I also limited my account to actual family only as friends, and I deny everyone else which has cut down the BS by 95%.

[jnw]

Facebook is needed where I live for Facebook Marketplace.  Also great for local Oklahoma Gardening forums.   No one uses Craigslist here anymore. it's all about FB Marketplace.  So if you ever have assets to sell, you can save a lot of money by posting it on FB instead of paying ebay/paypal fees and shipping.. also the buyer doesnt' get charged sales tax which makes it easier to sell on FB.

FB Marketplace is the way to buy used stuff locally as well, along with the flea market.  I don't buy ANY new stuff if I can avoid it.

However I do not trust facebook.  I have all my personal data turned off including friend list.  My "friends" can't see my friends list. Also I have no real life friends in my friend list.. only online acquaintances.  Also I don't use my real name on FB  (same first name but different last name).  Also I use a different birthdate.

[ALLTHAT]

I am on the fence of deleting the FB but I do not do much with it other than keeping tabs on friends and family, but mostly for the groups that I use. I do not have FB on my phone or tablets. only access it from my computer at my desk.

[jnw]

I use Facebook, but not under my real name or birthdate. I have everythign set to private and never share any person details.   I never have shared them. Never trusted Facebook or any online site with my info.  I use FB all the time.. for FB groups, Marketplace etc..

[ChpBstrd]

I use Facebook, but not under my real name or birthdate. I have everythign set to private and never share any person details.   I never have shared them. Never trusted Facebook or any online site with my info.  I use FB all the time.. for FB groups, Marketplace etc..

I used my real name back when I was naive, and now can't change it. I was able to change my gender though, and this has made the experience better due to the underwear advertising that now targets me.

[Just Joe]

I'm tempted to delete my Strava and my LinkedIn now. It feels good to live your life without meaningless external validation metrics ("Did anyone like my post?") breathing down your neck.

I deleted strava, I really didn't like the social media aspect.

I use Strava and other similar apps for route ideas. That's it. My social media use is mostly for hobby stuff.

I'm still gun shy about getting too involved with social media. I wasn't on FB until the past year or so. DW witnessed alot of bad behavior in our extended social circle. Mostly politics starting when Barack Obama came onto the national stage. It changed our relationships with many of them.

Social media is potentially a major rabbit hole that I've witnessed other people spend hours with per day. I don't have any desire to do that so no FB on my phone. Just a quick check of the hobby pages from my laptop and then time to return to real life. I'd rather DO my hobbies than look at pictures about my hobbies.

[eyesonthehorizon]

... I'd rather DO my hobbies than look at pictures about my hobbies.

I think this is the trick. Most people are too poor of either time or energy or (least common imo) resources to do, so there's been a rising culture of watching. I admit I have looked at FI/RE as a route to reverse that trend in my life & get back to doing things myself.

[sui generis]

... I'd rather DO my hobbies than look at pictures about my hobbies.

I think this is the trick. Most people are too poor of either time or energy or (least common imo) resources to do, so there's been a rising culture of watching. I admit I have looked at FI/RE as a route to reverse that trend in my life & get back to doing things myself.

Good points.  I have a hard time getting away from Facebook because of a couple of good groups, some of which are hiking groups.  They have good intel on fires, water sources and advice in the off season on gear.  But every single hiker seems to think they need to make a video of their backpacking trip and post it.  A few pictures are nice and can be helpful, but when half the posts are "day 7 of my 17 day trip backpacking XYZ trail" and each video is like a half hour long....I can't believe people watch other people's videos of that!  But I think people do, they always get lots of likes.  Anyway, it makes me want to leave some of the groups when that content gets overwhelming.

[lifeisshort123]

Got rid of it years ago.  I have an account that is “inactive” that I use for specific purposes when absolutely necessarily.  I don’t remember if it uses my real name or not.  I pull it up about once every year or two.

[MoneyTree]

I used to be addicted to scrolling through my newsfeed. It got so bad that whenever there was a down moment at work, my muscle memory would go open a new tab and start typing “faceb…”

Not sure if someone has already posted this but a little extension called newsfeed eradicator completely freed me from the addiction.

I would still reflexively open a tab and type in Facebook, but instead of getting the dopamine hit of seeing what updates were on my newsfeed, the extension blocked out my newsfeed and just showed a random quote. Within a few weeks, the habit was completely gone and it still is. It’s been 7-8 years now.

I can still respond to messenger or visit specific groups I’m in, but no more getting sucked into the vortex of the newsfeed.

[Just Joe]

Good points.  I have a hard time getting away from Facebook because of a couple of good groups, some of which are hiking groups.  They have good intel on fires, water sources and advice in the off season on gear.  But every single hiker seems to think they need to make a video of their backpacking trip and post it.  A few pictures are nice and can be helpful, but when half the posts are "day 7 of my 17 day trip backpacking XYZ trail" and each video is like a half hour long....I can't believe people watch other people's videos of that!  But I think people do, they always get lots of likes.  Anyway, it makes me want to leave some of the groups when that content gets overwhelming.

I just paused a couple of people and several hobby groups that I was not really participating in. Have one friend who posts about 10 times per day. Always like the stuff but it is a time sink. I may pause some more hobby groups soon. I may begin to wean myself off of FB until the cold and dark of winter.

As summer fizzles out, prime time outdoor cool weather is just around the corner. I want to be outside more (it gets HOT here in the summer) and even more active than I have been this summer. I have been more active this summer than I have been in years - mostly with hobby and chores here at the house.

[iris lily]

I had to drop the Persian cat rescue network Facebook feed after only a week because damn, I just wanna grab armfuls of those cats and kiss their fat faces and  bring them home with me.

See, Facebook is dangerous!

[ender]

I unfollow 100% of people/groups/etc and find the Facebook experience to be immensely better.

[sui generis]

I unfollow 100% of people/groups/etc and find the Facebook experience to be immensely better.

Sorry if I'm missing a joke, but what do you do on Facebook if you don't follow anything at all?

[GardenBaker]

I removed the app from my phone and installed newsfeed eradicator extension on my desktop. It's such a time suck vortex and I find myself going to the site or app out of habit and for no particular reason. I need to break the addiction.

[ender]

I unfollow 100% of people/groups/etc and find the Facebook experience to be immensely better.

Sorry if I'm missing a joke, but what do you do on Facebook if you don't follow anything at all?

Most hobby groups I'm part of have great communities on FBook.

Most recently I asked questions of a finish I was using in their community support group.

[Dicey]

DH and I are at home with Covid. We watched "The Most Hated Man on the Internet" on Netflix yesterday. Scary shit. Zero interest in FB.

[2Birds1Stone]

DH and I are at home with Covid. We watched "The Most Hated Man on the Internet" on Netflix yesterday. Scary shit. Zero interest in FB.

oh no! Feel better!!

[ChpBstrd]

DH and I are at home with Covid. We watched "The Most Hated Man on the Internet" on Netflix yesterday. Scary shit. Zero interest in FB.

I get the sense that when we learn something nefarious about social media corporation X, we mentally segregate that information so that it doesn't apply to social media corporation Y.

We keep hearing how sketchy Facebook is, and talking about deleting it. But then we go on to consume tons of TikTok and YouTube, as if those corporations aren't clones of Facebook. Google can literally read your email, follow your phone around, read your browsing history, understand what kind of news you engage with, and know what kind of videos you like. It seems odd to worry about FB's notification icons in comparison.

[Dicey]

DH and I are at home with Covid. We watched "The Most Hated Man on the Internet" on Netflix yesterday. Scary shit. Zero interest in FB.

I get the sense that when we learn something nefarious about social media corporation X, we mentally segregate that information so that it doesn't apply to social media corporation Y.

We keep hearing how sketchy Facebook is, and talking about deleting it. But then we go on to consume tons of TikTok and YouTube, as if those corporations aren't clones of Facebook. Google can literally read your email, follow your phone around, read your browsing history, understand what kind of news you engage with, and know what kind of videos you like. It seems odd to worry about FB's notification icons in comparison.

Have you watched the documentary?