Like carrying ourselves in public, we are bounded by certain etiquette or rules of moral normalcy. Just as we are not expected to flaunt everything that may be viewed as offensive, extremely annoying and (pathetic), this also applies in social networking sites. Believe it or not social networking sites is another avenue for interaction in this day and age. Everyone at least has one site that they can fully express themselves in various ways. Gone were the days when emails and chatrooms were the only vehicles for online interaction. Social networking sites like Facebook, Myspace, Friendster, Multiply and even customized personal blogs are efficient ways of reaching out to the majority of net users now. Since the scope and the gravity of these sites are so important and so destructive, do not be surprised if there are subtle rules and etiquette to educate us what we should or should not be doing.
Take Facebook for example. I have yet to meet a person who doesn't desire or have any facebook account. Even I am considered joining the site very late. I found Facebook, just like how others have been building it up, to be more interactive and more true to networking. I found more friends there from god-knows-where effortlessly. I can do games and quizzes and publish it for my friends to know about me. I have a customized profile to provide background about my current status: Personal or professional. I can play with my friends, chat with them, send emails and share photos. And just like how the real person wants drama, I can post a shout out and comment on other people's shout outs. Facebook is not only an effective social networking site, but it brilliantly kills time as well.
Since everything that you need to know about the person is in Facebook, there is less reason to meet up in real life and just gossip. Everyone already knows about a person's updates that conversations in the real world are already tailored in reference to Facebook information. Believe it or not, it saves us time speculating and being in the dark. That is why whatever information you put there is something that could build you or destroy you. And just like in the real life, we don't need another annoying avenue for unwanted drama and attention.
For those with social networking sites especially the powerful Facbook, here are the TOP 10 etiquette rules published by TIME.COM. You might want to read them and avoid being hated. Disregard them if you do not care at all.
1. Stop taking quizzes. Nobody cares what literary time period you are.
Guilty with this. I love taking quizzes. I take quizzes especially to kill time and entertain myself. I may not see it as scientific and some quizzes in Facebook are utterly pointless, but I am aware of that. I just have the knack of sharing with other people what top things I love to eat, bring along and places to visit. With this, I get to learn more about the likes of my friends. It's not that bad at all. It's informative fantasy at its finest.
2. IF you sync your Twitter account to Facebook so that you fill others' newsfeeds with constant stream of mundane updates and references to people with little @ symbols before their names, be prepared for people to befriend you.
I don't have a Twitter account, so I couldn't quite relate to this. But I could look at this in the shout outs angle. There are just Facebook addicts that create shout outs and news feeds every five minutes like their emotions and lives shift that easily. "I'm feeling down" after five minutes "Saw a rainbow and felt happy." Uhhh....right. Some people are just damn trying hard to be interesting and effortlessly stay annoying at the same time. The problem with this is, it might reach a time when people might get sick and tired of knowing every little detail that is happening in your life in every five minutes. Instead of attracting positive attention, people would be forced to skip you.
3. Don't Friend someone You don't actually know.
In short, do not POLLUTE your FACEBOOK. This also applies in not accepting every single invitation of people you do not really want to be associated with. Just imagine that in the real world, we are literally exposed to people we randomly meet. Most of the times it's beyond our control, but Facebook gives us another chance to customize and limit our contacts to people we really care for. It really shouldn't be a big deal if I don't accept. It's a choice and an invitation and invitations get declined everytime. I pat myself for being true. And this is also a reminder for people to use real names and not adapt screen names that do not really ring a bell.
4. If you must friend someone you don't actually know, include a message explaining why you are doing so: "Hi I'm your cousin's roommate"
If you're going to be pathetic and desperate just save the person you are inviting the trouble from figuring out where you came from. And if the person stays true to rule Number 3, your pathetic efforts will be in vain.
5. Actually, don't even find yourself in Rule Number 4.
6. Don't invite people to events if they don't live in your city.
This might apply in the Western part of the hemisphere, but this is perfectly fine in the Philippines. The country is relatively smaller hence people are more "connected."
7. Do not expect people to join your "cause."
Death, political movements and new information may drive invitations to causes. It's okay to ask if they're interested, but it's always a personal decision and everyone has the right to decline.
8. Make sure that photos are rotated in the proper direction.
Very true. Since photos are automatically shared with your friends, it saves them the time bending their necks trying to figure out those magnificent shots.
9. A call for Lost Cell Numbers is tricky
Poor you that you lost your phone, but Facebook is not a roll call to post your numbers. It's too risky.
10. Cryptic status about your mental state: "Rachel is trying hard.." "Rachel wishes things to be different." "Rachel is starting over."
Uhh...okay, provide more comprehensive information please. It's bad to leave people guessing and speculating all the time. It doesn't sound intriguing. It sounds bordering from vagueness to loneliness.
2 comments:
how timely, I was just posting a note on my Facebook account mocking the torrent of quiz-taking.
and yes, I have had total strangers try to friend me. creepy. I imagine I will soon get fed up and deactivate, or ignore.
and those vague updates? those are just bait. Like an on-line "sigh".
What's good about Facebook is that you have total control and you don't get "socially penalized" for declining or ignoring people you don't want to befriend. So you can just continue to ignore and not allow yourself to be annoyed.
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