Queue on 13/1/2016 at 16:27
All I have to say on the matter is, I wish someone would fuck me with a rake.
...that and, the thing with Facebook is it's not about having a conversation. It's about one's vanity. It's the whole: Here, let me post whatever is needed to accumulate 'likes' and 'shares', instead of saying what is really on my mind. And, on the other side, the mere act of pushing that "like" button means you can't quite be bothered to say anything meaningful or develop a conversation, just 'liking it' is good enough to satisfy whatever obligation one feels one has regarding interaction. Just being "involved" is good enough.
It's strange. At times, with Facebook, it seems almost as if people are afraid -- or uncomfortable -- when it comes to replying with any sort of depth or striking up a conversation on a personal level, especially with actual family and friends; yet people bang down the door to be as caustic as possible on a public figure's Facebook account or a public page. Viewers of a public person's page can broken down into two types: the insufferable yes-men who agree with and love everything, or the 'it's a free-for-all to be a dick' oriented. But truly, being dickish is not the majority of what is on Facebook. The majority is insanely empty lip-service and grabs for attention via typing (hell, we can't even be bothered to waste our breathes talking on the phone anymore, is how little humanity has come to regard human interaction) or imaging that ultimately means nothing or is so utterly moronic that it makes one wonder how half these people can stand upright.
The thing about social media is, there is nothing social about it. It's all about ME ME ME ME ME, and it's more addictive than crack. Everyone gets a say, regardless of how empty that say is -- in fact, it seems the more empty the better -- and there is something hugely satisfying to human nature when one can stroke one's own id. And the beauty is, it can be done anywhere at anytime, with everything from cereal manufactures to what passes as the news encouraging such vapid behavior. No longer is Narcissus stuck paralyzed looking in a pool of water, when a pool of liquid crystal is portable.
I don't blame Facebook. As with everything that is the Internet, Facebook can be a great tool for sharing and furthering information. There are plenty of informative pages and neat things to find. It's just that those things are in the minority, and are not as popular as following a celebrity. It's not Facebook that's made Facebook so utterly vacuous that it sucks the life and reasoning out of you--it's the users.
Consider this, I have a whopping 29 friends on my account ... and I follow absolutely none of them because it became painful. I didn't realize how incredibly empty, annoying, and stupid people can truly be before clicking the accept button and enduring their nonsense for a few weeks. Ironically, they all still follow me, even though I have come to think of them more as hostages than actual "friends" with which I can share stuff and have a meaningful conversation--a sort of Stockholm Syndrome has set in on their part because, apparently, I say silly things that they find assuming. Dance, monkey! Dance!
So, instead of friend collecting, I follow a ton of informative pages, and usually discover something new every day and ignore the going ons of everyone else because it so painful to have to pretend you actually give a shit about a group selfie of sloppy drunk gals at the bar after a long day of avoiding actual work at the office; all while becoming more and more of an outcast each day on my own Facebook account when all I really ever wanted from the beginning was to have a few good conversations. It's rather sad, really. Now I'm depressed and considering offing myself. Just kidding! LOL! LMAO! ...no LMFAO!! tl;dr
I guess, as with everything on the Internet, it's boils down to how you use it and what you are after. The sad thing for me is, I truly tried. Everyone else let me down. Bastards. I won't delete my Facebook because I do like getting feeds from interesting sites and people. But, I don't see any point in posting, or even sharing those things that interest me. In the end, no one cares but me about what I find meaningful and interesting. Why would I want them involved to ruin it?
Vivian on 13/1/2016 at 16:30
Basically ran out of things to say about computer games, I think. No-one's made one I really thought worth talking about that much in a while, so I drifted off to places I could talk shit about other things. Also my social life sort of exploded after I split up with a long-term girlfriend and remembered about partying, so I had lots and lots of other things going on. I think I used the last of my TTLG spirit being driven slowly mental arguing about thief 4 and then it turned out to be some kind of beige vanilla flan of a game, so I drifted off. I AM starting to work through the old ultima underworld games and have my sights vaguely set on terra nova, so who knows, might turn up a bit more? And we have a NEW FUCKING SYSTEM SHOCK GAME COMING OUT (imagine a trail of exclamation marks reaching from here into the sun) so that should spark some interest. Maybe they'll take a leaf out of whoever-the-fuck-turns-the-Halo-crank-these-day's book and give Shodan really big tits?
Also facebook's fine as a social organisation tool, it's less fine as a platform for debate, I guess. I really don't see why it gets the stick it gets. Don't make friends with people that annoy you? Fuck knows there are enough other people in the world to talk to.
Fingernail on 13/1/2016 at 18:38
Still find some compelling reason to lurk around, strangely more so in the last month or so and then fett posts this thread. Funny how these things go. Maybe it is a sign. :wot:
Gloria Creep on 13/1/2016 at 23:36
I've a lot of TTLG friend on FB btw. It works fine for me.
Sometimes just a "like" remark, sometimes a remark and sometimes a PM ......
:angel:
bjack on 14/1/2016 at 05:43
There is hope, as evidence shows by these posts. Facebook is OK for simple vanity posts and whatnot, but do not try to express anything too controversial, or their special "correction police" will edit your posts.
I have an extremely eclectic mix of friend on "faceplant". Some are extreme liberals and some are extreme right wing near-facists. All are human and respond to simple pleasures like kitten photos and pictures of wonderful scenery. One thing I do notice is that if I "like" a certain person's post, I tent to get almost nothing but feeds from them going forward. Meanwhile, others are posting like mad and I never see their stuff, unless I search on them directly to see what is up in their world. Hum….?
But, that is not what this site is about. Sure, it gets nasty here and there, but so what. Filter it out mentally. I posted a whole lot of shite last year and some took issue with my ideas. OK, I figured this was not the place to express my viewpoint, nor that it was a place to try to change anyone's opinion (a foolish idea on my point that was brought on by an over abundance of vodka). I got that and moved on, but I still come here almost every day to check on what people are chatting about. I enjoy many of the posts and have gotten a little bit of enrichment in my life by doing so.
Like me, or dislike me, it does not matter. What matters is this place is a place to express ideas in a "group think - safe haven". It is mental masturbation, if you will. I don't mean that in a bad way either. You get to express your ideas and have all come back and pat you on the back, or stab you in the heart. Cool. There are many sites like this, especially in the car world. Be thankful that this one has not completely degenerated into crap.
As for "faceplant"? Use it at your own risk. Expect to be manipulated. Expect to be edited. Expect to not get responses from friends. One thing about FB that is semi-OK is it is far better than typical "Yahoo" comments. At least trolls are semi-rare in FB. A-holes are common, but trolls are not.
All the best to everyone for 2016. Over and out from bjack
Queue on 14/1/2016 at 06:13
Scientific America posted an article about whether or not we will/should "colonize the Milky Way". Here is a brief snippet of actual user comments.
Inline Image:
http://s1.postimg.org/cgbqbu2j3/milkyway.jpg...and now you know why I pray nightly for a giant asteroid to cleanse the planet.
Vivian on 14/1/2016 at 10:35
You might have to explain why that's so objectionable, looks ok to me?
Tomi on 14/1/2016 at 13:48
Yeah. While I might not agree with their views, it still looks somewhat sensible to me. Much better than the standard "stfu u fukin gay" level of "discussion" in public Facebook posts or on Youtube at least.
faetal on 14/1/2016 at 14:21
I was going to say the same.
demagogue on 14/1/2016 at 15:10
If there's a fault I'd actually pin it more on Scientific America, along with every other science organization that wants to build a social presence the way it's done these days. They're starting to resort to clickbait like any other publication, and clickbait invites insipid discussion. It's almost guaranteed.
The only places you're getting good science discussion is in the tech forums, which have really high barriers of entry and crack the whip on dumb talk, so all the actual discussion is by a small select group. Tutorial type forums open the doors more, but then it's not real discussion.
