New Facebook design

[StuartR]

Facebook has a new look and feel, which I intensely disliked. I found a very simple add-in that lies to Facebook about browser capabilities, so that it continues to use the old design. It seems to work well. It can be downloaded from https://revertsite.com/ for most browsers.

[stuck]

Perhaps I should login to FB for the first time in ages, to see what I'm missing.

Ken

[StuartR]

Perhaps I should login to FB for the first time in ages, to see what I'm missing.

You're probably not missing anything Ken. I use Facebook because that is where many of my friends and colleagues hang out, otherwise I wouldn't bother.

[stuck]

Just logged in. Still looks the same to me. Perhaps that's FB's subtle ploy to get me to log in regularly to see when the new look eventfully shows up.

Don't think I'll bite. I'll look again in a few weeks time.

Ken

[stuck]

FB's new look has turned up on my PC today.

Ken

[StuartR]

You can still get the old appearance - if you are the moderator of a Facebook group then you are offered an opportunity to revert to the old style for a 48 hour period each time you visit the group.

[BobH]

What is this thing called Facebook?

I think it's just useless twitter trying a new metric measure . . . instagram.

[ChrisGreaves]

Facebook has a new look and feel, which I intensely disliked. ...

I dislike the concept of Face Book. I resisted it when it first appeared above my horizon of consciousness because of the various excited reports from people saying "I have 4,765 friends!" which is as ridiculous as an excited on-the-spot reporter declaring "The scene is incredible ..." which causes me to switch to a credible station or channel.
And anyway, I always thought of Film Stars as having private lives, and a typical circle of a dozen friends. I never believed that Sean Connery or Jack Nicholson had/has 1,234,567 friends; just a whole lot of wannabees or followers.

This morning I went hunting for a supplier of freshwater snails in St John's. There are not many suppliers.
Killick Coast Aquarium was a possibility, but they do not have a web site, just a Facebook account: https://www.facebook.com/killickcoastaquarium/

I, of course, do not have a Facebook account so I am forced to dismiss the numerous Facebook pop-ups asking me to log in or to create an account.
From what I could see (before I gave up) there is no email address or phone number through which i could deliver my statement ("I am prepared to pay whatever price you quote, as long as I can obtain three fresh-water snails for my aquarium ...")

My beloved Town of Bonavista has a Facebook page. If I join Facebook I can volunteer for all sorts of activities and meet people, but without Facebook I am stymied. Likewise I can not scavenge for Good Stuff online because the town has gone Facebook-only.

Of course, I could join Facebook; but I am of the opinion that Email and telephone (voice) are the bedrocks of electronic communication; all else is froth.

In particular I puzzle over a commercial business that says, in essence, "If you are not enrolled in Facebook (or Messenger, or Instagram or ...) then we do not want to do business with you". It seems as if businesses want to cripple their own business by dis-embracing potential customers (or volunteers or ...)

Cheers
Chris

[StuartR]

I resisted joining Facebook for a long time Chris, but it is now essential for too many things that I want to take part in.
I just checked and I am shocked to discover that I apparently have 278 friends. I don't think I can remember all their names!

[stuck]

You can still get the old appearance...

Yes thanks, I did note that in one of your earlier posts but I don't use FB enough to warrant the effort of installing an add-on that will rarely get used.

Ken
PS I've only got 14 friends and only one of them is a regular poster of stuff

[ChrisGreaves]

I resisted joining Facebook for a long time Chris, but it is now essential for too many things that I want to take part in. I just checked and I am shocked to discover that I apparently have 278 friends. I don't think I can remember all their names!

Well, here, Stuart, let me help you:
Chris
(Cheerfully!)

Stuart, you make a good point, and I recognize that there is a spectrum.
There was a time when people poo-poohed email, but here I am saying it is one of the two foundations ...
Prior to that, the only person in town who needed a telephone was, of course, The Doctor.
And there were surely people who believed that the Town Crier was making up all that stuff and was only pretending that the squiggles on the vellum were just that, squiggles ("Not even looking like a Rune", one peasant was heard to sniff)

So here's my New Year's Resolution:
I will join Facebook
I can always resign, or logout and just not log back in, right?
(Please respond "Yes of course, Chris)
(signed) "Your True Friend"

[stuck]

I can always resign, or logout and just not log back in, right?

Like anything thing IT, FB is just a tool to allow you do do stuff. Having tried it if you don't find it does allow you to do stuff then yes you can just never use it ever again. I presume there's a 'close my account' option somewhere within FB.

When you do use it, yes, FB will track you across the web in order to feed you personalised adverts and build up a profile of your activities but isn't that just the way the web is these days? Google and Amazon do the same don't they? You can minimise what FB tries tries to do by nailing down all the privacy setting in your profile and by only ever running it in Firefox using the Mozilla add-on 'Facebook Container'.

Ken

[StuartR]

If you're going to start using Facebook then I recommend using Firefox, with the Facebook container add-in, as the only place you access it from. This massively reduces the extent to which it can track you across the web.
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/fa ... k-tracking

[Argus]

If I join Facebook I can volunteer for all sorts of activities and meet people, but without Facebook I am stymied.

Isn't that what you have the town for; the "Cafe Pub", the Town Hall etc?

Of course, I could join Facebook; but I am of the opinion that Email and telephone (voice) are the bedrocks of electronic communication; all else is froth.

I agree. When all these eh, social media sites, arrived, fb, twitter et al, I thought: why would any (decent) company want have anything to do with a college student's project (fb) etc, even if an increasing number of people join? One answer is that it's another channel. Then we have the really small ones, with only one channel for communication, using for example fb since they then don't have to maintain web pages, their customers have it etc. I would look elsewhere in that case. Sorry to hear about a town that's fb only.

What happened to this:
http://townofbonavista.com/

Also, I'm reminded about this :
https://youtu.be/mAycYsxgmMw

[BobH]

Not to step out-of-bounds, but I must mention that many Americans are not happy with fb et alia and for what I deem good reason.

[DaveA]

YES, many of us do NOT like it!

[ChrisGreaves]

If you're going to start using Facebook then I recommend using Firefox, with the Facebook container add-in, as the only place you access it from.

Thanks Stuart.
I am now part of a Global Community.
Details here .
Cheers
Chris

[HansV]

Then I realize that while I have dozens of acquaintances, I don't have any friends.

You have friends here, Chris!

[ChrisGreaves]

Isn't that what you have the town for; the "Cafe Pub", the Town Hall etc?

Well, the cafe has been closed since Mid-March due to the province's mandatory house-arrest principles. I am told that is has re-opened Thursady through Saturday, but every time I walk or bicycle past there is no-one sitting in the cafe, so I don't go in to meet people, old or new.

I do get stopped in the supermarket by women who say "I remember meeting you in the cafe", and Kim in the funiture store reminded me last week of the day I walked in with my fish pitchfork and sat down to use the internet; scared the bajasus out of her friends.

Now I don't need to go there for internet, and I am longer lost-and-lonely - if anything there are too many people interrupting my walk back from Foodland.

Noone meets at the Town Hall, but when sandwiches and sugary pop are served at the end of the walk-for-health do, we meet at The Lions Hall. (The smart ones don't do the health-walk, but trail in behind the crowd and grab sandwiches etc)

I was in the Town Hall a month or two ago dropping off my name, soliciting grass clippings. But you see, everyone except me was on Facebook (or the community channel on TV), so why would anyone drop in to the Town Hall?

What happened to this: http://townofbonavista.com/

Not Much. Council meets in secret. I think that if enough for a quorum stumble into Robbins Donuts then they decide that they may as well get it over with there and then.

I still have to chase up my lead to The Archives. One of these days.

Also, I'm reminded about this : https://youtu.be/mAycYsxgmMw

Ah Argus! Thank you for bringing up, in a manner of speaking, this excellent commentary!

Cheers
Chris

[ChrisGreaves]

Not to step out-of-bounds, but I must mention that many Americans are not happy with fb et alia and for what I deem good reason.

Well, I guess that this morning I gave them One More Good reason.
Cheers
Chris