Don't use it so no worries but the widespread panic is amusing me. Twitter ftw, at least today.
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Do you still use Facebook? Why?!
- Thread starter MoodyBlues
- Start date
I know! I'm having a good laugh today! 
I liked how FB employees were locked out of the building because their IDs didn't work too. 
rootabaga
Android Expert
I like that FB is tweeting that they will have it fixed soon…
I guess it all depends on your definition of “soon!”
(Since leaving my job earlier this year I no longer have the more-inside access I used to, but the public DNS tools I checked have no entries for Facebook…oopsie!)
Milo Williamson
Extreme Android User
True
More user friendly too, and do not have to run into several ads 
More like BillionsWell, millions of folks aren't using it today.
Boom! I knew we'd turn this around!
rootabaga
Android Expert
What’s really odd is that lots of people still had access…More like Billions
Boom! I knew we'd turn this around!
I didn't know it was down... for a reason.
Notes_Norton
Android Expert
What's really odd to me is that knowing their business practices, knowing their attempted coup of a US presidential election, and knowing their invasion of privacy, anybody is still on it.
I left FB quite a few years ago, and life is better without it.
Insights and incites by Notes ♫
I left FB quite a few years ago, and life is better without it.
Insights and incites by Notes ♫
I stopped using Facebook a while back, and I was banned from Twitter, so it's all really academic to me.
puppykickr
Android Expert
Details are in this thread.
https://androidforums.com/threads/is-twitter-good.1319641/page-2#post-8018703
"They just said that I'd violated their ToS, no actual reason stated. Maybe it was because I used a friend's UK(+44) mobile phone number to create the account, as Twitter wouldn't accept my Chinese(+86) mobile phone number, or maybe using a VPN, because the Twitter site often shows CAPTCHAs, before I can see any tweets at all. Never had any problems like this with Facebook, Bing, or Google."
Now the only social network and messaging I use regularly and I'm interested in is Wechat.
The whole reason I started this thread was because I was incredulous that people still used fb, in spite of everything known about it. And here we are, with a plethora of new allegations, revelations, facts and figures and all kinds of proof, yet people still use it. WTF?!
Notes_Norton
Android Expert
The whole reason I started this thread was because I was incredulous that people still used fb, in spite of everything known about it. And here we are, with a plethora of new allegations, revelations, facts and figures and all kinds of proof, yet people still use it. WTF?!
I don't understand it myself. But then I don't understand a lot about what people do.
It seems to me that this country is getting more and more uncivilized year after year.
IMO We have gone from one of the greatest nations on earth to a barbarian nation. As a patriot I would love to fix this, but I don't have the power to do so. So my contribution is to try to act as civilized as I can.
That's why I don't do FB or Twitter. That's why I don't watch Fox or anything to the right of it or MSNBC or anything to the left of that.
It seems to me that by manipulating the population using fear and anger may be good for the oligarchy (a divided home is easy to rule), but it isn't good for the rest of us.
And the hate/fear media is indeed addicting, like a drug.
Just say "NO" to hate/fear media.
Notes ♫
You're absolutely right. And it's been an astonishing--and appalling--thing to watch. As a child of the '60s and '70s, I thought I had seen the worst that could ever happen in the US, the assassination of a sitting president. But look at us now!
facebook, as I've said many times is, in my opinion, a cesspool of....well....shit. It's not only its content, with all the misinformation and hate crimes and other crap, but fb ITSELF, with its long, long history of covertly sharing its users' data. I've previously posted many examples, so I'll only use one now: they track users' movement across the web whenever a 'like' button is clicked. I mean wherever you are on the web, not just on fb, if you click a fb 'like' button, you're tracked.
I don't feel the same way about Twitter. I've been on it almost since its inception, and although it was a much more pleasant place back when it was still an oddity, I still use and enjoy it. I KNOW exactly what information Twitter has about me and since there's nothing identifying, I don't care what they do with it! I'm very adept at ignoring conspiracy theory tweets and other stuff I'm not interested in, and just use it to share things that are important to me. And I'm proud to say I have a few very famous followers--I mean actual famous, not 'influencer' here-today-gone-tomorrow famous.
I'm right there with you. I don't watch ANY biased news/news channels at all, right, left, whatever, I don't watch it. My cousin is a die-hard MSNBC viewer; she talks all the time about "Rachel said this... and so-and-so said that..." and I have no idea who she's talking about. (I eventually learned that Rachel is Rachel Maddow.) I wouldn't watch Faux News if you gave me a million dollars.
I like to form my own opinions, think for myself, not be fed biased information that aligns with my viewpoint. I prefer just having facts, then researching issues that interest me so I can glean, on my own, what they're really about and how *I* should feel about them.
I also don't vote straight party line!
Lifelong Democrat, yes, 100% Democrat voter, no. I actually weigh each candidate on their own merit and decide for myself which is better qualified for the office they're seeking.And I ALWAYS vote--I was literally on my deathbed but still voted in the 2016 election; I needed help, but I wanted to mark it myself, and I did. I take voting very seriously!
Facebook said it out loud. Well, a whistleblower did, which is maybe more telling. It's all about engagement, which means grabbing and keeping your attention which means more ads served and more data collected which means more money. So an algorithm that watches trends sees that a post about cute puppies gets 3 million views/clicks/shares or whatever metric they use (probably all of them) but a post about puppy being run over gets 5 million, they push puppy death posts. Now it that algorithm sees that in the puppy death trends if age/race/political preference/color of shoes/brand of underwear of the driver creates additional engagement, then all of a sudden we are going to see fruit-of-the-loom puppy killers all over the internet.
The algorithms can be weighted to steer people to or away from certain topics. I am sure that they suppress criticism of social media, but everything else, without regard to short or long term effects on people in general or society as a whole, is driven by the financials.
The algorithms can be weighted to steer people to or away from certain topics. I am sure that they suppress criticism of social media, but everything else, without regard to short or long term effects on people in general or society as a whole, is driven by the financials.
Notes_Norton
Android Expert
<...snip...>I also don't vote straight party line!
I am a moderate. I lean a little left on social issues, and a little right on fiscal issues. For most of my life, I voted the candidate, not the party. It's tough to do that right now. Instead of voting for who I want, I find myself voting against whom I don't want the most. In other words, the lesser of the two evils.
In national elections, I don't vote independent or third party, because it's a wasted vote.
I have some thoughts on reforms that will probably never be implemented:
- Bring back the Fairness Doctrine and get rid of political opinion disguised as news. Opinions should be stated as editorial, and both sides should be aired. (Remember Point - Counterpoint?) The Internet and TV airwaves should belong to all the people, not any particular political party
- Campaign contribution reform. Only registered voters should be allowed to make a political contribution. Not corporations, unions, churches or other entities. Just registered voters. And the contribution per voter should be capped at $50.00 per candidate
- Candidates should not be allowed to express their party affiliation, it should be secret, and if violated the candidate should be disqualified
- Get rid of gerrymandering. Popular vote should rule and if there needs to be a district, it should be done strictly on county lines, which should not be changed for political benefit
- All corporate welfare abolished - period. Why are we paying Big Sugar $4 Billion of our tax dollars per year just to make sure our sugar prices at the grocery store are among the highest in the world? Is controlling the supply free-market economics?
- Get rid of income and corporate tax, and institute a flat sales tax on everything but food and medicine. If you buy a million dollar Bugatti, you pay more tax than someone who buys a used Kia. If you buy a mansion, you pay more tax than someone who buys a modest home. If you buy a diamond studded watch, you pay more tax than someone who buys a Timex. If you buy a factory, you pay the sales tax on it. If you buy a new tool to make a living, you pay the sales tax on it. Barter should pay tax on value, and the present day IRS agents should become auditors and police for barter.
- No person who works in a regulatory agency like the FDA should be able to take a job or receive one penny from the agency he/she regulates for the rest of his/her life. The penalty for violating this should be life in prison, with no parole allowed. After all, it's treason
- Government lawmakers and law enforcers should not be allowed to break the law, not even a speeding ticket, without losing their position and eligibility to work in the field for life. After all, those who make the laws and enforce them should not be above the law.
It's all about greed and a pissing contest between the ultra-rich (I have more toys than you).
I'm afraid unbridled Capitalism has failed us. Yet I know communism is even worse. So reforming and controlling capitalism is what I think is the best chance we have. But I know that those in power who pay for the campaigns of our elected officials (tacit bribes) aren't going to let that happen.
In the meantime, I stay off Facebook, buy from small, family-owned businesses whenever I can, and try to live like a civilized person, because I want to live in a civilized country.
Insights, incites and a minor rant by Notes ♫
I couldn't find anything in that minor rant to disagree with @Notes_Norton.
Excellent post, @Notes_Norton. Would you mind if I added an entry to your list?
- Abolish the Electoral College. Its time came and went a long time ago. Let the person who most people vote for be declared the winner. It's ridiculous, to say nothing of unfair, for one candidate to receive MILLIONS more votes than their opponent, yet the opponent is declared the winner. That alone discourages many people from even bothering to vote--like why vote if *my* vote is meaningless?
- Abolish the Electoral College. Its time came and went a long time ago. Let the person who most people vote for be declared the winner. It's ridiculous, to say nothing of unfair, for one candidate to receive MILLIONS more votes than their opponent, yet the opponent is declared the winner. That alone discourages many people from even bothering to vote--like why vote if *my* vote is meaningless?
Love it Notes. I'll add one. Congress shouldn't be allowed to exempt themselves from any law they pass on the general public.
Does it work?
Milo Williamson
Extreme Android User
I used the notes massively when I was first expanding my story line forever ago, but since I cannot post inside just within the note's app, I simply just update my status onside the continuation of the place.