Tue, Feb 12, 2008 15:13 EST

Bill Gates and I Both Say No to Facebook

Topic: Applications

Current Rating: Comments: 11

You may recall that back in mid-January I listed all of the reasons why I was not joining Facebook, despite an enormous amount of peer pressure. In sum, the work involved and potential time wasted with a Facebook account outweighed my desire to be a part of this social networking cult—I mean, phenomenon.

To my surprise, most of the 20 or so comments to my piece were largely supportive of my rationale, which made me feel better about my decision to abstain.

It turns out, however, that I'm not alone. The Sun reported today that Bill Gates "is off his Facebook." The article states that while Gates was "hooked" on Facebook, spending some 30 minutes on the site each day, his celebrity status had become a detriment to using the service: He received more than 8,000 friend requests per day, and apparently, the time suck (as I had termed it in my previous column) was too much for him to bear.

Now while Gates and I may have little in common, it seems we both agree that too much is too much when it comes to Facebook.

It should be noted that Microsoft has invested $240 million in Facebook, which shows the company either strongly believes in the site's appeal or was too scared not to get in on the social-networking action. Whatever the case, it seems like Gates won't be "eating his own dog food," with regards to Facebook, which I find intriguing.

Facebook took some other hits this week. A New York Times article stated that "some users have discovered that it is nearly impossible to remove themselves entirely from Facebook, setting off a fresh round of concern over the popular social network’s use of personal data." It's like the "Hotel California," noted Nipon Das, a Facebook user who tried unsuccessfully to delete his Facebook account. "You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave."

In addition, another article noted the discontent among the younger generation of social networkers—"the MySpace generation is getting sick of MySpace too." The problem? Users are growing tired of the burgeoning amount of advertising on social-networking sites. The article cites comScore data that shows that the amount of time the average person spends on social-networking sites dropped 14 percent during the last four months.

By no means am I implying that social networking is dead, or even on the ropes. But chinks in the armor have appeared.

As for me, I'm sticking with Bill Gates on Facebook (well, except for that whole $240 million part).

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All Comments Comments

Thu, Feb 14, 2008 9:14 EST

Nice article

Posted by: clrapp
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Nice article.

I completely see where you and Bill Gates are coming from.

I have not gotten to this point yet and only spend little time on Facebook each day. I have come across a couple of groups (the CIO group included) that share legitimate business topics that are useful.

I also have a couple of friends that I keep up with on there.

My profile is not out of control in any way and I think that is why I continue to somewhat like Facebook. I can only imagine what Bill Gates was going through with the thousands of friend requests. I think that would have turned me off to it also.

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Thu, Feb 14, 2008 11:07 EST

I Agree

Posted by: Anonymous
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I never had interest in exploring any of these "social networking" sites, and your remark regarding the "burgeoning amount of advertising on social-networking sites" is the primary reason. I believe I assumed an inordinate amount of advertising would get in the way of anything that might be of interest; thank you for confirming. I find I don't watch more than a couple hours of TV any more because I can't take the constant commercial interruptions. It's difficult to navigate the web (let alone read an online article) without some stupid animated dancing character trying to sell me a lower mortgage rate.

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Thu, Feb 14, 2008 22:46 EST

Give it a try before you criticize it

Posted by: Anonymous
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If Facebook or MySpace isn't your thing that's fine. However, I have a problem with people who discount Facebook or the Social Networking trend when they haven't actually tried any of the sites. I recently had a conversation with a CIO of a major internet retailer who said he just didn't get Facebook. Come to find out he had never even tried it. I'm not saying Facebook lives up to all the hype but the internet is evolving and if you are not participating in it then you're just another 40+ IT guy who doesn't get it. I suppose it is a trend that is repeated every generation when parents look at the latest fashion, music, etc. Do yourself a favor and just give it a try. You don't have to sign up for every application or put all your personal info but you should at least get a sense of what it is all about (and by the way MySpace & Facebook are totally different things).

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Wed, Feb 20, 2008 14:33 EST

Give it a try and you don't get it !!

Posted by: Anonymous
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Saw your age reference and immediately stopped reading. You don't get it.

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Thu, Feb 21, 2008 11:21 EST

MySpace/Facebook: waste of time

Posted by: Anonymous
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I totally agree with you on not joining Facebook. As a Microsoft shareholder, I was upset when Microsoft anted out some $240M for a tiny ownership of Facebook. My son (20 yrs old) determined to stay away from Myspace or Facebook. My daughter (23) had Myspace but begins to feel tired of it due to the "junk" she received.

I myself one time went to Facebook to check out a prospective tenant. He responded to my ad as a professional at UCI university. His Facebook braged about criminal activities he had committed, and claimed that he is escaping from authority in Florida and moving to California. I almost had a heart attack and I promptly reported this to my local police department.

I feel that these websites are being used as an excellent place for these "dogs" to have their day, those with low self esteem, and those with too much time on their hand. It made a mock out of those who use Facebook for a honest and legitimate purpose. If you decided not to join Facebook, you are not alone. Thank you for going against the (bad) grain.

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