"Most Facebook friends aren't really your friends after all"................discuss.

[mc_squared]

Most Facebook friends aren't really your friends after all

Users add strangers as friends to compete in popularity stakes


By DAVID DERBYSHIRE - More by this author » Last updated at 18:00pm on 10th September 2007 Comments
They are the people you know well enough to smile at, but would be hard pressed to name.
For generations, the nodding acquaintance has played a special part in Britain's more reserved culture.

There had been fears that the phenomenon was a dying breed.

After all, in a world where people spend every spare moment outdoors plugged into an iPod or glued to a mobile phone there is little time for social chit chat with strangers.
But according to a new study, the growth of websites like Facebook and Myspace means people now have record numbers of occasional friends.

Dr Will Reader, of Sheffield Hallam University, found that the typical “social networking” user now lists at least 150 “friends” on their home page.
His research, based on interviews with around 200 users, found that only a handful are genuine friends.
The rest are the online equivalent of friendly faces on a train or high street.
Social networking sites are the fastest growing internet phenomenon.
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Facebook has reintroduced 'nodding acquaintances' to a new generation

Facebook now has four million users in Britain – compared to 500,000 a year ago.

The sites allow people to display information about themselves, their latest photographs, links to favourite websites, gossip, video clips and music with other people.
The information can be made available to anyone – or just to selected friends. In order to make a friend on Facebook, the user sends a message to their target.
He or she can then choose whether to reciprocate.
On other sites, friends can be added unilaterally.
Although fans of social networking websites say they encourage genuine relationships, Dr Reader found that people who use the sites tend to have around five close friends – the same number as people who stay away from the internet.
“People find that face to face communication is essential if they are going to be friends,” he told the British Association science festival in York yesterday.
“It is very easy to be deceptive if you cannot see or hear someone who are communicating with.”
However, the sites encourage people to have more acquaintances – the sort of people you might nod to in the street, he said.
“It seems that the number of weak friends does go up – the number of these virtual nodding types of friendship is changing,” he said.
Most of its users are in their teens or 20s, although numbers of older people using the site is growing.
Stephen Fry and Ian Hislop are among the more mature Facebook users.
Within a couple of weeks of signing up, Fry was deluged with 150 requests a day, and was forced to hide his page from public view.
Social networking sites are also fuelling a new hobby of people collecting. Where once people collected stamps, coins and butterflies, they now rack up thousands of names they claim are “friends”, the conference was told.
Others are using software to trawl the internet for new names to add to their online collections.
The fashion has been triggered by sites like Facebook which allow users to post personal information and messages on webpage which they can share with online “friends”.
The list of friends is usually available for all to see – and has become a badge of online credibility for some
Some have thousands, while a handful of celebrities – such as the singer Lilly Allen – have Myspace pages containing nearly 400,000.
“Some people collect friends like boys collect Airfix models”, he said.
“It's not uncommon to see sites with 1,000 friends. Most are weak friends, while some are trophy friends. Everyone is friends with Lily Allen.”

[Darlene_Ihnfsa]

i don't have facebook... but i guess that happens with all things on internet, i mean people also use to add people on their msn, myspace.... that they don't know in person... although may be that people would be more friend that your real friends... may be you tell them more things that you do to your real friends... as if you were in a psychologist

[Rivers of Avalon]

in some situations youre right

[Rivers of Avalon]

when you cannot see the people youre talking to youre more honest and courageous...thats right view.....

[Rivers of Avalon]

and yeah another one thing

when you feel something it doesnt matter what or when you got a news about something there is not your friends there's only your forum friends so thats why youre telling more there and writing here.

[Darlene_Ihnfsa]

i think may be even you can feel better telling something to somebody that you don't know in person... for instance for a problem as he or she sees it in distance... can advice you better and make take into account thing that you hadn't see at first...
and well may be because if you tell a thing, or you have a bit like an stupid day, you won't find that person next day in school or work, so you don't have to explain much more...
as all things in life, have good and bad side, and it all depends on how we use the thing...
i mean there are people who behave in a different way on internet than in real life, and that's not good..

[Rivers of Avalon]

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ariadnasquire;2148359
i think may be even you can feel better telling something to somebody that you don't know in person... people for instance for a problem as he or she sees it in distance... can advice you better and make take into account thing that you hadn't see at first...
and well may be because if you tell a thing, or you have a bit like an stupid day, you won't find that person next day in school or work, so you don't have to explain much more...
as all things in life, have good and bad side, and it all depends on how we use the thing...
i mean there are people who behave in a different way on internet than in real life, and that's not good..

---

maybe its another one reason..........

but

who do you mean in the "people"..............you k now

[Darlene_Ihnfsa]

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zaza;2148364
maybe its another one reason..........

but

who do you mean in the "people"..............you k now

---

where?
i'm speaking in general..
i typed people before for instance... wrongly :embarassed: that's for writing fast..

*goes to edit the mistake*

you mean that "people", right?

[Rivers of Avalon]

yes thats right............................................. .........................but i guessed what you've meant............

[Rivers of Avalon]

also can you tell me what does your nickname mean(ariadnasquire)

[mc_squared]

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ariadnasquire;2148359
i think may be even you can feel better telling something to somebody that you don't know in person... for instance for a problem as he or she sees it in distance... can advice you better and make take into account thing that you hadn't see at first...
and well may be because if you tell a thing, or you have a bit like an stupid day, you won't find that person next day in school or work, so you don't have to explain much more...
as all things in life, have good and bad side, and it all depends on how we use the thing...
i mean there are people who behave in a different way on internet than in real life, and that's not good..

---

True - there are far too many "fakers" about.

[Rivers of Avalon]

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mc_squared;2148375
True - there are far too many "fakers" about.

---

"there" where? i think that you mean..................

[Black Rose]

Tell me something I didn't know.

[judyblueeyes]

My nephew got me involved in Facebook. It's a good way to keep in touch with family and friends who live away--sharing pics and videos etc.--but it can be annoying as hell too--different people sending you the same stuff--so that you have umpteen of the same wall posts. Then you get the idiot fringe--people you don't know wanting to get chummy-- so that you have to edit everything and remove pics. All in all I enjoy it though--but some people have over 300 friends--how the heck is that possible?

[rayman]

I was about to say...does this come as a shock to anyone? I've added a few random people, many of whom I wound up meeting anyway. (Take that as you will )