Columnists

Geek Speak… Pros And Cons Of Social Media

Issue 24.13

As you watch other people, you notice that many of them seem to have a smart phone or other device permanently attached to their hand and they keep poking at it with their other hand. This is a common malady in our day. It could be called Facebookitis or Twitteritis.  Facebook and Twitter are just two of the more popular social interaction programs or apps (applications) that most phones and tablets have available. Through them people can read what their “friends” or others commenting on the same things they are interested in, are saying.

Because these are public forums, it is like having an extended discussion with anywhere from a few to a few hundred people who are all able to comment. Because it is in text format, no one can interrupt what you say (though they can and do often ignore it.) The drawback to this format is that it takes significantly more time to read and reply to each post than it would to visit with the same people verbally.  The outcome is that people often spend large amounts of time reading and typing replies in a discussion that might only take a few minutes in person. The other thing that people like about this type of discussion is that you can type your reply, then think about it and make changes to be more clear or less confrontive before sending it for others to read. Sometimes you decide not to reply at all.

You can participate in the discussions from your home computer or from smart phones or tablets. They are free and facebook offers additional types of contacting such as creating groups that restrict the ability to see what others in the group are posting to members and not the general public, and events that invite people to things happening that they might be interested in. Those that are aware of these events can invite anyone on their “friends” list to join in.

“Friends” is a different term on facebook. It means those you have allowed to see what you type. You may not know them at all and sometimes they are not who they seem to be. All of the “friends” of your “friends” can also see what you type unless you block this in your preferences. This leads to dangers of predators or criminals finding out more about you or your children than you want. They can also see any photos you post of family, home location, possessions, etc.  It is a good idea, especially for teens and children, to carefully screen who is accepted as a “friend” on facebook. You may want to be careful about it even as adults. There have been times when people posing as a facebook friend was actually trying to get information to steal things from your home or attempt to steal your identity or financial information.

If you are going to use social media, spend some time reviewing your facebook and other profiles to be sure you are not sharing more than you mean to. Restrict who has access and password protect your information. Hacked accounts can be a real headache to resolve so be careful – and always remember to back up anything that is important to you.

Shaun McCausland has worked in the computer industry for over 30 years, 20 years of it locally with Bits ‘N’ Bytes and Musicomp and currently does in-home and on-site computer consultation, service, training and repair. If you have questions you can reach him at 435-668-7118 or through his website at www.bitsnbytescomputers.com.

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