Facebook provides vast opportunities to reconnect with past friends or to allow shy people the opportunity to socialize with others. Within the first week of going on facebook my dad was communicating with several high school and college friends who he hadn’t heard from in years. It is much easier to talk with people that might be hard to talk to in person or if you need to network when looking for a service or for a job. It has transformed the work world.
Employers are able to view applicant’s profiles to see if they are the all-around person they want to represent their company. We all need to be aware that potential colleges and employers can access facebook and see what we have been doing. We need to be careful about what we put on facebook because it could affect us for the rest of our lives. Unfortunately the things that we put on the internet don’t just go away.
I understand how people feel when they say that this is ruining face-to-face interaction but I feel that on facebook you are able to be more social than face-to-face. It is an opportunity to communicate everything you set out to communicate. There are no interruptions stopping you in the middle of a thought or conversation. By being able to think through all that you are going to say you are able to get your point across more fluently and clearly. During your conversation you are able to use resources like the internet to enhance your conversation by having actual data or pictures. You are able to share your pictures with your friends and get pictures from friends. It is also fun to share your favorite music.
Now all generations are taking advantage of Facebook. My family currently has three generations on Facebook making us able to communicate and share our lives with each other. It can be fun to see what everyone is doing especially when we don’t all live close to each other.