The way I see it there are four main groups of people on Facebook, there is some cross over, but it boils down to this:
1.The Grand/Parent
These are people who are on Facebook simply because their relocated daughter, son, or other family member is on Facebook and they want to see their relatives without getting on a plane. A lot of these people are still suspicious of the internet, they think any information you put out there will lead to your abduction or your identity being stolen.* If you are their friend on Facebook you are either a relative or a close friend or coworker from the past.
2.The Local
These are people who didn’t move away from home, or didn’t move very far away from home. They see their high school, and college friends, as well as their relatives frequently face to face. They were last on board for the smart phone, because they “didn’t see the point,” until they had kids and realized they could immediately share photos they took with friends and family. They don’t use Facebook a lot on the computer, and when they do they usually leave comments on things posted by people they see frequently, and make mental notes for gossip about the people who moved away for later discussion with the other locals.
3.The Business Person
This person thinks that Facebook is Linked in, or their personal ad network. This person friends business associates and coworkers, sometimes their boss. This is the person who, if they don’t know how to use filters, gets fired when their college friends post questions about how their “boring” job is going and if their boss figured out all of their “sick” days co-inside with Cubbies home games.
4.The Facebook Super User
Usually someone located fairly far away from their family and close friends. These users post 2-3 status updates and 2-3 photos a day. Usually about work, their kids, their pets, their job, and their travels… housekeeping… food… crafting… You name it, it’s going onto Facebook. (I fall into this category, along with a good portion of my friends from college and high school.)
The problem with these categories is that they’re incompatible. The different ways of using Facebook as a social tool cause these groups to irritate to one another. Especially for users who don’t maximize the tools that Facebook has to offer.
We’re currently in the middle of a particularly ugly election cycle which prompted me to take more extreme measures, but below is a beginner’s guide to Facebook Filtering. (There are ways to prevent others from seeing specific items you post, but that’s not the point of this.) Hopefully this will save you from having to make passive aggressive status updates that people may or may not see in the future. **
How to fix it if you see posts you don’t like on Facebook
1. Go to the most recent picture/game/status update the person in question has posted, click the down facing carrot in the upper right corner and Select “Hide.” Result: More options pop up!
2. Select, “Change what updates you get from John/Jane Doe.” Result: More options pop up!
- Life Events! If you don’t care that your friends are pregnant/getting divorced/moving.
- Photos! If you’re over seeing a picture of every meal they eat, every time their baby makes a new face, every time their ten year old has a soccer game, or every time their cat or dog is sleeping somewhere new.
- Games! If you don’t give a fig about their farming habits, or treasure hunting.
- If you don’t care about anything they post, but you’re hesitant to unfriend them (if you think you may hurt their feelings, or you think that someday someone might say, “So and so posted a picture and they joined the circus as the bearded woman!” and you can’t live without that gossip for the high school reunion***) Select the holy grail of passive friends list filtering: Unsubscribe.
Or, you know, just unfriend the person. Because this is Facebook and “friend” is another word for acquaintance here. They probably won’t care.
*Here’s the problem with this: the more scared you are of a system you use the more control you give it. You have to learn about it, and learn how to use it to make sure that you’re using it properly and ensuring your safety – this goes for cars, power tools, and computers.
**It also keeps you from looking like an asshole, trying to dictate what people should and shouldn’t post on their own timeline. You’re welcome.
***Because most people are this kind of asshole.