More and more users are logging out of the social network for the last time. But could you ever give up on your guilty Facebook pleasure?
Every so often stories and statistics come to light that suggest Facebook numbers are diminishing and it seems the past few months have been no exception. The Guardian reported yesterday that during May more than six million users logged out for the last time in the US alone. However, due to Facebook’s popularity this could just be a natural rise and fall, after all with so many users there are bound to be those that sign up, lay dormant, give it up for good or even sign up again later when they realise how much they miss it.
So would you ever give it up for good?
I don’t tend to use Facebook half as much as I used to and whine about how annoying it is constantly, but being a bit of a self-confessed online geek the thought of deleting my Facebook account still brings me out in a cold sweat. However, a sadistic part of me would love to see how I’d cope without it, whether I’d get more done, be less nosy and judgemental or just feel isolated from old friends.
If the more you read about Facebook makes you despise it even more then go ahead and delete it, but just make sure you think before you click. There are countless articles, how-to guides and ironically even Facebook groups dedicated to helping you cut it out of your life properly. After all, if you’ve finally made the pretty tough decision you don’t want to realise months down the line that your account is still sat there and all your photos and details are still visible. So although it may take a bit of effort, do your homework to make sure you’re gone for good. You don’t need to worry about losing everything either, as Facebook now has a handy feature in its settings which lets you download all of your important information, including updates, messages, wall posts, photos and videos.
If like me you just can’t bear to part with your Facebook identity, then instead of going to extreme measures try these solutions to some of the top annoying problems many users seem to have:
"I hate reading status updates from people I knew years ago that I don’t even like."
This is one of the most popular grievances with one of the simplest answers. Unfriend them. If it’s someone you genuinely don’t get on with or haven’t spoken in years it shouldn’t really matter, right? The good things about Facebook, like being able to connect with people with similar interests, sharing links and content and creating events only really work well if your ‘friends’ are actually your friends anyway.
"My boss/grandma/young cousins are friends with me."
If there are people you just can’t delete because you have a personal or professional connection to them, but you still don’t want them to see what you’re doing all the time, just work around it and create lists so those people can’t see certain bits of content.
"Constantly checking my Facebook account takes up a worrying amount of my day."
Firstly, take Facebook off your bookmarks bar. Yes, it’s not hard to type www.facebook.com into the address bar, but having that extra few seconds to think about how much you’re procrastinating might discourage you.
Secondly, download an add-on, plug-in or application that will stop you visiting certain sites, there are hundreds available but you could start with LeechBlock if you’re a Firefox user, Chrome Nanny is good for those browsing with Google Chrome and the Obtract app is a bit more of an advanced tracking system for Mac devices.
"My friend is annoying and updates about his/her dog/baby/job/hair all the time."
Hide his or her posts from your news feed, they won’t know and it saves you building up a deep personal hatred for them in the long run.
"I’ve tried all of the above and I still don’t like it."
Bite the bullet and delete, delete, DELETE.
Becca Caddy is a BitchBuzz Tech columnist and freelance writer. She is also the UK editor of US-based tech blog Popgadget.net. You can follow her @beccacaddy or read her blog beccacaddy.com.
Image via Princess_I_88’s Flickr.