Doctorow on Facebook
Cory Doctorow has a really good rant on Facebook over at Information Week:
Facebook is no paragon of virtue. It bears the hallmarks of the kind of pump-and-dump service that sees us as sticky, monetizable eyeballs in need of pimping. The clue is in the steady stream of emails you get from Facebook: "So-and-so has sent you a message." Yeah, what is it? Facebook isn't telling -- you have to visit Facebook to find out, generate a banner impression
I am for the most part still enjoying Facebook, but I have noticed recently that I'm ignoring just about everything but friend requests (there's only so much poking I can put up with), and the inevitable messaging that follows a new friend hookup...which does beg the question about longevity.
Though Doctorow is prone to hyperbole, I agree with him whole-heartedly in this particular instance. As more and more apps get developed and more of my “friends” keep spamming me, I find Facebook’s social networking value diminishing.