Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

0002378

Suspended
May 28, 2017
675
671
Well, when you have friends spread all over the globe, it's a very efficient way to keep up with them.

I agree :D

I used it myself ... once ... many years ago, to track down childhood friends 10,000 mi away. And yes, it was very effective for that.

If your friends are all posting about their last dump, the issue may be more with who you have chosen as friends.

LOL :D :p

You bring up a good point here. Of course, it's not the technology itself that is flawed; it is how it is used that is the problem.

Consider the following scenario:

John is out whale-watching. A whale pops out of the water. John, in his rush to capture an image for Facebook, is playing with his smartphone. In all that time, not only has the whale ducked under the water, but more importantly, John has missed the whole thing.

Or a concert by your fav musician. You miss the whole thing because you want to record it and show off to the world that you were there.

It is sad how much of (beautiful) reality people miss because they're obsessed with the virtual alternative that will never match up :(
 

smallcoffee

macrumors 68000
Oct 15, 2014
1,667
2,208
North America
You said and asked:



If we shouldn't be using Facebook in 2017 to keep up with friends and family, what should we be using in 2017?

In-person visits, phone calls, email, SMS.

Also please keep in mind you clarified in your response. Your initial question was very generic and that’s why I asked a follow up question.
 

C DM

macrumors Sandy Bridge
Oct 17, 2011
51,392
19,461
Consider the following scenario:

John is out whale-watching. A whale pops out of the water. John, in his rush to capture an image for Facebook, is playing with his smartphone. In all that time, not only has the whale ducked under the water, but more importantly, John has missed the whole thing.

Or a concert by your fav musician. You miss the whole thing because you want to record it and show off to the world that you were there.
The interesting things about those scenarios is that photographing/recording/etc. are all things that people have been doing for decades before there was internet, let alone social networking (or smartphones)...
[doublepost=1514243150][/doublepost]
In-person visits, phone calls, email, SMS.

Also please keep in mind you clarified in your response. Your initial question was very generic and that’s why I asked a follow up question.
And then there's a set of people who see text messaging as some weird thing and something that's really inpresonal and that no one should be using it. Can't really satisfy everyone's view of the world.
 

smallcoffee

macrumors 68000
Oct 15, 2014
1,667
2,208
North America
And then there's a set of people who see text messaging as some weird thing and something that's really inpresonal and that no one should be using it. Can't really satisfy everyone's view of the world.

And that’s a common, but flawed argument. It’s not the medium of the message, but the nature of it. Even SMS (which is a mediocre communication tool) generally forces concentrated and deliberate interaction. You don’t mindlessly scroll through email, or SMS history. It is a interaction that you generate, and pursue. Facebook is not. Once you have an account your drawn to it to get the continued dopamine releases, to compare yourself to others, etc, get exposed to advertising and games, and generally find ways to waste time. Phone calls don’t do this. Email doesn’t do this. SMS is probably on its way to doing this, unfortunately, with the introduction of iMessage apps, but at the least you could just not instal any.
 

D.T.

macrumors G4
Sep 15, 2011
11,050
12,467
Vilano Beach, FL
And then there's a set of people who see text messaging as some weird thing and something that's really inpresonal and that no one should be using it. Can't really satisfy everyone's view of the world.

The other issue(s) with SMS, is the lack of consistent capabilities / cross platform issues, no easily managed / shared media resources - FB is _easily_ used as a tool that service +you+, a few filters, limited access / close friends, family only, some groups and lists for content control. A geographically scattered family gets a bunch of nice Christmas photos, I easily plan a couple of car events, I catch up with an old friend in NYC (had no idea about how our travels plans overlapped), works great :)
 

D.T.

macrumors G4
Sep 15, 2011
11,050
12,467
Vilano Beach, FL
Uh, wrong? SMS is SMS - every phone has it.

*sigh*

Try reading what I wrote again - pro-tip: read the WHOLE sentence.

(I've been in the tech sector for about 25+ years, dev/architect/writer, multiple companies ... so yes, I know a few things things about mobile tech, including SMS ...)
 

smallcoffee

macrumors 68000
Oct 15, 2014
1,667
2,208
North America
*sigh*

Try reading what I wrote again - pro-tip: read the WHOLE sentence.

(I've been in the tech sector for about 25+ years, dev/architect/writer, multiple companies ... so yes, I know a few things things about mobile tech, including SMS ...)

I don't need to read the whole sentence. You can construct sentences in which parts or wholes of them are correct or incorrect. Your assertion that SMS has compatibility issues or cross-platform issues is not true. Any phone that has SMS can communicate per-protocol with another phone with SMS (provided all the nuances are taken into account, same country, or whatever.

If you want to assert that SMS has cross-platform issues with other applications then you're making an invalid comparison.

I don't know much about your experience - it sounds like you have a lot, and I'm not questioning your expertise or that experience.
 

D.T.

macrumors G4
Sep 15, 2011
11,050
12,467
Vilano Beach, FL
Your assertion that SMS has compatibility issues or cross-platform issues is not true.

Again, that's not was absolutely not the context, but a brief review of your post history (both this thread and elsewhere) tells me I'm probably done replying (as I don't do back-and-forths) though I could've easily clarified my post if it was confusing for you.

My little G wants to connect a controller to her new Lenovo Yoga, so I'll leave you to it. :)
 

smallcoffee

macrumors 68000
Oct 15, 2014
1,667
2,208
North America
Again, that's not was absolutely not the context, but a brief review of your post history (both this thread and elsewhere) tells me I'm probably done replying (as I don't do back-and-forths) though I could've easily clarified my post if it was confusing for you.

My little G wants to connect a controller to her new Lenovo Yoga, so I'll leave you to it. :)

Nothing was confusing about your post - you were just wrong.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.