Comments on: I’ve deleted my MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn accounts

By: Going mobile with my iPhone photos | Hi, I’m Colin Devroe.

Going mobile with my iPhone photos | Hi, I’m Colin Devroe. — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 22:21:30 +0000

[...] leaving MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn – I’m beginning to think of new ways that I can use some of my accounts that I have lingering [...]

By: Adrianna Cantrell

Adrianna Cantrell — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 18:44:13 +0000

hey wat up myspace is awesome
but there is a lot of drama but anyways i thoght i would holla at you all love u all boo

By: Zach Hale

Zach Hale — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 10:49:49 +0000

Like has been said, whether or not I use those services, it allows others to find me. Even thought it seems obvious to just search for me on Google, many people do not scope their search that large.

I also keep my accounts because of privacy settings. I’d like to see what my friends are doing on an irregular basis and can’t do so without having accounts.

LinkedIn has proven practically worthless for me, but it is a nice resume for me to point people towards if they are curious where I am professionally.

By: Dom Barnes

Dom Barnes — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 23:45:00 +0000

Personally, I don’t see that the contact made on either Facebook or MySpace is valuable to life really. Sure you can find people you lost track of but maybe there was a good reason you don’t see them. I haven’t got either. I signed up for a Facebook and deleted the account after 10 seconds. The initial welcome didn’t entice me at all and it failed to show me what it can offer. From what I’ve heard, its a good way to spam your friends with a load of crap, and that doesn’t excite me one bit.
Myspace is similar. Very web 1.0, annoying animated GIFs, poorly designed backgrounds that make it so you can’t read the text. It reminds me of my first website in…1999 maybe? Glad thats dead!
I do use some networks. I use flickr so my family can see my photos, I use del.icio.us to bookmark stuff that doesn’t need to sit in my safari bookmarks, and I twitter for fun. And blog every now and then.

Welcome to the less-social

By: justjason

justjason — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 22:45:31 +0000

Over the last several months I have also thought of purging a few of the social networks I currently belong to. MySpace is at the top of my list, although it is the one place I know where to find all my family and friends. Regardless, it’s become so inundated with marketing and porn that it’s hardly a place where I feel I would be able to make meaningful connections with people I haven’t talked to in awhile.

The problem is, social networks should be about making connections with people you don’t already know. Sadly, because of what people have done to social networks, there is always a sense of weirdness when someone you don’t know asks to be friends. Which is why I so rarely take the initiative.

In response to this post, I cancelled my LinkedIn account and will be deleting my MySpace account in the very near future, since most, if not all of my friends and family know my web address. That should be enough.

By: iellie

iellie — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 20:26:58 +0000

Oh And just to let you know Facebook started out for College students ONLY! It was a social Network set up for Colleges and origianlly you could only be friends and communicate with people from your college. Facebook then realized if they opened it up to allow College to college contact that it would boom! And it did. Later they realized they had the next Myspace on their hands and opened it to everyone. After this happened Facebook just lost all of it’s appeal in my opinion.

Facebook was great when it was just a College Social Network because it was worth while. It made it easy for college groups and associations to create Facebook groups and promote their association. It brought the campus closer and if you needed to get in contact with a person from your class you could search for your class and students in it and get information you needed for tests and assignments.

Myspace has always kinda been a huge mess.

I just wish Facebook would go back to the way they once were

By: Capri

Capri — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 11:25:54 +0000

I have a Myspace an Facebook – I like the administration at Facebook better, they helped me with some accessibility issues. Try getting help at Myspace? Har har har! I dislike the ranking junk that goes on at just about any site, who cares about “top friends”? It’s disturbing that so many people apparently do. I’ve been added to “top friends” by some people on Facebook, and have added them in turn out of politeness, but that application is useless. I like the wal posts – as long as they are actually comments from friends. What really bugs me is when people post stupid chain letters, and everyone seems so much more interested in doing that than posting chit-chat or other comments of their own. Facebook has some great apps (if only I could be sure my friends would be interested in them) but FB also has some really crappy ones. IMO they have too many fluffy visual apps that do nothing but add clutter to your profile and cause the comp to freeze while the page takes about a hundred years to load. It took a few experiments before I finally figured out how to add apps that people invited me to – w/o having them clutter my profile with boxes and links.

I don’t share either my FB or MS page with strangers – because FB requires you to disclose your full name, and MS has your age in the title of your profile page – I like to keep my full name, age, and location private as much as possible.

By: elliottcable

elliottcable — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 07:09:07 +0000

I surely know how you feel about having too large of an 'online footprint' - look how many web services I have an account on!

By: Annie Heckenberger

Annie Heckenberger — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 03:13:17 +0000

Colin:

You and I have spoken about doing this for months. My reasons are different than yours, I was unhappy with Facebook because I felt Brand alienated me and became something different than what I signed up for. That said, your exit was inspiring and I finally went and “deactivated” my Facebook after reading this. I wrote them a lengthy note detailing my ongoing displeasure with where they have taken the Brand and moved on.

It’s freeing! Thanks.

By: COD

COD — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 02:51:24 +0000

I’ve been considering doing the same thing. My web site has been online since flashing text was considered cool. If people want to find me, it’s not difficult. I may hang on to MySpace only because a couple of friends in bands use it as their primary blogging platform so I need access to keep up with them. Facebook is definately in danger of going bye-bye. LinkedIn is useful for me. I get fairly regular job inquiries via my profile there. I’m not job hunting right now, but you know, I could be again some day.

By: princessleah7x

princessleah7x — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 23:56:31 +0000

Dear Colin,

I have a myspace, viddler, and facebook account. I, however, have never heard of LinkedIn.
I hate myspace, but I still have a myspace account. The only reason I still have a myspace account is because my friends and cousins in Tennessee are still in the ‘myspace craze’ and will not join Facebook.

I, however, enjoy facebook. At my highschool almost every kid has a facebook. It’s a great way to keep in touch with my friends during vacation and other things. I enjoy that social network.

Also, keep in mind, I am a junior in highschool, and its normal for us to have facebook. So I’m probablly a little biased.

As for Viddler, I can’t even express how awesome it is! I really appreacaite the kind of personal aura that you don’t find on any other website.

Well, I’m off to watch a movie! Later Colin! [=

By: Colin Devroe

Colin Devroe — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:18:46 +0000

Chris Clark: Nice observations.

Mark Schoneveld: I completely agree! Blogs, FTW!

By: Mark Schoneveld

Mark Schoneveld — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:13:23 +0000

Blasphemy!

Remember this: blogs are the best open-source social network there is!

By: ChrisClark

ChrisClark — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:53:06 +0000

Colin: I think the reason that MySpace and Facebook are so frustrating in comparison to sites like Viddler and Flickr is because MySpace and Facebook are sites about nothing. All that you’re sharing there is a rough approximation of the kind of social interaction that you’d be better off having in real life. At Viddler and Flickr and sites like that, users are actually exchanging content. There’s something to talk about! What a novel f#$%ing concept! Rather than just hanging out and writing on each other’s “walls,” we’re having a dialogue about things that we’ve created.

That being said, I’ve just signed up for Facebook recently. I’m kind of lumping myself into the Kevin Smith school of self-promotion: put yourself out there, wherever you can.

But, when it comes down to it, I’m resolving to spend most of my online energy on sites like Viddler from here on out.

By: Colin Devroe

Colin Devroe — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:13:41 +0000

Rob Sandie: I think people should sign up for Viddler twice. Or, maybe one account for each day of the week even?

In all seriousness: I’m of the opinion that people should sign up for whatever services they think will be of use, or even fun, to them. MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, Viddler – all have their place for anyone/everyone that can use them. I’m extremely happy that we’ve been able to help build some real value with Viddler for those who use it – and I hope that trend continues.

By the way, your “excellent” at the end of your comment – I just know you were doing the Mr. Burns finger-tip thing from The Simpsons. And don’t act like you weren’t!!

By: Jason

Jason — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:10:23 +0000

hey colin,

saw your post through twitter so i had to read your article! i recently deleted my myspace account as well. i liked that i could communicate with people that i don’t talk to on a regular basis, but so many people treat myspace like crack (i call it “mycrack”) and i just can’t get over the immaturity and drama it brings. people getting mad over reorganized top friends or comments left on others pages.

i have never used facebook, but i’m guessing same premise. and as for linked in, i have an account that i never check and it really hasn’t provided me any special opportunities or connections. maybe i am just expecting too much?

By: Rob Sandie

Rob Sandie — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:09:44 +0000

So basically what you saying is that Viddler is the only site you should sign up for?

Excellent.

By: Colin Devroe

Colin Devroe — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:08:48 +0000

Jesse (srcasm): Great point. The main reason I may not need to keep my accounts open for people to find me is because I use my real name online – and, searching Google for Colin will find me pretty quickly. My email address is on my about page, and so getting in contact with me could not be easier.

gRegor: With LinkedIn, have you gotten any work from it? I’ve found, and have heard, that if you use LinkedIn quite a bit and keep your profile up-to-date it can be a great way to find work.

iellie: That sounds like a great way to use Facebook. I’m glad there are those of you out there that use these services for something as valuable as that.

Thanks all for your comments so far.

By: iellie

iellie — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:00:22 +0000

Actually I’ve never thought about closing any of my social Networking accounts. I’ve been on myspace and facebook since 2004. Since I don’t have a cell phone and a lot of my friends have yet to start using twitter or refuse to e-mail it is my way of contacting and being contacted. I love both of these Networking sites but I wish Facebook would chill on some of the apps.

I actually had a Professor last semester who used Facebook to get in touch with the entire class and would post our assignments on a private Group. It was perfect and a great way to use Facebook instead of just poking people all the time.

By: gRegor

gRegor — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 17:00:18 +0000

I despise Myspace and “left” it back in the Spring; that is, I still have the account as a placeholder, and it directs people to my site or my Virb profile. I want friends to still easily find me, which is why I haven’t deleted it. Facebook and LinkedIn I’m content with.

By: srcasm

srcasm — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 16:58:48 +0000

Colin,
I partially agree with you on your statement, “that the value in these services is equal to the effort you are willing to put into them.” The only reason I say partially is because I leave my accounts open so that others can still find me. There have been plenty of people in the past that I have lost touch with. Some people that I would love to catch up with at some point again and yes, there are some that I would be happier if I never spoke to them. I don’t feel that it does any harm to leave my accounts open but it could help me in the future when an old friend looks me up on one of these services.

Just my 2 pennies.

-Jesse