What has been invented by a 23 year old former student of Harvard University? What has been able to amass over 30 million registered members? Where can you post free classifieds, give gifts, develop your own application or graffiti? What comes into mind when I say “write on the wall”? What is the second only to MySpace in terms of registered membership? OK. Obvious answer. FACEBOOK!
Facebook has become a toast of students today especially those of the Universities. What exactly has facebook done to keep attracting all closer and closer to its concept? What are the benefits it offers and what are its implications? Is it really addictive? For those of you facebook lovers this is a must read piece.
Facebook’s aim is to connect students all over the world. Originally, facebook was developed to connect students at Harvard who offered similar courses or had something in common. Today students in over 300,000 registered institutions can sign up to catch up with friends, family and acquaintances all over the world.
However, there remains a growing concern on how addictive facebook could actually be. In lecture halls, in rooms, at meetings or even on streets around campus, fingers are quickly scaling phones and laptops with simultaneously glued eyes. Once in a while, you will see a student burst out in thunderous laughter or mild giggle. At another time, when you are seriously trying to engage in rote learning (chew and pour), a roommate of yours makes a comment such as “ei girls are wicked” stimulating your anticipated curiosity.
What is the most intriguing thing about facebook? Is the excitement one feels when one meets a friend one has not met in ages or it is the ability to add celebrities, which you have always dreamed of as a friend? Could it be crazy pictures your friends always tag you in or maybe it is the hidden motive of meeting the girl or guy of your dreams online? For me, it is that paradoxical moment when a person makes a page-long statement and gets less than 20 comments but when someone writes “Aba!” and there are over a thousand comments wanting to know what happened. After studying trends, I have come to this conclusion: to meaningfully enjoy facebook, post the most captivating comments; not necessarily the longest ones.
On the positive side, facebook helps several people to constantly de-stress, reconnects long-lost friends and relatives and you can be sure to get the latest news by simply staying online the whole day. I personally know people who are dating people they met on facebook and some who have got job appointments online. So when it comes to the benefits facebook offers, we might probably never run out.
However, the obvious yet unnoticed effects are what may be of a bother to us. In the USA, for example, a female employee was sacked because her boss realized she spent most of her time facebooking instead of working. In Islamabad, the Islamic lawyers’ Union has called on ISPs to ban access to facebook because of a competition that invites other users to caricature the Prophet Mohammed, an act they deemed blasphemous.
Here at the Universities, students are spending more time facebooking than ever, which is very detrimental to their academic life. Consequently, we will see falling academic records and the resultant effect that could have on our economy. Costs involved are also worth noting. If you are not browsing for free, then you know what I am talking about. The amount of credit you would spend facebooking in a week could buy lunch. Try it and see. Also, after a hard day’s round of lectures, facebooking which is supposed to de-stress rather ends up robbing you of good rest and sleep which also takes its toll on your health. But thanks to regulated use of most of us, we do not often experience these negative effects.
It remains that facebook will continue to increase in numerical terms and even this inspirational article cannot stop that. The only advice for I have for you facebook lovers is that when facebooking, don’t forget to use it for something useful like grabbing (just kidding) and checking out the most useful literature to your course of study. And please don’t get addicted. I’m signing out!!
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