Everyday I Write the Book

I love Facebook.

I often wonder what I did before it came into my life. (Sad, I know.) How did I keep up with or communicate with anyone? How did I know anything that was going on? I honestly don't think I can remember...

I love it for all the good reasons, of course. I love the wall posts and the birthday reminders and the people who pop up about whom I haven't thought in ages. I like the status updates and the mass messages and the photos. I like to use "facebook" as a verb and investigate--going through wall-to-walls, photos, and friends in common to glean the information I need.

Er... creepy?

Now I'm embarrassed?

Sometimes, though... I love to hate Facebook. It's like it has a mind of its own, and it's only showing me bits and pieces of the whole picture. It feeds me some status updates and not others, and it dumps information into my life that I would have been just fine not knowing. It leads me off on wild goose chases; it makes me think I know people I really don't; it hooks me and sucks me in like a dangerous narcotic. Homework is pushed aside; conversations are tuned out; minutes tick into hours, and, before I know it, I can't remember why I started down this rabbit hole in the first place.

Are there others out there like me, or am I a hopeless case?

Tell me I'm not alone, for I believe there are all levels of Facebookers...

First, there's the "my girlfriend/friend/child/spouse-set-up-this-account-and-I hardly-ever-check-it" booker. I call this one the phantom Facebooker, for they're practically not there. This profile has minimal information, and it is rarely, if ever, updated. The picture is usually with another individual (probably the person who set up the account), and it will proabably never be changed. Confirm the friendship of these bookers, but don't expect to learn much.

Next, there is the no nonsense Facebooker. This individual deals in friend requests and confirmations, accepting invitations to events/groups, and simply existing in cyberspace. They're not there to write on your wall, and a Happy Birthday message is about all you can hope to get, EVER. These users may go months without checking the account, so don't count on this being your only method of communication.

Along the same lines as the no nonsense Facebooker is the communicator and the networker. The communicator is there to do just that: communicate. They log in to keep in touch with family and friends who aren't in their daily lives, and they leave it at that. The networker is interested in advancing in the business world and may be lacking a wall or photos (for fear of putting out the wrong image, you know). These users are simply accessing the website to service their own interests and needs, and they're generally not interested in what's going on with you.

Next on the list is what I call the workbooker. This person may be feverish with Facebook activity during business hours, but you're not going to see them logging in after hours. Weekends? No, sir. They look at Facebook as a means to an end, a way to make it through the day.

Next, we move to the browser. This is the person with a healthy interest in what's going on in the world of his or her peers, and he or she can look for a little while before shutting down and leaving it be. They write on walls and look at photos, but, before too long, the lure of real life brings them away from the book. They probably log on daily, but it's during down time, and it never takes priority over actual activity.

The next booker is a sneaky one. I like to think of this user as investigator. This person is frequently online but leaves very little trail. He or she checks the mini feed, looks at wall-to-walls and tries to fit the pieces of the puzzle together, but the outside world would never have a clue. The account may seem practically dormant, but he or she may be looking at your profile as we speak...

In the advent of status updates, we've introduced a few other types of Facebookers. The commentator gives perpetual comments, opinions, and feedback on events going on in the world--often entertainment, politics, headlines, etc. There's also the informer, who provides the world of Facebook with a play-by-play of their activities. It may be daily schedules, morning outlooks, events as they unfold, or days in review, but we never have any doubt where they are and what they're up to.

Next, we come to the Facebook convert. These are the ones who swore they would never, never log on, but now can't get enough. They shouted their feelings from the rooftops and spoke out against Facebook every chance they got, but now they can't go a day without exploring some new application.

Finally, we get to the most severe of cases. This final group is the one I refer to as the lifeline Facebookers. These are the people who update constantly, have the application on their phones, talk about Facebook and what they've seen there in everyday conversation, stay logged in all day, see every feed and wall post and miss nothing. These people spend hour after hour clicking away, they make photo comments, they're on every wall you click on. Their profiles are filled with information, and it is added to/edited frequently. They tell themselves they'll look at "one more thing," and and hour later they're still sitting in front of the screen. Without Facebook, they would be lost.

Now, don't think these labels are impenetrable; lines can be crossed and people can move between the groups. Also, it is my experience that some users may try to pass themselves off as different types of bookers (like a lifeline believe himself to be a browser or a workbooker thinking she's a lifeline), but I always try to follow my gut. Well, that and the hard evidence; usually everything I need is there is black and white--wall posts, status updates, etc. often give me all the information I need.

So, have I left anything out?

I'm sure you can probably all tell (embarrassingly enough) what kind of booker I am...

So, what kind of booker are you?