AN INTRODUCTION TO FACEBOOK

Learning Objectives

• A brief introduction to the social networking site Facebook.

• Instructions to create an account.• How to personalize your account.– Account settings – including privacy

• Learn about friend requests and group invites.• Learn about Facebook’s internal messaging

and chat systems.

What is Facebook?

• Facebook is a social networking site that was first started for the college crowd.

• Originally created by Mark Zuckerberg while at Harvard.

• Other social site competitors are: Bebo, MySpace, Xanga, Friendster, etc.

Facebook Today

• More than 400 million active users.• More than 60 million status updates posted

each day.• Average user spends more than 55 minutes a

day on site.• More than 100 million active users currently

accessing the site on their mobile devices.• About 70% of Facebook users are outside the

U.S.

Source: http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics

CREATING YOUR FACEBOOK ACCOUNT

Taking the leap

Account creation: Filling out the form

Visit www.facebook.comWhat you will need:

- Personal email address - You can set up a personal email account with Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo! Mail, etc. - Password

Make sure to review the confirmation email that will be sent to your email address.

Account Creation: Figuring out the captcha

• Once you filled out the form, you will be provided with a captcha image as a security check. – Captcha images are meant

to stop automated programs from creating multiple accounts.

• Enter the text in the box and click the Sign Up button.

Account Creation: Finding friends

You can find friends already on Facebook by going through your email contacts list.

- You can bypass this and the other steps by choosing Skip this step in the lower right hand corner.

Account Creation: Profile information

The second step will ask you to fill out your school information and the company you are affiliated with.

- You can choose to skip this step and add the information you want later. If you choose to add now, be sure to click on Save & Continue.

Account Creation: Profile picture

The third step will ask you to upload a photo from your computer or take a photo with your webcam.- If you don’t have a photo, you can choose to skip this step. If you do upload, make sure to click Save & Continue.

Account Creation: Adding a photo from your computer.

If you choose to add a photo from your computer, this is what the screen looks like.- Photo must be no more than 4MB max. - If too large, try editing the image with your computer’s image editing software.

BUILDING YOUR PROFILEBe Facebook smart

Building your profile – A 6-step process

Building your profile

You again have the option to:– search your email contacts to look for friends already

on the site (optional).– Upload a profile picture (optional).– Fill in your profile information.New Options:– Link your mobile phone with your account (optional).– Search for people you know.– Set privacy options.

Profile Privacy

Take a look at the privacy explanation and the privacy policy.

Profile Privacy: Do’s and don’ts

Do’s- Post information that you

are comfortable with sharing.

- Remain professional with information/images shared.

- Build an online reputation that you would want others to see.

Don’ts- Post information that can

help others identify your particular location.

- Write comments on Facebook walls that are inappropriate or abusive.

- Assume that your profile won’t come up on a Google search (depending on privacy settings).

Privacy Settings – Option

At the top left of your profile, click on Account.- Select the Privacy Settings option in the drop down menu.

Privacy Settings - MenuUse the five options to choose:- Who can see your profile- Set your contact

information- Control search results in

Facebook and search engines

- Block those who can interact with you

- Control what information is available to Facebook apps.

PERSONALIZING YOUR PROFILECreativity using a blank canvas

A new profile

This is what a new profile looks like (without information loaded).

- There is a box for you to share recent updates- You can attach photos,

video, events, or a link with your profile updates.

What does a profile usually have?• Profile photo/ other

photos• Status updates/wall

comments from friends• Friends list• Group information – that

which you are a member of in Facebook

• Fan pages• Applications that have

been added.

A note about photos

Photos on Facebook can be those you post or those others have posted that you’ve been identified in.

- Photos others post up can be tagged with your name. (You can choose to remove the tag).

INVITES AND REQUESTS

Friend requests

You can find friend requests at the top right hand corner of your Facebook home screen.

- When a request comes through, you’ll see it in the requests section of the page.

Friend request – accept or ignore?

Not all the requests you receive may be people you know. - This friend request is an example of that.

- You can confirm the friend request to accept or choose to ignore.

CONCLUSION