I resisted the whole social networking thing for a long time, mostly due to preconceived notions.  In the past, I was a member of many different social networks:  bulletin boards, Compuserve forums, etc.  The explosion of users that came with the rapid Internet expansion lowered barriers to entry and reduced the value of those forums.  The signal to noise ratio became so low as to make them useless.

Anyway, seeing as how we’re building social features into our product, it seems like I should get acquainted.  Since the other guys at the office are members of Facebook, as are a number of my friends, I figured I’d sign up.

So what do I think, after just a few days?  Facebook is definitely a Good Thing.  I enjoy being able to post quick updates to let people know what I’m up to, and I like seeing what’s happening in their worlds, too.  And, I’ve connected with a few people who I hadn’t heard from in 25 years or more.  I can see where Facebook or something like it could become an essential tool for keeping up with friends and family.