February 5, 2009
Are ravens and crows related?
I hope I give you the laugh of the day when I admit that my recent screed on Facebook has resulted in– of course– me reactivating my Facebook account. The combined forces of people I love, including my husband and best friend, have sunk me.
But I’m hoping to be really, really, really objective and scientific about the whole thing. Complete with graphs. Seriously. Suggestions for variables to map are welcomed enthusiastically in the comments.
And don’t get any ideas, readers with FB accounts. You’re all terrific, I’m sure, but you won’t find me if you search. Requests for FB friendship from audacious edublogosphere members will be taken via email only (as a test of your persistence), considered for possibly ridiculously long periods, and potentially dumped, since I can’t even predict whether I’ll keep my own mom on this damn thing.
P.S. Oh, and no students will be friended until 18 years of age. Sorry, guys.
February 5th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Aw, man. You gave me hope. I’m still holding out. Actually, I had an account and vowed to only “friend” people I actually knew face to face. But that didn’t last, and neither did I. Zapped the account and don’t miss it.
thanks.
February 5th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
Ha, complete with graphs and data. Weren’t you going to do that with Twitter also? What happened with that?
February 5th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
@ninja: everyone I’m on with now are ftf peeps, as you say, which is a going a good distance to reduce my wariness. We’ll see how it goes.
@Joe: yeah,I was tracking stuff faithfully on Twitter and then lost interest completely when I realized on a drive back from the ‘Dacks that Twitter was really bad for me. Suppose that’s what happens when you trust your intuition as an alternate way of knowing. Good things get done faster.
February 5th, 2009 at 8:07 pm
Next year when Dan has his annual report contest (or when he would if he doesn’t) I’m expecting a submission from you with the tracking.
Some ideas which may or may not make sense. No particular order.
Number of logins, time spent logged in, number of friends, wallposts, geographic distro of friends (color coded for the face to face friends)…
Last time you mentioned a tendency to play spin doctor. Is there some behavior or aspect of that you can track?
February 5th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/crows/crowfaq.htm#raven
February 6th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
You should amend your student restriction to include: “and have graduated.” Else you’ll be pinged by a senior who turns 18 on Feb 5th or some such, pre-grad date.
February 9th, 2009 at 12:15 pm
Sarah: I like a lot of your suggestions. To make this manageable I think I will be graphing FB time distributions (chats, messages, apps, and Wall) and breaking up my other community-bonding activity in the same way: phone calls, lunches, emails, letters/cards, and so on. I don’t know what I will find. Maybe commit to graphing it out, as per Dan, for one year from Valentine’s Day, so my initial heavy frontloading time this past week doesn’t skew the variables?
February 10th, 2009 at 1:03 am
LOL, Dina, if you are so restrictive with FB you will have nothing to graph.
My experience: have reconnected with LOTS of old friends and relatives whom I had lost touch with over the years. Love that aspect of it. Also use it to keep track of my young teen.
I don’t, however, do Apps. Not any. Well, except photos and stuff like that. But I don’t send hugs or exchange birthdays or play scrabble …
Keeping my timewasting to twitter and blogs
.
Good luck!!
February 10th, 2009 at 9:09 am
@Hadass: Yeah, my apps so far are restricted to virtual bookshelf and music. And yes, I have to agree: I am a little giddy over the delight of chatting with my cousins, whom I loved deeply and grew up with, and then scattered over the country… or old friends from my stint in Korea– compatriots in one of the most life-changing things I’ve done, who are likewise all over the world now.
February 11th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Push aside that feathered plate of cold corvus, friend. Lots of fiber in crow, but the cholesterol goes through the roof. Instead, let me offer you this tasty bran muffin. I’ve spent the past year tramping, sailing, crawling, jumping, cycling, train-hopping, soaring, climbing, tunneling, and swimming all over, under, around, and through this big, wacky, watery globe on a quest to find and bring back the perfect virtual muffin…and here it is. Eat up before it gets cold.
I thought I was the last FB holdout on the planet. Now that you’ve (re)caved, I suppose that’s almost true. Oh, me and @teacherninja.
Consider upping the ante on friend requests from edublogospherites. In keeping with the raven theme, they must bring you a shiny trinket, some piece of trashy, flashy flair to catch your eye and sway your mind.
Finally: You gotta friend this guy: http://tinyurl.com/b6tdyo
February 11th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
Boy I’ve missed you, Scott. Welcome back.