Did you hear who is getting married? Or about who got accepted into medical school? If you haven’t go check your Facebook feed, it is bound to be there.

As Facebook continues its’ rise to social networking supremacy, it is re-inventing the way we get information. Before there was Facebook, the way we got information about our friends and colleagues was through word of mouth or email. While we still share information through this manner, Facebook makes email seem like ‘snail mail‘ in comparison. Through news feeds and live updates, you can tell people where you are and what you are doing. You can share what you think about the movie you just saw and who you are dating and in some cases, who you aren’t. In an extreme case, you can even update your friends that you are “lost” and “trapped.”

No Pictures Please

Not only is Facebook changing the way people share information, but it is also changing the rules on etiquette and professionalism. When I was in college, a popular line I would hear people say was “this better not end up on Facebook.” Privacy is no longer as simple as saying “no pictures please.” Instead, you have to be worried about your employers seeing that one trip to Vegas, and also what people are saying about you.

Just in the same way we developed email etiquette and best practices when it first was introduced, the same is being done with Facebook.

Your Mother Uses Facebook

Not only are your friends and co-workers on Facebook, but there’s a good chance that so is your mother, father, and that one cousin you rarely see. Some may think it’s ‘un-cool’ that your mother wants to know what you are up too, but then again, she is your friend right?

When Mark Zuckerberg first created Facebook, his plan was to build an online version of real life relationships. Not only does that mean building a platform that represents the relationships you have with your friends and co-workers, but also with your own family. With the median age of Facebook users steadily rising, parents and children will eventually start sending “Friend Requests” which will undoubtedly make for dinner table conversation when they tell you to change your profile photo.

Anytime, Anyplace

If you look at the appeal that sites like Facebook and Twitter have, one of the biggest draws is its real-time updates and that you don’t even have to be sitting in front of a computer to do it. A great example of this was earlier this year when NBA player, and then Milwaukee Buck, Charlie Villanueva, tweeted during halftime.

Facebook’s current slogan is “Facebook is a social utility that connects you with the people around you.” In light of the way Facebook has been able to change many aspects,  a better one might be: “Facebook is a social utility that connects you with the people around you anytime. anyplace.”

Photo by pshab