h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

hootoo is a wonderful social networking site, as it allows me to spout random nonsense to people I'm never going to meet, also, things are generally based around real topics, regardless of how silly they are. Bit more dubious about the others, though. I joined facebook and myspace mostly to keep in touch with my sister, but then real life took over, and I haven't logged on in months. The fact I have a landline might have something to do with it.

Also, I got facebook before it went totally supernova and it was only a university thing, so I could chat to my sister, and a couple of randoms who I didn't see very often, but then, suddenly the whole uni was on facebook and people I saw every other day prefered to talk that way than to my face - which confused me, and then everybody I've ever known (and quite a few people I never have) have added me as friends. Terrifying. So, all in all, not such a great thing in my opinion.

Also, I don't like the idea of all and sundry trawling through my life online, so I do the simple thing and I lie. I think my birthdate on facebook is 1797, although I really can't remember and the rest is just as fraudulent. Then again, at least I'm being audacious. The thing about facebook and such like is you either speak to people you know already, for whom you also posses such outmoded things as email adresses, telephone numbers etc. or total weirdos who you've never even met. Now, if I can pretend I'm 320, someone else can be making stuff up, too. If you know someone, you just say pointless stuff like "hi." "Great party last night, wasn't it?" and if you don't I can't even see what you would talk about.

That's the thing, I think - it's not like other forms of contact, because you don't bother calling someone if you know you'll be seeing them, and you don't write a letter if you're planning on calling them but you can facebook someone, and then text/call them if they don't reply fast enough.

So, in conclusion, I can see the appeal, but people never talk about anything worthwhile on them, and I always feel too cynical about them to tell the truth. So I wouldn't bother.

This is a criminally long post.