Any Facebook newcomer will tell you: the site can be awfully confusing. What is "poking"? Why should you give people virtual gifts? And should you accept friend requests from people you don't know?
These questions and more are addressed in Dave Awl's Facebook Me: A Guide to Having Fun with Your Friends and Promoting Your Projects on Facebook. Mainly aimed at first-time Facebook users, the guide does provide some tips for experienced members as well. Awl's humorous tone keeps readers interested — for example, a sidebar article is titled "Why Send Someone A Picture of A Cupcake?" However, the advice he gives is solid and straightforward. When receiving a friend request from someone you don't know, Awl explains, investigate which friends you may have in common as well as groups and network memberships. The author stresses that users are not obligated to accept every friend request, virtual gift, or application invitation — the control lies completely within the individual.
Awl also addresses another important topic: Facebook etiquette. The sidebar "The Fine Art of Not Being Obnoxious" advises against inundating friends with various requests or simply spamming people with advertisements promoting your work. Other cyber "Miss Manners" issues addressed include whether to accept your boss's friend request, how to politely ask friends to stop sending annoying application invitations, and how to request that users not post offensive material on your Facebook page.
The manual is organized in a clear, easy-to-use manner: chapters include Facebook's basic structure, introductions to applications, page setups, privacy settings, groups, mobile applications, and groups. Differences between "notifications" and "updates" are clearly explained, and descriptions of the wall, publisher bar, and editing menus apply to both new and experienced users. Full-color screenshots illustrate various aspects, with Awl providing directions on how to change profile pictures, notification settings, and how to post a video or photo.
Article comments