Why Facebook rules

In the nineties, when I was in my early twenties, I wanted to become a musician. At the time (and still), one of my biggest influences was Mansun, and especially the lead singer/songwriter/producer of the band, Paul Draper. I loved his music. I admired his style. I aspired to be like him. I had secret daydreams of him producing my to-be groundbreaking, legendary first album (still yet to appear).

Well, guess what. This week I became a close, personal friend of Paul's. That is to say, I sent him a friend request in Facebook (because his web pages told me that it's okay to do so), and he accepted it. I enclosed a short message, in which I shyly praised his music, and he responded by thanking me for the friend request. And like a little girl, I'm still somewhat dizzy, giggling and blushed because my idol sent me a personal message, which he actually wrote (or possibly partly copy-pasted), with his own fingers, in his secret musical laboratory, which must be among the greatest places on earth.

Now I can see updates on his Facebook activities, and he can see mine. This is beneficial for both of us. If you excuse the marketing parlance, he can market his products to the likes of me, the consumers. And I get information on his products, which I really want to get, unlike most of the advertising I receive. Also, I get kicks. It makes me feel comfortable to see that he just updated his status or did something else online. I get the feeling that he's out there, and if I yank my network cable his Mac (or possibly PC) will fall of the table. Oops. Better to not yank it. Might accidentally destroy the hard drive containing all of his recordings, which would have been the greatest yet.

All of this applies also to less famous Facebook friends. I can communicate with them in both passive and active ways. I can put things about me on display for others to discover, or I can actively contact other people in numerous ways. I can send messages, invite people to events, join or create groups or participate in silly online games. It's easier and more fun to communicate with friends in Facebook than by email.

Some hundred years ago, there was a cranky old guy (possibly a relative of mine) sitting in a Finnish sauna, objecting to pen and paper. "Why should I learn these new things when I can just go to the neighbour's and sit silently over coffee with them there?"

And then again, some ten years ago, there was a cranky young guy sitting in a Finnish sauna (it was me), objecting to cellular phones. "Why should I learn these new things when I can just go and ring my friends' doorbell and sit silently over coffee with them there?"

Today, there's a cranky guy (Tuomo, I'm talking about you) sitting in a Finnish sauna, objecting to Facebook. "Why should I...", you know.

Well, you should learn it, Tuomo, because it's inevitable. In the future, there will be a means of communication which will replace telephone, email and whatnot. It will be Facebook or some other network thing. You can't escape it, so embrace it.