Facebook Primer – On Communicating
Here is a little primer for Facebook newbies on communicating with others on Facebook. This does not cover communicating in the context of a group that you may have joined on Facebook. There are four basic options for communicating with others on Facebook.
“Compose a Message” for communication that you want private between you and the recipient(s).
On the Facebook menu, hold your mouse over “Inbox” and a menu will drop down.
Select “Compose New Message.”
Type the name of a friend, friends, or friend list (a selection of your friends that you group together under a “friend list” name that you determine – for another primer).
Type a subject line.
Type your message and click on “Send.”
This is also the way to ensure that your friend realizes that you send a message to them. All the methods that follow post the text to the wall space. With the passage of time, an entry goes lower on the wall. If your friends don’t check Facebook often or if they have a lot of friends who do status updates, they may not see it. So, if you want to ensure they get the message, “compose a message” to your friend(s). But this deprives us of “eaves dropping.”
“Post a message on your friend’s wall” for communication to a friend, but you don’t care if others see the message.
Go to your friend’s page by clicking on their name or entering their name in the search box at the upper right of the window. (You may see their name because you are on your own wall and see a status update regarding your friend or you may be reviewing your friend list (“All Friends”). You will know you are on your friend’s page because you will see their name at the top.
When you are on your friend’s page, type in the box that says, “Write something,” and the click on “Share.”
This will show up on their wall as “Your Name” and the message. It will show up on their friends’ walls as “Your Name” > “Their Name” and the message.
“Update your status” to communicate something short to all of your friends
This is commonly called a “status update,” but can be used for any type of message that will be seen by all your friends (subject to the above).
Go to your wall by pressing “Home” on the Facebook menu. You will know you are on your wall because you will see your name at the top.
At the top of the window, you will see a box with a share button to the right.
Enter a short note and click on “Share.” (If you type too much, the box will stop displaying any additional text.)
This will show up on your wall and on your all your friends’ walls, too.
“Post a note” to communicate something longer to all your friends.
Click on “Profile” on the Facebook menu.
Click on “Notes” on the menu below your name.
A little below and to the left, click on “Write a new note.”
Give it a title, write your literary masterpiece, and click “Publish.” (You can click preview to take a look before publishing it).
There are other options and features available with notes, but that will be for another time.
This will show up on your wall and on your all your friends’ walls, too. If you want to help ensure certain friends see it, you can “tag them.”
