Hey, Charlie. I hear you. Heather has said she started using FB because there was so much mis- and disinformation on there that she wanted people to be able to find a reliable place to read newsworthy news.
I started using Facebook years ago and continue to use it not as a collaborateur, but to a) stay in touch with a couple score of people across the Internet, some of whom I know in real life (Yay!!) and b) to follow several people besides Heather who are focal, clever, educated, and forthright in their truth-telling. Examples: Bruce Lindner, Jim Wright, Lori Gallagher Witt, Maureen Gill Ausbrook. These are people whom I do not hear of outside of Facebook, and I would miss them if I abandoned the platform.
There are also some FB groups for the village where I live, and the region, and these are important ways to pick up local info (where's that fire, what were the cops doing, there was a coyote seen loping down the street, etc.).
At the same time, I take steps to protect at least some of my privacy. I don't post pictures of children. I don't mention family relationships. I don't announce that I'm on vacation.
I use a web browser (Safari) that helps prevent FB from tracking my visits to other web sites (they even track people who do not have FB profiles; not by name specifically, but by behavior and computer/browser attributes.) Hint: If I used Windows, I'd probably use Firefox with the "Facebook container" extension, or the Brave browser.
In the past week, 62% of the sites I visited had Google trackers, 29% had Facebook trackers, and 25% had Amazon trackers. DuckDuckGo blocked them... I also use Firefox's Facebook Container.
Hi Bob. I have enjoyed Jim Wright's writing for a while. Thanks for mentioning others you find interesting. I often find sources people mention in this group quite helpful!
Excellent question. I've never heard of it before. Please tell us more about it.
I have used Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird for many years. I find webmail cumbersome and refuse to use Outlook, Internet Explorer or Google Chrome. Will immediately download FB container now that I know about it. I always use Private Window for any online searching or purchases so my commercial interests no longer show up as ads on my FB feed.
2) I'm curious to know about your experience about using a Private Window (different names in different browsers). That option really only stops your browser from saving your search history ON YOUR MACHINE. Web sites can still track you. Now, if you're shopping for a gift for a housemate who also uses your computer, use incognito mode (as it's generally known).
I trust everybody in my household; nevertheless I maintain a login password on all my devices. I never use incognito mode because I have no need to hide my browsing history from housemates.
Thank you for all of that. I'll devote time later today to exploring. As for Private mode, I do understand that it primarily stops my browser from saving my searches but it appears also to reduce or eliminate tracking, as far as I can tell. As I wrote, no ads for commercial sites I've searched are showing up in the FB 'ads' bar although they did once upon a time before I started using Private mode.
I like Malwarebytes as well and have subscribed in the past but don't seem to need it with the levels of protection I get from ESET which now includes ransomware protection. Another BTW, I use Duckduckgo for my internet searching; it doesn't collect or share personal info.
This is the same link, but with &ref+search added. I copied it directly from the address on FB. I think there is some wonkiness going on on some of these sites. I've had them freeze, slow to a crawl and/or not load. Maybe it's not you.
Hi Sandra. Thank you VERY MUCH for offering a hand. Very grateful. Unfortunately this is what I get:
"This Content Isn't Available Right Now
When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
Go to News Feed"
I don't think I said or did anything that would warrant being shut out from the group. I have been running up against similar blank walls for months now. I had given up, not sure exactly where to turn for help or guidance. I really miss them and I just would love to be able to join in on the chats again. So this is my last resort. Again, thanks.
I don't do Facebook because of their morally corrupt business model. Are these lectures available elsewhere?
Hey, Charlie. I hear you. Heather has said she started using FB because there was so much mis- and disinformation on there that she wanted people to be able to find a reliable place to read newsworthy news.
To echo an old adage, "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer." That's the way I approach the conundrum of things like Facebook.
The Bible: know thine enemy.
I started using Facebook years ago and continue to use it not as a collaborateur, but to a) stay in touch with a couple score of people across the Internet, some of whom I know in real life (Yay!!) and b) to follow several people besides Heather who are focal, clever, educated, and forthright in their truth-telling. Examples: Bruce Lindner, Jim Wright, Lori Gallagher Witt, Maureen Gill Ausbrook. These are people whom I do not hear of outside of Facebook, and I would miss them if I abandoned the platform.
There are also some FB groups for the village where I live, and the region, and these are important ways to pick up local info (where's that fire, what were the cops doing, there was a coyote seen loping down the street, etc.).
At the same time, I take steps to protect at least some of my privacy. I don't post pictures of children. I don't mention family relationships. I don't announce that I'm on vacation.
I use a web browser (Safari) that helps prevent FB from tracking my visits to other web sites (they even track people who do not have FB profiles; not by name specifically, but by behavior and computer/browser attributes.) Hint: If I used Windows, I'd probably use Firefox with the "Facebook container" extension, or the Brave browser.
I am a Windows user. I use Firefox with DuckDuckGo as my search engine. I use DuckDuckGo as my browser on my Android phone.
In the past week, 62% of the sites I visited had Google trackers, 29% had Facebook trackers, and 25% had Amazon trackers. DuckDuckGo blocked them... I also use Firefox's Facebook Container.
Hi Bob. I have enjoyed Jim Wright's writing for a while. Thanks for mentioning others you find interesting. I often find sources people mention in this group quite helpful!
Hi Bob, why is the Brave browser better than say Google to look at Facebook? Thx
Excellent question. I've never heard of it before. Please tell us more about it.
I have used Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird for many years. I find webmail cumbersome and refuse to use Outlook, Internet Explorer or Google Chrome. Will immediately download FB container now that I know about it. I always use Private Window for any online searching or purchases so my commercial interests no longer show up as ads on my FB feed.
1) Well, I mighta opened a can o' worms, but I mentioned Brave because stronger privacy advocates than I have recommended it.
I primarily use Apple products, and Safari is adequate for me for privacy protection in the current environment of the World-Wide Web.
Here's one review that jumps into the deep end:
https://www.techradar.com/reviews/brave-web-browser
2) I'm curious to know about your experience about using a Private Window (different names in different browsers). That option really only stops your browser from saving your search history ON YOUR MACHINE. Web sites can still track you. Now, if you're shopping for a gift for a housemate who also uses your computer, use incognito mode (as it's generally known).
I trust everybody in my household; nevertheless I maintain a login password on all my devices. I never use incognito mode because I have no need to hide my browsing history from housemates.
Here's a thorough coverage of "incognito mode:"
https://blog.malwarebytes.com/privacy-2/2021/05/what-is-incognito-mode-our-private-browsing-101/
BTW, here's help on using Private Window for various browsers. This seems accurate and current, but I have not tested this advice:
https://www.lifewire.com/browsing-incognito-445990
Thank you for all of that. I'll devote time later today to exploring. As for Private mode, I do understand that it primarily stops my browser from saving my searches but it appears also to reduce or eliminate tracking, as far as I can tell. As I wrote, no ads for commercial sites I've searched are showing up in the FB 'ads' bar although they did once upon a time before I started using Private mode.
I like Malwarebytes as well and have subscribed in the past but don't seem to need it with the levels of protection I get from ESET which now includes ransomware protection. Another BTW, I use Duckduckgo for my internet searching; it doesn't collect or share personal info.
YouTube
Try opening this link.
https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/videos/516181346162013/
If you are on iPhone, you might be able to open in new tab without membership to Facebook.
Thanks, Christine. I did try on three devices. No go.
This is what I keep getting:
This Content Isn't Available Right Now
When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=516181346162013&ref=search
This is the same link, but with &ref+search added. I copied it directly from the address on FB. I think there is some wonkiness going on on some of these sites. I've had them freeze, slow to a crawl and/or not load. Maybe it's not you.
Hi Sandra. Thank you VERY MUCH for offering a hand. Very grateful. Unfortunately this is what I get:
"This Content Isn't Available Right Now
When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
Go to News Feed"
I don't think I said or did anything that would warrant being shut out from the group. I have been running up against similar blank walls for months now. I had given up, not sure exactly where to turn for help or guidance. I really miss them and I just would love to be able to join in on the chats again. So this is my last resort. Again, thanks.
Agree
Charlie, u will like NYT article by Max Fischer