Politicians are doing Facebook now, which means it must be about five minutes away from becoming uncool.
But you can check out any time you like.
I’ve actually started using it, and I like it. I think a lot of it depends on how many people you can find. I started with just a few, then looked at their friend lists and found more people I know, and all of a sudden I’ve found something like 25 people who I haven’t seen/talked to in years. Lots of old high school friends, etc.
It’s pretty cool to do that. It allows you to keep in touch with people without much effort at all, which is a good thing IMO. For example, I don’t really have much time/energy to put into talking to my best friend from middle school who lives across the country and who I have nothing in common with, but I friend her and can easily send her a quick “Hey how you doing?” or reply to her status when she says “OMG my 10-year-old broke his leg yesterday!”
Of course, if you don’t have a lot of old (or new) friends who also use Facebook, it’s not so fun. I’ve had an account for about a year, and it’s only been in the past month that suddenly everybody and his brother have created accounts and friended me. I’ve been having loads of fun checking everyone out.
Through Facebook I…
…Got back in touch with my old friends from college
…Can more easily keep in touch with friends in different countries
…Realized that my “everyone’s against me” high school experience was just me being an ordinary over-dramatic angsty teen, and that all those other kids were just ordinary people who are now perfectly normal adults that I have no problem being friendly with.
Oh, and about the ‘pedophile’ bit, are you confusing it with MySpace?
Three words:
MySpace for thirtysomethings.
One really cool thing: my old high school choir director is retiring this year, after more than 30 years of teaching at the same school. We’re planning a surprise alumni concert to sing him out in warbly offkey style. So far, nearly 200 alumni spanning more than 20 graduating years have signed up for it and we’ve got a date and place. This all started in October - I have no idea how we’d have arranged something like that so quickly 10 years ago, or if it would even have been possible.
Oh, don’t tell, okay? It’s a SECRET!
It’s like watching your friends’ lives as if they were on TV.
(oooh I have more words left!)
Athena can’t follow directions! 
I just joined the other day as a way to keep in touch with people from college that I will miss after I graduate (today, w00t!) So far I have only tracked one person down from beyond. I don’t know how often I will use it, but IRL I am terrible about keeping in touch with people so I feel this might help.
ETA: too many words, but that’s the way I do things…
Gives me the ability to catch up with old friends, argue with idiots, and laugh at old enemies.
The “apps” model conditions you to accept the idea of spamming your acquaintances and to get used to being spammed by them.
Thirty somethings are using it. It is no longer “cool”.
About six or seven years ago a few of us got together and arranged a 35th reunion of our sixth grade class and did it over email, quite successfully.
I was asked to sign up for Facebook a few months ago by a former colleague (who then tried to sell me stuff) and although I did find an old high school friend with whom I’m now romantically involved, I don’t quite get the huge benefit of Facebook over email. If it replaced email, fine, but instead I have multiple channels of communication to maintain. Yech.
Your friends from high school, the kids you went to camp with… all the cool people you wonder what happened to: they’re all there.
–a huge fan, and over 40.
I got on several years ago specifically to befriend my kids. I respect their privacy enough to stay out of their activities and not get in a twist about “the status of their relationships or how hard they partied on Friday night.” but they know I deserve the privilege to check on their safety.
Ooooh I certainly can! I just chose not to.
I’m 50 and was invited to facebook to play Scrabble with a friend I couldn’t easily do this with in person. It has also renewed a few friendships with people I had fallen out of touch with.
In a way it’s like WebKinz without the stuffed animals, but it can be fun.