To think facebook is dying out?

The more of those you hide (just click the X) the fewer you see.

Most of my Facebook feed is clogged up with adverts, AI fake images and random group feeds from 'dry robe wankers' and 'parking like a twat'.

It's interesting how opinions are so split between "dying and has been for years" and "just as active as ever".

I wonder if it's location dependent as well as age dependent.

I think, since FB began, more and more people have been becoming a lot more aware of privacy concerns - and how anything you post online will stay there forever and can be used against you (or to exploit you).

People who would never have dreamed of signing up to those spurious 'surveys' they used to put in magazines - which incorporated a prize draw and asked loads of detailed questions for your 'opinions' or likes and dislikes and it was patently obvious that they were just trying to data-mine you for how to market to you - are slowly realising that FB is just a much more modern, sophisticated version of exactly the same thing. It doesn't just hop in and grab a few vague clues here and there from what you post; that is its entire reason for existing.

The younger age demographic who may still not yet be as savvy about the dangers of posting your entire life online see FB as for (to them) 'old people' and are heading straight for TikTok. FB is still going strong for now, but it won't endure forever.

MySpace fizzled out when Facebook came along.

Now there is TikTok. So you never know. By the end of this decade Facebook might go the same way.

I use it for groups. rarely if ever post on my wall or share stuff from my daily life, and never have. I am in quite a few craft and similar groups and they are growing massively.

But is that only people who regularly engage with it (and how do you determine that?) or does it also include those who signed up years ago and never use it now - or indeed signed up once to see what all the fuss was about and then instantly decided that they didn't want to make it a part of their life?

If I ran a restaurant, I'd much rather have 30 people who regularly came to eat there with their families and friends, rather than 30,000 who just like to look at the menus but never darken my doors!

I signed up when I got my first smartphone (Windows Phone!) and used it now and again for a year or two, but I personally found that it became vexatious to my soul and so decided to abandon it and was far, far happier. No criticism whatsoever of those who do like and value it, but it wasn't for me. Having said that, I never actually deleted my account, so I probably still show up in the official stats as a 'user'!

All I ever (inadvertently) use it for now is if I search for a business or organisation and that's their only online presence that comes up - so I can find a phone number, opening times, menus or whatever. I never log in.

Same.
I was also angry at myself for allowing my guard to drop by posting photos etc. I deleted the entire account in the end.
Yes I think it’s dying off as I’m told it’s quiet these days among people I know.

Was just talking about this with friends the other day - none of us post anymore and only pop on occasionally, usually just to check notifications and the local page. It seems so cringey now to post photos of yourself or tell everyone about your fabulous life. The reason for the conversation is because one of our mutual friends had posted and we wondered whether they'd been hacked as it was so unusual to see now! I use Instagram more but don't follow friends on there, I use it to follow public figures (and puppies, and baby pandas...) but there are more adverts and 'suggested' than posts from people I follow. Luckily the 'suggested' posts are usually of puppies or baby pandas so I'm happy enough. I never post on that either.

I use it, I post everyone couple of weeks or so, as do a lot of friends and family. As an example I recently had a couple of big life events and of 140 contacts about 90 responded. So no, not dying in my circles. And I hate instagram!

I pretty much use it just for FB Marketplace

FB.. No, gave it up years ago, just not interested in some of the crap people put on it.
Insta and Twitter "X" I check out occasionally but don't post that often.

I have been an avid user for years but hardly use it now. I mostly get pleasure from seeing Facebook memories pop up and reading the funny posts about things my kids said or did - things I might forget otherwise.

maybe there’s a way to download all my posts and I can do that and delete fb? 🧐

Definitely op, I’m an author and literally it’s just whatever groups I’m in chatting away, if they weren’t there there’s be nobody posting- I think everyone is on instagram but also trying to get away from screens full stop. I think social media will definitely shrink. Twitters the same, nobody there anymore

Yes agreed. I only use it for updates from my youngest child's school. When she leaves in July, I'm never going to use it again. It's redundant as in no-one ever posts.

It's interesting, every other post on here is saying it's fab, I use it every day and then every other post is saying it's dying no one ever goes on it!

I post far less often than I once did, it was a novelty I suppose? I love seeing what my friends are up to but less and less of that now. I do like my interest and health groups, they've been invaluable and I've had access to information I would never have been able to 20 years ago.

I was on a year abroad in the US in 2005 so I was an early adopter and prolific user. But the massive part it played in Brexit and Trump started a huge downward spiral for me. I permanently deleted nearly 5 years ago and dont miss it at all.

Yes I think it is dying, I am 39, only people quite a bit older than me seem to be regular users in my circles.

I’ve mostly given up on it because when I go on now I don’t see any of my friends’ stuff (despite them having posted if I search their profiles). I could scroll down for an hour and only see ads or weird groups I’m not a member of. It just doesn’t interest me now, I liked Facebook when my feed was posts by my friends.

I use it daily and almost all my friends are regularly on it too. We're at the age our DC are teens and young adults and almost all of them are on there and posting too. I don't see the decline that is often mentioned on here. I do have friends who don't use it but they don't tend to use any social media at all and I keep up with them via text. DD and her friends do use other social media as well but are still active on FB.

I once clicked on a royal family story, and then every other post was links to trashy magazines with articles about the royals. Overwhelmed everything else.

Just bizarre.

Mine logged out when I got a new phone and I never bothered logging back in.

It was 99% advertising, and the same ten people posting relentlessly about stuff I wasn’t interested in.

I think people’s attitudes to sharing have changed. The biggest users I see now are older people (60+) - my age group
(30s) don’t seem to at all.

If they do share it’s the odd pic to quite a small group on instagram.

That's a friend problem, not a Facebook one...

Same. And while there are ads and suggested pages I don't feel they overwhelm the 'experience'.

I have no SM at all only MN.
I never got in to it and why would anyone post their life online.
I was onced asked why dont i do online SM i said because most of its fake and tbh id have nothing to talk about when i see people because id have already seen it on line.

I don't have this issue - but mostly I go to feeds and select friends. I wouldn't class that as 'searching'.