To Like Or Not To Like: That Is The Question!

I was perusing my Facebook profile last night and I couldn't believe the number of connections I racked up in "likes"!  From restaurants and stores, to athletes and other public figures, my "likes" were more than I had ever dreamed possible.

And so, I started deleting some of them.  First off, to be connected to so many pages and people is not always a good thing. I know Facebook is a networking tool, but you never know who's really on the other end of the things we "like".  Secondly, many of the things I liked I have blocked from my News Feed because their posts are kinda annoying, which made me ask myself, "How much could I really like it?"

The other thing that bothers me about the whole like thing is that administrators incorrectly categorize the pages they create, which makes for a messy profile to a perfectionist like me.  How does "molten chocolate cake" fall under my activities section?  I know eating it is an activity, but come on...the actual cake itself?

Whether it's "becoming a fan" of a page (which was Facebook's old name for this feature) or "liking" something, now you don't even need to find it on Facebook to do so.  Pretty much anywhere on the web, you will find a "Like" button that will, as long as you're logged into your Facebook account, make you like either the link or the actual thing on your Facebook profile.  When you like a link, it appears in your friends' News Feeds, so that they may click on it and view it and/or like it as well.

Coop Dee Ville is guilty as well.  We have a Facebook page that we ask all of our readers to like.  We even have a link to it here on our blog.  And we also have a "Tweet" button for you to share our posts on Twitter as well. Many of you may be hesitant to click.  You have to be careful nowadays and know the tricks and secrets to liking things. Otherwise, you may assist in the spread of spam and viruses to your Facebook friends. So here's a little story followed by some precautionary steps you can take to protect your Facebook account and your computer...

The other day I clicked on a friend's link because I was curious as to what the picture displayed was, and next thing I know, it appears on my wall as me "liking" it. Now suddenly, I am connected to this link that I never even viewed and still have no idea what it was about. (Needless to say, I don't know what the picture was either!)

Because of things like this, it is a good idea to check your profile every now and then to make sure there aren't any unwanted connections.  You may also want to create a list of all the pages you "like", as I have, and block that list from seeing any of your personal information, including photos and location.  Of course, when it comes to your friends' pages, you like them out of courtesy, even if you don't really "like" them, and you hope the favor is returned.  But you can be less cautious when it comes to those.