Just a couple of quick tips and things to point out after spending a few minutes chatting with everyone in the group.
At this time you either can't (or it's not apparent how to) opt out of chat for a given group. You have to sign out of chat all-together.
You can opt out of email notifcations by clicking the "Edit Notifcations" on the top right of the Group window.
If you comment on a post, you're automatically subscribed to that post and begin recieving notifcations when others comment. You can also opt out of these on a per-post basis by clicking the "unsubscribe" link under the title of each post.
Hope that helps alleviate some of the noise so the group stays useful to everyone.
YES! Holy farking email spam! I just got back from a lunch meetup. Someone else had added me and I had hundreds of emails.
In a related note, Facebook needs to let you edit notifications via the mobile interface. I looked, and couldn't figure it out. I actually ended up pulling out my Mifi at the end of the meetup and logging on to Facebook with my laptop just so I could opt out. Wow.
Am I the only person who would rather this was a private group? (so non-members can't see posts). Even if Jason just approved every join request I think this would be better.
Example: your employer doesn't need to know that you are talking to an interesting startup.
Although it's easier said than done, IMO your employer/coworkers really shouldn't be friends with you on Facebook. That's what LinkedIn is for. I know you can't control their friend requests and it would be odd to ignore them. Thankfully people are starting to figure this out in my experience; at my current job none of my coworkers (other than actual friends) have sent me friend requests on Facebook.
With that said, the same reasoning also makes me question the value of a HN Facebook group.
Thanks. You've successfully talked me out of this, for today anyway.
People often ask how other social networks will ever compete with Facebook. To me that's like asking how your house's living room will ever compete with the theater at your local high school.
Right on. I have a "no coworkers, no family members" rule for my facebook profile. I hope this becomes the new normal, to avoid any future embarrassment.
I have an "all coworkers, all family members" rule. Embarrassment is based on social norms. Openness has the potential to change social norms in a positive way, and since I have little to lose due to the fairly laid-back nature of programming in general and my few concerns when it comes to offending family, I'm happy to take the little risk there is in putting most things out there.
>your employer/coworkers really shouldn't be friends with you on Facebook
That's bad UI design and missed opportunity on Facebook's part then, they should fix that "bug".
When I login to facebook the first thing I should see is "Friends, Family, Other [, Manually_Created_Group_X]" and then be immediately able to choose between the set of actions [News Feed, Privacy] for each.
Facebook helps improve our contact book of people tool in size and currentness, but is a step backwards in organization.
I agree completely. None of my coworkers are friends. But they can see all the content I've posted to this Hacker News Facebook group anyway. It is public.
I am reluctant to join because I'm in one group with around 40 people and it makes my whole Facebook experience a bacon+toast hell, especially with the group chat - can anyone figure out how to opt out of chat for a group without going offline of chat altogether?
As I wrote on the wall, I think it might work better for things local (connecting with HN'ers in your area). But I am also thinking that this could actually be a place where I might go to ask for quick advice, stuff that's too small to make a post in here about.
Won't use. My reason might sound silly though - I like that Hacker News looks different from a facebook feed page. Its sickening to have everything look the same. I think that prevents you from wearing different hats at different times, which could water down engagement quality.
FB should at least let you select a different profile picture for every group you're part of :P
I beg any facebook employees that read this to please implement a Confirm All button. I've pressed confirm over 1,800 times today. It's like being on LOST.
Thanks Jason. I'll forward your suggestion to the groups PM.
Disclamer: this might be by design. The proudct was intended for small groups of people that actually know each other (families, soccer clubs, close friends, etc).
This could actually be a really interesting experiment. I have to still approve though it's open :( :( and the amount of requests is insane. It's like a video game clicking the accept button in real time.
Honestly, I only joined to get a "Hacker News" tag on Facebook. Is that how Facebook works? Meaning can other people now see that I am on Hacker News (or rather, a member of the group)?
Also, maybe someone wants to send freelance work my way and contact me via Facebook :-)
Interesting dynamic. I thought about creating a LinkedIn group, but I guess this might have a bit more of a personal touch. On the other hand, a LinkedIn group could possibly have been better for recruiting.
This will be interesting if it can be tied in with Facebook Connect -- taking over the live website chat space.
It's really annoying to always have a new message in chat, though.
Most of you are on FB and you are here as well. So why create another space to converse? Is it because FB has a potential to do it better than anyone else? I'd say yes and no. Yes because it has largest user base. No because they are testing features and there are many other services which has done lot better in organizing, facilitating group conversations.
Either case, the HN group and many other such popular groups showing up at FB, only tells one thing: it is going to be a huge hit. How it gets adopted later, like how Twitter Lists did, only time will tell.
To answer your question about why creating another space to converse. I think it is primarily going to be for more informal discussions that would be considered to 'spammy' if posted on here. Perhaps you just want to see who is hiring in your area (without waiting for that monthly thread) or you want feedback on your site but for whatever reason only want a few people that you could talk to more in depth about their experience.
Would it be adopted by 'regular users'? I'm having a hard time picturing some of my friends, which isn't used to the idea of Internet Groups, join up or create groups.
I've been a member of 8 groups since it was first introduced, way back. And I don't check them anymore.
I have a feeling most people join groups in spur-of-the-moment, only to be active for a day or two – the just leave it sitting.
Considering how comments are managed, i'd say that fb is not the best place for conversations. But it's undeniable that it will be a good tool for announcements/etc... , allowing to reach a big share of the HN audience quite easily. Not a member yet, could reconsider it in the future.
