Remember when we actually wrote a letter to a friend and sent it using the postal service? Remember picking up the phone and calling up a friend or family member to chat? In the past, these were the traditional means of communication.
As we graduated school, or moved to another location, we would promise friends that we would call or write often.
How many of us have lost dear friends to being to busy to call or write? As we age, the list of special people in our lives that we have lost touch with grows.
Social networking is becoming more popular for keeping connections with friends and relatives, no matter where in the world they are.
Setting up a Facebook account is a simple task.
First go to Facebook.
com.
On the log in page there is also space to open a new account.
Fill in the required information and click the "Sign Up" button at the bottom.
Check your email for the verification notice.
Confirm your account.
Now the good stuff.
Terms you need to know when being active on Facebook: Friend.
On Facebook, a friend is someone in your contacts list.
To be a friend, someone has to first become a contact.
Profile.
Your profile is a collection of the personal information that you share on Facebook.
This may or may not include, family members, past and present jobs, your location and contact information, interests and a place to see messages that friends have posted on your "wall".
Wall.
Your wall is where you communicate with your Facebook friends.
It is important to know that all of your friends can see what is written on your wall.
So don't gossip about who Aunt Milly is fooling around with this week, she will see it if she is in your friends list! If a person on your list posts something you would not like others to see, you will find the ever popular "delete" option on every comment.
Status update.
In Facebook, you can post your status.
Your status can be anything from how you are feeling today, to a simple "good morning Facebook pals" that everyone will see.
Poke.
It is more than OK to poke your friends on Facebook.
Use this feature to start a conversation with a friend, or just let them know you are thinking about them.
News Feed.
The news feed on your Facebook home page is a live stream of news from your friends.
Only friends that are in your friends list will appear in your news feed.
Like.
Almost every comment, photo, or page in Facebook has a "like" button.
In face, the Facebook "like" button is showing up everywhere.
See it on blogs, on products, and just about anything and anyone that has a page on Facebook, will have a "like" button.
If you like a comment, product or photo, but don't care to comment, just click the like button.
Your friends will know that you looked and liked what you saw.
Chat.
To chat on Facebook is to type a conversation or in the chat feature at the bottom right of your Facebook page.
This is better for gossip.
A more private form of conversation.
Facebook has become one of the best ways to connect and reconnect with friends and family.
This is ideal for seniors.
Home bound seniors can feel more connected with the world and continue enhancing their lives.
Imagine finding your highschool sweetheart and reconnecting! Seeing pictures of your first grandchild hours after he or she is born, or their first day of school.