[UPDATE ON THE UNFRIEND FINDER FACEBOOK APP – May 17, 2013
This was posted by the developer of the app today:
The social network asked the removal of the extension because it violates its terms.
Specifically, Unfriend Finder injects unauthorized code into the social networks’s source code in order to alter the way that the webpages are rendered in users browsers
It adds unauthorized links to users’ bookmark sections;
And posts unauthorized notifications regarding which users have “unfriended” the user or “ignored” his or her friend requests.
I cannot enforce this and will cease the developement of this Extension.
Unfriend Finder has been around for 3 years, and many of you enjoyed this, but it cannot go further.
Thank you for your support.]
____________________________
Last week, on Facebook, I asked this question: Would you unfriend a Facebook “friend” who won’t speak to you or even acknowledge your presence in public?” The comments reflected a wide range of feelings about the nature of Facebook friendship: Friend vs. acquaintance, mood at the time of encounter, context, setting, intentions – responses indicating that Facebook relationships, even with people you have never met IRL (in real life) can be complex and emotional. Perhaps the best thought out comment was from my IRL friend, Roy Barnes:
“Here’s a flowchart that I may or may not use: are they a friend or an acquaintance? If friend, try to say something to them IRL. If an acquaintance, was it a shun (not returning friendly gestures) or just narcissistic obliviousness? If former, unfriend. If latter, flip a coin.”
Last year I posted about the then new and somewhat controversial Unfriend Finder Facebook App, asking if it was somehow helpful to know who had unfriended you, or if it could be stressful or even dangerous to have that knowledge. If you want to give the app a try, you can find and install it HERE. The app displays like this:
Search Facebook for SyncMyFriends. After installation, the app lists friends you have added and deleted. The deleted list includes those who have unfriended you. Press the “Check” button for the latest update. Of course the app can be blocked by any user, just like any other app. So what do you think? Good or bad? Do you want to know who unfriended you or does it even matter?
Bottom line, many of use Facebook as sort of a buffer and filter for relationships. We may carry on a long thread with an acquaintance on Facebook and not relate IRL, or maybe we have friended someone for business reasons or because someone close to us recommended them. The only real way to test if friends are real friends is by employing some old-fashioned methods like picking up the phone or meeting for lunch for some real IRL interaction.
