I signed on to Facebook because my sisters begged me to and they live far away. It is a great way stay connected. We do not post daily activities, I find that silly, but we do use the chat feature. We used to all play Farm Town and would all meet there and chat. It was great. We kinda moved on from Farm Town, but still talk nearly every day. My nieces and nephews are on it as well.

I see nothing wrong with Facebook, it is all in how you use it yourself. You are in control. If you post personal stuff or have personal stuff on your wall, then of course it is possible to have something happen. Which is why I don't do that. I have several thousand "friends" I do not know at all and the only problem I ever have is people wanting to talk to me. Ignoring is pretty easy.

If someone is rude or crude or just posting things you do not want to see, you can always hide them. Very simple and takes 3 seconds. When I first joined there were lots of people that were like that. Don't see them anymore. No big deal.

I honestly do not believe anyone is monitoring my email because I am on FB, not sure who is being referred to. If you mean the government, well, I am sure they can do that wether we are on FB or not.

I deleted everyone that isn't family or local friends. Sorry if anyone here got the ax but it was becoming unmanageable. I do like being a fan of various quilt shops and quilt companies. Lots of great info posted there about their sales and specials. Facebook is an important tool in locating people or lost relatives but I'm not looking for anyone.

I found what I was looking for on the quiltingboard. I still have my fb account to keep up on my friends and families lives but seldom post. I just don't think it would interest the world to know "I'm outside weeding my flower bed". I was selective who I added as a friend and have hidden some of the relatives who talk trash.

Don't put your address on it.

I'll tell you one that is STUPID....I know a very well known business man in town that has pics of diff. rooms inside of his home on facebook! And he has posted sev times about him & his wife going out of town for the weekend. :shock: He truly isn't the brightest bulb on the string but goodness, I thought he was smarter than that! :roll: I called and asked him about it & he informed me that I was just paranoid. Okay. We'll see if he still thinks so one day if he gets broken into. And no, he does not have an alarm system on his home either. Geesh. Am I just paranoid?

I don't think you are paranoid at all..it only makes good sense to be cautious. Why ask for trouble.

I belong to fb and play Mafia Wars and Farmville. I hide all the other games. I use fb to see what my kids and gk are doing. They will post pix and activities and I feel included. None of them live near me and I see them rarely. I post pics of my quilts and recipients. I have seen it hacked, which is annoying, but I don't post personal info - especially not addresses and phone.

Facebook is a great place to stay connected with distant friends and relatives. I like the picture sharing feature and keep my screensaver slideshow always full of fresh pictures.
You can set up privacy lists on Facebook, designating who can see what. My contacts are all sorted by security level.
I've also made my account private enough that it doesn't appear in searches made by name. So, there are ways to protect yourself. The main thing is to think about what you are willing to share and what might best be kept private.

I am on fb and admit I do play several games, although I am getting bored with them. I find it is a great tool for keeping up with my son, grandson and sister in KY. I do not put any information out there that would endanger my family.