Jessica says:
Wed, 23rd Apr 200810:14 am 

You can turn this feature off. Click on the "chat" box in the bottom right-hand corner and then click "go offline." Then people won't be able to see that you're signed in.

Facebook is getting incredibly ridiculous, I agree.

jen says:
Wed, 23rd Apr 200810:38 am 

ok, i don't really like the whole chat thing either, but if you're worried about people knowing you are on facebook there is already a way for them to find out….under the friends tab or whatever under status updates is online and that shows you exactly who is logged into facebook at this very second. waaaay creepy.

i miss facebook like 3 or 4 yrs ago when your status was called an away message, and only people with college emails could be on it it was more exclusive and cooler back then. omg, and remember when your wall didn't have anyone's picture on it? those were the good days

cali says:
Wed, 23rd Apr 200812:46 pm 

actually this feature has always been on facebook.

If you click on the little arrow next to friends you can see who is online. Granted not in real time like you can now but you could always access who was online within 15 minutes of them being online

Anna says:
Wed, 23rd Apr 20083:58 pm 

Reiterating the previous comments, it has been a feature for a while, it's just now more prominent. Under your privacy settings, click on "profile" and there's a pull down for who can see your online status. They can add all the crazy stuff they want so long as I can keep the privacy settings as I see fit. Though I really, really wish we could completely delete profiles rather than just deactivating.

Kas says:
Wed, 23rd Apr 200810:24 pm 

I agree that facebook can be pretty invasive. I don't like people know when I am online or how much time I spend on facebook (mostly because I spend too much time on there-although I hate to admit it). Like Anna I went to Privacy, clicked on profile, and then changed my online status to "No One" meaning I can now spend my time on facebook without worry. I also "Go Offline" for the chat feature unless there is someone I feel like talking about. All the applications and add ons are annoying, but I guess that's what happens when a site becomes a phenomenon.

Elle says:
Thu, 24th Apr 20085:43 am 

I quit Facebook. You know how with those applications, you have to give it "access to your profile"? Well, basically, all of these companies make the applications, then they get access to your profile and SELL that access to other people. Like your college, or to people screening your application for work or to college or grad school. I read about it in Wired.

Britta says:
Thu, 24th Apr 200810:07 am 

Since I've cut back on the amount of time I spend on facebook (for the exact reasons everyone's mentioned), I was completely unaware of this new feature until yesterday when a random box popped up on my page from a "friend" I typically avoid speaking with. I spent the next 5 minutes trying to politely end this chat without looking like a complete bitch. Thanks facebook for providing yet another reason why I seldom frequent your site.

George says:
Wed, 23rd Jul 20085:28 am 

What's so bad about making new friends who don't look like Brad Pitt?

ehsanul says:
Sat, 9th Aug 200812:44 am 

I just want to point at that Facebook does seem to have a pretty good privacy protection scheme. I’m sure you can keep all your “friends” from seeing just about anything about you if you mess around with your settings a bit.

Caitlin says:
Tue, 26th Aug 20082:02 pm 

Doesn't facebook's privacy policy state that they can use your pictures and information for ANY reason they choose? What's with the photo's of people I know popping up next to ads as if they were some how associated with the ad? CREEPY. I am really considering deactivating my account… if only it wasn't such a great way to check out potential dates…