Page 24 - ARUBA TODAY

A24 TECHNOLOGY
Monday 26 March 2018

Fed up with Facebook? Here's how to break it off

By BARBARA ORTUTAY Depending on whether you
NEW YORK (AP) — Fed up were a full-time Facebook
with Facebook? You're not addict or an occasional
alone. A growing number lurker, the psychological
of people are deleting it, separation could prove
or at least wrestling with harder or easier than the
whether they should, in physical one. Facebook
light of its latest privacy de- has become a one-stop
bacle — allegations that a shop for so many things. You
Trump-linked data-mining can keep up with friends
firm stole information on and family, find out about
tens of millions of users to or create local events, buy
influence elections. and sell stuff, keep up with
Even before that, users the news, raise money for
have considered dumping a cause or join groups of
Facebook after growing like-minded people such
tired of political disagree- as parents, porch garden-
ments with friends and ers and people with a rare
relatives. And studies have disease. There are other
shown that the mindless places to do many of these
scrolling that Facebook is things, though likely not all
so good for can leave us at once. There’s Eventbrite
for events, Letgo for buying
and selling stuff, Peanut for
moms to connect, Meetup
In this Aug. 27, 2009 file photo, the site Facebook login webpage is seen on a computer screen in to find and meet like-mind-
Ottawa, Canada. ed people, GoFundMe for
raising money and Twitter,
feeling depressed. This process should give you Your delete request will be or, gasp, your local news-
While Facebook has tried a good — perhaps scary — cancelled if you log back paper’s website for the
to address some of these idea of what Facebook has in during this time. Face- news. If you find your mind
problems, it's not enough on you. book says it may take up to wandering back to Face-
for some users. If you are What you won't get are 90 days for all the data as- book as you go through
one of them, there are op- photos other people sociated with your account your day, thinking how you
tions. Hard as it might seem shared with you, even if to be wiped, but you can't might craft a post about a
to quit, especially for those you've been tagged. You change your mind after the thought you’ve just had or
entwined with it for years, it need to save those indi- first few days are up. an article you came across,
can be done. vidually. And some stuff If you used your Facebook it’s OK. Let it go. It’s all part
Mostly. will remain, including what account for third-party of the breakup process.
___ others have posted about apps and sites, you’ll need And while you may not see
GOODBYE FOREVER you, your chats with others new usernames and pass- updates about near-for-
Before deleting your ac- and your posts in Facebook words for each. gotten schoolmates or that
count, rescue your posts groups (though your name ___ random person you met
and photos. Facebook lets will be grayed out). To de- TRIAL SEPARATION six years ago, the people
you download the data lete all this, you'll need to If you’re not quite ready who matter most will stick
you've shared with Face- sift through your "activ- for a divorce, deactivating around. For them, there’s
book since you joined. This ity log," accessible through your account is an option. email, the phone, and
includes your posts and your profile page, and de- To do this, go to your ac- meeting in person for cof-
photos, as well as the "ac- lete each item individually. count settings. Deactivat- fee.
tivity log" — the history of Once you've saved every- ing means other people ___
everything you've done thing and gone through won’t be able to see your ABOUT THOSE OTHER APPS
on Facebook, such as likes your activity log, sign in one profile, but if you log back If your boycott of Facebook
and comments on posts, last time. Go to http://bit. in, the whole thing is can- has more to do with your
use of apps and searches. ly/198wIoI and click on the celed and you are “active” view of the company than
The download also con- blue button. You can't get again. Ditto if you log into with tiring of the Facebook
tains your profile, messag- that from the settings page, an outside app or site using service, you might consider
es, list of friends, ads you've as Facebook, it may seem, your Facebook account. deleting Instagram, What-
clicked on and IP address- doesn't want you to leave. ___ sApp and Messenger as
es you've used to connect Facebook says the process FOMO (FEAR OF MISSING well — they are all owned
to Facebook. could take a few days. OUT) by Facebook.q