On The Gradual Decline Of Ex-Chriatian.net

[florduh]

I'm not so convinced of the particular vulnerability of social media websites like Facebook. At least on FB you can post and protect whatever information you want, though most people don't seem to get that. As far as hacking, hackers can hack your bank, retail stores and Hillary's email accounts so everything is potentially vulnerable. I have a friend with a lifetime of IBM programming and IT experience and he has no qualms about being on Facebook and Twitter. 

[Mike D]

 

I found this site about 2002 and have been here ever since, if I remember correctly the forum was changed 2 or 3 times so i've had at least one other username from when I first joined.  I remember from the old days names like Reach, Chef, Asimov, MrSpooky, etc.  There were a lot of Christians that registered just to debate us or tell us we were going to hell or whatever.  It was a lot of fun, and miss those days.

 

I do agree what others have said about the migration of website forums over the last few years to FB, twitter, etc.  I don't do social media, there's too much hidden/stealth linking and connecting of those sites/apps between fb, ig, twitter etc to devices, ipad, personal cellphone, email, google, apple, etc.  Today, if someone hacks into just one of those, they can get into all of them through the links or connections and know very personal intimate details about you, your family and all your friends.  Literally.  No thanks i'll pass.

Are you suggesting that I leave social media Mike?

 

 

No, people should do whatever they are comfortable doing. 

 

Some people are quite comfortable posting their name and address and phone number online for public view, and have that info on their FB account, which is an app which sits on their phone, which links to another app for their bank, which has a link to their other bank, which is all tied into their gmail account, which is linked to their google plus account, which is linked and connects to their Youtube account, ad infinitum.  Good for them.

 

Do whatever you are comfortable with.

[Mike D]

. I have a friend with a lifetime of IBM programming and IT experience and he has no qualms about being on Facebook and Twitter. 

 

Well who am I to argue with someone with such impressive credentials as those.

 

I stand corrected.

[florduh]

 

. I have a friend with a lifetime of IBM programming and IT experience and he has no qualms about being on Facebook and Twitter. 

 

Well who am I to argue with someone with such impressive credentials as those.

 

I stand corrected.

 

Suffice it to say he is very experienced in all relevant aspects of Internet security issues; billion dollar companies have relied on his expertise for their online security. That he is not paranoid about social media doesn't make him unqualified to render an expert opinion, even if it disagrees with yours.

[Mike D]

 

 

. I have a friend with a lifetime of IBM programming and IT experience and he has no qualms about being on Facebook and Twitter. 

 

Well who am I to argue with someone with such impressive credentials as those.

 

I stand corrected.

 

Suffice it to say he is very experienced in all relevant aspects of Internet security issues; billion dollar companies have relied on his expertise for their online security. That he is not paranoid about social media doesn't make him unqualified to render an expert opinion, even if it disagrees with yours.

 

 

 

 

 

Billion dollar companies?  Holy shit.  It sounds like his credentials are even more impressive and amazing than I could have ever imagined.

 

I bow to his greatness. 

 

Please all ignore me as a paranoid delusional, fearful off all that is new and different. 

 

Now that I know all is safe, I will post my bank account number and password on FB and make the page private.  Just in case I ever forget it.

[florduh]

We are all entitled to an opinion, informed or not. 

[Mike D]

Yes, us uninformed certainly are.

[florduh]

I don't know what your problem is, Mike. Experts can disagree. You seem to want to disqualify my expert though you know nothing about him. I have learned to trust him over the years. Perhaps you have more education and experience than he does, I don't know. All I know is you have differing opinions.

[Mike D]

I don't see it so much as a differing opinion so much as it is what each person is or is not comfortable with doing with their data and personal information.

 

It's a fact that most apps today that people download on to their phone share information and data with other apps, as well as other devices and websites, and email.  Aside from personally identifying information, this includes sensitive data such that is used in authentication.   When you download an app, you usually have to agree (via a checkbox) to share your data in order to use those particular apps, of which social media is very much a purveyor of.  In some of the apps, you agree that your data actually becomes theirs.   Does anyone actually bother to read what they are agreeing to?  I do.

 

If a person takes some precautions, like keeping pages private, using strong passwords or long pass phrases even better, two factor authentication, different passwords across all accounts, change passwords regularly etc., disallow geo-tagging, disallow data sharing between apps, then that lessens the chance that if one those accounts or devices is hacked that the others can be compromised and the hacker can gain lots of personal information about you.

 

The issue I have right now, is some of these apps are so stealthy with their data sharing/data access that you may not even be aware of it.  Call me paranoid, but this isn't something I want to expose myself to.

 

I am sure your friend would even agree that most if not all of those precautions are just common sense ways to protect yourself from the increasing frequency of data hacks and invasive/stealthy data sharing between apps.

 

I don't consider myself paranoid, I just am very cautious.  Everyone else is free to think what they will.

 

 

[florduh]

Obviously one must use a little sense with such things. The problem with social media is the people who use them unadvisedly, not the platform itself. Yes, a smart user is educated in the possible pitfalls. That said, most of us aren't worth hacking, but there seems to be no shortage of hackers who can get into just about anything if they are motivated to do so. Perhaps the FBI is an exception since they can't hack an Iphone. 

 

My Facebook presence would yield very little, but it's probably just as easy to hack my bank account, and I can't control that other than by simply not having an account at all; security is in the hands of bank employees or contractors. Now, THAT worries me a little.

[Mike D]

 

My Facebook presence would yield very little, but it's probably just as easy to hack my bank account, and I can't control that other than by simply not having an account at all; security is in the hands of bank employees or contractors. Now, THAT worries me a little.

 

This is probably the case with many people, what they post on social media is rather inconsequential.

 

I think what started me thinking about this is that I noticed a couple of my family members posting very personal information on FB and IG with little regard for who could see it or access it.  I was appalled.  Not only that because it was personal, but also very inappropriate.  If that information got into the wrong hands it could be very damaging to those people, not to mention the smear to other family members (such as myself).  But they seem completely oblivious to it.  This carelessness made me want to have no online association with them. 

 

What also concerns me are these mass hackings such as Yahoo was hacked and the hacked data was found posted on other websites for anyone to access.  So you or I may be of no interest to be hacked as individuals, in a mass hacking our personal information can easily end up on a public website for anyone to access.  That's what I don't like.

 

Anyway I guess what it comes down to is just be careful with your data, that's all I am saying

[Vigile]

What kind of info are you worried will lead to harm if it gets out Mike? Are you talking identity theft here or are you worried about something else? 

 

People on FB today know less about me than my friends and fellow students and teachers knew about me when I was in public HS and in public university back before the social media days. I guess I'm missing something here. 

[Mike D]

No Vig you're not missing anything.

 

This thread has been hijacked enough with social media can we please move on.

 

Thank you.

[Voice]

It's a valid diversion. I wouldn't call it a hijack.

 

If I may make a comparison.

This forum is accessible to everyone, optimally on desktops, second best on pads, least optimal on phones (those blasted tw/fb/print/mail buttons on the left take up way too much of the screen. I agree they need to be removed. No one uses them anyway), as a place to interact anonymously.

facebook:

most people use their real names there.

it's more like a blog there.

I've had a fb account with my real name for 5 years. It's set so that people can see what I post. I do that to keep my insanity in check, to try to exercise restraint, common sense and balance. I have friends from all walks of life and I try to not offend any of them, to show respect to all. Yah I fail, but I don't want fb friends following my posts to ex-c. Besides, I never get feeds from there, and I don't know why. I should. Maybe once in a while I would post something if I got a feed.

 

I hope this forum can stay. I've never had money or I would be a supporter. 10% of my income would amount to a postage stamp. Being able to make money is a gift, one I didn't receive.

[♦ nivek ♦]

Voice and other FB users:

 

F.B. Purity - Clean Up and Customize Facebook

 

 

Control the crap, customize what you want to see.

 

Back to Topic.

 

kL

[♦ nivek ♦]

OT as hell, but response required:

 

Voice:

 

 

 

 

I hope this forum can stay. I've never had money or I would be a supporter. 10% of my income would amount to a postage stamp. Being able to make money is a gift, one I didn't receive.

 

 

Voice please do not sweat the money part of being here at ExC. Seriously. We'all always take contributions and donations from those who can and do.

Ex-Christian dot net keeps the lighthouse light lit just for folks who need a place to tie up to after weathering storm after storm in their lives. 

 

kevinL

[SilentLoner]

 

 

A family member became an ex-c a couple years ago and I directed her here saying she could find community. She looked, lurked, then told me this wasn't the kind of community she wanted. Too many assholes. Pissed off atheists. I was disappointed.

That is unappealing. If I were a freaked christian looking for support I wouldn't want to be around a bunch of ravenous atheists either.

 

 

In the beginning the site really was more community-like. But its been in decline for a long time, and I agree with your family member's assessment of the attitudes around here. Though more about political issues - seriously, it seems unusual that we actually discuss atheism or even religion that much anymore.

[TotalWreck]

I joined this site five years ago (can't believe it's been that long!), and the first two years I was on this site all the time and it was so comforting to me while I was going through my deconversion. But once I finally got pretty much completely deconverted, I got to the point where I was just so sick of discussing religion and god that I wasn't even interested in talking about it at all so I kind of just quit coming on here. The only reason I really come on every now and then is to PM a good friend of mine who was my friend on here from the beginning.

 

So maybe that's another reason less people are on here - once they deconvert they don't even want to discuss religion or "god" anymore because they're so over it.

[pratt]

on site almost daily to see additions atheist or christians say on facebook, funny stuff, also once a while read those funny stuff posted by ironhorse or some crazy nut christians, not bothered about what the fucking truth the christians trying to say,,,,,

 

politics has toned down quite a bit but then again trump and hilliary was a boring pair of jokers,,,,,

 

feminism/abortion/libertanism not a lot of folks care about that anymore,,,,,

 

once a while we see fellow sojourners seek comfort and advice and help, that we are here ready to provide that concern and care,,,

 

on a decline? i would much say we evolve

[Guest Furball]

In the past I would have disagreed. But the attendance has been down for too long. This place is a graveyard compared to what it once was. Even the guest #'s have dropped from an average of 80+ online to around 30-40. All the political bs really killed the rants section. This is an ex-christian site. I can understand why a lot of members as well as guests have left here, seeing almost nobody stays on the subject of christianity/ex-christianity anymore. Sad. 

[Wittyusername]

I visit daily for the 'things atheists/funnies say on Facebook. Typing from a phone often makes it difficult to join in discussions with a full answer.

[rjn]

 

 

 

A family member became an ex-c a couple years ago and I directed her here saying she could find community. She looked, lurked, then told me this wasn't the kind of community she wanted. Too many assholes. Pissed off atheists. I was disappointed.

That is unappealing. If I were a freaked christian looking for support I wouldn't want to be around a bunch of ravenous atheists either.

 

 

In the beginning the site really was more community-like. But its been in decline for a long time, and I agree with your family member's assessment of the attitudes around here. Though more about political issues - seriously, it seems unusual that we actually discuss atheism or even religion that much anymore.

 

 

Honest now: Would really you mind the political discussions at all if so many of them weren't coming with a Conservative, Libertarian or Republican angle? It's not like your innocent of starting political threads yourself. I can see two in TOT at this very moment. 

[willybilly30]

For some reason I don't get anything from ex-C on facebook even though I follow it.

Do ex c have a group on Facebook. I got the page but never see anything from it.

Facebook app works better in my iPad

I wish there was an app to read forums on there maybe but I don't know what it is

[willybilly30]

It's a valid diversion. I wouldn't call it a hijack.

 

If I may make a comparison.

This forum is accessible to everyone, optimally on desktops, second best on pads, least optimal on phones (those blasted tw/fb/print/mail buttons on the left take up way too much of the screen. I agree they need to be removed. No one uses them anyway), as a place to interact anonymously.

facebook:

most people use their real names there.

it's more like a blog there.

I've had a fb account with my real name for 5 years. It's set so that people can see what I post. I do that to keep my insanity in check, to try to exercise restraint, common sense and balance. I have friends from all walks of life and I try to not offend any of them, to show respect to all. Yah I fail, but I don't want fb friends following my posts to ex-c. Besides, I never get feeds from there, and I don't know why. I should. Maybe once in a while I would post something if I got a feed.

 

I hope this forum can stay. I've never had money or I would be a supporter. 10% of my income would amount to a postage stamp. Being able to make money is a gift, one I didn't receive.

 

I wish the buttons on the side of the screen were removed..I have to move up and down to read things

[duderonomy]

FWIW, I use adblock plus on my pc.  It's a free program and it gets rid of them for me. It's available for a lot of platforms and doesn't interfere with anything. I've used it for a couple of years and swear by it.

 

https://adblockplus.org/