How do you perceive users who make their profiles viewable to friends only on Facebook?

[flower]

Good or bad? Cool or not cool? Why do you think users on Facebook make their profiles private? What is your immediate mental evaluation of people who choose to make their profiles un-viewable to others in their network?

[bananagirl_34]

I think its good cause it shows they are being careful. I have mine on private cause the people I want to have as friends know how to find me, but I don't want everyone on facebook to be able to see my profile.

[forestbythesea]

Well, my immediate mental evaluation of this question is maybe you shouldn't concern yourself with the business of others. We are entitled to our privacy. I have my profile set to private because all it takes is a couple clicks and my pictures are out there for the world to see. And my ex's psycho girlfriend used to stalk my page. If anyone looks me up, they can send me a message and I can add them at my discretion. Good. Cool.

[janellocaramelo]

I choose to make my facebook profile private. I don't want to use facebook as a way to make online friends or hook up with people. I'm just not interested in that. I use facebook to talk to friends I already know. I respect people who make their profiles private.

[P]

People who set their profiles to private make it hard for stalkers like myself. I think Facebook has made stalkers out of all of us to some degree. :-)
I wish I was cool enough to have the courage to make my profile viewable to everyone on facebook but i'm not that cool. This is the only way I can feel some control in my cyberworld.

[kaire]

I think it's definitely good to make profiles viewable only to friends. Why would you want random people looking at your profile? Facebook is a way to keep up with friends, not necessarily meet people. I mean, you *can,* but it's not the main point of it. I think it's more pertinent to get a mental evaluation of people who are obsessed with viewing profiles of people they don't know, as well as discovering the reasons why they have such concern with finding out why people prefer to make their profiles unviewable to others in their network.

[mrsgreeniemama]

I don't think it is a matter of how "cool" you are. It's a matter of not being bothered by strangers, not being found by ex-partners, etc. Not everyone goes on the Internet to get attention.

I haven't made a profile yet, but I want to so my classmates and I can keep in touch after college. It's the best way for everyone to see each others kids growing up, hear good news, etc. I don't plan on making it public.

Sites like Face book have instilled the millennial generation with a lot of narcissism, devalued real friendships, and caused a lot of people stalker/unwanted contact problems. The desire for anonymity is not a lack of self esteem or "coolness."

[Christina]

They're smart & value privacy. Before the default was network and friends only anyway, so I don't really notice much of a difference.