How to "Like" Anything on the Web (Safely)

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/how_to_like_anything_on_the_web_safely.php

by mhunter • 16 years ago

21 9 16 years ago

readwriteweb.com

mhunter• 16 years ago

I believe this was started on HN (http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1286084)

hugh32• 16 years ago

So why would I want to "like" something?

I'm not one of these too-cool-for-facebook types, but if I really want to share something with my facebook friends I can always just post a link, and perhaps throw in a little commentary. Liking seems superfluous and spammy, and if any of my friends start liking things frequently I'm afraid I'll have to add them to the block list.

roc2• 16 years ago

> So why would I want to "like" something?

Because you're an average user who finds it convenient to press this one button?

As opposed to:

* firing up the mail client and whittling through your friends to mail only those who might be interested.

* starting a blog/twitter/tumblr account and getting people to check it.

With "like", you hit one button, and people see your recommendation. And since it's mixed in with everyone else's recommendations, it's not annoying like bulk-spamming people with news links and more satisfying than setting up a blog no-one reads.

I think it's dumb myself. But I clearly see why people do it. Like many annoying features on Facebook: it shrewdly exploits social customs.

thingie• 16 years ago

I really want to check the posted URL and be sure that it points exactly where I want, and doesn't reveal anything unnecessary (all those URLs with tons of information after '?'). I'd feel very embarrassed if I had posted something spam-like. And it's not that hard. Just use some desktop twitter client, copy URL there, copy it back to the browser, try it, make some corrections if needed, and that's it. It shouldn't be that hard.

hugh32• 16 years ago

Oh no, I meant post the link to facebook. Copy-and-paste into a status update.

thwarted• 16 years ago

So it's the facebook bookmarklet. http://www.facebook.com/share_options.php

This already existed. What facebook was missing before was actually encouraging the bookmarklet's use and providing analytics on facebook for website owners to see what people used the bookmarklet on (presumably, if you integrate facebook's like functionality on your site, you can see what people are liking).

robryan• 16 years ago

Off the top of my head I'm not sure but I guess Facebook is unable to use javascript inside an iframe to determine the current url? What about when the like button is clicked, no way to confirm the url?

epochwolf• 16 years ago

Two words people: BOOK MARKS

Or if you want to get fancy, there is delicious.

(Yes, I'm being sarcastic)

How to "Like" Anything on the Web (Safely)

Related Stories