Last time I mentioned there’d be more about actually using Facebook this time. And lo and behold – there is!
In fact there are two things I’m going to tell you – and the first one applies to things like Skype as well as to Facebook.
When Facebook was first created, you used it on a website on a PC (or laptop – which is just a portable PC). That’s simple enough but when tablets and then smartphones caught on, using a website with so many options on it was a bit tricky on the smaller screen.
So next Facebook created a different version of the website and by some clever jiggery-pokery, when you visit their website it works out whether you’re on a PC, tablet or smartphone and shows you a different version of the website, to make sure it fits.
That meant you can use it on whatever type of device you prefer.
In fact they’ve gone a step better than that now and if you have a tablet or phone, there’s an app you can download instead of doing it through the website. This makes it even easier – the app is designed to work properly on a device of the size you’re using, it remembers that it’s you, so you don’t need to log in all the time and so on.
And using Facebook on, say, a phone or tablet has advantages over a PC. It means you can check it when you’re away from home. You can easily use the video phone call feature and don’t have to sit at a desk or table with your PC. You can find out news from friends and family wherever you are – and easily take photos of what you’re up to and share them. For example if you’ve just visited a stunning castle, you can take a photo and share it or just share a note saying “Just visited Caernarfon castle – amazing place”.
On the other hand some people prefer using a laptop or PC – that’s fine too.
But one of the things not everyone realises is you don’t need to choose.
When you set up an account, it’s your account. It isn’t really linked to the device you used. So even if you set it up using a PC, you could then use the same account on your phone – and all of the people you’ve set up as friends on it will still be classed as your friends. If you share something, the same people will see it. And you’ll be able to see things from the same people.
You can use it on different devices at the same time (well, not literally the same time I suppose unless you have 4 hands – but I mean use one one day, the other the next and then back again – you can have it set up on more than one device at the same time).
For example you might have it set up on your PC at home… but also on your phone for when you’re out and about or away for the week.
Or you might like it on a tablet for normal use but put it on a phone for while you’re on holiday. Up to you.
The point is it’s the account you set up (with a username and password) that identifies it as you – you can use that on any device and it still knows it’s you.
Personally I sometimes use my laptop for it if I’m at home and want to write anything that says very much, because I prefer the keyboard. But the rest of the time I’ll use my smartphone to quickly check if there’s any news from my friends and family and also to take photos I want to share – usually of something interesting the boys have done.
Of course, you might only want to use it on one device and that’s fine too. But it’s certainly worth knowing about this so you can decide if it’s for you.
Facebook One Step at a Time
As you can imagine, there’s quite a bit to this Facebook lark. It doesn’t have to be complicated, but often people do find it tricky. And there are lots of extra bits and bobs that you don’t have to know about – but you might find some of them useful (and even if you don’t, if you don’t know what they are, they might get you a bit confused).
So I’m just putting the finishing touches to a book “Facebook One Step at a Time” – which explains exactly how to use it and what it can do for you – right from setting up an account if you don’t already have one, through to the different things you can do with it.
It’s not available yet (because it’s not quite finished) but I’ll have a bit more information on it later in the week, including when it’ll be available.
Watch out for next time – more info then!