Facebook and, I suppose by extension, Mark "Doesn't Fit Well In His Person Suit" Zuckerberg have decided that I am a robot. I downloaded the app. I started to create an account by giving my information (Full name, date of birth, phone number etc.) then they sent me an authentication code. I received the code. I typed the code. I hit "Continue." Then, again the prompt started to ask for my personal information which I had already put in (this felt strange; alarms started ringing) but after I typed my date of birth, I decided to back out, only to find that I had violated their community guidelines. I had heard that community guidelines had become more strict over the last few years, but I didn't know I could get locked out without actually posting any content. Or for not doing much of anything, for that matter.
In short, our digital overlords were kind enough to allow me to appeal my case. I made a plea of "Not a Robot," ironically by moving my head slowly to the left and to the right 3 or 4 times. I suppose that this is Mark Zuckerberg's best hypothesis as to what "normal" human behavior is. Or they're collecting data for facial recognition software. Either way.
After my appeal has gone through their channels (they say it could take more than a day to review) hopefully they will decide that I'm a sentient being. At that point, I will post a follow up thread about which groups I've decided to join.
I haven't had Facebook for over 5 or 6 years. This is my first attempt to recreate a Facebook account. I understand that some people probably prefer it over other social networks. But, admittedly, I went into this class knowing that I had a prejudice against this particular social media tool, and I've come away from this experience with my opinion even more soured toward it. I was literally shut out within seconds of creating the account. Frustrating.
Anyway, I know I have to find friends and join a group for credit. I'll do that stuff, assuming I make it pass the appeal process, and write a brief update post on Nabble. I'm sure Facebook is a very useful tool for some teachers.