Why FB is a poor media platform

To put in my own 2 cents regarding Facebook. If you are a hoster that gives updates to races and other happenings on the track then okay that's fine. The issue for others is that not everybody has a Facebook account, which means some people are kept out of the loop which can especially be an issue if said updates are regarding current tournaments. Communication in this hobby is super important, as a result giving updates on redline ensures everybody receives any messages regarding both signups and tournaments.

Sorry about your friend Doc. That kind of stuff is never easy.

I am sorry about your friend. Condolences. 

Sorry to hear that. Condolences to you doc.

I've experienced that same thing, look on his page to catch up, & see " we're going to miss you"... 

This is the hub we need for racing info; FB is good for multiple persons convo, but one main place dedicated to our sport is best, especially for new race posts.

dr,

Sorry to hear about your experience.

Not a great way to learn of a loss.

Cheers, Marc D

I have used Fakebook for a while. Started off with an account with my actual name and tagged all my friend/relatives... after awhile I saw the scam of it. They are using your info for their own purposes... Unfriended everyone, even my family, and tried to delete my account. Couldn't be done. It is always there even if inactive. I started another account in a pseudonym name. This time I did not take any friends and included the bare minimum info. It isn't for personal contacts. I use it for hobbies. It works really well for that as contacting others with like interests far and wide is, IMHO, the only reason to use it. It still tries to show me friends to add as it "reads" my contact info, but I even limit that in my email accounts. I have tried to dump it completely, but so far, the positives have outweighed the negatives and there is no other platform that has the level of contacts and sharability.

Facebook's  value is being a very easy Rolodex. It's about communicating with people and it does that really well - all the advertising and privacy woes aside. It connects you to people you care about easily.  It's a good for immediate conversation. Facebook is also invaluable as a marketing tool. It just works. You shout something out and people see it and react. It's a necessary evil if you're promoting anything.

Where Facebook fails is as a historical record or reference. Outside of the random "memories" it shows you, it's not easy to go back in time and find stuff you want. Facebook is rather fleeting, not unlike Twitter and the rest. That to me is where a website like RLD fills the gap. A website should be a long-term reference of record. A tangible-ish history in many ways, like a newspaper. The stupid drama RLD hosts can be debated but I'm proud that this site holds a decent history of diecast racing over the last 15 years. 

And I do appreciate everyone that continues to use RLD regularly and sees value in it. Redline Derby is not here to replace Facebook but compliment it. Each one is a tool in the toolbox.

Facebook, for me, is useful in a lot of ways that RLD is not. 

RLD is the choir - it's not a place to grow the hobby, its the drivers lounge. 

I do a lot of work on Facebook, but I also back that information up to here. 

I look at the low flow of posts here, comparatively and I find myself not posting the details or anything but what I think are big things, because I don't want to flood the place or come off like a self-promoting tryhard. 

Facebook is amazing for sharing media - and for conversation.

This interface (Which doesn't have facebooks billions and programmers behind it) is clunky for sharing images. 

The way it separates comments and replies on a post is frustrating to parse for me - and responses do not flag new activity unless you are part of that comment thread in specific. 

It feels like a post slides into oblivion the moment its not part of the last-five-commented posts. 

So I do most of my work on Facebook - where I can draw in new people, where I can do polls, where I can engage with the people taking part in the race (Who are there) and communicate much easier. 

I'm not complaining about RLD - not at all - but there is value to having a facebook presence. 

I've avoided all of the major social media platforms for many of the reasons listed by the OP. Call me 'out of the loop' or 'misinformed', but my freedom of thought and a thread of dignity remain.

I can explain 90% of what appears in my YT Home page feed

I can explain 75% of the same in Reddit, while NOT being signed in to the mobile app 

Those algorithms pay attention and show me what will retain my engagement 

Facebook by contrast does all it can to hide relevant things from me. We passed the point long ago where user needs were at least third in priority for the site, behind data harvesting and site growth. The algo is bunk, busted & broken and unless Zukk gets money from you, users don't matter. 

So very sorry your friend passed Doc, and that you didn't find out in a more timely manner 

First of all, I'm sorry for your loss. Losing someone is never easy, and the fact that you didn't even know until it was too late just adds another twist to the stab wound. I truly feel for you.

On to the issue of Facebook (or as I like to call it, FaceBroke):

The platform is HUGE. The more things you do, the more pages you follow, the more groups you are on, the more friends you have, all of that creates clutter on your feed. The sheer amount of digital garbage that comes up every day is nothing short of unbelievable. As others have said, posts can easily get lost for days, weeks, even months down the line. Their algorithms? Don't even get me started ....

As for diecast racing, yes, I follow pages and group like everyone else. I have caught up with several of you on 3dbotmaker's site, as well as other racing pages. However, due to the complexities and (again) the massive amount of crap  that FaceBroke keeps vomiting out, I miss a great deal of stuff there. Even with notifications turned on, I don't always get them, and often discover that a race I may have wanted to enter from a FaceBroke group is already three or four days past the deadline for sending in cars. Right now, that percentage is at 98% of all races posted there, I miss out on entering or even knowing about. That sucks.

For the above reason, that is why I come here to RedlineDerby. There is a clear calendar of events - I can pop on the page for a moment, look at the calendar, and go, "Yeah, I'm entering that race." Why? BECAUSE I CAN FIND IT. BECAUSE I KNOW IT IS HAPPENING. If it's not some major event on FaceBroke, like a Comic-con or a big-name concert, face it: you ain't gonna see nor hear of it until it's already over.

RLD works for what it is and what it is meant to be: a platform for the gathering of diecast racers from all over the world, looking for new racetracks, tips and tricks on how to modify cars, and just hang out with other racers in general. I know when I come here, I'm going to see regulars like Dutch, DrDodge, Stoopid Fish, RedlineDerby, RagTag Jim, and a whole bunch of other guys that I've competed with and gotten to know as friends. Coming here is like walking into the racer's lounge or the pit area. I know where to find you: you're HERE, not lost in some unending-scrolling feed. I know where I can find races to enter, information that I need to continue the hobby and help it grow, and it's not on some giant mega-platform that buried everything under tons of digital garbage.

Sometimes you want to go....where everybody knows your name.....and they're always glad you came.....you want to be where you can see....our troubles are all the same.....you want to be where everybody...knows your name.