See, the key is mediation. You meet people in a Counter-Strike match, you know what the parameters are. Either they are in your team, or they are trying to shoot your avatar. If someone from your job adds you in Linkedin, it isn't creepy; they are just trying to get some recommendations and move on to another job. :)
Facebook has zero context. Why is that guy trying to be my friend? I don't know. How do I approach him? What are we supposed to talk about? It's all incredibly awkward. If Facebook did the equivalent of putting a chessboard between us, everything would flow much easier.
> If Facebook did the equivalent of putting a chessboard between us
Spot on!
Facebook's addition of games to the platform was obviously a way to address this issue, but a failed one, because the 3rd parties have to earn money themselves, and can't just benefit from the additional data that users may generate/reaveal when playing, that can be used for improving the advertisement platform.
I.e. if Facebook as you said, made a chess game or perhaps a social game, then it could involve friends of friends, and thus make a user expand his or hers friendship circle. Meanwhile, this new data about what connected them, etc, etc, could be very valueable to the ad platform because it would show what made the user give in to the uknown.
My 0.2 $ (1.16 kr. DKK)
Just slapping a web interface over IRC channels would be 80% there. "Oh, I'm here to talk about hockey while I watch the Flyers game."
But Facebook might be hurting themselves in this regard by forcing real names, one account, etc. And the expectation that anything you do will spam all your friends newsfeeds. I mean, if my friends, coworkers and family all wanted to talk about hockey I wouldn't need to chat with strangers.
Facebook has zero context. Why is that guy trying to be my friend? I don't know. How do I approach him? What are we supposed to talk about? It's all incredibly awkward. If Facebook did the equivalent of putting a chessboard between us, everything would flow much easier.