Facebook: The Missing Manual

Chapter 10. Collaborating on Projects via Facebook

Expensive groupware, workflow management tools, and other collaboration programs have been around for quite a while. With its open-door policy and privacy concerns (see Chapter 13), Facebook is certainly no replacement for a dedicated, bulletproof collaboration program like Lotus Domino or Novell Groupwise. But you might find that some of Facebook’s tools are handy—and free—ways to help your team get work done quickly. This chapter gives Facebook’s messaging and subscription tools (which Chapters 4–7 introduced you to) a decidedly business spin. You’ll see how to use them to keep team members, coworkers, and clients in the loop—and projects on track.

Note

A recent study reported by Mashable.com found that around half of all employers block access to social networking sites such as Facebook. The top two reasons? Loss of productivity and security concerns such as those explained in Chapter 13. If your company won’t let you use Facebook at work, you can probably skip this chapter—unless you want to collaborate on non-work projects using Facebook.

Keeping in Touch

The same Facebook features that let you and your friends “talk” online—messaging (Sending Messages), events (Chapter 7), Groups (Chapter 6), and notes (Creating Notes (Blogs))—can help you keep up to date with coworkers, clients, and customers. The features work the same way whether you’re interacting with your old college roommate or your boss. But there are a few things you ...