Sunday, March 21, 2010

More on Facebook - Ktrak Wants To Be My Friend


Last Sunday I came up with a fiction piece about one of the negative possibilities one might experience when joining Facebook. To be fair and balance the scales, I should give some of the pluses of Facebook some blog time. After all, considering how many millions of people enjoy the use of Facebook every day without harm or distress to their bodies or their souls, it would be remiss of me to not admit that Facebook is probably another positive thing about the Internet. Or Negative thing. Take your pick. This morning I see it as positive. If that whacko redhead from Rhode Island I met in the 1970s locates me via Facebook, my impression may sour some.

Sunday morning about 1:30 AM, I awoke from the first sleep of the night. It seems of late, I am enjoying sleeping so much I do it two times every night. I figure about 3:00 AM, the countdown to Sleep #2 will commence. Until then I can watch the riveting infomercial about a pill that will harden my resolve so to speak as I imagine myself an ex-NFL coach decked out in a NASCAR leather get up standing well hung and proud next to some 400 horse power billboard on wheels at Daytona. I got wet just thinking about it. A moment of true manliness would be experienced.

As enticing as that prospect was, I chose to sit in front of the computer, get Monday's bike parts order together, check Emails, and then maybe take a few moments to do what I am doing now, write something to help fill up the bandwidth in my corner of the blogosphere.

So I open my Emails. Immediately I notice a couple of "so and so is following you on Twitter". Okay fine, but I hate to say it, I just haven't gotten hip to Twitter yet. I move on. Then I notice the myriad of cycling related emails, all of whom want to separate me from the cash I do not have. As much as I would love to buy two of everything, I can't. So I again move on.

About the tenth email down, a notice from Facebook catches my attention. It says "Ktrak wants to be your friend" or something like that. Ktrak huh? My first thought was "Wow, Facebook has really had an impact. One of those happy go lucky butt probing aliens I ran into on my last trip to Deludedville found me on Facebook. Cool, but I hope they don't want to check under my hood again."

But Ktrak was not an alien. Ktrak was a what and not a who. Ktrak apparently is the name of the odd looking contraption you see at the top. It is another fun add on to a mountain bike so one can pedal in the snow. And Ktrak wants to sell me this gadget so I can sell one to you. And because I love anything that might increase my winter cycling fun, I don't want just two, I want a dozen. That is one awesome looking machine. It even looks like it would work really well. Since I have no money to buy one, I will turn this post into a shameless plug.

Which brings me to my point tonight. Or is it my conclusion? What with the Extendz reference, maybe calling it "my thrust tonight" would be more appropriate. Regardless, I did have a reason for bringing all this up.

When I joined Facebook as an individual, I will admit I was only doing it so I could learn the ins and outs before I hooked up my bikshop to Facebook. My original reason is still my greatest incentive. To increase my bottom line. But in the process of joining as an individual, I have come to appreciate the possibilities of this massive networking community. Any number and types of interactions are possible on Facebook. Personal, sexual, family, business - throw your name in the hat and you never know who might want to hook up with you for whatever reason.

Ktrak is the perfect example. I am not sure how they found me, but they did. It may have been the profile picture of me standing on a frozen Maine Lake in 15'F temps, or it could be one of my cycling friends who created the link. The Internet has once again impressed me.



Got a light?
________________________________

~Top image - Mousam Lake ride Winter 2010 - by Dash Jim
~Ktrak Image poached from Facebook
~Image of yours truly - 24 hour race at Great Glen a few years ago - By Avram

8 comments:

Crybbe666 said...

Facebook, I am sure, was designed for people like us to become friends with inanimate objects...
Nice pic, too!

David Barber said...

I'm just not a facebook person myself. I enjoy this blog stuff and emails. I have friends and relatives who use facebook and it's all they seem to talk about. I suppose it can take over your life if you let it but each to their own.

Looking good on that photo, Mike.

Take care pal.

Nan said...

What mystifies me is the attraction of Farmville and similar games.

Noah said...

ktrak probably found you because some of your friends on facebook also like the ktrak. Like me. I was hoping I'd be able to get a demo unit to play with this winter. I know we got nothing on you Mainers, but winter kicked our butts all over the place this year.

susan said...

That is a pretty cool looking bicycle and wins out over snow-mobiles by a long shot. Wouldn't it be neat to see pictures of people riding these in winter at Yellowstone?

You're looking good in that picture.. and warmer too.

Demeur said...

Not a facebook person. I wish to remain a bit of an enigma.


Red Green has nothing on you. Remember we're all in this together.

Commander Zaius said...

If that whacko redhead from Rhode Island I met in the 1970s locates me via Facebook, my impression may sour some.

I really saw no need to join Facebook until my blogging buddy Vigil posted some sailing pictures and the only way I could see them was to join and create a profile. Since then I have found that most of my family has a Facebook page and one time while I was very bored one night I searched through the friends list of one of my cousins.

Low and behold I "tripped" over one of her friends who I dated a few times in high school. She is married (hopefully very happy) because we did not part ways on good terms when I broke up with her.

Kulkuri said...

What's with the pulsing hammer & sickle on the Ktrak site??

Someone got The Old Lady to sign up for facebook and she infected me. Seems like most of my relatives and friends are now on facebook.