Comments on: Is Online Oversharing Really That Bad?

By: disobedientlibDana

disobedientlibDana — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 18:54:01 +0000

One might make a comparison between the ability to filter our own social networks (as well as the ability to find the right balance between sharing just enough information about yourself to your own satisfaction) and the ability to filter the deluge of information a student encounters when researching a topic. It is a skill learned out of necessity and experience, although some people just don’t take the time to(or don’t feel the need to) learn how to do it.

And there is something to be said in that sharing some personal information can have a positive impact on the effectiveness of the non-personal information or networks we all try to share or finetune.

By: bringyournoise

bringyournoise — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 19:44:24 +0000

Interesting response. Being of a certain generation (although I’m not making any age generalizations here), I have many, many friends, family members, and acquaintances who do not “get” online sharing, social media, etc. They are constantly saying things like, “those people need to get a real life.” When I tell them that I get most of my news via Twitter and Facebook, blogs, and Google reader, etc., they look at me as if I’ve gone mad.

For me, well, I do have a life–a very nice one, thank you very much. However, as a (reluctant) cataloger, my entire day–all of it–is spent in front of a computer screen in a quiet environment. We are kind of in silos where I work. So for me, having an entire network of online “friends” to turn to for some welcome distraction/entertainment/enlightenment during the workday is a lifesaver. So I share because I know that I value much (not all by any means) of what is shared with me. I guess “oversharing” is in the eyes of the beholder.

By: Mary Jo

Mary Jo — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 19:00:53 +0000

Sometimes I shake my head at what others share online, but mostly it makes me curious about this human need to be known by so many others, to have others share the mundane details of our lives or to be exposed to our unchallenged opinions. Have people always needed this and now they have an outlet for it? Or is it something that has evolved out of lives spent behind fences, in cars, and in front of computer screens? Almost anywhere you go where you might have the chance to connect with live people, those people are hiding in their cell phones and laptops. Maybe people are just afraid. The remoteness of online feels safer, and the need to connect is greater than ever.

By: Jenny Levine

Jenny Levine — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 01:59:05 +0000

Jeff Jarvis spoke at ALA Annual this year, and he had a great line about this: “Oversharing doesn’t mean I shared too much – it means you listened too much.”

By: Andy

Andy — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 00:03:49 +0000

That’s a good point about the 24 hour news cycle. It always amuses me how a channel like CNN can go from important world event to celebrity news. If that doesn’t tell people the value they put on information, then I don’t know what does.

By: LibraryCynthia

LibraryCynthia — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 21:37:37 +0000

I think some people just talk too much (yes, I am probably one of those folks) and some people are annoying (I hope not!).

When they are combined it becomes oversharing. When it is someone thoughtful, insightful and that we know well enough, the same conversation is deep and meaningful. I haven’t heard many real life complaints about this, but I have seen many articles in the media discussing similar topics. Therefore, I wonder, is this a bogus trend? The 24 hour news cycle means many random thoughts get turned into articles taking about a new trend….

By: Helen W. Mallon

Helen W. Mallon — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 13:47:41 +0000

Good post! We’re in a revolution, and it’s going to take time for the dust to settle. People are in a reactive mode (applies to both over posters and under-filterers) and while social offenses of any kind will never disappear, I’m hopeful that cultural norms will eventually provide some ballast.

By: Muffin

Muffin — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 12:16:11 +0000

I’m not as concerned with adults oversharing, IMO, they’re adults and should know what’s appropriate to share and what isn’t. Even if MY version of what’s appropriate varies from theirs. What worries me is the kids who overshare. I’m not just talking about the “OMG, kevin is sooo mean” posts, but the ones that could (and do) have potential consequences- like when they post on facebook “new phone comment with your number!” and his/her friends post their cell phone numbers. I realize you weren’t addressing that angle, but that’s the only overshare that gets me. Everything else is personal comfort level. I’m a private person, so I’m more likely to only post inconsequential things, but someone who isn’t will post more.

One thing to wonder is where the happy medium comes in… If you share TOO much you run the risk of harming yourself professionally, but if you lock down everything completely you run the same risk (only with potential employers seeing you as a technophobe).

By: Andy

Andy — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 02:15:04 +0000

Thanks for the comment. Now I’m wondering if our sensibilities are shifting for what we consider to be “TMI” now that we are in a greater sharing age (as in, I think there are more platforms for sharing, not that people are sharing more).

By: Andy

Andy — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 02:12:40 +0000

I think I’ve blocked just about every Facebook game with the exception of Scrabble. There might be another one, but it took a very long time to remove it from my news feed. Every now and again I’ll see a game announcement, to which I just block it. I should take a look at my list of blocks; it has to be HUGE by now.

Comments on: Is Online Oversharing *Really* That Bad?

By: disobedientlibDana

By: bringyournoise

By: Mary Jo

By: Jenny Levine

By: Andy

By: LibraryCynthia

By: Helen W. Mallon

By: Muffin

By: Andy

By: Andy

Comments on: Is Online Oversharing Really That Bad?