MetaChat - Facebook's "People You May Know" algorithm is freaking me the freak out

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27 March 2008

Facebook's "People You May Know" algorithm is freaking me the freak out Robot Big Brother must die!

post by: Skwirl at: 20:07 | 16 comments

I hate it, too. Like it's trying to make me feel guilty for not having those people as my friends. Guess what, Facebook? I do know those people. But that doesn't mean I want them on my friend list.

posted by ThePinkSuperhero 27 March | 20:09

Yeah. Creeps me out.

posted by CitrusFreak12 27 March | 20:14

wait. why have i not noticed this thing? do you have to go looking for it, or does it come to you?

posted by brina 27 March | 20:50

oh. i found it. and you're right, tps. i do know these people, and there is a reason i haven't friended them. it's like fb plugged in some sort of weird "who do you least want to be reminded of at this moment?" thing and then sent it my way. ugh.

posted by brina 27 March | 20:53

Oh, it comes to you. Just try to stop it.

posted by Skwirl 27 March | 20:57

Yeah, I noticed that too. Is that something new?

I have been on facebook for hours today-a friend of mine joined and she knows EVERYBODY and now all of a sudden people I never dreamed would be on Facebook are showing up right and left. It's like an easter egg hunt with people instead.

It also is interesting to me to see which of my friends knows certain other friends of mine...

posted by bunnyfire 27 March | 21:16

The other side of this coin is that your profile is sitting in their sidebar too.

posted by doctor_negative 27 March | 21:20

Clustering algorithms are fairly simple at the level Facebook employs. More powerful algorithms would decide who not to include in those suggestions.

posted by Ardiril 27 March | 21:21

I think they added this thing yesterday; that was the first time I noticed it. And I shouldn't speak too poorly of it- it did find me one person that I truly do want on my friends list (a professor at my old college).

posted by ThePinkSuperhero 27 March | 21:26

It's weird. I haven't seen some of these people since middle school.

posted by casarkos 27 March | 21:40

I have yet to be shown anybody I actually know.

posted by JanetLand 27 March | 22:04

I can't seem to find it. Ah well, I probably don't know anyone anyway.

posted by deborah 27 March | 22:22

All the people on mine are mefites, I think, which is nice.

posted by puke & cry 27 March | 22:28

I've done some reading up on these sorts of algorithms that drive this sort things . . . I *think* it works something like: person x and person y are both linked to person a, but x and y aren't directly connected to one another. Therefore, there's a good chance x and y actually do know one another, but just haven't connected yet.

posted by treepour 27 March | 22:55

Can't find this thing, but then Facebook's IA has always confused the hell out of me.

posted by TheDonF 28 March | 02:06

I find it kind of weird too. They're generally people that I know, or knew once upon a time, but feel no need to be Facebook friends with.

Maybe it's the reason I just got a friend request from one of the most annoying and unpleasant people from my past. Who now has the last name of someone else from my past: apparently that icky high school romance has lasted over a decade. Ew.

posted by bassjump 28 March | 08:57

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