How does FaceBook work?

[wickham]

TV just now showed a programme about a missing person. The police had no leads so they set up a new Facebook page with some details of the person and within ten minutes two people posted messages that they thought they had seen the person.

Does that mean that people have their phone or computer on all the time, their Facebook account open and they know where to find a new police Facebook page that has only been open for ten minutes? That seems very unlikely to me given that Facebook must have a million new posts to a huge number of pages within ten minutes.

How did those people manage to read a new Facebook page previously unknown to them and respond so quickly?

[swill453]

Depends what is meant by a "new Facebook page". Could be inaccurate reporting, and it was actually a new post on an existing page, followed by many.

Scott.

[Mike4]

Does that mean that people have their phone or computer on all the time,

Yes. Doesn't everyone?

[JohnB]

The kind of people who follow Police pages probably do have the app/page open with a torrent of updates running past. So you are likely to get responses quickly or not at all.

[wickham]

Thanks for replies. Because the respondents were referring to a missing person, they must have been out and about with a mobile phone on, but to have it continually watching a Facebook police page seems extraordinary to me. However, perhaps you can get an email when a new post is made.

[swill453]

Thanks for replies. Because the respondents were referring to a missing person, they must have been out and about with a mobile phone on, but to have it continually watching a Facebook police page seems extraordinary to me. However, perhaps you can get an email when a new post is made.

They wouldn't have to continually watch it. Posts on pages that you're particularly interested in will appear prominently in your FB news feed (which people are continually watching) and can also give you an instant notification if you've got it set up that way.

Scott.

[Mike4]

Thanks for replies. Because the respondents were referring to a missing person, they must have been out and about with a mobile phone on, but to have it continually watching a Facebook police page seems extraordinary to me. However, perhaps you can get an email when a new post is made.

They wouldn't have to continually watch it. Posts on pages that you're particularly interested in will appear prominently in your FB news feed (which people are continually watching) and can also give you an instant notification if you've got it set up that way.

Scott.

To illustrate in more detail, if a post is made on a Facebook group I am following, (e.g. in the "Looking after <my home village>" group), then my phone will ping - just the once - drawing my attention to this fact. A little note will also appear on the screen for 20 seconds, which is a link to the post on the Facebook page. I can click on the link to see the post or can ignore the notification and it will go away after 20 seconds.

So if these people are members of the police Missing Persons group, they will have seen a screen notification advising them of the police post, which they could then select to see the actual post, and enter their response immediately.

(Edit for spelling.)

[wickham]

That's all very educational for me as I haven't got a mobile phone. I have a Facebook account but it's not open all the time on my pc and I've never heard a ping relating to a group I'm a member of.

[swill453]

That's all very educational for me as I haven't got a mobile phone. I have a Facebook account but it's not open all the time on my pc and I've never heard a ping relating to a group I'm a member of.

Typically on a PC a notification will manifest itself as an icon at the top of the FB page. Which obviously you won't see if you don't have it open...

Scott.

[JohnB]

Thanks for replies. Because the respondents were referring to a missing person, they must have been out and about with a mobile phone on, but to have it continually watching a Facebook police page seems extraordinary to me

People sit on public transport watching their twitter/facebook feeds scroll by, as opposed to playing Candy Crush or staring out the window. Me, I listen to mind improving podcasts.