1. General Information
Facebook ( www.facebook.com ) has spawned a new language and way for people to interact. To succeed with this medium, knowledge of the constantly changing vocabulary and settings is necessary. This section of this document therefore continues to change and be updated on a regular basis.
1.1. Terms and definitions
What follows is a list of terms that will commonly be used throughout this document and in discussions about Facebook.
- Avatar: an image that represents a person or user online, or in a virtual world.
- Creative Commons: an intellectual property leasing agreement widely used in U.S. websites to indicate whether an item is free to be shared with other sites. Creative Commons may restrict commercial use or adaptation of a work.
- Fan: a person who has chosen to like the Facebook page of a business, institution or organization.
- Friend: a person with whom a user is connected through a personal Facebook account. A Facebook account of a business, organization or institution cannot "friend" a user's personal Facebook account.
- Like: 1. the act of showing support for a post or status on Facebook. 2. the act of becoming a fan of a Facebook page.
- Page: a personalized site for a business, organization or institution. Not to be confused with personal accounts on Facebook, as they have different layouts, rights and capabilities.
- Status update, or Status: mechanism through which a user posts messages or content (links to websites, video, etc.) for other Facebook users, allowing them to respond with comments, or simply to indicate that they "like" the content.
- Tag: 1. to label or identify people in a Facebook picture so that others looking at the photo know who they are. (Only Facebook users who have accounts can be tagged in a photo.) 2. to label or identify people or Facebook pages in a status update so that others know what you are saying about them. (Only Facebook users you have "friended," or pages you have "liked" may be tagged in a status update.)
1.2 Page setup
In order to set up a Facebook page, the person who will do so must have a personal Facebook account. Follow these instructions to get started:
- Type "create a facebook page" in the search bar. A link will appear.
- Choose the proper category definition for your unit. In general, all Princeton pages should be created in the category "Company, Organization or Institution" with the sub-category "University." Some exceptions may apply, such as for athletic teams.
- Create a name for the unit page, keeping in mind the Naming Guidelines section of the University's overall Social Media Policies document. Tip: Use "Princeton" as a prefix for the page.
- Facebook will walk you through many of the next decisions for early setup. You may try different options while exploring various settings, as the page is not yet published.
1.2.1 Formatting the page
After you have set up your Facebook page, you'll load it with photos and information representing your unit, based on the current page format, which was introduced in February 2011.
- The most noticeable feature is the photo strip across the top of the page. Please note that these photos will rotate among those you have included in your posts unless you specifically tag five photos. By choosing and tagging the photos, you can avoid having a random selection of posted photos inadvertently appear that might not be the best representation of your department (although they may have been highly effective in the context in which they were originally posted).
- To choose five photos, the user must go to the "Account" dropdown menu on the right side of the banner at the top of the page, and ensure that "Use Facebook as Page" is selected. Upload the five photos of your choice (if possible, pre-size them to 68 pixels tall by 98 pixels wide). After they are uploaded into Facebook, click on each photo, then click on "Tag This Photo" on the left side of the page. A cross-hair will appear. Click anywhere inside the photo frame; a drop-down box will appear. Type the name of your unit, and the page name will appear in the drop-down box. Click on your page name, then click "Done Tagging." After they are tagged, those five photos will appear in the strip all the time.
- Go through each of the links on the left side of the page and update information to build an identity for your page. In the "Info" link, add information on the background, mission, history and contact details about your unit; in the "Welcome" link, add such information as page goals, invitations for participation, links to important information and a basic description of your unit; and in the Photos link, add photos representing your unit and/or its members. You may choose also to add "Events," "Video," "Links" and other content in the categories provided.
1.2.2 Security settings
One potential challenge of being an administrator for a Facebook page is that security settings on your personal account affect the security of the unit's page. With this in mind, there are two simple settings administrators should always select before updating a Princeton-related Facebook page:
- All administrators (and separately, all Facebook users) should use secure, encrypted browsing by clicking on "Account" on the top right of the Facebook page, then clicking "Account Settings," then the "Change" link next to "Account Security." A box under "Secure Browsing" should be clicked.
- There is also a box under "Login Notifications" that should be checked. This ensures that users are informed if someone attempts to log in to Facebook via your account on an unfamiliar computer.
1.2.3 Recommended disclaimers
Two disclaimers are strongly recommended for all pages:
- Protect your unit and the University by explaining that the site is not associated with the undergraduate admission office, and include a link to the admission office website. [For example. “This site is not associated with the admission office. All potential applicants to Princeton are advised to go through the regular application channels, detailed on the official Princeton admission website ( http://www.princeton.edu/admission ).”]
- Protect the unit or department managing the page by explaining that user-generated content (comments, posts) remains at the discretion of the page owner. [For example, “ The X department reserves the right to delete user comments that promote commercial ventures or that do not comply with other University or Facebook policies. Posts that are off-topic, abusive, contain profanity, are threatening in tone or devolve into personal attacks will be deleted immediately. Posts that are determined to be spam will be removed immediately. Account administrators reserve the right to review all comments and posted materials and remove such materials for any reason."]