PAUL MCFEDRIES

When Facebook announced in May 2010 that it had reached 500 million users, the news appeared in all the usual places — technology blogs, major news media outlets, and Web sites dedicated to all things Facebook. However, you also saw a story on the announcement if you were a member of AARP, the nonprofit organization that focuses on people aged 50 and older. That seems slightly odd at first blush. Why would an organization devoted to older adults care about a site that seems to be dominated by teenagers and young adults? For the answer to that conundrum you could turn to AARP itself, which had recently published the results of a study that looked at, among other things, the use of social networking among people aged 50 and up. The main result was that of people aged 50+ who used the Internet, 31 percent used Facebook (out of a total of 37 percent who used social networking sites).

The reality is that Facebook is not a site just for the very young. People of all ages use Facebook, but the majority of Facebook users are over 35, and the fastest growing segment on Facebook are people aged 50 and over. Why is Facebook so popular with those of us in the 50+ set? Probably because the things you can do on Facebook are more or less the same as the things you already do in your life: Chat with friends; view photos of your kids or grandkids; talk politics or gossip; play a game of Scrabble or fill in a crossword; learn more about your favorite hobby.

And that's where The Facebook Guide for People Over 50 comes in. Yes, this book shows you how to use Facebook with introductory guides to setting up your profile, learning the Facebook lingo, working with photos, and more. However, this is really a book about what you can do with Facebook. This book is mostly a comprehensive resource to the best that Facebook has to offer in a wide variety of topics: politics, history, charities, shopping, personal finance, fitness, health, medical conditions, aging, arts, media, hobbies, food, travel, and so much more.

Facebook is designed to help you improve and enhance your social life by keeping up with your family and friends, reconnecting with old friends and distant family members, and making new friends with similar interests and tastes. With The Facebook Guide for People Over 50 at your side, you'll see that Facebook can also help you improve and enhance all the other aspects of your life.

Please use links below to learn more about the book. (For some of the links you'll need a program that can open PDF files, such as Adobe Reader.)

Facebook Links Mentioned in the Book
Facebook Guide series on Facebook

• Table of Contents (37 KB PDF)
• Index (78 KB PDF)