With more than 500 million active users, Facebook is considered the largest social network in the world today. Because of this, it is no surprise to learn that the site is also the most accessible of the world, according to the Google search engine.
Officially launched on February 4, 2004, the social network was founded by four friends, former roommates at the time students at Harvard University:
- Mark Zuckerberg is considered the original creator and current CEO of Facebook;
- Eduardo Saver, Brazilian businessman who acted as business manager in the early years
- Dustin Moskovitz, who served as vice president of engineering, and
- Chris Hughes, famous for having coordinated the presidential campaign of U.S. President, Barack Obama, on the Internet.
The heart of Facebook is the Wall. Each person has his own, and content posted on your wall is replicated to all your friends. Here you can share messages, photos, links and videos that you find interesting, and if your friends like it, they can "Like" or comment on your posts.
Like Orkut, your profile can be filled with your personal information, and photos - which can be marked (indicating their friends) and organized into albums - and video. Additionally, you can make contact with friends in a private message or post something in the "Wall" of them.
Another feature of Facebook are the applications and games. By being associated with a social platform, you can share your status, duel, or assist their friends in games, without that stop you from playing with strangers across the world, or even alone.
However, unlike Orkut, Facebook does not have any communities. Instead, people join in Fan Pages, bringing together people from around the world interested in any topics or specific taste, as well as artists, businesses, services and sites.
Access to Facebook is totally free, and all the revenue that the site collects comes from advertising banners around the site, and in some Brazilian operators, access to social network for mobile is free, even if you do not have credits for that.
If you like Facebook and just want to be part of this global community, do not waste time! Create your account and learn how to use it.
