They don't prefer anonymity -- that is Facebook's USP, that it is real people who you actually know.
My mom uses it to keep in touch with family. It is easier for her than email, since she gets locked out of her email account every few years and loses her addressbook (like most of the people in it). However, Uncle Steve will always be Uncle Steve on Facebook.
There's something new and exciting for her about people she cares about every day -- a new photo of someone's baby, another picture uploaded from that wedding she couldn't attend, news that a cousin's son got accepted to Yale.
(Noteworthy for the discussion: my family is strewn all over the globe, and my has medical reasons which prevent her from seeing everyone as much as she would like. From her perspective its not more artificial than the telephone or letters, but it is a heck of a lot more convenient.)
They don't prefer anonymity -- that is Facebook's USP, that it is real people who you actually know.
My mom uses it to keep in touch with family. It is easier for her than email, since she gets locked out of her email account every few years and loses her addressbook (like most of the people in it). However, Uncle Steve will always be Uncle Steve on Facebook.
There's something new and exciting for her about people she cares about every day -- a new photo of someone's baby, another picture uploaded from that wedding she couldn't attend, news that a cousin's son got accepted to Yale.
(Noteworthy for the discussion: my family is strewn all over the globe, and my has medical reasons which prevent her from seeing everyone as much as she would like. From her perspective its not more artificial than the telephone or letters, but it is a heck of a lot more convenient.)