Electronics

[SaRina]

Quick question:  I've never sent a message on FB and want to contact an old friend, but I want to be sure my message does not show up anywhere on her FB page or that it is viewable by the public.

I'm talking about the small white "Message" box in the lower left corner of the Home page photo.  If I click on that and type a message, will it be private?  From what I read on-line, it's private to the recipient, but I wanted to be absolutely sure.

tia

[zanna]

Yes, messages are just between you and the recipient.

[SaRina]

Oops.  And can I send a Message without being a Friend?..... because I just tried sending a message and it said, "You and Jane Doe are not connected on FB."  (but it didn't say the message didn't go through)

[Jaspersmom]

Usually you can.  I've sent messages to people first to say hello and let them know who I am (i.e. - childhood friend, former colleague, etc.). 

[Kitlynn]

Yes if you go to your friends home page and click on the message box you can send  a private message that only that person can see. Even if you aren't friends on facebook they will get the message.

[SaRina]

Thanks everyone.  I wanted to send a funny message to someone I knew in high school to jog her memory -- rather than just sending a Friend request first......  but I have no confirmation that the Message was sent. Again, all I got was "You and Jane Doe are not connected in FB" and I took this to mean my message was not sent.... because we are not connected. Is there some way to know if it was or not?

[dooBdoo]

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@SaRina wrote:

Thanks everyone.  I wanted to send a funny message to someone I knew in high school to jog her memory -- rather than just sending a Friend request first......  but I have no confirmation that the Message was sent. Again, all I got was "You and Jane Doe are not connected in FB" and I took this to mean my message was not sent.... because we are not connected. Is there some way to know if it was or not?

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          @SaRina, If you're able to select a person's name and send the message, and you see the notice that you're not "connected," your message is supposed to go to their "Message Requests" box.   (In the full, desktop version, this mailbox is found at the top of the page on the left when you go to your Messages.)    It generates a notification to the person that they have a message request.   I've noticed some people don't check their notifications very often, and also many aren't aware of the "Message Requests" box, so it might take a while before your friend sees the info.

hth!

[SaRina]

Thanks for the explanation @dooBdoo.  

Sorry for my confusion and questions.  I don't do FB and only have an account to play FB games, so I'm not terribly astute when it comes to knowing all the ins and outs.  I wasn't aware of my Messages box either and just found it up top.  Mine is towards the right with the other icons. Now I know!  So assuming my message went through, I'll be checking my Message box to look for a response.  :-)

[dooBdoo]

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@SaRina wrote:

@Thanks for the explanation @dooBdoo.  

Sorry for my confusion and questions.  I don't do FB and only have an account to play FB games, so I'm not terribly astute when it comes to knowing all the ins and outs.  I wasn't aware of my Messages box either and just found it up top.  Mine is towards the right with the other icons. Now I know!  So assuming my message went through, I'll be checking my Message box to look for a response.  :-)

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          You're welcome, @SaRina!    No apologies needed for questions...  I think Facebook can be very confusing, unpredictable, and inconsistent, even for those of us who use it frequently.

[glb613]

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@SaRina wrote:

@Thanks for the explanation @dooBdoo.  

Sorry for my confusion and questions.  I don't do FB and only have an account to play FB games, so I'm not terribly astute when it comes to knowing all the ins and outs.  I wasn't aware of my Messages box either and just found it up top.  Mine is towards the right with the other icons. Now I know!  So assuming my message went through, I'll be checking my Message box to look for a response.  :-)

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You have to have an account to send someone a message.  I'm not sure what you mean by you don't do Facebook, I'm assuming you mean you don't post and read on a regular basis.  That is not a requirement to have an account. 

I know of a lot of older adults who joined Facebook and became "friends" with their family so they could see updates and photos of their children and grandchildren.  It really is a nice way to keep in contact with people you know.  I've reconnected with friends and High School classmates I haven't seen for years and it's been fun.  Having an account doesn't mean you must be on it all day.  How you use a device or social media is up to you.