I had been reading all this buzz about Facebook for quite a while now, yet nothing, not even the buzz in international tech circles, convinced me to even at least check out their homepage. Even though I keep getting URL’s leading to Facebook profiles from Twitter updates from my Twitter “followees,” nothing convinced me to sign up until I saw Yuga’s article on how so many Google bigwigs have jumped ship in favor of the social networking upstart.

Well, it was his article and Michael Stein’s invite that actually made me go for finally signing up for Facebook. And when I did, I never regretted it for a moment.

Surely I will not dump my Multiply or Friendster and stay solely on Facebook. Let’s face it, there are circles that connect to you only on certain social networking sites. Some people can thrive on change, even ride its wave, but most are quite comfortable with, and won’t budge from, what they’re used to. Heck, you’re talking to a girl who doesn’t even know how to do social bookmarking. :p

But back to Facebook. I believe that those who are more familiar and very comfortable with the older-generation social networking platforms will take a while to catch up to the wave of Facebook. Yet I believe a majority of those who get to try it eventually will.

As a user, I could see why I would jump to Facebook and try to convince people to join. I love the nifty apps, the instant-messaging-like way that messages are exchanged, and I love how it integrates with Twitter seamlessly. This collaborative atmosphere, this synergy, is what sets Facebook apart, I believe. And their billion-dollar startup or whatever (I do not understand it, really; I’m DUMMYGeekGurl, remember? :p) isn’t so ambitious to me now, after all.

After a day of having signed up for Facebook, I decided to explore it and bully my fiance into getting himself an account. And I bet he never regretted it for a moment, either. We decided to put up apps like the SuperPoke, the Sticky Notes, the Vampire/Slayers, the Growing Gifts, and we had our other personal preferences. I had my pet tiger, which is a (fluff)Friend, and he had his PetrolHead car. Which reminds me. His “1997 Saturn S” icon is really giving me the creeps. If your man wishes for a pretty car like that..

Anyway, we absolutely adored how we could flirt endlessly through the SuperPoke Facebook app, the stickies, and possibly even the wall. But we’re more of SuperPoke people. So this is the thrill of Facebook for us: expressing our desire and mushiness in an electronic way. And he can choose to be private about it, while I could choose to brandish it, or not (for when I decide to invite my parents).

For me, as a user, I have merely scratched the surface of Facebook’s potential. And yet, I’m content just coasting around Facebook for this time.

And so I bring you to my take on why even Google developers are jumping ship:

* Medical, dental and vision plans with no premium for employees
* 401(k) plan
* 21 vacation days per year, plus 8 company holidays and 2 floating holidays
* Complimentary catered breakfast, lunch and dinner daily
* Complimentary beverages and snacks
* Dry cleaning and laundry service onsite
* Free downtown parking permit
* Subsidized gym membership
* Catered Friday Happy Hours at the office
* $600/month housing subsidy if you live within one mile of the office
* Standard-issue 30″ LCD monitors and your option of 15″ Apple MacBook Pro or IBM ThinkPad
* Worldwide notoriety by having your face on sample Facebook Flyers

I found this on Facebook’s Jobs section. I just don’t know if they’re pulling the readers’ legs or what, but for a company to offer perks like these, if you were the one they were trying to seduce, wouldn’t you jump ship too?

I only wish there was a company here in my country that would have that!

(Salivating on the 30” LCD/MacBook Pro, plus the catered meals. Yum.)

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