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Comment by justherefortart | Hacker News Reader

All the cool kids were on facebook.

I remember signing up in 2005 because I was taking German for my future trip to the World Cup (pointless as 95%+ will reply in English (edit), unlike those darn French!).

As it grew in size and popularity, the limited nature of it really made those that couldn't get in jealous. I remember all the kids screaming about the feed when it went live, how they'd leave. Then once it opened to everyone, they'd leave then.

WhatsApp seems to be the new kid's playground, so facebook buying it was a smart move.

There will be another. Hell, maybe I'll make it :-)

Dropped out of my (still better IMO) Telegram style program after worrying about N$A fallout.

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The per university rollout of Facebook was genius. Actually keeping people from signing up until there is critical mass is, I suspect, crucial for building a social network.

There's nothing to discourage me from coming back quite like the feeling of signing up and finding out I'm the only one I know.

Well it was based off Harvard's yearbook which was called facebook. At least that was my understanding.

A "face book" is a generic term for a student directory.

Back in my day we just called it the student directory. Didn't have photos in any I'd seen as a kid/college student, those were only in yearbooks.

Not just a Harvard thing. A "facebook" or "lookbook" was a pretty common term both in and out of academia. It's still used in the fashion industry.

If facebook were that common, trademarking would have seemingly been a bit more difficult.

Having photos in student directories doesn't seem like a common thing.

Commonality isn't always a roadblock to trademarking.

Windows and Apple are two other examples. It definitely restricts the scope of the mark, but websites were new in all industries, just like software was when Microsoft and Apple got their TMs.

Depends on your criteria for common, but it was certainly not unique. We had them at the non-Harvard university I attended and IIRC, it was colloquially called the "freshman face book".

You mean 95% respond in English?

Yeah, I should proof read :-)

> unlike those darn French!

That's mostly Parisians, the rest of the country will generally see you trying and respond in English.

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