What exactly does being a "friend" get you?

Seems very juvenile to me. Like a popularity thing on MySpace etc. I do not think it means anything. Just a "networking" feature; but isn't that what we are doing here anyway?

Well, it allows you to pm a whole bunch of people at a time.

Basically, I'm in it for the MySpace-iness of it all. But also, I have been using it to reach out to people with whom I've had some contact but would welcome more, particularly posters who might feel a little disenfranchised for various reasons, and it has led to some PM's from people who had questions but felt, perhaps, that I didn't want to be bothered. Now they know it's okay.

It's certainly not required.

On thing you can do it click "My Contacts" and private message any or all of your friends. Also you can see which of your friends are online.

I think it you like to "network" in private messages, rather than on the boards, this is another way to do it.

ilg, i had the same question.
being a member here since 2000, i never understood the buddy list.
the ignore list?
sure.
i've gotten invites from people that i've never had contact with, lol.
but it's been fun messaging on the profile pages.

leslie

Brian FAQ answer: Friends and Contacts