what's so great about facebook?

I finally created an account over at Facebook today, and I have to ask - what's the big deal? I've been reading articles and blog posts for months about how great Facebook is, and how it is so much better than Myspace, but I have to admit - I don't see why.

The design is cleaner, and obviously less buggy. There appears to be less of the "spammy" approach to their banner ads than on Myspace, but I don't really understand what its purpose is. It basically creates yet another online profile for you, which doesn't even have a readily available URL that you can tell people about, from what I can find so far. You can create a "badge" but I see no point in that except that it advertises Facebook and lets people know that you have a profile. Big deal. I could just put the words "I'm also on Facebook" somewhere on my site and it would do the same thing, right? You can search for friends, but you can't see their profile so you don't even know if it them or just someone with the same name until you "poke" them.

I see the benefit in their "group" offerings, as it seems like a decent way to network with people in your area, or at least your area of interest. I like the clean interface and RSVP functions, as opposed to Myspace's clunky and spam filled groups. I also like that you have to sign up before you can start browsing profiles, as it is one small step in making things a little harder for spammers. But that's about all I am seeing in favor of Facebook.

Can someone please tell me what I am missing, and what is so great about this site? I mean, if all it is going to do is collect email addresses from my mail program to try and find my friends, why shouldn't I just stay in touch using email? What does Facebook offer that I am missing? There has got to be more to it, right?

Although Myspace is a general pain in the ass and somewhat of an overall embarrassment, I have to admit that it was much easier to figure out what it was all about.