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You can finally decide what

happens to your Facebook account

when you die.

In a change of heart, the world’s most

popular social network will begin

allowing its members to designate

someone—what they call a “legacy

contact”—to manage parts of their

accounts posthumously. Members can

also choose to have their presence

deleted entirely.

Facebook and other Internet services

walk a difficult tightrope

between respecting the privacy of the

deceased and the demands of grieving

friends and family. Previously, Facebook

automatically froze the accounts of

members it learned had died, angering

some heirs who wanted to edit the

deceased’s online presence. It will roll

out the new options to members in the

U.S. on Thursday, with others to follow

later.

Asking us to make plans for a digital

afterlife may sound morbid, but it can

bring clarity to an issue that’s

both legally and

emotionally challenging. In

2013, Google became the first major

Internet company to allow users to

select digital heirs for its Gmail, cloud

storage and other services, dubbed

“inactive account managers.”

What’s the point of maintaining a social

network after death? Facebook legacy

contacts will be able to manage accounts

in a way that can turn the deceased

person’s Facebook page into a kind of

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digital gravestone. Legacy contacts can

write a post to display at the top of their

friend’s memorialized profile page,

change the friend’s profile picture, and

even respond to new friend requests on

behalf of the deceased.

Previously, Facebook froze the accounts

of members who had died.

If they’re granted prior permission,

legacy contacts can also download an

archive of posts and photos from the

deceased, but not the contents of his or

her private messages.

All of this is optional. If you do nothing,

when Facebook finds out you’ve passed,

it will simply freeze your account

and leave posts and pictures at the

privacy settings you determined, a

process it calls memorialization.

Facebook says it has done this to

hundreds of thousands of accounts to

date. (As before, Facebook won’t show

advertisements on memorialized

accounts.)

Being a legacy contact is different from

simply logging into the account of the

deceased, and there are important

things legacy contacts can’t alter. They

can’t edit what the deceased has already

posted, or what his or her friends post

on the page. If you chose to post a photo

while you are living that looks

embarrassing when you are gone, your

legacy contact can’t do anything about it.

A legacy contact also can’t decide to

delete a whole account.

These restrictions might upset some

people who think their job as a caretaker

is to maintain a Facebook page as

the nicest possible memorial. “We gave

this a lot of thought, and ultimately

decided against it for this first version,”

said spokeswoman Jodi Seth. Facebook

feared that curation responsibilities

might add an extra emotional load to

grieving, among other concerns.

To select your legacy contact, go to

Settings and choose Security and then

Legacy Contact at the bottom of the

page—it is the same for the Facebook

website or mobile app. There you can

designate an existing Facebook friend

(in other words, only someone who’s

already part of the social network), grant

that person permission to download an

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archive of your data, or choose to have

your account deleted after death.

Both the Facebook website and app have

this Legacy Contact setting under the

Security option.

There’s more fine print worth paying

attention to: You can select only one

person—and no backup—so spouses and

partners who often travel together may

face a difficult choice about whether to

designate each other. Ms. Seth says

Facebook is continuing to think about

how it might allow for contingent legacy

contacts.

Facebook members can change their

legacy contact selection at any time, but

once they have died, a legacy contact

can’t pass along the responsibility to

someone else.

If you don’t choose a legacy contact on

Facebook but name a digital heir in a

legal will, Facebook will designate that

person.

It’s exhausting to think that Facebook

has become so interwoven into our lives

that we not only have to think about

setting our birthdays, relationships and

jobs in stone there, but now also our

deaths. Still, Facebook’s new service

empowers people to make choices about

their data while they are living, and for

many, that’s a relief.

By: Geoffrey A. Fowler

Source: The Wall Street Journal

posthumously – following or occurring after death

tightrope – to be in a difficult situation that demands careful and considered behavior

legacy – a gift of property, especially personal property or money, by will

curation – pulling together, sifting through, and selecting for presentation, e.g. music or website

content

interwoven – intermingled or combined as if by weaving

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a change of heart Definition: a reversal of one's feelings, intentions, opinions, etc.

Example: In a change of heart, the world’s most popular social network will begin

allowing its members to designate someone—what they call a “legacy contact”—to

manage parts of their accounts posthumously.

legacy contact Definition: a person chosen to look after a deceased person’s Facebook account once it is

memorialized.

Example: Being a legacy contact is different from simply logging into the account of the

deceased, and there are important things legacy contacts can’t alter.

digital heir Definition: beneficiary of a deceased person’s digital assets.

Example: If you don’t choose a legacy contact on Facebook but name a digital heir in a

legal will, Facebook will designate that person.

Positioning of Adverbs in Sentences:

What are adverbs?

Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives or other adverbs.

Adverbs usually answer the questions when, where and how.

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Adverbs typically end in –ly (e.g. slowly, immediately).

When a group of words with a subject and a verb functions as an adverb, it is called an

adverb clause.

When a phrase acts as an adverb, it is called an adverbial phrase.

Adverb modifying verbs:

A legacy contact will be allowed to manage parts of a deceased person’s accounts posthumously.

verb adverb

The adverb posthumously answers the question, “When can the legacy contact manage a person’s

Facebook account?”

Adverb modifying adjectives:

Curation responsibilities might add an extra emotional load to grieving.

adv adj

Extra answers the question, “How much emotional load do curation responsibilities add to

grieving?”

“More”, “most”, “less” and “least” are the most common adverbs used to show degree.

Adverb modifying another adverb:

Facebook is very seriously considering having a contingent legacy contact in case of death of the

adv adv

original legacy contact.

The adverb very answers the question, “How seriously is Facebook considering having a contingent

legacy contact in case the original legacy contact dies?” The adverb seriously answers the question “How

is Facebook taking the issue of having a contingent legacy contact?”

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How do we position adverbs in a sentence?

The position of the adverb in a sentence can be determined by the type of adverb used.

Incorrect positioning of adverbs in a sentence can affect meaning.

There are three basic adverb positioning: in the beginning, middle and end of the sentence.

Adverbs can also be placed after to be, before the main verb, and in between the auxiliary verb

(has, have, can, shall, will etc.) and the main verb.

Types of adverbs:

Adverb of manner:

The placement of an adverb of manner is flexible, but the most common and acceptable

placement is the end of the sentence:

He posthumously managed the account. [Beginning of sentence]

The account is posthumously managed. [Mid-sentence, before main verb]

He managed the account posthumously. [End of sentence]

Adverb of place:

An adverb of place can be put in the middle or at the end of the sentence:

There might be a copy on Facebook of your embarrassing photo. [Mid-sentence]

There might be a copy of your embarrassing photo on Facebook. [End of sentence]

Adverb of frequency:

An adverb of frequency can be placed in the middle or at the end of the sentence. It can

also be placed between the auxiliary verb and the main verb:

Facebook continuously thinks about having a contingent legacy contact. [Mid-

sentence, before main verb]

Facebook has to continuously think about having a contingent legacy contact.

[Between auxiliary and main verbs]

Facebook thinks about having a contingent legacy contact continuously. [End of

sentence]

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Adverb of time

An adverb that denotes infinitive time should be placed before the verb or between the

auxiliary and the main verbs:

The legacy contact can never delete the deceased person’s Facebook account.

[Between auxiliary and main verbs]

Adverb of purpose

An adverb of purpose is usually placed at the end of the sentence:

It is important to have a digital heir to easily bring clarity to a legally and emotionally

challenging issue. [End of sentence]

Positioning of multiple adverbs in a sentence:

When using multiple adverbs in a sentence, prioritize according to:

1. Manner

2. Place

3. Frequency

4. Time

5. Purpose

Netizens participated enthusiastically in the contest on Facebook and repeatedly sent

manner place frequency

entries before the end of the campaign period to have a higher chance of winning.

time purpose

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Not all adverbs are useful in our reports. To maintain brevity and objectivity, it is important to know

which adverbs may be omitted from the reports without affecting insights.

Omit adverbs that only serve as intensifiers:

When we say, “Netizens considered Product A to be very good,” the intensifier very

does not help make the insight actionable, as it only shows the degree by which Product

A is considered to be good. Alternatively, we may focus on what makes Product A “very

good” and revise to “Netizens considered Product A to be good at doing Function B”.

Also avoid using “highly”, “really”, “extremely” and similar adverbs. Focus on the

quantifiable data that led to the use of the intensifier. Instead of saying that “Netizens

highly discussed Topic A”, go direct to the point and say that “500 netizens discussed

Topic A.”

This also applies to using adverbs of degree such as “most”, “more” or “less”. Instead of

saying “Most buzz were about Topic A,” we may rephrase it to “80% of buzz were about

Topic A.” We may also change “Less buzz were observed for Topic B this month,” to

“Buzz for Topic B declined from 100 to 55 month to month.”

Always remember that different readers will have different interpretations of

intensifiers/degree adverbs. What is high or extreme to one person may not be high or

extreme to another. In this case, focus on giving specific details.

For time-sensitive reports (e.g. SGG DARS), using adverbs of degree is acceptable, as

long as there is a legend with clear definitions of what is considered to be “most”,

“more”, “less” or “few”.

Omit adverbs of manner, time and purpose when they only highlight redundant information

In many cases, adverbs of manner, time and purpose do not add value to a sentence or

write-up.

For example, if we remove the underlined adverbs of manner, time and purpose in the

sentence “Netizens participated enthusiastically in the Facebook contest and

repeatedly sent entries before the end of the campaign period to have a higher chance

of winning”, we will end up with the much concise “Netizens sent multiple entries to

the Facebook contest.”

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In this case, the fact that netizens “sent multiple entries” already implied that netizens

enthusiastically participated during the campaign period for a higher chance of winning.

Unless doing time-based analysis, it is usually not necessary to indicate the month or

covered period within the analysis because it is already indicated in the project scope as

the default basis of the report. Instead of saying, “Brand A received 1,000 total

engagement this month,” we can just say, “Brand A received 1,000 total engagement.”

When used properly, adverbs can help us present a robust analysis.

Use adverbs of frequency and time to highlight a recurring issue/trend:

“Netizens regularly complained about the attitude of beauty advisors for the past 6

months.”

“Buzz for the past 3 months were increasingly negative.”

Adverbs of place and degree may be used to present trends and demographic data:

“Most netizens who comment on BeautyExchange Forum prefer Giorgio Armani

Luminous Silk Foundation.”

“Majority of commenters on HardwareZone Forum are experts on finance and

technology.”

Adverbs of purpose can be used to show the needs and wants of netizens:

“Netizens look for an inexpensive travel cosmetic set to bring to their Chinese New

Year vacation.

“Young mothers go the BB Expo to stock up on discounted newborn diapers.”

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Exercise 1: Answer the crossword puzzle by supplying the correct adverb that will complete the sentence.

7

1 O N

2 Q

C

9

8

I

3 S M M S

S

6

4 N E R

E

D

X

T

5 M O

T

Across

1. According to Mark Twain, “politicians and diapers must be changed _______, and for the same reason.”

2. He ran very __________. 3. I meet with clients in a coffee shop

_________. 4. Never say _______. 5. Buzz were _______ from Twitter.

Down

6. Going out at night is ___________ dangerous.

7. “One isn't ___________ born with courage, but one is born with potential.” – Maya Angelou

8. _____ buzz were observed for Lancôme this month than last month.

9. I called for an ambulance ____________.

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Exercise 2: Read each of the following sentences carefully. Identify the adverb and the word it modifies. Use yellow highlights for the adverb and green highlights for the adjective/verb/other adverb it modifies.

1. Netizens received the design of the new Samsung Galaxy S6 negatively.

2. Most engagement with Clinique’s Valentine’s Day campaign came from

Facebook.

3. Forum commenters repeatedly posted about the poor wording of Singtel’s advertisements.

4. As Maybelline’s lipsticks made their lips dry, netizens looked for alternatives

from other brands.

5. SK-II’s website crashed unexpectedly, as 3,000 netizens tried to sign up for its trial campaign within the first 30 minutes.

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Beauty Industry Jargons

1. Pigmented – how rich the color of a product is.

Sample Sentence: Estée Lauder Pure Color Envy Shine was a favorite among beauty bloggers for being highly pigmented.

2. Waterlining – applying eye liner on the skin between the lower lashes and the eyeball.

Sample Sentence: The Revlon ColorStay eye liner is good for waterlining because the color stays well.

3. Cosmeceutical – a marketing term to describe a cosmetic product that is claimed to have a therapeutic effect.

Sample Sentence: SkinCeuticals is one of the most popular cosmeceutical brands.

4. HD – refers to high definition resolution of television/film cameras. This requires careful blending and use of makeup products to avoid unwanted aspects showing on screen. HD also affects the appearance of colors, especially red shades. Makeup artists have developed HD makeup techniques, while brands have released makeup suitable for HD shoots.

Sample Sentence: Make Up For Ever HD Invisible Cover Foundation was recommended for brides who want to look good in wedding photos.

5. Sheen – describes the level of shine that a product has. Sheen ranges from a soft, natural sheen (also called dewy) to a high-sheen or glossy finish. A product with no sheen is called matte.

Sample Sentence: M·A·C Sheen Supreme Lipstick was described to combine the color impact of a lipstick and the shiny sheen of a lip glass.

For more beauty terms and their meanings, you may go to:

1. LUXURY AND BEAUTY TERMS (prepared by the QC Team)

2. HAIR AND MAKEUP GLOSSARY: A-M; N-Z

3. A GUIDE TO BEAUTY BLOGGER LINGO

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High-Impact Business Writing

Articulate thoughts in a clear and concise manner and use

the proper business writing format depending on the

target audience.

Available at Coursera from April 6 to May 8, 2015

Data Visualization

Present data in an understandable and insightful manner.

Available at Coursera from July 20 to August 16, 2015

Digital Analytics for Marketing

Professionals: Marketing Analytics in

Practice

Communicate and visualize analytics for effective marketing.

Available at Coursera from June (unspecified) to July 26, 2015

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Adverbs. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2014, from

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/adverbs.htm

Adverb placement. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2014, from http://site.uit.no/english/grammar/adverb-

placement/

Beauty Blogger Lingo Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from

http://www.company.co.uk/beauty/beauty-blogger-language-dictionary

change of heart. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com

website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/change of heart

curation. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com

website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/curation

Hair and Makeup Glossary: A-M |. (2012, December 13). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://hair-and-

makeup-artist.com/makeup-glossary/

Hair and Makeup Glossary: N-Z |. (2012, December 13). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://hair-and-

makeup-artist.com/makeup-glossary-n-z/

interwoven. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com

website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/interwoven

Learning English: Position of Adverbs. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2014, from

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv202.shtml

legacy. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com

website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/legacy

What is a legacy contact? (n.d.). Retrieved February 27, 2015, from

https://www.facebook.com/help/1568013990080948

posthumously. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com

website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/posthumously

tightrope. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com

website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/tightrope

Note: The Learner’s Digest may feature content or source that uses styles, guidelines or rules not consistent with the Brandtology standards. When in doubt, refer to the Brandtology Corporate Stylebook or other pertinent resources.