Staring college? Here’s some advice on using Facebook, from the book “How to Survive Your Freshman Year” (Hundreds of Heads Books, www.hundredsofheads.com, $15.95, straight from people who’ve done it:

“Bring lots of bedding. Foam ‘egg crates’ are a must. The mattresses at my school are covered in rubber in case you wet the bed or something, so I got a feather bed, and lots of people have foam things. Then you can get a good night’s sleep.”

_Edith Zimmerman, Wesleyan University, sophomore

“I use Facebook to see how high school friends are doing during the year and how college friends are doing during the summer. I look at people’s pictures and walls most often. I’m happy enough with that; it can be a huge time sink, so I don’t spend more than an hour or two a week on it.”

_Amanda, Wellesley College, senior

“Facebook has become as much a part of the college experience as beer and books. Heck, people probably spend more time with Facebook than they do with the other two combined.”

_Anonymous, Washington and Lee University, junior

“The best benefit about Facebook is being able to reconnect with people you haven’t seen in a long time. But I would tell freshmen to think about where they want to be in ten years from now and try to evaluate what you put up on your Facebook profile based on that. If you are trying to go into law or politics, and you have a scandalous picture up, someone could copy it, paste it and save it for later.”

_J.M.G., Duke University, graduate

“It’s easy to go on Facebook and start looking at pictures and writing on walls. I just make it a policy not to do it while involved with academic work. And you can have it set up so that you get an e-mail everytime your Facebook page changes _ every time someone posts a picture of you, someone writes on your wall or sends you a message _ and I took all those options off.”

_Josh, Princeton University, senior

Hundreds of Heads Books’ survival guides offer the wisdom of the masses by assembling the experiences and advice of hundreds of people who have gone through life’s biggest challenges and have insight to share. Visit www.hundredsofheads.com to share your advice or get more information.

(c) 2009, Hundreds of Heads Books, Inc.

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