Now that Facebook is a public company and a lot of the discussion surrounding it has shifted to financial/advertising metrics, it is easy to forget what it was originally build for: to help people stay in touch with friends and family.

For 68 percent of Facebook user surveyed by the Pew Research Center in August and September 2013, seeing what family and friends are up to is one of the main reasons to log on to the social network. 62 percent state that they are drawn to Facebook because they want to see the photos and videos their friends share.

It's very interesting that the two most frequently quoted reasons to use Facebook involve passive rather than active communication. Only 17 percent of the respondents named posting personal updates as one of the main reasons to be using Facebook, 28 percent like sharing their own photos and videos.