Telegram Educational and Fun Resources

To keep your privacy and prevent others from seeing your phone number or full name, you can create a unique Telegram username. (There is a difference between a display name and username in Telegram. When using a display name, this implies that your phone number is visible to others. Also, your number will be the primary search criteria for your profile. If you create a username, that becomes your public profile name for Telegram.)

Usernames start with the "@" sign, and are visible to everyone globally. In order to find you, people will have to know your username first. This also means that no one will be able to find you by your phone number anymore. you can choose a public username in the Settings section of Telegram.
BTW - You can also use usernames outside of Telegram with the help of Telegram.me.
Like this: https://telegram.me/username


My Telegram username: http://t.me/JacobRichman

If you decide not to set a username, you can still block people from seeing your phone number under settings, privacy and security.

Like other social networks,
Telegram has all types of public and private channels and groups.
However, Telegram which is privately owned,
is a bit of the wild west.
There are groups and channels that post:
Illegal movies, music, books, etc....
There are also groups that sell illegal substances
and groups / channels with jokes, images and photos that would be removed on other networks.
When authorities request removal,
they usually are removed.
The channels I listed are moderated and
should not have anything "bad".
However, when you join a group,
that allows posting by any member,
they can post anything.
If someone breaks the rules
the group owner can ban them.
Simply, be careful on clicking on links
that you discover while doing searches.

Groups created or recommended by friends
you know, should be ok.

The Telegram smartphone app
(not the PC app or web site)
has a function under contacts called:
Find People Nearby
If you allow Telegram to access your location,
you get a list of all the people and groups nearby,
with an approximate distance marking.
You can turn on the "Make Me Visible" option
in the People Nearby window
so they can see your profile.
(do not worry....it is off by default) I tried the function without making myself visible.
I found a few groups in my area
that I did not know existed.
Could be useful if you attend conferences with
other Telegram users there.
You no longer have to exchange business cards with people you meet....
just add the nearby contact.
Note: I have not tried this yet considering I have not gone to any meetings in a long time.

If one of your contacts is sending you too many messages,
you can click on the contact profile
and choose to mute for either
a custom period of time or forever.
Also, if you joined a channel or group
and you are getting too many messages,
you can also mute them.
If you are on a news channel and it is a busy
news day, this is a simple way to stop the
notifications and stay on the channel.