If you’re a hopeless Facebook addict fretting over the latest foisting of a new homepage on users, don’t fret — you’re not the only one singing the blues of the newly formatted homepage for millions of the social media phenomenon.
With a new Timeline format slowly taking over all Facebook accounts, anti-Timeline users are being forced to accept their profile’s new layout after receiving a notification from Facebook at random.
The notification which appears at the top of their profile gives users seven days to customize it before it goes public to all other users. It also offers users a tour of all the new features available to them on Timeline.
The most popular social network site on the planet has received mixed reviews about the new format since its launch earlier this year.
With its new cover photo feature and elaborate privacy settings, many FB users were impressed with the new format and think it is more user-friendly.
Farah Shamma, a student at the American University of Sharjah believes that while many think the older format was easier to use,Timeline is in fact very practical.
“I like that it’s pretty easy to find posts based on months. The cover photo is a nice touch as well, and you can play around with what you want to show on display,” she added
After getting Timeline, Facebook also highlights the user’s top stories and photos and gives them the choice to control who can see every post. Users are also able to view any post dating back to the date they first made their Facebook account.
Another Timeline enthusiast, Asma Atiq from Pakistan, also agrees, noting that “the idea is great, you have much more control over what people can see,” adding that it takes a little getting used to at first.
Anti-Timeline users
For those who aren’t voluntarily changing their profiles to Timeline, the mandatory shift has left them questioning the practicality of some of the new features.
Twenty-three-year-old Anum Tarique, said that while the added application is a good way of portraying one’s profile and their activities, the privacy settings on the Timeline format are not restrictive enough.
“Privacy should be taken into much more consideration as Facebook is a massive social hub and people tend to forget that anyone can search for someone without the other person knowing,” she added.
Another regular Facebook user Ahmad Yosry, said that while getting used to the new lay out will take time, finding posts on the timeline is not as easy as it seems. “Although it is called ‘time-line’ the posts are rarely ordered by time as they tend to group posts together by category,” he said, adding that trying to find specific posts other than wall posts by friends can get tricky.
Facebook had 955 active users on average at the end of 2012. 81 per cent of its monthly active users are outside the US and Canada. 2012 Statistics show that an average Facebook user has 130 friends and likes 80 pages. They also show that each week, more than 3.5 billion pieces of content are shared on Facebook.
