A new week, a newly redesigned,
widely-used and enjoyed site has confused and generally done a poor job
communicating its intentions to its users. Last time, LastFM; this time,
Facebook. The reaction hasn't been as visceral as the response to the LastFM changes,
but just 5% of FB users have been exposed to the new layout. I predict the
volume will increase.
The new profile page is set up as in
a three-column format with one column reserved for ads. Get ready, more poorly
targeted ad messaging to come! The search box and links to your applications have
moved from the left-nav to a primary navigation bar at the very top of the page.
A new subnav has tabs for Wall, Info, Photos and "Boxes" that at least one
person has already commented should be renamed Apps given what you find on that
tab. Since the most popular and widely used applications developed for Facebook
are the Walls (Fun, Super, etc.) and photo uploads/sharing, creating quick link
tabs for them makes sense. The Info tab collects personal information
(professional and education history, city, groups relationship status, etc)
into one area. Also, smart and intuitive. And, for the time being, Facebook
does have a link for users to revert to the previous profile layout, but that
link will be disabled over the next few weeks.
The Wall is the default tab and it's
your old mini-feed on steroids. I haven't figured out how to limit the number
of stories shown and my attempts at changing the default settings for the
length of feed items themselves haven't been saved. What's the point of letting
you know I have activity on FriendFeed if the précis doesn't display? This middle
column of the layout would also be the place to have my favorites applications
displayed, but that does not seem to be an option. Instead, five applications
get relegated to the non ad-laden tab and it's unclear how to add or change
what appears there. (The order dragging feature is still in place for these
five.) Where did the rest of your apps disappear? To the Boxes tab which takes
you to a page of random ordering application displays. You can drag and drop
them around as on the old layout within this tab and even create individual
tabs for applications, but it's a buzzkill.
The ridiculous fun of Facebook is
the string of charms that you add to your profile. It's a mash-up of the inside
of your junior high locker, the posters up in your room, and doodles drawn on
your social studies notebook. What am I listening to? What am I reading? See
what a shitty Scrabble - I mean Scrabulous - player I am. Let me brag about my
cat. Adding and removing apps to my profile, moving apps around my page as I
grew more or less enamored of them, changing settings app by app was all easy.
Now it feels more like scavenger hunt and I'm not yet convinced the prize is worth
the effort.
