Against all odds, you likely know someone who still hasn't succumbed to the lure of Facebook. Maybe you're a beginner yourself. Or perhaps you just haven't had the gosh darn time to explore every last corner of the world's most expansive social network.
Below, we offer a refresher course for those eager to learn more about the basics of Facebook. Let's take a social stroll through the network's main features, policies and culture norms.
Even if you're a pro, it's fun to look at the platform through a beginner's eyes. If you were a Facebook virgin, what would you think of the social network?
1. Timeline
Before you begin searching for friends, it's important to complete your Timeline (aka your personal profile), which includes everything from uploading a profile picture and cover photo to outlining your employment history to determining your relationship status (OK, that's optional). It's called a timeline because you can include information, important milestones and memories spanning your entire life. Timeline is incredibly nuanced, and encourages you to include as much detail as possible, and many, many people do — so, don't be shy!
Check out these additional resources for building the best Timeline:
- Facebook Timeline: The Complete Guide
- Facebook Timeline: 10 Simple Tips and Tricks
- How to Fill Out Facebook Timeline Without Annoying Your Friends
2. Friends
Once you've filled out a healthy portion of your Timeline, start searching for and adding "friends." Trust us, you won't be at a loss. Chances are, many of your co-workers, family members, classmates and neighbors are already on the network. Search for them in the search box that appears on the top of the site.
As you accumulate friends, Facebook will be able to suggest additional contacts as its algorithm generates connections among your growing network. You'll see a list of suggested friends on Facebook's homepage, in the "People You May Know" sidebar.
3. News Feed
Finding friends on Facebook is incredibly important, not simply to connect for connection's sake, but to stay up to date on their latest news, thoughts, activities, whereabouts and tastes. And the place to access that information is the News Feed.
Once you've logged into Facebook, the first thing you'll see is the News Feed. There you'll view friends' status updates, new photos, links to articles, etc. One of the most recent changes Facebook made to its News Feed is the order in which updates appear. Facebook's algorithm and your own activity determine what "news" is most important, and thus, whether it makes the top of your News Feed. Think of it like the front page of a newspaper, determined by an algorithm rather than an editor. Therefore, you won't necessarily see updates in the order they're posted, but in order of timeliness and "importance."
If you prefer to see things in chronological order, simply click the "Sort" option at the top of your feed and select "Most Recent."
Here are some more ways to customize your Facebook News Feed.
The quickest and easiest edit to your news feed is to be found at the top of your home page.
Click on "Sort" and you get the option to see just "Top stories" or "Most recent."
"Top stories" means you're letting Facebook's algorithms decide what's most important.
Facebook says this is decided by "lots of factors," including your relationship to the person who posted the story, how many comments and likes it got, what type of story it is, etc.
The "Most Recent" option will return to your news feed to a more chronological order.
If you're seeing too many updates from one person, you can edit what it is you see.
In your news feed, hover over a post from your noisy friend and a small box with an arrow in will appear in the top right hand corner.
Click this and you'll get a menu. Now you can change what you see in your feed from this particular friend.
You can choose to see only "important" updates (again, this will be determined by Facebook) or choose to unsubscribe entirely.
Don't worry — if you do unsubscribe, your friend won't be notified.
Depending on the type of post you've clicked on, you'll also get the option to hide that specific kind of content.
In our screen grab it offers the option to unsubscribe to status updates, but you can also hide photo posts, "comments and likes," and "activity stories."
Just look at the very bottom of the pop-up menu for these options.
If you want to mute a page, the options are a little different.
Again, hover over the offending post and click the arrow for the menu.
You'll now have the option to hide all posts from that page.
As well as friends and pages, you can get rid of annoying content from apps and third-party services.
If you're fed up of seeing location-based checkins in your feed, don't want to see what music people are listening to, what they're pinning on Pinterest, what they're snapping with Instagram, what they're reading on other sites or what games they're playing, this can all be muted.
Every time you see a type of post you don't like, hover over it, hit the menu and at the bottom you'll see the option to "Hide all" by that application.
To resubscribe to anything you've muted and to manage your news feed settings, head to your home page.
Hover over where it reads "News Feed" at the top left of the menu and click on the pencil that appears.
Click "Edit settings" and you'll get a pop-up window displaying the friends, apps and pages you've hidden posts from.
You can click the "X" next to each item to start seeing that kind of content in your stream again.
You can really drill down into the details of what kind of content you see from people.
This is useful if you have a friend you're interested in seeing most content from, but are getting really fed-up with their gaming addiction, for example.
To tailor these settings to suit, head to your friend's profile page and hit the "Subscribed" icon under their cover photo.
Now you can uncheck what you don't want to see and customize exactly what you do.
To do the same for people you're subscribed to, but those who aren't your friends, there's a quick way to manage all content en masse.
Although you can still go to each profile page in the way previously described, a quicker option is to head to your "Subscriptions" page to see everyone in one place.
To get to your Subscriptions page, head to your profile. Click on the drop-down arrow to the right of your four "Favorites" boxes and you should see a "Subscriptions" box. Click on this.
Now, to the right of each person you're subscribed to you'll see a "Subscribed" box. Click on this to tailor what kind of content you want to see from each person.
If you're primarily interested in seeing news from a group of people, you can use Facebook's "Lists" functionality to set up a dedicated news feed.
Once you set up a list, you can click on that list from your home page to see content from only those selected folk.
To set up a list, go to your homepage and hover over the lists section on the left until "More" appears next to it.
Hot "More" and you'll get a fresh screen with a "Create List" button on the top right.
Once you've hit this you need to give your list a name, then follow the "Add friends" prompt to select the list's population from a pop-up box.
Finally, now that you've got your Facebook news feed in order, you can hide the "News Ticker," too.
From your home page, mouse down to the very bottom right hand corner of your screen and find the icon that looks like an open box with an arrow.
Clicking this will make the sidebar (and therefore the ticker) disappear.
The quickest and easiest edit to your news feed is to be found at the top of your home page.
Click on "Sort" and you get the option to see just "Top stories" or "Most recent."
"Top stories" means you're letting Facebook's algorithms decide what's most important.
Facebook says this is decided by "lots of factors," including your relationship to the person who posted the story, how many comments and likes it got, what type of story it is, etc.
The "Most Recent" option will return to your news feed to a more chronological order.
If you're seeing too many updates from one person, you can edit what it is you see.
In your news feed, hover over a post from your noisy friend and a small box with an arrow in will appear in the top right hand corner.
Click this and you'll get a menu. Now you can change what you see in your feed from this particular friend.
You can choose to see only "important" updates (again, this will be determined by Facebook) or choose to unsubscribe entirely.
Don't worry — if you do unsubscribe, your friend won't be notified.
Depending on the type of post you've clicked on, you'll also get the option to hide that specific kind of content.
In our screen grab it offers the option to unsubscribe to status updates, but you can also hide photo posts, "comments and likes," and "activity stories."
Just look at the very bottom of the pop-up menu for these options.
If you want to mute a page, the options are a little different.
Again, hover over the offending post and click the arrow for the menu.
You'll now have the option to hide all posts from that page.
As well as friends and pages, you can get rid of annoying content from apps and third-party services.
If you're fed up of seeing location-based checkins in your feed, don't want to see what music people are listening to, what they're pinning on Pinterest, what they're snapping with Instagram, what they're reading on other sites or what games they're playing, this can all be muted.
Every time you see a type of post you don't like, hover over it, hit the menu and at the bottom you'll see the option to "Hide all" by that application.
To resubscribe to anything you've muted and to manage your news feed settings, head to your home page.
Hover over where it reads "News Feed" at the top left of the menu and click on the pencil that appears.
Click "Edit settings" and you'll get a pop-up window displaying the friends, apps and pages you've hidden posts from.
You can click the "X" next to each item to start seeing that kind of content in your stream again.
You can really drill down into the details of what kind of content you see from people.
This is useful if you have a friend you're interested in seeing most content from, but are getting really fed-up with their gaming addiction, for example.
To tailor these settings to suit, head to your friend's profile page and hit the "Subscribed" icon under their cover photo.
Now you can uncheck what you don't want to see and customize exactly what you do.
To do the same for people you're subscribed to, but those who aren't your friends, there's a quick way to manage all content en masse.
Although you can still go to each profile page in the way previously described, a quicker option is to head to your "Subscriptions" page to see everyone in one place.
To get to your Subscriptions page, head to your profile. Click on the drop-down arrow to the right of your four "Favorites" boxes and you should see a "Subscriptions" box. Click on this.
Now, to the right of each person you're subscribed to you'll see a "Subscribed" box. Click on this to tailor what kind of content you want to see from each person.
If you're primarily interested in seeing news from a group of people, you can use Facebook's "Lists" functionality to set up a dedicated news feed.
Once you set up a list, you can click on that list from your home page to see content from only those selected folk.
To set up a list, go to your homepage and hover over the lists section on the left until "More" appears next to it.
Hot "More" and you'll get a fresh screen with a "Create List" button on the top right.
Once you've hit this you need to give your list a name, then follow the "Add friends" prompt to select the list's population from a pop-up box.
Finally, now that you've got your Facebook news feed in order, you can hide the "News Ticker," too.
From your home page, mouse down to the very bottom right hand corner of your screen and find the icon that looks like an open box with an arrow.
Clicking this will make the sidebar (and therefore the ticker) disappear.
4. The Status Update
A status update is anything important to you at a particular moment in time that you deem shareable with Facebook friends. Through a status update, you can communicate your present activity or whereabouts (via a "check-in"), post a link to an interesting article or site, share photos and videos, and even create a poll.
Create a status update either from the News Feed or from the top of your Timeline.
However, I recommend first taking a look at many of your friends' status updates before launching into your own. Each person has his or her own style and frequency, but many newbies aren't aware of typical Facebook "etiquette" when it comes to updates. In general, Facebook users resent "spammy" updates — in other words, sharing every single activity on your schedule and thought in your brain ("I just boarded the 6:05 train"). Boring. These days, Facebook is a space for sharing valuable information and fostering conversation. It's not a platform for minutiae.
Check out these additional resources on statuses and status etiquette:
- 10 Things You Can Fit Into Your 63,206-Character Facebook Status
- This Is Why You Were Friended or Unfriended [STUDY]
5. Brands
Although a major part of Facebook, friends are not the only entities with whom you can interact. Most major brands and a growing number of small businesses use Facebook to engage with, share deals and seek feedback from consumers and fans. Companies like Coca-Cola and Disney have tens of millions of fans interested in the latest company news and culture.
Take stock of the brands you'd like to follow, search for their timelines and "like" them on Facebook. You'll start seeing their updates appear in the News Feed right alongside those of your friends. Feel free to interact with brand updates.
For more on how brands use Facebook, see these resources:
Check out what some creative brands have done with Facebook's Timeline.
Not only has Red Bull taken advantage of Timeline, it has also created a scavenger hunt with prizes to get fans interacting with the company's history.
The New York Times' Timeline, which features its rather large staff as a cover photo, has highlighted moments from more than 160 years in history.
AT&T's cover photo brings together an "ever-changing mosaic" of its fans' photos.
The professional soccer team has also taken advantage of Timeline's biographical features, already filling its page with content from 1908.
The company's fresh-faced models are featured as the cover photo for Dove's brand Page.
"Real women have been our inspiration from the very beginning. Today your photos, stories and memorable moments make up our new timeline," writes the company.
Madonna has switched over to Timeline, and is using her brightly colored album cover as her Facebook cover photo.
Coca-Cola's Timeline dates all the way back to its founding date, May 8, 1886.
"The Coca-Cola Facebook Page is a collection of your stories showing how people from around the world have helped make Coke into what it is today," writes the company.
The motorcycle company's history, dating back to 1903, is all filled out on its Timeline.
Nike is also an early adopter to Timeline. Its Page info dates back to 1972, when it was founded.
Kate Spade mixed designs with its cover photo and profile picture, and has filled out to its founding date in 1993.
The car company's Timeline dates back to when it was founded, Oct. 31, 1957.
"We encourage you to browse through our extensive Timeline to discover (or re-discover) some of the rich history of our products, people as well as messages from our loyal fans like you," the company writes.
Coldplay has filled its Timeline all the way back to the band's first show in 1998. They've also included interesting facts about their early days as a band.
Naturally, Facebook has filled out its own Timeline as well.
Walmart has its Timeline filled out back to the day it opened its doors for the first time in 1962. There are images of old stores and information about the evolution of the company.
Macy's also filled out its history on Timeline, including pictures of the first "fancy dry goods store" in 1822.
Ford's Timeline dates back to 1903, when the first Model A sold for $850.
People has placed some of Hollywood's most familiar faces across its profile as a cover photo.
The cast of the Today Show was among a select few photos chosen to roll out the social networking site's new design.
The Timeline explores 60 years worth of history.
ESPN's SportsCenter used its colorful studio as a backdrop for the program's Timeline.
Lexus has included milestones throughout its Timeline, dating all the way back to its start in 1983. The cover photo is a hybrid concept.
Not only has Red Bull taken advantage of Timeline, it has also created a scavenger hunt with prizes to get fans interacting with the company's history.
The New York Times' Timeline, which features its rather large staff as a cover photo, has highlighted moments from more than 160 years in history.
AT&T's cover photo brings together an "ever-changing mosaic" of its fans' photos.
The professional soccer team has also taken advantage of Timeline's biographical features, already filling its page with content from 1908.
The company's fresh-faced models are featured as the cover photo for Dove's brand Page.
"Real women have been our inspiration from the very beginning. Today your photos, stories and memorable moments make up our new timeline," writes the company.
Madonna has switched over to Timeline, and is using her brightly colored album cover as her Facebook cover photo.
Coca-Cola's Timeline dates all the way back to its founding date, May 8, 1886.
"The Coca-Cola Facebook Page is a collection of your stories showing how people from around the world have helped make Coke into what it is today," writes the company.
The motorcycle company's history, dating back to 1903, is all filled out on its Timeline.
Nike is also an early adopter to Timeline. Its Page info dates back to 1972, when it was founded.
Kate Spade mixed designs with its cover photo and profile picture, and has filled out to its founding date in 1993.
The car company's Timeline dates back to when it was founded, Oct. 31, 1957.
"We encourage you to browse through our extensive Timeline to discover (or re-discover) some of the rich history of our products, people as well as messages from our loyal fans like you," the company writes.
Coldplay has filled its Timeline all the way back to the band's first show in 1998. They've also included interesting facts about their early days as a band.
Naturally, Facebook has filled out its own Timeline as well.
Walmart has its Timeline filled out back to the day it opened its doors for the first time in 1962. There are images of old stores and information about the evolution of the company.
Macy's also filled out its history on Timeline, including pictures of the first "fancy dry goods store" in 1822.
Ford's Timeline dates back to 1903, when the first Model A sold for $850.
People has placed some of Hollywood's most familiar faces across its profile as a cover photo.
The cast of the Today Show was among a select few photos chosen to roll out the social networking site's new design.
The Timeline explores 60 years worth of history.
ESPN's SportsCenter used its colorful studio as a backdrop for the program's Timeline.
Lexus has included milestones throughout its Timeline, dating all the way back to its start in 1983. The cover photo is a hybrid concept.
6. The "Like" Button
One of the most powerful tools on Facebook, the "like" button not only communicates your support of activities, brands, articles and products to fellow users, but also to Facebook and third parties. The "like" button lives on nearly every piece of Facebook content: status updates, photos, comments, brands timelines, apps and even ads.
However, you've probably also seen Facebook "like" and share buttons on external sites: shopping, news publications, mobile and social apps, and ads. These sites are utilizing Facebook's social plugins. When you "like" something outside of Facebook.com, it appears on your timeline, where friends can comment on the activity.
When Facebook expanded this functionality outside of Facebook.com, it opened up a rich social layer that most social networks had never before imagined. On the other hand, keep in mind that Facebook keeps track of your "like" activity and uses it to "improve the quality" of ads on the site. If sharing that kind of data makes you nervous, you're not alone. Just be mindful that Facebook can share this behavioral data with third parties. For more information, see Facebook's full data use policy.
7. Tagging
Facebook tagging means you can mention and directly link to another Facebook user, whether in photos, status updates, check-ins or comments. For instance, when you tag someone in a photo, that user will receive a notification, and the tagged photo will appear on his timeline — that is, unless he has disabled the tagging feature.
The tagging tool fosters conversation and creates additional connections among users. If I want my mother to see an article I posted on Facebook, I'll tag her in the update by typing her name — Facebook autofills with friend suggestions for easier tagging (see above). "Hey Anne Warber (a.k.a. mom), I thought you'd like this article about pandas!"
Check-in and photo tagging work a little differently. When you check in at a location, you can add Facebook friends who are with you by searching for their names, and thus, tagging them. Tag friends in photos by selecting the "tag photo" option at the bottom of the selected image.
It's important to remember that everyone has a different preference when it comes to tagging. Some people will instantly view content they've been tagged in and subsequently remove it, for any number of reasons: They don't like how they look in a photo, they don't like people knowing where they are, etc. Be aware of their concerns for privacy and your own.
Head to Privacy Settings > Timeline and Tagging to adjust your own settings, should you wish to review tags before they're posted or control who can see your tags.
8. Privacy
Frankly, we could write an entire book on Facebook privacy. But in the interest of time, we'll mention the major types of privacy you need to be aware of as a Facebook user.
- Inter-user privacy: Friends with your boss on Facebook? Consider adding him or her to a "list." Then you can choose what updates they can view. You may also choose to limit certain lists from viewing posts other people tag you in by visiting the basic privacy settings.
- Public profile: You can control the information non-friends can see on your public profile. Almost every feature of your profile has an edit option, which allows you to select who can view that information (public, friends only, only you, etc.). Learn more here.
- Third-party access: In order to use Facebook Open Graph apps like Spotify and Pinterest, those companies need to access certain information on your profile. They'll ask for permissions before you begin using the app. Be aware that each app has different privacy risks. If you don't want that information to be accessible through Facebook's APIs, learn how to turn off access. Similarly, you can also opt out of Facebook social ads — the ads that appear to you based on brands your friends like.
Facebook privacy can be complicated. See our additional privacy guides for more detailed information:
- The New Facebook: How to Take Control of Your Privacy
- 7 Big Privacy Concerns for New Facebook and the Open Graph
- How Much Do Your Friends' Facebook Apps Know About You?
9. Facebook Apps
Built on the social network's Open Graph (a collection of your preferences, likes, interests and activity on Facebook and from around the web), Facebook apps allow you to personalize and enhance your participation on the social network. They can add anything from games (FarmVille) to photo albums to quizzes to music (Spotify). Most of Facebook's apps come from outside developers that use Facebook's API. Many represent strong partnerships and add additional social layers, like Washington Post Social Reader and Foursquare.
Enabling each Facebook app means granting that app permission to access data on your profile and post on your behalf. This often means sharing on your Timeline how you interact with that app. For example, when you use the Spotify app, the company will share songs you listen to on your Timeline for your friends to see and interact with — unless you choose to hide that activity. (Keep in mind many of these sharing options can be customized.)
A word of caution: Well-made apps can add a fun and engaging layer to your Facebook experience, but using too many of them or requesting others to join might annoy your friends (and in the worst cases, compromise their privacy). You should only use apps recommended by friends you trust, or provided by reputable companies.
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario