Yes, competition is good. Facebook finally feels like they have competition (Google+) and now they are starting to take certain things seriously. Like privacy. Finally.
It is finally really easy to create lists, just go to your wall and click on Friends. Then click on Edit Friends, then click on Create a List, Then you Enter a List Name. The really easy part is Facebook will show you a list (with pictures) of all your friends and you can click on everyone you want on that list!. You can add people to an existing list easily, when you are in the Edit Friends area, just rollover the hidden area to the left of the x (see picture) and you can Edit Lists. I know, I know. Why did Facebook hide this, well if it was visible everyone could use it!
Facebook announced (and implemented) ways to make it easier to “Share With Who You Want” in a blog that came out at 1pm on August 23rd. You can now choose who you share your posts with.You can make posts Public (now the entire world will know you just ate dinner!), you can share with friends, or you can customize your sharing (share just with specific people, hide from certain people, etc.). And this is where lists come in, you can choose customize and type a list into the field and your post can be shared, or hidden from the people in that list! Very Google+ if you ask me. Google+ wants to know if I want my posts to be public or which “Circles” I want to share my post with….
You can also now approve all posts or photos you are tagged in (yippee!) before it is visible in your profile. While you can’t keep people from tagging you, you will have more control over who sees it. Hmmm, wasn’t this something Mr. Zuckerberg said people weren’t interested in?
Facebook is also allowing you to change your mind, after the fact. If you post something to the public and realize you don’t want everyone to know that you went to a concert when you called in sick to work, you can go back and change the posting status to just “Friends” and keep your fingers crossed that your boss didn’t see the post.
Now if you loved using the “Places” feature on your mobile phone, I have bad news. Today, Facebook officially killed Places. Places is mobile only and their new location feature will be available on your desktop and/or laptop as well as your phone (I often take my desktop to places I want to check into…). But seriously, the new location “button” allows you to share where you’ve been, where you are now and where you’re going.
Check-in Deals will remain intact. If you go to a store/restaurant offering a Check-in Deal, it will show up in your News Feed…. Are we all clear now 🙂 All of these great new features will started to roll out last Thursday, so if you haven’t already started to see the new privacy features (I started seeing some of them yesterday) you will see start to see them soon!
And the best thing, the very best thing… Facebook now has backups baked in! Just go to Account Settings (in the upper left corner) and at the bottom of the page it has Download a copy of your Facebook data. Click on the link and you will be taken to a page with a green button that says Start My Archive. Once you click on that button, Facebook will start the lengthy archival process and then email you a backup that include photos, videos, wall posts, messages, chats, your friends’ names and some of their email addresses!
