That was the quote of the day.
I read this among a host of other critical comments on my Facebook feed this morning. Yet another wave of negative reactions to Facebook rolling out new features. It seems like Facebook usually does this in smaller doses, but I have to admit that today I was even a little overwhelmed.
Over the past few days Facebook users have been met with new friend grouping features, profile subscriptions, notifications galore and a new feed layout. There are also rumors circulating that Facebook will be rolling out a new profile layout within the week. After trying to absorb all of this with the news that I would otherwise be looking for within my friend feed, I was feeling not so open to change.
I think what is unusual about this particular set of updates is the volume of changes that we are seeing at once and how these features are mimicking competitors. Many of these upgrades are clearly a response to features that set Google+ apart and set membership growth records for that competing social network. There is even the Twitter-esque “Subscribe” button now to follow people instead of two-way friending.
In any case, I’m sure most users will be fully adjusted to the changes in another couple days and just like every other update, the uproar will be forgotten before long. A part of me does wonder how user-friendly all of this is for those few people who are new to Facebook though. If there is so much happening on my home page right now that it’s making my head spin, I can’t imagine what non-veteran users must be thinking and feeling. That said, Facebook gets props for forward-thinking and versatility, as always. If it were to remain stagnant, I’m sure we’d be talking about Facebook the way we talk about the recently deceased “MySpace” right now.
(Special thanks to Makanga Njagi for the inspirational quote of the day).
