Facebook Users' Verdict On Redesign: Hate!

94% Give Site Changes A Thumbs-Down And It's Not Just Nerds Talking

(CNET)  This story was written by CNET's Caroline McCarthy.

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So there's a new Facebook app out there, designed to poll users on the social network's latest redesign. The results? Hundreds of thousands have responded. 94 percent give it a thumbs-down. Ouch.

Comments range from "WHY FIX IT, WHEN IT WASN'T BROKE, you will be SORRYYYYYYYYYYY" to "It feels counterintuitive and less technologically advanced than the last layout."

Now, this is clearly not an official vote. Chances are, you're not going to install a third-party polling application with the sole purpose of voicing an opinion on the new Facebook design unless you're really opinionated about it. So the 94 percent might be kind of high.

But still. Facebook is so big now - over 175 million members - that even an interface change may throw many of the less technical users completely off-guard. And from what we've heard, non-geeks really do find the new design more difficult to use. The new site, particularly the activity feeds on member profiles, really do look different. The blurring between status messages and wall posts doesn't make much sense in my opinion - though I do like the improved news feed filtering tools.

It's easy to wave this off, because Facebook redesigns have brought up one threatened user revolt after another, and the site has just kept on growing. Members grew used to the new features, and in some cases (like the original launch of the news feed) it's hard to imagine Facebook without them. The only changes Facebook has made in response to user outrage, historically, have been in response to privacy concerns.

But Facebook's not just dealing with the young and tech-savvy anymore. When the people who freak out over a redesigned phone bill or cable channel-changing menu have Facebook profiles, "they'll get used to it" doesn't float as well. So this could really be a problem.

The new layout is a forward-thinking one, inspired by streaming content services like Twitter. Executives from Facebook have said that they see "the stream" as the next evolution of how we interact on the Web.

But even though Twitter's all over daytime talk shows these days, it's still just barely out of the gates as something more than an early-adopter toy. It's a fraction the size of Facebook. And the "Twitter plus media sharing" model doesn't have the best track record, as its most notable example, Pownce, was sold to Six Apart and shut down amid dwindling traffic. It probably would've been smarter for Facebook to ease users into the "stream" with a course of smaller tweaks rather than to require them to plunge in headlong.

Facebook's last redesign was finalized in September. That's only six months ago. If a site is putting out changes every six months that a mainstream audience sees as drastic, they could get fed up with it fast.

[DuCakedHare]

Alas, it does seem for now that Facebook will be able mostly to implement changes without really needing to consult the user base.

The oldest users of the site have so much information and history on it (and that's what - around four to five years worth of online interactions?) that they might indeed be quite loathe to delete their account. Although it is completely possible and perfectly easy to return to the Dark Side, as Facebook saves all your info in case you do want to return.



With more and more sites and tools to choose from however, it is still possible to
-upload content and share it with friends (remember that good old thing called email?)
-update your status (Twitter, Jaiku, Plurk...)
-share photos (flickr, Picasa, and such)
-create notes (blogs of all flavours)
-join groups (look for newsgroups instead of Facebook groups - try groups.google.com )
-share videos (dailymotion, YouTube, Vimeo... keep looking)
-and all and alll...


I've got all my profiles listed in my email signature (abbreviated when necessary with tinrul.com's cutsom link feature). I'm working on creating my own web page - a single page - with the relevant links and possibly with RSS items pulling from the various sources listed above.

So my new social network will be... well Web 2.0 pre-Facebook and their shadowers.

[andytgeezer]

I wonder how many people have the guts to leave facebook now though. It's woven itself so deeply into the communications landscape of most people's lives that extricating yourself from it after investing all that time and effort into uploading photos and adding "friends" is like committing social suicide. And I should know because I got so fed up of facebook I closed my account last month.

Since then I have told my friends if they want to contact me they should email or phone or actually meet me and REAL life has been so much more rewarding.

In addition to this I have set up <a href="http://myrealwall.blogspot.com">www.myrealwall.com</a> where people can still post on my wall, but with a twist.

Instead of posting on my facebook wall, if people want to post on my wall now, they actually have to write me a REAL post i.e. a letter and put a stamp on it and send it to my house. I then take their post, read it and stick it on my REAL wall, which then gets photographed every day and posted on the net.

This little social experiment has proved to be quite a neat little filter and I've noticed that the spam I receive from friends has effectively been cut to zero and I have not been bitten by a zombie since I started, although I've had a couple of pokes from friends, who have actually made the effort to come to my house and poke me in REAL life.

It hurts.

It's a strange old place facebook. People will whinge about how much they hate it, the new design etc. But when it comes down to let's see how many facebookers do more than complain and put their money where their mouth is and actually LEAVE facebook as a result.

Not many I suspect.

<a href="http://andytgeezer.blogspot.com">mischief</a>

[bbenedict]

Here is how we suggest you avoid this type of problem with your own site, along with some suggestions for how to make the new interface less confusing.

http://blog.openmountain.com/2009/03/23/facebook-needs-feedback-loops/

[cbsblogger]

eBay and Facebook must both have "official changers" on staff that must be kept busy by changing things for the sake of change.

[gmbjr]

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=57068814491&ref=ts
Firefox browser users can get rid of the highlights section!

[drbogdan]

@abbm-2009

We're just trying to be honest (and open) in our recently posted (somewhat positive) opinion
about the newly updated FaceBook (FB) design (we're FB newbies and didn't have an easy go of it with the older FB design for some reason) - please understand that we have no fascination (or investment) whatsoever with FaceBook - perhaps even less so with MySpace - actually, we prefer LiveJournal instead at the moment. In any case, we hope these present comments help in some ok way. :)
Dr. Dennis and Joanne Bogdan

[robinspp]

Every one should think independently, and must have different of opinion. Even with different of opinion people must be able to live happily with out conflicts. No one in the world can live independently or should live dependently. We are living in a complex society where you can not choose to live as an independent person. Sometimes you need some ones help and sometimes you don?t. In that sense we are all interdependent. Most of the people we face have sense, but some people are senseless. It does not mean we should condemn the senseless. We need sun as well as we need shade. If there is no sun we can not feel the goodness of the shade. Also in the society there should be bad and there should be good. There must be ugly and beauty. If every thing is beautiful you will not know what beauty is? Only when you see ugly then you can differentiate the beauty and ugly.

[cbsantispin]

The Market drives events, the Customer is King, a new Facebook "like" replacement will emerge and catch on and this original Facebook will become History and bite the dust, that's how it works, the Customer is rules, every smart business knows this!

[faith_warrior1025]

Hahaha! I just find it hilarious!! Everyone complains every time they change and they get used to it. It's OK to have change. It's just funny to see everyone complain every time they upgrade. I think the only way they'll listen would be if 100% of their members complained. So I don't see the point in complaining...

[geena5]

the newsfeed on facebook is like twitter now, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing in my opinion

[ep83]

I have nothing new to add to the overall Facebook layout opinion-- I absolutely do not like it-- although I must say that your general opinion of "geeks" and of the "tech-savvy" aren't extremely accurate. I consider myself under this group as I am a student of electrical engineering at a particular engineering school in Manhattan. While it is indeed true that there are some people that are able to map through horrifically unintuitive interfaces, these "tech-savvy geeks" do value well-thought-out, intuitive and clean user interfaces. No one wants to figure out how something works when the goal is simply to communicate with high school friends. The differentiation is simply unnecessary. In the case of Facebook... epic fail.

[azure13]

Facebook. How pathetic are people that they need to hang out on a site like that anyway? losers. Get a real life, geeks.

[thadblm]

Too bad most of the people voting on this user interface don't have a background in design and user experience. The people that are saying they don't like the new layout are the ones with animated gif graphics in their MySpace profiles...

[rollaire2]

Isnt it amazing, they always have to come along and screw up a good thing! Never fails. Cant leave well enough alone can they? Another reason to stick with MySpace!

RT
www.online-privacy.pro.tc

[MacOO7]

If they really want a design that will please everyone they should look to Google and Apple for inspiration and remember two words that the vast majority like "SIMPLICITY RULES!" If you need a bad example look at Yahoo. Keep it simple folks!

[reimer211]

I'm really dissapointed in the de-evolutionary changes..hey we're getting smarter, not dumber, right???

[quapawsix]

First rule of maintenance is If it works don't fix it.

[hissteps4u]

I think the new look stinks. Even less control.
I do not like the interface or the fact that my friends (friends) even if they are not on my friends list can post garbage to the walls it is a clutter and obsurd and has keep me from useing it for some time now because my only option is to delete my friend to remove the stuff and I do not want to remove my friend just their friends who I do not wish to see their posts....Makes no sense to me but Hey It is a free service for Now!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[bigwigWIN]

like one user said, facebook looks too much like twitter, and if I wanted to twitter, I'd be on twitter instead

[drbogdan]

FWIW - We *really* appreciate the new updated Facebook changes. For us, the new updated FaceBook Interface seems to make much better sense and seems to be much more intuitive.
Dr. Dennis and Joanne Bogdan
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