The hugely popular social-networking site is giving its profile page a face-lift. Although it appears optional for now, not everyone is rushing to hit the "like" button.
In a blog post Sunday, Facebook said the new profile lets users better tell their personal stories and learn about their friends, with a greater emphasis on photos.
Paul Sakuma, AP
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg thinks the site's new profile features are "engaging," but not all users are happy, according to comments on a Facebook blog post.
Among the changes: There is now a row of recently tagged photos of users so friends can see what they've been doing, and images appear along with users' interests and experiences. Users can add details on how they spend their time, like work projects, classes they take and sports they play, and can include friends who share the experiences. They can also highlight key family and friends.
"When you can use products with your friends and your family and the people you care about, they tend to be more engaging," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a CBS "60 Minutes" interview that aired Sunday night.
Facebook's blog post outlining the changes drew more than 5,000 comments by this morning, many of which pleaded for the old profile format. Some complained that certain data or features had disappeared.
"HATE IT!! I WANT MY OLD PROFILE BACK! ASAP," Daniella Aporador wrote.
Raaychel Munro wrote: "i hate this! i want my old profile back, its confusing and its doing my head right in."
"PLEASE GIVE ME BACK THE OLD ONE !!!! ERRRRRRRRRR !!!" begged Meloy Selorio.
It wasn't all bad. The post was "liked" by more than 16,000 users.
"i love the new one,its awesome," Kingsley Windie Ogba wrote. And Chris Beach saw what was coming: "Here come the whiners ... "
Just like after previous face-lifts, this one also led to the creation of several Facebook pages decrying the change. Among them: "I hate the new F A C E B O O K profiles layout."
"Ugg i hate the new facebook layout...looks to much like myspace now ..." James Hines wrote on the page.
Facebook's blog post said the new profile is being gradually rolled out and the company planned to get it to everyone by early next year. You can switch to the new profile now by clicking on this link.
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The revamped profile comes as Facebook's competition heats up with search leader Google for the primary site for people using the Internet, The Associated Press noted.The new profile allows users to streamline their information so it's easier to see things they care about the most, rather than seeing information in chronological order. Another new feature is that users can click on "See Friendship" on their friends' pages to see their shared friends and experiences.
"You can see all the things that you have in common with that person," Zuckerberg told CBS. "And it's just like, it gives you this amazing connection with that person in a way that the current version of the profile that we have today just doesn't do."