Digital wills, emojis and keeping the old layout

There are now more than one billion Facebook users, and chances are that you are one of them. If that is the case, you may have recently noticed a couple of changes (both aesthetic and functional) to your parent’s favourite social media platform. Here are just a few new things that you may not be aware of:

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Secret emoji
There are no two ways about it, emojis are the future of chatting. These days everyone seems to be developing their own versions, from Kim Kardashian (aptly known as ‘Kimoji’) to the rapper Future, so it comes as no surprise that Facebook is no exception. While you may be familiar with the usual ones like ‘:D’ ‘:P’ but did you know there are many more other emojis that you could be using. Here are a few to get you started:  (^^^) = great white shark;   :|] = Robot;   <(“) = Penguin

 

Transfer large files
Since Zuckerberg and Co. bought out Whatsapp, Facebook’s Messenger chat has improved a lot thanks to a constant push to improve the feature. Perhaps one of the additions that we find most useful is that you can now use Messenger to send files up to 25 MB in size. Just click on the ‘gear’ icon on the top right corner of a chat window and you’ll see the option “Add Files…”.

 

Change your language to Pirate speak
Facebook is available in many other languages apart from English. In fact, part of the company’s global strategy is to ensure that the social network is as inclusive as possible. From Indians to Russians to Japanese, and now, pirates. Yes, even mid 1800s pirates can feel at home on their social media page that speaks their dialect. If you fancy brushing up on your pirate speak, then head on over to General Account Settings > Language > English (Pirate) and join Facebook at “Home Port” to “Divvy spoils t’all ye mateys”.

 

Facebook notes
With it’s ultimate goal to become the ‘go-to’ site for content on the web, the new ‘Notes’ function is a bold (and potentially game-shifting) move. Rather than simply posting an update on your wall, Facebook’s new ‘Notes’ function allows you to essentially start your own blog, that will allow you to share your content (in full or partial) to your network. It’s a neat idea, that if it works, could very much alter the way personal websites exist on the Internet.  For more information (or to have a poke around) go to facebook.com/notes.

 

View your entire romantic history (according to Facebook)
The beauty of being on Facebook for several years is that it can archive the history that you’ve chosen to share with it. Although, it also means that you have to scroll through everyone else reminding them of how ‘blessed’ they felt on their birthday 5 years ago. What is sweet though, is that if you want to see your history with a specific person (your girlfriend for example) you can go to Facebook.com/us, and it will bring it up. Mind you if you are not in a relationship with anyone on Facebook, it will just send you back to your Home page. Because Facebook already knows how much you love yourself.

 

Geotracking
Did you know Facebook keeps track of every place you log in from along with a timestamp, device, and even location? This handy little feature allows you to make sure nobody else is using your account. And the incredible thing is, if you find something suspicious, you can block that specific individual or all devices. A handy tool to make sure nobody posts something embarrassing when you forget to log out on their computer.

 

Choose who controls your account after you die
As we become more digitally dependent, factoring things such as virtual wills becomes more relevant. Facebook has introduced a “Legacy Contact” which will allow someone of your choosing to access your account should something tragic happen to you. It will give that person limited control over your account including access to your profile picture, your wall and friend requests, unless you grant them more control.

To select a Legacy Contact just head on to Settings > Security > Legacy Contact and choose who you will pass your torch too. Unless you just want your account to be deactivated which is another option there too.

 

Get back the old fashioned photo page
Never is the Internet in more turmoil then when a Social Media site tries to change its design. A new interface?! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?! Exclaim one billion people all at the same time. So for those resistant to change, or who find the new Facebook photo viewer a little distasteful, you can go back to the older setting – when photos were displayed on a much simpler page. To do this, all you have to do is wait for the image to load and click refresh. And like a time machine, you’ll be taken back to the old fashioned photo page.

 

Clean up your newsfeed
On Facebook, your News Feed is your home – and nobody likes coming back to a messy home! Depending on how active you are, your wall can get really cluttered with unwanted posts. In order to clean it up, just hover your mouse over “News Feed” in the left corner and then click on the little Gear icon that appears. Next click on your “Edit Preferences” option and a list of whose posts you see the most. If you don’t want to see them anymore, you can just click the follow button to unfollow. Easy-peasy.

 

More security features
Internet security is paramount. Especially when you consider that future (and current) employers have few scruples about ‘looking you up’ on social media. If you want more security on your Facebook here are two features that could help keep your account extra safe. Stick to browsing Facebook on https and Login notifications. You can enable them both in your Account Security tab in settings. Enabling HTTPS reduces the chances of your password getting swiped when on a public Wi-Fi network and Login Notifications will let you know whenever someone logs onto your Facebook. With these two settings you can rest easy and never have to worry about someone using your account without you knowing.