Facebook revamp "in coming days"

 

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Posted on 21 Jul 2008 at 15:00

Facebook's long awaited redesign will go live in coming days, with the company implementing sweeping changes as it attempts to give users more control and curb new forms of spam.

Facebook's redesign aims to make user profiles more dynamic by giving more prominence to the newest information using a new tabbed interface.

The company is also cracking down on applications that violate privacy or user-control guidelines.

This policy has already seen applications from Slide and RockYou, two of Facebook's biggest independent developers, face censure. Slide's Top Friends program was only restored to Facebook after fixing privacy violations, while some features of RockYou's Super Wall remain banned.

"Users should have control of their information when and where they want," says Ben Ling, the head of Facebook's platform product management. "Users should share things because they want to share them."

"Facebook is making significant changes, both in terms of what information gets prominence and what gets buried," adds Gartner analyst Ray Valdes. "The company is trying to eliminate some of the toxic threats to the Facebook experience."

The moves are also meant to reassure members about privacy by helping them better understand how friends can see the personal information they publish.

Facebook has been dribbling out details of these plans since early this year in an effort to reduce surprises for users.

Access to the new design will be limited at first and gradually become available to all of Facebook's more than 80 million users over the coming days.

Author: Stuart Turton and Reuters