Monday, November 26, 2012

Social Media Monday—Can I Set what Shows up in My Facebook News Feed?


Plug the words Facebook Frustrations into a search engine and you’ll come up with pages of complaints. I’ll be the first one to agree that Facebook has issues, but a lot of what frustrates people comes from ignorance not idiocy. The number one question I get is whether or not it's possible to set what shows up in the Facebook News Feed. Today and tomorrow I want to clear up the myths about what shows up in your news feed, and help you use Facebook more effectively.

Myth—Facebook decides which posts I see—True or False
Both. Facebook does decide—if you don’t. Here’s what I mean.

Personal Profiles
Let's begin with the personal profile. Facebook gives the user a lot of options when it comes to categorizing friends. That’s great, if you’re accepting a new friend. But if you’ve been on as long as me, it’s problematic because we have to go back and categorize our connection with each friend. If I do nothing, Facebook sets the designation for me. This is how to make any changes you want to Facebook's default.

On your personal timeline, hover over the person’s Facebook name with your curser. You’ll see a window pop up and it tells you how your connection is listed. 


In the screenshot above you’ll see that Ane and I are listed as Friends.

Now, if I move my curser over the Friends designation another window pops up. This one gives me the option of changing our connection to either Close Friends or Acquaintances.  With the Friends designation, I’ll see most of her Facebook posts. With Close Friends, I’ll see all of them. With Acquaintances, I’ll see fewer. 


You can see the example of this in the screenshot above.

There is another option in this window, Show in News Feed. You’ll notice I have this clicked. You can tell because there is a check mark there. If I didn’t want to see any of her Facebook posts, I’d uncheck that. This takes the place of the Hide option that’s no longer available.

Hide is now an option for each individual post, but not for a person. 


The screenshot above shows how that option works. To find this hidden menu, hover your curser on the small arrow in the upper right-hand corner of a Facebook post.

Tomorrow, instead of having a general writing post, I'll finish this info about Facebook. But in the meantime, please post any questions you have in the comments section below.

And, as always, don't forget to join the conversation!
Blessings,
Edie

15 comments:

  1. Sorry, but I had a question about the post going around Facebook about how to protect my copyright of my material, so I posted it above. But then I went to Snopes and found that it was all just another Facebook hoax. Ugh. Can we just go back to feather pens and ink wells?

    Not that I'd really want to...

    Thanks for all you do for us non-techies, Edie!

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    1. Yep, another Facebook hoax. (Even my husband got caught in this one). Facebook is a trial, but one we have to work with in this new world we live and work in! Thanks for stopping by - Blessings, E

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    2. Here's a link that explains why the notice is bogus: http://mashable.com/2012/11/26/viral-privacy-notice-facebook/

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  2. I do have some as "Close Friends" but I've never noticed that "Show in News Feed" before. I'll have to go check that! Thanks, Edie.

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    1. Meghan, it's another one of the things they've changed recently. Unfortunately, with Facebook, we have to expect things to change again soon! Thanks for sharing a comment with us - Blessings, E

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    2. Edie, could I bother you with one more question? I've noticed a lot of the bloggers I follow on FB now putting the link to their blog post in the first comment. Why is that? Does it have anything to do with their blog being a business? Mine is just personal, so would it show up for my friends? I shared a blog post today, and I never saw it in my news feed but it was on my home page. I remember within the past month or so some of the bloggers commented about how FB changed the rules again, but I never saw an explanation. Thanks for all your help!

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  3. Edie, thanks for this very helpful post! And just to let you know, you're in my "close friends" section so I see each time you post! Love you, sweet friend!

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  4. Good to know, Edie. Can people see what setting you've listed them as? I mean, I might like to see everything an agent posts (no, I'm not a stalker! LOL), but wouldn't necessarily want them seeing that I set them as Close Friends just so I'd see all their posts. Or would it be best to just select the See in News Feed option (can you click this without also clicking CLose Friends?)? Thanks!

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    1. Lindsay, the only time Facebook notifies someone of what you've designated them as is if it's a family member. Even with that, there's no saying in the future FB won't decide to let everyone know. I'd stick with accurate designations and just select the See in News Feed option. Great question! Thanks so much, Blessings, E

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  5. Thanks for the great post, Edie! It's a tremendous help through this Facebook confusion.

    What's does the Get Notifications mean under the one sub menu? Thanks so much!
    Cindy

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    1. Cindy, that will give you email notifications when that person updates to Facebook. I recommend you NOT enable that. Good question! Thanks for stopping by - Blessings, E

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  6. Thanks, Edie! I haven't listed any of my friends, but I need to. If I do a few each day, I'll be on track!

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    1. Jill, that's what I've ended up doing. There's too many to do if I try to do it all at once. Plus, I can't help feel that after I spend all that time FB will just change everything again. Thanks for dropping by! Blessings, E

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  7. Good stuff, Edie. Keeping a handle on Facebook is like trying to grab Jello. I personally love customization features. Thanks for the helpful updates!

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  8. I wish Facebook would list my friends in alphabetical order...I have friends I don't connect with often (we are ALL busy) but it would be nice to run thru the list, pray as led, and drop a 'howdy' now and then. When I click on my 'friends' pile on my wall, I seem to get the same ones over and over each time it updates the screen. Any suggestions?

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