Facebook Changes: Adjusting to the New News Feed & Ticker

How do you like the new Facebook changes? Modifications like the new news feed, new friends lists, and a subscribe button, have many users vocally upset.

Just as its newest rival Google+ opened up to all Web users, Facebook released its latest changes.

Judging from early reactions, you'd be hard-pressed to find a Facebook user that actually likes them. Just about the only thing users aren't complaining about are the bigger pictures.

Though Facebook has been in a near-constant state of change over the years, the newest updates come with some of the harshest criticism. The once-simple screen is now partitioned into a real-time scroll and a permanently opened chat - and that's just the beginning.

Comments on the Facebook blog about the new changes have been tremendously negative.

One user comments:

Lame. Quite frankly I don't want Facebook deciding who is most important in my life. I want my news feed to just go chronologically and if I want to hide posts from someone, I will. Stop changing. You're becoming MySpace and I left there for a reason.

Her comment received nearly 1,500 likes.

Another user adds:

Facebook, you're not near as smart as you think you are. Your algorithms for deciding what I want to see, who I want to talk to or what I think is important are 99.999% of the time the exact polar opposite of what I want. Everything you do to try to simplify things only complicates things more. Every attempt you make to improve things inevitably ends up in a HUGE step backwards.

People aren't just complaining on Facebook. The term #NewFacebook is among the top trending topics on Twitter right now, with many users upset over the changes. This morning, Facebook Changes was also a top search on Google.

So what's all the fuss about?

Here's a quick look at some of the modifications:

The New News Feed

The new news feed is one of the most controversial changes because it alters the look of the Facebook home page. Facebook claims all your news is now in one place. Top stories since you last visited are at the top, each top story is now marked with a blue corner, and recent stories are found below, in the order they were posted.

Facebook assimilated the Most Recent stories option and now determines what it considers Top News. This is what is concerning most users.

We determine whether something is a top story based on lots of factors, including your relationship to the person who posted the story, how many comments and likes it got, what type of story it is, etc. For example, a friend's status update that might not normally be a top story may become a top story after many other friends comment on it.

One plus to the new system is that you can filter by friend lists and hide an individual or story type.

Learn more about the new News Feed HERE

The Improved Friends List

Check out your friends list. You will likely find that new clusters of friends have magically appeared (i.e. your high school, college, employer, city, family, etc.). The new lists are there for a reason. They allow you to post updates straight to the friends and family who will find them the most interesting, without worrying about bothering anyone else.

For example, say you want to post a recipe, but you only want your family to see it. Now, you can post the recipe directly to them and only them.

Or, let's say you want to share a joke from the office, but you don't want all of your high school friends to see it. Now, you can share it exclusively with your co-workers.

Learn more about the Improved Friends List HERE

The News Ticker

In an attempt at making up for the former Most Recent news feed, Facebook added a news ticker-like scroll in the top-right corner of the screen. The ticker shows friends' most recent updates in chronological order. If you click on the updates, it shows the full story and all related comments and likes.

The Subscribe Button

By using the subscribe button, you can pick and choose the types of content you would like to see from individual friends. For instance, you can include in your news feed all, most, or only the most important information from each of your pals.

The new feature also gives you the ability to follow the lives and actions of the interesting people that you aren't friends with.

Learn more about the Subscribe Button HERE

Those are the major changes to the social media giant, though there are reportedly more in store.

According to Mashable, Facebook plans to launch a media and music platform at the f8 developer conference this week.

Hold your breath, there looks to be more changes on the way.

What are your thoughts? Do you like the new changes? Let us know in the comments below.