With social media and technology constantly changing, it's difficult to keep track of new features and how to use them. Facebook has been the most recent social media platform to improve their site with features that will surely keep millennials and moms busy. Along with the release of "reactions" and the "birthday cam," Mark Zuckerberg made a couple more announcements in regards to projects that Facebook is working on that are coming to a News Feed near you.
1. Reactions
After developing this feature for more than a year, Facebook has finally globally released "reactions." The new mix of reactions that you'll see are "love," "haha," "wow," "sad," and "angry." Although there is unfortunately still no plan to create a "dislike" button, Facebook says that testing in Ireland and Spain proved that these reactions are still popular to Facebook users. On mobile versions, hold down on the "like" button to see the full range of emotions. If you're on a computer, just hover over the "like" button and use this tool to express how you're feeling about your friends' posts.
2. Birthday videos
The Facebook Birthday cam makes saying "happy birthday" to your friends a little more personal. This feature will allow users to record a 15-second video directly to their friend's wall. Different effects and birthday themed frames can be added to each video as well. The update is currently only for iOS devices, but will eventually be available for users of the app on other devices and worldwide.
3. Weather updates
Facebook announced that the weather updates will include "helpful weather information" such as if snow or rain is expected and temperature change. 10 percent of random Facebook users have had this feature for about a week and will expand more as February ends. The feature will appear at the top of your newsfeed in the morning and throughout the day when the weather changes.
4. Social virtual reality
Facebook formed a "Social VR" team to create a way for users to have social experiences in virtual reality. "Facebook, with Oculus, are committed to this for the long term. We've recently created new teams at Facebook to build the next generation of social apps and VR," Zuckerberg said at Samsung's Galaxy S7 event. The VR tools will allow friends to feel like they're hanging out in the same room even though they aren't physically together.
5. Several messenger accounts
Facebook's Messenger app has been redesigned so several people can use it on the same tablet or smartphone without giving up their privacy. This feature will accommodate those who share devices but have separate Facebook accounts. Android users are the first to use this feature and there are currently no dates set for when Apple users will have a similar change.
