Just browsing around: Facebook gives new browser a test-run
OK I admit it: I am not completely smitten with Facebook. I’m pretty happy with the handful of good friends that I have as opposed to connecting with 500 complete strangers who are five or six steps removed from the one person I actually know! But I also realize that Facebook is so much more than just tenuous connections with friends of friends of friends. The whole social media phenom is opening more doors for entrepreneurs than we can keep up with!
That said, I’m impressed that Facebook continues to look for ways to hook its users. The latest of which is a new in-app browser that lets users look at web pages without having to leave the app. You’re wondering perhaps why this is important but given the fact that the attention-span of the average person using social media keeps getting narrower, this latest effort by Facebook adds another dimension to multi-tasking.
Not just aesthetics
You know, just like I know, that the old FB browser didn’t do much beyond loading the page you wanted to read and following hyperlinks to other sites. According to thenextweb.com the new, improved browser lets you input your own URL should you want to check another page without leaving the Facebook app. For example, you might want to look up a term you don’t understand or better yet, fact-check a detail on an article you read.
Not only that, a new bar on the bottom of the page tells you how popular a post is, includes back and forward buttons, let’s you bookmark pages, and has a menu button.
It only makes sense (or maybe the proper word here is “cents”) that given how many people download articles from Facebook that improving the browsing experience is a sensible move for the company.
Still in test-mode
Underscore the fact that the new Facebook browser is still in test-mode.Gadgets.ndtv.com points out that the browser is only available to a small subset of users (iOS only), but like most public test features Facebook introduces, the lion’s share end up receiving a wider roll-out a few months later.
