Facebook Launches Redesign And New Features
Facebook unveiled a subtle makeover and some new features this morning, including a new, more streamlined interface designed to make the site even easier to use.
Having been bitten by tremendous negative user feedback the last time the site added features, Facebook has been privately testing the new features for some time with over 200,000 users participating in beta tests.
Perhaps the most immediately noticeable change in the design is the logo — the mysterious “Facebook guy” has been replace with a simplified logo.
New features in addition to the redesign include changes to way users navigate profiles and keep tabs on friends. New “portal” pages let user’s see a bird’s eye view of their groups as well as groups they could join. The navigation changes also make it easier to view profiles with fewer clicks to get from one page to another.
The changes reflect Facebook’s attempt to transition from a user base primarily consisting of college students to one that embraces that broader social networking spectrum.
With MySpace having decided to block Photobucket videos, Facebook’s relaunch couldn’t have come at a better time. Facebook currently boasts more than 19 million registered users, and founder Mark Zuckerberg tells Reuters that over half of those are not students.
Traffic tracking firm comScore Networks recently reported a huge surge in Facebook site traffic, claiming that visits to Facebook have jumped 75 percent in the last six months. By contrast MySpace’s traffic grew just 26 percent in the same period.
