Facebook is rolling out a new profile design that more prominently displays a user's past photos, links and other activity.
The California -based company hopes that its 800 million users will embrace the latest change to its blueprint - dubbed Timeline . The new format will effectively turn a person's profile into a makeshift yearbook chronicling nights out with friends, funny anecdotes and former love interests.
The profile changes will likely be divisive, as the Facebook community represents a smorgasbord of demographics. Some may find the prominent placement of past indiscretions objectionable, and they will likely voice their outrage in strongly worded status updates teeming with scornful contempt for their Facebook overlords.
On the other hand, Timeline will also surely prompt spells of wistful nostalgia among supporters. Young professionals who have come of age on the social network are likely to experience a range of conflicting emotions as old friendships and long forgotten fads are brought to the fore, their reactions mimicking the Five Stages of Grief .
When first looking over the changes, they will deny (1) the existence of former love interests and questionable friendships. This renunciation of past transgressions will metamorphose into uncontrollable anger (2), spurring users to craft existential status updates - "Wow, Facebook, really?" - that will later evolve into group forums where users bargain (3) with company officials to revert to the old design.
When their appeals are inevitably ignored, they will become depressed (4). This sense of despair will surely be accompanied by empty threats of account deactivation - i.e. social suicide - but in a week or so, the majority of users will embrace and accept (5) the Timeline as a fundamental component of the Facebook experience.
Let the digital grieving begin.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.