New Facebook layout leaves some students cold

Along with new classes and a greater workload, many students came back to school facing something else unwanted - a new layout for their Facebook accounts.

The popular social-networking site gave users the choice to switch to the "New Facebook" over the summer, before permanently replacing the layout earlier this month.

Among the differences that frustrate students are a more detailed newsfeed, the inability to see all of their friends' information immediately after choosing to view their profiles, and a more cluttered wall.

College Sophomore Rebecca Holtz is one such upset student.

"I would go back if I could," she said. "There are no added benefits."

Nursing junior Lindsey Goldhagen also expressed dissatisfaction with the new layout.

"The newsfeed is really stalkerish," said Goldhagen. "I don't need to know that person A wrote to person B at 5:45 in the morning."

She added that she also did not like that all of the material in someone's profile could not be viewed at once.

College Sophomore Rebecca Matte agreed that the inability to see people's interests on the front page of their profiles is frustrating.

"They're taking away the main purpose of social networking if it's too hard to find people to network with," Matte said.

Despite student complains, Facebook officials say the changes are beneficial.

Facebook spokeswoman Corinne Avganim wrote in an e-mail that the new profile set-up is an improvement because it is "cleaner and simpler, while still giving users control over their profiles."

Avganim added that the increased emphasis on feeds in the new design is beneficial because they "enable deeper integration within profiles."

Facebook allowed its users to give feedback throughout the summer and before the opt-in period began. However, experts in media and social networking said that the site's motivation to change the layout was likely unrelated to students' desires.

Communications professor Joseph Turow said the primary reason for Facebook's changes were to create room for more attractive advertising.

Wharton sophomore Jay Rodrigues, who created the college-only social-networking Web site Dorm Noise, said he thinks the layout change was made to make the site appeal to a wider range of users.

Facebook, which was originally available only to those with college e-mail addresses, no longer caters specifically to students.

Not all students are upset with the new design, however. College sophomore Philip Hsiao said he thinks that people disapprove of the new layout primarily because it is unfamiliar to them.

"I think everyone's just making a big deal because it's new," he said. "I think everyone will get used to it."

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