You might have heard already that Facebook are in the process of updating the style of all profiles on the site. Using a 'Timeline' profile has been an optional thing, but unfortunately this won't be the case for much longer.
An announcement on the Facebook blog on 24 January said that over the next few weeks all business pages would be automatically converted to the timeline view. The timeline view would then be rolled out to all personal Facebook user profiles. View the Facebook announcement. A date of 31 March was widely circulated as the date by which the roll-out would be complete, although this doesn't seem to be the case.
Accessibility concerns have been raised around the new profile design, although it is early days in the switch over period and little information is available about how it could affect blind and visually impaired users.
After conversations with both sighted and unsighted Facebook users, it appears many users feel the new site is very messy and have expressed a dislike and a lack of understanding about the initial concept behind the new profile theme.
For further information check out this list of Facebook Timeline pros and cons. Another useful source of information is the BBC Newsbeat article, Facebook's Timeline - The Facts about the Sites New Feature.
What is Timeline?
Facebook Timeline is a new profile layout which displays all content that you have ever posted on your profile in a way intended to represent a picture of your life.
The change is intended to make each person's Facebook experience more 'visual' and so the information is more 'easily accessible' with the layout and placing of pictures and how they display your past information etc. However, I fear this may not be the immediate case for blind and partially sighted users who are accustomed to accessing the site in a particular way.
If you scroll down to the very bottom of your 'Timeline' through all your past posts, it displays 'the date you were born' i.e. the date you joined Facebook and then annual archives of content you have uploaded can be accessed to show 'the story of your life' since you joined Facebook.
The issue of privacy has also been considered to be a risk. Once a profile is changed to the Timeline view, you will get a 7 day period before the new view is visible to others. This is so that you can view and edit the content that will appear on your Facebook Timeline, and ensure it looks the way that you want it to before it is published for the world to see.
It is important to be aware of this 7 day period as It may be unfortunate for users who do not have regular access to the internet or who may be away on holiday as the next time they return to the site they could find all kinds of personal content previously shared with the site that the would prefer to keep disclosed.
Check out the official Facebook Timeline page for more information about Timeline.
Layout
Timeline allows you to set a large picture as a banner heading on the top of your profile. This can be any picture you like. When you scroll down you are presented with a selection of 'top stories' and photographs, and below your stories and wall posts are displayed as two columns rather than the previous one column news feed.
Content is intended to be 'easier' to access in the term of not having to scroll down and load more information to view pasts posts you and your friends have made. The only problem is that a lot of the ways we have become accustomed to using the site have changed as a result.
I noticed a change when I was viewing the news feed last week; usually there would be a box above saying 'what's on your mind…' where you could type to post your current Facebook status. For a while I thought Facebook had taken it away and it had disappeared all together before a friend of mine pointed out to be that instead there is a link to click which brings the box in a drop down style where I could write my status. It seems like the profile view may not be the only thing the site is currently rearranging.
User perspectives
Here are some comments from two blind Facebook users about their experience using the Timeline profile:
User one:
"Once you get into the area of a profile that's been divided into two columns, most screen readers seem to present the top left most item first, followed by the info in the top right box, then rinse and repeat from left to right on each level as you work your way through the profile.
"The problem is, there is no way of telling which column the article you're currently reading applies to, and no consistent way of jumping to the end of junk you don't want to read if you're only interested in a particular type of item. I haven't been able to find a way to only jump down the items in the left-hand column for example. All in, it adds up to a pretty messy and longwinded way in order to view somebody's profile."
"Things are slightly neater in the mobile interface. Visually there's only one column to deal with, and from a screen reader user's point of view the info is more logically grouped together, but again, there's no known methods for faster navigation."
Visit the Facebook blog to find out more about Timeline profile on mobile platforms.
User two:
"The new Facebook Timeline is accessible and useable to blind and partially sighted people. I would say that it is not as easy to navigate as before, but it us just a case of getting used to where things are and the new way of doing things."
Extra information
Have a look at the following web pages that contain further information on Facebook Timeline:
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