New FriendFeed Looks Twittery, But Keeps It Real-Time

FriendFeed launched an interface re-design that has the entire community talking. The real-time view is now the default view, so things can get out of hand real quick. You also now have a basic profile with a blurb about yourself. This was a pretty highly requested feature. The layout does look like Twitter, but definitely acts nothing like Twitter.

Real-Time Default

FriendFeed’s real-time view is a constantly flowing river of information. New items pop-up right before your eyes and flow down the page. Things that get commented or liked are bumped back up as before. Depending on how many people you subscribe to, this view can definitely get overwhelming. Some have described the new default view as nauseating or even seizure-inducing.

There are a few ways to deal with this new setup if you’re having a hard time keeping up:

• Organize your friends into filters/lists – This is probably the most recommended solution, but many people (including me) aren’t really into categorizing 100’s or ever 1000’s of people. If you go this route, remember that you can add people to lists on the fly by hovering there name and clicking “add/edit”.
• Follow less people – this might seem obvious, but may actually be an option. I have been pretty careful with who I’ve subscribed to though, so this isn’t an option for me.
• Use the Pause button – There is a pause button right at the top of your feed. I have heard that you can pause the feed and then refresh the page just like the old interface.

The best solution would be for FriendFeed to bring back the option of a static page that auto-refreshes at a specified interval. I like the real-time view, but forcing it on everyone was probably not a good idea.

More Powerful Sharebox

FriendFeed now allows you to share things with specific individuals in addition to rooms and your own feed. The share box will auto-complete your friends and rooms as you type them (partial words don’t work). As a direct consequence of this new sharing option, you also have the ability to Direct Message your friends. I’ve always advocated against DM’s on FriendFeed, but it seems most people wanted yet another inbox to keep up with.

Saved Searches

Not only can you use FriendFeed’s advanced search capabilities to find things that interest you, but now you can save those searches for later. As a simple example, I could create a vanity search to find posts that mention my name and refer back to that search to see who is talking about me. This is another tool that may help in keeping up with the hectic nature of FriendFeed real-time, since you’ll be able to make sure you catch posts about certain topics.

Go Check It Out

You won’t see the new version unless you visit beta.friendfeed.com rather than just friendfeed.com. If you’re used to FriendFeed, the new interface may definitely take some getting used to. If you have avoided FF for one reason or another, this is the perfect excuse to check it out.

Bwana has done a nice video walk-through of the new interface and Louis Gray makes some suggestions for the new beta. You can also watch a video on the FriendFeed Beta Tour page.

What do you think about the new interface? Are you having trouble figuring out what to do with FriendFeed? Feel free to voice your opinion.