Beyond 'Like': 6 ways you might soon emote on Facebook

Published October 9, 2015
This combination of images provided by Facebook shows a sample post featuring the social network's Reactions buttons. —AP
This combination of images provided by Facebook shows a sample post featuring the social network's Reactions buttons. —AP
This image provided by Facebook shows its newly introduced "Reactions" buttons. From left: like, love, haha, yay, wow, sad, and angry. —AP
This image provided by Facebook shows its newly introduced "Reactions" buttons. From left: like, love, haha, yay, wow, sad, and angry. —AP

NEW YORK: Sometimes “Like” just doesn't cut it. So how about Love or Angry? Haha or Sad? Or just Yay or Wow?

Facebook is going “Inside Out” on the Like button, adding a range of new emotional reactions to the iconic thumbs-up icon it launched in 2009.

You won't see the new emoji right away unless you live in Ireland or Spain, the two locations the Menlo Park, California-based social network chose to begin testing them on Friday.

But Chris Cox, Facebook's chief product officer, says in a post that the company plans to use the feedback from the test run to make improvements, with the hope of launching the buttons globally “soon.”

Many Facebook users have been clamoring for the company to add a “Dislike” button for years, arguing that hitting the “Like” button in many instances — such as in reaction to a tragic news event — can seem a bit shallow, or even inappropriate.

At the same time, typing out a thoughtful comment on a phone isn't always easy.

Cox says the company studied Facebook comments to see what reactions were most universally expressed through Facebook and based the new buttons on that.

“As you can see, it's not a 'dislike' button, though we hope it addresses the spirit of this request more broadly,” Cox's post reads.

In order to see the buttons — which are available in the iPhone, Android and desktop versions of Facebook used in Ireland and Spain — users can either long-press or hover over the “Like” button. The buttons will then appear for users to scroll through and select.

Counters underneath a post will track how many of each reaction the post has received, similar to how likes are tracked now.

Opinion

Editorial

Plugging the gap
06 May, 2024

Plugging the gap

IN Pakistan, bias begins at birth for the girl child as discriminatory norms, orthodox attitudes and poverty impede...
Terrains of dread
Updated 06 May, 2024

Terrains of dread

Restored faith in the police is unachievable without political commitment and interprovincial support.
Appointment rules
Updated 06 May, 2024

Appointment rules

If the judiciary had the power to self-regulate, it ought to have exercised it instead of involving the legislature.
Hasty transition
Updated 05 May, 2024

Hasty transition

Ostensibly, the aim is to exert greater control over social media and to gain more power to crack down on activists, dissidents and journalists.
One small step…
05 May, 2024

One small step…

THERE is some good news for the nation from the heavens above. On Friday, Pakistan managed to dispatch a lunar...
Not out of the woods
05 May, 2024

Not out of the woods

PAKISTAN’S economic vitals might be showing some signs of improvement, but the country is not yet out of danger....