Concerned about Facebook app

[kenzibit]

Facebook on Android and iOS is not using the facebook public APIs. They are using the private API because they are the company that design the system. Typically, a public API requires that you register a key and use that key to make requests to the server. The requests contain posted information, typically SOAP xml bodies, and that information is used by the server to process your request. Public APIs limit the amount of requests you can make in a certain time period (hence the reason why your phone doesn't automatically request an update every 60 seconds). The APIs also limit what types of requests are available to the public key.

So, take Twitter for example and that app on Windows 8 that ran into the 200k limit. The public API for Twitter required that company (Liquid Daffodil I think it was) to register with them, Twitter supplied them with an API key. Typically, some sort of GUID. When their Twitter app makes a request it posts a block of data (usually SOAP xml like I said before, but it can be in any format the developer's want it to be in) and that posted data contains their public API key. What happened was that over 200k unique users have used their API key. This means they have hit the limit Twitter is imposing. Then the public API key gets locked out. Game over for the app.

We would all love push notifications for facebook, but the public API would never do such a thing. Likely, Microsoft has set up their own servers to facilitate a compromise. What they would have done is written a service that is run on a scheduled task, say every 60 seconds per user. This service runs on their account servers (or wherever the **** they want to put it, it could be anywhere) and when it detects an update it pushes an alert to their own code on your device. The problem with this is that Microsoft has millions of users and the service making these queries is still limited by the public API provided by facebook.

The facebook on iOS and Android on the other hand, is writted by the people at Facebook. So, unlike the public API, they will have access to their own servers for pushing data updates. They can detect a database update at the source and immediately push an alert to their own apps. It is something that is unrestricted for them because they not only own the front end application, but the back end servers that manage and serve up the data. There is a massive difference here. If you all want a better facebook app for WP, let the facebook dev team know. When 20 thousand people ask them directly for it, they might listen

Thanks for this info and I think we should just do that (ask facebook team to give us an app) if Microsoft is unwilling to bring facebook dev team on board. What do you guys think? We can create a post or poll.

UPDATE: Come to think of it, the Twitter app on the other hand is made by Twitter dev team and not Microsoft....so why is it bad?

 

[brandonries]

Like many have already said, I much prefer using the built-in Facebook integration over the app. I don't even think the app UI is very good. But that might just be me. The Twitter app is a little better, but I still prefer Rowi.

 

[ImmortalWarrior]

@Kenzibit

The Twitter app isn't bad per se. It is just incredibly bare bones. It's all because of the return on the developer's investment. WP isn't big enough yet, but since the WP8 kernel and APIs are now allowing much deeper control, I think we will start seeing that change.

 

[kenzibit]

@Kenzibit

The Twitter app isn't bad per se. It is just incredibly bare bones. It's all because of the return on the developer's investment. WP isn't big enough yet, but since the WP8 kernel and APIs are now allowing much deeper control, I think we will start seeing that change.

I just hope so

 

[win_splash]

One of my main complaints with the WP Facebook app is the missing 'Timeline Review' feature. I have friends who tag me in pictures and I have my profile set to require approval by me on any posts I get tagged on. When the official app gives me the notification it doesn't allow me to go to 'Timeline Review.' I'm really not sure why they don't add that feature. I constantly have to go to touch.facebook.com to access missing features.

 

[kenzibit]

One of my main complaints with the WP Facebook app is the missing 'Timeline Review' feature. I have friends who tag me in pictures and I have my profile set to require approval by me on any posts I get tagged on. When the official app gives me the notification it doesn't allow me to go to 'Timeline Review.' I'm really not sure why they don't add that feature. I constantly have to go to touch.facebook.com to access missing features.

Try downloading the Facebook Touch app. It's really cool with lots of features and make me wanna uninstall the official one...it's just useless on my phone.

 

[masterchief1984]

That's not true. I personally had a convo with one of my FB friends when I posted something on their wall. The notifications came in almost instantly. I was an IOS user before switching and they are about the same.

 

[philpeeps]

Try downloading the Facebook Touch app. It's really cool with lots of features and make me wanna uninstall the official one...it's just useless on my phone.

Or just making a bookmark for touch.facebook.com and pin it to the homescreen since that is all the other non-MS facebook apps are.

 

[win_splash]

I looked at that app, but I chose to pin touch.facebook.com which is essentially the same thing. It's just unfortunate that the official FB app from Microsoft is not feature complete. When you compare the features on competing platforms, our WP8 FB app is missing a lot of cool and useful features. I think that if Microsoft can't further improve the app, they should have Facebook create the official app like they do on iOS and Android.

 

[rdubmu]

The only issue I have with facebook app is that the notifications do not go away away when i open the app and look at notifications.

Also, with windows phone 8, facebook app uses the fast resume feature, so in order for the notifications to go away completely you need to back out then relaunch the app.

 

[nzrocketman]

I dont like the facebook App as i am a Admin of my GF's restaurant Page and it have to go to pages and scroll right down to the bottom. On Android as i was the admin it was posted right there in the menu for easy access.

 

[morpheus1982]

I thought there are PLENTY of excellent Twitter apps available???

Or...is it because the official app is free?

 

[kenzibit]

I thought there are PLENTY of excellent Twitter apps available???

Or...is it because the official app is free?

and also official gives instant notifications

 

[baseballbert]

Yes, the WP facebook app pales in comparison to the other two OS versions. So, what's the first step in getting an official FB app? There has to be something that can be done. *****ing about it won't get the app done any sooner, there has to be a better way!

 

[Christophe Chavey]

I changed my iPhone 4 by a lumia920 but some stuffs are very annoying:

1. Push instability
2. Too few facebook functionalities
3. Facebook integration instability (chat constantly offline and can't reconnect, messages delay)
4. Bad keyboard intelligence for fast typing
5. Facebook chat don't allow sending images or documents
6. No SIP client app (for receiving sip/voip call) available in marketplace yet

I can list other bad stuffs but I will stop here.

Unfortunately I will certainly get back to iPhone or buy galaxy S4