Facebook Opens Pages to Outside Developers

prostoalex writes "Facebook is now allowing third-party developers to create pages within the site. Developers can use a combination of the Facebook API and a subset of HTML to create interactive pages accessible from within Facebook. Users retain complete control over which applications they want to have installed, and which applications they want to see on other people's profile. Developers can build on top of Facebook's social grid, and in case of a popular application gain distribution through Facebook newsfeed."

Hmmm..

[Solokron]

Although MySpace customizations can be very annoying, it is also part of its success. Being able to customize your profile to better reflect your tastes is part of what has helped MySpace skyrocket over competitors. Taking a plain, boring, white background profile and making it your own can be very gratifying. People can spend hours upon hours customizing their own little site testing it out, MySpace banner ads get more and more impressions, that person then in turns shows it off to all their friends (or people they just have on their list as friends), and MySpace continues to accumulate ad impressions. Although there are more crappy MySpace profiles, there are some profiles that really capitalize on dhtml and flash knowledge and even with limitations imposed, are very impressive. Any feature that keeps people coming back to their website is really what they want and Facebooks direction makes perfect sense.

scripting

[Locklin]

So how long before someone manages to get a nice x-site script into their page. This could be rather annoying since facebook doesn't work without javascript turned on.

with all the continuing 'growth'

[Anonymous Coward]

it's a shame that a social networking site that was actually somewhat useful and cool is becoming a huge money venture instead of just being a good tool for keeping up with people. as it grows more complicated i (and other users too perhaps?) get fed up with all the extra crap everywhere and the extra demand one is placed under to simply maintain a presence there. how much longer is it going to be until everyone who doesnt want a myspace is going to have to leave facebook for that reason?