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Facebook Integration

RDowson

RDowson

macrumors 6502
Original poster
May 22, 2010
301
108
Glasgow, Scotland
Can you choose what level of Facebook integration you have?

I don't really want my Facebook contacts to be added to my contact list.

Also, with Facebook events showing in calendar, what happens for birthdays? I've already got birthdays saved in my contacts which show up on the existing birthdays calendar. Would having Facebook integration here not mean I get duplicate birthdays listed (over 2 calendars)?

Thanks.
 
Cheers. I just watched a video showing it in action. It says it uses your contact's email addresses and phone numbers to add Facebook usernames and photos to your contact cards.

Does this mean it doesn't add any new contacts then? This is what I want.

I have images assigned to my contact cards. Would Facebook replace these with the person's current Facebook display picture? I assume it would update if their display pic changes.

As for calendars, I don't mind event syncing. I would actually find it quite useful. I just don't want duplicate birthdays showing up.

Anyone that has tested all this out, your feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
 
RamboRab said:
Cheers. I just watched a video showing it in action. It says it uses your contact's email addresses and phone numbers to add Facebook usernames and photos to your contact cards.

Does this mean it doesn't add any new contacts then? This is what I want.

I have images assigned to my contact cards. Would Facebook replace these with the person's current Facebook display picture? I assume it would update if their display pic changes.

As for calendars, I don't mind event syncing. I would actually find it quite useful. I just don't want duplicate birthdays showing up.

Anyone that has tested all this out, your feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Click to expand...
if you already have the person as a contact it will duplicate it :(
 
Can anyone give an in-depth description of how the contacts integration works? Pictures or videos would be great! :)

If all my Facebook contacts are added to my iOS contacts are these then synced over iCloud or are they kept separate?

If I delete the facebook contacts that I don't want in my contact list will they be re-added again the next time there is a sync?

Thanks.
 
RamboRab said:
Can anyone give an in-depth description of how the contacts integration works? Pictures or videos would be great! :)

If all my Facebook contacts are added to my iOS contacts are these then synced over iCloud or are they kept separate?

If I delete the facebook contacts that I don't want in my contact list will they be re-added again the next time there is a sync?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

They are seperate if you choose to check to sync contacts it creates a seperate group called all facebook it isn't part of the cloud. you check mark them to show or uncheck and they won't show in your contacts or you can choose to not sync them facebook settings.
 
RamboRab said:
Can anyone give an in-depth description of how the contacts integration works? Pictures or videos would be great! :)

If all my Facebook contacts are added to my iOS contacts are these then synced over iCloud or are they kept separate?

If I delete the facebook contacts that I don't want in my contact list will they be re-added again the next time there is a sync?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

So you can have Facebook sync your contacts in two ways; you can have it just fill out info for your existing contacts or add all your Facebook friends into your contacts app. The info syncing is a little messy. It will duplicate pretty much all info (birthdays, phone numbers, addresses) that you already have that the person also provides on Facebook. It also adds links to their profile, their Facebook email address and any IM user names they have listed. The problem is that you can't edit this info or even remove it, so you gotta have all that in their contact card or nothing and edit their pre existing info to remove duplicated info.

For birthdays and events, you can have calendar sync with both, either or none. Clicking on an event in calendars provides all the info you could want but doesn't let you accept or decline invites.

Overall, it's pretty cool and works well. But it does, obviously, need a bit of clean up in contact info syncing.
 
frunkis54 said:
They are seperate if you choose to check to sync contacts it creates a seperate group called all facebook it isn't part of the cloud. you check mark them to show or uncheck and they won't show in your contacts or you can choose to not sync them facebook settings.
Click to expand...

So it's like how Microsoft Exchange contacts integrate with the contacts app then?

----------
liquidsuns said:
So you can have Facebook sync your contacts in two ways; you can have it just fill out info for your existing contacts or add all your Facebook friends into your contacts app. The info syncing is a little messy. It will duplicate pretty much all info (birthdays, phone numbers, addresses) that you already have that the person also provides on Facebook. It also adds links to their profile, their Facebook email address and any IM user names they have listed. The problem is that you can't edit this info or even remove it, so you gotta have all that in their contact card or nothing and edit their pre existing info to remove duplicated info.

For birthdays and events, you can have calendar sync with both, either or none. Clicking on an event in calendars provides all the info you could want but doesn't let you accept or decline invites.

Overall, it's pretty cool and works well. But it does, obviously, need a bit of clean up in contact info syncing.
Click to expand...

If you only allow it to update the info for your existing contacts does it update profile pictures when they are changed on Facebook? Or is it just for Facebook profile ID's and birthdays? Is this a one time sync or does it update if there is a change on Facebook?

Just to be clear, for calendar syncing you could just allow Facebook events to sync but leave birthdays as they are already in your existing birthdays calendar?

I think I'm finally starting to understand how this works.

Thanks :)
 
RamboRab said:
Can you choose what level of Facebook integration you have?
Click to expand...

I sure hope so. I want to choose the "do not compile this useless network into my OS" option. :D

Edit:
I also want this option for IOS 6. Google+ for life.
 
Last edited:
RamboRab said:
So it's like how Microsoft Exchange contacts integrate with the contacts app then?

----------



If you only allow it to update the info for your existing contacts does it update profile pictures when they are changed on Facebook? Or is it just for Facebook profile ID's and birthdays? Is this a one time sync or does it update if there is a change on Facebook?

Just to be clear, for calendar syncing you could just allow Facebook events to sync but leave birthdays as they are already in your existing birthdays calendar?

I think I'm finally starting to understand how this works.

Thanks :)
Click to expand...

Yes it does update the photo. I'm almost positive it automatically updates a contact if that person changes any of the linked info. You can also manually resync/update contacts from settings-Facebook.

Also yes, you can choose between showing events and/birthdays in calendar. However, this seems a little buggy at the moment and Notification Center will still show Facebook birthdays even if you tell the calendar app not too (they will not show in calendar though).

But like I said, it is a little buggy all around. Most of my contacts have two or three links to their Facebook profile on their contact card. Facebook sync will also duplicate info. So if I had their bday already, it will still sync from their profile. Same with addresses, and rarely does anyone put their full address on facebook so you are left with either a joke address or a super vague address that you cant get rid of. So there is a lot of editting of pre existing info to do and no info from Facebook can be hidden or edited.

And a slight annoyance; since you can't edit FB info, you a contact was added from Facebook (ie, you didn't have them in your contact app before) and you then say get their phone number or address or whatever, you still have to make a new contact and link them because....you can't edit their contact card at all.

So yeah they have some work to do on this.
 
How about NO facebook integration . . .

I'm hoping to be able to continue using fb on my browser, but not implement any form of it on my OS. I basically hate fb but I do like people, so I use it to connect with folks - but I refuse to allow it to integrate into my life any more than I have to.
 
I hope they improve the way they do it. The way they done twitter contacts was good. One thing that annoys me is that when I tap someone's twitter name, it launches the twitter app. Yet when I tap the facebook username it launches safari. Guess we'll have to see if the further betas make changes
 
BettBee said:
I'm hoping to be able to continue using fb on my browser, but not implement any form of it on my OS. I basically hate fb but I do like people, so I use it to connect with folks - but I refuse to allow it to integrate into my life any more than I have to.
Click to expand...

Than don’t use it. Seriously, nobody is preventing you from continuing to use Facebook.com in the browser and nobody is forcing you to use it’s integration. It’s there if you want it.

Why is everybody posting threads like this? If people want to use the feature it’s there. Why do people decry something that is entirely optional?
 
softworn said:
I sure hope so. I want to choose the "do not compile this useless network into my OS" option. :D

Edit:
I also want this option for IOS 6. Google+ for life.
Click to expand...

The fact you call FB useless and tout G+ for life speaks volumes. Not that FB is the coolest thing since sliced bread but I mean come on...

"Hey! Join me in a G+ hangout!" - Nobody :D
 
pdjudd said:
Than don’t use it. Seriously, nobody is preventing you from continuing to use Facebook.com in the browser and nobody is forcing you to use it’s integration. It’s there if you want it.

Why is everybody posting threads like this? If people want to use the feature it’s there. Why do people decry something that is entirely optional?
Click to expand...

Heh - what are you, Steve Job's #1 fan? You really seem a little defensive. On behalf of a company. (WTF is that about?!?) :p

I wrote in because I didn't know whether I could choose the level of integration or none at all. Facebook integration is everywhere, and I have even encountered websites that insist on one's logging in via fb, not even giving a choice as many do. I would be very upset if Apple added too close an integration with this horrible website.

I feel sorry for folks who choose fb login as an easy way of logging into to other sites, as it exposes them to yet further invasions of their privacy by this behemoth site whose only interest is in selling ads and making money. And it's not even that easy, compared to an app like 1Password, where you can have as many passwords as you like, one for every site, and yet call them up in a moment, securely - without saving them to your keychain or browser in any way. No need to log in with fb, who I'm sure would love to have all your demographic information.
 
BettBee said:
Heh - what are you, Steve Job's #1 fan? You really seem a little defensive. On behalf of a company. (WTF is that about?!?) :p
Click to expand...

No. But I am sick and tired when people use this forum to spout out their hatred of Facebook. I doubt that anybody cares that you hate Facebook. You can ask about the level of integration, but all I ask is that people keep on task else a thread gets hijacked. I am not defending anybody. I don’t have any beef or qualms about either company. Guess what Steve Jobs is dead. I got over it about an hour after I heard the news.

Straw person attacks or the like don’t mean jack.
 
pdjudd said:
No. But I am sick and tired when people use this forum to spout out their hatred of Facebook. I doubt that anybody cares that you hate Facebook. You can ask about the level of integration, but all I ask is that people keep on task else a thread gets hijacked. I am not defending anybody. I don’t have any beef or qualms about either company. Guess what Steve Jobs is dead. I got over it about an hour after I heard the news.

Straw person attacks or the like don’t mean jack.
Click to expand...

Face it, I can say anything I want - and strictly speaking, this IS about facebook, which makes it fair game. Facebook sucks, and I would prefer not to see it integrated into my OS. And - you attacked first. Perhaps you don't see this, but you are acting like a giddy teenage fanboy with a bad case of sarcasm. So, as you reacted so very strongly to my original post, I'm just having a bit of fun with you and taking the opportunity to expound on my hatred of fb. Did I mention I hate fb? I positively revile it. ;)
 
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