There was never any question about the utility and practicality that Facebook provides to communication solutions but its latest advancement has converted it into a unique centre of all technological networking. Facebook Messages is a new feature of this social networking site that allows users to handle all their messages at a single organized platform.

According to the promotional video by Facebook, people use various electronic communication methods these days like email, SMS, or instant messaging client. The basic purpose of Facebook Messages is to extend its market while letting everyone use the communication channel they prefer and feel comfortable with.

An added advantage will be an @facebook.com email account that all the Facebook lovers can acquire for themselves and use to their disposal. This is a component of the Facebook network and not a separate email system in itself that lets you get a pop up notification whenever you receive a new message. It works just like Facebook chat in informing you about the message and letting you respond to the email message right away. The developers like to call it seamless messaging and it is a step towards blurring the distinction among various electronic communication techniques.

There is a lot more to it and you can use this application to the best of your convenience. The Facebook iPhone application gets the email messages transferred to your mobile if you are not available on the PC, and in the future it is predicted to get compatible with Smartphones through Android and other operating systems.

Another improvement is the orderly and organized manner that this application employs. Now you don’t have to self manage your email messages as Facebook Messages records series of emails in separate categories of ‘Friends’, ‘Friends of Friends’ and ‘Others’. It allows you to reshuffle and adjust the settings and move messages among folders if you decide to change friendship status with a particular sender. Messages can be easily blocked from unwanted senders.

The application is getting mixed reactions by users so far. While some view it as an organized and centralized approach, others find it confusing to see so many communication threads at the same virtual space. Many users find the integration issues annoying as the SMS integration deals with each comment like a separate message. This causes a lot of issues for the users as their inbox gets stuffed with messages with each corresponding comment on their Facebook activities.

On a positive side, the developers are dealing with these issues and all the aspects of the application are optional. The registration process is fairly easy and you can become a part of it based on personal choice. It is an excellent effort towards a flawless social network that offers all applications at one place, in the layout that the user prefers. This will let the users customize their Facebook practices while saving a lot of time.

Although it does not come across as a replacement for Gmail so far and needs to cover some gaps, the application indeed has the potential to become better with time. While modifications are still anticipated, you can request an invitation to try it for yourself and see if it feels appropriate for your use.

Posted: 24/11/10 12:30