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I bet there's branding and usability reasons for Facebook to avoid allowing you to skin/theme it to the extent Winamp was skinnable. Not sure I know what those

I bet there's branding and usability reasons for Facebook to avoid allowing you to skin/theme it to the extent Winamp was skinnable. Not sure I know what those are, but I just really doubt they'll ever add that feature.

pionar 9y ago
Probably more like value reasons. What's the point? Would that drive more users to Facebook? Or current users to spend more time there?
jsgo 9y ago
While it worked great for Winamp and a few other apps, the process was a negative for others: MySpace being a big example. People modifying their pages to look like Angelfire/Geocities sites from back in the day killed any interest I had in them.
- greymeister 9y ago
  Tumblr took the other path in allowing you to customize your own user experience, it certainly comes with a trade-off.
- greiskul 9y ago
  One big difference is that in MySpace a user could modify how other users viewed their page. With skins a user can modify how they view other users page, but would not modify those other users experience.
- whywhywhywhy 9y ago
  What's the issue with people making their own space look like Geocities if it's what makes them happy and is how they want to express themselves. Would also like to point out that customisation on MySpace is probably responsible for a whole generation of not only developers but non-tech focused people learning how to code. Met a lot of artists and designers who now work on the internet who MySpace was the starting point.
  - jsgo 9y ago
    I have no issue with someone doing it, but it doesn't mean I as a user am going to want to continue visiting it. As bland as Facebook is in look (and it could probably do with a less cluttered redesign), it is at least not a jarring experience so I can live with it. And for a site like MySpace to work, it needs traffic. Not sure on the generation of web developers MySpace created. Pretty sure every single page that looked like this was plastered with logos for theme building sites/companies littered with various neon-on-black comic sans designs as far as the eye can see.
Raphmedia 9y ago
Facebook is optimized to get you addicted to your feed. Muted blue colors everywhere with contrasting bright "berry red" rewarding notifications. Images that are always more contrasted than the layout, etc. Anecdotal: I use a custom Facebook skin that makes the whole UI red and add a background image. Since I've started using it, I spend less time on the website. It feels, in a way, more tiring to use the custom theme.
- ryanianian 9y ago
  That's cool - can you share it?
  - Raphmedia 9y ago
    It is a mix of UserStyles that I blended together. I won't share it but you can replicate it using: https://userstyles.org/styles/115084/red-facebook-gta-5-lifeinvader-style https://userstyles.org/styles/115084/red-facebook-gta-5-life... as a basis and one of the current popular themes for the background https://userstyles.org/styles/147009/facebook-2k17-modern-design-no-ads-modern-chat https://userstyles.org/styles/147009/facebook-2k17-modern-de... https://userstyles.org/styles/browse?search_terms=facebook https://userstyles.org/styles/browse?search_terms=facebook

pionar 9y ago

Probably more like value reasons. What's the point? Would that drive more users to Facebook? Or current users to spend more time there?

jsgo 9y ago

While it worked great for Winamp and a few other apps, the process was a negative for others: MySpace being a big example. People modifying their pages to look like Angelfire/Geocities sites from back in the day killed any interest I had in them.

greymeister 9y ago
Tumblr took the other path in allowing you to customize your own user experience, it certainly comes with a trade-off.
greiskul 9y ago
One big difference is that in MySpace a user could modify how other users viewed their page. With skins a user can modify how they view other users page, but would not modify those other users experience.
whywhywhywhy 9y ago
What's the issue with people making their own space look like Geocities if it's what makes them happy and is how they want to express themselves. Would also like to point out that customisation on MySpace is probably responsible for a whole generation of not only developers but non-tech focused people learning how to code. Met a lot of artists and designers who now work on the internet who MySpace was the starting point.
- jsgo 9y ago
  I have no issue with someone doing it, but it doesn't mean I as a user am going to want to continue visiting it. As bland as Facebook is in look (and it could probably do with a less cluttered redesign), it is at least not a jarring experience so I can live with it. And for a site like MySpace to work, it needs traffic. Not sure on the generation of web developers MySpace created. Pretty sure every single page that looked like this was plastered with logos for theme building sites/companies littered with various neon-on-black comic sans designs as far as the eye can see.

Raphmedia 9y ago

Facebook is optimized to get you addicted to your feed. Muted blue colors everywhere with contrasting bright "berry red" rewarding notifications. Images that are always more contrasted than the layout, etc. Anecdotal: I use a custom Facebook skin that makes the whole UI red and add a background image. Since I've started using it, I spend less time on the website. It feels, in a way, more tiring to use the custom theme.

ryanianian 9y ago
That's cool - can you share it?
- Raphmedia 9y ago
  It is a mix of UserStyles that I blended together. I won't share it but you can replicate it using: https://userstyles.org/styles/115084/red-facebook-gta-5-lifeinvader-style https://userstyles.org/styles/115084/red-facebook-gta-5-life... as a basis and one of the current popular themes for the background https://userstyles.org/styles/147009/facebook-2k17-modern-design-no-ads-modern-chat https://userstyles.org/styles/147009/facebook-2k17-modern-de... https://userstyles.org/styles/browse?search_terms=facebook https://userstyles.org/styles/browse?search_terms=facebook