Facebook Timeline: 10 Simple Tips and Tricks

1. View All Your Timeline Content

Facebook’s mysterious algorithm decides which stories will showcase on your Timeline.

However, it also includes half-hidden posts. Posts that are marked on your Timeline, but not displayed, are noted by a blue dot on the central line. You can view these posts by clicking on the individual blue dots.

A quicker method is to click on the three blue dots underneath each year. This gives you the option to view all stories within that year.

2. Hide Stuff From Your Timeline

As we’ve
pointed out, the Timeline gives friends the ability to view your entire Facebook history.

For this reason, we imagine the first thing most people will want to do is to “sanitize” their Timeline. The good news is, it’s simple to hide what you don’t want showing.

When you see a post you’d like to nix, just hit the pencil icon at the top of the post and select “Hide from Timeline.” This doesn’t delete the content from your account, but it will keep it safe from prying eyes.

3. Customize Your Favorites Boxes

Next up is the ability to customize the boxes that appear under your cover photo. The “Friends” and “Photos” boxes are fixed, but you can play around with the others.

To edit the boxes, click on the small arrow icon on their right. All boxes that can be moved or removed will have a pencil edit icon appear as you hover.

Hitting on the pencil brings up edit options to remove or swap boxes. To add a Facebook app, or one of the new social apps, click on the plus sign on an empty box.

4. Hide the Sidebar

You can make Timeline look even less cluttered by hiding the sidebar.

To do this, click on the arrow icon at the very bottom right of your screen. The sidebar will collapse, but leave the adverts to bug you — although, we’ve got a tip for those too…

5. Get Rid of an Annoying Advert

If a specific ad is really bothering you, simply adios it from your display.

Hover over the advert and click the “X” that appears at the top right. This gives you the option to hide it or hide all ads from that advertiser.

If you choose to hide the ad, Facebook gives you the further option to tailor what kind of ads appear on your account.

6. Change an Album’s Primary Photo

Albums you’ve created will show up in your Timeline. However, you can change the large, or “primary” image.

Click the pencil edit icon to select a different image from the album that will appear in the big window.

7. Feature a Post on Timeline

Make certain posts appear larger on your Timeline so they take up a double column space.

To do this, click the star icon in the top right corner of the post. You can minimize large posts the same way.

8. Customize Your Subscription Updates

When you subscribe to someone’s public updates, Facebook defaults to “Most updates.” You can change this.

Either go to the person’s profile and click the “Subscribed” drop down menu or, more efficiently, go click your “Subscriptions” favorites box (under your cover photo). This gives you a bird’s-eye view of the people you’ve subscribed to.

Now, if you hit the “Subscribed” box for each person you can tailor exact updates.

9. View Your Private Activity Log

If you’ve hidden items from your Timeline, but still want to review all of your Facebook content, look to your private Activity Log. Click on the “View Activity” box under your cover photo.

Now, by selecting a type of content from the “All” drop down menu, you can browse all your past Facebook activities, organized by date.

10. View Your Profile Through Someone Else’s Eyes

As with the former version of Facebook, you can view how others see your Timeline.

Click the cog icon under your cover photo; then select “View as…”

You can now enter a friend’s name or click on the “public” hyperlink to see how stranger’s view your Timeline.

BONUS: How to Poke

As we’ve
addressed, Facebook has downgraded the famous “poke” in the new Timeline design.

If you still want to “poke” your Facebook buddies, you have to head directly to their profiles. Under a friend’s cover photo, next to the “Message” box, there’s a cog menu. Click this and you’ll see the option to poke. As always, use wisely.

Although users have generally applauded
Facebook‘s new visual Timeline design, they may still need some time to get used to the changes.

To help you switch over from the old design to the new, we’ve pulled together 10 simple Timeline tips and tricks, including how to hide content from your Timeline, how to emphasize what you want to show off, and how to activate other useful customization options.

Take a look through the gallery above to see our top tips and tricks for getting started. Share any other tips in the comments below.