16 Facebook hacks you’ll wish you knew sooner

Luckily, turning off auto-play only takes a matter of seconds. On your desktop, go to ‘Settings,’ then ‘Videos,’ and change the ‘Auto-Play Videos’ settings from ‘Default’ to ‘Off.’ You can also change this on your mobile app. Tap the three stacked lines in the bottom right corner of the app. iPhone users, scroll down to ‘Settings,’ then ‘Account Settings,’ then ‘Videos and Photos,’ and look for the auto-play option. Android users, tap ‘App Settings,’ then ‘Autoplay.’

If you never knew this feature existed, it may forever change the way you use Facebook. Just saying. In the top right corner of every post, you’ll see three dots. Click those dots and choose the first option to save the link/video/post. I’ll copy that link and put it in a folder called ‘Saved’ on the left-hand side of your screen under the Explore category. (This folder only appears after you first save a post.) Now you can read those posts when you have more time and click ‘Unsave’ when you want them gone.

Read on for the golden rules of Facebook.

Here’s another reason you and your significant other need to be Facebook Official. If you go to facebook.com/us, Facebook will show you the complete Facebook history between you and your boo, including photos, status updates with each other, and other fun memories that capture your love. At least, everything about it that you put online. If you’re not in a relationship, facebook.com/us takes you to the relationship status on your profile, where you are not-so-delicately reminded that you are, in fact, single. Sorry for the rude awakening.

No, seriously. On facebook.com/livemap, you can see Facebook live streams happening in real time all over the world. They show up as blue dots on a map you can zoom in and around on (the bigger the dot, the more people are watching). Hold your mouse over a dot for a preview. It could be a makeup tutorial, a local news channel covering a developing story, or someone who just likes talking to random strangers.

It’s more important than ever to protect your personal information online. Facebook can help you figure out if and when anyone has accessed your account without your knowledge. Go to ‘Settings,’ then ‘Security and Login.’ Under ‘Where You’re Logged In,’ you’ll see a list of the devices where your account is being used and where they’re located. If you see any red flags, like ‘Device type unknown’ or a city you haven’t visited recently (or ever!), click on the three dots in that section and click ‘Not you?’ You’ll be prompted to reset your password, so whoever logged into your account won’t be able to again.

Find out here how to delete 99 per cent of your digital footprint.

“Are you serious?” “People have been trying to contact me this whole time?” “Why have you been hiding this from me, Facebook?!” Whatever your reaction, it’s a whole new world of connections: for better or worse. When you click on the Messenger icon in the top blue bar, you automatically see a record of recent messages. But if you look closely, there’s an option for ‘Message Requests.’ These are messages people you’re not already connected with, but want to connect with you. If you do know the sender, open the chat and click ‘Accept’ to continue the convo. Otherwise, click ‘Decline’ and forget the whole thing ever happened. If you click ‘See Filtered Requests,’ you can see the messages you’ve received that Facebook marks as spam. Why isn’t it called the ‘Spam Inbox,’ you ask? Because that would just be too darn simple.

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Source: RD.com