How to Remove a Facebook Application from your News Feed
As much as I love my facebook friends there are some applications that I don’t want or need to see clogging up my news feed. The application can be removed from the news feed, although it isn’t obvious, and you won’t have to de-friend your first boyfriend.
For this example, let’s use … hmm … I don’t know … how about Mafia Wars? While I am thrilled that so many people enjoy playing this on Facebook, I am not playing and the status updates telling me you just got a new gun or killed the bad guy mean absolutely nothing to me. And when I really busy and am trying to get caught up, they are completely annoying.
So here’s what you do.
- Login to Facebook and go to your Home page
- On the left is the news feed. Click on the More Link to view a list of applications.
- By selecting on of the Applications (ahem … Mafia Wars) you can filter the news feed to only show Mafia Wars updates.
- Hover over one of the status updates and a hidden Hide button will magically appear. Yes, logic doesn’t apply when we have to unhide the hide button.
- Click on the Hide button. It will ask you to select whether you want to hide the person who has the update or the Application. Since I love my friends, I’m going to choose to Hide the Application (Mafia Wars). And then poof! it’s gone.
- The news feed will now be empty because we had filtered it to only show updates from the application we just removed. Just click on News Feed on the top left and you will see all the updates again.
Anyone else have trouble finding the hidden, magic button? I was SO happy when I found this the other day and could say bye-bye to Mafia Wars ;-)
photo credit: Zarko Drincic
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July 23, 2009 at 1:32 am
I’m with ya on the Mafia Wars…what the heck is all the fuss about?
July 23, 2009 at 7:20 pm
Hi – I don’t know. It must be fun though.
July 23, 2009 at 6:03 am
You turned out to be a facebook addict or is it just me? :P If i was to spend more time on facebook than the 5 mins per month i do now, i would remove maaaaany of those little annoying thingies :) Nice tip though, it might turn out to be useful at some point *opens facebook and starts checking feed* :D
stratosg´s last blog ..What’s an API for a web service?
July 23, 2009 at 7:21 pm
Hi Stratos – It’s a good way to keep up with people but I don’t think I’m
addicted to it. I work with it quite a bit for other people and that’s when
I run into these issues – writing about facebook is a nice diversion from
WordPress too ;-)
July 23, 2009 at 7:10 am
hahahahaha…YES! Thank you!
Kim 1. Mafia Wars 0.
Jim´s last blog ..Poor Sammy Davis Jr.
July 23, 2009 at 7:22 pm
Hi Jim – lol – yay! I’m winning.
July 23, 2009 at 9:11 am
Yes, logic doesn’t apply when we have to unhide the hide button.
Love it.
I never saw the fascination with Mafia Wars either. How ridiculous it is to me. Now, Coffee Worship….that’s something else entirely. :)
Barbara Ling, Virtual Coach´s last blog ..YOU tell ME – what do YOU want to learn about making money online?
July 23, 2009 at 7:22 pm
Hi Barbara – I’m glad you appreciate my sense of humor ;-)
Maybe we should start Caffeine Wars …
July 23, 2009 at 11:39 am
I remember when FB first added that feature; the button was not hidden back then. It was heaven. And then they removed it after one day. It was hell. And then it came back, but the button is hidden. Purgatory?
I wish there were a “Hide all applications by default” setting. Not yet.
July 23, 2009 at 7:24 pm
Hi Dan – Once I get used to the new interface when Facebook makes
changes I tend to forget what was there before ;-)
If all apps were hidden what would you see? Status updates only?
July 29, 2009 at 1:07 pm
Huh. It didn’t automatically forward your reply to my e-mail. Oh well, I saw it now. :)
I see people’s wall posts (to mine and to theirs), photo updates, etc. There are some built-in applications which I don’t think of as “all applications” — i.e. photos links notes video groups info events.
July 23, 2009 at 12:12 pm
Thanks for this article. Didn’t know that was possible
Madhur Kapoor´s last blog ..Tweak Windows 7 with EnhanceMySe7en
July 23, 2009 at 7:24 pm
Hi Madhur – That’s because it’s hidden ;-)
July 23, 2009 at 7:00 pm
thanks kim, i’m going to do this. i guess i do get tired of seeing some of the applications. i’m still new to facebook and don’t know how to navigate most things.
Natural´s last blog ..I am conductor, hear me cook
July 23, 2009 at 7:25 pm
Hi Valerie – Facebook is just really unintuitive. I think you could use it for years and still not know where all the settings are. And then when they update, they change them around.
July 24, 2009 at 9:04 pm
just did it. no more…well i won’t mention the game, but it’s gone. have mercy!
Natural´s last blog ..I am conductor, hear me cook
July 25, 2009 at 8:31 pm
Hi – That’s good :-)
July 25, 2009 at 7:20 am
Thank you. THANK YOU. You have just improved my quality of life, oh Facebook guru :)
July 25, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Hi Adrenalynn – Yes, facebook is much more pleasant now :-)
August 2, 2009 at 10:55 pm
Oh it’s possible. Thank God I’m here.. and thanks for the tips Kim.
Anyway, I like your smile. Please put a smile on your face today. please Facebook Guru..hehe..
Yoko
Internet Heaven
Yoko´s last blog ..SponsoredTweets by IZEA Will Be Launch Soon
August 3, 2009 at 8:30 am
Hi Yoko – I’m glad the article helped you out. :-)
August 6, 2009 at 11:06 pm
Okay, doing the HIDE works fine … but now the question is how do you UNHIDE an application stream you have clicked “HIDE” on? I’ve been all over Application settings (yes, for Mafia Wars) and cannot how to ‘make visible again’ that which I have clicked the “HIDE” button on. I’d kind of like to toggle it on (when I am playing) and off (when I’m done) but I can’t figure out how to UNHIDE an application! Any help?
August 7, 2009 at 12:04 am
http://www.kimwoodbridge.com/how-to-add-a-facebook-application-to-your-news-stream-that-you-previously-removed/
August 26, 2009 at 2:46 pm
Thanks the advice is spot on. Thank god it’s gone !!!!
August 30, 2009 at 7:29 am
Hi Tim – lol :-) I’m glad it helped.
December 18, 2009 at 8:12 am
Now that they changed facebook yet again, I can’t see the mafia wars icon in the side, even when I click ‘more’. Help!! :P
December 18, 2009 at 8:14 am
Hi Dann – This article might help.
http://www.kimwoodbridge.com/updated-how-to-unhide-a-facebook-application-or-page/
December 29, 2009 at 11:55 am
Thank you, thank you, thank you. By the time I got through all the updates about people’s “wasting of time”, status updates were old. So much better, so less cluttered.
December 29, 2009 at 12:03 pm
Hi Reseda – Yes, facebook can be a lot more enjoyable without the
mafia wars and farmville updates ;-)