Facebook creates 'Find friends nearby' feature

Facebook users may soon be able to physically find their friends if they are nearby, thanks —or no thanks— to a new feature by the social networking giant.

 

A report on tech site TechCrunch said the new feature, initially dubbed "Friendshake," is accessible via fb.com/ffn, or via Facebook’s mobile apps.

 

It can also be accessed on Facebook’s iOS and Android apps, it added.

 

"The service comes a little under two months after Facebook announced the acquisition of Glancee, a mobile app that helps users discover people near them with similar interests, whose three founders have now joined Facebook and closed down their app. It is not clear if Friendshake has been created out of that acquisition, or if it has been developed along an altogether different thread — or how the functions of the two may eventually dovetail," TechCrunch reported.

 

But TechCrunch also said that while the service may be potentially beneficial, there is always the possibility it can be abused.

 

"Random people you would like to shake off suddenly start asking you to friend them on Facebook, for example," it said.

 

TechCrunch said it first heard about the service from developer Roger Pincombe, who himself got the info from a Facebook developer at the Angelhack event.

 

For now, TechCrunch said users have to be logged into Facebook and also into the Friendshake URL.

 

Others who are near can pick each other up and a Facebook user can see both his or her own friends, as well as those he or she may not know.

 

"For now it looks like the main purpose is to quickly add people who you meet at a specific event — like a hackathon, or a bar," TechCrunch said.

 

Hackathon project

 

TechCrunch quoted original Facebook engineer Ryan Patterson as saying he built Find Friends Nearby with another engineer for a hackathon project.

 

"For me, the ideal use case for this product is the one where when you’re out with a group of people whom you’ve recently met and want to stay in contact with. Facebook search might be effective, or sharing your vanity addresses or business cards, but this tool provides a really easy way to exchange contact information with multiple people with minimal friction," he said.

 

He added the service could be further developed into finding people who are friends of friends, or who have flagged similar interests in their social graphs.

 

Tight-lipped on testing

 

Tech site CNET said Facebook has been tight-lipped about the new feature.

 

"We are constantly testing new features but have nothing more to share at this time," it quoted a Facebook spokesperson as saying. — TJD, GMA News