Facebook’s timeline has finally started rolling out to over 800 million users worldwide after originally being announced at it’s f8 developers conference last September. You can blame this delay on Facebook being sued by Timeline.com. Timelines.com alleges that Facebook’s launch of Timeline infringes upon its trademarks.

This new feature transforms the Facebook user profile into a virtual scrapbook that lays out your digital history. I feel this is a huge improvement that strengthens the value of your profile page . With the old FB profile your news feed would just display the newest posts or images you have, giving your friends and family minor fragments of what you have been sharing. Now you can easily scroll back by days, months, or years in a well designed two column layout. Using the timeline sidebar you can click on any year you wish.

The new features are as follows.

Cover image

Your profile picture is no longer limited to one small image on the left hand corner. Now you can utilize the full width of real-estate on the top of your page for an image that represents you best, in addition to your profile image.

Timeline sidbar

On the right side of your profile page will be a secondary menu. This menu is there to help you navigate the timeline. You can navigate by years and months. Now the full control is given to the user.

I checked out my first couple of posts in 2005 and was amazed by how much I forgot. There were people on my wall from college that I lost touch with. Pictures from events that I haven’t thought about in ages. If was fun going back in time with my new online scrapbook.

Timeline stories

Again, rather then just seeing the most recent posts and uploads on your friends profile, now you can check out their most memorable posts, photos and life events. This is where you can tell your story from beginning, to middle, to now.

You will notice on the image above, that the Timeline is split into two columns. You can make posts more prevalent by clicking on the star in the top right of the post. This will make that particular post the full width of the page.

This post has been stared or "featured" now it's the full width of the page.

If you want to remove a post that you no longer wish to be on your timeline, simply click the pencil on the top right of the post and click remove.

Apps

The bottom of your page will display your Facebook apps. In the old format you would have to click on your friends info page and then scroll down to see this information. Now it’s on full display in your timeline. Share the recent books you have read. Let everyone know what music you’re listening to and give your friends the ability to listen with you. Or even show a map of how far you ran today and your average pace.

Here is a brief video showcasing these  features.

Overall I really like the new Timeline feature. It’s a clean design and easy to navigate. Timeline makes keeping in touch and sharing your life with friends/family  a lot of fun.

What are your thoughts on the new design? Do you love the new layout or miss the old? Let us know in the comments section.