

Facebook’s Secret iPad App Exposed [Pictures] - tilt
http://techcrunch.com/2011/07/25/facebook-ipad-app-pictures/

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schrototo
As an aside, this is the most ridiculous pageview-inflating image gallery I've
ever seen on a tech-tabloid site. It's not even possible to advance from one
image to the next, you have to always go back to the main article!

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apgwoz
I was just going to comment on this. I was curious to see what the new
Facebook campus looks like, and it was the same way. "For sure, this is just
that writer doing her job wrong," but no, MG's article does the exact same
thing. How can you do a complete redesign, in this day and age, and not
provide a _usable_ image gallery?

~~~
prawn
Sadly, _usable_ is not their primary goal.

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ThomPete
Maybe I am just not getting it, maybe I am in my sceptic mood or maybe I am
getting sensationalist news fatigue.

It's an iPad app yes, so what? Where someone expecting that FB wouldn't do an
iPad app? Why is it secret? Does it do anything remarkable?

It seems like this is news because it's FaceBook not because the app in itself
is interesting.

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biturd
I agree. It is not even that good a re-release of the iPhone app. I was hoping
for something to keep them relevant with what google has done. This is nothing
special or groundbreaking at all. I expect better from a company that has such
resources both in financial as well as people.

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eropple
Have you actually used it?

I am right now, and I couldn't disagree with you more.

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ThomPete
Care to explain?

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eropple
I would think it obvious: it actually _works_. The interface is thoughtfully
laid out, navigation is leaps and bounds better than the iPhone application,
and it's actually pleasant to use.

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kristofferR
Just tried it out now and it has almost everything that the website has, but
in a better and more enjoyable package. Other than for business purposes (ads
and managing pages) I see no reason to use the website anymore.

Here's how you get it:

1\. Jailbreak your iPad

2\. Install OpenSSH and Installous through Cydia

3\. Download <http://fileape.com/dl/avaCHTLpuYmtodJi>

4\. Connect through SSH or SFTP to the IP of your iPad with user root and pass
"alpine"

5\. Transfer the .ipa you just downloaded to
/var/mobile/Documents/Installous/Downloads

6\. Open Installous, click Downloads and then you should see your Facebook
.ipa without an image. Click and Install.

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britta
Hmm...installing OpenSSH but leaving your root password as the default
"alpine" is a security problem, downloading copied app files from the web is
sketchy, and I also wouldn't trust adding the extra repository to get
Installous _or_ installing Installous on my device.

Here's a simpler and safer process:

1) On your iPad 2 running iOS 4.3.3, or your iPad 1 running iOS 4.3 through
4.3.3: open up Safari and visit jailbreakme.com for a one-click jailbreak that
also installs Cydia. You can learn more about this jailbreak at the iPhone Dev
Team blog: [http://blog.iphone-dev.org/post/7295551750/jailbreakme-
times...](http://blog.iphone-dev.org/post/7295551750/jailbreakme-times-3)

2) Open up Cydia, and on the right side of the Cydia for iPad homepage you'll
see a link to FullForce, which is a free "tweak" by a reputable developer
(<http://twitter.com/rpetrich>) who has updated it to enable the Facebook for
iPad app. Install FullForce and configure it in your Settings app to apply to
the Facebook for iPhone app. (I'm assuming you already have the Facebook app
on your iPad. If not, you should get it from the App Store.) That's it!

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buddydvd
From the screenshots, you can see the photo viewer displaying a scrubber view
(row of thumbnails). This strongly suggests that this app is built using Jeff
Verkoeyen's Nimbus framework. If you're building (or built) apps using
Three20, it'll probably be good idea to follow the Nimbus framework on Github.

[http://techcrunch.com/2011/07/25/facebook-ipad-app-
pictures/...](http://techcrunch.com/2011/07/25/facebook-ipad-app-
pictures/photo-gallery/)

[http://jverkoey.github.com/nimbus/interface_n_i_photo_scrubb...](http://jverkoey.github.com/nimbus/interface_n_i_photo_scrubber_view.html)

<https://github.com/jverkoey/nimbus>

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dbabalik
There is a plist file called Three20 in the Applications folder for Facebook.
:)

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aberkowitz
Thanks to TechCrunch, Facebook no longer needs a marketing department.

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ben1040
Maybe someday they will refresh their Android app. The existing one is an ugly
trainwreck.

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canistr
It's not even that. The app is buggy and doesn't even work well. The Messages,
Events, and Chat are all horribly implemented.

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dbabalik
It's not exactly secret. Just disabled.

