From Sadness to Wow, Facebook Launches Reaction Buttons Beyond Like
By REUTERS

SAN FRANCISCO — Like it or not, Facebook Inc’s trademark “like” button is set to get more expressive.

Users will soon be able to do more than “like” posts. They will be able to love them and express sympathy, anger or sadness with animated emoticons.

The social network said on Thursday it is launching a pilot test of “Reactions,” with users able select from seven emotions, including like and “wow.”

“Dislike,” however, is not one of the options.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a Facebook post Thursday that users have been requesting ways other than like to respond to posts, such as when someone posts about the death of a loved one or a tragic news story.

“Not every moment is a good moment, and sometimes you just want a way to express empathy,” wrote Zuckerberg, who said last month the company was working on expanding the like button. “A like might not be the best way to express yourself.”

In a video accompanying a Facebook post by Chief Product Officer Chris Cox, the six new buttons appear as animated emoticons and pop up when the “like” button is long-pressed. (http://on.fb.me/1LBnXIG)

The company said it would pilot the new features in Ireland and Spain on iOS, Android and desktops. The feedback from the pilot test will be used to improve the feature. The company hopes “to roll it out to everyone soon,” Cox wrote in the post, which was “liked” by more than 7,500 people within two hours.

“As you can see, it’s not a ‘dislike’ button, though we hope it addresses the spirit of this request more broadly,” Cox wrote in his post.

Zuckerberg’s comments last month, which many users took to mean the social network was working on a “dislike” button, spearheaded a debate over whether it would cause cyberbullying and negativity on the site.

But users mostly welcomed Cox’s announcement, saying on social media it was a smart idea.

Facebook user Marc Marasco posted on Cox’s Facebook page: “Elegant solution.”

臉書測試6表情鍵 還是沒「不讚」

社群媒體「臉書」九日起在愛爾蘭和西班牙測試新表情功能鍵，包括喜怒哀樂等六種新表情，但用戶期待的「不讚」（dislike）功能鍵未如預期出現。

臉書表示，這些新的「回應」選項是按讚的延伸，讓用戶有更多方式表達他們的感受。新功能鍵包括愛（love）、耶（yay）、哇（wow）、哈哈（haha）、傷心（sad）和生氣（angry），與傳簡訊的表情符號（emoji）類似。

臉書創辦人兼執行長祖克柏說：「這些回應讓你有新方式表達喜愛、畏怯、幽默和悲傷。這不是『不讚』的符號，但可以讓你在喜悅和友善之外，簡單地表達你的憂傷與同理心。」

多年來，臉書用戶希望臉書推出與豎起大拇指按讚相反的「不讚」功能鍵。祖克柏九月中旬在臉書矽谷總部的問答會上表示，終於聽見用戶要求不讚鍵的呼聲，並說新功能鍵在測試階段但未透露細節。

祖克柏十月九日貼文寫道：「並非每個時刻都是美好的，有時你很希望有個方法能表達同理心。在這些重要時刻，你比以往更需要有能力去分享，而按讚未必是你最想表達的感受。」

臉書選擇在西班牙和愛爾蘭進行測試，是因為這兩國的用戶「相對封閉」，較少外國臉書朋友。臉書這種大公司，要在小團體中測試回應功能，往往有些棘手。如果測試者試按新表情功能鍵，但在測試區外的臉書用戶卻看不到新按鈕，如此一來形同測試無效。

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2015/10/08/business/08reuters-facebook-reactions.html

2015-10-10．聯合報．A16．國際．編譯陳韻涵