This could be a “maybe it’s just me” issue, but I’m reasonably certain it isn’t.
Facebook (how I loathe thee and wish the few people I communicate with on it used something else, even Fidonet) famously features a Like button. How it works depends a bit on the platform you’re using, but it’s roughly the same:
- Tap on Like to add the generic “thumbs up” to that adorable post showing a cat trying to walk on ice*
- Do a long press (mobile) or hover over the button (desktop) to get a choice of several emojis, ranging from sad to angry to sympathetic, to add the needed nuance to your wordless reaction
Here’s my problem, and it only happens in the iPad version of the Facebook app: When I tap on the Like button, which is actually a small thumbs-up icon and the word Like, it will sometimes turn the icon a bold blue, adding a Like to the post–as intended.
But way more often when I tap on the Like button, it instead takes me to the separate page for that post–while also not actually adding the Like (the Like button is also on the separate page for the post, so you can tap it there, too, where it always works as intended).
The maddening part for me is the inconsistency. Sometimes I tap and a Like gets added, as I want. Sometimes it takes me to the post’s page–which is *never* the desired response. It doesn’t even make sense that tapping the Like button even does that. It’s either a bug or bad design.
The inconsistency makes it that much worse, because doing the same thing can yield different results. I can get a Like added, or be taken to the post’s page (with no Like added) by:
- Tapping on the thumb icon
- Tapping the word Like next to the thumb icon
- Tapping somewhere over both (it’s not a big target)
I may experiment with running the desktop version on the iPad, which has the bonus of actually having a working dark mode. I’ll also see if I can replicate this behavior on another iPad and if not, will be willing to amend this post to “Facebook continues to undermine democracy and poison our world but the iPad app is working as intended.”
* Aw yes, another chance to post this:
