Inside Facebook

Since Facebook launched its application Platform in 2007, over 350,000 applications have been developed on top of it. As the Platform has grown, so has all the code underlying it. As Facebook puts it, “What started out as a small collection of API methods … has evolved into a comprehensive set of tools and products that have enabled you to create hundreds of thousands of innovative, engaging experiences on Facebook and across the Web.” Anything as large as the Facebook Platform is bound to require maintenance from time to time, and that is exactly what the Platform team announced last night.

Facebook will be refactoring (or reorganizing) their Platform core over the next few weeks, to be completed mid-September. This will allow the company to deliver a more stable Platform, and accommodate future products and services better. Important to note is that these updates are purely back-end related. There are no required changed for applications, other than to keep an eye out for any possible bugs that may slip through the unit-testing cracks. Facebook looks to be updating a new batch of API methods each week, which you can keep track of on the Developer Wiki.

If you happen to spot a bug, you can drop a line to the Platform team in the Developers Forum.