You Can Now ‘Haha’, 'Love' or Be Angry at Facebook News Feed Stories

There's an update on Facebook's "Like" button! And it's changing how you interact with friends online. 

'Reactions' is a more nuanced version of the Like button that allows users to respond to News Feed items with an expanded range of emotions including Love, Haha, Wow, Sad, and Angry, accessed by a long press on mobile or by hovering over the Like button on a computer.

Reactions have been around for about a year and are meant to help users express themselves when confronted with challenging News Feed posts.

Facebook had to do a lot of research before they settled on the emotions, looking at the kinds of comments and stickers users were leaving on each other's posts. 

The launch of Reactions addresses the common criticism that social networking doesn’t allow room for emotional nuance: Are you supposed to “Like” a post by a friend who revealed she was laid off? Or your friend whose cat passed away?

Facebook first began testing Reactions late last year in select markets like Spain and Portugal. The most popular Reaction in test markets was apparently Love.

Innnteresting! Give these a go!