Fun & Useful Facebook Apps

One of the things that distinguishes Facebook from other social networking sites is that it allows third-party developers to create Facebook applications or  Facebook apps that Facebook users can enjoy. I didn't really understand these apps when I first started using Facebook and I steered clear of them, but now that I'm in neck-deep, I've discovered a handful of fun, if not useful, third-party Facebook applications.

Who hasn't played Scrabble? I've spent hours and hours learning some new words, most of them I will never use in everyday conversation, trying to beat my opponents. You can choose up to four players from any skill level from Beginner, Casual, Serious, to Expert. You can also set the timer to two minutes, five minutes, one day, or one week. You can either select randomly from the list of people who are also using the application or invite specific friends to play with you. Right now, I'm in the middle of two Scrabble games with my friend Maje. (I set the timer to one day so I can make one move each day.)

Birthday Calendar is a third-party Facebook application that allows you to plot your friends' birthdays on a calendar for easy viewing. You can add the birthdays of all your friends, whether or not they are in Facebook. It also has this handy little widget you can put on your profile that displays the next 8 or so people who will be celebrating their birthdays. Now there's no reason for you to forget your friends' birthdays. Send them a birthday card (which you can do using the application) and make them feel special!

UNO™ is a fun card game that you can play with other Facebook users all around the world. It's very easy to learn and can be quite addicting. You can even chat with your opponents while playing so there's interaction and a little bantering, just like when playing face-to-face. And soon you'll be able to challenge your friends to a fast game of UNO™.

We're Related allows you to add your siblings, cousins, and other relatives to a special widget that appears on your Facebook profile. You can even specify your relation to each other so it appears right under their name and picture in the widget. You can also build a family tree for your other family members to see.

When you visit the profile of someone who is using the We're Related app, you can see which of his friends he's related to.  Who knows?  You might find relatives you never knew you had!

Here's another addicting application on Facebook. It's called Chain Rxn (read: reaction). The object of this game is to burst the required number of balls in each level through a "chain reaction" of explosions. But be warned, it's not as easy as it sounds.

Compare your high scores with your friends' and challenge them to beat it.  Take a break in between though or this will give you carpal tunnel syndrome,

Interview is an application that allows you to share your thoughts on some things, preferences, or quirks by answering some interview questions much like a celebrity being interviewed one-on-one. The advantage to this though is that you can skip any question you don't like and no one will be the wiser. Choose questions that will better frame your personality so your friends get to know little details about you. Here are a few of the questions I chose to answer:

1. If you could have one super human power what would you choose?
2. If you could be someone else for a day, who would it be?
3. What are you most proud of in your life?
   

Living Social allows you to share lists of five of your favorite movies, books, music, games, etc. with your friends so they get to know you a little better. There are many different lists to choose from and if you can't find the one you want, you can always create your own! I like seeing people make these lists; it lets me learn so much about them.