Facebook Platform: 101

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Facebook Platform 101

• Network Journal Club Meeting
• Shaomei Wu
• shaomei_at_gmail.com
• May 7, 2008

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You might want to know

• How to create a Facebook App?
• How to get data using Facebook Platform?

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Guide to Create a Facebook Apphttp//developers.f
acebook.com/step_by_step.php

• Add the Developer Application
• Get a web server and/with a database service (if
  you will use database) Thanks Chris!
• Create a new App in Developer
• Configure your App
• The form is explained very clearly at
  http//developers.facebook.com/step_by_step.php

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A very quick start
? define Facebook Class
? given after you create a new App
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Step-by-step Guide to Creating Facebook
Apphttp//developers.facebook.com/step_by_step.ph
p
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Extract data with your Apphttp//developers.faceb
ook.com/documentation.php
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Facebook APIshttp//wiki.developers.facebook.com/
index.php/APIAPI_Methods

• A lot of handy functions provided with a Facebook
  Object.
• For example Users.getInfo
• Returns a wide array of user-specific information
  for each user identifier passed, limited by the
  view of the current user.

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Examples of using APIs

• Get current users first name and last name
• user_detailsthis-facebook-api_client-use
  rs_getInfo(uid, array('last_name','first_name'))
  data'first_name'user_details0'first_name'
  data'last_name'user_details0'last_name'
  

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Facebook Queryhttp//wiki.developers.facebook.com
/index.php/FQL

• Facebook Query Language, or FQL
• allows you to use a SQL-style interface to more
  easily query the same Facebook social data that
  you can access through other Facebook API methods
  (assuming your application has access!).
• It can be very concise and powerful!

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Examples of using FQLhttp//wiki.developers.faceb
ook.com/index.php/Sample_FQL_Queries

• Get the names of the groups of which u1 is a
  member
• SELECT name FROM group WHERE gid IN (SELECT gid
  FROM group_member WHERE uid ''u1'')
• In PHP, you write
• query "YOUR QUERY HERE" //(see above
  examples)
• array facebook-api_client-fql_query(query)
  
• The returned array is multidimensional, so
• attribute array0'attribute'
• If there are no rows returned, check to see if
  there are any results like this
• if (result ! NULL)

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FBMLhttp//wiki.developers.facebook.com/index.php
/FQBML

• Facebook Markup Language (FBML)
• To me it looks like facebook CCS a lot of
  predefined dynamics elements. You can hook into
  several Facebook integration points, including
  the profile, profile actions, Facebook canvas,
  News Feed and Mini-Feed.
• Especially handy when you implement some Facebook
  styled things wall posts, manipulate profile,
  invite friends, send out notifications

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Examples of using FBML(from the App I wrote)

• invfbml
• You've been invited to take a Friendship Quiz.
• shownetwork"false"/ wants you to take the quiz
  test_name.
• dshiptest/sNextUrl" label"Take a Friendship
  Quiz!" /
• FBML
• ?
• action"post_invitation.php5" content"ties(invfbml)?" method"POST" invite"true"
• actiontext"Invite your friends to take a quiz!"
  showborder"true" rows"5" exclude_ids"nds?"
• echo tid?

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