Facebook Is Making Timeline Mandatory: Like It or Lose It?

Facebook's new Timeline format has been available since late December, but the network recently announced they'll be dropping the change on everyone. Soon. On Tuesday, Facebook posted a blog entry that read, "Over the next few weeks, everyone will get timeline. When you get timeline, you'll have 7 days to preview what's there now. This gives you a chance to add or hide whatever you want before anyone else sees it."

For those who are unfamiliar with Timeline, it's mostly an organizational change. The once iconic wall will be replaced with a vertical timeline, which their friends can easily scroll through. The most controversial change, in addition to the dramatic visual shift, is the ease with which friends can now view older posts. The Associated Press is calling it "essentially a scrapbook of your whole life on Facebook." That means you -- or your friends -- might stumble on conversations with an ex, or pictures from a long-forgotten party.

But that's what the trial period is for. Users can use that time to weed out the unmentionables and prepare for a new world. It seems like a risky move for Facebook, which reported drops in its userbase for the first time last year. To get a tour of the new layout, visit Facebook's Introducing Timeline page. Or just wait a week or too and sign on to Facebook. If you want to stay up on your friends' business, you'll have to learn one way or another.