What makes friends show on facebook

Thanks for your illuminating and rich response, Peter. Plus, there are just too many anecdotes to ignore. I have no common friends and this person is far removed in my network of friends. Unless this person suddenly remembered me after almost twenty years since I have contacted them, then I have no other explanation. In a recent Vice investigation into how this suggested friend list happens, David Liben-Nowell, a computer science professor at Carleton College who studies the structure and evolution of social networks said:.

It would almost be silly for them not to: if you've shown an interest in a person while using Facebook, then you've as good as told Facebook that you might want to have some kind of relationship with them. I mean, that makes even more sense, if you think about it. This one is a definite yes. In one of the many app updates, you will have inadvertently synced all your phone contacts to Messenger. It's kinda creepy when you see a girl who you met one time and didn't even know her last name, but somehow they are suggested for you.

The official line on this is no. Well there you are then. Wall posts. Has this person posted on your wall recently, or you on theirs? Have they liked your content or have you likes theirs?

Photos viewed. Currently online. Friends who are currently online or have recently been online. This typically applies for random people that might show up. Facebook messenger conversations between each other.

Mutual interactions. If you tag someone in your posts, you can increase the algorithm value, too. These interactions include all comments, likes, and tags in relation to photos on Facebook. Although it is closely connected to profile views, Facebook Search is a separate factor. It takes into consideration how often your friends type your name into the search bar. If somebody searches you often and vice-versa, you are fueling the algorithm. Facebook bases a lot of its algorithms on mutual friends, so this parameter is important.

Your recent friends may also get on top of the list. This happens if you have some form of interaction or communication with them.

It is not uncommon that two or three out of nine of your top friends are all your recent friends. The Facebook algorithm looks to push the most recent activity on top.

If your friends are often logged in on Facebook and interact with different pages and profiles, they can move up on your list. The logic is that the people who are more often on Facebook will be those with who you will spend most of your time online. Your chat sidebar works in a similar way.