Yesterday Facebook Messenger was the recipient of a new feature, called Live Location it transforms the chat app into a social gathering tool. Meaning that both iOS and Android users can now share their location with a closed group of friends. Which in turn, informs them of your whereabouts and how long it would take them to reach you or vice versa. Here’s a little more about it, and how to use it.
Live Location on Facebook Messenger
Now let’s be straight about this, the new location feature is a not the same as the static feature already available. It allows you to inform a friend or everyone where you are, or where you’ve been. Live location, is different, it enables you to share your location Live as you travel. However, it’s only usable if you decide to switch it on, it doesn’t come on by default.
Additionally, you may remember the uproar back in 2015, with Facebook Messenger and the company’s first attempt at a live maps feature? It was revealed that it was possible for unscrupulous individuals to scrape the information, which lead to privacy concerns. Live Locations, should not be mistaken with the previous effort, as Facebook has endeavored to make it secure.
So, now that you understand what this new Facebook Messenger feature is let find out how to use it.
How To Share Your Live Location
As with all tutorials, we’re about to share with you information in the form of steps. With a view to guiding you through the process of sharing your live location. We advise that you read each step in isolation and act upon it before moving to the next. This method has been proven to aid in the understand of a process each and every time.
1. Start by updating your Facebook messenger app to its latest version. There is the chance that FB hasn’t rolled this out to you yet. If that’s so, you should be patient, as a worldwide rollout is underway.
2. Once updated, run the app, and open a chat with a friend or relative. Someone who you would like to share your Live Location with. Followed by tapping the navigational arrow. It’s possible (depending on your device) that you may have to tap the three horizontal dots. Which are located above and to the right of the text input area. Doing so will reveal the navigational arrow, it turns blue when selected.
3. Next, select, Share Live Location, this is the large blue button beneath the map itself. Doing so will share your location to that particular person for one hour.
Sorry, at this moment in time, there is no way to change the default sharing time. However, when this happens, we will share that with you. In the meantime, it’s also worth knowing that the information provided by the app also includes the time it would take to reach each other, which is useful. As is the ability to stop the sharing of your location at any point within the hour.
