Making friends with someone on Facebook Messenger has become much easier. In a new update launched, the Facebook chat app now has Messenger codes, circular patterns around a user’s profile picture, which can be scanned to start a chat with that person.
If the Messenger Codes look familiar, it’s because Snapchat has had a similar function since January 2015, called Snapcodes. However, for Facebook, the update could mainly focus on bringing business to Messenger. In a blog post, Facebook explained how these new features make it easy for users to find and start a conversation with a company.
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If you use Snapchat, you are probably familiar with Snapcodes. A Snapcode is provided to each user and, when scanned with the Snapchat app, allows you to add them quickly. A similar feature exists in Facebook Messenger. Each user has a Messenger profile code that allows other users to quickly add them to Messenger. Adding someone to Messenger does not automatically add them to the Facebook friends list, however, you can get a link to your profile from the code screen.
The code of your Messenger profile is visible only in mobile apps. You cannot log in from Messenger for the Web. To share the code, the app must be installed.
There are two ways to share it; in person or via a screenshot. If you share it in person, the other will have to scan it immediately with the Messenger app. With a screenshot or image, you can send the image to a friend and they can scan it whenever they want.
- To view the Messenger profile code, open the Messenger app and tap your profile picture in the upper left corner next to the search bar.
- The circle around your profile image is the code. As an alternative, you can also go to the People tab and tap Scan code at the top. The scanner has a second tab that allows you to view the code and share it as an image.
- Open the Messenger app and go to the People tab.
- Tap Scan Code at the top.
- When the camera is open, you have two options; Scan a live code or scan a roll code from the camera.
- If you have the code active, or physically or if your friend has your code open on the device, point the camera at it and scan the code.
- Scanning a code will automatically add the person in Messenger.
To scan a camera roll code, tap the image icon at the bottom left of the camera viewfinder and choose the image with the Messenger profile code. The app takes a little more time to scan a code from an image and there should be nothing but the code in that image. It is not the smartest scanner, so you have difficulty selecting the code for everything else.
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Once scanned, the person will be added to Messenger. You can send them messages, but they must accept your request for addition or your messages will go to Message Requests or Filtered Inbox.
