How to create a Facebook application

This is aimed at people how already know programming and want to apply some of these skills to making a facebook application. You dont need to know much, even html will do though you wont make much of an application with this. Ive made mine using php and it was a site i had already developed.

Facebook is a great place to put your web apps and is easy to do but the documentation I could find on the site wasn’t that great (though mayb im just blind). First of all you need a facebook account, you should be able to do this easily enough, you also need an application, the application is no different to any other website and can be written in any language your familiar with (we just put it in a frame later on), i wrote my app when learning php with no intention of ever using it in facebook.

The first thing you need to do is get the developer application on facebook. Then choose to create an application by clicking set up an application. Choose a name and then click optional fields(this is where we set it up).

Callback URL is where you enter the address of your app, so if you have created a website you put a link to that sites home page. The canvas URL is the url for app on facebook, you have to choose a unique address for it which people can use to get to the app. If you just want to place your app in the page like i did, meaning that it works like a normall webpage, choose iframe under the canvas url box. We then choose application type to be website.

The next important field is “Can you application by added on facebook” and since your making an app for face book you probably want to set this to yes. You then need to fill in the install option page(if it can be added on face book). Here you want users to be able to add it to all pages. The default FMBL is the code that will appear on their facebook page when they add it.  I set as a link to the apps home page.

The final section to fill in is the integration points that helps facebook work with your app. The only part you need to fill in here the side nav URL which is the link that will appear in the applications part of the users page when they use facebook, so they can get to your app.

Finally click save, after that you can mess around on the developer trying out the different parts, try adding an image in the settings part. You also have to develop some code so that you application actually does something have fun,

David Woodford