“fb://” url scheme - official or not?

Question

Some dev blogs have published information about the \"fb://\" url scheme for opening various views in the Facebook iPhone App. No matter how much I\'ve searched, I haven\'t

Answer 1

It's for iOS only. The iOS API lets you define you own URL scheme, so Facebook must have developed their application to register the fb:// URL scheme on iOS devices. It's not a feature that was created by Apple, it's something you, the developer, can make up.

Here are some resources you can investigate

• The Facebook iOS SDK
• Here on StackOverflow
• A tutorial on how it works (not Facebook-specific)

You can use it from your own applications on iOS, but only if the Facebook application is installed. There are, however, plugins and browser extensions out there that mimic the behavior by handling the fb:// schema on your desktop browser.

Answer 2

It's there to support the iOS push notification system (i.e. you get a push notification that says "Friend's Name tagged you in a photo", and you tap on it, it takes you straight to the photo).

I'd assume it's not intended for third party use and therefore subject to change. Hell, Facebook's public-facing APIs are subject to change on a whim anyhow, so I'd be especially cautious about something they hadn't documented.