[imagesource: Wachiwit / iStock]

For the past six years, Instagrammers have been forced to scroll based on what the algorithm thinks we like and want to see.

But now, users have the option of controlling what is shown on their feeds as the social media company is switching back to the chronological feed feature.

Finally, hey?

Yesterday, Instagram announced the rollout of two possible ways to control your feed; in reverse chronological order considering either the ‘Favorites’ or ‘Following’ category of preference, or you can stick with the algorithm ranking method, which is the default.

That might be confusing if you’re one to simply scroll and not really think about why you’re seeing what you’re seeing, so let’s get into what all this means.

The ‘Favorites’ option means you can opt to see posts from specific accounts you mark as a favourite (up to 50 accounts), whereas the ‘Following’ option allows you to choose to show posts from all of the accounts you follow.

For both options, posts will appear in the order by when they were shared, with the most recent being first.

Gizmodo has more:

This is especially great news if you’re tired of seeing posts by a person you gave a pity-like to or that time you were trying to be the ‘bigger person’ by liking an ex’s selfie.

Instagram won’t guess at which content you’d like to see based on your activity when you’re browsing the Favorites and Following tabs.

It is good to know that people won’t be notified when they are added or removed from your ‘Favorites’ or ‘Following’ lists, too, so you can add that person who you love to hate without giving yourself away.

Meta, which owns Instagram, said in a statement via CNN that it knows “from research that people have a better experience on Instagram with a ranked feed”, so it won’t be “defaulting people into a chronological feed”.

Since you’ll have to opt in to the new reverse chronological order of scrolling (caveat: that means every time you go on to the app, as the default will always be based on algorithm ranking), you might be wondering how that’s done.

Image: Instagram

First of all, make sure the app is updated.

Then, this is how you opt for the ‘Favorites’ option:

1. Once in the app, tap on the Instagram logo in the upper left-hand corner.
2. From the dropdown menu, select “Favorites”, then “Manage Favorites”.
3. Select the 50 people you want on your Favorites list.

To opt for the ‘Following’ option, follow the same first two steps, except instead of selecting ‘Favorites’ you select ‘Following’.

Enjoy your newfound scrolling freedom.

[sources:gizmodo&cnn]