Finally: Instagram's new feature to stop annoying users

Instagram has announced a significant change in the app's functionality to address one of the most common complaints from users. Starting from the next update, the feed will no longer refresh automatically upon opening the app, but only after the user begins scrolling.

Many Instagram users have complained for years about this frustrating phenomenon: You open the app, see interesting content, but as soon as it opens, the feed refreshes and the content disappears. In many cases, finding the lost content became an almost impossible task, especially with videos, due to Instagram's limited search capabilities.

This behavior sparked numerous speculations: Was it a technical bug? It could be that the iOS or Android operating system froze the app as a background process, and when reopened, the feed refreshed.

Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram, addressed the issue in an "Ask Me Anything" (AMA) session held earlier this week. According to him, this behavior, internally dubbed "rug pull," was not a bug but an intentional design choice.

Mosseri explained that the app did this to "load new content, which took time to update, while previously available content was shown on the device in the meantime. This approach was considered helpful for user interaction." However, he admitted that the implementation of this idea was not successful and that the content refresh should have occurred only after the user started scrolling.

Mosseri noted that this behavior was "really annoying," and therefore, it was decided to stop it. From now on, the feed will wait until the user starts scrolling before refreshing and displaying new content. Although it's a small change, it is expected to significantly improve the user experience and increase overall satisfaction.

The update is now available for iOS and Android users and is expected to be implemented in all the latest versions of the app. In the past two months, Instagram has introduced several other new features: Among them is the ability to publicly reply to Stories, allowing for more open and dynamic interaction between users.

Additionally, live broadcast capabilities have been upgraded, providing content creators with new tools to enhance the viewing and broadcasting experience. The process of sharing posts in Stories has also become more convenient and intuitive, making it easier for users to share interesting content with their followers.