Help Facebook/Friends, etc. pictures in Gallery app. Can these be removed? (HTC Sense 5)

[Scootmien]

I have the new HTC One running Sense 5 and I have noticed that the Gallery app contains all the pictures from my Facebook friends.

The only way I can get rid of them is to sign out of Facebook but that leaves a large, ugly black box called 'Friends' slap-bang in the middle of the Gallery app homescreen. Is there a way to completely remove Facebook pictures from the stock Gallery app without having to sign out of Facebook please?

I just do not want to see all the dross people post up on Facebook in anything other than the damn Facebook app itself...

 

[REkAB]

Ditto, just got an HTC One yesterday and already missing my old iPhone.
I don't want other people's pics in my gallery.

 

[EarlyMon]

Check settings in the Gallery, you may be able to exclude that.

 

[chanchan05]

Try going into account settings and turn off photo syn in Facebook

 

[Scootmien]

Thanks guys.

That's the issue, Facebook doesn't sync anywhere on my phone at all. When you log in yo can specify whether it syncs with contacts etc and I made sure to click 'don't sync'. I asked HTC UK about this issue on their Facebook page (screenie at the bottom) and they said that this was a design feature but my request for a simple toggle to only show what I want in the Gallery app has been passed to the feature request team for consideration.

The Gallery app has two levels. The default top level, the one you see when you open the app, has a settings page with account options that will automatically sync Facebook, Flickr, Dropbox and Picasa if you are signed into those accounts. I don't have a Flickr or Picasa account so those aren't a problem. I am logged in to Facebook and Dropbox on my phone so those automatically appear with my email address underneath them on the settings page. At this stage on this top level there are no toggles to show/hide any accounts.

The top level shows a few big panes (see below). The top one and one other lead to your pictures and camera shots but there are two other panes on this top level that lead to Facebook friends. If you scroll down the app, much like Blinkfeed, all your Facebook friends with their feline/food photo goodness are seen displayed for your delectation.

If you descend into the next level of your own photos then there are toggles that you can use to hide/show any and every folder containing pictures on your device and any and every app that has a sync to photos elsewhere, so this level can be left exactly as you want it. I have only the photos on my device showing on this level. So Camera shots, videos, screenshots, downloaded photos and pictures I have copied from my iPhone.

You can't remove Facebook from the top level Gallery unless you sign out of Facebook on your device completely. Even if you do sign out, it still leaves an unsightly huge black box in the middle of your Gallery app called 'friends' (see below).

With Facebook signed in, it looks like this.




With Facebook signed out it looks like this.



My discourse with HTC UK confirming that this is a design feature and can't be switched off.

 

[EarlyMon]

What?

Weak.

 

[Scootmien]

What?

Weak.

Yeah, very

I think if there are any ROMs out there that will remove this integration then that will be the ROM for me when I root.

 

[Hadron]

I don't use Facebook on a phone. Does this mean that if I buy one I'll get that box in the HTC Gallery app even if I've never set up an FB account on the device?

If so it seems like QuickPic will still be my gallery app of choice.

 

[EarlyMon]

I don't use Facebook on a phone. Does this mean that if I buy one I'll get that box in the HTC Gallery app even if I've never set up an FB account on the device?

If so it seems like QuickPic will still be my gallery app of choice.

You won't be signed in, so you don't need to have it in the Gallery.

 

[Scootmien]

I don't use Facebook on a phone. Does this mean that if I buy one I'll get that box in the HTC Gallery app even if I've never set up an FB account on the device?

If so it seems like QuickPic will still be my gallery app of choice.

I honestly don't know if you've never signed in whether you will get that but as Facebook is a system app and cannot be uninstalled I think it will be integrated into Sense 5 regardless of whether you use it or not.

Now to find a ROM that removes that integration and gives me back the Gallery shows just what I want to show in it...

 

[KOLIO]

I honestly don't know if you've never signed in whether you will get that but as Facebook is a system app and cannot be uninstalled I think it will be integrated into Sense 5 regardless of whether you use it or not.

Now to find a ROM that removes that integration and gives me back the Gallery shows just what I want to show in it...

Better yet,a ROM that is sans FACEBOOK.If I wanted the HTC FIRST,I'd have it already..............

 

[Wilkas]

Better yet,a ROM that is sans FACEBOOK.If I wanted the HTC FIRST,I'd have it already..............

Even on that you can turn Facebook off and run stock android.

 

[Scootmien]

Better yet,a ROM that is sans FACEBOOK.If I wanted the HTC FIRST,I'd have it already..............

Yes that would be perfect. I'd want the app on my phone but that's as far as I want the integration to go.

 

[Hadron]

I have known HTC do silly "integration" before. Back in 2010, shortly after rooting my Desire, I "froze" a few unwanted system apps. The result was that "People" would crash if I tried to move between certain tabs in the app: there was a "social" tab (or something like that), and if I tried to move past it (not go to it, just past) the People app would crash as long as Flickr was frozen. That tab was irrelevant to me as I'd not set up any social networking accounts, but there was a dependency in the People app that meant some other apps had to be available.

I'd not given it much thought since I went AOSP not long afterwards, but this "we just assume everyone wants Facebook prominently in their gallery" reminded me of it.

Not a biggie - I'll give it a try, and if I do get a blank rectangle I'll just use a different app. That's what having choices is about.

 

[EarlyMon]

Yes that would be perfect. I'd want the app on my phone but that's as far as I want the integration to go.

I was going to suggest bypassing HTC Facebook with the stock Facebook to see if that helped when it hit me that you'd likely lose your Facebook contacts.

I agree with Hadron, QuickPic is excellent until a root fix occurs, if you want to try something else.

 

[Scootmien]

I was going to suggest bypassing HTC Facebook with the stock Facebook to see if that helped when it hit me that you'd likely lose your Facebook contacts.

I'm agree with Hadron, QuickPic is excellent until a root fix occurs, if you want to try something else.

Funnily enough I've had QuickPic for a couple of weeks now as it was the closest I could find to the stock app.

 

[dgrobe2112]

How do I get rid of all the facebook stuff in my gallery.

 

[emf1138]

Was scrolling rather quickly, so don't know if this has been resolved here, but I noticed in the Gallery settings, there's an option to SHOW/HIDE from Facebook, Picassa, Flickr, Dropbox, etc. Just tick facebook and voila.

 

[marctronixx]

I dont see an option for "gallery settings"....

 

[clsA]

Was scrolling rather quickly, so don't know if this has been resolved here, but I noticed in the Gallery settings, there's an option to SHOW/HIDE from Facebook, Picassa, Flickr, Dropbox, etc. Just tick facebook and voila.

can you be more specific ? My only options in gallery are Add online service and Media servers. nothing about SHOW/HIDE.

 

[Scootmien]

Was scrolling rather quickly, so don't know if this has been resolved here, but I noticed in the Gallery settings, there's an option to SHOW/HIDE from Facebook, Picassa, Flickr, Dropbox, etc. Just tick facebook and voila.

Thanks for posting but as I explained above, that doesn't resolve the issue. You didn't see my post of course as you explained you haven't read the thread...

can you be more specific ? My only options in gallery are Add online service and Media servers. nothing about SHOW/HIDE.

My detailed post above with pictures still remains the case.

 

[toolwarrior]

Scoot... I am a little confused. When you say that that middle section shows you all your friends FB pics, are you saying that your phone is storing up those photos-taking up some of that precious 32G of memory or is it just a viewer of sorts, not storing the photos?

 

[BillyODU]

I have SOOO many swipe screens of facebook pictures. I don't mind though, but I can see how evenntually it will feel cluttered

 

[BillyODU]

Scoot... I am a little confused. When you say that that middle section shows you all your friends FB pics, are you saying that your phone is storing up those photos-taking up some of that precious 32G of memory or is it just a viewer of sorts, not storing the photos?

It appears to me to be just a viewer, as the pictures have been changing.

 

[emf1138]

Hi Scoot.. I saw in post#5, you got it covered with what I had found. Sorry 'bout that. Yeah, lame feature.