FB app
Facebook is adding "action links" to its Open Graph apps, which will allow users to interact with websites straight from the social network's timeline, news feed and ticker. (Photo: developers.facebook.com)

Facebook introduced a new feature to Facebook Timeline that will allow people to perform new functions from stories that appear in their news feed, timeline or ticker. The new feature is being called action links.

In the announcement, Facebook uses geo-locational social app Foursquare as an example. They say that when someone checks into a location using Foursquare and they share that check in with friends on Facebook, the Facebook update will appear with a small link beside the others that are typically included such as Like and Comment.

The action links that can be added to the various updates that show up in someone's timeline, news feed and ticker will be created by the Facebook developers that are building apps for Facebook's Open Graph initiative.

In the example noted, Foursquare has added a Save This Place function to the bottom of updates that will allow people to save a location to their Foursquare to-do list straight from Facebook. Another example used is Fab.com, which allows people to Fave This Product, essentially bookmarking it within that service.

Developers can designate an action links to any action they define. The action that they define will then appear throughout Facebook. Users will presumably be able to take advantage of the action links only if they've permitted the given Facebook app.