Facebook just became a scrapbook.

There are two types of people on Facebook: parents and non-parents. Facebook has developed a "Scrapbook" experience that's just for parents, so those of you without miniature versions of yourself, keep browsing Pocket-lint, as this won't interest you (for another few years, anyway).

Before we get into this new experience, let's get into why it's been unveiled. Facebook apparently noticed most parents love sharing billions of photos of their wee little ones, but more often than not, those same parents have trouble organising albums and tagging photos so that friends of their spouses can also see, for instance, the 768,276th birthday photo of their ankle-biter.

The majority of parents want to collect photos of their children in a single place that will grow with them over the years, according to Facebook, so it is kicking off a pilot described as "an optional way for you to organise photos of your child, using a special tag you choose to create". In other words: tag your child in a photo, and it will be added to a scrapbook for your child.

Here's how to start a Scrapbook for your child:

  • Go to your profile, then click About, followed by Family and Relationships.
  • You’ll see an invitation to create a scrapbook; click Get Started.
  • If you’ve already added a child to your profile, click Add Scrapbook next to his or her name.
  • Enter your child's name or nickname, then chose a relationship, and add a birthdate.
  • From there, start tagging every pic you've ever posted of your child.

Keep in mind that children under 13 aren't allowed to have Facebook accounts, but without official profiles, parents have trouble giving their kids a presence on the social network.

Scrapbook is way for Facebook to acknowledge that you have children, and it gives you a way to control their online identities. If your child joins Facebook later on, the company said it will have a process for giving them ownership over their own tags.

Some things to remember about Facebook Scrapbook:

  • You can opt to co-own the scrapbook with whoever you’re in a relationship with.
  • You can also choose what you call your child's tag (it could be your child’s name, initials, etc).
  • You and your partner choose which photos to tag.
  • Only you and your partner can tag your child in photos.

Do you need more help?

Facebook Scrapbook is now rolling out in the US on Facebook for desktop, iPhone, and Android.