Instagram adds new features to help users find old stories from the past three years and reduce abusive behavior. The Stories Archive now includes a new monthly calendar view that shows the days on which you published each story, as well as a card with stories and theinformationsuperhighway reports. Instagram also announced two new anti-bullying features that try to automatically hide potentially abusive comments while preventing users from posting them in the first place.
Given that stories are designed to automatically disappear after 24 hours, it is probably surprising to many that Instagram has an archive of them that goes back years. The story archive is actually from 2017 – the new calendar and map just offer a better way to find old stories. The archive is private and only visible to you. However, you can repost it publicly to your profile or story feed. The new stories map and the monthly calendar view are now introduced and can be accessed via the "Archive" menu under your user profile.
Comments are automatically hidden during one of the tests.
Image: Instagram
As part of Instagram's latest round of anti-bullying capabilities, the service automatically hides comments similar to what has been reported. However, these comments are not completely deleted and can still be viewed by tapping the "Show Hidden Comments" button. Instagram also adds warnings for users who repeatedly post potentially offensive comments to encourage them to think twice before posting. This is an extension of an initiative launched last year. Both new functions are currently being tested on the platform.
The announcement of the new features by Instagram coincides with the 10th anniversary of the service. As part of the celebrations, Instagram added an Easter egg that lets you revisit the old app icons on iOS and Android. You can access it by long swiping down in the settings menu. The old app symbols can then be put back into active service.
