Has social media been around for so long now that consumers are already yearning for social media nostalgia? First, Facebook came out with its new timeline that features activities and events from the past. Now, a slew of websites are attempting to cash in on the social media nostalgia in everyone. Timehop is one such site that asks consumers the question: if you could travel back in social media time, what would you see?

Timehop allows users to connect to the site via Facebook, and see what Facebook (and other social medial posts) posts were posted one year ago today. If this sounds a lot like the new Facebook timeline, you aren’t entirely mistaken. The difference here is that Timehop allows you to view other network posts in addition to Facebook. Let’s take a quick journey back in time to see how well Timehop functions.

Using Timehop

When you first visit the Timehop site, you will be asked to connect to the site via Facebook. From there, you can set up your Twitter, Foursquare, and Instagram accounts. Note: Timehop will need to access your information for all of these sites, so make sure to read the fine print! Once that’s done, you can click the “next” button. Timehop then asks you to send out a Facebook and Twitter post letting people know that you are using the service.

After you’ve connected and signed up, Timehop will begin generating your posts from one year ago. The downside to this website is that you won’t be able to see your past posts right away. Instead, Timehop will send you past information to your current email account. Sadly, this will take one day to complete. In addition, Timehop will be sending you past social media posting information every day, so you can really see where your mind was one year ago.

Why the Nostalgia?

Timehop is interesting, and it might be fun to see where you were one year ago today. However, one has to wonder why the sudden need for social media nostalgia has arrived. Sure, it’s fun to see what you were doing a year ago, but is this a healthy trend? For those who believe that the past was better than the current present, going back in time on feeds this need. In addition, some people may try to pick up where they left off one year ago (this could be a good or bad thing). If you are the type of person who doesn’t believe in living in the past, sites like Timehop should be avoided.

Otherwise, Timehop seems to be quite harmless, and it could prove to be very intriguing. Perhaps you were working on a great idea one year ago, but you forgot about that idea. Or, maybe you were into something one year ago that you would never be into today. It’s curious to see how people evolve, and you can actively do this now through Timehop. This could also be highly therapeutic for some people: if you are in the same bad place today that you were in one year ago, you might want to consider turning your life around. Timehop can be found at www.timehop.com.