Question

I have a Facebook app that is built as an iFrame. I am using the JavaScript client API loaded via:

• http://static.ak.connect.facebook.com/js/api_lib/v0.4/FeatureLoader.js.php

In my initialization code, I use the requireLogin method to ensure that the user has authorized the app. I have found this to be necessary to be able to gather the user’s name, avatar, etc. for the scoreboard. Here’s a representative code snippet:

FB_RequireFeatures(["Connect","Api"], function() {

    FB.Facebook.init("...API_KEY_HERE...", "xd_receiver.htm");

    var api = FB.Facebook.apiClient;
    api.requireLogin(function() {
        api.users_getInfo(
            FB.Connect.get_loggedInUser(),
            ["name", "pic_square", "profile_url"],
            function(users, ex) {
                /* use the data here */
            });
    });
});

This causes the iframe to redirect causing the Facebook authorization screen to load within my app’s iFrame. This looks junky and is somewhat confusing to the user, e.g. there are two Facebook bars, etc.

Question 1: is there anything I can do to clean this up while still implementing as an iFrame, and still using the JavaScript APIs?

According to the FB API documentation:

FB.ApiClient.requireLogin

This method is deprecated – use
FB.Connect.requireSession instead.

My experience though when I replace api.requireLogin with FB.Connect.requireSession it never gets invoked. I’d prefer the recommended way of doing it but I struggled and was not able to find a way to get it to work. I tried adding various arguments for the other two parameters as well with seemingly no effect. My expectation is that this method will load in a dialog box inside my app iFrame with a similar authorization message.

Question 2: what am I missing with getting FB.Connect.requireSession to properly prompt the user for authorization?

Finally, at the end of the game, the app prompts the user for the ability to publish their score to their stream via FB.Connect.streamPublish. Which leads me to…

Question 3: am I loading the correct features? Do I need both “Api” and “Connect”? Am I missing any others?

Answer 1

I think that FB.requireSession only works from a FB connect site outside of
Facebook. If you’re using an app hosted on apps.facebook.com use the php api
call instead,

$facebook = new Facebook($appapikey, $appsecret);
$facebook->require_login();

or link to the login page.

Of these methods to login

*  Using the PHP client library
* Directing users to login.php
* Including the requirelogin attribute in a link or form
* Using FBML 

only the first 2 are available to iframe apps hosted on apps.facebook.com

I think requirelogin and fbml only work with fbml canvas apps.

see
http://wiki.developers.facebook.com/index.php/Authorization_and_Authentication_for_Canvas_Page_Applications_on_Facebook