So far, so innocuous.
But unfortunately, Facebook's algorithm chose to place a photograph of the recently deceased daughter of author Eric Meyer at the centre of his Year In Review, surrounded by the dancing figures; it was a wholly unwelcome, inappropriate and painful reminder of a deeply tragic event.
He voiced his displeasure on his blog and the internet went ballistic with rage on his behalf.
Meyer remained polite, restrained and even ended up apologising to Facebook (!) for "dropping the internet" on its head, but his supporters became angry on two counts.
The first was a disbelief that Facebook, with its colossal stash of data and a long history of data analysis, couldn't work out that this photo might be inappropriate to include in a jolly summation of someone's year.
Sentiment analysis of our contributions to social media is becoming more accurate; it can assess mood swings, predict mental health issues and contribute to behavioural health research.
Of course, computers aren't going to get it right all the time - but surely, people wailed, the algorithm would have noted comments left underneath the picture of Meyer's daughter such as "condolences" or "loss" and flagged it accordingly?
The truth is that we don't know the context in which the picture was posted or the weaknesses of the algorithm; perhaps the code was constructed on the assumption that most pictures are uploaded to Facebook in a spirit of joyful exuberance, and thus they're all fair game for inclusion.
Whatever the reason, Facebook ultimately created something that might upset anybody who has had a bad year.
The second source of ire was far broader: why does the Year In Review even exist?
Why are these unnecessarily saccharine portraits of our own lives fed back to us in the name of entertainment?
It's only a few weeks since Facebook offered us the chance to create videos "to say thanks for being such a good friend", revolting creations that overflowed with the insincerity of a greetings card bought at a petrol station.
Indignant people have been loudly stating what their Facebook timeline should consist of - but, in truth, there is no "should".
There are no rules. Facebook can make them up as it goes along, and in the case of Year In Review, it knows very well that this is "sticky" content.
It's like a mini This Is Your Life, a few minutes of self-indulgence, a few more minutes spent on Facebook, a few more adverts seen out of the corner of our eyes. Yes, you might hate it - but most people love it, and the behaviour of "most people" dictates Facebook.
As much as it might look like our personal photo album, it's worth remembering that Facebook is merely a collection of usable content to which we willingly contribute.
Eric Meyer's unpleasant experience is as poignant an illustration of that as you'll see.
-The Independent
