Facebook is giving you better News Feed controls
Is there anything more important in Facebook than the News Feed? It is where users flock to see what is going on with friends, family, and complete strangers. It is your News Feed and you should be the one controlling it. That is why Facebook is handing over the keys to News Feed right to you.
On desktop and mobile, Facebook launched a News Feed settings area. It shows which people, pages, and groups a user is following and not following. It allows for quick following or unfollowing. To show who posts the most, the most visible users are shown. Facebook wants feedback to really tailor the News Feed. Is someone posting too much? Then elect to “See less” from them. It will not completely unfollow them if you do not want to, but it will definitely silence them a bit.
The changes are already live on Facebook’s desktop site and the mobile version will see it in the coming weeks.
Source: Facebook
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Facebook makes it easier to hide your annoying friends’ posts
If you’ve just about had enough of those annoying online quizzes you keep seeing on Facebook, well the social network has just introduced a new way for you to stop seeing them. Now when you select to hide a story (which you can do by hitting the arrow on the top right), you can also request to see less from that person or Page. Or, if you so choose, you can unfollow them entirely. Additionally, there’s also a new News Feed setting that’ll show you the top people, Pages and Groups that have popped up in your feed in the past week. You can then unfollow them if you want, or re-follow the folks that you’ve unfollowed in the past. Both features are available on desktop today. As for mobile, the latter News Feed setting is ready today, while the former “see less” feature will be available in coming weeks. Thankfully, even after you’ve unfollowed your buddy’s posts, your Facebook friendship will still remain intact.
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Filed under: Internet
Source: Facebook
Watch Mark Zuckerberg answer your most pressing questions
Mark Zuckerberg took time out of his busy schedule yesterday to answer some pressing questions from the public. While none of the answers are particularly surprising, it was nice to hear the young CEO directly address the concerns of its users. High on the list of people’s gripes was the decision to break out Messenger as its own app. While Facebook has addressed this issue before, it was still nice to hear Mr. Zuckerberg talk about it directly. He and Facebook still believe that the Messenger app provides a much better experience and that making it a standalone product was the right decision. Though he admitted that perhaps the transition could have gone better. If you’re interested, you can watch the entire hour-long Q&A after the break.
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Filed under: Internet
Whatsapp’s read receipts finally work the way you thought they did
Chances are, you’ve been interpreting Whatsapp wrong this entire time. Most people look at their sent messages, see those double green checkmarks, and assume those missives have made their way to their targets. Not quite! Those only indicate that they’ve reached Whatsapp’s servers, but the Facebook subsidiary finally changed those checks to work the way you thought they did. According to a newly updated tidbit in Whatsapp’s FAQ, you’ll be greeted by a pair of blue checkmarks on your message when the recipient finally gets around to opening it. It’s a minor, if terribly useful addition to the mix — now that that’s out of the way, the team might want to spend a little team seeing how it can make the service a bit more secure.
Via: The Next Web
Source: Whatsapp FAQ
WhatsApp update now shows when messages have been read
You may recall that Facebook acquired WhatsApp Messenger back in February for an eye-watering $19 billion, and is only now in the process of rolling out its first major update for the service. Don’t get too excited, though, as the added functionality is not welcomed by many.
If you’re either an avid user of WhatsApp or a complete novice, I’m pretty sure you’re aware of its ‘double tick’ delivery system. If not, don’t worry. It’s simple. A grey tick on its own represents that a message has been successfully sent, while two grey ticks mean it has been delivered to the recipient’s phone. However, Facebook has decided to adapt this feature.
Now, you will notice on some occasions that both of the ticks turn blue. This indicates that the recipient has, in fact, read your message. This attribute also works in group chats; however the color will only change once all of the participants have read the message.
Unlike any other messaging service on the market, WhatsApp allows you to compare the time the message was delivered and subsequently the time it was read. Doing this is easy. All you have to do is press and hold on the blue-ticked message, and then hit the info button.
Android user’s are not required to navigate to the Play Store to update their software in order to receive this new feature owing to the fact that it’s being rolled out in stages over-the-air — so don’t get distressed if your friend receives the functionality before you do.
Source: WhatsApp
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See which apps and games are draining your phone battery and chewing up the most storage
Apps are easily the biggest draw of owning a smartphone, but unfortunately, they can also be what hinders the performance of our devices, too. AVG anonymously collected data from over 1 million smartphone and tablet users to measure just which apps drained battery the fastest and used up the most storage space, and the results are pretty interesting.
Performance draining apps were considered on a combination of battery drain, storage space used, and data consumption, and Facebook rounded out the top 10. Yep, the Facebook app that nearly everyone has installed is responsible for more performance drain than any other app. Some other culprits include Facebook-owned Instagram, Path, Spotify, and BlackBerry Messenger.
The second list just focused on which apps drained the most battery, and Samsung embarrassingly managed to snag 3 of the top 10 spots on the list. Samsung’s AllShare Cast Dongle updated took the top spot, with ChatOn at number 2 and WatchOn at number 5. While it’s technically not a Samsung app, the number 3 battery draining app was the Beaming Service for Beep’n’Go, which sometimes does come preloaded on Samsung devices. Facebook grabbed the number 6 spot on this list.
The list for which apps use the most storage spins some negative light on other pretty commonly used apps, too. The number 1 app was the New York Times Breaking News app, while Spotify sits at number 3, Facebook at number 4, and Google Chrome at number 5. Surprisingly, Google Play Music didn’t break the top 10, but Instagram showed up on this list again.
AVG separated the most performance hungry games in their own category, and it shows that games from Candy Crush Saga developer King are responsible for quite a bit of battery drain. 4 of the top 10 games were developed by King, although Minecraft snagged the number 4 spot and Angry Birds pulled up at number 10.
You can check out the full list of apps at the break. How many of these performance draining apps do you have installed on your devices?
source: Cnet
Come comment on this article: See which apps and games are draining your phone battery and chewing up the most storage
Facebook taking three-pronged approach to fighting Ebola in West Africa
Facebook is extending its philanthropic arm, joining the fight against the Ebola outbreak in West Africa on three fronts. First and foremost: money. Facebook users will see a donation bug pop up in their news feed in the coming days offering options to donate to three nonprofits (the International Medical Corps, the Red Cross and Save the Children). Leveraging its enormous user base to funnel funding to nonprofits is just the base level — Facebook is also providing emergency voice/data services to medical workers in the three West African countries most affected by Ebola: Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. It’s working with NetHope, a collaboration of nongovernmental organizations, to provide those services.
Facebook and NetHope are deploying 100 “mobile satellite communication terminals” — standalone computer terminals which provide broadband internet and telephone service. The devices are headed to areas with “little-to-no-existing communications capacity” with the intention of helping curb the spread of Ebola through data and communication.
Beyond connectivity, Facebook’s working with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to help educate the West African public on Ebola symptoms and treatment. Specifically, information will be surfaced on Facebook for users in “affected and neighboring regions.” The messages are localized based on region, and “focus on Ebola detection, prevention and treatment.” One such message can be seen below:
If you’d like to donate directly, or to learn more about fighting the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, here are some options:
- Facebook’s Ebola page, full of information and direct links to groups involved
- The Economist has an interactive map tracking the current situation
- The Red Cross has a webpage focused on the West Africa Ebola outbreak, and the organization is actively involved in recovery efforts
- As does the United Nation Children’s Fund, which is also actively involved in recovery efforts
To further understand the current Ebola outbreak, check out this great video from Discovery Networks’ TestTube:
Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Wireless, Software, Mobile, Facebook
Source: Facebook
Lumera lets you post high-res snapshots on Instagram with one click
You are done (DONE!) taking selfies with a phone like some plebeian — you only take DSLR selfies now, even though it’s a pain transferring photos using a camera without built-in WiFi. A camera attachment called Lumera wants to solve that problem by giving you a way to upload high-res snapshots to Instagram, Facebook or Twitter with a single click. To integrate the WiFi and Bluetooth Low Energy device with a DSLR, you need to attach it via the tripod screw and plug it into the camera’s mini-USB port. So long as you define the social networks of your choice on its accompanying app, you won’t have to take out your phone to upload pics anymore. The app itself is pretty useful, though: it can stream whatever the camera’s viewfinder is looking at, set timelapses and access the DSLR’s settings remotely.
In addition to giving you an easy way to upload high-res pics, Lumera can also connect to a portable drive via USB, enabling you to transfer images on-the-go if you’re running dangerously low on storage space. Now, here comes the not-so-good news: Lumera only works with select Nikon and Canon DSLRs for now. But, the list is still a lot longer than the models those companies’ own wireless adapters can support, and the device itself is loads cheaper.
While the brands’ wireless attachments typically cost around $600 to $800 each, you can get the Lumera for only $125 — that is, if you back its campaign right now on Kickstarter, where its developers are attempting to raise CA$90,000 (US$80,000). They plan to use the money to conjure up the final engineering design that takes backers’ feedback into account before going into production. Barring any delays, the device will start shipping out by May 2015, but if you can’t wait that long and have a knack for MacGyvering things, you can always try to build something similar on your own.
Filed under: Cameras, Mobile, Nikon, Canon
Source: Lumera, Kickstarter
Engadget Daily: Samsung’s all-metal phone, a Wii U eulogy and more!
A lot can happen between the time and the sun rises and sets — especially in the future we live in. So, what’s new ’round these parts? Well, Samsung debuted super thin, all-metal smartphones; our Joseph Volpe penned a eulogy for Nintendo’s Wii U and our Sean Buckley reviewed ASUS’ new gaming laptop, the ROG G751. There are more stories than that, though, and you can find those in the gallery below!
Filed under: Misc, Gaming, Laptops, Internet, Mobile, Samsung, Facebook
Mobile pushes Facebook to even greater heights, expect more stand alone apps
…And Facebook’s march towards utter market dominance continues unabated. While Twitter enjoys plenty of success, and we’re sure someone out there still uses Google+, there’s no denying that the king of the social networking hill is Facebook. And during the third quarter of 2014 the company did nothing but extend that lead. In particular the number of mobile users continued to explode at an impressive rate. The average number of monthly mobile users in September was 1.12 billion. (To put that in perspective: Twitter announced just 284 million monthly users across all platforms.) That’s 29 percent more than last year. Most impressively many of those users check in every day. The average daily number of mobile users during the quarter was 703 million. And when you take the desktop into account, usage balloons to 864 million per day — or about 64 percent of its users.
Its no surprise with its continued growth that ad revenue has soared for the company. And that mobile ad dollars made up a majority of its income. A full 64 percent of the money coming into Facebook is from ads, and 66 percent of that ad revenue is from mobile. (You know, just in case you needed any more evidence that the future is on mobile.)
While Mark Zuckerberg spoke at length about how important WhatsApp and Oculus are to the future of the company, he declined to go into to much detail during his prepared statements. He did however provide an update on Instagram which has seen its audience grow by as much as 100 percent in certain markets over the last year as it continues its international expansion. The mobile photo-sharing network also has an impressive grip on the attention span of its users. The average member apparently spends 21 minutes per-day browsing the service. The move to bring ads to the platform hasn’t seemed to hurt usage yet.
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