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Facebook gives cleaner, app-centric Timeline design to all

Facebook said Thursday that it has completed the rollout of a cleaned-up version of Timeline, first unveiled in March, that comes with application sections for showing off a person's favorite interests.

The idea behind the new design is to not only turn Timeline into a more organized area, but to make the profile space better reflect the individual tastes of every Facebook user through a feature called "sections."

Sections, which are handpicked by each individual Facebook user, are included in the About tab and sit to the left of a now single-column stream of updates on a … Read more

TV bakery enjoys astonishing Facebook melt down

"You people are all s***. Yelp s***, Reddits s***. Every s***. Come to here, I will f***ing show you all."

On reading these words in isolation, you might imagine they were written by someone whose senses had departed for chillier climes. Or perhaps merely by an exposed politician, contemplating a loss of fame and privileges.

But, no. These words actually adorn the Facebook page of Amy's Baking Company Bakery Boutique & Bistro in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The name is something of a mouthful, but the sentiments expressed by its management (yes, these words are from the management) … Read more

Facebook kills social suicide app Social Roulette

A Facebook app that mimicked the real-life lethal game of Russian roulette in deleting user accounts apparently did not leave the social network fired up.

Social Roulette, which launched Saturday, gave players a one-in-six chance of deleting their own Facebook account, a form of social suicide, if you will. If you lost (or won, depending on your level of exasperation with social networking), the app would delete all aspects of the user's account, including posts, likes, photos, and friend connections, before deactivating the account.

According to its description, the app was intended for people looking to burn their Facebook … Read more

HTC's Facebook phone: Not dead yet

No, the first Facebook phone, also known as the HTC First, isn't ready for the smartphone graveyard just yet.

BGR reported Monday that AT&T would discontinue selling the HTC First and return unsold inventory back to the manufacturer once it met the contractual obligations of its in-store display arrangement with HTC.

But AT&T has not made a decision to discontinue the First, according to a person familiar with the carrier's plans.

"I am not aware of any discussion ever taking place about sending the phones back or to stop selling the First," … Read more

Delete unwanted Facebook comments using the Android app

You can now moderate the comments on your own Facebook posts from your Android device. With an update to the Android app last week, Facebook enabled the ability for Android users to delete comments in just a few short steps.

The next time someone leaves an inappropriate comment, or an old flame starts proclaiming his undying love for you, you'll be able to delete the comment without having to rush to a computer.

The first thing you'll need to do is update to the latest version of Facebook for Android. After you've updated, you'll need to … Read more

Facebook makes break-ups harder to take, study says

It hurts when your lover casts you aside.

Especially when you know that he or she is acting out of self-loathing, personal inadequacy, or a complete lack of appreciation for your hidden joys.

And yet, in this world where everything is recorded by a social network (and/or a government), there are parameters that makes the pain more acute.

As a University of California, Santa Cruz study has discovered, Facebook can make a break-up even worse.

It seems that even when we have been kicked to the curb with more unfairness than a Turkmeni election we find it hard to … Read more

Microsoft warns of new Trojan hijacking Facebook accounts

Microsoft has issued a warning that a new piece of malware masquerading as a Google Chrome extension and Firefox add-on is making the rounds, threatening to hijack Facebook accounts

First detected in Brazil, Trojan:JS/Febipos.A attempts to keep itself updated, just like normal, legitimate browser extensions, Microsoft noted in a security bulletin late Friday.

Once downloaded, the Trojan monitors whether the infected computer is logged into a Facebook account and attempts to download a config file that will includes a list of commands for the browser extension. The malware can then perform a variety of Facebook actions, including … Read more

Facebook Home finally hits 1M download mark

A month after its release, Facebook Home has reached 1 million downloads, according to download numbers at Google Play.

It hit the milestone just days after Facebook's director of mobile engineering told reporters that Home had been downloaded "just about" 1 million times. The app's page was updated Sunday morning to indicate that its download numbers now fall in the 1 million to 5 million range.

While the social network's software suite for Android achieved its first 500,000 downloads in its first 10 days out in the wild, Facebook Home took twice as long … Read more

Eco-minded exec Musk leaves Zuckerberg's political group

Elon Musk, CEO of electric-car company Tesla Motors, has left a fledgling political action group founded by Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg, after the group bankrolled ads that angered environmentalists and others.

Musk and former PayPal colleague David Sacks -- founder of Yammer, which helps companies set up in-house social networks -- left FWD.us on Friday, according to various reports.

The launch of FWD.us last month was accompanied by a Zuckerberg-penned opinion piece in the Washington Post that spelled out the group's goals, including: changes to U.S. immigration law, with an eye toward attracting and keeping talented … Read more