social networking

Facebook boosts #hashtag presence with mobile

Facebook launched hashtags earlier this month, but now it's upping the anty. As of Thursday, hashtags will work on the social network's mobile site and the company is also debuting related hashtags, according to TechCrunch.

What this means is that Facebook hashtags could start to be a lot more abundant and easier to integrate.

Facebook describes hashtags as a way to "turn topics and phrases into clickable links in posts on your personal timeline or your Page, and help people find posts about topics they're interested in." For example, Facebook says, write a post along … Read more

Potluck takes the stigma out of talking to strangers online

Josh Miller is hosting a house party for the Internet and everyone is invited. The party, called Potluck, starts now and its purpose is to introduce today's generation of social networkers to people beyond their immediate friend circles.

"Most people ... have always known the Internet as a place where you only connect with people you know," Miller told CNET. "So how do we encourage them to connect with new people?"

The answer is Potluck, a social application for meeting strangers in a non-threatening environment. Actually, though, it's just a fun place to hang out … Read more

'Google Mine' heads to Google+, Android?

Google is preparing to launch a new service that will be integrated into Google+, according to a new report.

The folks over at Google Operating System, a blog that monitors the search giant, say they have obtained an image of a new service the company is working on called Google Mine. The screenshot describes the feature as allowing users to "share your belongings with your friends and keep up to date with what your friends are sharing." The app also lets users share items within certain Google+ Circles.

The idea appears to center on user interests and sharing … Read more

Apple could include LinkedIn for deep iOS 7 integration

Even though Twitter has been Apple's pick of social networks to be integrated into iOS 7, it's looking like LinkedIn could also make it to the chosen circle.

Developers have found code-based references to deep LinkedIn integration in the beta version of iOS 7, which was supplied by Apple, according to 9to5Mac. This code shows that a single sign-on system is in the works for the professional social network -- much like how iOS currently works with Facebook and Twitter.

The developer that supplied 9to5Mac with the code sheets said that certain bits of code are missing for … Read more

Google+ for Android updates, notifications get synced

The big news today for Google+ is that the service is getting some notable improvements to its notifications system, the biggest of which is syncing across all devices. With this improvement, when you read or dismiss a notification on one device, the same action will be reflected across all of your devices, so you won't be bothered with repeat clicks and swipes.

Other updates include a new bell icon for notifications and an updated notifications tray, which separates new items from previously read items. According to Google's Vic Gundotra, the notifications improvements will be rolling out gradually starting … Read more

Ask.fm, the troubling secret playground of tweens and teens

Spy on Ask.fm's public stream and you'll feel like you've been transported back to middle school, dumped in the center of he-said, she-said dramas -- sometimes innocuous, sometimes not. Here, hormone-crazed young boys and girls banter about their after-school plans, tease their peers, boast about their most recent hookups, and try to appear cool with expletives and graphic language.

Ask.fm is a 3-year-old question-and-answer app that's wracked up 57 million users and is adding members at a rate of 200,000 a day. It's spreading from kid to kid, infiltrating middle schools and … Read more

Twitter for Windows Phone gets photo filters, more

The official Twitter app for Windows Phone got a huge update today, bringing it more in line with its siblings on iOS and Android. The most important of the new features is undoubtedly the photo filter tool, which comes with options like Vignette, Warm, Antique, and Cool.

Other new features include lens app integration, the ability to play Vine videos right from your timeline, and an option to save tweeted photos to your device.

The updated Twitter app is available now in the Windows Phone Store.

Israeli military to restrict soldiers' Facebook accounts

Fearing that enemy forces are gathering information on Israeli soldiers from social media, the Israel Defense Forces has decided to ban social network from some high-ranking soldiers and severely limit it for others.

The IDF is in the middle of drafting a "social networking code of ethics" that will ban the use of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media for all highly classified units, according to Israeli newspaper Haaretz. Other sensitive units, like pilots and intelligence officers, will be allowed to have social media accounts but won't be able to say they're soldiers or upload … Read more

Twitter amps up lists feature, lets users create 1,000 lists

Update to Twitter lists: You can now make up to 1,000 lists (up from 20), and each list can include up to 5,000 accounts (up from 500).

— Twitter for News (@TwitterForNews) May 30, 2013

Aiming to please those power tweeters, Twitter announced Thursday that it's expanding its list feature. Now users can make up to 1,000 lists that can each include 5,000 accounts.

This is a significant increase. Before today people could only have 20 lists, each with up to 500 accounts.

Twitter launched its lists feature in 2009 amid much fanfare. The long-awaited feature … Read more