That Twitter account you're following may be a bot, but that's not always a bad thing
Many of us use Twitter, and we do so for a variety of reasons that include both following friends and family, as well as keeping up with current events. Services like Breaking News and Breaking Weather can be indispensable in daily life.
What many don't know is that some of these services are little more than automated bots. While that sounds scary, and in some cases it is, it's not always something to worry about.
Can we still use Twitter without going psychotic?
Can spending too much time reading and writing in 140 characters or less really send you crazy?
A quick glance at news headlines today would have been enough to send every Twitter user into hiding -- "Woman Hospitalised with Twitter Psychosis" and "Twitter can trigger psychosis in users" -- common headers.
Do Not Track is bolstered by EFF's Privacy Badger extension
Online security and privacy are hotter topics than ever. Just this weekend, Edward Snowden made an appearance at the Hope X 2014 hacker event, and called for those in attendance to help make encryption tools easier to use. Another fierce advocate of online privacy is the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation), and today the group released a beta version of Privacy Badger, a beautifully named extension for Chrome and Firefox designed to stop a number of tracking techniques used online. The idea of tracking cookies is something that will be familiar to most, but tracking takes many forms, including advertising and social media. Privacy Badger aims to block this tracking.
Peter Eckersley, EFF Technology Projects Director, said: "Widgets that say 'Like this page on Facebook' or 'Tweet this' often allow those companies to see what webpages you are visiting, even if you never click the widget's button. The Privacy Badger alpha would detect that, and block those widgets outright. But now Privacy Badger's beta version has gotten smarter: it can block the tracking while still giving you the option to see and click on those buttons if you so choose".
Tweetium arrives on Windows Phone
The official Twitter app may be good enough for casual Windows Phone use, but only a third-party client has all the right features for the social network's power users. While there already are a couple of good picks available in Store, the arrival of Tweetium, best known as one of the most fully-featured Twitter clients for Windows 8.x, just beefed-up the selection.
The developer, B-side Software, has released Tweetium as a beta. It is meant to be tested just by "select" existing "customers", according to its Store description, but we can still take a look.
1 million users affected by CNET.com hack
News and review website CNET has been targeted by a team of Russian hackers called W0rm. CNET's servers were hit over the weekend, but details have only just been released.
Although CNET has not given a concrete confirmation of exactly what happened, the site explains that a representative of W0rm claims to have stolen a database containing the usernames and passwords of over a million users. It seems a security hole in the Symfony PHP framework was exploited, and it is not yet clear what the fallout could be.
Twitter for Windows Phone finally gets some attention
Twitter may have an official Windows Phone app, but the offering is sorely lagging behind its Android and iOS counterparts in the features department. That is because the updates come only a couple of times per year, and, even then, they fail to bring the latest goodies on the platform.
Luckily for those who are willing to put up with the offering, Twitter has finally released a new update for its Windows Phone app, the first one to come in 2014. And to show just how much it cares about the platform and its users, Twitter has not even announced the update on its blog (but, Microsoft did).
HTC pokes fun at the Samsung Galaxy S5's 'bad design'
HTC has taken to Twitter to have a dig at Android competitor Samsung’s design flaws when it comes to the latter’s flagship Galaxy S5 smartphone.
The US Twitter account of the Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer posted a picture that pictured its HTC One M8 next to a lineup of three different colored plasters along with the slogan "Introducing the cure for bad design".
Twitter reinstates tweets that mock the Prophet Muhammad and depict Koran burning
Twitter has reversed blocks it placed on numerous tweets and accounts in Pakistan that were deemed "blasphemous" and "unethical", including some that featured anti-Islamic content, depictions of the Prophet Muhammad, and photos of the Koran burning. Pakistani authorities complained to Twitter back in May, and the social network "made an initial decision to withhold content in Pakistan".
But after the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority failed to provide the additional information that Twitter requested, the accounts and tweets have been restored.
Twitter for iOS adds mute button, multiple iPad improvements
Twitter has rolled out a new version of its iPhone and iPad app with the release of Twitter 6.5. Its headline new feature is support for the "mute" feature that allows selected users to be hidden from the user’s timeline.
Version 6.5 also implements a number of improvements to the iPad version that had previously been rolled out to the iPhone build. These include selected content previews in the user’s timeline and the ability to choose filters for photos.
Twitter's mute function lets you silence talkative tweeters
It is said that Twitter is the social network for those who suffer from verbal diarrhoea, and it's certainly true that you have to be slightly selective about who you follow if you are to avoid drowning in an avalanche of overwhelming drivel. But even if you do pick and choose who appears in your timeline very carefully, there may be times when you want certain people to just shut up. You could stop following them, or even go as far as blocking them, but this might be seen as taking things a little too far. Twitter's new mute function could be the solution to the problem you didn’t know you had.
Announced in a post on the Twitter blog, Product Manager Paul Rosania says the feature is being rolled out to not only the web version of Twitter, but also the official iOS and Android apps. In many ways, muting is a watered down version of blocking a user and it could prove useful in certain circumstances. You may have some friend who is watching a show you've yet to catch up with. To help avoid spoilers, you could mute their tweets until you're up to date; the same idea rings true for sporting results, and other big announcements.
Twitter bolsters security with password reset and suspicious login improvements
Security is always important, but now that we find ourselves in a post-Heartbleed world, it seems that there is more importance than ever being placed on passwords and the safety of online accounts. The constant advice, that we should be using unique passwords of ever-increasing complexity for each service we use, means that there is a greater chance of forgetting our login details. This is something that Twitter recognizes with a couple of account safety changes that are being introduced today.
A new password reset procedure lets you choose whether reset details should be sent to your registered email address or phone number. Having a choice is helpful in case you no longer use the email address you registered with, or if you have switched phone numbers. Choice is good! Mobile users will also find that the reset process has been improved, and Twitter helpfully provides some tips to aid with selecting a strong new password.
Google Plus is friggin' awesome -- don't you agree?
On April 24, the Google+ community lost a valuable promoter and leader. Vic Gundotra, head of Google's social media network, announced that he is stepping down and leaving the company. Mr. Gundotra deserves great applause, as he was in charge during the initial growth of the best social media network on the internet.
Yes, that's right, Google+ is the best -- it is friggin' awesome. It is better than Facebook. It is better than Twitter. Despite what the tech community may echo, the service is actually loved and adored by some, including myself. But OK, what makes Google+ so awesome? Here are some of my reasons.
Twitter introduces web notifications
Using social media services such as Twitter, Google+ and Facebook can be a dizzying affair. The more people that you follow or become friends with, the more "noisy" the experience. Quite frankly, it can become an impossibility to keep track of all the friend-requests and notifications.
Twitter can be particularly difficult for me, as I must keep the list of who I follow rather small, or else I cannot keep up. Luckily, the blue bird-logo company is aiming to make things more manageable for us web users with web notifications.
Twitter explains its legal approach against ban in Turkey
Social media is frequently the first victim of internet censorship when nations begin attempting to lock down citizens. We have seen these efforts fail time and again. Turkey has been no exception during the past week -- Twitter was blocked, and users flocked to change DNS settings to Google, though that has now also been locked out.
Twitter, for its part, has filed legal action within the country, in an effort to have the blockade lifted and give a voice back to its users, including dissenters of the current government. Now the company details its current efforts in a blog post from Vijaya Gadde, general counsel for the social network.
Happy 8th Birthday Twitter! Celebrate by reliving your first Tweet
Social media has become so entrenched in modern society, that it is hard to remember life without it. It almost feels as if services like Facebook have always been with us. Remember though, these networks are still relatively new phenomenons.
That said, Twitter is surprisingly rather long in the tooth. Even though it feels like a newcomer to the social media scene, it will be 8 years old tomorrow. Rather than celebrate with cake or presents, the company has decided to give users a new "First-Tweets" tool.
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