Instagram 300 Million active Users, Instagram is now bigger than Twitter

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjunvgmBR1rQPGG0eenNiqDk9aKjus-yL1RFdFoNHaZESEd5rRb4WX1R3FKmqZscn7479B0CqcrcLgbDhyphenhyphenr8nKdHHn-4dmAas7nXdJsWnxmisiEJdnKlEn-N4MqOa01mO6zcZ14mt6V6V-N/s1600/image-thumb-988457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjunvgmBR1rQPGG0eenNiqDk9aKjus-yL1RFdFoNHaZESEd5rRb4WX1R3FKmqZscn7479B0CqcrcLgbDhyphenhyphenr8nKdHHn-4dmAas7nXdJsWnxmisiEJdnKlEn-N4MqOa01mO6zcZ14mt6V6V-N/s1600/image-thumb-988457.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> Instagram announced Wednesday that it now has more than 300 million monthly active users, up from 200 million in March.<br /> <br /> <b>SEE ALSO: <a href="http://circles-tech.blogspot.com/2014/12/Yahoo-Starts-To-Prompting-mozilla-Firefox-Upgrade.html">Yahoo Starts Prompting To Mozilla Firefox “Upgrade"</a></b><br /> <br /> Instagram has announced that it has officially reached 300 million active users, making it larger than Twitter.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4O3A9sMIZfDmQ_8SgHeskgEdNC6bv_8rcSHl7XvRRWf2Ugj5rq3yD_V8eKK4Wl3_NTUzH7UW_7qsj5Q8UjUmz_Mpre6poduil1EKl1vu3WCoXoD3ILK_x35Q6VF_Rsk86kEqKn8_us6fo/s1600/image-thumb-930386.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4O3A9sMIZfDmQ_8SgHeskgEdNC6bv_8rcSHl7XvRRWf2Ugj5rq3yD_V8eKK4Wl3_NTUzH7UW_7qsj5Q8UjUmz_Mpre6poduil1EKl1vu3WCoXoD3ILK_x35Q6VF_Rsk86kEqKn8_us6fo/s1600/image-thumb-930386.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> Instagram users are also now posting 70 million photos and video a day.<br /> Instagram shared the news in a blog post, where it also announced new verified badges for celebrities, athletes, and brands.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcuttwFC18CV1zziGedDZWeg50oKjyviXZFPfThs7jXZ4w07glno-GnXkOATYZ4g9lA-GTp_uKpy51nXYCUjvtYz-HftDszsx6stU7b_R5G1fu0dKgehCRrzfUF5dDtkXOQmJrOvzeVj_N/s1600/instagram-phone-hed-2013_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcuttwFC18CV1zziGedDZWeg50oKjyviXZFPfThs7jXZ4w07glno-GnXkOATYZ4g9lA-GTp_uKpy51nXYCUjvtYz-HftDszsx6stU7b_R5G1fu0dKgehCRrzfUF5dDtkXOQmJrOvzeVj_N/s1600/instagram-phone-hed-2013_0.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> <div> <div> Facebook's companion company, bought for $1 billion in 2012, announced the milestone today, as well as the fact that it will start handing out verified accounts, the kind coveted by Twitter's users. </div> <div> The verified badges will be for public figures and brands, Instagram said. Verified badges, coming within the week, "will make it easier for people to identify and follow the authentic brands they care about," Instagram said today in an email. "When an account is verified, a blue badge will appear next to its name in its profile as well as in search."</div> </div> <div> <br /></div> <div> It’s also fascinating how Facebook’s gobbling of the social media sphere is adding millions to its user counts—Facebook Messenger has 500 million users ad WhatsApp, bought by Facebook earlier this year for $19 billion, adds another 600 million.</div> <div> <i>Source: <a href="http://mashable.com/2014/12/10/instagram-300-million-users/">Mashable</a></i></div> <div> <br /></div> <div> <i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div> </div>

Instagram 300 Million active Users, Instagram is now bigger than Twitter

Instagram announced Wednesday that it now has more than 300 million monthly active users, up from 200 million in March. SEE ALSO:  Yah...

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How to find your own tweets on Twitter

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjos-jFqgsGskNbQKT57er2-dwhe6PJAEWIs2OwANu7t451Hdw-z4GuJZY9znyf7_v3E80BhcTcuhMBNymWkOj2n4WJMvDD1sFh8BmMlw7tCwPDye9opeUhoXYLyDEaEg1ZNWg-L91KyWUg/s1600/twitter-search.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjos-jFqgsGskNbQKT57er2-dwhe6PJAEWIs2OwANu7t451Hdw-z4GuJZY9znyf7_v3E80BhcTcuhMBNymWkOj2n4WJMvDD1sFh8BmMlw7tCwPDye9opeUhoXYLyDEaEg1ZNWg-L91KyWUg/s1600/twitter-search.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">If you've ever wanted to look back on your prior Twitter history and find an old tweet, you know that finding posts from weeks or years past is much easier said than done.</span></div> <h3 style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em; text-align: left;"> <b>SEE ALSO:  <a href="http://circles-tech.blogspot.com/2014/12/now-see-your-old-facebook-post.html">Now See Your Old Facebook Post</a></b></h3> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">That's because until recently, Twitter didn't provide an easy way to search old posts. Sure, you could manually download your entire archive, but who wants to sift through thousands of tweets that way.</span></span><span style="color: #555555; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">Thanks to Twitter's recent search update, searching your own tweets on Twitter is now both fast and easy.</span></span><span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">You can use Twitter's newly revamped advanced search to search through any user's tweet history, provided the account is set to be publicly viewable. Begin by entering the Twitter handle (or handles) you want to search in the "from these accounts fields." Note that you don't need to include the @ sign before the user name.</span></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkYTUgoHec7NvMbsa4dpg3j-v1TeLKC7i-rMfpY9Rweuf9FEDSSIpAL7aWtI2XHuSbx5lf9hX6cpWKuCDdBtHoSOSK8ticDX4h8Rx9Nunc6iTF_HDD_AtNEpXzhgqcXVVv0MaN34z2Trvr/s1600/Screen-Shot-2014-12-04-at-1.20.55-PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkYTUgoHec7NvMbsa4dpg3j-v1TeLKC7i-rMfpY9Rweuf9FEDSSIpAL7aWtI2XHuSbx5lf9hX6cpWKuCDdBtHoSOSK8ticDX4h8Rx9Nunc6iTF_HDD_AtNEpXzhgqcXVVv0MaN34z2Trvr/s1600/Screen-Shot-2014-12-04-at-1.20.55-PM.png" width="640" /></a></div> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">From there, the rest of the fields will depend on what you're searching for and how specific you want to be. If I wanted to find every tweet I've ever sent about the San Diego Chargers, for example, I would type "chargers" into the "all of these words" field.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">But you can also get a lot more specific in your queries by adding a date range, hashtags, @ mentions and other information to the search fields. Add dates to see tweets you sent during a specific time period. (Tip: if you can't remember the specific date you joined Twitter, your main profile displays the month and year you joined.)</span></span></div> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">You can also search by tweet location (if you've enabled location information in the past), retweets, and even specific types of tweets. The search will identify positive or negative tweets by searching for ":)" or ":(", for example.</span></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb3oo05PHl7nigaAd3xcJ9kGVX-2tAG7lwsHxwadJKCQqA8mEnF4diighF_R0EEBb5bLe9yRs2cq21vILTamPM9uYEdutKqoqsWPbRpynBcJ-1tpQ1Nzud4Ty31ekb_osux83yPDW-jaJk/s1600/Screen-Shot-2014-12-04-at-3.01.36-PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb3oo05PHl7nigaAd3xcJ9kGVX-2tAG7lwsHxwadJKCQqA8mEnF4diighF_R0EEBb5bLe9yRs2cq21vILTamPM9uYEdutKqoqsWPbRpynBcJ-1tpQ1Nzud4Ty31ekb_osux83yPDW-jaJk/s1600/Screen-Shot-2014-12-04-at-3.01.36-PM.png" width="640" /></a></span></div> <br /> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;">Of course Twitter's search is still somewhat limited, though the company says it plans to expand the feature to be more comprehensive in the future. You can't search your direct messages or favorites, for example, though there are workarounds outside of Twitter. Snapbird, which requires users to log in with their Twitter credentials, allows you to search within your direct messages or tweets favorited by you or others.</span></div> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;"><br /></span></span></div> <div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-top: 0.75em;"> <span style="color: #555555; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;"><i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></span></span></div> </div>

How to find your own tweets on Twitter

If you've ever wanted to look back on your prior Twitter history and find an old tweet, you know that finding posts from weeks or ye...

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Twitter Best Tech Company to Work For, LinkedIn 2th, Facebook 3th

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdlHNdif4n-7h0BDU7waTrHCHOs1Ebo2ndW_qQgEfq2iAm_aN8qLCFG_Nty1Lul1wA2wf0Bg8b6zEFZKVPHkRQJzwdSYBIS-y4abYlii0Gp56ZITH2BppYITbCpE4iUCKd_a35VqcaysM/s1600/Twitter+Best+Tech+Company+to+Work+For.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdlHNdif4n-7h0BDU7waTrHCHOs1Ebo2ndW_qQgEfq2iAm_aN8qLCFG_Nty1Lul1wA2wf0Bg8b6zEFZKVPHkRQJzwdSYBIS-y4abYlii0Gp56ZITH2BppYITbCpE4iUCKd_a35VqcaysM/s640/Twitter+Best+Tech+Company+to+Work+For.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> It used to be that every tech head wanted to work for Google. I suppose that still applies for many people, what with all the perks that Google gives its employees, not to mention the cred you rack up if you work for the Big G.<br /> <br /> <h4 style="text-align: left;">  See also: <a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/twitter-news-timeline-custom-create-or.html">Twitter News Timeline Custom Create Or Embed Your Own</a></h4> In the past three years, however, Zuckerberg’s Facebook has taken the top spot in Glassdoor’s Employees’s Choice Awards. Gone are those glory days for Facebook, though, as Glassdoor recently turned the crown over to no other than Twitter.<br /> <br /> It’s not that Google and Facebook are out of the picture, you know. The former ranks number 6, while the latter is still at number 3.  Here are the top 22 tech companies in terms of employee satisfaction.<br /> You might notice some names which are glaringly missing: Apple and Microsoft. The former is at number 35 while the latter is nowhere to be seen. Surprising or not? <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMo1GkdmTYo_ttiWd2tizCjo1Eyg8-bXHGIKCb_TzwRaPyqIOfkzwx-7wxMMifBX-tRXu8Qvcfoaw579p4rL13Aech0wYSlC_n0rvAFwaLCzHpYU6MVhgaLZg7QQNMI_OXAyAqzPu6Sw/s1600/Twitter+Best+Tech+Company+to+Work+For,+LinkedIn+2th,+Facebook+3th.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMo1GkdmTYo_ttiWd2tizCjo1Eyg8-bXHGIKCb_TzwRaPyqIOfkzwx-7wxMMifBX-tRXu8Qvcfoaw579p4rL13Aech0wYSlC_n0rvAFwaLCzHpYU6MVhgaLZg7QQNMI_OXAyAqzPu6Sw/s1600/Twitter+Best+Tech+Company+to+Work+For,+LinkedIn+2th,+Facebook+3th.jpg" /></a></div> <br /> <br /> So, what are the factors that come into play in determining the best tech companies to work for?<br /> As you can see at the bottom of the image, employees are given a questionnaire for them to give feedback on their job. This includes, but is not limited to, work environment and the company. I assume policies and perks are included. Using the gathered data, “<em>Glassdoor then uses a “proprietary algorithm” to determine an overall ranking “based on the quantity, quality and consistency of reviews.”” </em><br /> No matter what that proprietary algorithm may involve, I think it’s safe to say that at the end of the day, Glassdoor determines just how happy employees are with their jobs and the company in general.<br /> You know what would be fun to know? The details of what exactly makes a tech company awesome to work for. While rankings are always fun for stat nerds, there’s something better about discovering just what a company does for its employees. Especially companies that we hear about (and patronize) every single day.<br /> <em>Source : <a href="http://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/12/11/glassdoor-twitter-best-tech-company-work-ends-facebooks-three-year-streak-number-one/#!pOdIq">Thenextweb</a></em><br /> <br /> <i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

Twitter Best Tech Company to Work For, LinkedIn 2th, Facebook 3th

It used to be that every tech head wanted to work for Google. I suppose that still applies for many people, what with all the perks tha...

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Twitter No Internet Required On Mobile

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1pA6qQEVL7aw228dMhOxgABLTaLxo6xaejlWtOhZwYE5v4aWZEoKveo9_GAOcdgNfifzPPMNUFPM36w9vWeAWHsJFCacdzw5o6oIhFoOvT1VmxueEQV5x9cWfOgS6RKRwEAc3kuF441E/s1600/HTD_twitterlogo_610x426.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1pA6qQEVL7aw228dMhOxgABLTaLxo6xaejlWtOhZwYE5v4aWZEoKveo9_GAOcdgNfifzPPMNUFPM36w9vWeAWHsJFCacdzw5o6oIhFoOvT1VmxueEQV5x9cWfOgS6RKRwEAc3kuF441E/s640/HTD_twitterlogo_610x426.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> Twitter will soon be available to some international mobile users without Internet access, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/05/us-twitter-partnership-u2opia-idUSBRE9B413M20131205" target="_blank">according to Reuters</a>. <br /> Twitter is partnering with <a href="http://www.u2opiamobile.com/index.php" target="_blank">U2opia</a>, a Singapore-based mobile applications provider, to bring aspects of its Twitter service to users on phones that don't have Internet capabilities. Users will need to type in a short code and will then have access to trending topics on Twitter from their respective areas.<br /> <br /> <h4 style="text-align: left;"> See also: <a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/twitter-news-timeline-custom-create-or.html">Twitter News Timeline Custom Create Or Embed Your Own</a></h4> A Twitter spokesperson confirmed the partnership to <i>CirclesTech</i> but did not comment on how many international users will have access to the new service. According to Reuters, users will only have access to trending topics, meaning the majority of tweets will not be viewable. It does not appear users will be able to send tweets using U2opia's application.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHFU3vIkJzOdDOqQfdeloaKTvFDBzsoaFftSK8yjgQdFhLMs_scSp-2KrUB4eVWu8MJa0Eb2bu2h2eerhOAXYNQoxQZtcyZyRM5x1BC1FyvYtpr7IuKZg3A79ub-azkoQanQCK4x-HHv4/s1600/twitter-no-internet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHFU3vIkJzOdDOqQfdeloaKTvFDBzsoaFftSK8yjgQdFhLMs_scSp-2KrUB4eVWu8MJa0Eb2bu2h2eerhOAXYNQoxQZtcyZyRM5x1BC1FyvYtpr7IuKZg3A79ub-azkoQanQCK4x-HHv4/s640/twitter-no-internet.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> Facebook has a similar partnership with U2opia, as does Google Talk. Fonetwish, the company's product that allows users to access Facebook (and soon Twitter) without the Internet, only works with text-based messages, meaning pictures and videos won't be viewable. U2opia claims that more than half a million users from around the world access Facebook each month without Internet. <br /> Twitter has more than 218 million users worldwide, almost 80% of which reside outside the United States. Much like Facebook plans to add its next billion users from emerging markets like South America and Asia, Twitter hopes to do the same. <br /> In Twitter's <a href="http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1418091/000119312513390321/d564001ds1.htm" target="_blank">S-1</a>, which was filed ahead of its IPO in early November, the company listed a handful of foreign countries as targets for increased user growth. Markets like Argentina and South Africa were highlighted as areas where user growth should, and most likely will, eclipse growth from the United States. Making even parts of the service available to users with older phones is a step toward accomplishing that. <br /> The new Internet-free version of Twitter will be available in Q1 of 2014, according to Reuters.<br /> <br /> <i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

Twitter No Internet Required On Mobile

Twitter will soon be available to some international mobile users without Internet access, according to Reuters . Twitter is partnering...

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2 million Facebook, Google Or Twitter passwords stolen in massive hack - Change your passwords

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsEX9E0I-a4ODezQZC-0rgYZVIsYslStPJtKgKc13lfv2rLuQ4GmiIj7mZ3EEDPzbcDtgafA_RCvYFWZRyRy7WrHSNJgvu_MKNpb3GeZaM_gQ8cniugzX_aIiKCkerG_kUqFDBRXQ52c8/s1600/twitter-facebook-google.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsEX9E0I-a4ODezQZC-0rgYZVIsYslStPJtKgKc13lfv2rLuQ4GmiIj7mZ3EEDPzbcDtgafA_RCvYFWZRyRy7WrHSNJgvu_MKNpb3GeZaM_gQ8cniugzX_aIiKCkerG_kUqFDBRXQ52c8/s640/twitter-facebook-google.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> More than 2 million accounts have been compromised from popular sites such as Google, Yahoo, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn after malware captured login credentials from users worldwide, according to a new report.<br /> <br /> <h4 style="text-align: left;">  See also: <a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/12/about-new-iwork-with-update-brings-back.html" target="_blank">About the New iWork With Update Brings Back Lost Features</a></h4> According to web security firm <a href="http://blog.spiderlabs.com/2013/12/look-what-i-found-moar-pony.html" target="_blank">Trustwave</a>, hackers have stolen login usernames and passwords across various sites in the past month with the help of Pony malware, a bit different than a typical breach.<br /> "Although these are accounts for online services such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Google, this is not the result of any weakness in those companies networks," said Abby Ross, a spokesperson for Trustwave. "Individual users had the malware installed on their machines and had their passwords stolen.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr93lVNct651johmetZuyncWA4WwdOG2wSqbRrCURBzavj0b6YVZ84F7fwSaBAnDpq8C_9vP2uX355f8I-R1Tym1FBGqLi73dslGodtHJ-KWnJjZaXcX9WIbuCjCFm_cUwjKPjODbnyn0/s1600/2D9843965.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr93lVNct651johmetZuyncWA4WwdOG2wSqbRrCURBzavj0b6YVZ84F7fwSaBAnDpq8C_9vP2uX355f8I-R1Tym1FBGqLi73dslGodtHJ-KWnJjZaXcX9WIbuCjCFm_cUwjKPjODbnyn0/s640/2D9843965.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="pony-steals-passwords-that"></a> <br /> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="Pony steals passwords that are stored on the infected users' computers" data-fragment="pony-steals-passwords-that" data-url=""> </div> <span class="microcontent" data-description="Pony steals passwords that are stored on the infected users' computers" data-fragment="pony-steals-passwords-that" data-micro="1">Pony steals passwords that are stored on the infected users' computers</span> </blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="Pony steals passwords that are stored on the infected users' computers" data-fragment="pony-steals-passwords-that" data-micro="1">Pony steals passwords that are stored on the infected users' computers</span> as well as by capturing them when they are used to log into web services." Although the culprit behind the hack remains unknown, Trustwave wrote on its blog that two targets were Russian-speaking social networking sites (vk.com and odnoklassniki.ru), which could hint at the virus' origin. <br /> "The malware was configured so that the majority of the credential information was sent to a server in the Netherlands," Ross said. "The server does not show from which countries the information came from so we cannot break down exactly how many users from each country were affected. However, we can confirm the attackers targeted users worldwide including in the U.S., Germany, Singapore, Thailand and others."<br /> It's also important to note that the stolen credentials were never publicly posted online. Trustwave researchers were able to access a command and control server used by the Pony botnet and recovered the passwords from there. <br /> "We have reached out to the major service providers affected and they are taking steps to inform their users or remediate the compromised accounts," Ross told <i>Circles tech</i>.<br /> <br /> Facebook accounted for about 57% of the compromised accounts, followed by Yahoo (10%), Google (9%) and Twitter (3%). <br /> A Facebook spokesperson told <i>Circles tech</i> the company has already reached out to those with compromised accounts. <br /> "While details of this case are not yet clear, it appears that people’s computers may have been attacked by hackers using malware to scrape information directly from their web browsers," a Facebook spokesperson told <i>Circles tech</i>. <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="as-a-precaution-weve"></a> <br /> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description=""As a precaution, we've initiated a password reset for people whose passwords were exposed."" data-fragment="as-a-precaution-weve" data-url=""> </div> <span class="microcontent" data-description=""As a precaution, we've initiated a password reset for people whose passwords were exposed."" data-fragment="as-a-precaution-weve" data-micro="1">"As a precaution, we've initiated a password reset for people whose passwords were exposed."</span> </blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description=""As a precaution, we've initiated a password reset for people whose passwords were exposed."" data-fragment="as-a-precaution-weve" data-micro="1">"As a precaution, we've initiated a password reset for people whose passwords were exposed."</span> Facebook added that its users can protect themselves when using the site by activating login approvals and login notifications in their security settings. <br /> "[These users] will be notified when anyone tries to access their account from an unrecognized browser and new logins will require a unique passcode generated on their mobile phone," the spokesperson said.<br /> The company also discovered most of the compromised passwords were considered "weak."<br /> "In our analysis, passwords that use all four character types and are longer than 8 characters are considered 'excellent,' whereas passwords with four or less characters of only one type are considered 'terrible,'" Trustwave wrote on its blog. "Unfortunately, there were more terrible passwords than excellent ones, more bad passwords than good, and the majority, as usual, is somewhere in between in the medium category."<br /> <br /> <i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

2 million Facebook, Google Or Twitter passwords stolen in massive hack - Change your passwords

More than 2 million accounts have been compromised from popular sites such as Google, Yahoo, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn after malwar...

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Apple Buys Topsy, a Social Media (Twitter) Analytics Firm for $200 million

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjurIb1Yc2r3IedXHfzpMH3-3AIm6Q0RoKG1xn-yBsHcODljmMr0B53Xyg_UQQ17QlykkEtCtN7GakEwxfr3R3UP5RJ-RTMGknfjiDIwK7tAuemt6vc7DTMZ0fddrznphI0HwIEwKrPtAI/s1600/apple-topsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjurIb1Yc2r3IedXHfzpMH3-3AIm6Q0RoKG1xn-yBsHcODljmMr0B53Xyg_UQQ17QlykkEtCtN7GakEwxfr3R3UP5RJ-RTMGknfjiDIwK7tAuemt6vc7DTMZ0fddrznphI0HwIEwKrPtAI/s640/apple-topsy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/apple-beautifully-iwatch-delayed.html" target="_blank">Apple</a> has acquired the social media analytics startup Topsy.<br /> The acquisition was <a href="http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304854804579234450633315742" target="_blank">first reported</a> by <i>The Wall Street Journal</i>, which says the deal was worth more than $200 million.<br /> <br /> <div class="see-also"> <h4 style="text-align: left;"> See also:<a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/20-great-apps-in-ios-7-dont-want-to-miss.html" target="_blank"> 20 Great Apps in iOS 7 Don't Want To Miss</a></h4> </div> Topsy is one of the few services that has access to <a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/ads-could-soon-know-if-you-are.html" target="_blank">Twitter's</a> data firehose. It offers users a way to analyze tweets, gather sentiment and measure the reach of a campaign, hashtag or message. In September, the company rolled out the ability to search Twitter's entire archive.<br /> Topsy is an interesting acquisition for Apple because unlike its past purchases of startups, such as HopStop and Locationary, there isn't a clear product application.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNvI1aL9jqGYKPapFSXT8NC0m6J64Q9rk00Ie1odQ1XR318JIz5pF79yI0kqHIvWAMbCqN8s-17pCoQjb4f8z0jnrVimvPfKszTYkbdq6Qe5Od08U3SVSkXxFjoIIRt44mWGFLaNQzJMg/s1600/_71486629_topsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="364" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNvI1aL9jqGYKPapFSXT8NC0m6J64Q9rk00Ie1odQ1XR318JIz5pF79yI0kqHIvWAMbCqN8s-17pCoQjb4f8z0jnrVimvPfKszTYkbdq6Qe5Od08U3SVSkXxFjoIIRt44mWGFLaNQzJMg/s640/_71486629_topsy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> The same could be said for Apple's acquisition last month of PrimeSense, the company responsible for the original 3D sensor in the first Xbox Kinect. But at least with PrimeSense, it stands to reason that Apple would be interested in implementing those sensors in future products.<br /> With Topsy, the purpose is less clear. <i>The Journal</i> posits that it could be useful for iTunes Radio — a product that already has direct integration with Twitter Music — or its flailing iAd product. Still, the purpose of acquiring an analytics firm that is so focused on one specific social network is, in a word, odd.<br /> An Apple spokesperson has not responded to our request for comment but told the <i>Journal</i> that "Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans." We have reached out to Topsy for further comment.<br /> <br /> <i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

Apple Buys Topsy, a Social Media (Twitter) Analytics Firm for $200 million

Apple has acquired the social media analytics startup Topsy. The acquisition was first reported by The Wall Street Journal , which sa...

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New Low Stock Falls below 4%, Hitting Twitter

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI7uqdjBuS3jLSOjHmD4euq27zSBEOyfMAa8Mcce3Dnk8mqgZid_V-rKHY1XqXz1oTos2a-f1_j8Qw8fGETMB8v3KySClNsHe-3SapxPuy51R5uWMcJVUmivBOyqO2lzMsZv3fSLVG3ww/s1600/1108B_Twitter3JH_60.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI7uqdjBuS3jLSOjHmD4euq27zSBEOyfMAa8Mcce3Dnk8mqgZid_V-rKHY1XqXz1oTos2a-f1_j8Qw8fGETMB8v3KySClNsHe-3SapxPuy51R5uWMcJVUmivBOyqO2lzMsZv3fSLVG3ww/s640/1108B_Twitter3JH_60.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/twitter-news-prices-ipo-results-in.html" target="_blank">Twitter stock</a> declined by more than 4% in early trading Monday, inching down toward $39 a share, which marks a new low trading price for the young public company. <br /> Twitter opened at $45.10 a share on its first day of trading just more than two weeks ago and the stock shot up to as high as $50 that same day. Since then, however, the stock has mostly hovered between $40 to $45 a share.<br /> <br /> <div class="see-also"> <h4 style="text-align: left;"> See also: <a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/twitter-news-timeline-custom-create-or.html" target="_blank">Twitter News Timeline Custom Create Or Embed Your Own</a></h4> </div> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!38f9"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!38f9" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzI1LzYyLzBkODZkYTVlYzFmLmE2OWU2LnBuZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/50f48933/4e4/0d86da5ec1fd777440e9e232bd32cb16.png" data-url=""> </div> </div> <div style="font-size: 10px;"> <a href="http://ycharts.com/companies/TWTR" target="_blank"></a><br /></div> Several analysts downgraded Twitter after the stock nearly doubled from its more modest<a href="http://www.circlestech.com/2013/11/the-twitter-ipo-for-investing-newbies.html" target="_blank"> IPO price</a> of $26 a share.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM13yBTgdS53cTyVu5Sl80_v5gvrURn64swLfkS6pF3xkG0uObGzHoqdpEwYp9CsZfhD1D3aMSHXps9Me72-V7H6HCLRpicCGwEupatdbA7PaXWwP5-lvXOdjiuYimTD7Qt4U8apB7i6g/s1600/Twitter+Stock+Falls.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM13yBTgdS53cTyVu5Sl80_v5gvrURn64swLfkS6pF3xkG0uObGzHoqdpEwYp9CsZfhD1D3aMSHXps9Me72-V7H6HCLRpicCGwEupatdbA7PaXWwP5-lvXOdjiuYimTD7Qt4U8apB7i6g/s640/Twitter+Stock+Falls.png" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> Analysts at Pivotal Research and Cantor Fitzgerald have both deemed the stock to be "too expensive" and set price targets in the low $30-range. Twitter has not yet posted a profit and doesn't project to report one until 2015 at the earliest.  <br /> <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-22/twitter-projected-to-drop-over-six-months-investor-poll.html" target="_blank">Bloomberg</a> recently surveyed investors and found that two-thirds think Twitter's stock price will decline over the next six months. <br /> Even so, Twitter's early stock performance has been less turbulent than that of Facebook, which only traded above its IPO price for a single day in its first year as a public company.<br /> <br /> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div>

New Low Stock Falls below 4%, Hitting Twitter

Twitter stock declined by more than 4% in early trading Monday, inching down toward $39 a share, which marks a new low trading price...

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Twitter News Timeline Custom Create Or Embed Your Own

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> Twitter announced a new custom-timeline feature within TweetDeck on Tuesday, which means users will be able to collect tweets and organize them into specific groups or categories within the social-media dashboard. <br /> TweetDeck will allow users to come up with creative groupings, including a collection of humorous tweets that users wish to share with friends at the end of each week, or a collection of tweets about an event or crisis that reporters can embed into a story as it unfolds.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvlKRf1gs5gKqPLdrYRIbCV7xHL07UM6DPqvAYpN-RSZT_ACoSktOJtHrTXaLaQu2guhjS7b_NDv_fIuE2tpss0DQaaHbfuj-tXFQVYCcqR2OR137DMTemgP-7ngASn9Hy0Y5j_-EDebg/s1600/twitter_2650106b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvlKRf1gs5gKqPLdrYRIbCV7xHL07UM6DPqvAYpN-RSZT_ACoSktOJtHrTXaLaQu2guhjS7b_NDv_fIuE2tpss0DQaaHbfuj-tXFQVYCcqR2OR137DMTemgP-7ngASn9Hy0Y5j_-EDebg/s640/twitter_2650106b.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <div class="see-also"> <br /></div> However you choose to use the feature, which is rolling out over the next few days, you'll need to know how to build your custom timeline. Here's how it works:<br /> Sign in to TweetDeck and look for the "+" icon on the left-hand side of the main home screen. Click on the "+" to add a new column. A new window will appear with many column options, but look at the very bottom of the list for "Custom Timeline;" click that one.<br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!9f32"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!9f32" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjBiMzkxLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/0dc057d2/0a9/Custom-Timeline-1.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 1" class="" data-fragment="m!9f32" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjBiMzkxLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/0dc057d2/0a9/Custom-Timeline-1.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjBiMzkxLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/0dc057d2/0a9/Custom-Timeline-1.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> You can also access your custom timelines by clicking a small icon in the lower left-hand corner of the home screen, below the "+". When you hover over this icon, a "Custom Timelines" label appears. <br /> Regardless of which "Custom Timeline" button you select, you'll be brought to a screen where you can choose to edit existing custom timelines, or create a new custom timeline by clicking on the "Create Custom Timeline" button in the upper left-hand corner; click that button. <br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!a2f7"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!a2f7" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLmNhZWU5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/eb94aece/f54/Custom-Timeline-2.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 2" class="" data-fragment="m!a2f7" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLmNhZWU5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/eb94aece/f54/Custom-Timeline-2.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLmNhZWU5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/eb94aece/f54/Custom-Timeline-2.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> The new, blank timeline should appear in your TweetDeck as its own column. You can easily name your timeline or add a description to it at this time. Unlike a 140-character tweet, the timeline description can be up to 160 characters long. <br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!5c21"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!5c21" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLmNmMDk4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/70f749c6/f05/Custom-Timeline-3.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 3" class="" data-fragment="m!5c21" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLmNmMDk4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/70f749c6/f05/Custom-Timeline-3.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLmNmMDk4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/70f749c6/f05/Custom-Timeline-3.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> It's now time to populate your timeline. You can do this in a number of ways, the most simple of which is to drag a tweet from one of your other TweetDeck columns into your new custom timeline. Each tweet will have a small icon in the lower right-hand corner that looks like directional arrows crossing. You can use this to click and drag tweets into your custom timeline. <br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!23af"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!23af" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjM3MTBhLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/2695fd14/663/Custom-Timeline-4.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 4" class="" data-fragment="m!23af" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjM3MTBhLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/2695fd14/663/Custom-Timeline-4.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjM3MTBhLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/2695fd14/663/Custom-Timeline-4.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> You can also add tweets by clicking on the "more" icon on a user's tweet within TweetDeck; this releases a drop-down menu where one of the options is "Add to custom timeline."<br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!497f"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!497f" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjQ0YjIzLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/39718d49/751/Custom-Timeline-5.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 5" class="" data-fragment="m!497f" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjQ0YjIzLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/39718d49/751/Custom-Timeline-5.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjQ0YjIzLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/39718d49/751/Custom-Timeline-5.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> Once you have sufficiently filled your custom timeline, you can choose to share it with friends, or embed it into a blog or news post on another platform. <br /> Click on the small tab to the right of your custom timeline's title. From the ensuing drop-down menu, click on "share." You can choose to embed the post, view it on Twitter.com or tweet about it. For our purposes, we are going to embed the post. Click "Embed timeline."<br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!05a2"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!05a2" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjhlZDZiLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/93134587/4f9/Custom-Timeline-6.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 6" class="" data-fragment="m!05a2" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjhlZDZiLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/93134587/4f9/Custom-Timeline-6.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjhlZDZiLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/93134587/4f9/Custom-Timeline-6.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> This will bring up a new window where you can make small changes to the timeline, such as changing the link color or background color for the tweets. Once you've set everything up the way you want it, click "Create Widget." A few lines of code will appear below all of the tweets in your custom timeline. Copy the code, and paste it into your blog post. <br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!f59f"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!f59f" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjI4ZmU4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/e59c1d43/957/Custom-Timeline-7.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 7" class="" data-fragment="m!f59f" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjI4ZmU4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/e59c1d43/957/Custom-Timeline-7.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjI4ZmU4LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/e59c1d43/957/Custom-Timeline-7.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> Here's what an embedded timeline looks like once it is in a post:<br /> You can always add to your timeline from TweetDeck. You can also look at another user's custom timelines by clicking on their Twitter card within TweetDeck, and selecting the "Custom Timelines" button below their avatar picture. <br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!c3f8"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!c3f8" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjhjM2JkLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/d439be2e/7cb/Custom-Timeline-8.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <span class="lightbox-expand for-lightbox"><img alt="Custom Timeline 8" class="" data-fragment="m!c3f8" data-image="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjhjM2JkLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/d439be2e/7cb/Custom-Timeline-8.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1900" height="360" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyL2FlL0N1c3RvbVRpbWVsLjhjM2JkLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/d439be2e/7cb/Custom-Timeline-8.jpg" width="640" /></span> </div> Can you think of any good or creative uses for Twitter's new custom timeline tool? Share your ideas with us in the comments, below. </div>

Twitter News Timeline Custom Create Or Embed Your Own

Twitter announced a new custom-timeline feature within TweetDeck on Tuesday, which means users will be able to collect tweets and organi...

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Vine for Windows Phone

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGq-adM47xDvWlpzXqP4IGY9YjibHN9-FdNnJlTgYvHHEJ8_aVFpUX0vI9EGGdtEhHVobMkP3mL9JJuECAEF-nemh8a37zT1_z_4Zk93IPM9clSEFr_rGN7RoPD7AlwumaYMEJEQm1a3Q/s1600/Vine-nokia-lumia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGq-adM47xDvWlpzXqP4IGY9YjibHN9-FdNnJlTgYvHHEJ8_aVFpUX0vI9EGGdtEhHVobMkP3mL9JJuECAEF-nemh8a37zT1_z_4Zk93IPM9clSEFr_rGN7RoPD7AlwumaYMEJEQm1a3Q/s640/Vine-nokia-lumia.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> It was promised months ago, and now it's finally happening: Vine is now available on Windows Phone.<br /> The social video-capture app owned by Twitter was an instant hit upon its debut in late January, first arriving on iOS, then Android a few months later. Now Windows Phone users will get their chance to share GIF-like six-second videos with the Vine community.<br /> <div class="see-also"> <br /></div> The Vine app on Windows Phone is nearly identical to the versions on other platforms, with a couple of differences: The app takes advantage of Windows Phone's "lenses," which bring all the features within the phone's built-in camera to image capture within the app. Also, the app makes use of the platform's live tiles, alerting users to new content via the app's icon on the home screen.<br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!e6c7"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!e6c7" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyLzkzL3ZpbmVzY3JlZW5zLjUyODE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/af650fc9/16b/vine-screens.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <img alt="Vine Screens" class="" data-fragment="m!e6c7" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyLzkzL3ZpbmVzY3JlZW5zLjUyODE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/af650fc9/16b/vine-screens.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="600" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzEyLzkzL3ZpbmVzY3JlZW5zLjUyODE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/af650fc9/16b/vine-screens.jpg" /> </div> Vine's Windows Phone debut represents a milestone for the platform. Although Microsoft's mobile OS is a distant third place in smartphones, it commands significant chunks of some markets (notably Latin America), and it's still growing.<br /> Vine is also just the first in a wave of major social apps migrating to Windows Phone. When Vine revealed its plans to develop a Windows Phone app, both Path and Flipboard joined the club, too. Later, Instagram said it would do an app as well. However, there have been no announcements for the other apps, so far.<br /> <br /> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div>

Vine for Windows Phone

It was promised months ago, and now it's finally happening: Vine is now available on Windows Phone. The social video-capture app o...

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How to Spot Spam Bot On Twitter

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr1VIJw82s077izh2GZP4T_Iw2-0zr35QnRVbrEkNFyOdjAHR0P7SRvThsDaz5cTMFqxNBXObFY812AEQJEQgwcYh9qrh1nyS5yACNhDTc5WU1qJeQdhwG-SggomBLrpYEF4CxmP2oYBM/s1600/TwitterBot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr1VIJw82s077izh2GZP4T_Iw2-0zr35QnRVbrEkNFyOdjAHR0P7SRvThsDaz5cTMFqxNBXObFY812AEQJEQgwcYh9qrh1nyS5yACNhDTc5WU1qJeQdhwG-SggomBLrpYEF4CxmP2oYBM/s640/TwitterBot.jpg" title="Spam Bot On Twitter" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> Twitter has spam issue. The social network's "follow anyone" model allows a steady influx of spammers to reach out to many people in a short amount of time, hoping at least one of them will click on a sketchy link.<br /> While a recent glitch preventing users from sending links in direct messages may have been Twitter's latest defense against spam, there's no doubt that it remains a major problem for the platform.<br /> <div class="see-also"> <br /></div> The best way to avoid spam is to follow only people who you know and profiles that have been verified — but we know that that isn't always plausible, so we've made a handy checklist of ways to spot a spambot before you follow them.<br /> Not every spammer will fall under one of these eight telltale signs, but eliminating a few of these common denominators can save you a lot of hassle.<br /> <h2> 1. Excessive Sexuality</h2> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!62f1"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!62f1" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2NhL2V4Y2Vzc2l2ZXNlLmY0NzE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/891e2057/0f3/excessive-sexuality.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <img alt="excessive-sexuality" data-fragment="m!62f1" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2NhL2V4Y2Vzc2l2ZXNlLmY0NzE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/891e2057/0f3/excessive-sexuality.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" height="360" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2NhL2V4Y2Vzc2l2ZXNlLmY0NzE5LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/891e2057/0f3/excessive-sexuality.jpg" width="640" /> </div> <em><small>Image: Twitter</small></em> If a new follower has an avatar that really accentuates some impressive cleavage, or she's posting a lot of suggestive links, she's probably not interested in your sparkling personality. It's more likely that she's a spambot.<br /> Sex sells, and spammers are counting on catching your attention by posting sexual images and suggestive links. You're better than this. Don't be too heartbroken; she's not the type of girl you could take home to Mom anyway.<br /> <h2> 2. Skewed Ratio</h2> Before automatically following everyone that follows you, first check their profiles. If the follower/following ratios are completely skewed (as in, following hundreds but has zero followers), they probably aren't legit.<br /> That said, there are plenty of people who follow back anyone who follows them, so don't be surprised if you get spammed by someone who has a lot of followers.<br /> <h2> 3. Only "Amazing" Offers</h2> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!1895"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!1895" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2LzA0L1VudGl0bGVkMi5jOGFmYi5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/f8475709/688/Untitled-2.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <img alt="Untitled-2" data-fragment="m!1895" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2LzA0L1VudGl0bGVkMi5jOGFmYi5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/f8475709/688/Untitled-2.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" height="360" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2LzA0L1VudGl0bGVkMi5jOGFmYi5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/f8475709/688/Untitled-2.jpg" width="640" /> </div> <em><small>Image: Twitter</small></em> A spammer doesn't waste time creating actual tweets. If all of a user's tweets are too-good-to-be-true deals ("whiten your teeth with this one easy trick!") or very vague ("OMG check this out!"), and come with an attached link, there's something spammy going on.<br /> <h2> 4. No Tweets at All</h2> If a user follows over a thousand people, has 300 (very foolish) followers, hasn't posted a single tweet, does that make any sense to you at all? The answer is no.<br /> While some people choose to use Twitter just as a means to follow news sources and celebrities without actually bothering to tweet anything, you're not really benefitting by following them anyway. Better to play it safe and not follow than get spammed.<br /> <h2> 5. Misspelled Words and Nonsense</h2> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!e363"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!e363" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2YwL1VudGl0bGVkMy45MTVjOC5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/0f6cee9a/1cf/Untitled-3.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <img alt="Untitled-3" data-fragment="m!e363" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2YwL1VudGl0bGVkMy45MTVjOC5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/0f6cee9a/1cf/Untitled-3.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" height="360" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2YwL1VudGl0bGVkMy45MTVjOC5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/0f6cee9a/1cf/Untitled-3.jpg" width="640" /> </div> <em><small>Image: Twitter</small></em> Another dead giveaway for a spambot: lots of misspelled words. One or two mistakes is normal, but multiple misspellings in every tweet? Not a good sign.<br /> Also look for tweets that make no sense, have no context or are constantly reaching out to other Twitter users who don't respond.<br /> <h2> 6. Female Avatar, Male Name</h2> Since the dawn of Twitter, there have been several generic avatars that spammers return to again and again when creating a fake profile. If that pretty blonde girl who just followed you is named Kevin, you might want to rethink whether or not she's the real deal.<br /> Like we said before, sex sells, and that spammer is probably figuring you'll just check out the picture without looking too closely at the name.<br /> <h2> 7. Egg Avatars</h2> Lady Gaga might have reverted to the egg icon as a publicity stunt, but don't let spammers fool you. The egg can either be a sign of an inexperienced Twitter user or a spammer; use other clues like ratio, spell-check and tweet quality to determine which one it is.<br /> <h2> 8. Oddly Generic Bio — or No Bio at All</h2> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!5692"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!5692" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2VjL1VudGl0bGVkNC4zZGI4NS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/91770086/3e8/Untitled-4.jpg" data-url=""> </div> <img alt="Untitled-4" data-fragment="m!5692" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2VjL1VudGl0bGVkNC4zZGI4NS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/91770086/3e8/Untitled-4.jpg" data-micro="1" data-width="1920" height="360" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2L2VjL1VudGl0bGVkNC4zZGI4NS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/91770086/3e8/Untitled-4.jpg" width="640" /> </div> <em><small>Image: Twitter</small></em> The Twitter bio is something of an art form — it's a skill that eludes many people. Most bios follow a generic pattern, many of which include punchy statements like "social media enthusiast" or "tech maven" or "web guru." These types of bios, while common, are very easy for a spammer to replicate in order to seem genuine.<br /> Be wary of them, and even more so of the bios that consist of only a shortened link. It's probably not something you want to click on.<br /> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div>

How to Spot Spam Bot On Twitter

Twitter has spam issue. The social network's "follow anyone" model allows a steady influx of spammers to reach out to m...

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Ads Could Soon Know If You Are An Introvert On Twitter

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHJoF4C1axOUI_6-cZff8T1mbPaEdWwGbP0vdyGA_2VDILPbht-Df8PhAWsuA9-aDLSRK2De46DDKoB8Eq3BZduiyxvXJ5pBWAtk46FcwiTBw_8JqBOxqoh1IEDSzQ7zrfyPVAAeOI_3o/s1600/twitter2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHJoF4C1axOUI_6-cZff8T1mbPaEdWwGbP0vdyGA_2VDILPbht-Df8PhAWsuA9-aDLSRK2De46DDKoB8Eq3BZduiyxvXJ5pBWAtk46FcwiTBw_8JqBOxqoh1IEDSzQ7zrfyPVAAeOI_3o/s640/twitter2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> Trying to derive a person’s wants and needs — conscious or otherwise — from online browsing and buying habits has become crucial to companies of all kinds.<br /> Now IBM is taking the idea a step further. It is testing technology that guesses at people’s core psychological traits by analyzing what they post on Twitter, with the goal of offering personalized customer service or better-targeted promotional messages.<br /> “We need to go below behavioral analysis like Amazon does,” says Michelle Zhou, leader of the User Systems and Experience Research Group at IBM’s Almaden Research Center in California, which developed the software. “We want to use social media to derive information about an individual — what is the overall affect of this person? How resilient is this person emotionally? People with different personalities want something different.”<br /> Zhou’s software develops a personality profile based on a person’s most recent few hundred or thousand Twitter updates. That profile scores the “big five” traits commonly used in psychological research: extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness to experience. It also scores the person on measures of “values” (for example, hedonism and conservatism) and “needs” (for example, curiosity and social harmony).<br /> Zhou says she is working with several IBM customers to test how the technology might help their businesses. She declines to identify the companies but says they might use the system, for example, to tune marketing messages sent by email or social media, or to select the promotional content displayed when a customer logs in to his or her account.<br /> A crucial part of the pilot program will test whether messages targeted with the technology’s help perform better than others. “Our hypothesis is that the conversion rates will be quite high,” says Zhou. At least, she expects them to be higher than is typical: email marketing messages ordinarily have a response rate of just 0.34%, she says, and phone marketing calls achieve about 13%.<br /> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="zhou-says-that-having"></a> <blockquote class="microcontent-wrapper pullquote"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="Zhou says that having a rough idea of a person’s personality could also help in call centers or other customer service settings" data-fragment="zhou-says-that-having" data-url="http://mashable.com/2013/11/08/ads-determine-personality-through-twitter/"> </div> <span class="microcontent" data-description="Zhou says that having a rough idea of a person’s personality could also help in call centers or other customer service settings" data-fragment="zhou-says-that-having" data-micro="1" data-url="http://mashable.com/2013/11/08/ads-determine-personality-through-twitter/">Zhou says that having a rough idea of a person’s personality could also help in call centers or other customer service settings</span> </blockquote> <span class="microcontent" data-description="Zhou says that having a rough idea of a person’s personality could also help in call centers or other customer service settings" data-fragment="zhou-says-that-having" data-micro="1" data-url="http://mashable.com/2013/11/08/ads-determine-personality-through-twitter/">Zhou says that having a rough idea of a person’s personality could also help in call centers or other customer service settings</span>, such as when an airline must break the news that a flight has been canceled or delayed. “Studies show people that are extroverted want a reward and recognition, like 10,000 [frequent flyer] points,” she says. “Conscientious people want efficiency, to know their new flight right away.” In a call center scenario, a customer’s personality profile might advise a customer service agent whether to efficiently provide “just the facts” or to try to be more engaging and supportive, says Zhou.<br /> Many businesses already make use of software that analyzes social-media activity. However, it is aimed either at helping corporate representatives interact with customers or at summarizing the overall volume and tone of a discussion, not at profiling individuals.<br /> <strong></strong><br /> <div class="see-also"> <strong><br /> </strong></div> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!d29b"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="m!d29b" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA4LzM4L3BlcnNvbmFsaXR5LjMwMGFjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/b2efa70e/112/personality.based_.targetingx519.jpg" data-url="http://mashable.com/2013/11/08/ads-determine-personality-through-twitter/"> </div> <img alt="personality.based_.targetingx519" class="" data-fragment="m!d29b" data-image="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA4LzM4L3BlcnNvbmFsaXR5LjMwMGFjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/b2efa70e/112/personality.based_.targetingx519.jpg" data-micro="1" data-url="http://mashable.com/2013/11/08/ads-determine-personality-through-twitter/" data-width="519" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA4LzM4L3BlcnNvbmFsaXR5LjMwMGFjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/b2efa70e/112/personality.based_.targetingx519.jpg" /> </div> <br /><small> Personal profile: According to IBM’s analytic software, this author’s Twitter account reveals him to be more neurotic than extroverted.</small> IBM’s software was developed by recruiting people to answer psychological questionnaires and comparing the results with their Twitter activity. Machine learning software then looked at how different patterns of word use matched with psychological traits. Those correlations were used to derive models that can create a profile from a person’s tweets alone.<br /> In a study where 300 people had their Twitter profiles processed by the software and also took psychometric surveys, the results were “highly correlated” more than 80% of the time, says Zhou. However, she notes that when people use Twitter in a specialized way — for example, journalists discussing their beat — their tweet-derived profiles may not be so representative.<br /> Still, Zhou argues that since the methods companies currently use to target and understand their customers are relatively imprecise, IBM’s software doesn’t have to capture a person’s personality completely to be useful. She also says it should be possible to adapt the software to use other sources of data, such as call center transcripts or online customer service chats.<br /> Software like Zhou’s that relies on language use should be able to usefully capture something of a person’s personality, says Andrew Schwartz, a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania, who recently published a major study of how personality traits show up in Facebook activity. He says previous research has shown that measured personality traits can predict future actions, such as the number of sick days or doctor’s visits a person will report.<br /> <strong></strong><br /> “It seems reasonable that personality would be useful for presenting ads that resonate better with the recipient,” says Schwartz. “The ad-targeting application has been talked about for a few years now, but I think language-based measures of personality are just now becoming reliable enough to see it happen.”<br /> <em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em></div>

Ads Could Soon Know If You Are An Introvert On Twitter

Trying to derive a person’s wants and needs — conscious or otherwise — from online browsing and buying habits has become crucial to comp...

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Twitter (News) Prices IPO Results In A Valuation Of $24 Billion

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> IPOs may involve some of the riskiest things in investing, but the Twitter IPO seems to be golden. While doubts about the initial $23 to $25 share price were flying all over the place a day before the Twitter IPO, a day of trading has shown things in a different light. On the day of the IPO itself, Twitter went a little higher than estimates and offered its <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2013/11/06/twitter-prices-ipo-at-26-per-share/" target="_blank">shares at $26 a piece</a>.<br /> <img alt="APTOPIX Twitter IPO" class="size-full wp-image-9874 alignnone" height="480" src="http://techbeat.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/twitter.jpg" title="Twitter IPO Results In A Valuation Of $24 Billion" width="720" /><br /> After one day of trading, even that initially seemingly high price looks measly compared to the ending stock price of $44.90! That’s a whopping 73 percent surge, which should be more than enough to make the Twitter guys rather satisfied with themselves. After all, IPOs in this niche have not always been all smooth sailing, Facebook being the main example. Reportedly, Twitter’s CFO’s goal while planning the IPO was to <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/08/us-twitter-ipo-goal-idUSBRE9A704U20131108" target="_blank">avoid becoming the next Facebook, Inc.</a><br /> With the current stock price, I think it’s safe to say that they have achieved that goal to a great degree. If $44.90 per share does not mean much to you, think about the valuation that leads to: <a href="http://business.time.com/2013/11/07/twitter-ipo-leads-to-sky-high-24-billion-valuation/" target="_blank">$24 whopping billion</a>.<br /> That puts Twitter in the league of Netflix and LinkedIn – nay, beyond their league. Not bad for a company who’s struggled with monetization and has not turned in a profit for the better part of a decade, yes?<br /> Here’s a nifty <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/currency/2013/11/infographic-how-twitters-ipo-stacks-up.html" target="_blank">interactive infographic</a> from The New Yorker that will give you an even better idea of just how good things are after the Twitter IPO.  The article does play on the side of caution, though, and highlights the fact that while the stock may have surged, “not all signs are good for Twitter”.  Additionally, this surge in Twitter IPO stock can also be an indicator of the <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-08/twitter-ipo-likely-sign-of-risk-tolerance-oaktree-chairman-says.html" target="_blank">return of risk tolerance</a>, which is actually not a good thing for professional investors.<br /> Another interesting angle: there has been some speculation about another tech bubble forming due to the overwhelming Twitter IPO. <a href="http://mashable.com/2013/11/07/twitter-ipo-not-tech-bubble/" target="_blank">Lance Ulanoff at Mashable says, NO</a>.<br /> Will Twitter continue to rise or crash?</div>

Twitter (News) Prices IPO Results In A Valuation Of $24 Billion

IPOs may involve some of the riskiest things in investing, but the Twitter IPO seems to be golden. While doubts about the initial $23 to ...

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The Twitter IPO For Investing Newbies

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Twitter’s IPO is the hottest piece of news in the tech scene this week. Tomorrow, the microblogging slash social media platform is going to offer its stock to the public, which is inherently what an IPO is. Some of you may have a good bit of investing knowledge, but in case you don’t fully understand what all the hype surrounding the Twitter IPO is, here is a quick primer.<br> Short for “initial public offering”, IPOs are usually done by small, young (in relative terms) private companies so that they can expand. Since an IPO is the first time a private company opens up to the public, there is a lot of uncertainty regarding the company’s worth. It can swing both ways – with the public either snapping up or snubbing the stocks. For investors, IPOs can be risky as there is no historical data that can be analyzed to determine how the stocks will do in the future.<br> <img alt="The Twitter IPO For Investing Newbies" class="alignnone wp-image-9809" height="411" src="http://techbeat.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/twitter-ipo-1024x685.jpg" width="614"><br> <br> </div>

The Twitter IPO For Investing Newbies

Twitter’s IPO is the hottest piece of news in the tech scene this week. Tomorrow, the microblogging slash social media platform is going ...

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Iran Culture Minister Wants Social Media Ban Lifted

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br><figure class="article-image"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="lead-image"></a> <div class="microcontent-wrapper"> <div class="microcontent-shares" data-description="" data-fragment="lead-image" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2LzgwL3R3ZWV0cy45NWVjMS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgk5NTB4NTM0IwplCWpwZw/fb76737c/5e0/tweets.jpg" data-url="http://mashable.com/2013/11/06/iran-social-media-ban/"> </div> <img alt="Tweets" class="microcontent" data-fragment="lead-image" data-image="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2LzgwL3R3ZWV0cy45NWVjMS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgk5NTB4NTM0IwplCWpwZw/fb76737c/5e0/tweets.jpg" data-micro="1" data-url="http://mashable.com/2013/11/06/iran-social-media-ban/" height="359" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzExLzA2LzgwL3R3ZWV0cy45NWVjMS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgk5NTB4NTM0IwplCWpwZw/fb76737c/5e0/tweets.jpg" width="640"> </div> </figure><br>Iran’s government should legalize access to social-networking websites including Twitter and Facebook, Culture and Islamic Guidance Minister Ali Jannati said.<br> “Not only Facebook, but other social networks should be accessible and the illegal qualification should be removed,” Jannati said, according to the official <em>Islamic Republic News Agency.</em><br> Iran currently blocks access to websites it considers politically sensitive and to social-networking sites, which activists used in 2009 to organize street protests after a disputed presidential vote. President Hassan Rouhani, who was elected in June and has a Twitter account with more than 122,000 followers, has pledged to allow more social and press freedom and to reduce state “policing” of Iranians’ private lives.<br> Several Iranian officials including Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham have Facebook or Twitter accounts, or both.<br> </div>

Iran Culture Minister Wants Social Media Ban Lifted

Iran’s government should legalize access to social-networking websites including Twitter and Facebook, Culture and Islamic...

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You Can Now Talk Back to Twitter's @MagicRecs Account - Circles Tech

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><a href="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzMxLzI2L01hZ2ljUmVjc0hlLjgzYjYzLnBuZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/44b95d4d/9bd/MagicRecs-Hey.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="MagicRecs Hey" border="0" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzMxLzI2L01hZ2ljUmVjc0hlLjgzYjYzLnBuZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/44b95d4d/9bd/MagicRecs-Hey.png" /></a>Twitter has, for years, recommended accounts for users to follow, and the company's recent push has been to bring those recommendations to the direct message inbox.<br /><br />Now users can manage the recommendations the company sends their way. Those who follow @MagicRecs, a Twitter-operated account that sends its followers suggestions on who to follow and what tweets to check out, can now respond to the bot through direct messages or replies.<br /><a name="more"></a><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br />Users can send simple messages like "good" or "bad" to let the account know if the recommendations are relevant. If users want alerts on who to follow but don't want alerts on popular tweets, messages like "users on/off" or "tweets on/off" will alert the bot to change the recommendations it sends.<br /><br />The account also responds to messages like "hey" or "hi," and sending a "help" message elicits a response listing all of the actions you can take.<br /><br />@MagicRecs is one of Twitter's numerous experiments on new features and ideas. Another recent test, @eventparrot, sends its followers breaking news updates to their inbox as well. (Users can turn this off in settings if they don't want recommendations.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!d973"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /></div><br />Capitalizing on the the success of @MagicRecs, Twitter implemented a new feature in September that sends users follow and content recommendations via push notification, even if they don't follow the @MagicRecs account.<br /><br /><i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

You Can Now Talk Back to Twitter's @MagicRecs Account - Circles Tech

Twitter has, for years, recommended accounts for users to follow, and the company's recent push has been to bring those recommendations ...

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How to Turn Off Twitter's New Photo Preview Feature - Circles Tech

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Twitter streams across America are now full of pictures, but yours doesn't have to be.<br /><br />An update to the microblogging site Tuesday automatically displays images and Vine videos meaning users don't need to click on a tweet in order to see its visual content. The change has already been implemented on the web, and is available to iOS and Android mobile users who update their app.<br /><br />But not everyone wants to see tweeted pictures automatically, and there are ways to turn off Tuesday's new feature on mobile. Simply go to settings within the app, and deselect the "Image Previews" tab. Simple as that.<br /><br /><img alt="photo (3) copy" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzI5LzlkL3Bob3RvM2NvcHkuNGY4NjcuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/b6533e2c/df6/photo-3-copy.jpg" />It does not appear that you can turn off picture and video previews on Twitter's desktop version, but there may be another setting you wish to visit. Open the settings tab on Twitter.com and you can find a way to set up warnings for content that might be sensitive. You can choose to be alerted when media that has been labeled as "Sensitive" comes across your feed.<br /><br /><a name="more"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!1a6d"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="Sensitive content warning" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzI5L2YxL1NlbnNpdGl2ZWNvLmM5ZjMyLnBuZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/0a42699c/93e/Sensitive-content-warning.png" /></div><br />Users are already finding interesting ways to utilize the new image preview feature:<br /><br /><i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

How to Turn Off Twitter's New Photo Preview Feature - Circles Tech

Twitter streams across America are now full of pictures, but yours doesn't have to be. An update to the microblogging site Tuesday autom...

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How to Balance Your Personal and Professional Lives on Twitter -Circles Tech

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Social media often blurs the lines between personal and professional, and nowhere is this truer than the very public world of Twitter. If you’re like many users, Twitter is a space to connect with friends <i>and</i> develop your online brand.<br /><br />Figuring out how to balance these two worlds can challenge even the most socially savvy. You don’t want to share a personal detail that might negatively impact you at work. On the other hand, you don’t want to bore everyone with a robot-like account that can only discuss business matters.<br /><br />If you’re trying to find the right balance between personal and professional, here are a few tips to maintain a fun yet public-facing Twitter account.<br /><a name="more"></a><br /><h2>1. Accept that Twitter is public.</h2><br />The first step in finding the right balance is recognizing the fact that Twitter is a very, very public network. It’s not like a college party or night out with your friends. Rather, the network resembles a professional conference or networking event. The key difference is your actions are visible to anyone (presuming your tweets aren't protected), not just those who attended the event. Anything you discuss on Twitter is part of your public digital footprint; therefore, you should always assume anything you discuss on Twitter will be seen by a potential client, employer, partner or colleague.<br /><h2>2. Don’t be a robot.</h2><br />Twitter’s public nature can scare professionals away from sharing anything outside of work topics. However, if you only talk business, you’re not letting anyone get to know you. And ultimately, people do business with people, so there’s no reason you shouldn’t be (a very conscious version of) yourself.<br /><br />Imagine yourself at a networking event or in the downtime right before a meeting. You’re probably going to talk about a whole range of things: what you did over the weekend, a new restaurant you tried, a hobby, TV show, etc. In other words, you’ll discuss things that are important to you and interesting to others; Twitter should work in the exact same way.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!7797"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="twitter-heather" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzI4L2EzL3R3aXR0ZXJoZWF0LjEzMzAwLnBuZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/8a9e5013/979/twitter-heather.png" /></div><br /><h2>3. Avoid sensitive topics.</h2><br />As a general rule of thumb, a few areas shouldn’t be discussed on your general Twitter account. Don’t complain about a client or your employer. Unless it’s directly relevant to your job or you don’t care if you alienate members of your community, stay away from any talk of religion or politics. And it probably doesn’t need mentioning, but you should also avoid mentioning any kind of illicit activities.<br /><br />While avoiding politics is a general rule of thumb, the rule doesn’t apply to everyone. @FranchiseKing mixes resources for franchises with political opinion. He knows his community and is willing to take the risk of alienating some for expressing his views.<br /><h2>4. Know the difference between personal and private.</h2><br />You’ve probably cringed at some posts that seem to share “too much information.” Avoid TMI yourself by recognizing the difference between personal and private. For example, personal is mentioning your child took her first steps; private is sharing anything diaper-related. Personal is talking about the great dinner you had last night; private is rehashing every detail of the fight you had with your partner on the way to the restaurant.<br /><h2>5. Be considerate of your audience.</h2><br />It’s one thing to share a few messages about your kids or your favorite baseball team, maybe the occasional post about your car or kitchen remodel. But things will get boring fast if 90% of your posts are singularly focused. No one likes the person who dominates the dinner party conversation by bringing everything back to his recent vacation. Use your general Twitter account to show your diverse interests, and consider forming a private Facebook group to post daily updates of your newborn, or join a dedicated sports social network to discuss the Golden State Warriors to your heart's content.<br /><h2>6. Interact with others.</h2><br />One of the most natural ways to let your personality shine involves personal interaction. Never approach Twitter or any other social media network as a one-way broadcast. Join in on what other people are saying. Inject a personal tone or joke into your replies. Keep in mind, however, that some back-and-forth banter between you and your friends is acceptable, but you’ll want to take an in-depth conversation to DM or a phone call before it goes too far and bores everyone else.<br /><h2>7. Don’t take things too seriously.</h2><br />This last rule can often be the hardest to remember (particularly when it follows a list of dos and don’ts). At the end of the day, Twitter is all about conversations, shared interests and relationships. It’s shouldn't be overanalyzed.<br /><br />If you sit there and count every tweet to make sure you’re hitting some magic personal-professional post ratio, you’re sucking all the fun out of the process. Likewise, if you start thinking, "Okay, I need to post something funny today," it will come across as obvious and awkward. Keep it natural, be yourself, be considerate of others and use some common sense. You should be okay.<br /><br /><i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

How to Balance Your Personal and Professional Lives on Twitter -Circles Tech

Social media often blurs the lines between personal and professional, and nowhere is this truer than the very public world of Twitter. If yo...

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Facebook Reportedly Offered $1 Billion to Acquire Snapchat - CirclesTech

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> Investor worries regarding the growing number of potentially overfunded tech companies seemed to have died down in recent months, but new information surrounding popular app Snapchat could renew talk of a tech bubble.<br> <br> Facebook offered $1 billion in a bid to acquire photo-sharing app Snapchat, according to <i>The Wall Street Journal</i><a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2013/10/25/snapchat-mulls-raising-money-at-3-4-billion-valuation/" target="_blank">,</a> citing sources briefed on the matter. Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel reportedly turned down the offer, although sources did not specify when the offer took place.<br> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="more"></a><br> </div>

Facebook Reportedly Offered $1 Billion to Acquire Snapchat - CirclesTech

Investor worries regarding the growing number of potentially overfunded tech companies seemed to have died down in recent months, but new i...

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7 Twitter Accounts for Outstanding Longreads+BONUS: Bookmarking Apps -Circles Tech

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Longform journalism is far from dead. This may seem counterintuitive in the age of the 140-character Twitter update, but the digital world still demands quality, in-depth reporting — it's only the medium that has changed.<br /><br />In an email exchange with <i>Forbes</i>'s Lewis DVorkin, Longreads founder Mark Armstrong suggested that "social recommendation" has played a role in the resurgence of interest in longform journalism. "When people read something they really love, they become its biggest cheerleader," he wrote.<br /><br />Twitter has become a beloved resource for everything from job hunting to online shopping, and it can also be an asset in tracking down the skillful, thought-provoking articles you've been craving. You can consult the Twitter feeds of your favorite news outlets to see what longform content they have to offer, or use the hashtag #longreads to see articles recommended in real time by Twitter users. <i>Mashable</i> compiles its own weekly list of must-reads, too.<br /><br />For a more curated experience, consider subscribing to these seven Twitter accounts for longreads to discover the web's hidden gems.<br /><h2>1. <a href="https://twitter.com/Longreads" target="_blank">Longreads</a></h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!5df4"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="longreads-2" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyLzA4L2xvbmdyZWFkczIuNzg4YWYuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/f48e1203/75b/longreads-2.jpg" /></div><br /><a name="more"></a><br /><br />Longreads is arguably the "Patient Zero" of curated longform content. In 2009, Longreads founder Mark Armstrong created the #longreads hashtag so Twitter users could share and discuss quality works of fiction and nonfiction of 1,500 words or more. The hashtag blossomed into a Twitter account and a website, which has since partnered with <i>The Atlantic</i> to offer a daily stream of exceptional writing and reporting from places like <i>Grantland</i>, <i>The New York Review of Books</i> and <i>New York</i> magazine.<br /><h2>2. <a href="https://twitter.com/travelreads/" target="_blank">Travelreads</a></h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!8eba"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="travelreads" src="http://rack.1.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyL2EyL3RyYXZlbHJlYWRzLmE5YzZjLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/7fcbb309/dc8/travelreads.jpg" /></div><br />Travelreads is a destination-based offshoot of Longreads sponsored by Virgin Atlantic. Longreads contributing editor Jodi Ettenberg curates a selection of serious travel articles from sources like <i>The New Yorker</i>, <i>National Geographic</i> and <i>Wired</i>.<br /><h2>3. <a href="https://twitter.com/longform" target="_blank">Longform</a></h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!bf49"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="longform" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyLzJjL2xvbmdmb3JtLjY5N2NlLmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/0de8101a/acf/longform.jpg" /></div><br />Longform uses its Twitter, web and tablet platforms to recommend new and classic works of longform nonfiction from places like <i>Der Spiegel</i>, <i>Spin</i> magazine and <i>The New Republic</i>.The site also hosts weekly podcasts with top-tier nonfiction writers like Gay Talese, Elizabeth Wurtzel and Malcolm Gladwell.<br /><h2>4. <a href="https://twitter.com/thefeature" target="_blank">The Feature</a></h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!5e16"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="thefeature" src="http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyL2EwL3RoZWZlYXR1cmUuMzVkYmMuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/f5ae39db/827/thefeature.jpg" /></div><br />The Feature showcases works of serious investigative journalism from major outlets like <i>GQ</i>, <i>The Los Angeles Review of Books</i> and <i>Esquire</i>, and from smaller publications that other curators may have overlooked. All articles are archived on The Feature's website and offer a "Read Later" function courtesy of bookmarking app Instapaper.<br /><h2>5. <a href="https://twitter.com/IfYouOnly" target="_blank">If You Only...</a></h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!48bb"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="ifyouonly" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyLzI1L2lmeW91b25seS5hMjU5ZS5qcGcKcAl0aHVtYgkxMjAweDk2MDA-/4a6cd619/5e1/ifyouonly.jpg" /></div><br /><i>Matter</i> co-founder Bobbie Johnson started If You Only… with the simplest of concepts: "If you only read one thing today, make it this." Accordingly, Johnson shares a single piece of longform journalism every day, from sources like <i>The Guardian</i>, <i>Gawker</i> and <i>Businessweek</i>. Johnson also offers a weekly email digest for non-Twitter users.<br /><h2>6. <a href="https://twitter.com/TheByliner" target="_blank">Byliner</a></h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!c967"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="byliner" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyLzAzL2J5bGluZXIuYzJjZDUuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/66f8f0f7/c3a/byliner.jpg" /></div><br />Byliner is a paid subscription site that commissions and curates longform fiction and nonfiction from renown writers. On its Twitter page, you will find links to rare or exclusive pieces from Christopher Hitchens, Margaret Atwood and Jon Krakauer, among others. Byliner also links to quality content posted at other news sources, and alerts followers to any free pieces available on its website. Recently, for example, Byliner shared nine free stories by Virginia Woolf in honor of the 84th anniversary of <i>A Room of One's Own</i>.<br /><h2>7. <a href="https://twitter.com/theatavist" target="_blank">The Atavist</a></h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!0bf0"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="atavist" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyLzgwL2F0YXZpc3QuOTRmYmQuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/6b3ae90c/480/atavist.jpg" /></div><br />The Atavist is a multimedia publishing platform that commissions bestselling and award-winning works of longform nonfiction that range from magazine to book length. Each feature is sold individually on Atavist's website and is available on its iPhone and iPad apps. Atavist's Creativist storytelling software is now in open public beta, allowing any author to log in and create interactive content that can be shared across the web.<br /><h2>BONUS: Bookmarking Apps</h2><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="m!e61d"></a><br /><div><br /><div></div><br /><img alt="instapaper" src="http://rack.3.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzIyLzM0L2luc3RhcGFwZXIuNjJiNmIuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg/968f52fa/7ed/instapaper.jpg" /></div><br />If you come across an intriguing longread online but don't have the time to read it in full, try one of these free bookmarklets to save articles for offline reading.<br /><ul><br /><li><b><a href="http://www.instapaper.com/" target="_blank">Instapaper</a></b>: Instapaper is a simple bookmarklet that allows you to save your longreads for later via an icon in your Bookmarks Bar. It's available for iPhone, iPad, Android and Kindle.</li><br /><li><b><a href="https://flipboard.com/" target="_blank">Flipboard</a></b>: Flipboard is a content curation platform that lets you browse articles and bundle them into a stunning digital magazine. In addition to searching for content within the app, you can save your favorite articles from the web with the Flipboard bookmarklet. Subscribe to magazines by other Flipboard users for a more personalized experience. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPad, Android, Kindle Fire and Nook.</li><br /><li><b><a href="http://www.readability.com/" target="_blank">Readability</a></b>: Readability translates web pages into an easy-to-read format for computers, iPhone, iPad and Android, and offers a bookmarklet to save articles for offline reading.</li><br /><li><b><a href="http://getpocket.com/" target="_blank">Pocket</a></b>: Pocket, formerly known as ReadItLater, allows you to save articles or videos from your browser or from more than 300 apps including Twitter, Flipboard, Pulse — another bookmarklet — and Zite, a content curation app. The Pocket reader is available for iPhone, iPad, Android, Kindle Fire, Kobo and more.</li></ul><br /><i>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</i></div>

7 Twitter Accounts for Outstanding Longreads+BONUS: Bookmarking Apps -Circles Tech

Longform journalism is far from dead. This may seem counterintuitive in the age of the 140-character Twitter update, but the digital world s...

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The Flaming Lips Fake Break Up on Twitter - Circles Tech

Breathe easy, Flaming Lips fans: The band is staying together, despite sending out a break-up tweet earlier Thursday.<br/><br/>The tweet has since been deleted, but we got this screengrab:<br/><br/><a name="m!67b2"></a><br/><div><br/><div></div><br/><img alt="Screen Shot 2013-10-24 at 6.12.59 PM" src="http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzEwLzI0LzA5L1NjcmVlblNob3QyLmFiYTFiLnBuZwpwCXRodW1iCTEyMDB4OTYwMD4/5a790945/2f7/Screen-Shot-2013-10-24-at-6.12.59-PM-640x333.png" /></div><br/>That led to consternation around the Internet. We contacted Flaming Lips spokesman Andrew Ludwick, who said he "highly doubted" the tweet was for real. Sure enough, minutes later, the band walked it back:<br/><blockquote>lol just joking guys<br/><br/>— The Flaming Lips (@theflaminglips) October 24, 2013</blockquote><br/>It didn't escape fans' attention that the Flaming Lips happens to have a new EP out, based on the movie version of <em>Ender's Game</em>.<br/><br/>Last year, lead singer Wayne Coyne had this to say about the social service: "My Twitter I think is a lot like me. It's sometimes utterly ridiculous. But I never use it to make fun of people."<br/><br/><em>Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.</em>

The Flaming Lips Fake Break Up on Twitter - Circles Tech

Breathe easy, Flaming Lips fans: The band is staying together, despite sending out a break-up tweet earlier Thursday. The tweet has since be...

+ Read more »