Twitter Wages War Against Google News and Apple News - http://clapway.com/2016/01/06/twitter-wages-war-against-google-news-and-apple-news-123/

Twitter may roll out a new update that allows users to write messages of up to 10,000 characters in a tweet in the first quarter of 2016. This feature would only display the first 140 characters, but it would bring a drastic change to the platform as a whole.

Twitter Goes Beyond 140 Characters

Many people have been turned away from using the platform because of the character limit. If this update does roll out, the social network will officially become a quick-fix stop for a lot more people. Allowing users more than 140 characters will make it easier for new accounts to get used to the platform.

Apple News and Google News Are In For Some Trouble

Let’s face it, writing tweets efficiently isn’t easy. A lot of people have to sacrifice grammar and context. A well-composed tweet is really commendable, which is probably why Twitter will only display the first 140 characters even if the limit is extended. This will encourage some muscle work on your first sentence. It will also ensure that the content doesn’t change too dramatically.

Blogs and publications will probably benefit the most from an update like this. It’ll give them space for an opening thought, and then allow them to continue in a ‘read more’ section. This is something that Twitter has lacked. Facebook and Tumblr have already introduced ‘read more’s onto their platforms, so it’s about time for Twitter to get with the program.

This will make for potential competition against Google News and Apple News. Twitter handles a lot of traffic from smartphones and tablets, which is something that is not as popular for Google News. Apple has its own News app integrated onto their phones, but some people don’t even know it exists. If Twitter extends the limit of their posts, they could become the go-to news source for a lot of people.

This New Update Might Not Be Entirely Beneficial

The 140 character limit is Twitter’s curse and blessing. It has been mocked, parodied and praised. Messages in short form have given many outlets a way to upload information in nuggets. The platform’s growing user base has gotten used to browsing through and getting only the most vital information. This makes the system efficient, quick and fun.

10,000 characters will allow for article-length content. This is something newspapers and news sources will take great advantage of. Blogs that focus on writing will also find this very useful. Though 10,000 characters seem a bit excessive even for these purposes, it could garner some good attention.

Should Twitter Consider Medium?

Medium is a platform that, while eerily similar, is pretty much what Twitter will be if they roll out this update. Medium even gives users an average of the time it will take to read a post. This would be beneficial to Twitter if people are really picky about time.

There has been no confirmation from Twitter that this update will actually happen. It would sure be interesting.

 

Twitter Wages War Against Google News and Apple News

Facebook News Feed Outsmarts Google News, Yahoo News and Apple News - http://clapway.com/2015/12/12/facebook-news-feed-outsmarts-google-news-123/

Facebook has announced an update to the Facebook News Feed, which allows for it to work efficiently even in bad, slow connections. The social networking site released a statement with the announcement.

Emerging Markets Are Using Facebook in 2G Connections

Facebook revealed that people are going online at an increasing rate in emerging markets, and most of them are using 2G connections. The new Facebook News Feed now works regardless of the device used or the kind of network connection. Slow or fast, the Facebook News Feed will work seamlessly to show users the most relevant stories of the day.

Other feeds like Google News and Yahoo News, Flipboard only repost news from news stations, which can take a lot longer to report than social media. This is a very smart move, because when a topic is trending on Facebook, users can get the news from real people involved. In the same vein, people can get different opinions.

Facebook Now Features Offline Comments

The same announcement revealed that Facebook now lets users write comments on posts even when they’re offline, and as soon as your device reaches a good connection, the comment will be submitted. While this does change the basic layout of the new Facebook News Feed, it delivers the most important information with the smallest amount of network connection.

New Facebook News Feed Will Roll Out, But A Date Hasn’t Been Specified

The announcement did not attach an official date to the roll out of these new features, and it’s likely that the new Facebook News Feed will be launched in the markets the blog referenced before it hits larger ones with wider network webs like the United States and other countries in America. Updates regarding the roll out will be sent out via Facebook Engineering Blog.

Hopefully future updates will give for the exact date. This feature will allow users who are either in the air or at sea a way to get a quick fix of the latest news, and keep people traveling through remote locations.

Facebook is The Prince of Silicon Valley

As a company, Facebook has branched out to every single vein of the information technology industry. Not only have they developed the most important social media network of the time, but it also morphed into being something more: Facebook is a website that truly unites friends and loved ones without requiring them to be physically close to one another. Recent features like the safety check have changed the way people adapt to disaster and the way information about natural and unnatural chaos is delivered. A lot of people have been put at peace thanks to this feature, and as it continues to grow, it will ensure the safety of any user under any circumstance.

As time goes by, the social network will continue to grow. Facebook currently has one of the most advanced AIs in all of Silicon Valley, and it’s showing no signs of slowing down. They’ve made the social network accessible for the blind, made it so the technology can talk to you and communicate with you. Mark Zuckerberg has made significant investments in the future of science and technology and has put his stake on new projects that will change the face of Silicon Valley as time goes on.

Mark Zuckerberg is A Technology Juggernaut

Facebook has much more ambition than could be initially expected. After The Social Network made its debut in 2010, people may have thought that Facebook had reached its peak in popularity. Many thought that it could only drop in popularity and in usefulness. The reality has turned out to be very different. Facebook has a vision, and it’s putting it to very good use. It has become an unsung prince of Silicon Valley, and it has the kind of power to even become the king. 

Facebook Has Your Back, in More Ways than One

Mark Zuckerberg has developed a website that’s more like an annoyingly protective cousin. While it does occasionally overshare, or get cluttered with videos of little relevance, it’s the go-to for basically everything. From celebrity gossip to development on the latest news to birthdays and engagement announcements, Facebook has our back.

Facebook News Feed Outsmarts Google News, Yahoo News and Apple News

Check this #humanoid #robot enjoys nature thoroughly. - http://clapway.com/2015/08/18/watch-googles-new-humanoid-robot-run-through-the-woods-323/

ATLAS, THE HUMANOID ROBOT

Meet Atlas, the gargantuan humanoid robot developed by the Alphabet-owned Boston Dynamics. Atlas can be seen running through a forest in an astonishing new video. The video’s experiment is also the first time that the robot’s capabilities have been tested outdoors. It has inspired a comparison of the 344 lb, 6’2 tall Atlas to the Terminator.

Marc Raibert, the founder of Boston Dynamics, explained the details of the experiment at the Fab Lab 11 conference at MIT earlier this month. The purpose of Atlas’ run through the woods was to find out how the robot would perform in an unfamiliar setting and test its balance.

Though Atlas currently requires the assistance of someone holding a connected power pack to run, Raibert has said that it will be able to run on its own in the future.

The Irish Examiner commented “Yes, the robots can now chase us through the woods.”And, aside from running, Atlas can also turn doorknobs because it has the ability to rotate its own wrists.

HISTORY OF ATLAS

Atlas the humanoid robot was debuted in July 2013 by Boston Dynamics, when the company was owned by Google (which is now owned by Alphabet.) It receives funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is interested in using the robot for military situations.

Like Google’s self-driving cars, the humanoid robot perceives the world with a laser radar system. As PCWorld pointed out, several changes were made to the robot this year as part of an upgrade. Among other improvements, its arms were repositioned to become visible to it, its actuators were modified to help it pick itself up from the ground and it was given lighter materials.

ROBO SAPIENS

After its release, artificial intelligence expert Gary Bradski claimed that “A new species, Robo sapiens, are emerging.”

Raibert’s ultimate goal is to develop robots that can equal or exceed human capabilities, he explained at the conference. The Boston Dynamics founder told the Fab 11 conference’s crowd that “We’re making pretty good progress, so [Atlas] has mobility that’s sort of within shooting range of yours.”

This goal, if achieved, might lend credence to some fears about AI.

---

Homo sapiens would like this:

Watch Google"s New Humanoid Robot Run Through The Woods

#Interstitial #ads begone. - http://clapway.com/2015/07/27/google-scraps-interstitial-ads-after-recent-study-547/

Like an answered prayer, Google has decided to do away with interstitial ads on mobile devices.

What are Interstitial Ads?

The name given to these interstitial ads isn’t exactly descriptive if you don’t already know what they’re referring to. These are the ads that occupy the space between your mobile browser and the website you’re trying to view. A popular one, for instance, appears while trying to visit almost any forum. A user will likely be shown an ad saying something along the lines of, “Hey, you can view this forum via Tapatalk. Click here to download.”

Google Breaks Down the Statistics

In a new study done by Google, the company found out that these ads were just shy of being completely useless. In fact, so many people ignored these ads that Google decided to ditch the ad format completely.

Google used Google+ as the front end page for the study. When users would visit the site, they would be welcomed by an interstitial ad. From the study, only 9 percent of the users actually clicked on the ad, though that doesn’t mean they downloaded the app. That’s a pretty small number, but a staggering 69 percent of the users high-tailed it off the page entirely. A 9 percent click-through rate (CTR) actually isn’t that bad, but having so many users simply abandon the site altogether is pretty alarming.

When Google removed the interstitial ad they noticed that website activity had increased almost 17 percent while app downloads remained relatively stagnant.

“Based on these results, we decided to permanently retire the interstitial,” said Google+ software engineer David Morell.

Making Changes for the Better

A difficult part of Google’s job is maintaining harmony between the audience and the advertisers. Ads aren’t bad, but users want to see ads relevant to their interest and that they consider valuable, whereas advertisers want a good return on investment (ROI). After seeing the numbers, it was clear to Google that neither party was benefitting from the ad format.

Google will be publishing its findings in hopes that others will take a second look at using interstitials on their platforms.

---

 

Check out Clapway Trends for the latest tech news and reviews:

Google Scraps Interstitial Ads After Recent Study