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Lifestage – New, Old, Borrowed, Facebook

Can Lifestage make Facebook trending for teenagers again?

Facebook announced Lifestage, a new and separate app which will cater exclusively to users under the age of 21 and under.

Facebook continues to remain a popular service in the world of today. However, the younger demographics have been leaving the social media giant. According to market studies, individuals under the age 21 are enjoying other social media services such as Snapchat more.

Lifestage, the new app from Facebook, takes heavy inspiration from Facebook’s 2004 model, as well as Snapchat and other popular social media apps.

Although it is currently available for iOS exclusively, Facebook is confident that Lifestage will quickly hit its popularity boom. The app is based around the idea that teenagers are interested in creating a public visual profile and use it to connect and share with others.

Social Features and Privacy Standing on Lifestage

Facebook designed its newest app to work in tight connection with already active school communities and networks.

With Lifestage, a typical user will be able to post and share personal video updates. Messaging can be managed through a “Reach Me” interface. Social media integration is built into the app.

In theory, the app will be one of the new great ways to keep in touch with classmates and schoolmates and to enable creative or social individuals to gain extra popularity in their school collectives.

However, several parties have repeatedly expressed their concern in regards to the app’s public-only settings. The target audience for Lifestage are teenagers with ages between 13 and 17. Currently, anyone on the internet could lie, state that they are under the age of 21 and that they are enrolled at a certain school.

In return, Facebook stated that privacy in its newest app will be guaranteed by easy and accessible options to report and block users. Past experience shows, however, that reporting and blocking users are both abusable and can lead to social media bullying.

Furthermore, reporting and blocking have only proved useful in dealing with the more verbose user base, making both options ineffective solutions when dealing with an issue which is easily fixable by adding a privacy filter.

Lifestage’s app icon is an upside down smiley.

Signing up for Lifestage does not require a Facebook account or any connectivity to Facebook. However, in order to ‘activate’ a school on Lifestage, at least 20 users need to be signed up with that school.

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Facebook Testing its Apps on Thousands of Phones in Cutting-Edge Data Center

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Facebook recently disclosed that it is relentlessly testing its Instagram, Facebook, Messenger, and WhatsApp apps in a remote location in the Oregon Desert. Its Prineville, Oregon-based data center needs so much computing power that several ISPs have to provide Internet service to keep it going.

The data center is a model for Facebook’s other similar centers across the U.S. and Europe. Facebook needs a high-powered facility because of the countless requests for images, news feeds, and status updates coming from the social network billion plus users.

The Prineville plant, which was opened in 2011, also has lots of servers to support the company’s research in Artificial Intelligence and thousands of Android- and iOS-powered handsets that allows its technicians test apps on a 24 h basis.

The data center also impresses with size: it has four buildings, each unit being able to host two Walmarts inside. But you’ll need to drive for about three hours from Portland to reach it. Interestingly enough, in Facebook facility’s vicinity Apple has built its own hig-tech data center dubbed ConnectWay.

Google has a data center in The Dalles, Oregon since the place has cheap electric power coming from hydroelectric plants. So,this may be the reason Facebook and other tech giants picked the U.S.’s ninth largest state to run operations.

Temperature is regulated through monster fans and water coolants instead of resource-draining air conditioning systems. Inside the center, the temperature doesn’t go beyond 82F. Facebook says that the facility is so energy efficient that it has reached 1.07 on the power efficiency scale. In other words, the facility’s non-computing devices use just seven percent of the center’s energy use.

The building also host super-powerful computing devices such as servers that are upgraded on a constant basis. One hundred twenty of the 165 technicians that work at the facility keep a constant watch on the servers and replace broken parts.

Facebook also boasts that its stored data is not redundant, i.e. there aren’t any duplicates of the information. Instead the data and the center that hosts it are resilient i.e. ready to be at the fingertip of Facebook users.

However, the company has backup of the data but in other centers such the ones in Iowa or Sweden. This makes each facility all the more energy-efficient.

Yet, the most important piece of news is that the company wants your phone to be as energy efficient as it can be too. So, it tests its popular apps on newer and older handsets to ensure that the software doesn’t drain too much life from your phone’s battery.

Technicians are especially interested in app updates that may affect battery performance. As a result, if they spot an anomaly they try to fix it.

Image Source: Wikimedia

Digital Publishing Affected by New Algorithm

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Woman reading an article on her smartphone

The last ten years were vital for the growth and development of digital publishing

The last ten years were vital for the growth and development of digital publishing. According to experts in online journalism, the first phase in online publishing was dominated by link-outs from portals such as MSN or America Online. The second phase consisted of the rise of powerful search engines, such as Google. Already in the third phase, contemporary digital publishing added a new feature, the growing importance of some social-media networks, like Facebook or Twitter.

By far the most influential social network, Facebook reached an impressive 1.7 billion unique active users each month. Moreover, according to several surveys, in 2015 the company managed to score around 30 percent of all digital display ad revenue. That represents an increase of 5 percent compared to the numbers registered in 2014.

Judging the numbers, it is impossible for publishers to ignore the advantages of social media. The presence on Facebook can make a big difference for online journalists.

Unfortunately, all this power may not always work for the benefit of digital publishers. Depending on a third party platform to promote their content may prove to be a forever-changing game.

Facebook has recently announced that they are changing the newsfeed algorithm. According to them, this is part of their strategy to increase user involvement. Despite their large numbers of users, they registered a lack of user implication.

As per several reports, the overall number of posts on Facebook fell around 5 percent from mid-2014 until mid-2015. Moreover, personal posts and sharing registered a worrisome decrease of 21 percent in the same period.

This is a reason for concern as independent users are those who make Facebook a viable and successful platform.

To improve the involvement of independent users, the company will put emphasis on posts from family and friends. While this may be a great thing for regular users, the digital publishing industry has a few reasons to worry. Most likely, the organic reach of a post will decrease, and online journalism platforms will be forced to pay for their posts to be promoted.

Most likely, this limitation will draw several complaints from digital publishers. However, despite this potential wave of dissatisfaction, there is very little they can do. Considering the 1.7 billion users on Facebook, digital publishers cannot afford to remove their account.

Image Source: Pixabay

Facebook Uses Location Data to Suggest Friends

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The fact that Facebook uses location data may be worrisome

After confirming two times that Facebook uses location data to suggest friends, the company`s officials retract the previous statements. In a formal comment, Facebook mentioned that the usage of details such as the information location added on your profile page and device location are not included in the algorithm behind this feature.

As per the official narrative, Facebook ran a brief test last year using location to suggest friends. However, at this moment, the mechanism behind their algorithm does not incorporate information people share on their pages about their location or device location data.

For many years, Facebook`s accuracy to suggest friends surprised many of this platform`s users. However, until recently, the company did not reveal how this feature works.

In an official declaration, Facebook`s spokesperson mentioned that one of the main criteria the company takes into account whenever it suggests friends includes data such as mutual friends, educational background and work information. The statement added a reference to some vague other factors that were not specifically named.

Commenting on the particular case of two people who happened to be in the same place one night only to discover each other the next day in the Facebook section “People You May Know,” the spokesperson said the following:

“Location information by itself doesn’t indicate that two people might be friends. That’s why location is only one of the factors we use to suggest people you may know”.

The fact that Facebook uses location to suggest friends should not come as a surprise because last year they got more aggressive in their attempt to improve their ads system. Since last year, businesses can select an option to target their advertisements and publicity campaigns to those who were recently in a particular location.

However, the implications of Facebook`s advertising algorithm are not as severe as the implications involved by the friends suggestions feature. Since people want to keep some of the visits secret, the fact that Facebook uses location data may be worrisome.

Geolocation data is a lot more sensitive than other information people provide online. However, to prevent any potential troubling scenario, experts recommend turning off Facebook`s access to your data location information. Typically, the privacy settings menu of any smartphone should include this option.

Image Source: Flickr

Extremist Speech May Be Automatically Removed

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Extremist speech may be suppressed by Facebook and Google through automated scanners.

Although no official statements were made so far, there are rumors that two major players in the online industry may start blocking unfavorable speech on their platforms. Reportedly, extremist speech may be suppressed by Facebook and Google through automated scanners, similar to those used to enforce copyright laws on the Internet.

The two companies may remodel copyright takedown techniques in order to identify and remove extremist content. So far, it`s still not clear to what extent these automated programs will be able to act and block content, but it is sure that the primary target of these systems will be radical messages oriented against the United States and European countries.

Most of the U.S. and European leaders denounced the proliferation of extremism in the online environment and turned to Internet companies in order to receive support. As a reply, these companies appeared to be receptive to the idea.

However, it is still unclear what will be the definition of extremism for the algorithm used by the automated systems. Also, when contacted, Google and Facebook did not confirm or deny any of the rumors around this topic.

So far, most of the big Internet companies relied on their users to remove and block offensive and extremist content.

In a statement made earlier this year, Facebook officials mentioned that they received more than one million flag requests from its users. Also, Twitter suspended more than 120,000 accounts that shared extremist content.

Moreover, Google also declared that they received over 70 million DMCA takedown requests in only one month.

Also, there are already several automated systems that deal with blocking certain illegal content. Following the international outcry against online radicalization after the Orlando attack, extremist speech may become one of the next targets.

However, the fact that extremist speech may be automatically suppressed raises a few issues. If the law is very clear in regards to the unauthorized proliferation via Internet of content that falls under copyright laws, extremism and hate speech may be harder to label.

Nonetheless, previous experience showed that this can be accomplished. Earlier this year, companies such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Twitter agreed with the EU`s regulations that require the removal of hateful online content and promotion of “independent counter-narratives.”

Image Source: Pixabay

Tumblr Jumps on the Live Video Streaming Bandwagon

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After Facebook’s Live Video and Twitter’s Periscope, Tumblr has decided to join the live video craze. The Yahoo-owned blogging service announced that the new feature will become available on June 21.

Tumblr which was bought by Yahoo or $1.1 billion three years ago, didn’t provide more details on the new live streaming service. The blog post was noticed by a Twitter user who said that the idea was “pretty cool.”

According to the blog post, Tumblr has also in mind an initial schedule of streams including a short video streaming session with an unidentified player from Harlem Globetrotters. The video is scheduled for Tuesday.

People familiar with the matter said that the site will also allow users to post their own live streams alongside its scheduled broadcasts. If rumors are true, this means that Tumblr will become a direct rival to tremendously popular live video streaming services Periscope and Live Video.

We don’t know yet whether the new service will be embedded in the existing app or a new app will be rolled out for that purpose on Tuesday. Analysts noted that Tumblr’s move may be an effort to reboost the blogging site’s withering popularity.

Although it used to be immensely popular a few years ago when Yahoo decided to buy it, in the meantime the service’s popularity plunged. As a result, Yahoo recently valuated the service for $230 million a proof that the investment hasn’t yielded the expected results. Yahoo had big plans for the service with an ad revenue goal for 2014 of $100 million.

Analysts cannot tell yet whether the recent decision will revive the blogging service. Reportedly, Tumblr will unveil other features on Tuesday designed to put it back on track.

Nevertheless, Tumblr may have a competitive edge against Facebook because it usually attracts young audiences. According to a 2014 report, the blogging site along with Instagram had one of the youngest audiences on the Internet. Over 70 percent of its users were teens or young adults in their 20s and early 30s. Facebook’s audience on the other hand is growing older with 25 percent of users being 45 or older.

In 2014, Tumblr also saw its popularity soar 120 percent in less than six months. Additionally, last year a viral story about a white and gold dress which appeared blue and black to some people accrued over 73 million page views.

Image Source: Flickr

Algorithm Tries to Predict Terrorist Attacks

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It is not impossible to look for online indicators of terrorist propaganda in social media.

The discussion about terrorism made the front pages of most of the newspapers after the Orlando massacre. With the new algorithm that tries to predict terrorist attacks, now it becomes a topic to be debated in science magazines also.

Prior to his attack in Orlando, Omar Mateen was investigated by FBI on two occasions. His Facebook page contained references to the Islamic State and, reportedly, he used social media to look for pieces of information about the San Bernardino massacre, which took place in December 2015.

However, it is hard to predict a terrorist attack by simply checking the online activity of a single person. As President Obama already explained two days after the Orlando massacre, the movement of lone actors or small groups is very hard to foresee.

However, scientists claim, it is not impossible to look for online indicators of terrorist propaganda on social media. The experts developed their thesis around one social media platform, called Vkontakte. Unlike Facebook, Vkontakte does not require its users to log in with their real names. However, a phone number is requested during the registration process.

The project started a few years ago with the intent to monitor the social upheaval in Latin America (namely in Brazil and Venezuela). The idea to focus their attention on social media rather than the events happening in the real world came to them along with the Arab Uprising.

With Facebook becoming the main tool to communicate and organize protests, people realized that a closer look at the online algorithms might offer an accurate picture of the main trends in society.

This new algorithm that tries to predict terrorist attacks focuses mainly on the behavioral patterns of the users affiliated with pro-ISIS groups. The research team managed to find almost 200 pro-ISIS public groups on Vkontakte. To avoid moderators and hackers, the users reincarnate themselves each time their profile is hacked or shut down.

And this is how new small groups emerge. To efficiently prevent the aggregation of large, influential groups, counterterrorism agents need to track down small groups and shut them down before the distribution of radical propaganda escalates.

The trend that was noticed so far relates the rapid increase of such groups with an imminent attack. Such a pattern can be a reliable indicator that something may be going on.

However, the new algorithm that tries to predict terrorist attacks has no efficiency in the case of an assault organized by a small group. Because these groups do not leak information on social media, they leave no footprints that can be tracked down.

Online source: Wikipedia

Facebook launches Interactive Map of its Live Video feature

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Facebook has made its Interactive Map available on May 18

Facebook’s Interactive Map, first introduced in April, has just gone global. The feature allows users to view live streams from any user in the world, from Greenland to North Korea, turning every Facebook into a voyeur.

For now, the Interactive Map is only available through Facebook on Web. It can be accessed by pressing the “Live Video” button on the navigation bar. An interactive map of the world will pop up, on which little blue dots will indicate the places where users are live streaming. The bigger the dot, the more popular the live stream is. To get a preview of the video, just hovering over the dot will show one.

The Interactive Map also allows you to see where the viewers of a particular feed are located. Hovering over the dots will release lines that will connect the place the stream is being broadcast from with that where the viewer is located.

The move is encouraging users of the popular social platform to share more of their lives with the world. However, it seems that for the moment, the most popular live streaming videos belonged to media outlets rather than individuals. It also allows Facebook to enter the race with competitors such as Periscope, Snapchat, and Meerkat, and why not, give them a run for their money.

Live streams entice viewers to interact more, and the new Facebook feature allows users to react and comment on live videos. According to Facebook vice president of product management Will Cathcart, the social media platform wanted to tap into the popularity of live video streams. Live videos, he noted, attract up to 10 times more comments, compared to regular videos. Also, statistics show that viewers spend an average three times more time watching live videos than they do watching regular clips.

As people can now take better quality videos, Cathcart said, Facebook sought to make video a “well-supported” part of the social media platform. The global launch of Interactive Map is expected to become very profitable as well for the social media platform, which currently counts 1.65 billion users worldwide. Should it offer the live streams to advertisers, the company can look forward to a new solid revenue stream.

Image source: Wikipedia

Trouble Sleeping? Turn Away From Social Media

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Trouble sleeping? Turn away from social media because researchers founds they are prone to fragmented sleep patterns among frequent users. There’s no doubt that social media has taken over the internet. Be it for pictures, posts, videos, or overall existing in the digital world, most people have an account here or there.

However, besides online bullying or fierce political debates that know no end, there are other issues that can be attributed to prolonged use. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh conducted a study on 1,788 adults in the United States, aged between 19 and 32 years old. The purpose was to hone in on the effect of social media on sleep.

Previous studies have shown that smartphones and other gadgets may have an impact, but this is the first of its kind that directly concentrates on several platforms. The participants were asked about their frequency of use of Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Google Plus, Instagram, Snapchat, Reddit, Tumblr, Pinterest, Vine, and LinkedIn. These are all major social media brands that have proven themselves popular among young adults.

According to their findings, each person spent, on average, around 61 minutes per day on social media and visited various accounts around thirty times per week. Over 50% of the participants reported problems sleeping that ranged from medium to high disturbances. And, apparently, those who often frequented social media had the biggest problems. This ranged from insomnia, trouble falling asleep, or not getting enough rest through the night.

Those who frequently checked social media throughout the week were three times more likely to report sleep disturbances. On the other hand, those who also spent the most total time on various platforms were twice as likely to have trouble sleeping. Whether frequency of use or total time, it seemed that avid social media users did report the most problems.

According to lead author of the study, Dr. Jessica Levenson, from the university’s Department of Psychiatry, this is the first time a study has shown the impact of social media on sleep. And it’s no wonder. Technically, this is the first generation to grow up with such an extensive diversity of social media platforms. They’re are in full bloom and too many options to count. However, it’s also very impacting.

This may indicate that young adults reporting sleep disturbances should also be inquired by doctors on their social media use. Then, perhaps a method to stop the “obsessive checking” should be one of the methods used. However, the matter requires more investigation. While there is a definite association, it’s difficult to say which influences which.

Does social media cause sleep disturbances? Do people with trouble sleeping frequent social media more often? Or it is a combination of both? It’s tough to tell, but the researchers will persist with their investigations.

Image source: static.images.publisher.attn.com

Google plans making Android for virtual reality to beat Facebook

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Search engine giant Google is currently revamping its Android smartphone system in order to power virtual reality headsets, a person familiar with the matter said following the unexpected success of its Cardboard VR viewer.

The move will bring both tech bigwigs Google and Facebook into a direct competition.

Facebook’s Oculus VR has partnered with leading Android smartphone maker Samsung on developing the Gear VR headset.

Meanwhile, Google has turned down the request for comment on its plans for Virtual Realty.

According to two people familiar with the project, Google has formed an engineers’ team for building a version of the Android operating system so as to power the applications based on virtual reality applications.

Android has emerged as the most popular smartphone operating system in the world.

The project is presently just speculative as no virtual-reality devices are yet shipping in large numbers. But the gaming firms, filmmakers and several others related to creative field are seeing huge promise in the field.

Android is an open operating system that is available for free to the hardware makers. Currently, there are four versions of Android, for the use in smartphones, wearable devices, cars and televisions.

Social Features and Privacy Standing on Lifestage

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