Microsoft has teamed up with New York department megastore Saks for a big Christmas promotion, that, as well as a special sales area inside, includes Windows 7 powering the store's infamous Christmas windows displays.

As part of the window displays, Microsoft has set up a screen displaying a live Twitter stream, with posts hashtagged HolidayWindows automatically showing up on the display.

What Microsoft perhaps didn't account for though, is Apple-loving Twitter users taking advantage of the stream to promote their own pro-Apple and/or anti-Microsoft messages.

A quick glance at the #HolidayWindows stream sees it chock-full of such pro-Apple pithy missives as the brief "Get a Mac" that appears multiple times.

There's also the likes of "Get a Mac! Just follow the masses down to the Apple store. The one that looks like the Windows store... only way cooler", "Avoid viruses - get a Mac", and "Ignore Microsoft, you're not a PC, you are a human being. Get a Mac and feel human again".

As @mooseblaster says, this cannot end well.

UPDATE: It seems the whole stunt was masterminded by Mac fan site MacDailyNews, but appears to have taken on a life on its own now with pro-Mac tweets coming thick and fast, way outnumbering any Windows fans who have attempted to mobilise with a counter-tweet attack.

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Tags: Software Twitter Windows 7 Video Microsoft shopping Apple Saks

VIDEO: Apple fans heckle Windows-powered Twitter stream in Saks' Christmas window originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:05:23 +0000

Microsoft's latest software update that brought with it Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm, the Zune Marketplace and?Sky Player?in the UK is turning their gamers into social butterflies according to the latest figures released by the company.

Microsoft?has said that over 2 million Xbox gamers logged into their facebook profile on the console since the social network became available on the 17 November.

In a bevy of stats which suggest that gamers aren’t just gamers, Microsoft has said that users also made over 1 million Last.fm profiles, spending approximately 40 minutes using Last.fm on Xbox LIVE to discover music and customise radio stations, and have streamed more than 120 million minutes of music already.

Microsoft, who says it has around 20 million active members around the world also saw around 8% visit the new Zune video store, however they haven't stated how many actually watched anything.

They are still playing games though. More than 2.2 million unique gamers played "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" in one day on 10 November, the day of the launch, a new one-day record for Xbox LIVE the company says.

Related links:

• Link - Xbox.com

Tags: Gaming Xbox 360 Xbox Live Facebook Twitter Lastfm Microsoft Social networking

Xbox 360 gamers actually social butterflies originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 02:51:24 +0000

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone has re-iterated the wish to keep hold of the micro-blogging site, rather than sell out wholesale, but has said an initial public offering could be on the cards for the future.

"We are definitely not interested in selling the company", Reuters quotes Stone as saying at an Oxford University event.

"If an IPO's the only thing, then sure. But if there is some other way then that would be great too. Maybe some other new way will emerge".

With Twitter funding from investors said to have hit the $100 million mark, valuing the company at $1 billion, the pressure will soon be on for the site to turn a profit, plans for which were recently revealed as advanced, paid-for accounts for businesses.

"2010 is really going to be the revenue year. I don't know if we're going to be profitable, but we have plenty of time", Stone said.

In addition, Twitter could introduce advertising in 2010, but Stone hinted it would take a different tack from traditional display ads, stating: "Everyone's going to love it. It's going to be amazing".

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Tags: Software Twitter Websites Online Biz Biz Stone

Twitter's Biz Stone talks IPO, advertising originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:00:09 +0000

Twitter boss Biz Stone has unveiled more about the micro-blogging service's plans to make money revealing that paid-for commercial accounts will roll-out this year, in an interview with the BBC.

Stone insists Twitter will stay free for individuals, and for businesses too, stating "Twitter will always be free to everyone whether it's commercial or personal", but that paid-for commercial accounts will offer a "special layer of access" that will include analytics and feedback.

There's also the possibility of revenue from licensing and syndication possibilities, said Stone, such as the deals recently done with Google and Bing in order to see Twitter content show up in search results.

The interview comes as Twitter has changed its "what are you doing?" tagline above the box where users enter their tweets to "what's happening?"

In a blog post, Twitter explains the change is to reflect the changing way in which the service is used, with more companies tweeting rather than just individuals:

"People, organizations, and businesses quickly began leveraging the open nature of the network to share anything they wanted, completely ignoring the original question, seemingly on a quest to both ask and answer a different, more immediate question, 'What's happening?'"

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Tags: Software Websites Twitter Biz

Twitter talks up commercial services originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:02:06 +0000

Vodafone has expanded its Twitter options in the UK by offering a new service that allows Twitter users to retweet messages via SMS.

Vodafone customers can already send and receive SMS Twitter updates and now they can use the same number to retweet the most recent interesting posts from the people they are following.

Now available to Vodafone customers in the UK, to use the service, customers should send "RT twitter username" to 86444.

As an example, to retweet the most recent message from @VodafoneUK, you would type "RT VodafoneUK" which keeps it simple as it only works with the latest tweet from the Twitter account.

Sent texts will be charged at the standard network rate, or taken from the customer's SMS bundle where appropriate, says Vodafone.

After sending their message, customers will receive a free SMS notification confirming the message that they have just retweeted to their followers.

Vodafone customers will continue to receive SMS updates from Twitter free of charge.

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Tags: Phones Mobile phone apps Vodafone Twitter Software Online SMS

Vodafone offers paid-for SMS retweet option originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:48:55 +0000

A study into Britain's Twitter users has yielded some interesting results enabling a general profile of the average user to be revealed.

Here in the UK there are around 5.5 million people that use the micro-blogging service and it seems a typical user is under 35, less likely to vote Conservative and are more liberal in outlook that the majority of the population.

UK Twitterers are also more likely to come from a lower social class, more likely to live in London, and "defensive of civil liberties", reports The Telegraph.

The study, conducted by YouGov and published in Prospect magazine, surveyed 2024 adults and then compared the Twitter users' traits against the non-users in the group.

The Twitter users polled find the service either "very worthwhile" or "mildly useful" - but 39% said that it "dumbs down" the way people communicate.

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Tags: Software Twitter Statistics YouGov

UK Twitter users profiled originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:31:01 +0000

As do other such companies, the New Oxford American Dictionary has revealed the new words it is considering for inclusion, and revealed its choice of "Word of the Year" for 2009.

The 2009 Word of the Year has been named as "unfriend" with the definition reading "unfriend – verb – to remove someone as a 'friend' on a social networking site such as Facebook".

"It has both currency and potential longevity", says Christine Lindberg, senior lexicographer for Oxford's US dictionary program.

"In the online social networking context, its meaning is understood, so its adoption as a modern verb form makes this an interesting choice for Word of the Year. Most 'un-' prefixed words are adjectives (unacceptable, unpleasant), and there are certainly some familiar 'un-' verbs (uncap, unpack), but 'unfriend' is different from the norm. It assumes a verb sense of 'friend' that is really not used (at least not since maybe the 17th century!). Unfriend has real lex-appeal".

Other words that were considered are heavily influenced by another social networking site - Twitter - with "hashtag" high on the list, while "Notable Word Clusters for 2009" include the following:

Tweeps, Tweetup, Twitt, Twitterati, Twitterature, Twitterverse/sphere, Retweet, Twibe, Sweeple, Tweepish, Tweetaholic, Twittermob and Twitterhea.

Do you know what they all mean?

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Tags: Software Dictionaries Facebook Twitter Social networking OUP

"Unfriend" named Word of the Year by OUP originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:04:26 +0000

Email extinction could be a reality in the next 10 years, says TalkTalk, proclaiming the younger generation has no need for such long-winded communication.

No doubt echoing similar studies from 10 years ago that predicted the absolute death of snail mail, this most recent effort suggests the "young digerati" prefer "one and done-style messages" such as tweets and IM.

Backed by a social anthropologist from the University of Kent, the research states that Britain has over 2 million "First Lifers", defined as those in their late teens or early Twenties who are tech savvy but don't like being stuck at a desk with just 51% regularly using email.

Older generations are now more likely to use email with the stats coming in at 98% of people aged 65-plus, 96% of 45- to 64-year-olds leading TalkTalk to conclude that email is turning into "grey mail".

Tags: Software Email Survey Social networking Instant messaging SMS Twitter TalkTalk

Email extinction predicted in 10 years originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:38:02 +0000

As?Twitter?continues to gain popularity with brands and people alike, how should you go about using it as a tool for communicating rather than a way of telling the world what you just had for lunch?

We sat down to watch the "Mayor" of Twitter, Chris Brogan, at Web 2.0 expo in New York to find out his top three tips for using Twitter to grow your social knowledge and reputation.

According to his bio, Chris Brogan advises businesses, organizations and individuals on how to use social media and social networks to build relationships and deliver value.

1. Use Twitter search

According to Brogan, Twitter search is a key tool here. "There is so much value not what your friends are saying, but what people are saying on Twitter, that you should use the search", affirms Brogan. ?

Before you jump in expecting to use it to find a new pair of shoes on Zappos, use it not as you would use Google, but rather to see stories develop and move in real time. "You should be listening more than saying", says Brogan.

2. Engage don't just shout

If you're like most, you use Twitter as a gloat machine, shouting about your achievements. This is bad says Brogan:

"Spend 12 times more talking about other people as you do talking about yourself. The more you talk about other people, the more you will gain respect, reputation, and trust", says the social media expert.

3. Use your mentions more than you are now

It's one of the biggest errors a Twitter newbie can make, just sucking up the noise.

"80% of my tweets are responses to other people", comments Brogan. "The result is that "I see you" and you are seen".

The concept here is that engaging in the conversation allows you to be a part of it, rather than just feeding information out into the masses without any purpose.

Photo by?James Duncan Davidson

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Related links:

• Link - Chris Brogan

Tags: Software Online Twitter Social networking Features

Three ways to get the most out of Twitter originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 02:29:58 +0000

Web visionary, Tim O'Reilly, has suggested that we could be heading into an "ugly time" on the Internet possibly mirroring the browser wars of the nineties.

Talking at the Web 2.0 expo in New York, O'Reilly warned that a number of moves by big organisations like Apple, Google, Facebook and Digg could make the Web a closed system.

O'Reilly believes that things like the Digg bar, Facebook warning you about going out into the Web, and the possibility of News Corp signing a specific deal with Bing over Google could all damage the way the Web works.

"Take the mobile phone industry for example. Apple decides who gets to put an app up, decides how it works. That's not how the web works," says O'Reilly.

Suggesting that we are going to see a showdown, O'Reilly believes that "exclusive" features for specific browsers or mobile phone operators will end in a "one ring to rule them all" scenario.

Offering advice to Google, O'Reilly says that they should be committed to being rigorous in ensuring that the user benefits rather than trying to "eat other companies' lunch" like launching Knol, Checkout, and Froogle.

Praising Microsoft for its embracing of the Wolfram Alpha and Twitter results, O'Reilly?quotes Jeff Jarvis of CUNY saying that companies should "Do what you do best. Link to the rest".

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Tags: Software Online Google Microsoft Apple Facebook Twitter

O'Reilly: Ugly times ahead for the Internet originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:36:44 +0000

With Twitter all the rage as a marketing tool, Stephen Fry gave a stern warning this morning to businesses not to turn the mirco-blogging service into something of their own. The actor, writer and self-proclaimed "twillionaire" was speaking at the 140 Conference today at the O2 in Greenwich, attended by a large number from the corporate world and those looking to start-up businesses when he said:

"So many of you are here to talk about your strategy and your selling and so it's up to you to understand the nature of the phenomenon [Twitter]. It is human shaped, not business shaped. It's up to you to remember the shape of it, not for Twitter to shift for business. If this happens the great buzz of Twitter will be removed".

In a speech which compared the power of the social network to the huge impact on politics of the first magazines when the printing press was invented, Mr Fry emphasised the need for Twitter to remain about the conversation, the prattle, the idle chat for it to continue.

"These first publications, many of which still continue, had names like the Idler, Rambler, Tattler, Spectator".

"We are human beings. We shouldn't have to justify something by what function it has. It is simply a way of getting people to babble inconsequentially to each other. It's called Twitter. Not Serious Debate or Marketing Tool. If you forget that, you forget the purpose of it".

Only a matter of weeks since Mr Fry threatened to quit the service after some negative remarks about his tweets being boring, the national treasure also took the time to highlight Twitter's darkside as much as a reflection of the Internet as a whole, describing the online world as a city.

"Just like a city it has its art galleries and museums but it also has its slums and its red light districts. It has an anarchy and a liberty and sometimes we don't want to be in these cities anymore, but cities aren't places that we allow corporations like Apple and Microsoft to come into and redesign at will".

Mr Fry also took the time to outline his distaste for the section of the press he described as "dead wood journalists" making reference to those comment columnists who originally slated Twitter and now use it to push their stories. He also described a shift in power away from the hacks who no longer sit as the gate keepers to PR. With so many followers, who needs to give interviews to promote their books any more?

Interestingly the epilogue to the speech was delivered by the subsequent speaker, Andrew Keen, long after the awkward moment when Mr Fry was crowned king of Twitter live on stage with a very real, or unreal as it were, plastic crown.

Keen pointed out that the new order may have cut out the power of the companies who cannot stop their customers talking to one another and the power of the journalists as Mr Fry demonstrated, but it's not as if that power has gone. In fact it's only shifted and condensed in a more potentially dangerous way by being handed over to the twillionaires like Stephen Fry who can trash products such as Vista Vaios and the BlackBerry Storm or anything else with a single phrase of less than 140 characters.

Fortunately, there's no doubt that Mr Fry is a thoroughly honourable man but it's an interesting by-product of Twitter to be pointed out. One can only hope that someone who would abuse such a position would not be the kind of person to attract so many followers in the first place.

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Related links:

• News - Stephen Fry attacks copyright
• News - Orange debuts MMS Twitter updates

Tags: Software Twitter Stephen Fry Social networking

Stephen Fry: "Twitter is people-shaped, not business-shaped" originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:18:54 +0000

Orange has announced a new service for Twitter users that'll allow them to send images to the microblogging service by attaching them to MMS messages. It's called "Snapshot" and is apparently the first service in the world to offer that functionality.

Oh, and Orange UK has turned on Twitter too. That means that Orange users can send either texts or picture messages to 86444 and have them appear on Twitter, as well as on the Snapshot website, where you can snoop on the messages that people have been sending.

There's no charge beyond a regular SMS or MMS fee, and the shortcode is the same as the one used by O2 and Vodafone to avoid confusion. Orange is the third UK operator to enable Twitter messages, leaving T-Mobile and 3 in the not-enabled-yet camp.

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Tags: Mobile phones Twitter Orange MMS Websites

Orange debuts MMS Twitter updates originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:42:59 +0000

A survey of 2000 internet users in the UK from GfK NOP has found that iTunes still remains by far the most popular music service, but that new entrant Spotify is shooting rapidly up the charts, despite having only just celebrated its 1st birthday.

The survey asked participants which music services they used, and 11% said Spotify. That puts it in fourth place behind Real Player (13%), Amazon (24%) and iTunes sitting at the top with 50% approval rating. Spotify sits ahead of the slightly older Last.fm (7%), MP3.com (5%) and Napster (4%). 60% of users stream music direct from the Web.

In the navigation arena, Google Maps dominates with 72% of those surveyed saying they used it. The AA came in second place with 40% and Multimap was third with 35%. Behind that came Mapquest (7%), MSN Maps (4%), Yahoo Maps (4%) and Streetmap (3%).

When it comes to social networking, new boy Twitter draws for second place with MySpace - but both only have 4% of people who use them as their main social network. Bebo is even lower with 2%, but Facebook romps home with over 74% of users picking it as their favourite.

IM is similarly dominated by one provider - Windows Live Messenger. 50% picked it as their main provider, with 16% going for Facebook chat, Yahoo IM coming in third with 8%, Skype at 6%, AIM at 5% and Google Talk coming in at just 2%.

Webmail is closer - 33% opt for Hotmail, but Yahoo Mail was chosen by 14%, 10% picked their own ISP's service, and only 6% have "Gone Google" and picked up a Gmail account. Interestingly, a further 6% said they used email provided by a social network - is this MySpace mail?

Lastly, Skype wins out when it comes to VoIP - 60% of respondents picked it as their favourite online voice-calling app. Google Talk was second with 13%, and VoIP.com and Gizmo came in third with 3% each.

Of course, while the best provider is winning the day in some categories, others are dominated by bloated former giants commanding the attention of people who are too lazy to make a change. Which would you pick as your favourite in each category? Let us know in the comments below.

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Tags: Software Online Websites Music IM Mapping Software Social Networks Email iTunes Spotify MySpace Twitter Facebook Amazon Lastfm Gmail Hotmail Skype Yahoo Microsoft Google Statistics

iTunes still most popular music service by far originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:41:43 +0000

Google has introduced a couple of small changes to how its communication platform Wave behaves, in response to public demand. After users complained that public waves were clogging up inboxes, Google has tweaked the functionality so that waves are now "followed", and it's possible to "unfollow" a wave.

The new "unfollow" option replaces the old "mute" one. A Wave that's been unfollowed, however, can still be found through a search or if you've put it in a folder or saved search. The waves don't disappear, so don't worry about losing one.

The language is straight out of rival communications platform Twitter, which allows users to "follow" and "unfollow" each other. It's interesting to see Google employ that language in what it's pushing as a totally new, built-from-the-ground-up, communications platform.

Intriguingly, Google ends its blog post saying: "We're also thinking of expanding the following concept to let you follow people, groups, and searches" - could Wave be about to become more of a full on Twitter competitor? We'll keep you posted.

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Tags: Software Online Google Google Wave Twitter

Google makes Wave a little more Twittery originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:08:59 +0000

Microsoft has confirmed that it will be releasing its latest Xbox 360 update on the 17 November to all LIVE members.

The new update, which was first announced in June, will bring with it Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm and Zune video to the console.

The Facebook integration will be through Facebook's Connect sign-in programme and will see users able to see their Xbox LIVE buddies as well as their Facebook friends.

Microsoft says: "Using Facebook Connect, you can share your greatest moments in gaming by posting updates and screenshots from supported games directly to Facebook".

The Twitter application will allow Xbox gamers to sign into the popular service via their console.

Sony has also today said that it will be adding Facebook integration to its console.

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Tags: Gaming Xbox 360 Twitter Facebook Microsoft Zune HD Lastfm

Xbox 360 social update dated originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:40:03 +0000

@Shitmydadsays, the funny twitterer that supposedly writes down the stuff his 73-year-old dad says has landed a TV deal with CBS in the US.

In what is thought to be the first Twitter TV deal signing, the twitter stream will be turned into a TV show.

According to TV industry rag thrfeed.com/: "Will & Grace creators David Kohan and Max Mutchnick are on board to executive produce and supervise the writing for the multicamera family comedy, which Justin Halpern [the creator of the twitter stream] will co-pen with Patrick Schumacker".

The news follows a deal by Halpern for a book called "Shit My Dad Says"

The comedy's title will change if it gets on the air.

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Tags: Software Online Twitter

Shit My Dad Says lands TV deal originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:49:51 +0000

UK Labour MP Tom Watson has formed a political pressure group called "Gamers' Voice", designed to "discuss how UK video gamers can find their voice in newspapers and government". The MP announced the creation of the group, which currently manifests itself on Facebook, via his Twitter account.

The group says, in its description: "Are you sick of UK newspapers and (my fellow) politicians beating up on gaming? So am I. The truth is, UK gamers need their own pressure group. I want to help you start one up. I don't know how it should work yet but please register your interest if you agree that gamers need their voice heard in the corridors of power".

An article in the Daily Mail prompted Watson to create the group after it claimed that Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 "allows players to plot terror attacks against civilians". The article has now been updated, to remove those claims, following outrage in the comments.

Tom Watson has a long history as perhaps the most geek-friendly MP. This move will no doubt further that reputation, depending on how successful it becomes.

(Thanks to Alan for the tip)

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Tags: Gaming Politics Tom Watson Facebook Twitter

MP Tom Watson forms gamers' pressure group originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:00:35 +0000

The Royal British Legion's Poppy Appeal has called for the annual 2-minute silence to extend online this year.

The organisation has asked Twitter users to observe the 2-minutes' silence on Remembrance Day by sending no tweets during this period via its Twitter account.

The tweet "2 minute silence on Twitter 11:00am GMT on 11 November #2minutesilence RT plz" has been retweeted widely, suggesting the Twitterverse is happy to get behind the idea.

The 2009 Poppy Appeal - that helps fund the Royal British Legion's charity work with servicemen and their families - currently stands at ?1,266,920.

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Tags: Software Websites Online Twitter Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal

Poppy Appeal calls for Twitter silence on Remembrance Day originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:54:07 +0000

It's being reported that a street has been named after a Twitter username in the Palestinian West Bank. In the Askar refugee camp, close to the city of Nablus, a road has been named "@ arjanelfassed tweetstreet", after the user @arjanelfassed.

A Dutch charity, Jouw Eigen Straatnam, charges 100 euros for each of the street names in the camp, and all the proceeds go to the Palestinian Child Care Society, which funds "cultural and expressive after-school activities", according to El Fassad.

El Fassad says: "Since a refugee camp by definition should not remain permanent, selling street names of the camp is a creative way to connect people and support these children after school. Naming the street to?my Twitter account?is a symbolic way to connect both online and offline with the children of Askar".

Perhaps we need an @stephenfry street in the UK?

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Tags: Software Online Twitter

Palestinian street named after Twitter account originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:04:02 +0000

Twitter has announced on its blog that it's beginning the rollout of its promised retweets feature. The company said: "We've just activated a feature called retweet on a very small percentage of accounts in order to see how it works in the wild".

Retweets originally developed inside the Twitter community, rather than with the company. They indicate when a person wants to quote another person verbatim - usually sharing news or a link. ?The syntax is: "RT @username message". It has led to people often shortening their tweets even more to allow for space for a retweet.

The new feature would integrate the functionality in the API and web interface. While many third party Twitter clients already support retweets, there's still a substantial percentage of users who don't understand the functionality. We'll let you know when that "small percentage" begins to increase.

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Tags: Software Online Twitter

Twitter rolls out retweet feature, slowly originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:48:52 +0000

Twitter has dropped a message onto its status blog to say that it's testing a new set of notifications for those who use Twitter.com to interact with the service. If you see a yellow bar at the top of your Twitter stream on the site, then don't be alarmed.

It'll say something like "3 new tweets", and clicking the bar will expand the page to show those tweets. Similar functionality has appeared in Twitter's search results for some time. The idea behind the move is to keep people staring at the Twitter site, "maximising engagement" as some marketer would probably put it.

The feature is being rolled out slowly, initially to a "limited" set of users. Twitter says that it "hopes to roll it out to everyone as soon as we can". For many hardcore Twitter users the feature won't be that useful - it'll rise too fast - but for more casual fans, who follow fewer people, this could prove a handy tool.

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Tags: Software Online Twitter Social networking

Twitter testing new tweet notifications originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:17:03 +0000

Twitterpeek, the dedicated Twitter device announced earlier in the week?in the US could be making its way to the UK in the early part of next year according to the company behind it.

"Someday TwitterPeek will cross the pond to the UK. someday could be early next year I would guess", said Amol Sarva, the founder and CEO of Peek on Twitter.?

The TwitterPeek as it is called, has a dedicated colour screen, and is a QWERTY keyboard sporting device that allows users to dump their smartphones, email and phone calls and just check their Twitter stream regardless of what they are doing.

The new device, available at Amazon.com, will cost $99 and include unlimited nationwide service for the first 6 months, which jumps to $7.95 per month for service thereafter.

The company is also offering a $199 package, which includes unlimited Twitter service for the lifetime of device without the need for a contract.?

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Related links:

• Link - peek

Tags: Phones Mobile phones Twitter Twitterpeek peek Social networking

TwitterPeek UK bound? originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 03:48:38 +0000

Peek, the company that offers a dedicated handheld email device, has today announced a new device just for twitterholics.

The TwitterPeek as it is called, is a dedicated colour screen, QWERTY keyboard sporting device that allows users to dump their smartphones, email and phone calls and just check their twitter stream regardless of what they are doing instead.

"Twitter has become a worldwide phenomenon, but – until now – the millions of Twitter users without a smartphone haven’t been able to fully experience the fun of Twitter on-the-go. TwitterPeek will make it easy and affordable for everyone who doesn’t have a smartphone to really enjoy Twitter on–the-go", said Peekster-in-Chief Amol Sarva hoping Twitter fans won't just opt for a free app instead.

The new device, available at Amazon.com will cost $99 and include unlimited nationwide service for the first 6 months, which jumps to $7.95 per month for service thereafter.

The company is also offering a $199 package, which includes unlimited Twitter service for the lifetime of device without the need for a contract.?

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Tags: Phones Mobile phones Twitter Twitterpeek peek Social networking

TwitterPeek device aims to appeal to the Twitterholic originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:19:08 +0000

Twitter has released a new "goodie" that allows users to display lists on their site as they update.

Called Twitter widgets, the new feature "lets you display Twitter updates on your website or social network page" according to the blurb on the new widgets page.

Users can opt for four different types of widget; Profile, Search, Faves and List with the tool auto generating the code so you can paste it on your website, facebook or MySpace page.

Users will be able to set a number of preferences for the widget such as update speed and behaviour, as well as which information to show.? Users will also be able to change the size and appearance of the widget to make it fit in with their page (see below).

Once created, users can opt to have the site spit out the code for them to cut and paste anywhere on the Web.

With the results pumped out in real time rather than delayed, it seems Twitter is happy to empower people to drive traffic to their own site rather than pushing people back to Twitter to see the results.

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Tags: Software Online Twitter Social networking

Twitter widgets brings Twitter to the rest of the Web originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:14:35 +0000

The identities of the four dead celebrities a tabloid pyschic will try and contact in the world's first Twitter seance have been revealed.

The "Tweance", a paranormal publicity stunt for Hallowe'en, will see Jayne Wallace attempt to get in touch with pop star Michael Jackson, former Nirvana front man Kurt Cobain, playwright William Shakespeare and actor River Phoenix.

As voted for by over four thousand Twitter users, the dead celebs will be asked questions posed in tweets by the public, asked in a seance session by Wallace, who will then tweet the "answers".

Twitter users can follow the Tweance in real time today, Friday 30 October, until midnight.

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Tags: Software Websites Twitter Online Tweance

Hallowe'en Twitter Tweance celebs named originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:16:25 +0000

Twitter Lists has now come to the masses?and with it a host of new questions on what they do, how you can benefit from them, and more importantly how they work.

Let Pocket-lint guide you through the new features whether it's creating, managing, deleting or just following them. Here is our quick guide to the new offering.

What are Lists

Twitter Lists are basically a list of users grouped around a central theme. They could be people that work for Pocket-lint, they could be a group of actors, or maybe people in your local bowling club. The idea is that you can then follow the list and get all the messages of the people on the list filtering out the noise of twitter.

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Creating a Twitter List

Simple. Login to your Twitter account and if you have Lists enabled then you'll see a new Lists element in your right hand nav column. Click on New List and a pop-up window appears.

Here you get to name your list and choose whether or not you make that list Public or Private.

Now you've got to populate your list with Twitter folk. You'll be able to search the twittersphere for people to follow or add them from your following page or anyone's profile page.

Once you've found who you were looking for you can then add them to the relevant list and your done.

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Editing your Twitter List

So you've started a list, bully for you, but what if you want to add more people to it? Easy, you can edit your list by clicking on the "Edit List" button on the list page. The button isn't in the nav bar - that would be too easy - instead it can be found at the top right of the page. However, not that the Edit List button is any help, all it will do is let you change the name of your list and opt to make it Public or Private.

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Editing other people's Twitter List

Blocking a Twitter user will remove you from inclusion on any lists the blocked person has created. Handy in the fight against spammers or people that have created a "These people suck" list.

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Adding more people to your Twitter List

That's easy to, all you have to do is find them and then click on the list icon that appears next to their name. A drop down appears and you just check the box next to the list that you want them to appear in.

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Removing people from your Twitter List

Yeah we all hate to admit it but people can get boring after a while. Luckily you can remove people just as quickly as you can add them. It's the same icon and drop down menu. All you've got to do is bring yourself to uncheck the box.

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Deleting a Twitter List

So you've created a list of your local club and then promptly left the club. Luckily you can delete the list you've created. Found in the same location as the edit list button you can hit the delete link. Twitter will fire up a "Are you sure" message at which point you say yes and then it's gone. There is no going back.

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Viewing your Twitter Lists

With the ability to create an almost infinite number of lists you get a dedicated page to see what lists you've created and more interestingly what lists you feature on. If people have added you to a private list you won't see it. To get to this page type

twitter.com/username/lists and twitter.com/username/lists/memberships

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Following a Twitter List

Following a list is easy, find the list you want to follow and then click on the "Follow this list" icon at the top of the stream.

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Tags: Software Online Twitter Quick Guide

Quick guide to Twitter Lists originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:42:35 +0000

Millions of Twitter users awoke on Friday morning to be welcomed with a new feature on their twitter homepage - Lists.

Although the new feature was formally announced earlier in the month, Twitter has to date been keeping the use of the list feature, that allows anyone to create a list of key people to follow, amongst a few close beta testers.

Not any more.

Now most Twitter users are free to create their own Lists like members of your company to inform other users or simply follow them, however with Twitter users on the list not gaining follower count, has Twitter created a system that will ultimately end one of the more ego-centric element of the service??How many people are following you.

Time will tell.

Let us know in the comments the Lists you are following or have created.

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Related links:

• Feature - Quick guide to Twitter Lists

Tags: Software Online Twitter

Twitter brings Lists to the masses originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:22:59 +0000

We brought you news this was incoming, and it's now been released as Sonos makes the Sonos Software 3.1 available to all Sonos users globally.

The free one-button update integrates Twitter into the Sonos Controller interface, which means Sonos users can send the name and artist of the track playing to their friends and followers.

The Twitter functionality is available on the Sonos Controller for iPhone, the Sonos Controller 200 and the Sonos Controller for Mac or PC.

Other features of Sonos Software 3.1 include full support for the new ZonePlayer S5 which means it will work "seamlessly" with all previous products.

The update also brings a graphical music menu featuring icons and logos on the Sonos Controller for iPhone and Sonos Controller 200.

Sonos says the Controller for iPhone 3.1 is currently awaiting approval from Apple.

Tags: Audio Sonos Software updates Twitter Media streaming

Sonos Software 3.1 with Twitter support released originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:25:58 +0000

Mozilla has announced an interesting project called Raindrop, which appears massively complicated on the surface but is actually quite a simple idea when you strip it free of buzzwords.

Mozilla (like Google, with its Wave platform) says that "email isn't fun any more". Instead, conversations are taking place all across the Web - in IM, Twitter, blog comment threads, Facebook, and other locations. Raindrop wants to aggregate all that in one place, and sort it so that the useful stuff comes straight to you.

Unimportant messages, like mailing lists, will be relegated to the background whereas the email from your mother telling you she's booked a family holiday to Barbados or the IM conversation from your girlfriend telling you that she's pregnant pops up front and central.

At the moment the project is at version 0.1, so it's only open to developers. You won't be able to download a client just yet, and the team's first task is to create an installer for the application. Still, it sounds like an interesting idea, and we'll keep an eye on it and we'll let you know when it's available to try.

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Tags: Software Online Websites Mozilla Email IM Twitter Video

Mozilla announces Raindrop communcations project originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:47:52 +0100

If you've just accessed your Twitter page and seen that you now have the ability to create and manage lists, then you are one of the 5% of Twitter users that Twitter opened up the service to.

"We are expanding availability of Lists to 5% of users and will work our way up to a full roll-out in the coming weeks", the micro-blogging service announced.

Twitter Lists, was officially launched earlier in the month to a select handful of Twitter users, allowing them to create lists of their favourite or most relevant Twitter folk.

The new offering, which isn't available to everyone at the moment, gives the opportunity for those lucky enough to be included the ability to create numerous lists based on whatever they want, be it their employees, favourite celebrities or?the top 100 tech people to follow in the UK.

The idea, which has strung from #followfriday, encourages users to share good twitterers and hopefully make the service more meaningful.

Early reports suggest that the service is very basic with no search facility to be able to search for people you want to add to a list. Instead you will have to manually find them and then add them to a list.

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Expect third party applications like TweetDeck and?Tweetie?to add List functionality to their applications in the not too distance future.

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Tags: Software Online Twitter Social networking

Twitter expands Lists availability originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 03:30:31 +0100

Google has moved in to steal Bing's thunder by announcing it will be adding tweets to its search pages.

"At Google, our goal is to create the most comprehensive, relevant and fast search in the world. In the past few years, an entirely new type of data has emerged", Marissa Mayer, vice president of Search Products and User Experience said in a blog post before confirming:

"Given this new type of information and its value to search, we are very excited to announce that we have reached an agreement with Twitter to include their updates in our search results".

However unlike Bing's?offering, which went live earlier on Wednesday, Google's won't be live for a couple of months according to Mayer:

"We look forward to having a product that showcases how tweets can make search better in the coming months".

Earlier on Friday, Microsoft confirmed that it would be bringing Twitter and Facebook status updates to its search engine, bing.com.?

"We have two deals to announce", said the demo man at the Web 2.0 summit conference. "The first is Twitter, which will be going live in the beta straight away, the second is Facebook which will come later".

Both systems will access all public data, leaving direct messages secure and out of sight.?The tweets will, however, be vetted for quality and factor in a number of features including quality of tweet, the length and relevancy of the tweet, the Twitter users social standing (ie number of followers) as well as the tweet is being re-tweeted.

Search it seems, just went real-time.

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Tags: Software Online Google Twitter Bing Microsoft

Google shouts "me too" with twitter search deal originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:21:49 +0100

Microsoft's digital head Qi Lu has confirmed, as rumoured earlier today, that it has signed a non-exclusive deal with Twitter and Facebook to provide status updates to its Bing search engine.

The two new services will allow users to use Bing to search tweets in real-time posted on the micro-blogging service.

"We have two deals to announce", said the demo man at the Web 2.0 summit conference. "The first is Twitter, which will be going live in the beta straight away, the second is Facebook which will come later".

Both systems will access all public data, leaving direct messages secure and out of sight.

The tweets will, however, be vetted for quality and factor in a number of features including quality of tweet, the length and relevancy of the tweet, the twitter users social standing (ie number of followers) as well as the tweet is being re-tweeted.

Users will be able to search tweets via a real-time stream as well as a cloud trending option.

Microsoft has also said that it will strip out bit.ly links turning them back into full url's so users can see what the domain is before clicking on it.

The beta, which can be accessed via bing.com/twitter should be live in the next hour.?

UPDATE: Google has now said that it will be offering Twitter status updates as well.

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Tags: Software Online Social networking Search engines Microsoft Twitter Facebook Bing

Twitter comes to Bing originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:45:55 +0100

Microsoft is about to sign up both Twitter and Facebook in a non-exclusive deal to help improve the Bing search engine.

The deal, which will see both sites integrate their real-time feed of status updates into the Bing search engine is, if true, expected to give Microsoft's fledgling offering a massive boost in the real time search game.

According to All Things Digital "sources, Microsoft (MSFT) digital head Qi Lu will announce the deal onstage in a few hours at the Web 2.0 Summit".

Although the article states that neither offering is expected to be up and running for weeks if not months, it does expect Qi Lu to demo the new project at the conference.

However, the article also states that any deal is expected to be non-exclusive suggesting that similar offerings could be coming to Google as well.

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Tags: Software Twitter Bing Facebook Social networking Search engines Microsoft Biz

Twitter and Facebook Status updates coming to Bing originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:50:13 +0100

Kizoom and online rail ticket retailer, thetrainline.com, has launched a new UK train journey planning iPhone app with the added bonus being that it is free, unlike the National Rail option that'll cost you a fiver.?

Covering the entire UK rail network, thetrainline.com app is said to be easy to use and offers a start-to-finish route planning feature, using station search by name or on a map showing the user's location and nearest rail stations.

The "Next Train Home" function gives users stations and departure times from their current location anywhere in the UK to their stored home destination, while there's also up-to-date Tube information, that can be saved for offline access.

There's also some Twitter integration with the option to tweet other passengers about their journeys. Thetrainline.com explains it thusly: "It brings travellers together in sharing thoughts or sharing taxis! This quirky - and likely popular - function has a pre-loaded # tag specific to the users' trains, so it's simple to engage other passengers and spice-up the long trek home!"

Tags: Phones iPhone apps Trains Kizoom Twitter

Thetrainline.com offers free iPhone app originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:13:50 +0100

Fans of U2 will be able to watch the band's upcoming performance from the Rose Bowl in LA live on U2's YouTube channel.

Described as the first global concert webcast, those in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, South Korea, Spain, the UK and US will be able to tune in live online on Sunday 25 October at 8.30pm PT.

There's also the option to join in with the "global listening party" via a Twitter gadget embedded on U2's YouTube channel.

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Tags: Audio U2 Media streaming YouTube Twitter Software Home Cinema Video

U2 concert to be broadcast live on YouTube originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 15:46:07 +0100

Vicon has announced that within the next few months it'll be launching its intriguing Vicon Revue digital camera. The idea behind the Revue is that it sits on a cord around your neck all day taking photos at predetermined intervals - as often as every thirty seconds.

It also has a few sensors built in that can take photos at specific times. An accelerometer, temperature and light sensor can detect when you're entering a new environment and snap a photo of that, or an infrared sensor can take a picture when it detects the body heat of a person in front of you.

It has a 1GB memory, but the images taken are in pretty low resolution so it can fit 30,000 of them into that space. The lens is fisheye, though, so you'll get to see a bit more of your surroundings than you otherwise might.

The Revue was originally developed as the SenseCam by Microsoft, with the idea of allowing Alzheimers and Dementia patients to more easily recall the events of their day. Studies showed that use of the SenseCam helped long-term recall, too.

?Vicon has licensed the technology from Microsoft, though, and is making it available to consumers. Vicon's MD, Imogen Moorhouse, says that Microsoft took the decision to license the tech because it couldn't keep up with demand for the devices.

Vicon will be selling the unit for ?500, and it'll initially be marketed to researchers. That'll go on sale before Christmas, and a consumer version should also show up in 2010. We'll bring you more news of that when we get it.

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Tags: Cameras Vicon Revue Twitter

Vicon Revue camera launched originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:16:08 +0100

What will soon be the only wine to serve to the tech savvy at San Fran dinner parties? Twitter wine!

As part of a charity initiative the micro-blogging site has revealed it is to team up with Crushpad and Fledgling Wine to raise money for Room to Read, an organisation that helps to educate kids in "resource deprived" regions.

The wine - both a pinot noir and a chardonnay - will be sold for $20 a bottle, with $5 per bottle sold going to the charity, and will be served at various Tweetups.

Hit play on the video above to see Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, and others involved in the scheme, give you the low-down on the new plans.

Tags: Software Twitter Websites Wine Room to Read

VIDEO: Twitter to offer own-brand pinot noir originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 17:17:03 +0100

Twitter has started to roll out its Lists feature to some twitter users, allowing them to create lists of their favourite or most relevant twitter folk.

The new offering, which isn't available to everyone at the moment, gives the opportunity for those lucky enough to be included the ability to create numerous lists based on whatever they want, be it their employees, favourite celebrities or the top 100 tech people to follow in the UK.

The idea, which has strung from #followfriday, encourages users to share good twitterers and hopefully make the service more meaningful.

Since its launch Twitter offered a recommended list of Twitter users on its homepage, however that list was randomly generated and disliked by many people, mainly those not on the list.

Early reports suggest that the service is very basic with no search facility to be able to search for people you want to add to a list. Instead you will have to manually find them and then add them to a list.

Expect third party applications like TweetDeck and?Tweetie?to add List functionality to their applications in the not too distance future.

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Tags: Software Twitter Online Social networking

Lists come to Twitter... originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 06:37:54 +0100

Microsoft has, just like earlier in the year, offered its users the chance to take a look at the forthcoming dashboard upgrade a little early in the hope of getting rid of any bugs that testers might not have spotted.

The next version of the dashboard will have, as previously reported, integration with Twitter, Facebook and Last.fm, as well as the Zune video marketplace and its associated instant-on 1080p high definition streaming. Here in the UK, we'll also be getting the Sky Player. For most of that lot, though, you'll need an Xbox Gold subscription.

If you'd like to sign up, you'll need to be in an Xbox LIVE region, know your console ID, ISP, make and model of your TV and router, and how you connect your Xbox to your network and your TV. Even then, there's no guarantee that you'll get in - Microsoft is being picky about who gets early access.

If you still feel like trying your chances, then head over to the Xbox Live Update Preview and fill in all your details. Good luck!

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Related links:

• News - Sky Player coming to Xbox 360 in October?

Tags: Gaming Xbox 360 Xbox Live Microsoft Facebook Twitter Lastfm Sky

Xbox 360 Dashboard preview program reopens originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:11:31 +0100

As part of its plans to "partner with organizations that share our vision for positive global impact", Twitter has announced a partnership with Bharti Airtel, the largest mobile operator in India.

This team-up means a "huge population" of people can now send tweets at standard rates and receive tweets for free and sees Twitter available via phone to those that might not have broadband.

Twitter says "there are over one billion people with internet access on the planet but there are more than four billion people with mobile phones and Twitter can work on all of them because even the simplest of these devices feature SMS".

Those on the Airtel network can give Twitter a try by sending START to 53000.

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Tags: Software Websites Twitter Phones Bharti Airtel India SMS

Twitter announces Bharti Airtel text partnership originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:00:32 +0100

Twitter, it seems, hates spammers as much as you do and to show how much it has added a new button to the site that allows you to report an account as such.

"Today we've added another tool to our spam fighting toolbox that will give users the ability to flag bad accounts on Twitter", the company said on its official blog.

All users have to do is click the "Report as spam" button under the Actions section of a profile’s sidebar and Twitter's Trust and Safety team spring into action.

However, before you get any funny ideas, the micro-blogging service says that you won't be able to use it to wipe out real people although it will automatically block said user from following or replying to you, suggesting it will be a good way to rid yourself of that ex-girlfriend or boyfriend stalking your every move.

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Tags: Software Online Twitter Social networking

Twitter declares war on spammers originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:17:26 +0100

If you'd glanced at Twitter on the morning of 13 October, you'd have been surprised - a commodities trading company called Trafigura, which most people haven't heard of, and a law firm that specialises in media, Carter Ruck, were both in the "trending topics" section, along with The Guardian.

What had happened was that The Guardian had been issued with a gagging order, preventing it from reporting on a question to be asked by an MP later in the week. The paper was also prohibited from explaining to its readers why it had been prevented - for a very long time - from reporting parliament.

The population of Twitter became outraged by the censorship, using hashtags, userpic overlays (known as twibbons) and even trying to organise a flashmob outside the offices of the law firm in question. Twitter celebrities joined in, with Stephen Fry labelling the situation as a "barbaric assault on free speech".

It was an excellent example of John Gilmore's famous quote - "The Internet interprets censorship as damage and routes around it". The information that the law firm was trying to keep hidden was being freely passed around.

Eventually The Guardian's editor, Alan Rusbridger, announced that the injunction had been lifted - "Thanks to Twitter/all tweeters for fantastic support over past 16 hours!", he said. Nick Clegg voiced happiness that the ban had been lifted too, along with Stephen Fry.

The whole episode raises interesting questions - some are calling it online activism, though should companies have to face the pressure of the virtual equivalent of a mob with flaming pitchforks? Certainly it's true that press freedom is important - particularly the legal rights that the media have to cover parliament, but can the masses always be trusted to get things right?

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Related links:

• News - Twitter "tweance" to take place on Hallowe'en

Tags: Software Online Twitter Trafigura Carter-Ruck Guardian

Twitter forces legal climbdown originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:54:32 +0100

The world's first online seance will take place this Hallowe'en via micro-blogging site Twitter, and predictably, it's been dubbed a "tweance".

Dead celebs are the target for the session and Twitter users can nominate expired stars as well as send in questions they'd like asked.

Jayne Wallace, a "top psychic" recently used by The Sun to supposedly contact the spirit of Jade Goody, will conduct the tweance.

The contact with the deceased stars - questions asked and presumably "answers" - will be tweeted between 10am and 12pm on Friday 30 October at twitter.com/tweance.

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Tags: Software Twitter Websites Social networking Tweance

Twitter "tweance" to take place on Hallowe'en originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 10:22:32 +0100

Tweetie, an iPhone application which acts as a mobile client for micro-blogging service Twitter, has issued an update which brings it to version 2. We've mentioned the app in the past as coming soon, but now it has arrived and it's live in the App Store.

There's a whole pile of new features, but the biggest are that it now has persistence (it remembers where you were when you switch it off), new message indicators, the ability to save draft tweets, speed boosts, cached tweets for offline reading and the ability to drag up to refresh - rather than hitting a refresh button.

Annoyingly the update isn't free for existing Tweetie users. It'll cost you ?1.79 (or $3 in the States) to upgrade, whether or not you bought the original version. That hasn't proved popular, but most reviews (including ours) reckon that it's worth the outlay - less than the price of a pint.

Go grab it, and let us know what you think in the comments below.

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Tags: Software Online tweetie Twitter Software updates

Tweetie upgrades to version 2 originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:43:49 +0100

Twitter has rubbished reports that it would soon be letting its users post video tweets, news that would have major implications for the existing Twitter clients and services market.

The Telegraph reported that as an attempt to stay at the cutting edge of social networking, instead of using services such as Twideo and Tweetube, that offer hyperlinks to videos in tweets, "live video-tweeting" was coming soon.

"Twitter's founders hope by adding live video-tweeting it will help boost its prominence as a fashionable social-networking tool again", said the report.

However, Twitter founder Biz Stone has replied direct to an enquiry on the topic from social media site Mashable, stating, in no uncertain terms:

"Haven't read the piece but no video hosting. 140 characters of text including spaces. You know the drill!"

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Tags: Software Online Twitter Rumours

Live video-tweeting report debunked originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 10:11:04 +0100

INQ's Mini 3G handset is now on sale. The phone is available from 3 through its high street stores and online, and will be free on ?15 per month "Internet Texter" contracts with free internet, free 3-to-3 calls, free voicemail and 75 minutes talk-time. Alternatively, you can pick it up for ?60 on Pay As You Go.

The handset has Facebook, IM, Skype and Twitter functionality along with a 2.2-inch display and 2-megapixel camera. It's a beast with many backs - 8, to be precise. Red comes in the box and seven other options will be available from 3 stores.

The INQ Chat 3G, which has a full QWERTY keyboard and BlackBerry-like form factor, will be out later in the year. We'll bring you more news of that as it arrives.

Related links:

• News - INQ Mini 3G priced for October launch on 3
• Photos - INQ Mini 3G and INQ Chat 3G

Tags: Phones Mobile phones 3 Inq INQ Mini 3G Twitter Tariffs

INQ Mini 3G on sale now originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 11:43:21 +0100

Twitter is to embrace other languages, the company has confirmed, rolling out?support for French, Italian, German, and Spanish.

"We hope to offer Twitter in several other languages. No matter how sophisticated technology gets, we're reminded daily that it's about people and that's something we've taken to heart regarding translating Twitter", Biz Stone, one of the company's founders and designated communicator said on the company blog.

Like other features the company is working on such as retweet timelines and geo-locating tweets, the company it currently only testing the water with the new offering:

"Starting today, we are offering a simple tool for people with experience in other languages to suggest translations for the Twitter web site. Then, we'll follow up technically", said Stone before commenting: "We are inviting a small group of people to become volunteer translators at first. As more folks volunteer, the translation suggestions should accumulate faster and we'll have enough material to respond by making Twitter available not only in English and Japanese but also French, Italian, German, and Spanish".

As for the hundreds of other languages around the world? Unfortunately you'll just have to wait.

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Tags: Software Twitter Online

Bonjour, ciao, guten tag, hola - Twitter to add more languages originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:52:03 +0100

Twitter has acknowledged that its micro-blogging service has experienced difficulties on Thursday after millions of Twitter users suddenly saw their timelines go quiet.

While Twitter, the website, and the third-party applications stayed up during the fault, users' timelines, where they see other people's comments and thoughts went "stale".

"We are currently investigating a problem causing many users’ timelines to be delayed. We will update with status here shortly," the company said in a status update before later adding "Timelines remain stale for users. We are deploying fixes to address the problem."

The news comes as the site is rumoured to be about to sign a major search deal with Microsoft to provide search data for the company's Bing search engine.

All Things D reports: "According to sources familiar with the situation - Twitter is in advanced talks with Microsoft and Google separately about striking data-mining deals, in which the companies would license a full feed from the micro-blogging service that could then be integrated into the results of their competing search engines".

Microsoft's Bing already encompasses some Twitter content in its results while Google recently announced Hot Trends that offers real-time results for popular search terms, so it's a little unclear at this stage what the talks may result in.

Either way, for now the world of Twitter seems deadly silent.

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Related links:

• Link - Pocket-lint on twitter

Tags: Software Twitter Online

Twitter deadly silent as users' timelines go stale originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:08:56 +0100

It's being reported that Twitter is currently in mega-money talks with Microsoft and Google, discussing using Twitter content in searches separately with each search giant.

All Things D reports: "According to sources familiar with the situation - Twitter is in advanced talks with Microsoft and Google separately about striking data-mining deals, in which the companies would license a full feed from the microblogging service that could then be integrated into the results of their competing search engines".

Microsoft's Bing already encompasses some Twitter content in its results while Google recently announced Hot Trends that offers real-time results for popular search terms, so it's a little unclear at this stage what the talks may result in.

All Thing D's sources say "a number of scenarios are being discussed to compensate Twitter for its huge and potentially valuable trove of real-time and content-sharing information, generated from the data stream of billions of tweets from its 54 million monthly users".

We will keep you posted.

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Tags: Software Websites Twitter Google Microsoft Biz Rumours Search engines Social networking

Twitter in talks with Microsoft, Google originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 18:00:50 +0100

3, no stranger to Twitter-friendly phones, has announced it is to offer a special version of the Sony Ericsson T715, featuring an integrated Twitter application that is available only on its network.?

The integrated Twitter application gives users one click access to their Twitter page, where users can read, reply and search for Tweets, upload photos via Twitpic and view profiles.

The T715 on 3 also features an integrated Facebook application, as well as a YouTube uploader pre-loaded on to the device, Windows Live Messenger and free Skype to Skype calls.

The slider gets a 2.2-inch screen and a 3.2-megapixel camera. It's available in galaxy silver, rouge pink and petrous grey and is available in 3 Stores from now on costing ?99 on PAYG or free on the ?15 Texter tariff.

Tags: Phones Mobile phones 3 Twitter Facebook Sony Ericsson Sony Ericsson T715

Sony Ericsson T715 gets integrated Twitter app on 3 originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:53:55 +0100

Twitter is testing a geolocation system that automatically detects and marks where users are Tweeting from. The feature is opt-in, so if you're concerned about privacy then you can turn it off.

Interestingly, however, it'll be available to third party developers - so if you're a regular tweeter then it should be relatively easy for someone to knock together a mashup that tracks your movements on a map.

Some users have reported that red pin-shaped dots are appearing on a map alongside their tweets - though many are also placed off the coast of Ghana at 00 latitude and 00 longitude - this is likely to be a result of the service being unable to detect their location.

A Twitter staff member, Raffi Krikorian, announced the development by saying: "As some of you may have already noticed, we've started going through the first steps to get the geolocation API out our door. There are a few more steps in the process that i want to share with all of you".

"There will also always be a tag in the status object regardless of whether there is a location attached to the tweet or not. If there is no location, then the tag will be empty. If there is a location, then the tag will be populated".

The new feature isn't far off a full release, Krikorian says: "We've deployed for internal testing, and soon we'll be turning this on for the general audience".

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Related links:

• News - UK Court serves writ via Twitter

Tags: Software Car And GPS Websites Twitter Online GPS software Social networking

Twitter tests new geolocation features originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 11:24:15 +0100

The latest fad in the world of weight loss is Twitter-based, as an app that's designed to work with the micro-blogging site is making headline news.

Tweet What You Eat is an online food diary that integrates with Twitter, broadcasting to all what it is you've just stuffed into your mouth, on a real-time basis.

With the thinking behind it to shame people into eating less, or at least eating more healthily, it also offers info on food, including calorie counts.

If you thought that some folk's Twitter chat could not get any more dull, expect an explosion of "museli 340 calories" and "half a Milky Way 130 calories" soon as celebs are helping to promote the diet with Twitter-lover Stephen Fry said to have lost 6 stone in 6 months.

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Related links:

• Link - TweetWhatYouEat.com

Tags: Software Websites Twitter Tweet What You Eat

Twitter aids weight loss originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 09:32:24 +0100

A UK court has ordered that an injunction be delivered via Twitter, in a move that's being seen as a landmark legal first. The writ is being issued against an anonymous Tweeter who's squatting on the @blaneysblarney account and impersonating Donal Blaney - the owner of a firm of solicitors.

The Tweeter in question will be served the writ by the high court the next time they access the service. Andre Walker from the firm, Griffin Law, said: "Whoever they are, they will be told to stop posting, to remove previous posts and to identify themselves to the High Court via a web link form".

The barrister who won the injunction, Matthew Richardson, said: "People have to learn that they can no longer hide behind the cloak of anonymity the Internet provides and break the law with impunity".

Twitter is working on premium offerings on its site where users will be able to pay to have their account verified, after which a seal will appear on their profile, indicating that they're the real deal.

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• News - Courtney Love sues Guitar Hero publishers over Cobain likeness

Tags: Software Online Websites Twitter

UK Court serves writ via Twitter originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:17:10 +0100

Twitter has announced on its official blog that it'll be launching a new feature soon called "Lists". This allows you to create lists of Twitter users within a certain subset like, for example, Pocket-lint's Top 100 UK Tech Tweeters list.

Lists are viewable by the public by default, though it's possible to make them private, and any lists you create are linked from your profile - other users can then subscribe to them. Twitter's aiming for this to be a way to discover new users.

The functionality will be available in the Twitter API soon, too. That's due in "a few days", according to the company, and will mean that Lists will start showing up in third party Twitter clients. The functionality is still in limited testing, though, so won't be available yet on all accounts.

Twitter says it created the feature "because of the frequent requests we received from people who were looking for a better way to organize information on Twitter". Sounds interesting - we'll let you know when it launches publicly.

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• News - No Twitter ads planned before 2010
• News - The Top 100 UK tech folk to follow on Twitter

Tags: Software Websites Online Twitter

Twitter announces Lists functionality originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:01:09 +0100

Twitter client Tweetie 2 has been announced as coming soon - first for iPhone, then for Mac.

With an offline mode, the new iPhone version will get a drafts manager, Twitter contacts can be linked to contacts in the iPhone address book and it will offer threaded conversations too.

Other new features will include full landscape support, a redesigned compose screen and the ability to save searches.

Tweetie 2 for Mac will be a completely free upgrade but Tweetie 2 for iPhone will be "a whole new app" for OS 3.0 devices.

Following the necessary App Store approval it will be available to download for $2.99.

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Tags: Software Twitter iPhone apps Mac software

Tweetie 2 announced as coming soon originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 09:26:14 +0100

It's rumoured that the next Xbox 360 update will be arriving in October. The October issue of Sky Magazine says that the Sky Player will be avaialble to download on the console, and a web address that the publication links to also features "OCT" in the url.

The service was announced earlier in the year, but hasn't been available until now. To use it, you'll need two active subscriptions - one for Xbox Live Gold membership, costing ?40 per year, and one for Sky Player - ?15 per month, which is ?180 for a year. Is on-demand TV on your Xbox worth ?220 per year to you?

Along with Sky Player, it's expected that the already-announced Facebook and Twitter integration (which also require Xbox Live Gold) will be included in the update. We'll bring you more news of the Dashboard refresh when it's officially announced.

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• News - Sky Player comes to Xbox 360
• Link - Sky Player on Xbox 360 coming soon

Tags: Gaming Xbox 360 Microsoft Sky Home Cinema Twitter Facebook Rumours

Sky Player coming to Xbox 360 in October? originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 17:31:04 +0100

Twitter has revealed it has completed a new round of funding, but it's the amount the funding values the social networking site at that's making headlines.

Two anonymous sources have told Bloomberg that the amount Twitter has received is $100 million, and adds up to a 10% stake. This therefore means that the investors see Twitter's overall value as $1 billion.

Twitter has confirmed the investments, and the names of the companies in a blog post, but makes no mention of amount, other than it is "significant". From Twitter's Evan Williams:

"There's a lot of talk today about our financing. Yesterday we closed a significant round of funding with a group of investment firms that we're excited to publicly thank: Insight Venture Partners, T. Rowe Price, Institutional Venture Partners, Spark Capital, Benchmark Capital, and Morgan Stanley".

"It's interesting to see, almost 10 years since we had the first Internet bubble, that we've now got billion-dollar valuations on companies that haven't defined how they're going to monetize their traffic", David Garrity, principal at GVA Research LLC in New York commented to Bloomberg.

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Related links:

• Link - Twitter

Tags: Software Websites Online Twitter Biz

New Twitter funding values company at $1 billion originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 10:49:04 +0100