Tag Archives: microblog

NYT claims Apple has dallied with investing ‘hundreds of millions’ in Twitter

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Twitter expanded tweets on iPhone with New York Times

Apple has been on a social networking kick lately, what with Twitter's footings in iOS 5 and OS X Mountain Lion as well as Facebook's upcoming presence in iOS 6. From what the New York Times hears, that fascination could become more of a fixation. The company has reportedly chatted with Twitter in past months about the possibility of investing money on the scale you'd normally expect from a later-stage venture capitalist: the newspaper is talking "hundreds of millions" of dollars based on Twitter being valued at more than $10 billion. Any such deal would be less about funding (Twitter purportedly has $600 million-plus in the bank) and more about getting cozy in a social world where Apple still has some learning to do. Apple might equally want to dissuade competitors from getting any ideas, we'd add. Neither side will comment, and the negotiations aren't even supposed to be active at present. Regardless, that Apple might have even toyed with a social networking investment could represent a major change in tack for a company that's not always known for playing well with others.

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NYT claims Apple has dallied with investing 'hundreds of millions' in Twitter originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 23:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceNew York Times  | Email this | Comments

Twitter rumored to be pitching in-feed video shows to studios

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Twitter rumored pitching infeed video shows to studios, wanting a few #couchpotatos

Twitter has been making a giant push for expanded tweets from content providers. It's only a short logical leap from that to Twitter providing the content itself, and that's exactly what AdWeek claims may well happen. Its unconfirmed tipsters have the microblog taking a page from YouTube by pitching Hollywood movie and TV studios on "several" original shows that would live in followers' feeds, including the seemingly inescapable reality show. While Twitter wouldn't have someone in the director's chair, it might still play a role by letting viewers affect the show as it's happening -- and of course, running ads. Silence is the only official response to the rumor from Twitter so far; don't plan your viewing schedule just yet, but do brace yourself in case Twitter breaks out a Horse ebooks cameo to boost ratings in mid-season.

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Twitter rumored to be pitching in-feed video shows to studios originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Jul 2012 14:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Twitter @ reply’s original creator uncovered, did it before it was cool

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Twitter reply's original creator uncovered, did it before it was cool

The @ reply has long been cited as an example of Twitter's organic growth, having birthed from its users rather than a San Francisco office -- but who really started it? After some in-depth sleuthing, early adopter Garrett Murray now credits the ad hoc invention to Robert Andersen, who gave kudos to an especially dedicated (and injured) compatriot on November 2, 2006. The origin day most accept as part of the common legend, November 23rd that same year, was more of a happy accident where Murray and others decided to use the now famous shift-2 keypress to clear up their conversation paths. When you see the @ reply front and center in modern Twitter apps, then, raise a glass to Andersen's unintentionally avant garde microblogging.

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Twitter @ reply's original creator uncovered, did it before it was cool originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jul 2012 05:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Daring Fireball, The Verge  |  sourceManiacal Rage, Robert Andersen (Twitter)  | Email this | Comments

Tweetbot for Mac arrives as free alpha, we give a quick hands-on

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Tweetbot for Mac arrives as free alpha, we give a quick handson

Seemingly anyone who's used an iPhone (and often the iPad) knows Tweetbot -- it's often the go-to Twitter app for those who prefer not to go the official route. It's to those users' delight, then, that Tapbots just posted a free alpha version of Tweetbot for Mac. As you'd anticipate, it's an attempt to bring much of the app's power user mojo to the desktop world: you can check just retweets of your content, mute overly chatty people or hashtags, and otherwise get more control than just watching your stream drift by. It's even (mostly) Retina-ready for that new MacBook Pro. Alpha does mean that there will be a fair amount of things missing; it won't tap into iCloud or Mountain Lion's Notification Center until it's official, for example. But if you're willing to deal with that and a few potential bugs, it may be time to brush other apps aside -- just note that you'll need Mountain Lion or newer when the app is ready to face the Mac App Store, even though it works with Lion today.

We've had a quick spin with the app, and it largely does what it says on the tin: it's Tweetbot, on the Mac. The primary differences are changes that make sense when a mouse pointer and a larger screen area are available. You can reply, retweet, or view whole conversations from buttons that appear as you hover, rather than using the myriad taps and swipes of the iOS apps. It's a wonderfully minimalist app, if that's your thing, and you can open multiple windows (currently through a keyboard shortcut) to get some of that TweetDeck-style power user layout. Our main gripe? Tweetbot on the Mac always updates in a live stream, and there's no option for intervals; if you follow a lot of people, there's a chance you might miss something. Still, for an alpha, it's a decidedly polished and useful effort that doesn't leave us wanting like a few clients, including Twitter's own.

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Tweetbot for Mac arrives as free alpha, we give a quick hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Jul 2012 13:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Tapbots Blog  |  sourceTapbots  | Email this | Comments

Twitter for Android, iOS expands those Kickstarter tweets, becomes sensitive to our notification needs

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Twitter 43 for Android, iOS expands Etsy and Kickstarter tweets, becomes extrasensitive to your notification needs

That was fast. Just days after Twitter 4.3 had its details prematurely spilled all over the Internet, it's now raring to go for both Android (as version 3.3) and iOS users. Like we'd seen in early release notes, its focus is on expanding tweets to provide a glimpse at content when linking beyond just photos. Along with showing snippets from news outlets such as C-SPAN, Twitter's app now teases content from Etsy, Kickstarter and Vimeo, among others -- just in case you'd like to know whether that upcoming game console is worth funding at a glance. Notifications are getting their own promised boost and can send an alert whenever certain Twitter accounts post any kind of update. The improved search autocomplete shows its face as well, and iOS users get a more advanced layout for tracking hashtags during live events. Users with other smartphone platforms will have to wait for the 4.3 feature set to filter through to their devices, but if you're of an Apple or Google bent, one of Twitter's bigger updates of recent memory is already headed your way.

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Twitter for Android, iOS expands those Kickstarter tweets, becomes sensitive to our notification needs originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Jul 2012 15:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Twitter Blog  |  sourceApp Store, Google Play  | Email this | Comments

Twitter for iOS 4.3 gets early teases from Twitter itself and the App Store, promises gobs of in-tweet content

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Twitter for iOS 43 gets early teases from Twitter itself and the App Store, promises gobs of intweet content

Twitter has been making a push for expanded tweets in mobile, and there's now some very strong indications that its native apps' tweets will get extra-stuffed in the near future. Some skulking around the future App Store layout from 9to5 Mac reader Sonny Dickson has shown an as yet unreleased Twitter 4.3 release carrying "more interactive experiences" for links within certain posts -- in other words, expect a multimedia extravaganza if a friend really digs that New York Times article. Notifications should also get a much-needed refinement through an end to overly aggressive alerts in-app while bringing in selective, by-user notifications to find out when Mark Zuckerberg finally posts again. While Twitter has stayed mostly hush-hush on the update, the company's own corporate development VP Kevin Thau couldn't contain himself: his attempt to one-up Facebook this weekend showed a slightly redesigned iOS app that most certainly isn't sitting on our own devices. Controversies from The Next Web over the update's identification of third-party apps notwithstanding -- we don't know if it's intentional -- all signs point to Twitter on iOS (and no doubt Android) getting a tune-up before long.

Twitter for iOS 4.3 gets early teases from Twitter itself and the App Store, promises gobs of in-tweet content originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Jul 2012 11:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Next Web  |  source9to5 Mac, Kevin Thau (Twitter)  | Email this | Comments

Twitter brings search autocomplete to the web, helps find Biebs tweets in record time

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Twitter brings search autocomplete to the web, helps find Biebs tweets in record time

Twitter had been hinting at a big search update today, and that's just what it delivered. Instead of the (quite frankly clunky) search results page, a search box at top now provides autocompleting search results that split into keywords and people. The system is smart enough to check for spelling gaffes and related searches, and results can drill down just to followed users rather than the entire social network. Autocompleting has been a mainstay of the Android and iOS apps for some time, but we're glad to hear that web users can now track down their favorite recently graduated teen pop stars faster than ever.

Twitter brings search autocomplete to the web, helps find Biebs tweets in record time originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Jul 2012 15:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Twitter post-to-Facebook integration adds photos, tags and links, makes wild nights more regrettable

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Twitter posttoFacebook integration adds photos, tags and links, makes wild nights more regrettable

Twitter has long had the option to send updates to Facebook, but most of what makes Twitter unique has been stripped out while cross-posting the night's escapades. That's been fixed just in time for the weekend. As of now, Twitter has confirmed to The Next Web that updates will automatically display the first photo as well as link Twitter users' names and any hashtags. The change isn't automatic and will require a quick on-and-off flick of the cross-posting setting before the gobs of extra information make the trip to Facebook. It's just as well -- we'd really rather not make it any easier for Aunt Mildred to see photos of our weekend benders.

Twitter post-to-Facebook integration adds photos, tags and links, makes wild nights more regrettable originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jun 2012 22:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceThe Next Web  | Email this | Comments

Weibo services ‘punished’ for Beijing coup rumors, comments temporarily disabled

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For a country who doesn't really do April Fools' Day, you know China means business when it lays the smackdown on its weibo services. Here's the background story: about a week ago there was a rumor on the Chinese web about a military coup on one of the main streets in Beijing, and coincidentally I was in town around the time (for the Windows Phone launch). Funnily enough, I wasn't aware of this at all until my taxi driver in Hong Kong asked me about my visit, as he claimed that the passenger he picked up beforehand was actually a Chinese military officer who had several intense phone calls about said coup.

But of course, nothing actually happened. In fact, the guards at Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City were pretty relaxed when I visited on that very day. As for the rumormongers, the Chinese government announced through Xinhua that 16 websites have been shut down and six people have been detained, while local microblogging platforms Sina Weibo and Tencent Weibo have been "criticized and punished accordingly," though it didn't elaborate on the details. All we know is that comments under each weibo post are now disabled until local time 8pm on April 3rd, during which these two companies can, in their own words, clean up the mess. Well, at least we now know where to draw the line for China's April Fools'.

Weibo services 'punished' for Beijing coup rumors, comments temporarily disabled originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 31 Mar 2012 22:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Tech In Asia  |  sourceXinhua  | Email this | Comments