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Technology blogger raided by police
A technology blogger based in California got an unexpected knock at his door, when local police decided to raid his home after he published a blog entry on a brand new, unreleased iPhone. Jason Chen edits the technology website Gizmodo and he decided to write a blog entry on a new iPhone, after being contacted by an unnamed individual who had reportedly found one lying around in bar. Gizmodo paid $5,000 for the unreleased iPhone and proceeded to publish several blog posts reviewing the device. The 4G Apple product has since been returned to its manufacturer, but California police are continuing to investigate how it got into the hands of a technology blogger in the first place, and whether or not a felony was committed.
Facebook CEO in privacy controversy
Facebook’s founder and chief executive office, Mark Zuckerberg, finds himself in the midst of a major controversy, after a blogger from the New York Times claimed that he had no regard for issues of privacy on the world’s largest social networking site. Nick Bilton works as a technology blogger for the Times and he decided to “out” Zuckerberg in a tweet earlier this week. Bilton was apparently interviewing an unnamed Facebook employee when he asked how Zuckerberg feels about issues of privacy—a concern which has long dogged the social networking giant. The employee reportedly laughed out loud and said: “He doesn’t believe in it.” Despite the potentially damaging nature of this accusation posted on Twitter, Facebook seems slow to respond to requests from bloggers that Zuckerberg clarify how he really feels about privacy.
Is Twitter attracting dictators?
Hugo Chavez, Venezuela’s authoritarian president, has taken his message to Twitter, despite having been a staunch critic of western internet-based ventures and Web 2.0 technology. But Chavez, who is more accustomed to giving seemingly endless speeches lasting hours may find the Twitter challenge of writing tweets that are under 140 characters a challenging departure from his earlier style of communication. But Chavez has indicated that he is able to change and in his first tweet he noted that he would “let loose” in the world of micro-blogging. Chavez managed to attract 29,000 followers within days of signing up for a Twitter account. But just how many of these followers are independent-thinking Venezuelans, rather than party functionaries and activists remains to be seen. What is clear, however, is that Chavez’s supporters and his party plan to “storm” the world of social networking, using Twitter, Facebook and a range of Web 2.0 technology.
Facebook hacker to make thousands after selling hacked accounts
A Russian hacker who managed to gain access to 1.5 million Facebook accounts is now planning on making hundreds of thousands of dollars from the fruits of his illegal labour. Known simply as “Kirloss,” this hacker has decided to charge under a dollar for each of the 1.5 million Facebook accounts in his possession. In fact, in the world of hacking Facebook profiles with more friends are worth a larger sum, although the only way to become wealthy from such illicit ventures is to put a large number of hacked profiles on the auction block. Kirloss is charging anywhere from 25 cents to 40 cents per Facebook profile and technology specialists fear that hundreds of thousands of people who use the social networking site will never know that their personal information is being sold on the internet.
Will Twitter decide British election?
While the tabloid press traditionally played a major role in swaying undecided voters during close election campaigns, Twitter is now helping to dramatically transform the United Kingdom’s political landscape and one politician is benefiting from the world of social networking more than anyone else. According to an analysis published in The Guardian, Nick Clegg—leader of the Liberal Democrats—has seen his popularity skyrocket, in part due to his strong presence on Twitter. Clegg seems to have more vocal supports on the world’s largest micro-blogging site than either Prime Minister Gordon Brown or the Conservatives’ David Cameron, and this has helped to propel the third party into first place, according to a growing number of polls. Conservatives—including right-leaning printed publications—now fear that Clegg’s Twitter surge may lead to a hung parliament, which would likely keep Labour in power, through a coalition with the Lib Dems.
Competition heats up among social networking sites
Facebook still attracts 41% of all social networking activity on the Internet, but a handful of other services are starting to catch up, according to research conducted by ComScore. Twitter, for example, is proving to be a major competitor, as the micro-blogging service has managed to increase its number of regular users by more than 500% over the past year. But Twitter still has a long way to go before it can unseat Facebook, or even MySpace, a social networking site that has become particularly popular among independent bands, artists and their fans. MySpace took 24% of the Internet’s social networking traffic last month. Gmail—Google’s popular e-mail service—attracted 15%, while Twitter still lagged behind at 8%. But since Twitter’s growth rate was noticeably faster than that of any of its competitors, it seems certain that it will overtake some of its rivals towards the second half of next year.
Facebook adds document editor
Facebook has taken a major step in what technology experts believe is a direct challenge to rival internet giant Google—namely, adding document editing capabilities to its social networking site. Yesterday, developers at a Web 2.0 conference announced that in conjunction with Facebook, they had created a new program entitled Docs.com, and this will soon allow users of the world’s largest social networking site to share, edit and create new Microsoft Office documents by simply logging on to their Facebook account. This development may serve as a blow to traditional e-mail providers, such as Gmail, as more people may simply choose to send Facebook messages, now that they will be able to edit, create and attach documents online, all in one place.
Twitter animal “cruelty” picture lands star in trouble
Hollywood celebrities might have a talent for drawing enthusiastic audiences to blockbuster films and perhaps they even have a way with words on stage, but many seem to lack some of the basic good sense and etiquette necessary when using Twitter, or other social networking sites. American reality television star Kim Kardashian is just the latest in a long line of celebrities to scandalize Twitter users, by posting what many believe is inappropriate content. In a recent tweet, Kardashian casually added a photo to her Twitter account, in which she is seen holding a cat by the scruff of her neck, a position than most veterinarians and animal rights activists believe can be unpleasant or even painful for the pet. Kardashian posted the words “good kitty cat” under the picture, which was reportedly taken earlier this week in Sydney, Australia.
Content is key for blogging success
A blogger might write the most convincing, thoughtful and impressively composed blog posts, but unless he/she manages to provide readers with regular and frequently updated content, even Shakespearean writing skills won’t be enough to make the blog truly popular. Researchers affiliated with the British Psychological Society recently presented at the organization’s annual conference, where they argued that quantity is just as important as quality, when it comes to blogging success. In fact, researcher Susan Jamison-Powell of Sheffield Hallam University went even further by noting that a blog with frequently updated content will attract more readers than a more nicely, high quality blog, where content is not added as often. Jamison-Powell followed the work of 75 committed bloggers over the past several months, and determined that blogs with the most content had far more daily visits and comments posted on the site by readers. These blogs were also much more effectively publicized, thanks to the many other sites that linked to their posts.
Facebook pulls the plug on Osama Bin Laden fan club
Osama Bin Laden, the world’s most wanted terrorist, might be hiding in a cave somewhere in Afghanistan or Pakistan, but until only a couple of days ago, he had his very own Facebook profile page and managed to attract more than 1,000 “fans” within a matter of three weeks. His Facebook page was launched on March 25th, but it is unclear whether the site’s creators were indeed supporters of this terrorist-in-hiding, his family, friends of companions, or just happened to be a completely unrelated third party. Andrew Noyes, a Facebook spokesman, thinks that the people who set this account up most likely have no connection at all to Osama Bin Laden, but the terrorist’s appearance on the world’s largest social networking site was enough to convince staff to shut the page down.
