Showing posts with label Facebook. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Facebook. Show all posts
Facebook has spruced up its messenger app to stay in the race, especially with WhatsApp hogging all the limelight. It has been around for a while and the recently updated version looks quite promising. To begin with, now you no longer need to have a Facebook account to use the messenger; you can simply sign-up with your phone number. While this may seem insignificant, there are still a sizeable number of people who do not have a Facebook account and most importantly, it makes the app universal just like WhatsApp and others. Secondly, the app now also features the ability to send voice messages. We tested the app and here’s what we found.
The app is swift and you won't expereince lag
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Features and UI
The look and feel is in keeping with Facebook, so it’s not difficult to get used to. Also, its layout is quite simple without too many options and devoid of clutter. On the homescreen, you will find all the messages from your Facebook account. Pressing the small paper-pen icon on the right hand corner at the bottom will allow you to create a new message. A dotted bar is placed at the right-hand corner at the bottom, just below the paper-pen icon, to access the settings. From here, you can change the message settings like notification, location services or even switch account to log-in with a different account.
If you want to refresh the page, then you can do so by going to the settings or simply sliding the screen downwards and releasing it. On the other hand, clicking on the icon on the top right corner, or simply sliding the screen to the left, will reveal your friend list. You can see who is online and simply tap on their name to send them a message. Here you will find the edit option that allows you to pin friends you frequently chat with, so that they always get featured at the top in the list. Additionally, you can drag individual names to arrange them according to your liking.
You can send text, image as well as voice message
When composing a message, you can send it to a single individual or add as many people as you want. You will see an arrow icon next to 'send', which is for the location; tapping on it will activate the location info. This will make your location visible to the person you are sending the message to. Apart from plain text, you can send an image, or even a voice message – a feature that was recently introduced. When it comes to sending an image, you can either select one from the albums or click a photo. Additionally, you can search for an image online and simply tap on it to send. If you want to send a voice message, then click on the 'record voice' option, hold down the red button to begin recording and simply release it when done. Currently, it allows you to record up to a one-minute long message.
The app will show you who has seen the message. If you want to see more details, then in the message window, click on the ‘i’ symbol on the top right hand corner. By clicking on it, you can see all the people who are part of the conversation along with their location on the map underneath. From here, you can give a name to the conversation and even add a picture for it. This is working backwards, as you can only access this after the message has been sent and the conversation is underway. You can also add people to the conversation, manage the notification for current conversations and if you wish to leave the conversation, then you can do so from here as well.
You can set the notification settings from here
Performance
If you are quite active on Facebook and have all your close contacts on it, then having the messenger app is a good idea as you can easily connect with all your friends and save on some SMS money. Unlike the other apps, the advantage that messenger has is its familiar layout—not that this should come in the way, but it sure does lead to ease of adaptability. It provides a wide range of emoticons to jazz up your message. It is also very swift and loads quickly without any lag.
You can arrange your frineds and have those you chat with most pinned at the top
However, having said that, the app needs a few more features to make it robust – like the ability to add name and images at the beginning of the conversation rather than having to do so after the conversation is underway. Also, in case you send a message and lose network, then you will have to resend your message. Another thing that we noticed was that if you have both Facebook native app and the Messenger app installed on your phone, then you will receive the notification for new message in both the apps. This can be a bit annoying. Also, currently there is no option to send videos.
In a bid to increase the reach of the app and compete with other existing apps in the market, Facebook did away with the requirement to have a Facebook account to be able to use the Messenger app. We tried to see how that worked as well. If you are not on Facebook, then you can sign-up using your phone number. It will then search your contacts and show you those who are already using Facebook Messenger or the Facebook app on their smartphone. You can invite your other friends who aren’t using any of these services and they will be prompted to download the Facebook Messenger app via SMS. The other features remain the same.
Those who do not have a Facebook account can use the app
Verdict
Overall, it’s a good app, especially if all your close contacts are on Facebook. It also has all the features that you would need and hence, you won’t be disappointed. The biggest thing going for the app is the familiar layout. And as the app gets updated, the little niggles will hopefully get ironed out. A slew of features is already in the pipeline – like it recently released free calling feature for its iPhone app, which allows users to make free calls to other iPhone users who are using the Messenger app. Currently, this feature is limited only to iOS and is available only in Canada.
The Facebook Messenger app is available for Android and iOS.
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Google published some very interesting stats in The 1000 most-visited sites on the web report for DoubleClick Ad Planner, its ad management service. Facebook.com supposedly managed to hit 1 trillion pageviews in the month of June, standing at the top of the list a whole order of magnitude higher than the next most visited site – YouTube.com, and its 100 billion pageviews.
The top-five is rounded off with Yahoo.com, Live.com, and Wikipedia.org. Facebook’s showing in June was certainly remarkable, with 870 million unique visitors creating all those pageviews – a figure that is larger than the total number of registered users at last official count (750 million), so unless the site’s membership has also grown since, that makes up for about 120 million non-registered visitors arriving via advertisements, search engines.
Purely in terms of pageviews, Baidu.com comes in second after Facebook at 120 billion pageviews. Smaller social networks like the Russian Vkontakte.ru and Brazilian Orkut.com.br, showed some surprisingly high figures, with 52 billion and 48 billion pageviews respectively...N..
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A software developer has discovered a string of code that suggests that Facebook's long-rumoured music service will be called Facebook Vibes.
Jeff Rose spotted that the code, which relates to the social network's recently released video chat feature, includes reference to another app, 'facebook.vibes'.
In a blog post, he writes, 'The vibes app connects with a music download dialog in the page though, so I'm guessing that with this release we are seeing the seeds for Facebook's upcoming music offering.'
Just vibing, man
The name was just about the only thing that hadn't leaked about Facebook's upcoming music dashboard, with rumours circling that it will launch in August.
The social network looks set to use Facebook Connect and integrate a music player into the site's newsfeed page, housing it in a tab on the left hand side of the page.
Zuckerberg and his cronies have apparently already inked a deal with Spotify, with rumours suggesting that other music services are also set to come on board.
Facebook has revamped its popular chat feature by adding free video calling that can be launched inside the social network's website. What was most striking about the launch event, held in Palo Alto, was how much CEO Mark Zuckerberg tried to distance his company from those seeking to slow its momentum, Google in particular.
The video-calling service is provided in partnership with Skype, which recently agreed to be sold to Microsoft, a Facebook partner and investor. Skype already provides Internet phone and video services, but users need to install a sizable program, and can only make video calls to other Skype members. With the new service, Facebook members can click on a "call" button on a friend's profile page or in a chat window and connect, after installing a small software plug-in.
"It's a total natural for them," says Greg Sterling, founding principal of market research company Sterling Market Intelligence. "A lot of people will use it."
At the same time, the launch, which included a new group text chat feature and an easy-to-access chat buddy list, appears to expose Facebook's increasing trepidation about Google. Last week, the search giant introduced a preliminary version of its Google+ social network. The new service, yet to be rolled out widely, has garnered considerable positive reaction from early users, though it remains to be seen whether it will take off once it's released more widely. "Now it really looks like Facebook is nervous about Google," says Danny Sullivan, editor in chief of the website Search Engine Land.
Among Google+'s features, in particular, is a group video chat service called Hangouts. Facebook's Skype service is strictly one-to-one calling, which Skype CEO Tony Bates implied make up the vast majority of video calls. But group video calls are also something Skype charges money for, and Zuckerberg brushed away questions on when group video chat might come to Facebook.
One-to-one video calls fit more neatly with Facebook's emphasis on providing ways for people to connect with real-world friends. Other social services such as Twitter and Google+, allow for less personal relationships. "Google's design approach emphasizes loose connections, while Facebook emphasizes closer, more intimate connections," says Ray Valdes, a research director with Gartner Research.
In my Google+ feature published yesterday, I had mentioned towards the end, that Facebook needs to be proactive in order to combat the new social networking rival. FB responded swiftly by unveiling a new feature that allows you to make video calls right through the browser interface, just like Google+ does with its Hangout feature. We finally know what CEO Mark Zuckerberg meant, when he had announced last week that the company had planned to "...launch something awesome" this week. I tried my hands at Google+ yesterday, and today I am going to try to find out if this new video calling feature in FB is a fitting retaliation.The new video calling feature has been made possible, thanks to the partnership between FB and Skype. Of course, you don't need to install Skype; a small plug-in takes care of the software requirements. On the hardware front, you need a webcam, a headset \ speakers, and a microphone.
Setting It UpLet's start with the basics, beginning with opening www.facebook.com/videocalling. The main page has a video on the right, explaining the feature. The Skype logo at the bottom of the screen reinforces the fact that it is powered by the VoIP provider.
FB Videocalling main page
To get started, you can click on the green Get Started button on the left of the screen. Assuming that you have already logged into Facebook, a chat window will pop up on the right hand side, listing all your online FB contacts. Click on one of them to proceed.
Click on one of the online contacts from the list to start
Alternatively, you can start the chat directly from your online friend's profile by clicking on the Call button located on the right hand side of the screen near the top.
Calls can be initiated directly from your friend's profile
Once the chat window is open, you can click on the camera icon present on the title bar towards the left to initiate a video call.
When you call for the first time, you are provided with a wizard interface to guide you through the steps of this one-time setup. Click on Set Up to continue.
Setting up a video call for the first time
Next, you will be prompted to save a small (482 KB) plug-in. Save it to your hard drive and run it.
Save the video call plug-in to be run later
This file is a web-installer, meaning that after running it, the software relevant for your system will be downloaded and installed. This takes less than 5 minutes to complete on a moderate 256 kbps internet connection.
FB video call plug-in gets installed
Once the installation is complete, the call is made automatically. Your friend is then prompted to install the same plug-in. After he \ she finishes installing the plug-in, the call gets connected.
While I was expecting a smooth ride because it is powered by the experienced Skype, all did not go as well and I did hit a few roadblocks before finally getting connected. One of the main irritating problems was that I received the following error message and was prompted multiple times to download and re-install the same plug-in.
Reinstalling the plug-in was the only available solution
Then another error message popped up, stating that "The software that powers video calling is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later." Was this a result of some kind of an outage faced by FB due to an overwhelming response to this feature? I am not really sure.
I could not make heads or tails of this one
It finally started working and once it works, you are going to get hooked to it. You can view your friend in a large video window, while a smaller thumbnail of your video feed can be seen near a corner of this window. This is similar in appearance to the Skype video chat window. The overall quality is satisfactory, though nowhere near to the Skype experience I was expecting because it is based on the same software. Audio quality is as good as on Skype (which means it is very good), but there is room for improvement in the video quality department.
Once it starts, you will not stop using it
My Take
Besides the problems encountered before I could get it started, I did experience intermittent crashes in the application. This makes me feel that the feature is still in the beta stage and was rushed off hastily to combat the growing popularity of Google+ Hangout. Also missing, is the knockout video conferencing feature present in Hangout, but that may soon be added to this service. Nevertheless, it is a step in the right direction for the social networking giant, which is facing some real competition for the first time in quite some time. With news that you may soon be able to place phone calls via Facebook reaffirms my belief that the online social networking scene is going to see a host of new features. While the companies may lose, it is the users who will always end up being the winners.
If you are a recent graduate, it can be hard to feel separated from Facebook. With Facebook, you can get the latest updates on that popular person in your college. However, Facebook is not only suitable for college students but it can also be used by older people including parents and grandparents. Apart from being a place for young people to connect with each other, Facebook is also used by businesses and organizations to connect to their own audiences. However, if you are serious in promoting your company or organization, you should create a Facebook fan page.
If you don’t have a Facebook account, you can create one at Facebook.com. After you have created an account, you should login to it. To create a fan page, go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php. Under Category, you should choose a category of your industry. Next, you should enter a title for your fan page.
After creating the fanbook page, you must upload a profile picture. To upload a profile picture, click on the large question mark on the left and click on the Change Picture link. Under the info tab, click on the Edit Information link to enter the more details about yourself. You can insert the URL of your website under the Detailed Info.
After you have setup the fan page, you must inform your readers about it so that they can ‘fan’ you. You can publicize to your reader by writing a blog post about your new Facebook fan page. You can include a link in the blogroll section of your blog in the side bar so that your readers can easily click through to your Facebook fan page. In addition, you can email all your friends on Facebook and inform them about your new page. If they are interested In becoming your Facebook friends, they will also be interested to ‘fan’ your page.
Besides making a fan page interactive, you can make it look attractive by giving it a unique design. You will also want to update your fan page frequently so that your fans will keep on coming back to it.
Mark Zuckerberg introduces three new features to Facebook: video calling, group chat and a new chat design.
PALO ALTO, California — Facebook unveiled three new products at its headquarters here Wednesday: video calling, group chat and a new design for its chat system.
In a major partnership with Skype, Facebook now offers free video calling between connected users of the site. Beginning Wednesday, users will find a Call button in the top right-hand corner of their Facebook pages. After clicking on the button, the video chat window launches on your Facebook page, inside of your browser window.
“Think of this simply as a mini-Skype client,” said Skype CEO Tony Bates during the announcement. “One that’s obviously embedded in a very attractive way.”
The group chat announcement comes as an add-on to Facebook’s already existing chat function. When you’re chatting with a friend on your Facebook page, a button allows you to add other friends to the chat.
Finally, the company redesigned the chat window, so your Friends list can now vary in size relative to your browser window. A list of friends who are online will appear, as well as those who are offline that you message with the most.
The new Facebook chat integrates Skype for video conferencing.
The video-chat announcement — obviously the star of the show — comes as a competitive jab at Silicon Valley media giants Google and Apple. Apple introduced its FaceTime video-chatting protocol in 2010, available for Macs, iPhones and iPads. And Google last week launched its brand-new social networking site Google+. Facebook, Apple and Google’s intentions are clear: to lure customers into their media ecosystems with the hippest social networking tools.
Facebook’s partnership with Skype is, in essence, a partnership with Microsoft, who acquired the chatting platform for $8.5 billion. The move should benefit Microsoft, too, by expanding Skype’s presence into the social networking realm.
Google’s social network launched with Hangouts, a group video-chat tool, which can host up to 10 users in a video conference. By contrast, Facebook’s offering with Skype does not offer a group-chat version.
“Today we’re doing one-on-one,” said Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, when asked about a possible group chat addition. “The companies [Skype and Facebook] have been working together for a while.”
Skype CEO Tony Bates (left) and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg introduce Skype video chatting for Facebook.
But Facebook isn’t talking much about Google today. When asked what he thought about the competing company’s social service, Zuckerberg was tight-lipped: “I’m not gonna say a lot about Google.” Though he did implicitly refer to Google when he mentioned “a lot of companies entering the social space.” In other words, Facebook did social first, and Google and company are now hopping on the bandwagon as it takes off.
Speculation on today’s announcement ran high on the mobile arena. The New York Times reported that the first official Facebook iPad app was in the works.
But mobile news was scant at the conference today, and there was no Facebook iPad app among the announcements. “Video calling isn’t live for mobile yet,” Zuckerberg said, though he hinted at more to come. “It’s the beginning of launch season, 2011.”
Google+ launched with an accompanying Android mobile application for handheld devices; the iOS app is reportedly waiting for Apple’s App Store approval. Nearly two years ago to the day, Facebook launched its iPhone app. The app is also available for the iPod Touch and Android phones. Yet still no tablet-optimized versions created by Facebook itself have been previously released (both RIM and HP developed their own versions for the BlackBerry PlayBook and TouchPad, respectively).
As of today, Facebook hosts 750 million active users, according to Zuckerberg.
Most awesome as well as interesting news that comes out from the makers of Facebook is that they have now provided with an additional feature of video calling within the already existing Facebook profile. The new video calling feature has been made possible, thanks to the partnership between FB and Skype and for this you just need a webcam, a headset\speakers, and a microphone.
It should be noted that the Facebook have now responded swiftly to the Google's new social networking site, Google+, by unveiling a new feature that allows you to make video calls right through the browser interface, just like Google+ does with its Hangout feature.
In order to set up this new feature, first of all, you must go on to www.facebook.com/videocalling, where there would be a video on the right, explaining the feature. The Skype logo at the bottom of the screen reinforces the fact that it is powered by the VoIP provider.
Once you have already logged into Facebook, a chat window will pop up on the right hand side, listing all your online FB contacts. Click on one of them to proceed. Also you can start the chat directly from your online friend's profile by clicking on the Call button located on the right hand side of the screen near the top. Similarly, once the chat window is open, you can click on the camera icon present on the title bar towards the left to initiate a video call.
I’m sure there’s more than one way to easily transfer your Facebook photos and albums to Google’s Picasa service (which will apparently be renamed Google Photos soon, according to social media industry blog Mashable). If you know of a good method for moving from one to the other, do share it in a comment below, but I would like to highlight one that launched very recently.
"Facebook is a social utility that connects people with friends and others who work, study and live around them. People use Facebook to keep up with friends, to share links, to share photos and videos of themselves and their friends, and to learn more about the people they meet." --Facebook
"Facebook will launch a new video chat product, powered by Skype, that works in browser," technology blog TechCrunch said citing a source. 
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