Internet & Media- Page 782

IMDB unveils mobile trivia game for iOS

With the huge success of its previous mobile apps in mind, IMDB unveiled on Tuesday a new app it hopes will captivate Hollywood trivia buffs.

To date, users have downloaded IMDB apps 26 million times across all mobile platforms, including 15 million on Apple's iOS and 10 million on Android, the hit site's founder, Col Needham, told CNET. All told, IMDB has about 110 million monthly unique users, and about 25 million monthly uniques for its various mobile apps.

Now the Amazon-owned service is hoping to ramp up the level of its mobile usage with the release of … Read more

Google doodles into its teenage years

Some kiss a girl or a boy for the first time. Some turn to an illicit beverage, weed or powder. But Google has decided to enter its teenage years with a doodle.

Yes, Google is 13 and how lucky it is.

Like any newly formed teenager, Google attracts suspicion, derision, and not a little commentary with incision. And yet it chooses to remind itself that it is a mere pup, still ready to make the mistakes that pups make, though hopefully not when it comes to social networking.

The doodle itself is a modest affair. Just a cake, some balloons, … Read more

Spotify users steamed over Facebook requirement

Are you horrified that your Facebook friends will learn you dirty little music taste secrets?

Apparently the need to keep secret that love of The Carpenters, Air Supply, or any number of '80s hair bands is fueling a kerfuffle over the announcement that all new Spotify users must use a Facebook account to sign up for the music service.

Visitors to the sign-up page are now greeted by the following message:

"You need a Facebook account to register for Spotify. If you have an account, just log in below to register. If you don't have a Facebook account, get one by clicking the 'create an account' link below."

The new requirement comes after last week's announcement at the F8 developer conference that the social-networking giant and music-streaming service were integrating their services.

The partnership was touted as allowing Spotify users to listen to a wider selection of music. However, the integration also lets users' Facebook friends see what tunes they are currently listening to.

And that isn't sitting well with some music fans, who have been flooding discussion boards to express their displeasure with the new arrangement. … Read more

Facebook: We do track logged-out users, but trust us

There are those for whom Facebook is a way of life.

They commit themselves to it because it's automatic and just so self-empowering.

Many would not have been concerned when, this weekend, a hacker called Nik Cubrilovic offered the interesting information that Facebook seemed to be sucking in data from even those users who have actually logged out.

Indeed, Cubrilovic claimed that even if you log out, Facebook "still knows and can track every page you visit," as its cookies burrow away in your laptop's entrails, consumed by the compulsion to share.

You might think Facebook … Read more

Facebook is still free, so stop with that silly rumor

It happens every so often; a rumor starts somewhere in cyberspace and people pass it around as if it's true, like they really believe it. With all of the Facebook chatter over changes that have just been implemented--a new News Feed and Ticker--as well as upcoming changes announced at Facebook's f8 developer's conference, Facebook users can't help but join in the conversation.

From members posting about how they welcome the upgrades to many threatening to flee the social network because they liked Facebook sans updates, another Facebook tale started to make the rounds this … Read more

Zynga's CityVille arrives on Google+

CityVille, Zynga's hottest game on Facebook, is now on Google+.

Today Zynga announced CityVille's arrival on Google's new social-gaming platform. "Ultimately, we want to make our games accessible to everyone, everywhere--no matter where they play or what platform they play on."

This is really good news for Google. Getting into games in a big way with popular titles should help drive engagement on its fledgling social network. Launched as a "limited field test" in June, Google+ recently opened up publicly and has attracted 43.4 million members, AllThingsD is reporting. To really fly, … Read more

Facebook's iPad app launching with new iPhone, report says

The long wait for Facebook's iPad app could coincide with the long wait for Apple's next iPhone, a new report claims.

Citing anonymous sources, Mashable today says Facebook plans to release its iPad app at an event held next week by Apple--the same rumored event that is expected to bring the next version of the iPhone, and release of iCloud and iOS 5.

Mashable's report follows one from Business Insider earlier today about the recent departure of Jeff Verkoeyen from Facebook to Google, with Verkoeyen writing (and later redacting) on his personal blog that development of an Apple iPad-native application actually wrapped up in May.

So why haven't we seen it yet? Verkoeyen said that while he was at Facebook, the company just continued to push back its release. … Read more

Google+ iOS app gets more social with new features

Google has enhanced its Google+ iPhone app with some of the same features recently unveiled on the social network's Web site.

The revamped Google+ app now lets you join a Hangout, a new videoconferencing service in which you can chat with people in your circles. Though you can join an existing Hangout via the mobile app, you still need to open Google+ on your PC to start a new Hangout.

The group IM feature formerly known as … Read more

Facebook unfriending 'bug' gets quick fix

Facebook users who were spying on their Timeline to see who had unfriended them in the past will no longer be able to do so.

Late last week, Facebook users discovered that when accessing the social network's new Timeline feature and choosing a year, they could find out which former friends had unfriended them. When viewing their friends list in a particular year, users who saw an "Add Friend" icon next to a person's name knew that that particular user had unfriended them since that time.

As expected, folks who have access to Timeline rushed to … Read more

Google+ users up 30 percent since going public?

After opening its doors to the public last Tuesday, Google+ may now have more than as 43 million users.

So says Ancestry.com co-founder and Google+ unofficial statistician Paul Allen, who's been keeping a running tally of how big the social network is growing.

Compiling his regular series of stats based on surnames used around the world, Allen said last Thursday that Google+ witnessed a 30 percent jump in users in the … Read more