messaging

Google buys Meebo to bolster Google+

It looks like the rumors were true: Google has picked up Web IM company Meebo.

Meebo announced the news in a blog post today (which was brought to our attention by TechCrunch):

We are happy to announce that Meebo has entered into an agreement to be acquired by Google!

For more than seven years we've been helping publishers find deeper relationships with their users and to make their sites more social and engaging. Together with Google, we're super jazzed to roll up our sleeves and get cracking on even bigger and better ways to help users and Web … Read more

Quickly delete multiple Facebook messages in Chrome

With all of your private Facebook communication now happening in the Messages area, clutter can build up quickly. Looking at the list of messages you'll see an option next to each one for Archiving. Unfortunately, this doesn't actually delete the message, it just removes it from the main list. If you want to permanently delete a message, you have to open the thread, click a button at the top and then delete.

Instead of visiting each message thread, check out Facebook Fast Delete Messages, a handy extension for Google Chrome. Here's how to get started:

Step 1: … Read more

Let Timehop remind you what you were doing exactly one year ago today

Ever wonder what you were doing exactly one year ago? Or how about what you said on Twitter or Facebook last year? Instagram? What were you saying in text messages? There's an easy way to find out.

Take a trip in a virtual time machine each morning when you wake up by using Timehop.

Timehop will curate your Facebook status updates, your tweets, your Foursquare check-ins, your Instagram photos, and even your text conversations from one year ago, package them together in an entertaining e-mail, and send it to you each morning.

You can get started by visiting the&… Read more

Three iMessage tips you need to know

iOS 5, along with iMessage, launched last October, allowing iOS users across the globe to send messages to each other and forgo text messaging fees. We covered how to get started with iMessage before the official release, and today we are going to cover three tips every iMessage user needs to know.

Sync iMessage across all of your devices With iMessage available on the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and even your Mac, getting all of those devices in sync with your iMessage chats can be a bit tricky. The key setting is making sure your caller ID on every device … Read more

Try an alternative e-mail client on iOS

Sparrow is an attempt to get away from supercomplex, feature-packed e-mail clients in favor of a simpler e-mail experience on iOS. The interface is elegant while remaining very straightforward: e-mails are listed with the newest on top, and all your actions can be completed with simple gestures. Setup only requires that you add accounts; then you can get started right away.

Though the interface is sparse you still get plenty of the common actions and options you'd expect from a basic e-mail app in Sparrow. You can save your draft e-mails; Star (or mark as favorite) specific conversations; add … Read more

Messages Beta for OS X may impact iMessage for iOS

Apple's iMessage service for iOS is a convenient way to send messages to friends and colleagues, and because of its popularity Apple has implemented the service in its Messages Beta for OS X, which will be appearing in full in the upcoming release of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion. Many people have downloaded and use Messages Beta for OS X, but recent findings suggest having the program installed and configured with Apple's iMessage service may interfere with the way messages are received on your iOS device.

The problem appears to be some hangup with the iOS service … Read more

Facebook said responsible for killing text messaging

For years, mobile operators around the world have been living large off the high traffic of SMS traffic. But the salad days are coming to an abrupt end because of a change in user behavior that ought to leave Mark Zuckerberg quite pleased.

Many operators are increasingly losing SMS customers to Facebook, according to a research note put out Friday by telecommunications consulting firm Strand Consult. This is a simple zero-sum game in which smartphone users are spending more time hanging out on Facebook and thus left with less time to shoot texts to each other.

Of the more than … Read more

Sweet, simple texting app lets you reach out and touch someone

How many times have you given your significant other a little touch of some kind just to show you care? Maybe you slip your hand into a back pocket as you're walking down the street. Or perhaps you give your beloved's thigh a little squeeze under the table during a dinner out.

You probably couldn't count the number of times you've done this, right? This shows how important nonverbal connections are. It's one thing to say "I love you," it's another to take someone by the hand.

Marco Triverio, an interaction designer at IDEO, is trying to bring a version of this physical affection to text messaging.

… Read more

How to enable group messaging on Windows Phone 7.5

Group messaging makes it easy to hold a conversation with multiple recipients all in one thread. Unfortunately, this feature is turned off on devices running Windows Phone 7.5 by default.

To enable group messaging:

Open the Settings app. Scroll to the right, where the Applications section is located. Open the Messaging option. Toggle the Group Messaging switch to the on position.

Going forward, when you're included in a group conversation, or send a message to multiple recipients, the conversation should appear in the same thread. Keep in mind, group messaging uses MMS messages instead of SMS in order … Read more