Facebook launches 'FaceDate' a dating service on Facebook (yes that's the name of it), Clear History for your data, and more at #F8, their annual developer conference. Here's everything important they announced in an easy-to-read bulleted list 😁 https://t.co/4ItaN1jZLm pic.twitter.com/j1ai48Adle

— David Cogen (@theunlockr) May 3, 2018

Facebook Introduces Dating Service to Meet non Friends

Tinder now has some competition, as Facebook has announced a new raft of dating services. It will allow people to create a profile for dating on their platform. Only non friends, who have also registered for dating, will be able to see this. Facebook matches people by a range of preferences. Because it holds more information about people than other websites, it should provide more suitable matches. This service will begin later in 2018.

Facebook says that "prospective matches will be advised depending on mutual friends, personal preferences and common interests. They will be able to find like minded people via their Events or Groups". Sites like TechCrunch recommended that Facebook set up a dating service in February.

We are being used by Facebook. It is giving out our personal information freely. It is establishing a dangerous precedent under the guise of helping us connect. It facilitates divisive attitudes and runs contrary to the true reason we started using social networks in the beginning -- human interaction.

It's a disease, so #deletefacebook today.

I have started the gradual process of using the platform less and less, by systemically operating a script which will remove my content. And there is much to remove. There are shares and likes. There are lengthy posts I posted to impress people. There are countless WordPress notifications which inform people what I am doing. Actually, I would bet that I use Facebook to stroke my ego more than engage with other people. I would hazard a guess that this also applies to many other users.

Ripple Aims to Make Investments in Startups That Will use XRP Cryptocurrency

Payments firm Ripple announced that it intends to invest in technology startups to broaden the scope of XRP - its' cryptocurrency which is presently the third biggest digital coin behind ethereum and bitcoin, relative to total market capitalization.

In January and December, XRP rose in value after a crypto market surge that involved bitcoin reaching almost $20k per coin. Collectively, the value of XRP was over $128 billion at its' highest, prior to a January market slump that diminished that value substantially. Now, the coin has a $30 billion market cap, however Ripple has been criticized for XRP's apparent lack of use. Originally, this was advertised as a banking tool, but it has only attracted overseas payment services as clients.

Chrome's built-in ad blocker is going live. This means that Google will be making the unprecedented move to block Chrome ads. While the average user may not notice much of a change, publishers are dreading this move.

The ad blocker will not block all ads. Only ads that do not meet the standards set forth by the Coalition for Better Ads. You will receive notification that the ad is being blocked, and then you will be given the choice to view the intercepted ad. All ads are subject to being impeded by the blocker, even Google ads. On a positive note, sites that have ads blocked have increased loading speeds, though minimal and an incidental effect.

Members of the United States Senate are calling on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the company that is, allegedly, creating and selling bogus social media followers. The Senators requesting the investigation demand that the practice of selling fake accounts is deceptive and even fraudulent.

Senators Richard Blumenthal and Jerry Moran believe that the practices of this company have created a consumer harm by fabricating goodwill and credibility that does not exist. Devumi, the company responsible for peddling the fake accounts, use real accounts as templates to add authenticity to false followers. The company is responsible for manufacturing followers, likes, connections, and shares on the various social media platforms.

With the FTC remaining reluctant to open an investigation, Eric Schneiderman, Attorney General of New York, has decided to take action. He is investigating whether or not these fake accounts, or bots, are using the identity of those who have had them stolen. His greatest concern is that the voice of genuine people will be overpowered by paid for rhetoric.

Would you like to work out and earn some coin at the same time? If so, you will be interested to learn about Sweatcoin, one of the newest crypto-currencies to hit the market.

This exciting new startup has already accumulated over five million users in the past year alone and increased its revenue by more than 250% in the last quarter of 2017. The Sweatcoin app has more two million users weekly, making it one of the fastest growing fitness apps available.

Users can download the Sweatcoin app and then connect it to their health and fitness data contained in their smartphone. The app tracks the number of steps you take each day and rewards the user with coins. Users can earn 0.95 sweatcoins for every 1,000 steps taken, which can be traded for fitness gear, gym classes, gift cards and other offers.

Firefox is one of the pioneer web browsing applications in the world. With the growing demand for Internet use, there has been a significant growth in the number of applications one can use in web browsing. This stiff competition has led to a decline in Firefox users over time. The Firefox Quantum browser is an innovation by the company with the aim of reclaiming the browsers lost market share.

Unique attributes of the new browser

Being the 57th version of the browser, the firm had to put in a lot of expertise to distinguish it from the earlier versions. Regarding memory space, the design allows users 30 percent less memory requirement if you are to compare its memory capacity to other browsers.Reviews estimate the browser to be two times faster than that of the predecessor, the Firefox 52.

The user interface has the complete facelift. You can flawlessly shift from one tab to another courtesy of the new Phonton UI. A new engine now powers the browser. As a way of making use of the browser more friendly, the browser suggests top stories, has additional pocket features and also the provision to save content. The new version is compatible with Mac and Linux operating systems. An Ios version will soon be available.

It's been said that most people can't tell the difference between influencer posts and advertisements.

A study conducted by Open Influence explains how people who frequent social media websites actually view influencer advertisements. It shows that about 514 adult Americans who visit social media websites were asked questions that could help marketers strategize.

When these adults were asked which social media websites they frequented the most, the following percentages were provided:
Facebook-73.7 percent
Instagram-38.1 percent
YouTube- 32.5 percent
As you can see, Facebook was a clear front runner.

Twitter has recently announced that they will soon be rolling out tests to allow posts of up to 280 character Tweets on certain Twitter accounts. The social media site has had a strictly enforced limit of 140 characters since it debuted in 2006, so it comes as no surprise that this latest announcement has generated excitement among avid Tweeters.

The character-expansion test will be open ended and the accounts participating in the test have already been granted the 280 character limit. The test accounts will encompass virtually all languages except for Chinese, Japanese and Korean (since a single character conveys more information in those languages.)

One of Twitter's Project Managers, Aliza Rosen, acknowledged in a statement that the 140-character limit was a source of frustration for Twitter users, and that expanding this limit would likely lead to people Tweeting even more.

Finding investing tips and advice has long been popular with the 75 million users of Yahoo Finance each month, although until now you couldn't actually make any trades on the site. Now the app can be used by E-Trade, Fidelity and Scottrade clients to buy and sell stocks through an arrangement with Tradelt, allowing brokerage portfolios to be synced. Clicking on the tab that says 'link broker accounts' allows users to take the first step in the straightforward process.

Michael La Guardia, head of product at Yahoo Finance points out that the company is not expecting to make money from users of the service, and most revenue will still come from advertising as it does now. However, the new app will provide value for users, and encourage them to keep using the app. La Guardia also promises more features and services coming in the future.