@adabot on @snapchat (Photo credit: adafruit)

Snapchat Refuses Multi-billion Offers

Facebook has tried and failed to claim the popular messaging app Snapchat. Last year, Facebook offered the company $1 billion dollars, but the company refused their offer.   Recently, Mark Zuckerberg offered Snapchat $3 billion dollars cash. The CEO of Snapchat, Evan Spiegel, has released a statement saying they are not considering selling the company at this time. He also said he would be willing to talk about a sale in 2014.

Illustration of Facebook mobile interface (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Facebook Defends Teen Usage Policy

Facebook has decided to loosen its restrictions on teen uses. The company argues that teens are experts at controlling their privacy. In previous years, posts by teenagers could not be seen by a public audience. They could only been seen by friends. Teens did not have the option of making their posts visible to the public. However, in the past, teenagers had looser privacy settings on their account.

Facebook logo Español: Logotipo de Facebook Français : Logo de Facebook Tiếng Việt: Logo Facebook (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What Is Facebook Graph Search?

When you are browsing about on Facebook, checking up on friends and family, you may notice that there is a new feature available in the top-right corner of your profile page.  This is the Facebook Graph Search, a new way of pulling up information in your user network of friends and contacts.  By combining the data available from a billion users, Facebook is now capable of creating lists and graphs from queries such as photos of friends and "likes" of friends.  This resource makes it easier for users to come up with search terms when browsing for information on the database.

, former director of the NSA and deputy director of the CIA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Apple's Connection To Prism And Its 5000 Data Requests

Making headlines around the world this June, the Apple Prism debacle promises to continue garnering controversy. The United States National Security Agency has had a secret project called Prism for an unknown since 2007. This clandestine agency was unheard of until June 2013, when a former CIA worker and NSA contractor blew the whistle on mass electronic surveillance by the company. Edward Snowden is now in hiding but what he has revealed has left the entire world talking.

Waze navigatiescherm (Photo credit: Henk-Jan van der Klis)

Facebook And Waze Talks Fall Apart

So far, all the talk of Waze, a free GPS navigation/traffic application, being acquired by Facebook, Google, or Apple has been premature.  The most recent talks between Facebook and Waze just fell through, though many thought the two companies were made for each other.  Speculation is running rampant about the reasons the acquisition fell through, but the actual circumstances are not clear.  Still, the Facebook/Waze connection made sense, and Facebook investors are undoubtedly disappointed.

The Waze application is a locally based one that helps members of specific communities shorten their morning commute by receiving the latest in road conditions, traffic flow, and even police presence. Users pool their information about local conditions, which results in a more complete and helpful picture of traffic in real time.  Ads for services also show users where the cheapest gas is located and where their morning coffee is on sale. 

This is icon for social networking website. This is part of Open Icon Library's webpage icon package. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Employment Laws And Facebook

California and Illinois are leaders in protecting your social media privacy from potential employers by banning employers from asking for Facebook passwords. Social media access gives employers a peek at how you spend your time outside of the office, and use the information in the screening process of new employee candidates.

California and Illinois lawmakers have passed a law prohibiting employers from asking for social networking passwords from their current employees and those seeking jobs with the business.  This new hiring protocol within the business world emerged when social media became popular with today's internet culture. Businesses found they can research a person's personality, morals, and ethics with a simply click of a mouse.

Image via CrunchBase

Trends In Social Media Use

A recent report indicates that more people spend their time online on social media sites than any other type of site, meaning that it has definitely become a mainstream and accepted thing to do.

Those on a personal computer spent around 20 percent of their online time on a social media site of some type, while those using a tablet, smart phone or similar device to access the Internet spent about 30 percent of their online time on one or more sites. The survey was carried out by Nielsen and NM Incite.

Yahoo! headquarters (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Copyright remains a hot-button issue in information technology, internet theory, and pop culture, and it will for some time to come.

The overreaching anti-infringement acts SOPA and PIPA were defeated in large part by the collective outcry of private citizens, but the impulses that were driving the legislation remain as strong and far-reaching as ever, and they will give rise to more such efforts.

This isn’t just a conflict between law enforcement and a system that enables theft.  If the associated copyright issues were limited to straightforward theft of intellectual property like films and songs, there would be relatively little controversy. Then the entire subject would indeed be just a question of where to draw the line on enforcement so as to do no harm to the structure and freedom of the internet.

Pinterest (Photo credit: stevegarfield)

Everyone should already know just how important social sites are when it comes to finding new ideas for the home. Following people on the two largest sites, Facebook and Twitter can lead to many great ideas and designs that you may never have found through the old methods of searching through catalogs or even looking through your favorite home design websites. Although the top two social networking sites are great for getting new ideas, there’s a new arrival on the scene that is quickly becoming the go-to place for home improvement and all related living topics. I’m talking of course about Pinterest, which while it is only a couple of years old is already the number three ranked social networking site in the world, and it’s not hard to see why.