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Sep 30 2011

Twitter Buzz: How Do You Like Windows 8 So Far? [CHART]

What do users of the latest Windows 8 beta think of the nascent operating system upgrade? A good way to find out is through Twitter — by investigating patterns in thousands of comments and opinions.

That’s exactly what social media listening firm Mashwork did, resulting in this chart of data, taking the early pulse of opinions about Windows 8 from Twitter users between June 15 and Sept. 22 of this year.

The most surprising result in this survey of 65,968 tweets is that the most highly anticipated feature of Windows 8 is its unusually short boot time. Microsoft says Windows 8 cuts the boot time of Windows 7 nearly in half. (Check out the video on this page, where a Microsoft techie shows a laptop booting Windows 8 in about 6 seconds.)

As the chart says, this early buzz consists of the opinions of early adopters and developers. But will the general public be as impressed with those quick boot times? We asked Mashworks founder Jared Feldman what he thinks.

“In an era when getting your information as quickly as possible is king, the improved boot time will absolutely be appreciated by the general public, but the biggest talking point I’m sure will be the new user interface,” he says. “The public typically cares less about technical points and responds most immediately to aesthetic changes.”

Take a look at the buzz, and then in the comments, please add your initial reactions to Windows 8. Is its short boot time the most exciting feature?

[Graphic courtesy Mashwork]

Windows 8 Devices

Microsoft demonstrated a lot of Windows 8 devices, including tablet devices, at its Build conference in Anaheim, CA.

Windows 8 Devices: A Closer Look

These are some of the devices running Windows 8 at Microsoft's Build conference.

Windows 8: Lock Screen

"Your personalized lock screen shows you unread emails and other app notifications. The image shown here is a photo of the road leading to Mt. Cook National Park in New Zealand."

Courtesy of Microsoft

Windows 8: Start Screen

"See your apps and content in a glance on the start screen."

Courtesy of Microsoft

Windows 8: Files

"Pick the files you want to send or share from one place."

Courtesy of Microsoft

Windows 8: Internet Explorer

"Touch browsing is fast, fluid and intuitive."

Courtesy of Microsoft

Windows 8: Thumb

"The thumb keyboard feels natural and comfortable."

Courtesy of Microsoft

Windows 8: Touch Keyboard

"Large buttons help you type on the touch keyboard."

Courtesy of Microsoft

Windows division President Steven Sinofsky

Windows division President Steven Sinofsky takes the stage at Build.

More About: buzz, Twitter, Windows 8

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Categories: Windows 8, buzz, twitter

Sep 30 2011

You Spend 8 Hours Per Month on Facebook [STATS]

By Ben Parr

Google may still be the world’s most visited website with users spending nearly 2 hours on the site in a given month. But the average U.S. Internet user spends nearly 4 times the amount of those hours on Facebook, according to a new study.

Nielsen says 176.2 million people in the U.S. visited Google in August. That’s more than Facebook (163.2 million), Yahoo (149.0 million), Microsoft (134.4 million) and YouTube (128.0 million).

However, in the race for user attention, Facebook is king. The average U.S. user spent a whopping seven hours and 46 minutes on Facebook in August. That’s a full 15.5 minutes the average American spends on Facebook every single day. Compare that to the average Google user, who spent just one hour and 46 minutes on the site.

Another surprise: YouTube wasn’t the second-biggest Internet time waster (one hour, 41 minutes). That title goes to AOL (two hours, 53 minutes) and Yahoo (two hours and 12 minutes).

Overall, U.S. Internet users spent 30 hours online in August, visited an average of 99 domains and viewed an average of 3,123 web pages. And 216 million Americans spent time on the web out of an estimated total of 275 million people who have access to the web.

Facebook has been the web’s ultimate time sink for a while now, but it’s becoming clear that Facebook is taking up more and more of our lives. In August 2010, the average American spent five hours and 46 minutes on the social network. In just a year, that number has grown by three full hours.

How much time do you think you spend on Facebook per month? Give us your guesses in the comments.

More About: Facebook, Google, Nielsen

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Categories: Google, Nielsen, facebook

Sep 30 2011

Facebook Sued Over “Timelines” Trademark

By Ben Parr

Facebook has been hit with a lawsuit over a trademark dispute surrounding the new Facebook Timeline profiles.

Timelines.com asserts that if Facebook is allowed to move forward with the launch of Timeline, it “will essentially eliminate Timelines.com” and cause mass confusion that Timelines.com is affiliated with Facebook.

Facebook Timeline, a feature that was unveiled last week and will be rolled out over the coming weeks, transforms the Facebook user profile into a virtual scrapbook that lays out your digital history.

Timelines.com, on the other hand, lets users view and create multimedia timelines for historical events such as the American Civil War or the rise of Apple, Inc. The five-year-old site partners with The Boston Globe and other media organizations in order to create timelines for different sports teams. It also happens to own the U.S. trademarks for “Timelines,” “Timelines.com” and “Timelines&design.”

Timelines.com alleges that Facebook’s launch of Timeline infringes upon its trademarks. Not only that, but the company alleges that the social network destroyed its Facebook Page (http://facebook.com/timelines) in favor of a redirect to an introduction page about Facebook’s new user profile pages. Timelines.com’s Page appeared to be working normally though as of Friday afternoon.

From the court complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for Chicago:

Facebook’s use of the term “Timeline,” and its redirection of Internet traffic from Timelines’ Facebook page to Facebook’s new “Timeline” offering, infringes on Timelines’ federally registered trademarks in that it causes confusion as to the source of the services offered to users of the Internet. Indeed, Facebook’s “Timeline” offering and its misdirection of users attempting to access Timelines’ offering is intended to prevent Internet users from accessing information about Timelines.com and to allow users to instead use Facebook’s “Timeline” offering.

Facebook has dealt with many lawsuits in its young life (many of them from the Winklevoss twins), but this one might present a challenge to the social network.

What would you do if you were Facebook? Let us know in the comments.

Update: Mashable has learned that Timeline.com’s request for a temporary restraining order has been rejected.

The New Facebook Profile: Timeline

Timeline is a radical departure from previous versions of the Facebook user profile. The most prominent feature is the addition of a cover photo at the top of the page. Users can change this to whatever they'd like it to be.

1987

In 1987, my sister was born. Facebook knows these life events and includes them in your timeline.

Being Born

You can even add a picture and context to your birth, which starts the Timeline.

Timeline Interface

The Timeline is a two-column interface with top photos, status updates, friends and more.

Map

Facebook has added a feature that lets you see where you have visited. This is powered by Facebook Places.

Photos in the Timeline

Here's how photos are displayed in the Timeline.

Friends in the New Timeline

Here's what the Friends page looks like.

Changing Settings

Some of the new Timeline's customization features.

2009

More of the new Timeline

Getting Married

You can add life events, such as getting married, to your profile through the Publisher Bar. You can also announce that you broke a bone, got a new job, etc.

More About: Facebook, facebook timeline, trending

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Categories: facebook, facebook timeline, trending

Sep 30 2011

How Apple and Facebook Nearly Fell Out — Over the HP TouchPad [EXCLUSIVE]

By Jennifer Van Grove

Tech titans Facebook and Apple have a contentious relationship that is frequently put to the test. But a Facebook for TouchPad application was very nearly the last straw, Mashable has learned from multiple sources.

Facebook and Apple, united by a common interest in beating Google, will finally put their differences aside to launch the long-overdue Facebook for iPad app Tuesday.

We also expect announcements on a new Facebook for iPhone application, a Facebook HTML5 mobile app platform, and perhaps even Facebook integration in iOS 5.

This all marks a significant leap forward in the sometimes hostile Facebook and Apple relationship. It began well when Apple first set up an Apple Students group on Facebook in 2006 — “a monster success” for both companies, according to a source who spoke with Mashable on the condition of anonymity.

But the companies would butt heads many times in the following years.

How Ping Went Wrong

The most publicized confrontation involved Ping, Apple’s attempt at an iTunes social network. Ping first launched with Facebook integration in September 2010, but Facebook quickly pulled Apple’s access to its APIs. This alerted the media to a growing rift between the companies.

A source familiar with the chain of the events attributes the Ping debacle to a disagreement over iOS 4. Apple had fully integrated Facebook into the iPhone and iPad’s operating system, and was ready to launch the mobile-social fusion when API negotiations broke down. Apple, lacking confidence in Facebook’s ability to build a great application, asked to build its own Facebook for iPhone app. Facebook responded with a firm no. Negotiations came to halt.

Meanwhile, Apple was working away on Ping — and due to the stalled iOS 4 talks, decided to keep Facebook mostly out of the loop. Facebook, surprised by Ping’s launch, turned off Apple’s access to its APIs. The rest was history.

Jobs vs. Zuck

App Icon

The Facebook icon looks the same. Note the Cydia and iFile icons. Right now, in order to access Facebook for iPad, you need to be running a jailbroken iPad 1 or iPad 2.

Loading Screen

Facebook Login

News Feed

The default screen is the Facebook News Feed.

News Feed Options

You can select various filters for the app, just like in Facebook on the desktop.

Side Panel

Sliding the main window to the right reveals an enhanced Facebook sidebar. This interaction, which is similar to Twitter for iPad, provides access to Groups, Events, Places and Messages.

Side Panel

In landscape mode, the panel appears alongside the elongated news feed if swiped to the right.

Status Update

Sharing a status update works as expected. Tapping on the lock icon shows you visibility options.

Visibility Options

Photos

Photo albums are displayed in a grid-like manner, using the same styling Apple uses in its Photos app.

Add Photos

You can create a new album or add photos from your device to an existing album.

Notifications

Notifications are accessible throughout the app.

Facebook Chat

Facebook Chat works on the iPad. Users can communicate iChat style through the panel on the right.

Facebook Chat

Facebook Chat works quite well, but note the lack of hyperlink support.

Like or Comment

A modal window gives an option to "Like" or comment on a post or status update.

Places Check In

Who says the iPad isn't mobile! Facebook Places is supported in the app.

Places Map view

Places Friends View

Facebook Groups

Groups can be accessed from the side panel.

User Wall

User Info

User Wall Interactions

In landscape mode, comments and likes on a status update or wall post appear in the right hand panel.

Viewing Comments on a Photo

Replying to Comments

Logging Out

To log out, tap the arrow underneath your name in the left side panel.

Account Screen

Facebook for iPad supports multiple accounts, which is great for users who share an iPad with other family members.

Remove an Account

To remove an account, tap and hold the profile photo and then tap on the "X."

Remove Account Options

When an account is removed, all the information about it is wiped off of the device as well.

Roughly three months ago, Steve Jobs — then the Apple CEO — paid a visit to Facebook to discuss a Facebook for iPad application with CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Zuckerberg promised Jobs that the social network would release its first ever tablet application for iPad. Jobs, however, learned during his visit that HP was about to release a native webOS Facebook application for the TouchPad.

Indeed, back on February 9, 2011 — the date HP revealed its almost defunct TouchPad tablet — HP SVP of Applications and Services Steven McArthur did tout the fact that the company had been working closely with Facebook.

The Facebook application that HP finally launched in July, however, appears to be an unofficial build that disappointed users.

So what happened to the rich Facebook for TouchPad application that HP promised?

HP Plays the Cuckold

Image courtesy of PCMag.com

When Jobs learned of the webOS Facebook app during his summer visit to Facebook, he was livid. Zuckerberg vowed to get the app pulled. But Jon Rubinstein, the former CEO of Palm and then the GM of HP’s webOS division, refused to halt the release of the app. Facebook responded by restricting HP’s access to its APIs — just as it had done with Apple’s Ping, a year earlier.

Was Facebook playing both sides? Absolutely, says a source close to HP. Facebook was made aware of the application and device integrations. The company knew what was coming, changed its tune right before release — and only did so to appease Apple.

For its part, HP was furious. It had hoped the Facebook application would help differentiate the TouchPad from other tablets on the market. Another source says that HP may have considered legal action. In any case, the TouchPad was discontinued shortly after.

Kiss and Make Up?

So Facebook and HP may be on the outs, but Facebook and Apple appear to have patched up their differences.

Not only are the pair finally aligned on the Facebook for iPad application, but they’ve been working together closely on Facebook’s HTML 5 mobile app platform.

This is the closest Apple and Facebook have been to creating something meaningful together, one source says. They’re partnering because they share a common enemy: Google.

Still, there are no guarantees. Both companies are said to be scrambling to work out the final details prior to the iPhone 5 launch event on Oct. 4.

We’ve reached out to Apple, Facebook and HP for on-the-record comment.

Mashable’s Editor at Large Ben Parr and Entertainment Editor Christina Warren contributed to the reporting of this story.

More About: apple, Facebook, facebook for ipad, HP, Touchpad, trending

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Categories: HP, Touchpad, apple, facebook, facebook for ipad, trending

Sep 30 2011

Will You Fill in Your Facebook Timeline Gaps? [POLL]

By Meghan Peters

Facebook Timeline allows users to see their past updates — including wall posts, photos or announcements. It can document your entire life, starting at birth and ending at present.

But, like many, you’ll probably find that your Timeline has a huge gap between your birth date and the mid-2000′s. Facebook began for college students in 2004 and opened to the public in 2006. And before then, the idea of posting personal information to the web was in its infancy. Because many of us never documented our earlier years online or even on a computer, filling out the time period before you began using Facebook will take some time and manual effort.

We want to know: Will you fill out your Facebook Timeline? Answer our poll below, and in the comments, let us know what you might post — or avoid posting. Baby pictures? Your first perfect test score? Diary entries from junior high? Your responses may be featured in a follow-up post on Mashable.