Mashable: Latest 29 News Updates - including “PayPal Permanently Restricts WikiLeaks Account” |
- PayPal Permanently Restricts WikiLeaks Account
- Netflix Talks HTML5 in its Device Apps
- The PlayStation Phone in Action [VIDEOS]
- Your iPad Should Be in An Incase Magazine Jacket [GIVEAWAY]
- Groupon Turns Down Google’s $6 Billion Offer
- GetGlue Raises $6 Million to Build Social Entertainment Platform
- Google Acquires Some Powerful Video-Streaming and DRM Technology
- Our Favorite YouTube Videos This Week: The Dogs Edition
- Facebookers Changing Profile Pics to Cartoon Characters to Fight Child Abuse
- Google to Unveil Chrome OS December 7?
- LimeWire Prepares to Close Its Doors
- Online Bingo Board Does the Impossible — Makes Conference Calls Fun
- Instagram Now Seeing Two to Three Photo Uploads Per Second
- Wrap Your Gifts in Viral Videos With QRapping Paper
- Discover New Tunes on Tumblr, Facebook & Twitter With Exfm
- 3 Ways to Empower Social Media Giving This Holiday Season
- Thanks to Mashable’s Socially Savvy Supporters
- The 5 Nominees for “Best Internet Meme” Are… [MASHABLE AWARDS]
- Mozilla Adopts 2 Real Firefox Cubs [PIC]
- Gorillatorch Switchback: The All-Purpose Utility Light
- Check Out YouTube’s Picks For Most Memorable Videos of 2010
- Google Wants Its Products to Talk Back to Users
- Last.fm Reports Loss, But Edges Closer to Profitability
- How the World Is Using Cellphones [INFOGRAPHIC]
- HOW TO: Cheat at Foursquare [COMIC]
- Top 10 Most Watched Web Series, October 2010
- Google Buying a Massive Building in Manhattan for $1.9 Billion [REPORT]
- Susan Kare: Interview With an Iconic Designer [GALLERY]
- The 5 Nominees for “Best Mobile App” Are… [MASHABLE AWARDS]
- Google Releases Stable Version of Chrome 8
| PayPal Permanently Restricts WikiLeaks Account Posted: 03 Dec 2010 10:32 PM PST      The list of organizations banning WikiLeaks is growing; now PayPal has made it clear that the whistleblower website is no longer welcome through its virtual doors. The move closes the primary online channel for donations to the controversial organization, which has been facing increased pressure from world governments. “PayPal has permanently restricted the account used by WikiLeaks due to a violation of the PayPal Acceptable Use Policy, which states that our payment service cannot be used for any activities that encourage, promote, facilitate or instruct others to engage in illegal activity,” the company said in a statement on its blog. “We've notified the account holder of this action.” WikiLeaks has had recent difficulty keeping the donations channels open. Donations through Moneybookers was blocked in October after the U.S. and Australia put the organization on its watch lists, and earlier this year PayPal suspended the WikiLeaks account temporarily. WikiLeaks has been attracting a great deal of attention this week after it released 250,000+ sensitive U.S. diplomatic wires. Since then, the company has been under attack from hackers and the U.S. government alike. Amazon recently kicked WikiLeaks off of its servers, as did its DNS service provider. Reviews: Australia, Moneybookers, Wikileaks For more Social Media coverage:
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| Netflix Talks HTML5 in its Device Apps Posted: 03 Dec 2010 08:21 PM PST   On its new Tech Blog, Netflix VP of Personalization Technology John Ciancutti discusses why Netflix has opted for HTML5 when building the user experiences on its Netflix Ready Devices. In October, the Netflix experience on the PS3 shifted from requiring an instant streaming disc to running as a stand-alone app. The new interface for the PS3 was written entirely in HTML5 using a custom-build of WebKit specifically for the gaming console. One big advantage of using HTML5 comes in the area of user testing. For a company like Netflix, a core part of keeping users subscribed to the service — and enticing others to join — is making sure movies or TV shows are easy to find and easy to watch. To that end, Netflix spends a lot of time experimenting with different setups — both on the front-end and the back-end — to make the experience better. The key to this kind of iterative testing is the ability to frequently roll out updates or roll back changes. This is where using HTML5 becomes important. As Ciancutti says in the blog post,
Most of the early Netflix Experience Devices rely on embedded software to dictate the Netflix experience. Changing the interface then requires a system update, like what Roku did this summer. Depending on the device manufacturer, the ability to alter or update the experience may not always be possible.  However, for apps built in HTML5, that’s no longer an issue. This gives the Netflix team more control over the UX and lets them do more iterative testing. Using HTML5 also means that the UI engineers and backend developers can benefit from using one codebase. Sure, there might be display or backend layers optimized for each platform, but the underlying structure can remain the same. That speeds up the process of rolling out improvements across the product line, which helps with creating a cohesive product experience. It’s interesting to get the perspective from a company that is iterating and releasing software on a variety of different devices. It’s also indicative of the potential HTML5 has to offer. Although much of what we’ve written about HTML5 has had to do with specific aspects of the spec — like the audio or video tags — the fact is that HTML5 is a distinctive shift from its predecessors. Rather than merely being a markup language, HTML5 can be used to create web apps. Combined with CSS3 and JavaScript, the ability to build robust, responsive and powerful applications is possible. The fact that these applications can then be used on a myriad of devices really opens up the possibilities — especially as embedded platforms and connected devices become more powerful. Have you used the new Netflix UI on the PS3? What do you think of the way companies are using HTML5 as a way to make iterative changes and do scalable testing? Let us know. Reviews: Android More About: HTML5, netflix, PS3, UX For more Dev & Design coverage:
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| The PlayStation Phone in Action [VIDEOS] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 06:52 PM PST   Sony has yet to confirm the existence of the PlayStation Phone, but the highly anticipated device has now hit YouTube in a series of videos showing off the gaming phone and its Android interface. The videos, posted to YouTube earlier today and unearthed by Engadget, provide the clearest picture yet of the device. It sports 512 MB of RAM, a 1GHz Snapdragon processer and a touchpad designed for gaming. Its biggest feature though is that it runs Google’s Android OS. The first video highlights the device’s Android interface (we’re trying to figure out if it’s running Android 2.1 “Froyo” or Android 2.2 “Gingerbread”) as well as its overall look and feel (it’s sleek). The second video dives into the actual PlayStation app, which houses the phone’s games. It’s the first time we’ve seen the PlayStation app in action. Unfortunately, the videos don’t reveal a lot of new information, but after watching them, we want the PlayStation Phone even more. Check out the videos below: PlayStation Phone VideoReviews: Android, Google, YouTube More About: android, gaming, Google, playstation, PlayStation Phone, sony, youtube For more Mobile coverage:
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| Your iPad Should Be in An Incase Magazine Jacket [GIVEAWAY] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 06:11 PM PST   We’ve seen some interesting cases in our ongoing pursuit for perfect iPad protection, but the Incase Convertible Magazine Jacket could be a definite frontrunner. It builds on the Incase Book Jacket by trimming it substantially and adding some crucial features. The Magazine Jacket is aesthetically similar to Apple’s own iPad case, adding to the design with an elastic binding strap and three folding stand options. The problem with the original Book Jacket is that it doesn’t adequately secure the iPad, leaving it free to slide around in the case. Incase has resolved this issue with the Magazine Jacket, as the case now locks the iPad in place to prevent slippage. By comparison, the Apple case uses a small flap to keep the iPad in one spot. It seems minor, but it becomes particularly irritating to push the iPad back into place whenever you need to plug headphones in. Its three standing options include two viewing angles and one working angle (for typing and such). Additionally, the case doesn’t cover any of the the iPad ports or side buttons, so its controllable at all times. The Incase Convertible Magazine Jacket is available now for $50. Incase Convertible Magazine Jacket GiveawayNow that you know what we think of the Incase Convertible Magazine Jacket, we want you to have a chance to try it out yourself. We’re giving away 5 of the jackets. Each has a hardshell exterior and front flap that folds back to support two viewing angles and one working angle. It’s Incase’s latest iPad protection solution — and soon it could be yours! How to Enter the Contest:
Submit your answer by Tuesday, Dec. 7 at 12 p.m. ET. Please use your real identity in the submission so we can contact you via e-mail, Twitter or Facebook to let you know you’ve won. We’ll announce the winners next week after the contest closes. At this time, the contest is limited to U.S. residents 18 and older. Reviews: Facebook, Twitter More About: book jacket, cases, Incase, magazine jacket For more Tech coverage:
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| Groupon Turns Down Google’s $6 Billion Offer Posted: 03 Dec 2010 04:51 PM PST   Groupon has reportedly rejected Google’s massive $6 billion acquisition offer and intends to stay independent. The group-buying giant has been the center of the tech world this week after it was reported that Google had offered it $5.3 billion with a $700 million earnout. According to Chicago Breaking Business and Bloomberg, Groupon has decided that it is better off on its own. To say this news comes as a bit of a shock would be an understatement. Many in the technology world believed that Groupon would accept Google’s offer, making its three co-founders (CEO Andrew Mason, Eric Lefkofsky and Brad Keywell) billionaires. Groupon’s board of directors met on Wednesday to decide the company’s fate. Still, there may be a reason why Groupon rejected this offer. According to AllThingsD, Groupon generates $2 billion in yearly revenue, not the $500 million figure that has been widely reported. If this report is true, then Groupon is eyeing greener pastures and bigger numbers. Could Groupon IPO in 2011, or will another company make a play for one of the world’s fastest-growing companies? We’ll be watching to find out. Reviews: Google More About: Google, groupon, trending For more Business coverage:
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| GetGlue Raises $6 Million to Build Social Entertainment Platform Posted: 03 Dec 2010 04:07 PM PST   Entertainment checkin service GetGlue has closed a $6 million Series C round of financing led by Time Warner Investments with participation from previous investors RRE Ventures and Union Square Ventures. The investment comes as the service celebrates more than 700,000 users who are generating 10 million unique ratings and checkins per month. That’s more than double the activity the startup was seeing just a few months ago. COO Fraser Kelton shares that GetGlue parent company AdaptiveBlue will use the funds to expand its platform approach to social entertainment. The company has applications for iPhone, Android and iPad but intends to extend its service to Facebook Pages, third-party mobile applications and set top boxes through its newly released API and widgets. GetGlue’s ultimate aim is to change the way people connect to entertainment. The company has signed on more than 25 entertainment partners including HBO and Universal Pictures to add value in the form of rewards for members who use the apps to check in to television shows, movies and other entertainment content. Behind the scenes, GetGlue is working with set top providers to integrate social checkins into the TV watching experience. The idea is that set top boxes would be able to detect what you’re watching on TV and provide you with a faster and easier way to check in. For partners, this integrated effort promises an extra layer of user validation, especially around live programming, and is information entertainment companies are keen on accessing. Reviews: Android More About: checkins, entertainment, entertainment checkins, getglue, Time Warner Investments, Union Square Ventures For more Business coverage:
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| Google Acquires Some Powerful Video-Streaming and DRM Technology Posted: 03 Dec 2010 03:27 PM PST   Google has announced that it has acquired Widevine, an on-demand video service known for its multiplatform DRM and adaptive streaming technologies. The acquisition price was not disclosed. Widevine works with companies that want to deliver protected and branded video across multiple channels. It licenses digital rights management technology to firms like Netflix in order to assure that content isn’t pirated. This technology works on desktops, but is especially designed for mobile devices. The company is also the creator of an adaptive streaming technology that detects a user’s bandwidth and changes the video quality to match it. Other Widevine customers include AT&T, Best Buy, Motorola, D-Link, LG, Samsung, Blockbuster, NBC.com and DISH Network. Here’s what Google VP of Product Management Mario Queiroz said about Widevine on the Google Blog:
Google is promising to honor the company’s current contracts and provide quality support to them. Google also hints that it will build upon Widevine’s video tech in order to help boost its own technology. YouTube immediately comes to mind as the Google product that will benefit the most from this acquisition. Today’s move is yet another signal that Google is serious about moving into premium content offerings. As Hulu can attest, well-produced, premium content is a better revenue stream than the user-generated content that permeates YouTube currently. Protecting that content will be imperative to YouTube’s success, which is where Widevine comes into play. Reviews: Google, YouTube More About: acquisition, Google, Widevine For more Business coverage:
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| Our Favorite YouTube Videos This Week: The Dogs Edition Posted: 03 Dec 2010 02:51 PM PST   In the war for Internet fame, cats most certainly have canines beat, sending those poor puppies scampering off with their tails between their legs. That’s why this week, we’ve decided to let the pups have their due with their very own YouTube theme: Dogs. Now, we must warn you before proceeding: These video may cause cooing, clapping, spontaneous adoptions and frequent to constant bouts of “awwwwwing.” Actually, this roundup borders on disgustingly cute. So pull up a chair, divest yourself of any lingering traces of cynicism and clear your mind for a bit. And may we suggest sequestering yourself for a spell so as to save yourself the embarrassment of completely regressing to a gurgling child in front of your friends and relations? That might be smart. Shiba Puppy BooLauren Indvik: Boo doesn’t have to do anything but lick his nose to earn the “cutest puppy in the world” award. Cute Shiba Inu BabyChristina Warren: I want Santa to bring me one of these for Christmas! Dogs Singing Christmas SongKaren Hartline: Puppies dressed up in holiday gear that look like they’re singing are always cute. Tis the season. Dancing Merengue DogAda Ospina: I want to meet this dog. Max Hiking Out of the GullyBrian Dresher: Our dog, Max, is all over this weekly post! Here’s a one-minute clip of him showing off his climbing skills after not showing off his ability to listen. Plus, he’s a Westie, of Scottish origin, so this may appeal to certain colleagues more than others. Butterball DownstairsRadhika Marya: I present the little Corgi that could. My heart melted watching this puppy conquer the stairs. Pedigree Dogs Ad Shot 1000 FPS Using the Phantom CameraAmy-Mae Elliott: I’m happy to be advertised to all the live long day if the commercials look this good. Rusty the Narcoleptic DogRadhika Marya: I have to submit this second video, too. Dog vs. BalloonsJay Irani: I never thought watching someone pop bubble wrapping would be fun, but it’s kind of cool if a dog does it. Manny’s First SnowfallEmily Banks: I can’t resist; here’s a video of my dog, Manny, playing in the snow for the first time. Excuse the poor camera work and sniffles. Kimiko Still Loves the Shiba Inu Puppy CamMeghan Peters: A Shiba Inu watching the Shiba Inu puppy cam. Awwww! Skateboarding DogBlake Robinson: Skateboarding dog! David Bowie, “Diamond Dogs”Brenna Ehrlich: Technically, this song isn’t about real dogs, but, then, I don’t like dogs — what with the drooling and the shedding and chewing on stuff. But this is an awesome post-apocalyptic jam, and there’s no better way to close out a week than that, am I right? Image courtesy of Emily Banks (that’s her dog, Ranger) More About: dogs, favorite-youtube-videos, music, viral video, youtube For more Web Video coverage:
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| Facebookers Changing Profile Pics to Cartoon Characters to Fight Child Abuse Posted: 03 Dec 2010 02:39 PM PST   Why is Rocko, that one-dimensional wallaby from the ’90s cartoon series, now a friend of mine on Facebook? And Charlie Brown? And Chip ‘n’ Dale? Other Facebook users — if they haven’t jumped on the bandwagon already — will likely see a similar trend in the next few days. A new campaign is asking users to change their profile picture to a photo of a favorite childhood cartoon to raise awareness of child abuse. According to a Facebook Page that appears to be promoting the profile pic switch, this is the Campaign to End Violence Against Children – Childhood Cartoon Faces. “Until Monday (Dec. 6), there should be no human faces on Facebook but an invasion of memories. This is for eliminating violence against children,” the page says. The undisclosed campaign creator asks Facebook users to change their profile pic and share the above statement in their status. 
The origins of this campaign remain a mystery, as it doesn’t seem to be affiliated with any official organization. And not that you need to limit child abuse awareness to a certain time of year, but, at least in the U.S., National Child Abuse Prevention Month isn’t until April. Some Facebook commenters have also pointed out the perhaps misdirected effort, posting messages skeptical of any tangible outcomes. “Yeah…like this is gonna help end violence against children…” one commenter wrote. Regardless of the campaign’s effectiveness, or what Malcolm Gladwell would probably say about it, the Childhood Cartoon Faces campaign is catching on. Will you be changing your profile picture? And what do you think about Facebook awareness campaigns? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Reviews: Facebook More About: facebook, social good, trending For more Social Media coverage:
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| Google to Unveil Chrome OS December 7? Posted: 03 Dec 2010 02:31 PM PST   Google’s Chrome team has sent out invites to a press event in San Francisco, “where we plan to share some exciting news about Chrome,” the invitation reads. The event will be hosted at DogPatch Labs’ San Francisco office on Tuesday, December 7 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. PT. We will be reporting live from the event. We expect the team will unveil the long-awaited Chrome OS, the first operating system Google has designed for traditional computers, such as desktop PCs, laptops and netbooks, rather than smartphones and/or tablets. Chrome OS was first announced in July 2009. Reviews: Chrome, Google For more Tech coverage:
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| LimeWire Prepares to Close Its Doors Posted: 03 Dec 2010 02:19 PM PST
In October, LimeWire stopped distributing its software and shut down its servers in order to comply with a court ruling stemming from its lawsuit with the RIAA. In June, the RIAA said it would seek $1 billion in statutory damages for the copyright infringement incurred by the service. Today, LimeWire responded to Kafka, confirming in its statement that it is indeed closing its doors. The statement:
The halted music service was LimeWire’s last-ditch effort to go legit and get back into the good graces of the music industry. However, with the next phase of court proceedings planned for January and the plaintiff seeking upward of $1 billion in statutory damages, this final turn of events isn’t that surprising. Still, for the RIAA, the lawsuit with LimeWire was never about recouping financial payment anyway. It was more about setting precedent, as was the case with previous rulings against Grokster, Napster and others. This may be the final chapter in the LimeWire saga, but the debate on content distribution online is far from finished. More About: file sharing, lawsuits, limewire, music, p2p, riaa For more Business coverage:
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| Online Bingo Board Does the Impossible — Makes Conference Calls Fun Posted: 03 Dec 2010 01:15 PM PST   Every business has them: Monotonous, jumbled travesties during which at least one — if not three or four — employees ramble at length in order to stave off the crushing oppression of the remaining workday. Some of us doodle to get through them, some of us stress eat, some of us feign temporary deafness. Well, ye tortured souls, there is some respite from the horror that is the conference call, and that would be Conference Call Bingo. From the folks over at Logitech's LifeSize comes a simple, yet fun web app that turns office monotony into a game. Simply head over to the Bingo site and click “Start” when you dial in. You’ll be presented with a board that features squares that contain common conference call occurrences: Someone eating, Someone working from home, the phrase “low-hanging fruit,” you get the idea. Click on the corresponding squares when one of your colleagues acts accordingly, and, as with normal Bingo, you’ll rack up points for four in a row, a blacked-out board, etc. You can even share your score on Facebook so as to commiserate with friends (just make sure you’re not friends with your boss). Now if someone would just make an “Anxious Call From Mom” Bingo board, I think we’d be all set. Reviews: Bingo, Facebook More About: bingo, humor, pop culture, social media For more Business coverage:
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| Instagram Now Seeing Two to Three Photo Uploads Per Second Posted: 03 Dec 2010 12:57 PM PST   The popular mobile photo-sharing app Instagram is now seeing two to three photo uploads per second, according to co-founder Kevin Systrom. The application is just barely two months old and is still restricted to the iPhone, making that figure all the more remarkable. Systrom is also quick to point out that Instagram activity is not restricted to the tech-centric San Francisco Bay Area. “Only 4% of photos shared are taken within the bay area — the large majority are spread all around the world with cities making up only a fraction. We’re seeing growth just about everywhere outside of the tech world,” he says. Previously, Instagram reported 100,000 users in its first week post launch. The startup is now said to be close to the 1 million mark, which is why Mashable’s Editor-In-Chief Adam Ostrow has named it one of the most promising companies to have emerged this year. Reviews: Mashable, iPhone, instagram More About: instagram, Mobile 2.0, photo sharing For more Startups coverage:
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| Wrap Your Gifts in Viral Videos With QRapping Paper Posted: 03 Dec 2010 12:35 PM PST   I’ll admit it, I tend to give rather dull and predictable gifts: books, perfume, framed photographs (hi Mom and Dad), and the like. Which is why I was pretty excited to come across QRAPPING PAPER, a wrapping paper printed with QR codes that can be scanned with a code reader to pull up 50 different — but equally ridiculous — holiday-themed YouTube videos. It might just save those I love best from another year of utter boredom. The paper was designed by Artist/Art Director/Entrepreneuer Justin Gignac who says he began “wondering why people weren’t doing anything more fun” with QR codes while playing around with one a few months ago. Thus, he set about printing and packaging wrapping paper that would make videos of flaming gingerbread houses and drunken carolers a part of many a holiday experience. QRAPPING PAPER is available in pairs of 20-inch x 30-inch sheets for $19.99 on qrappingpaper.com — much more expensive than an equivalent amount of colored wrapping paper on Walmart.com, of course. But if you’re like me, it should compensate for whatever commonplace item you’ve wrapped inside. Have you ever used consumer technology to make a holiday more fun? We’d love to hear about it in the comments. Reviews: YouTube More About: Holidays, QR Codes, qrapping paper For more Entertainment coverage:
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| Discover New Tunes on Tumblr, Facebook & Twitter With Exfm Posted: 03 Dec 2010 12:21 PM PST   About six months ago, we wrote about ExtensionFM, an extension for Google Chrome that helps index the MP3s you run across while surfing the web. Yesterday, the company introduced a brand new version of the plugin and announced that it has changed its name to exfm. In addition to the name change, exfm version 2.0 has a ton of new features, including integration with Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. The result is that the organizational tool has turned into a bonafide social music discovery engine. The difference is that exfm now has a very robust social component. That means that in addition to being able to link to your Last.fm account to scrobble tracks you listen to or discover, you can also pump in music files shared via Twitter, Facebook or Tumblr.  So when I connect my Tumblr account to exfm, it searches through all my Tumblr friends and adds all of the songs they share to my library. It also shows me a real-time feed of tracks they are sharing throughout the day.  The same goes for Twitter or Facebook. MP3s shared via Facebook and Twitter also become part of your overall library. You can also share songs you run across with your friends using Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or e-mail. Additionally, exfm has now added the ability to “note” songs — basically think of this as a way to favorite or “love” a track. This is a great way to highlight music you discover and want to return to later on. Exfm has introduced its own social network of sorts. Users now have their own profile pages. Your profile page lists all your “noted” songs and also shows who you follow and who follows you. Your exfm friends are added to the recent activity feed on the main exfm homepage. Again, this serves as a great way to find and discover new tunes.  Honestly, we can’t stress enough how much the ability to suck in shared music from your social networks adds to the service. It really propels exfm from a utility that was convenient — but ultimately not very sticky — to something with very real value. Our only request would be the ability to create custom playlists that could be shared with friends. Exfm is available for free. [ via The Next Web] Reviews: Facebook, Last.fm, Tumblr, Twitter More About: exfm, extensionfm, google chrome, music, music discovery For more Entertainment coverage:
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| 3 Ways to Empower Social Media Giving This Holiday Season Posted: 03 Dec 2010 12:14 PM PST   Frank Barry, professional services manager at Blackbaud and blogger at NetWits ThinkTank, helps non-profits use the Internet for digital communication, social media and fundraising so they can focus on making an impact and achieving their missions. Find Frank on Twitter @franswaa. Year-end preparation is in full swing for most non-profit organizations. The reason being that many non-profits receive as much as 40% of their annual donations during the month of December. If you drill into that 40% number a bit, you'll see that of the $263 billion Americans give to charity each year, 5.7% is given online, according to the index of online giving study that my company produces; 46% of that online giving takes place in the last three months of the year, with 30% in December alone. Needless to say, non-profits all know that this time of year is critical to their overall fundraising success. As the non-profit sector mobilizes, we're also seeing life in the non-profit technology world. What's interesting about the examples below is that they’re all focused on helping the non-profit supporter — and not the actual non-profit — make a difference with tools to raise awareness and money through social media. 1. HelpAttack! With social media at the very heart of its efforts, HelpAttack! is offering do-gooders all over the web a unique and social way to support the causes they love. All you have to do is head over to helpattack.com, log in using your Twitter account and create a pledge. Essentially you'll be pledging to give a dollar amount for each tweet between now and 30 days from the day you make your pledge –- simple as that. According to Sarah Vela, the CEO of HelpAttack! "This new way to donate is quick, easy, fun and offers a layer of social responsibility to online activities." The socially enabled pledge system offers non-profit supporters a quick, easy and fun way to support their favorite cause while also giving non-profit organizations a newfound funding stream that raises their visibility on social networks. During the holiday season HelpAttack! invites “all non-profit organizations seeking new ways to collect funding through year-end campaigns to visit the site, add themselves if they're not already listed, and share this new way of giving with their supporters," says Vela. Since its launch a few weeks ago, HelpAttack! has seen more than 5,000 causes added to the system with the average pledge amount hovering around $21. 2. Causes Charity Gift Cards By now you've probably heard about, seen or used Causes.com. It's one of the largest applications on Facebook with more than 140 millions users who have given more than $27 millions dollars in support of non-profit work around the world to date. It has also become very well known for its birthday wish –- a simple way to donate your birthday to charity. In an effort to help give people another way to support their favorite charity this holiday season, Causes teamed up with Easter Seals, Red Cross, UNICEF, WWF, and CARE to create $25 and $50 prepaid gift cards that can be found at Safeway and Vons supermarkets in California. “This is the only card in the world that says the person you are buying it for wants to do good for the world,” said Causes co-founder and Chairman Sean Parker. 3. Skip1.org Skip1.org is a very small non-profit organization focused on bringing food and water to those who need it most. To do this, the organization has come up with a clever idea: skip something else. Basically it’s asking people to donate the money they would have spent on a meal, a coffee, a magazine, a haircut or anything else that could have easily been skipped to help support their cause. One hundred percent of the money donated to the organization goes to the charitable work it does. This holiday season Skip1 and Invisible People are teaming up to bring you a special SkipDay™ focused on helping fight homelessness in the U.S. Instead of doing a traditional toy wrap, you can join hundreds of volunteers, physically and virtually, on December 12 in creating "GLove Bags" –- bags packed with clothes, food and much more that could fit in your car’s glove compartment. Instead of leaving empty-handed after the event, Shelena Bryan, founder of Skip1, will be asking everyone that participated to take a GLove Bag with them so they can personally give it to a homeless person in their area. According to Bryan, "The power is in the giving of the GLove bag, not just the creation of it –- will you step up and give out the bag, or will you just pack the bag and forget about it?" Watch the video: Your Year-End GivingLet us know if any of these campaigns have sparked your interest or if you’re planning to give this holiday season. Share your thoughts in the comments below More Social Good Resources from Mashable:
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, ideabug Reviews: Facebook, Twitter, iStockphoto More About: causes, causes.com, charity, crowdrise, facebook causes, helpattack, non-profit, nonprofit, skip1, social good, social media, year end giving For more Social Good coverage:
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| Thanks to Mashable’s Socially Savvy Supporters Posted: 03 Dec 2010 11:32 AM PST
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| The 5 Nominees for “Best Internet Meme” Are… [MASHABLE AWARDS] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 11:25 AM PST
The Mashable Awards, our annual contest highlighting the very best the web has to offer, is entering its final round and we’re announcing the five finalists in the “Best Internet Meme” category supported by Dynadot. They are: Sad Keanu Bed IntruderFFFFffffuuuuu Guy Double Rainbow#FridayReads You have from now until December 15 to pick your favorite. If you have questions about the Mashable Awards or the list of finalists, please post them to our GetSatisfaction page. Let us know which meme was your favorite: You can vote once per category per day, so get voting! The Mashable Awards Gala at Cirque du Soleil Zumanity (Vegas) In partnership with Cirque du Soleil, The Mashable Awards Gala event will bring together the winners and nominees, the Mashable community, partners, media, the marketing community, consumer electronics and technology brands and attendees from the 2011 International CES Convention to Las Vegas on Thursday, January 6, 2011. Together, we will celebrate the winners and the community of the Mashable Awards at the Cirque du Soleil Zumanity stage in the beautiful New York New York Hotel. The event will include acts and performances from our partner Cirque du Soleil Zumanity. In addition, there will be special guest presenters and appearances. Date: Thursday, January 6th, 2011 (during International CES Convention week) Mashable Awards Category Sponsor:
Join us on Facebook to learn how to enter Dynadot's I Can Haz iPad Giveaway! Dynadot is an ICANN accredited domain name registrar and web host where you can register the perfect domain name affordably, reliably, simply and securely. Whether you are a blogger, business owner, or planning on creating the next best Internet meme you need a domain that represents you. Let Dynadot help you establish your web identity today. Top image courtesy of Flickr, Velo Steve Reviews: Facebook, Flickr, Foursquare, Internet, Mashable, Twitter More About: best internet meme, Dynadot, mashable awards, mashable awards 2010, Meme, memes, viral For more Social Media coverage:
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| Mozilla Adopts 2 Real Firefox Cubs [PIC] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 11:17 AM PST   Two red panda (a.k.a. firefox) cubs born at the Knoxville Zoo in Tennessee have officially become a part of the Mozilla community, the non-profit creator of one of the world’s largest browsers announced Friday. Mozilla has set up a microsite (and accompanying Twitter handle) where visitors can watch the firefoxes via a 24-hour live video cam. Mozilla is asking visitors to help name the two cubs (who currently go by “cub number one” and “cub number two”) by posting suggestions on the site. There are plans to reward the cubs with a jungle gym when Mozilla reaches its next target number for Firefox 4 downloads. It’s all part of Mozilla’s efforts to raise awareness on behalf of the endangered species. “Just as Mozilla works to build and protect the open Web, we also support the preservation of key natural ecosystems,” the non-profit wrote on its blog. We’ve been impressed by a number of cleverly devised social good campaigns cropping up in the last several months, including those from MTV, Keep a Child Alive and the Urban Ministries of Durham, but we’re especially impressed with the way Mozilla has managed to draw attention to a cause by using one of the oldest viral tricks in the book — cute animals — in a way that’s completely in line with the name of its best-known product. Reviews: blog More About: Firefox, mozilla, social good For more Social Good coverage:
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| Gorillatorch Switchback: The All-Purpose Utility Light Posted: 03 Dec 2010 11:07 AM PST   Here’s an awesomely geeky LED light from Joby, makers of the popular Gorillapod bendable tripods. The Gorillatorch Switchback is a versatile lamp with a number of mounting options. It can hang, sit flat on a table or be mounted on a tripod. As useful as it is to have an LED lamp sitting around for, say, reading in bed, the Switchback has one more trick up its shade. The LED light mechanism pops out to become an ultra-bright, 130-lumen headlight. We took a look at the Gorillatorch Blade a few months back and were happy with its ability to mount to most surfaces and direct light where users need it. A headlamp will always be a better lighting option, however, because it directs light exactly where one’s head is facing. At $60 a pop, the Gorillatorch Switchback is a decent bargain for the numerous utilities it’s capable of performing. We certainly wouldn’t mind finding one under the non-denominational holiday tree this year (cough). More About: Gorillatorch Blade, Gorillatorch Switchback, Joby, LED light For more Tech coverage:
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| Check Out YouTube’s Picks For Most Memorable Videos of 2010 Posted: 03 Dec 2010 10:48 AM PST   YouTube is celebrating the end of the year by hosting an online countdown of 2010’s most memorable videos. As the countdown page says, 31 videos — including the most memorable video of the year — will be selected (one for every day this month). The page — presented by HTC — will be updated daily, and viewers are invited to take a look at related videos that will take them deeper into some of the year’s major hits. Three videos have made the countdown so far: “Freddie’s Got Flower Power,” “Vuvuzela fever with MysteryGuitarMan” and “Greyson sings GaGa,” where 12-year-old Greyson Chance performs Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi” during a school event. YouTube was inundated with a number of popular viral videos this year — one features U.S. soldiers lip syncing and dancing to Lady Gaga’s “Telephone” (embedded below). Others star the likes of the Double Rainbow and “Dude, You Have No Quran” guy. We’re looking forward to seeing which videos YouTube found most memorable in 2010. What would you like to see on this countdown? Image courtesy of Flickr, Harold Neal Reviews: Flickr, YouTube More About: viral videos, web video, youtube, youtube new year's countdown For more Web Video coverage:
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| Google Wants Its Products to Talk Back to Users Posted: 03 Dec 2010 10:40 AM PST   Google has acquired speech synthesis company Phonetic Arts for an undisclosed sum in an effort to enhance its voice output (computer speech) services. Cambridge-based Phonetic Arts’ speciality is building technology that generates natural expressive speech for computer games, making computers capable of speaking any text in any voice. Google aims to integrate this technology into its products and services to enable it to translate text to speech and speak to users in natural voices. For instance, Google Translate and its navigation products are already capable of speaking text or instructions. In a blog post on the acquisition, Speech Technology manager Mike Cohen explains his vision for a Google world that more closely resembles Star Trek. “In Star Trek, they don't spend a lot of time typing things on keyboards—they just speak to their computers, and the computers speak back,” he says. “We're confident that together [with Phonetic Arts] we'll move a little faster towards that Star Trek future.” With this futuristic vision, we could find ourselves interfacing with Google in a more voice-centric fashion in the foreseeable future. Image courtesy of Flickr, Coneee Reviews: Flickr, Google, Google translate More About: computer speech, Google, phoentic arts, Text to Speech For more Business coverage:
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| Last.fm Reports Loss, But Edges Closer to Profitability Posted: 03 Dec 2010 10:22 AM PST   Music recommendation service Last.fm just published its financial report for 2009, reporting a loss of £2.84 million (equivalent of $4.46 million USD). While still operating at a loss, these results are a huge improvement over the £17.1 million loss from 2008. The company filed its financial report with Companies House in the UK and showed revenue of £7.28 million. Not only is that up nearly 75% from 2008, the cost of sales was £7.2 million, leaving the company with a gross profit of just more than £86,000. In 2009, the bulk of Last.fm’s revenues, 73.7%, came from advertising sales. Subscriptions accounted for £1.3 million in revenue. Most of Last.fm’s revenues come from the UK, with 33.5% coming from the U.S. It also looks like Last.fm’s decision to move away from on-demand streaming should further help it edge closer to profitability, seeing as administrative costs were down more than £10 million from 2008.  That makes sense, especially when you compare Last.fm’s financials with that of UK-based Spotify. Spotify reported a loss of more than $26 million in 2009. What’s equally interesting is that although Spotify had higher revenues than Last.fm, its cost of sales was significantly higher. It takes more than just subscriptions and buzz to make an online music venture profitable. Last.fm might not be profitable right now, but if the company continues in this direction, it may be soon. Reviews: Spotify More About: financial results, last fm, music, spotify For more Business coverage:
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| How the World Is Using Cellphones [INFOGRAPHIC] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 09:50 AM PST Wilson Electronics, Inc. sent us this interesting (rather large) infographic outlining the demographics of cellphone use (click for full version). The infographic illustrates, among other things, the number of cellphones per capita in various countries, the rate of cellphone adoption in the U.S. during the past decade and the acceptability of certain behaviors regarding cellphone use. According to the infographic’s sources, there are nearly two cellphones for every one person living in the United Arab Emirates (1.95 to be exact) and Estonia (1.94). By comparison, there are .87 cellphones per person in the U.S. China has the greatest number of cellphones within its borders (640,000,000), followed by the U.S. (270,000,000). In addition, 15% of Americans take phone calls during sex, according to a survey (although 6% to 10% think it’s acceptable, according to another survey), and three in 10 Americans used a cellphone in 1999, versus nine in 10 a decade later.  More About: cell phones, infographic, Mobile 2.0, trending For more Mobile coverage:
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| HOW TO: Cheat at Foursquare [COMIC] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 09:43 AM PST In response to fervent demands for justice in the badge-eat-badge world of Foursquare, the location network decreed last April that checkins without GPS verification would be precluded from points, badges and mayorships. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get crafty in your ruthless quest for (imaginary) world domination.   This comic was illustrated by Kiersten Essenpreis, a New York-based artist who draws and blogs at YouFail.com. For more laughs, check out our previous Mashable Comics. Also, I hear the mayor of Mt. Everest gets 25% off snow cones.* *With purchase of five regularly priced snow cones of equal or lesser value, subject to the terms and conditions of your very survival. More Comics from Mashable:
More About: cheaters, cheating, checkin, checkins, comic, comics, foursquare, foursquare badges, iphone, location, mashable comics, Mobile 2.0, mobile apps, social media For more Mobile coverage:
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| Top 10 Most Watched Web Series, October 2010 Posted: 03 Dec 2010 09:03 AM PST   Each month, our partner Visible Measures compiles a list of the top 10 most popular web video series, and we share those results with you and provide analysis. Visible Measures tracks views, comments and other data on web video. If you’re looking for some video entertainment to watch online during your lunch break, this chart is a great place to start. Just find a show you’re interested in and click the play button to the right to check it out. The Annoying Orange topped the charts for the ninth straight month in October, while the wildly popular Auto-Tune The News began to lose the prominent foothold it gained in August with the release of the smash-hit “Bed Intruder Song.” And, it seems our pleas to the web video gods have finally broken through, as yet another fresh series has entered the top 10, the pop song-spoofing KEEPtheHEAT, which launched over the summer. The Chart: October 2010
*The Visible Measures Top 10 Webisodes Chart focuses on digital studio-driven web series that appear on Internet video-sharing destinations and publisher microsites. Each web series is measured on a True Reach™ basis, which includes viewership of both studio-syndicated video clips and viewer-driven social video placements. The data are compiled using the Visible Measures platform, a constantly growing repository of analytic data on more than 200 million Internet videos across more than 200 video destinations. If you are a webisode publisher and would like clips from your microsites to be counted toward the chart, please contact Visible Measures. Note: This chart does not include vloggers, interviews, how-to series, news shows or product review shows. View-count results are incremental by month. To notify Visible Measures of an upcoming web series, or for an end-to-end assessment of your campaign's overall performance, please contact Visible Measures directly. If you're interested in exploring this data further, go to visiblemeasures.com/mashable . The Annoying Orange’s Long-Running Reign People must really dig exploding fruit. As web series fans already know, The Annoying Orange operates via a simple formula: The title character is privy to the graphic destruction of a guest fruit, as said foodstuff is eaten, sliced, blended — you name it. If we had to wager, we’ll continue to see this series in the upper echelons in the coming month’s chart — just last week an episode titled “Kitchen Intruder” (a parody of, naturally, “Bed Intruder”) hit the web, racking up nearly 3 million views to date. “Orange After the Dentist” (based on “David After the Dentist”) has also garnered more than 2 million views in one week. It seems that folks still have a hunger for viral videos spun in novel ways — even comparatively ancient ones like David’s drug-induced escapades. KEEPtheHEAT Turns Up the Heat As we can see by the presence of fellow contenders Auto-Tune The News and Key of Awesome, parody music is hot with the web series set, which is why KEEPtheHEAT broke into the chart in October. Key of Awesome snagged the number-two spot this time around — racking up the most views for a Glee parody featuring Michael Jackson — knocking Auto-Tune The News down a spot. The switch makes sense, since The Gregory Brothers’ “Bed Intruder Song” has been out for a while now, while Glee just recently came back with its second season, and Jackson’s posthumous album, Michael, is slated to drop in December. Oddly enough, KEEPtheHeat’s most popular video — which is also the main driver of its success — is a spoof of Eminem & Rihanna’s “Love The Way You Lie,” a video that premiered in July and has since nabbed around 27 million views. Still, the song itself has garnered its share of buzz, recently nabbing a Grammy nomination. More recent spoofs, including Ke$ha, Rihanna and the Black-Eyed Peas have also earned their share of views, confirming what we already know: People enjoy seeing pop stars taken down by parody. More Web Video Resources from Mashable:
Reviews: Internet, michael jackson, news More About: annoying-orange, auto-tune the news, keep-the-heat, key of awesome, video, visible measures, web series, web video, youtube For more Web Video coverage:
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| Google Buying a Massive Building in Manhattan for $1.9 Billion [REPORT] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 07:58 AM PST   Google is buying a prestigious, 2.9-million-square-foot building at New York’s 111 Eighth Avenue, the Wall Street Journal reports. The building covers an entire city block, between 15th and 16th Streets from Eighth to Ninth Avenues. It once housed the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and it’s currently home to Google’s 550,000-square-foot office, as well as data center operations for companies such as Telx. According to the WSJ, the price of $1.9 billion makes this the largest real estate deal for a single building in the U.S. this year. The deal has not been closed yet, but it will probably go through as Google has made a large down payment, say sources familiar with the matter. The building has been on the market only twice before: In 1998, it was sold to Taconic for less than $300 million. Later in 2004, it was revalued at around $800 million when Jamestown acquired a large part of the ownership. [via WSJ] Image courtesy of Google Maps Reviews: Google, Google Maps More About: building, Google, manhattan, new york, real estate For more Business coverage:
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| Susan Kare: Interview With an Iconic Designer [GALLERY] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 06:59 AM PST   Susan Kare is the master of making icons iconic. From a mere handful of pixels she has created small-scale graphics that have become part of the visual language of computing. Widely recognized as a groundbreaking digital designer, the Museum of Modern Art in New York describes Kare as “a pioneering and influential computer iconographer,” and states that her icon designs “communicate their function immediately and memorably, with wit and style.” Kare’s phenomenal career spans from the early days of Apple (as the screen graphics and digital font designer for the original Macintosh computer) right through to designing for iPhone apps, encompassing Microsoft, IBM and Facebook along the way. We caught up with Susan Kare just as she launches her new print site Kare Prints (offering limited edition, signed and numbered prints of her classic designs) to take a look back at some of her most memorable creations. Have a look through the gallery below for some highlights of Kare’s work, complete with commentary from the artist. Even if you don’t consider yourself familiar with Kare’s portfolio, we think you’ll be amazed at how many you recognize! 1. Apple Happy Mac "This icon was designed to be seen when the original Macintosh computer was turned on. The idea was to create an image to suggest that the new computer was friendly and accessible. Plus a stylized smiling face is inclusive -- it looks like everyone." 2. Chicago Font "This font was designed from the start to be the system font for the Macintosh, and was intended to be somewhat bold and easy to read. For the most part it only includes horizontal, vertical, and 45 degree lines. It served for many years as the Macintosh system font, and was used when the iPod was introduced. Its original name was 'Elefont.'" 3. Apple Command Key "It was a challenge to come up with a symbol for the command key. The word is a bit forbidding, as are many types of images that instantly come to mind, such as a police hat or badge. I leafed through a book of symbols, and came across a similar cloverleaf, which was identified as an image used on signs in Swedish campgrounds to mean 'interesting feature.' This seemed appropriate, and would lend itself to being recreated in a limited number of pixels, plus fit well on a squarish key cap. Years later, I learned that it is meant to be a castle, seen from above." 4. Cairo Font (Including Moof the Dogcow!) "Although we preach that using too many arcane symbols can start to seem like hieroglyphics and defeat the purpose of easy-to-interpret icons, this font was developed for fun, at a time when the range of fonts was limited and enabled anyone to add graphics easily to a text document. This is the first appearance of the spotted dog image that came to be known as Moof the dogcow." 5. Microsoft Solitaire Cards "Because I am addicted to solitaire, this was one of my favorite projects. The challenge was to make something well crafted and very recognizable for Windows 3.0 using only the 16 VGA colors. I also designed an assortment of card backs so the player could choose. People still mention how often they looked at those graphics!" 6. Facebook Cake Icon "Among Facebook's most popular virtual gifts were all the birthday items, and this was one of the first. The birthday offerings grew to include (among others) a number of cake slices, animals in party hats, pin the tail on the donkey, a tiara, birthday banner, cupcakes, and a pony." 7. Facebook Disco Ball Icon "I designed the disco ball (titled 'Party tonight!' in the Facebook gift shop) at the suggestion of the gift shop's inventor, talented programmer and product manager Jared Morgenstern. Created at a large scale in Illustrator, as were almost all of the Facebook gifts, it appears to have an abstract, cut paper quality at larger sizes, yet appears fairly 'realistic' at 64 x 64." 8. San Francisco Water & Power Logo "This logo was requested by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission to replace an existing, fairly complicated mark. It was designed to work well online, on printed materials, and on vehicles. The blue, green, and yellow colors are intended to echo water, plant life, and the sun." 9. Chumby Logo and Charms "The chumby device displays a personal Internet highlight reel. The rubber charms allowed users of the chumby classic to personalize their devices by attaching them to a small affordance on the right hand side. They could also be used as zipper pulls and decorative charms for bags or phones or backpacks. The logo is a six-legged octopus, selected as a symbol because it's compact, intelligent, resourceful and powerful. Both the logo and charms were designed to be slightly whimsical, like the company name, and they all feature the trademarked uneven sized, stylized eyes." 10. Karma Jar iPhone App "Karma Jar is an iPhone app, invented by Dan Greaney, a longtime writer and producer for The Simpsons. It's based on a story about a Zen monk, who dragged a black stone into a jar when he noticed that he had a bad thought, and a white stone when he had a good thought. We wanted to design something that would be spare, but thoughtful and polished." More Related Resources from Mashable
Reviews: Facebook More About: design, galleries, gallery, iconography, icons, interview, susan kare, web design For more Dev & Design coverage:
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| The 5 Nominees for “Best Mobile App” Are… [MASHABLE AWARDS] Posted: 03 Dec 2010 05:52 AM PST
The Mashable Awards, our annual contest highlighting the very best the web has to offer, is entering its final round and we’re announcing the five finalists in the “Best Mobile App” category supported by Mobile Future. They are: DriveSafe.ly ebuddy Evernote ScoutMob GravityApp You have from now until December 15 to pick your favorite. If you have questions about the Mashable Awards or the list of finalists, please post them to our GetSatisfaction page. Let us know which mobile app was your favorite: You can vote once per category per day, so get voting! The Mashable Awards Gala at Cirque du Soleil Zumanity (Vegas) In partnership with Cirque du Soleil, The Mashable Awards Gala event will bring together the winners and nominees, the Mashable community, partners, media, the marketing community, consumer electronics and technology brands and attendees from the 2011 International CES Convention to Las Vegas on Thursday, January 6, 2011. Together, we will celebrate the winners and the community of the Mashable Awards at the Cirque du Soleil Zumanity stage in the beautiful New York New York Hotel. The event will include acts and performances from our partner Cirque du Soleil Zumanity. In addition, there will be special guest presenters and appearances. Date: Thursday, January 6th, 2011 (during International CES Convention week) Mashable Awards Category Sponsor:
Mobile Future is a broad-based coalition of businesses, non-profit organizations and individuals interested in and dedicated to advocating for an environment in which innovations in wireless technology and services are enabled and encouraged. Our mission is to educate the public and key decision makers on innovations in the wireless industry that have transformed the way Americans work and play and to advocate continued investment in wireless technologies. Our "Mobile Year in Review 2010" animation, launching this December, will provide a glimpse into the most notable breakthroughs in the wireless industry this year. Reviews: Evernote, Facebook, Foursquare, Mashable, Twitter, eBuddy More About: apps, best mobile app, mashable awards, mashable awards 2010, Mobile 2.0, mobile apps For more Mobile coverage:
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| Google Releases Stable Version of Chrome 8 Posted: 03 Dec 2010 05:32 AM PST   Chrome 8 is now the stable version of Google’s lightweight web browser. Compared to Chrome 7, there are more than 800 bug fixes and stability improvements in Chrome 8, including support for Google’s upcoming web apps as well as a built-in PDF viewer. Chrome developers are working on several different branches of Chrome, with version 8.0.552.215 yesterday being upgraded to the stable version. Since Chrome has three development channels – stable, beta and developer preview – Chrome 8 will (for now) also populate the beta channel, and the 9.x branch will be the experimental version of the browser. A detailed changelog for the latest version of Chrome is available here, and you can download Chrome 8 here. Reviews: Chrome, Google More About: browsing, Chrome 8, Google, google chrome, web browser For more Tech coverage:
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