7th fb Birthday Gift: Tech Coverage on Mashable

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Sunday, June 24, 2012

Editor's Picks

Do You Suffer From Social Media FOMO?/a>

How common is FOMO -- or Fear of Missing Out -- among social media users, and what can you do about it? This infographic sheds some light.

6 Ways to Gamify Your Facebook Marketing

As marketing on Facebook pages grows, so does the interest in using gamification. Here are six ways to use it.

5 Apps That Reward You Just for Using Them

If you like rewards, here are five mobile apps that insist you treat yourself.

7 Cool Gadgets to Chill Your Summer Drinks

To save you from warm beer, tepid wine and unchilled cans, we have gathered up seven gadgets to cool down your drink of choice.

How to Create Real Relationships With Social Marketing

A return on relationship is the value that accrues over time through connection, loyalty, and sharing. That's what you want. Here's why.

Social Media

6 Personal Secrets Your Facebook Profile Isn't Keeping

You might be surprised how much of your Facebook page is inappropriate for work. Here are a few things you may not have considered.

YouTube Cover Song Face-Off: Maroon 5's 'Payphone'

Each week, we pick a popular song, find standout covers of it and ask you to vote for your favorite. This week's song is "Payphone."

Music Monday: Hear Our Favorite Summer Songs and Tell Us Yours

We love listening to music and sharing too, so we're kicking off Music Monday with a Spotify playlist of our favorite summer songs.

20 TV Shows With the Most Social Media Buzz This Week

Which TV shows generate the most buzz on social networks? Find out each week from our social TV chart.

13 Must-Follow Musicians on Instagram

Want to go on tour with your favorite musician? These rock stars on Instagram will make you feel like you are.

How Facebook Handles Inappropriate Content

Ensuring that Facebook's community of more than 900 million people abides by the company's user policies is a task that requires hundreds of employees.

How to Get More Likes, Shares on Facebook/a>

If you're looking to get better engagement out of your Facebook posts, add more pictures and start speaking in the first person.

What Happens When You Report a Post on Facebook/a>

Facebook's Social Reporting is a set of tools used to report offensive images and status updates. But what happens when a report is filed?

Does Facebook Know Your Love Secrets?/a>

Like to keep your love life under wraps? Be careful if you're on Facebook. This infographic shows how much the social network can predict.

Acute or Obtuse, Show Us Your Best Angular Photos

Any two intersecting lines form an angle. For this Mashable Photo Challenge, we want to see how you interpret angles.

Why Social Networks Won't Kill the Blog

Online Cassandras meet this growth in social media with dread. Are these newer tools Twitter-killers? The end-times for blogs? Not exactly.

20 Close-Up Photos of Texture You Can Almost Feel

For this week's Mashable Photo Challenge, we asked readers to take a close look at the world around them and send us pictures of texture.

How Much Data Is Created Every Minute?/a>

Ever wondered just how much data is funneled into the web? This infographic will give you the answer, down to the minute.

6 Pinterest Tips From Power Users

Six highly successful Pinterest pros, give their personal tips on how to "pin to win" on the social networking site.

Do You Share Too Much on Social Media?/a>

This infographic examines whether social media users actually share more than is necessary -- or safe -- online.

For more social media news and resources, you can follow Mashable's social media channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Business & Marketing

How Big Brands Create Social Media Campaigns

Ever wonder how big brands launch social media campaigns? Here's how.

How to Pick the Best Crowdfunding Platform

Wondering what crowdfunding platform makes sense for you? Here are six online crowdfunding platforms, each targeting specific industries./li>

The Surprising Cost of Advertising 'Sexy' Terms on Etsy

When it comes to keywords in the handmade marketplace, Etsy, "penis" and "vagina" are not created equal.

Top 5 Myths About Big Data

It appears that Big Data is still a very big mystery to many, including some in the field. Here are the top five Big Data myths.

Why Sephora Is Betting Big on Digital Shopping

It's no longer enough to be a social brand; companies must now become social businesses. Here's how Sephora is leading the charge.

Why the Interest Graph Is a Marketer's Best Friend

The interest graph gives marketers the chance to demonstrably generate revenue. Check out the following examples.

The Connection Between Education, Money and Happiness

Vivek Wadhwa and PayPal founder Peter Thiel have overlooked one important factor when debating the importance of education: happiness.

LLC: Which Flavor Is Right for Your Company?

So you want to start up your company as an LLC? Did you know there are tons of options to consider before you file?

5 Tips to Know Before You Buy or Sell a Website

Buying or selling a website can be like buying a house. These tips and tricks can help you identify key problems before they happen.

Why Are B2B Social Media Firms So Hot?

For a handful of enterprise social media firms, 2012 has been a version of 1999.

Behind the Launch: Our Startup Hits the Floor at E3

Vungle's business development team heads to Los Angeles for E3, with just two days remaining until launch.

The Importance of Business Intelligence

Do your business and product teams work together? They should.

6 Easy Ways to Boost Site Traffic With Facebook

For B2B companies who are naturally focused on lead generation, an increased emphasis on Facebook as a traffic source is key. Here's why.

6 Ways to Gamify Your Facebook Marketing

As marketing on Facebook pages grows, so does the interest in using gamification. Here are six ways to use it.

More Than Half of Kickstart Projects Fail. Does it Matter?

Around 7,000 of Kickstarters have never received a single pledge. (The site has hosted more than 60,000 projects in total.)

45+ Events in Business, Mobile and Marketing

Our Events Board helps event organizers and the Mashable community convene at events in social media, tech, marketing and other fields.

5 Digital Trends Shaping the Consumer Experience

As marketers, what are the trends driving consumers from a socially based consumption model to one of experience? Here are the top five.

3 Mobile Platforms Your Brand Should Leverage

Brands know the next phase of the social web is connecting with fewer people and making a bigger impact. These mobile platforms are key.

What it Takes to Make Your Product Viable

How do you make the next product you build as successful as possible? If you can't answer that, here's how to fix it.

Why Email Scammers Are Always 'From Nigeria'/a>

A Microsoft researcher says he knows why so many email scammers claim to be from Nigeria. It's a simpler explanation than you might think.

Why It's Not So Hard to Develop for Multiple Mobile Platforms

On this week's episode of Behind the Launch, Google Ventures' partner and Android co-founder Rich Miner offers some tips for developing for Android.

5 Organizations That Produce Excellent Content

Here are five examples of organizations that are tremendously effective with content, and what they can teach others trying to do the same.

6 Mobile Apps for Your Job Hunt

Hot on the trail for a new job? It's time to take advantage of some great mobile apps available on your smartphone.

5 Advanced Twitter Tips for Your Small Business

Here are five can't-miss advanced Twitter tips for running a small business' social networking efforts.

For more business news and resources, you can follow Mashable's business channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Tech & Mobile

5 Extraordinary Tales of Lost or Stolen Gadgets

Devices that we think are gone for good are sometimes recovered and returned to the rightful owners using recovery apps or the cloud.

5 Reasons Mobile Is the Future of Sustainable Development

Here are 5 ways mobile is being used to ensure a sustainable future for our planet.

Why Sitting Too Much Is Dangerous

Sitting too much at work? These tips can help office workers relieve pain and prevent injuries.

Building a PC? You Need This Chart

This poster itemizes all the ports, connectors, sockets, cards, slots and cables you'll need to identify when piecing your PC together.

Microsoft Surface: Everything You Need to Know

We've rounded up everything you need to know about the tablet and how it stacks up against the competition.

23 Gorgeous Gaming Wallpapers for Your Desktop

Show off your gamer cred with one of these hand-picked pieces of desktop art.

Ever Imagined a World Without Internet?/a>

Ever tried to imagine a world without the Internet? This infographic breaks down just how scary that would be.

Game of Phones: How the World Downloads iOS, Android Apps

A new infographic reveals that Android app downloadsarer growing at a rate much faster than Apple iOS app downloads.

5 Ways to Bring Family Game Night Into the 21st Century

Check out these apps, games and gadgets that can help digitize your family game night.

Learn How the Magnetosphere Works in Just 4 Minutes/a>

NASA's Community Coordinated Modeling Center demonstrates how Earth's magnetosphere, solar wind, ocean currents and weather works.

5 'Call of Duty' Alternatives You Might Enjoy More

If you've finished Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, there are plenty of military-themed first- and third-person shooter games to try.

Photo Management: Which Tool Is Right for You?

There are myriad ways to organize your burgeoning photo collection. From Mac to PC, pro to hobbyist, we provide the full rundown.

How to Build Your Own Cellphone/a>

As beautifully designed as the latest smartphones are, they're missing one thing -- individuality.

7 Cool Projects From Young Geniuses

We found seven kids, from 9 to 19, who have already produced great things.

Inside the Mind of a Freelancer/a>

Thinking about making the move to freelancing? This infographic will give you the rundown on current freelancers' sentiments.

How To Filter Your Gmail Like a Pro

Here are several tips and tricks that'll teach you how to filter your Gmail messages like a pro.

5 Exclusive PlayStation 3 Games You Have to See

As PlayStation 3 enters its sixth year on shelves, Sony debuts new games, with a lineup that features familiar faces and new titles.

10 Terrific Accessories That Celebrate the Typewriter

To celebrate the invention of the first ever "type-writer," we have found 10 tech cases that feature fantastic typewriter-influenced designs.

For more tech news and resources, you can follow Mashable's tech channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Judge Dismisses Apple vs. Google Smartphone Patent Case

Saturday, June 23, 2012 10:54 AM

Alex Fitzpatrick

A federal judge in Chicago, Ill. has thrown the Apple-Motorola Mobility smartphone patent case out the courtroom window and locked the window behind it, making sure it never finds its way back inside his court.

Judge Richard Posner dismissed the patent case late Friday evening, writing in his opinion that neither side proved any damages caused by the other party. His ruling came with prejudice, meaning neither side can reopen the case to attempt to prove damages for a second time.

"It would be ridiculous to dismiss a suit for failure to prove damages and allow the plaintiff to refile the suit so that he could have a second chance to prove damages," reads Posner's opinion. "This case is therefore dismissed with prejudice; a separate order to that effect is being entered today."

The ruling comes as a blow to Apple, which was hoping to gain an upper hand in the ongoing battle of mobile devices.

The two companies have been engaged in judicial combat over smartphone patents since the spring of 2010. Motorola Mobility -- now a division of Google -- sued Apple. Apple returned fire with a counter-suit a month later.

During pretrial hearings, the outspoken Posner threw out most of Motorola's patent claims and a handful of those belonging to Apple. Earlier in June, he canceled the full trial, saying neither side could prove damages and that an injunction would be "contrary to the public interest."

Posner reversed that decision last week, allowing both companies to submit sealed legal arguments. However, he ultimately found neither company's claims convincing. In his 38-page opinion, Posner takes several legal potshots at both companies for lacking strong arguments, being disorganized during the court proceedings and failing to successfully argue that damages were done.

The two companies are still engaged in legal disputes in the International Trade Commission and in European courts.

Read Posner's full decision below:

Apple-Google Patent Case Decision

Top 5 Hidden Galaxy S III Features You Don't Want to Miss

Saturday, June 23, 2012 10:10 AM

Tecca

Samsung packed a long laundry list of features into its new flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S III. Some of those features are obvious, and others you'll probably hear about if you pay attention to the commercials. Others may not be worthy of a ton of fanfare, but they're cool tricks worth trying out nonetheless. Read on to learn what clever secret features you can unlock in that shiny new Samsung Galaxy S III.

1. Use the home button to answer calls

This feature isn't on by default, but is easy to activate. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Call Answering/ending. On this screen you can choose to answer calls with the Home key and end them using the power key.

2. Go from texting to talking without tapping

The Direct Call features allow you to initiate a call with someone you're texting by just holding the phone up to your ear while you're in a text message screen. This is for those times when you're in the middle of a long texting session and realize that a call would be faster (crazy, I know, but it happens). When you hold the phone to your ear it will vibrate once when it starts calling, no extra tapping required.

3. Smart Stay keeps your screen off

Ever been in the middle of reading a web page or book and had the display go dim or dark because it's set to turn off after a few seconds of inactivity? The usual solution is to either keep poking the screen for no reason to keep it active or to set the screen timeout longer.

Smart Stay makes it so the screen will never turn off when you're looking at it, so you don't have to go messing with the settings all the time. This utility uses the phone's front-facing camera to determine whether you're looking at it.

To enable, go to Settings > Display and click the checkbox next to Smart Stay.

4. Take screen shots with a swipe

Ever want to share what's on your screen with another person or perhaps submit things to Damn You, Autocorrect? Now it's easy. Simply swipe the edge of your hand across the screen from left to right to take a screen shot. You'll hear a satisfying shutter sound and the image will save to your Gallery.

5. Multitask while watching a video

The Pop Up Video feature allows users to watch a video (from the stock player) while doing stuff in other apps. It's the ultimate in multitasking. To activate, go to the Video Player, choose your vid, then tap the icon on the lower right. The video will appear in a small box on the screen. You can move it to the best location on the screen by tapping, holding, then dragging it. To go back to the Video Player, just tap it.

Hands On: Can an Ultrabook Be the Center of Your Digital Life?

Saturday, June 23, 2012 8:57 AM

Pete Pachal

In case you haven't heard, laptops are getting thinner. And lighter. And sexier. The shrinking phenomenon is often attributed to the MacBook Air, and Apple deserves a great deal of credit for pushing the industry toward the compact-yet-versatile laptop.

After working with Apple to help craft some of the technology in the initial MacBook Air design, Intel took the ball and ran with it, launching the Ultrabook concept. Ultrabooks are the Air's ethos adapted to Windows PCs -- thin and light laptops that sacrifice a few rarely used features (like optical drives) to create a nimble machine that can actually perform.

The performance aspect is key, since substandard tech was the main criticism of netbooks, which tried to give people the sexy form factor without the guts to back it up. The combo proved initally popular until owners realized they couldn't do much with a netbook. Sure, you could send email -- but speed was lacking, screens were small and you could forget about any "power user" functions like video editing.

The Ultrabook Promise

Ultrabooks remedy that by packing better processing power. Instead of using the "just getting by" Atom processors that Intel puts in netbooks, Ultrabooks command their own subcategory among the company's top-tier Core processors. They use the same chip architecture as high-end laptops and desktops, just tailored to lower voltages so they don't suck Ultrabooks' smaller batteries dry.

There are a bunch of specifications that a laptop must meet to qualify as an Ultrabook, but suffice it to say the laptop must be thin and light, it has to both boot up and wake from sleep mode quickly, and it needs to be packing Intel Core chips (the term "Ultrabook" is an Intel trademark, after all). Apple's MacBook Air technically doesn't count, since it doesn't run some of the Intel-based tech involved, even though it has the chips.

I've been using an Ultrabook, the Dell XPS 13, off and on for the past few months, using it for both personal tasks and many demanding work situations, like this week's Apple event liveblog for Mashable. It's also filled in as a substitute laptop for a few colleagues in emergencies.

Now that ultrabooks have recently gotten a boost from the introduction of Intel's latest processing tech, Ivy Bridge, it bears looking at how effective the concept is as a whole. Can you really get lots of work done? What are the downsides? And ultimately: Is the Ultrabook ready to be your primary computer?

'Ultra' Computing

The Dell XPS 13 is a gorgeous machine. With its slim silver casing, it's easy to mistake for a MacBook Air. The chiclet-style keyboard feels great to the touch, and it even sports a backlight. The 13.3-inch screen has 1,366 x 768-pixel resolution, which is pretty standard for a machine this size, and it's protected by Corning Gorilla Glass.

Dell launched the XPS 13 in March, so it packs a second-generation Intel Core processor (Sandy Bridge, not the latest Ivy Bridge). But since its launch, Dell has released a couple of updates, the most impactful being the introduction of multi-finger gestures, like using two fingers to scroll through a document. It's a welcome addition, though it's not as smooth out of the gate as on, say, a MacBook.

That might be in part due to the rubbery material Dell uses for the pad itself. I found the texture to be a little too "sticky," making some movements (such as selecting text) a little unwieldy, and it was prone to clumping up dust.

Overall, though, the XPS 13 is physically a dream -- a textbook Ultrabook. I was very comfortable just tossing it in a carry-on or using it in a cramped airplane seat. Short falls (under 3 feet) had no effect on it. The durability is partly due to the XPS 13 packing a solid-state drive (SSD), with fewer moving parts, instead of a hard disk.

The Accessory Trap

However, that SSD is just a mere 128GB for the entry-level version, which starts at $999. That was a decent amount of storage a few years back, but today it's probably not enough for all your needs. That means you'll need to choose between configuring your Ultrabook with more storage or buying external drives, but either way you're spending money.

That's just one example of how one of the promises of Ultrabooks is counterfeit: that it would bestow sleek, well-performing machines at a fair price (i.e. in the $1,000 range). While technically true, accessories almost become a necessity with an Ultrabook.

On more than one occasion, I found the XPS 13's lack of an Ethernet port a serious problem. Ethernet-to-USB adapters are available, of course -- for a small fee. And the one or two times I needed to fire up a CD or DVD would lead me to buying an external optical drive.

That said, it's much more preferable to have the thin-and-light form factor in a machine that satisfies 95% of my laptop needs on its own, than a more expensive, bulkier full-featured laptop. Just know before you click "Complete My Purchase" that buying an Ultrabook is really buying an Ultrabook + friends.

Can It Perform?

While Ultrabooks pack Intel Core chips, they're actually lower-voltage designs than what you get in bigger laptops. They're also strictly dual-core, whereas the higher-voltage processors can be either dual- or quad-core.

However, if there was any sacrifice in performance, I didn't see it. The XPS 13 is nimble creature -- apps install and launch fast, files copy quickly, and web browsing was only limited by connectivity. And that's on a machine with a Sandy Bridge processor and USB 2.0 -- last year's tech. I can't wait to taste the boost in speed in the new Ivy Bridge Ultrabooks (and MacBook Airs) that feature USB 3.0.

The XPS 13 also boots up fully in just 28 seconds -- faster than even the Samsung Galaxy S III, and that's a phone! It wakes up from sleep in far less time (a few seconds), ready to resume all your apps right where you left off. That's the power of solid-state drives combined with proprietary Intel Rapid Start tech.

Battery life was outstanding. After a five-hour flight of near-continuous use (with wireless turned off and brightness turned down), the XPS 13 still had more than 50% of a charge left.

Ultra-Thin: Not Just a Fad

Coming back to the key question: Can an Ultrabook now serve as the center of your digital life -- the gateway through which all your "serious" computing flows? The answer is yes ... as long as you're willing to pay. Putting that kind of weight on an ultra-thin design guarantees the need for accessories to fill in those gaps (like burning a DVD), unless you really are just using your PC for web browsing and email.

But in today's world -- where even "average" users are being pulled toward former power-user-only fare like cloud services, external backups and even secondary displays -- that's not asking too much. The XPS 13 convinced me that Ultrabooks aren't some fad or special-case computer. They're ready for duty as a go-to machine for the majority of users.

Maybe if enough of those users actually get one, we can just start calling them what they should be called: laptops.

Insane Electric Superbus Goes 150MPH in Exquisite Luxury [VIDEO]

Saturday, June 23, 2012 8:11 AM

Mashable Video

Behold, a humongous luxury vehicle that stretches the definition of the word "bus." It's a "Superbus," designed by a team from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, and it carries 23 passengers at 150MPH. And yes, folks, this actually exists.

As each rider sits in sports-car comfort, this electric vehicle zips along its own special road through the desert of Dubai, transporting its lucky occupants (including Virgin CEO Richard Branson) at dizzying speeds in the utmost luxury.

Check out the video for the full story of this $10 million road rocket that makes us wonder why its owners don't just spend a few extra bucks and get a helicopter.

10 Terrific Accessories That Celebrate the Typewriter

Saturday, June 23, 2012 7:10 AM

Amy-Mae Elliott

On this day in 1868 American inventor Christopher Latham Sholes patented the "Type-Writer." As it became the first commercially successful model, Sholes has since gone down in history as the creator of the machine -- as well as the QWERTY keyboard.

To celebrate this influential invention and the iconic looks of the vintage machine, we have found 10 tech cases that feature fantastic typewriter-influenced designs.

Take a look through our hand-picked selection of items. Let us know in the comments below if you would consider paying homage to the humble typewriter with such an accessory.

Thumbnail image courtesy of Flickr, mpclemens

7th fb Birthday Gift

Sunday, 24 June 2012

Tech Coverage on Mashable

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