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Posts tagged Mobile
Apple remove unofficial WikiLeaks iPhone app from App Store, claim it is “harmful”
Dec 22nd
A developer who created an unofficial app that accessed content from the controversial whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks has had their app removed the iOS App Store by Apple. The cheeky developer was charging $1.99 for access to the US embassy cables being issued by WikiLeaks, which can be accessed free of charge online through various ‘mirror’ sites.
Apple have released a statement saying the app was pulled for not complying with local laws and not ensuring that individuals and groups were kept out of “harm’s way”, possibly referencing allegations by the US government that the leaks are endangering American diplomats and military services around the world.
This move comes after PayPal, everyDNS, Bank of America and Amazon have all terminated services they provide to WikiLeaks, prompting controversial online organisation ‘Anonymous’ to mount DDoS cyber-attacks against some of their websites.
Julian Assange, the leader and founder of WikiLeaks, is on bail in the UK and appealing against extradition to Sweden for rape allegations. You can find out more about the story so far in the special report on the BBC News website. See our other posts about WikiLeaks here.
The real world role of social media: tuition fees debate
Dec 8th
You may have been following the UK tuition fees debate with some interest in the news, and seen how previously apathetic students have sprung into organised protests and occupations with surprising speed and ease. This is a great example of the role of social media in a practical context. Let’s take a look at how social networking has been used, and how it is relevant to the commercial world.
How do you know if anybody is coming to a protest? How do you know where to meet? The popular social network Facebook has been used extensively to organise protests across the country. Facebook ‘events’ have been set up with a wealth of information on dates, times, locations and attendees to organise their exploits. However, event pages are only useful up until that event starts. Which leads us to…
So when the march has started, how do such a large mass of people communicate? Twitter is the popular micro-blogging platform used by celebrities, politicians, businesses, charities, activists and everyday people – including students. When police attempted to use their controversial ‘kettling’ tactic a multitude of warnings would appear instantly on the site warning other protestors to change route. Occupations and sit ins have More >
Social media giant Facebook announces Single Sign-on, Places API, Deals, Mobile App Updates
Nov 4th
Popular social network Facebook announced a torrent of updates to its mobile products, namely four things: single sign-on, opening up its Places API, allowing businesses to attach deals to their Facebook Place page, and updates to its iPhone and Android apps.
Single Sign-on
Facebook are seeking to limit the amount of typing of long passwords and usernames that a user has to go through inside mobile apps by allowing integration with Facebook in a similar way to what you may see on many websites that you visit. People with the Facebook app installed on their smartphone will be able to log in to other mobile apps using their Facebook account, no giving up of private credentials necessary.
The Places API
Developers can now access the popular Places product to utilise in their own apps and websites. Places is a location based tools that allows Facebook users to ‘check in’ at locations and tag their friends, in a similar vein to location based social networks like Foursquare and Gowalla. The API allows developers to link their own products to this tool so that, for example, Foursquare check ins could be duplicated to Facebook Places. Developers will be able to read data from the tool, write More >