Over 500 million people on Facebook Messenger now

New York: The new messaging service from Facebook has crossed 500 million users worldwide - a figure that has more than doubled from 200 million in April this year, the social networking site said in a statement.
“Messenger was the first of our standalone apps and unlike our core Facebook apps, it focused on one use case - messaging,” Peter Martinazzi, Facebook's director of product management, wrote in a blog post.
“We have also continued to improve speed and reliability. Updates to Messenger ship every two weeks so it continues to evolve and improve,” he added.
Messaging is an important part of how people stay connected and since Messenger launched in 2011, “we have been passionate about giving people a faster and more expressive way to communicate”, the post read.
Earlier this year, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that releasing new standalone apps would be a top priority for the social networking site.
Facebook has already launched an ephemeral messaging app called Slingshot.
Facebook-owned Instagram has also released a standalone private messaging app called Bolt.
- See more at: http://www.madhyamam.com/en/science-technology/2014/nov/12/over-500-million-people-facebook-messenger-now#sthash.Lk3m6tC6.dpuf

Over 500 million people on Facebook Messenger now

New York: The new messaging service from Facebook has crossed 500 million users worldwide - a figure that has more than doubled from 200 million in April this year, the social networking site said in a statement.
“Messenger was the first of our standalone apps and unlike our core Facebook apps, it focused on one use case - messaging,” Peter Martinazzi, Facebook's director of product management, wrote in a blog post.
“We have also continued to improve speed and reliability. Updates to Messenger ship every two weeks so it continues to evolve and improve,” he added.
Messaging is an important part of how people stay connected and since Messenger launched in 2011, “we have been passionate about giving people a faster and more expressive way to communicate”, the post read.
Earlier this year, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that releasing new standalone apps would be a top priority for the social networking site.
Facebook has already launched an ephemeral messaging app called Slingshot.
Facebook-owned Instagram has also released a standalone private messaging app called Bolt.
- See more at: http://www.madhyamam.com/en/science-technology/2014/nov/12/over-500-million-people-facebook-messenger-now#sthash.Lk3m6tC6.dpuf

How to disable WhatsApp blue ticks for read messages

WhatsApp is letting users of its Android app disable the feature that lets users know that their messages have been read.

NEW DELHI: Recently, WhatsApp quietly introduced a new feature that lets users know that their messages have been read, with the double grey ticks appearing in front of the messages turning blue. 

And now, just as quietly, the mobile messaging service is letting users of its Android app disable the feature with the rollout of WhatsApp version 2.11.444. This version is available for users on WhatsApp's website for now, and will eventually be rolled out to all users. 

Here's how you can disable the blue coloured read receipts' with the message timestamp on WhatsApp's Android app: 

1. Make sure that your smartphone is running on Android 2.1 or a newer version. 

2. Go to settings menu and enable 'Download from Unknown Sources' in the Security tab 

3. Go to the WhatsApp website and download the APK (application) file available under www.whatsapp.com/Android/ 

4. Once the APK file is downloaded to your device, tap the 'Install' option. 

6. Now that WhatsApp has been updated, select Settings > Account > Privacy. Under the Privacy tab, uncheck the Read Receipts option. 

This feature however doesn't apply to group messages and will let other participants know when you've read a message. Also, once you disable this feature, you won't be able to view blue double-check marks when you send a message as well. 


The feature that enabled the users to see when their messages were read didn't go down too well with the users and with this update, WhatsApp seems to be taking steps to please users who were not happy with the new feature.

How to disable WhatsApp blue ticks for read messages

WhatsApp is letting users of its Android app disable the feature that lets users know that their messages have been read.

NEW DELHI: Recently, WhatsApp quietly introduced a new feature that lets users know that their messages have been read, with the double grey ticks appearing in front of the messages turning blue. 

And now, just as quietly, the mobile messaging service is letting users of its Android app disable the feature with the rollout of WhatsApp version 2.11.444. This version is available for users on WhatsApp's website for now, and will eventually be rolled out to all users. 

Here's how you can disable the blue coloured read receipts' with the message timestamp on WhatsApp's Android app: 

1. Make sure that your smartphone is running on Android 2.1 or a newer version. 

2. Go to settings menu and enable 'Download from Unknown Sources' in the Security tab 

3. Go to the WhatsApp website and download the APK (application) file available under www.whatsapp.com/Android/ 

4. Once the APK file is downloaded to your device, tap the 'Install' option. 

6. Now that WhatsApp has been updated, select Settings > Account > Privacy. Under the Privacy tab, uncheck the Read Receipts option. 

This feature however doesn't apply to group messages and will let other participants know when you've read a message. Also, once you disable this feature, you won't be able to view blue double-check marks when you send a message as well. 


The feature that enabled the users to see when their messages were read didn't go down too well with the users and with this update, WhatsApp seems to be taking steps to please users who were not happy with the new feature.

Fake bear selfie goes viral on Youtube and social media

Washington:A terrifying selfie with a bear, taken by a backpacker in the US, went viral on the social media much before the selfie was found to be fake, media reports said.

The original selfie was taken in May and was posted on photo-sharing website Instagram by Jacob Bean.

Subsequently, many websites, newspapers and blogs posted the picture without verifying the authenticity of the selfie.

It was only the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) that doubted the originality of the selfie and the secret was finally revealed.

'No one except NBC checked the legitimacy of the photograph. This picture was photoshopped as a joke after my backpacking trip in May in the Smoky Mountain National Park because I kept saying I was going to get a selfie with a bear. I never saw a bear. So I made sure it happened!' Bean posted on social media.

But before the truth was revealed, dozens of tourists and backpackers including children tried for a similar selfie.

This led the US Forest Service to issue a warning to visitors not to try such risky selfies with wild animals.

Fake bear selfie goes viral on Youtube and social media

Washington:A terrifying selfie with a bear, taken by a backpacker in the US, went viral on the social media much before the selfie was found to be fake, media reports said.

The original selfie was taken in May and was posted on photo-sharing website Instagram by Jacob Bean.

Subsequently, many websites, newspapers and blogs posted the picture without verifying the authenticity of the selfie.

It was only the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) that doubted the originality of the selfie and the secret was finally revealed.

'No one except NBC checked the legitimacy of the photograph. This picture was photoshopped as a joke after my backpacking trip in May in the Smoky Mountain National Park because I kept saying I was going to get a selfie with a bear. I never saw a bear. So I made sure it happened!' Bean posted on social media.

But before the truth was revealed, dozens of tourists and backpackers including children tried for a similar selfie.

This led the US Forest Service to issue a warning to visitors not to try such risky selfies with wild animals.

Facebook at work on Facebook at Work on Facebook at work, says report

You don't want your drunk nudie pics at the office

Facebook's decision to hire engineers in London is reportedly related to plans to build a business platform that will compete with LinkedIn, Microsoft Office and Google's Drive among other things. But, until "Facebook At Work" is ready, Facebookers will be using ordinary Facebook at work.

According to an FT scoop, sources familiar with the matter at the Mark Zuckerberg-run company confirmed that such a site was being developed by some of Facebook's engineers in London.


The free content ad network beefed up its developer wares outside of Facebook's Menlo Park, San Francisco headquarters and Dublin, Ireland for the first time in 2013, when it hired a team of engineers in the UK.

The Pink'un said that Facebook staffers already used the site, dubbed Facebook at Work, internally. It is now being put through its paces by a number of companies, apparently, ahead of show time.

Up until now, Facebook has been largely shunned by the corporate world, given its propensity for time-wasting during office hours. The site is banned on many company networks.

TechCrunch was first to report on the project in June, citing an anonymous source saying that Zuck's company was developing Facebook at Work. TechCrunch also reported in some detail on the current practice of Facebookers using ordinary Facebook features such as Groups while at work. At the time, it was unclear whether the site would be targeted at the firm's 1.25 billion users worldwide.

Facebook declined to comment on this story. 

Facebook at work on Facebook at Work on Facebook at work, says report

You don't want your drunk nudie pics at the office

Facebook's decision to hire engineers in London is reportedly related to plans to build a business platform that will compete with LinkedIn, Microsoft Office and Google's Drive among other things. But, until "Facebook At Work" is ready, Facebookers will be using ordinary Facebook at work.

According to an FT scoop, sources familiar with the matter at the Mark Zuckerberg-run company confirmed that such a site was being developed by some of Facebook's engineers in London.


The free content ad network beefed up its developer wares outside of Facebook's Menlo Park, San Francisco headquarters and Dublin, Ireland for the first time in 2013, when it hired a team of engineers in the UK.

The Pink'un said that Facebook staffers already used the site, dubbed Facebook at Work, internally. It is now being put through its paces by a number of companies, apparently, ahead of show time.

Up until now, Facebook has been largely shunned by the corporate world, given its propensity for time-wasting during office hours. The site is banned on many company networks.

TechCrunch was first to report on the project in June, citing an anonymous source saying that Zuck's company was developing Facebook at Work. TechCrunch also reported in some detail on the current practice of Facebookers using ordinary Facebook features such as Groups while at work. At the time, it was unclear whether the site would be targeted at the firm's 1.25 billion users worldwide.

Facebook declined to comment on this story.