Tag: social media

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter expands trial of its downvotes feature

Twitter is expanding its test feature that allows users to downvote replies to tweets they don’t want to see.

First rolled out in July, the social media app introduced the feature to understand which replies people find relevant in conversations. Downvotes aren’t visible to the tweet’s author or public.

The company also introduced upvotes that appear as likes. It’s unclear if upvoting will also be part of the expanded rollout.

“We learned a lot about the types of replies you don’t find relevant, and we’re expanding this test –– more of you on web and soon iOS and Android will have the option to use reply downvoting,” the organization said on its Twitter Support account (@TwitterSupport).

This is just one of several tests Twitter is conducting. It’s currently examining a video reaction feature that will allow users to share their thoughts through a video over a typed message. It’s also testing a feature that will let users add content warnings to tweets and categories.

It’s unclear how Twitter will select users who can test the downvoting feature. But the fact that Android users will also be able to try this, as it was previously only open to iOS users, seems like a step in the right direction.

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Mobile Syrup

YouTube announces grantees of its #YouTubeBlack Voices Fund

Back in 2020, YouTube launched its #YouTubeBlack Voices Fund, which supports Black creators and artists on YouTube. Now, the video platform has announced its creator 2022 grantees, which includes five Canadian creators.

Throughout 2022, YouTube will work with these creators and offer dedicated partner support, seed funding to develop their channels and participation in a development program that covers production costs, community engagement and wellbeing.

Here are the five Canadian creators:

According to YouTube’s press release, for Black History Month the platform will also spotlight a few creators more closely.

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter expands misleading tweets feature to Spain, Brazil, and the Philippines

Russia, Kazan Sep 2 2019: Twitter application icon on Apple iPhone X smartphone screen close-up. Twitter app icon. Social media icon. Social network

Twitter is expanding its feature that allows users to flag misleading tweets to the Philippines, Brazil, and Spain.

The functionality was first introduced in August 2021 and was open to users in the U.S., South Korea and Australia. Select users can pick “it’s misleading” as an option when they go to report a tweet.

Reuters reports the company received 3 million reports for the flagged tweets since it was first introduced.

The company tweeted the tool has been “useful” but improvements are still needed. No details are provided as to what these improvements might include. Of the tweets reported so far through this tool, only 10 percent were a violation of the company’s policies.

“As we continue with the pilot, we may not take action on all reported tweets and will not be able to respond to every report we receive,” a tweet on the company’s Brazilian account reads.

Image credit: ShutterStock

Source: @Twitter Via: Reuters

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Mobile Syrup

You can (finally) listen to Clubhouse conversations without an account

February 8, 2021, Brazil. In this photo illustration the Clubhouse logo seen displayed on a smartphone screen

Conversations on audio platform Clubhouse can now be enjoyed through the use of a browser — and keen listeners don’t need to make an account to access conversations.

The company announced on Twitter (rather sarcastically) that it has introduced the new sharing feature. This allows users to share a live room with other Clubhouse members and on social networks, allowing anyone to listen in using a shared link.

Prior to this, conversations could only be joined through the Clubhouse app, severely limiting who could listen to conversations.

Clubhouse seems to acknowledge this when they tweeted “we invented [sharing] and nobody has thought of it before.”

Engadget reports the feature is “experimental” and only available in the U.S. for the time being. It could expand to other countries if the new feature receives enough support.

Questions remain if the company worked fast enough to debut the change, given the competing options that have launched since Clubhouse was created, such as Twitter Spaces.

9to5Mac reports such competition contributed to a dramatic decline in Clubhouse’s monthly download numbers, which reached its peak with 8 million downloads in February 2021. That number dropped below 1 million two months later.

Image credit: ShutterStock

Source: Clubhouse via: 9to5Mac

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Mobile Syrup

Instagram exploring feature that will allow users to rearrange photos on their profile grid

Woman browsing photos on social media app, person’s name on screen is made up

Instagram is developing a new feature that will allow users to rearrange photos on their profiles.

This is according to leaker Alessandro Paluzzi, who found the company was testing a new editing feature that changes the way photos appeared on a profile grid.

Screenshots Paluzzi posted to Twitter seem to show photos can simply be dragged and dropped in different orders.

As noted by Engadget, the tool could be especially useful for artists or businesses to highlight their recent work. Anyone looking to highlight specific photos on their personal profiles may also find this tool useful.

But it’s not clear if, and when, the tool will be available for use.

“This feature is an internal prototype that’s still in development, and not testing externally,” a Meta spokesperson told MobileSyrup.

The last insight into new developments the social media company gave was through a tweet was made in early December. While it addressed “new options” were in the works, there was no mention of users editing their profile grids. The focus was largely on the triumphant return of chronological feeds.

Image source: ShutterStock

Source: Engadget

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter begins rolling out auto-captions for new videos

In a bid to make its platform more accessible, Twitter has announced that it’s rolling out auto-generated captions for videos uploaded to the micro-blogging platform.

Available in over 30 languages, including English, Spanish, Hindi, Chinese, Arabic and more, auto-captions are rolling out for Twitter on the web, iOS and Android.

What’s worth noting is that the captions won’t be generated for videos already uploaded to the platform, and are exclusive to new videos only. Additionally, unlike Tik Tok, whatever captions the AI generates would be permanent and you won’t be able to edit the captions if you find any discrepancies.

As mentioned in the Tweet above, Twitter’s Android and iOS mobile apps will show captions by default on muted videos, but on the website, you’ll have to use the “CC” button to enable/disable captions.

This comes soon after Twitter announced that it’s testing a new Tik-Tok-style vertical feed that will help users “discover the best content that’s trending.”

Source: Twitter

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter’s new reporting format will allow you to describe your reasoning

Twitter is revamping the way users report harmful Tweets/content on the microblogging platform to make it easier for people to describe what is wrong with the content.

The new reporting feature, which is currently live only for a small number of Twitter users in the U.S., is expected to be widely released in 2022.

The social media giant — which recently saw its former CEO Jack Dorsey step down — says, rather than being required to report how a tweet breaches Twitter’s rules, users will be asked whether they have been attacked with hate, harassed or threatened with violence, or shown content related to self-harm.

According to Twitter, users will also be able to explain the reason behind reporting content in their own words.

“Say you’re in the midst of an emergency medical situation. If you break your leg, the doctor doesn’t say, is your leg broken? They say, where does it hurt? The idea is, first let’s try to find out what’s happening instead of asking you to diagnose the issue,” reads Twitter’s release.

This new format of reporting content will allow Twitter to collect fine data on tweets that do not openly break its rules but that users may find harmful or unpleasant, essentially aiding the company to set out future policy updates.

“The intention of these reporting flows is to empower the customer, give Twitter actionable information that we can use to improve the product and our experiences, and also improve our trust and safety process overall,” said Twitter Health’s director of product management Fay Johnson.

Learn more about the upcoming update here.

Image credit: Twitter

Source: Twitter

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Mobile Syrup

Instagram tests new ‘Take a Break’ feature to encourage time away from the app

Instagram is testing a new feature called ‘Take a Break.’

The head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, said in a recent video posted on Twitter that “If you opt-in, [the feature] encourages you to take a break from Instagram after you spend a certain amount of time on the app; 10, 20, or 30 minutes.”

Mosseri says that this feature is part of a larger effort to give people more control over their experience on Instagram. “Ultimately, you know what’s best for you when it comes to how you use the app. And we want to make sure we provide tools for you to shape Instagram into what works for you.”

An Instagram spokesperson told The Verge that users will need to opt-in to turn on the feature, but that it will specifically send a notification to teens encouraging them to try ‘Take a Break.’

Mosseri’s video shows what the feature will look like. There will be a prompt in the user’s feeds that won’t take over the entire screen. When the user turns on the feature, they’ll see a prompt that enables them to select what length of the time they want to spend on the app before they receive a reminder with suggestions like “take a few deep breaths, write down what you’re thinking,” and more.

Additionally, Mosseri said that Instagram worked with third-party experts to figure out what tips to offer and how to frame the feature. He says that Facebook-owned Instagram wants to be “comfortable,” with the feature before its wider launch next month.

Source: Adam Mosseri, The Verge

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Mobile Syrup

You can finally see Instagram photos on Twitter

Instagram has announced that users can now preview photos when posting a link on Twitter.

The photo-sharing platform revealed the news with a tweet from its official Twitter account. Now when you share an Instagram link a Twitter card will appear featuring the photo shared, rather than an ugly clickable link.

The two social media giants have been feuding for years since native Instagram integration was removed from Twitter in 2012. This shift comes as Instagram parent company Facebook makes sweeping changes, including a complete rebrand.

It’s unknown whether Facebook’s recent shake up had anything to with this change or if it was just something that had been in the works for quite some time. Either way, users of both platforms will be all over this new feature.

Source: @Instagram

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Mobile Syrup

Meta says it won’t require Facebook accounts for VR headsets

Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, says it won’t require a Facebook account to use its VR headsets.

Incoming Meta CTO Andrew “Boz” Bosworth made the announcement in a broader blog post discussing the Facebook name change.

“We’re working on new ways to log into Quest that won’t require a Facebook account, landing sometime next year,” Bosworth wrote. “This is one of our highest priority areas of work internally.”

This is a notable reversal for Meta, which had previously said Facebook accounts would eventually be required to use its Meta Quest VR headsets (formerly Oculus Quest). It was a highly controversial move from a company that has already faced immense scrutiny over privacy, among other subjects.

The company also says it’s no longer using the Oculus branding “to make clear” that its VR division is tied to Meta. However, the names of the company’s apps — Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp — will remain the same.

In general, the tech giant’s overall name change is meant to signal its intention to expand beyond a social media company into a “metaverse” company. To put it simply, this is a world in which avatars of people can interact, work, play, go to concerts and other activities. This will leverage augmented and virtual reality technology and be built over a period of five to ten years, according to the company.