Social networks, "fuel" for smartphones

The so-called smart phones that allow, among other things, Internet access, will be of massive use thanks to the "insatiable appetite" of the public for social networks, analysts say the mobile phone market in Britain.

Researchers predict for next year an explosion in sales along with falling prices.

The prediction takes place the same week the launch of the latest Blackberry model, called "Storm 2.

While the "Palm Pre", dubbed the "iPhone murderer," finally makes its entry into the UK market.

Fuel

"The Internet on cell phones is on the same stage where the Internet was in 1998," says Ian Fogg, analyst at Forrester.

Ben Wood, a researcher at CCS Insight, agrees: "We are on the cusp of an explosion of devices that seem computers in the hands of consumers, where previously it was only a privilege of the first who could afford them.

"Social networks are the fuel that is encouraging the moment," said Wood.

Increasingly, mobile operators and handset manufacturers are delivering phones that are "an assortment for social messages, alerts are Twitter, IM or the latest pictures on Facebook," said the analyst.

For Eric Schmidt, Google's director, could be the time to leave the label of "smart phone".

"The smart phone is not really a smartphone. It's actually a GPS device is a camera and a camcorder and a place where you can play games and browse the Internet, and, oh by the way, you can make calls.

CCS Insight report predicted that by the end of 2009, 44% of cell phone users will access information through their phones, while it is expected that smart phones accounted for 17% of the over one billion equipment produced in 2009.

More than half of U.S. companies social networking bans

More than half of U.S. companies forbid their employees to enter social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace or Twitter during working hours, according to a study released last week.
"The addiction to socialize" takes over internet.
About 54% of those responsible for the information of the companies decided a "total ban" of visits to social networking sites.
According to 19% of those responsible, employees are entitled to visit social networking sites, but "only in the context of their work", and 16% warrants the occupation "for limited personal use". Only 10% had no objection to such access.
The study was conducted in 1,400 companies from at least 100 employees by the firm Robert Half Technology. "Using social networking sites can divert attention from the employees of more pressing priorities and it is therefore understandable that some companies restrict access," said executive director of Robert Half Technology, Dave Miller.

Facebook knows if we are happy

Facebook has become indispensable for our social care and keep abreast of what happens in our circle of friends, but now aspires to much more: whether or not we are happy.
The popular social network has developed an index to measure the degree of happiness and ensures that it can determine on which days the Americans were when they were happier and more miserable.
The system is simple and uses the personal information that millions of users share every day with the rest of the world: Facebook has analyzed the words used by members of the network in its status bar and answers the question "What are you thinking ?.
"Cluster, these updates are indicative of how we feel collectively," he writes in a blog post on Facebook Adam Kramer, a psychology student at the University of Oregon and one of the leaders of the project.

So Facebook finds good days when words like "happy" or "great" abound in the status bar of the users of social network and negative ones in which many members use terms such as "dramatic" in the description of moods.The result is an indicator that, to paraphrase the GDP, Facebook called "Gross National Happiness" and demonstrates that, like most people, Americans tend to be happier in the holidays.
"Some of the happiest days included U.S. national holidays such as Thanksgiving Day, July 4 and Halloween or religious holidays like Christmas or Easter," says Kramer.
One exception was the November 5, 2008, the day after the election of Barack Obama as U.S. president, in which, according to the study, Facebook members were twice as happy as anyone on a Wednesday.
But there were other moments of very low morale. On Facebook more pessimistic since the survey began two years ago was on 22 January 2008, date of death of U.S. actor Heath Ledger and the collapse of Asian stock markets.He was followed on 25 June this year, when the world was startled by the news of the death of the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, and Facebook status bar is filled with terms like "tragic," "sad" or "doubt .
The study is limited to users in the United States and to English, but Facebook has plans to expand into other languages and countries, says Kramer, who, according to the blog, is a 72 percent happier than the average user of social network .
Facebook has become an indispensable tool for millions of people around the world and many do not know and start the day without updating their status or check the news published by its contacts.
The pace of Facebook, which already has nearly 300 million users, is frantic: each user has an average of 120 friends and 20 million people update their status at least once a day.

Many companies even begin to be concerned about the business impact of excessive use of the network among its employees and has decided to impose limits.
According to a recent poll, 54 percent of all U.S. companies prohibit their employees to visit social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter or MySpace during work hours.

"The use of social networking can distract attention from the employees of other higher priority tasks, so it is understandable that some companies restrict access," said Dave Willmer, director of Robert Half Technology, Study.
However, one in five employers can use for work, showing that Facebook is also used to do business ... or that some have managed to convince the boss.

Facebook: Argentina, among the 10 countries with more users

Argentina is the Latin American country with most facebook users and, after Spain, the second Hispanic speakers in the number of adherents to the popular network

Our country is in the top-ten Internet users on facebook. Argentine 6,024,440 assemble their profiles and add friends on the web created by Mark Zuckerberg and already has over 200 million users.

According to CheckFacebook, the list is headed by the United States, followed in order by Britain, Turkey, Canada, France, Italy, Indondesia, Australia and Spain. At number 10, the gaucho country.

The newspaper The Chronicle consulted on this issue of Sahovaler Diana Litvinoff, a member of the Psychoanalytic Association of Argentina, who said: "It has to do with the social composition of the country, which makes for lots of users, middle and upper middle class that computers have some privacy, ie, at home and internet access.

Buy your friends in facebook

Who says you can not buy friends? An Australian company is selling online marketing friends and admirers to Facebook members after offering a similar service to Twitter users.

"Women are swindled on Facebook for U.S. $ 4,000.
The company advertising, marketing and promotions uSocial (usocial.net) said that targets social networking sites because of their huge advertising potential.

"Facebook is an extremely effective marketing tool," Leon said in a statement Hill, chief executive of uSocial.
"The simple fact is that with a great track on Facebook, you have an instant target group of people with whom you can connect and promote whatever you're promoting," he added.

"The only problem is that it can be extremely difficult to get this up and this is where we" he said. The company offers packages for Facebook, the Internet social network in the world, beginning in 1000 friends and reaches 10,000, at a price of between 177 and $ 1167.

"Everything we do is send them a welcome message or a friend request of the customer. If you decide to go ahead and add this person as friend or fan will, if not, then no," Hill told Australian media.

Facebook is now the fourth most visited website in the world. However, uSocial packages are not without controversy.

According to Australian sites, Twitter tried to block uSocial accusing you of sending spam to its members, while the Los Angeles Times newspaper reported that Digg.com, a website where people vote for their favorite news sites or, also tried to shut it out selling votes.

Facebook gives a touch-mail to Ramadan

Congratulatory messages and tips on how to eat healthy when breaking the fast and invitations to donate money to the poor have invaded Facebook, a mass phenomenon in Egypt that gives the current Muslim holy month of Ramadan an electronic touch.
If you want to know the Egyptian television programs during Ramadan-a month in which dozens of soap opera-premieres you ask your friends in Facebook, and moments after receiving the response.
So do many Egyptians internet every day if they want to know the exact time of "iftar, the meal which breaks the fast of Ramadan, which must be maintained from dawn to sunset.
"My friends and I always use Facebook during Ramadan to exchange greetings and ask for the television programs this month. It is a way to communicate faster than calling," he told Efe Noha Mohamed, a Muslim girl.
Both Mohammed and many of his friends use Facebook even to read the Qur'an during the prayer of "tarawih, typical of Ramadan after the" iftar ".
For Mohamed, "nothing happens if you use Facebook in a reasonable manner, without losing time to be devoted to religion in this holy month."
As for Indy Awad, a Muslim girl who is unemployed, Facebook occupies a large area of your life.
"I'm addicted to Facebook and use it to ask Ramadan and inform my friends from concerts and television programs," Awad told Efe, after hanging on this social network a part of a comedy show during Ramadan.
This year it has become fashionable in Egypt to use Facebook to invite users to donate money to the poor and prepare meals for the less fortunate.
"I've got many invitations from Facebook charity groups and NGOs to help the poor during Ramadan," said Mohammed, whose image appears with the typical profile of Ramadan lantern.
Virtual groups as "Ramadan for us" and "Ramadan charity campaign" encouraging Internet users to offer a bag of food to a poor or build a table in the street to feed the less fortunate.
And it is customary to offer food to the poorest people in tents that are mounted on the streets and especially for Ramadan in Egypt are called the rahman mawaíd or tables of mercy.
In addition, the group of Ramadan charity campaign "coordinated its activities among its members to come together and cook together for needy families.
There is no shortage of new clothes this season and give it away to those who do not take the holiday "Eid el Fitr," which will be held at the end of the fasting month. All through Facebook.
Even some experts at the University of Al Azhar, the most prestigious Muslim institution in the Arab world, encourage people to use Facebook during Ramadan, which should be a time of recollection, although whenever a useful manner.
"Not at all to urge people to boycott Facebook during Ramadan," he told Efe Abdel Moti Bayumi, cleric of the Center for Islamic Studies at Al Azhar.
"Allah has placed in each of consciousness to distinguish between useful and other harmful use (of Facebook). It is the user who can say if you use it in a way that contradicts or morals of Islam and the spirit of Ramadan" added Bauymi.
Twitter, another social network unstoppable growth, has also served the faithful Muslims and Christians to exchange congratulatory messages such as "Ramadan Karim (generous)" and "Ramadan mubarak (blessed)".
Questions about how to lose weight during this time, rich in sweets, or what the tent or marquee nicest Ramadan abound on Twitter.
Some Twitter users have moved beyond the social use of the network and have dedicated themselves to encouraging others to deepen in Islam, providing a list of websites that can help them.
Whether Facebook or Twitter, Ramadan is also lived in the virtual world.