Daily Crunch: Facebook might remove Like counts

The Daily Crunch is TechCrunch’s roundup of our biggest and most important stories. If you’d like to get this delivered to your inbox every day at around 9am Pacific, you can subscribe here.

1. Now Facebook says it may remove Like counts

Instagram is already testing something similar in seven countries, including Canada and Brazil. Instead of showing the total number of Likes for a post, it displays the names of just a few mutual friends who have Liked it.

Jane Manchun Wong spotted Facebook prototyping the hidden Like counts in its Android app. When we asked the company, it confirmed that it’s considering a test to remove Like counts, though this isn’t live for any users yet.

2. WeChat restricts controversial video face-swapping app Zao, citing ‘security risks’

Zao went viral in China this weekend for its realistic face-swapping videos. But following controversy about its user policy, messaging platform WeChat restricted access to the app.

3. OpenGov raises $51M to boost its cloud-based IT services for government and civic organizations

The company was co-founded by Palantir’s Joe Lonsdale to help governments and other civic organizations organize, analyze and present financial data and more, using cloud-based architecture.

ANAHEIM, CA – JUNE 21: YouTube Chief Product Officer Neal Mohan speaks onstage during the YouTube Keynote: Building Communities and the Next Generation of Media Companies Panel during VidCon. (Photo by FilmMagic/FilmMagic for YouTube)

4. YouTube’s Neal Mohan is coming to Disrupt SF

YouTube has found itself front-and-center in the recent debates about free speech, the internet and how the online world is shaping our offline lives, so there will be plenty to talk about when Mohan joins us at Disrupt.

5. Kabbage acquires Radius Intelligence, the marketing tech firm with a database of 20M small businesses

It’s been a tumultuous period for Radius, which announced a merger with its big competitor Leadspace last year, only to quietly cancel the deal three months later. Two months after that, it replaced its longtime CEO.

6. Apple still has work to do on privacy

Natasha Lomas examines whether iPhones are generally superior to Android devices when it comes to security. (Extra Crunch membership required.)

7. This week’s TechCrunch podcasts

On Equity, Alex and Kate share their thoughts on Peloton’s finances and prospects. And on this week’s Original Content, we review the Netflix series “The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.”

Read Full Article

Mozilla flips the default switch on Firefox tracker cookie blocking

From today Firefox users who update to the latest version of the browser will find a pro-privacy setting flipped for them on desktop and Android smartphones, assuming they didn’t already have the anti-tracking cookie feature enabled.

Mozilla launched the Enhanced Tracking Protection (ETP) feature in June as a default setting for new users — but leaving existing Firefox users’ settings unchanged at that point.

It’s now finishing what it started by flipping the default switch across the board in v69.0 of the browser.

The feature takes clear aim at third party cookies that are used to track Internet users for creepy purposes such as ad profiling. (Firefox relies on the Disconnect list to identify creepy cookies to block.)

The anti-tracking feature also takes aim at cryptomining: A background practice which can drain CPU and battery power, negatively impacting the user experience. Again, Firefox will now block cryptomining by default, not only when user activated.

In a blog post about the latest release Mozilla says it represents a “milestone” that marks “a major step in our multi-year effort to bring stronger, usable privacy protections to everyone using Firefox”.

“Currently over 20% of Firefox users have Enhanced Tracking Protection on. With today’s release, we expect to provide protection for 100% of ours users by default,” it predicts, underlining the defining power of default settings.

Firefox users with ETP enabled will see a shield icon in the URL bar to denote the tracker blocking is working. Clicking on this icon takes users to a menu where they can view a list of all the tracking cookies that are being blocked. Users are also able to switch off tracking cookie blocking on a per site basis, via this Content Blocking menu.

While blocking tracking cookies reduces some tracking of internet users it does not offer complete protection for privacy. Mozilla notes that ETP does not yet block browser fingerprinting scripts from running by default, for example.

Browser fingerprinting is another prevalent privacy-hostile technique that’s used to track and profile web users without knowledge or consent by linking online activity to a computer’s configuration and thereby tying multiple browser sessions back to the same device-user.

It’s an especially pernicious technique because it can erode privacy across browser sessions and even different browsers — which an Internet user might be deliberately deploying to try to prevent profiling.

A ‘Strict Mode’ in the Firefox setting can be enabled by Firefox users in the latest release to block fingerprinting. But it’s not on by default.

Mozilla says a future release of the browser will flip fingerprinting blocking on by default too.

The latest changes in Firefox continue Mozilla’s strategy — announced a year ago — of pro-actively defending its browser users’ privacy by squeezing the operational range of tracking technologies.

In the absence of a robust regulatory framework to rein in the outgrowth of the adtech ‘industrial data complex’ that’s addicted to harvesting Internet users’ data for ad targeting, browser makers have found themselves at the coal face of the fight against privacy-hostile tracking technologies.

And some are now playing an increasingly central — even defining role — as they flip privacy and anti-tracking defaults.

Notably, earlier this month, the open source WebKit browser engine, which underpins Apple’s Safari browser, announced a new tracking prevention policy that puts privacy on the same footing as security, saying it would treat attempts to circumvent this as akin to hacking.

Even Google has responded to growing pressure around privacy — announcing changes to how its Chrome browser handles cookies this May. Though it’s not doing that by default yet.

It has also said it’s working on technology to reduce fingerprinting. And recently announced a long term proposal to involve its Chromium browser engine in developing a new open standard for privacy.

Though cynics might suggest the adtech giant is responding to competitive pressure on privacy by trying to frame and steer the debate in a way that elides its own role in data mining Internet users at scale for (huge) profit.

Thus its tardy privacy pronouncements and long term proposals look rather more like an attempt to kick the issue into the long grass and buy time for Chrome to keep being used to undermine web users’ privacy — instead of Google being forced to act now and close down privacy-hostile practices that benefit its business.

Read Full Article

The next Apple Watch could feature sleep tracking

Details have surfaced about one of the potentially key features of the next Apple Watch — sleep tracking. Bloomberg originally reported that Apple has been working on a sleep tracking feature, and 9to5mac now details how the implementation could work.

The new feature would work on the next Apple Watch. The new device could be unveiled at Apple’s iPhone event next week or at a later event this fall. It’s unclear whether existing devices will also support the new feature.

You don’t need any extra hardware to enable sleep tracking — an Apple Watch strapped on your wrist is enough. When enabled, the Apple Watch will track your movements using the accelerometer. Apple also plans to take advantage of the heart rate sensor. Interestingly, the company could also leverage the microphone to listen for noises.

When you wake up, you can check the quality of your night in the Health app on your iPhone. According to 9to5mac, there will be a new Sleep app on the Apple Watch as well.

As most people use their phone as an alarm clock, Apple would mirror your alarm on your Apple Watch. This way, the alarm would play on the Apple Watch first and use the iPhone as a backup. You could limit the alarm on the Apple Watch to vibration only. This feature would be particularly handy for couples who don’t have the same schedule.

When it comes to battery life, Apple could send you a notification to remind you to charge your Apple Watch before going to bed. Remember that the Apple Watch has a tiny battery, so it charges in no time. You could easily get enough battery life in just a few minutes.

That feature would work particularly well with the next iPhone. Rumor has it that Apple will add reverse wireless charging to the new iPhone. It means that you would be able to put your Apple Watch on the back of your iPhone to charge it directly from your iPhone.

And if you’ve been a long time Apple Watch user, Apple could also let you pick a second Apple Watch and turn it into a dedicated sleep tracker. You’d just have to switch from one Apple Watch to another when you go to bed.

Read Full Article

A climate change solution that's right under our feet | Asmeret Asefaw Berhe

A climate change solution that's right under our feet | Asmeret Asefaw Berhe

There's two times more carbon in the earth's soil than in all of its vegetation and the atmosphere -- combined. Biogeochemist Asmeret Asefaw Berhe dives into the science of soil and shares how we could use its awesome carbon-trapping power to offset climate change. "[Soil] represents the difference between life and lifelessness in the earth system, and it can also help us combat climate change -- if we can only stop treating it like dirt," she says.

Click the above link to download the TED talk.

The NFL joins TikTok in multi-year partnership

The NFL and social video app TikTok today announced a multi-year partnership to bring NFL content to worldwide fans, just ahead of the NFL’s 100th season kick off on September 5. The partnership includes the launch of an official NFL account on the video platform, as well as a series of NFL-themed hashtag challenges, and other marketing opportunities for brands around the NFL content.

The first hashtag challenge, #WeReady, starts today and runs through Thursday. It encourages fans to show pride for their favorite NFL team while using the #WeReady hashtag. Several popular TikTok creators and NFL clubs will join the fans in the challenge.

TikTok will also have a presence at Soldier Field in Chicago for the Sept. 5 kickoff, where TikTok fans will be about to create videos and show their love for teams and players in an NFL-themed experience.

At launch, the NFL’s Tiktok account already features several videos, ranging from behind-the-scenes action to highlights, to funny memes and even inspirational content.

“We’re thrilled to partner with a powerhouse in the sports industry like the NFL to bring new life and a fresh perspective to the sports entertainment experience,” said Mayan Scharf, Global Partnerships, TikTok. “TikTok is a destination where fans can feel like they are a part of the team and we look forward to showcasing content from the NFL that is exciting, authentic and surprising to TikTok community,” he said.

While TikTok is better known for its meme-like, short-form videos featuring lip-syncing, displays of talent like dance, cosplay, comedy, art, and more, the company says that sports content is also a popular category on its service.

The NFL, meanwhile, is not averse to jumping on early with emerging platforms — whether that’s live-streaming video on Twitter, being the first sports league on Snapchat Discover, or launching an Alexa voice app, for example.

In addition, the NFL looks for opportunities that give it the ability to reach international fans, like when it distributed game highlights and recaps on Facebook. This is of particular importance at a time when ratings have become more of a concern for the sports league. Though it finally recovered last season from a multi-year ratings slump, the NFL knows that fans outside the U.S. are also worth courting as they can be just as loyal and engaged.

“Partnering with TikTok is a natural extension of our media strategy,” said Blake Stuchin, Vice President, Digital Media Business Development for the NFL, in a statement. “The platform reaches a fast-growing global audience of NFL fans and future fans. The NFL programming and hashtag challenges are a perfect way to kick off the NFL’s 100th season – with fun, new content that will entertain fans and invites them to celebrate and experience their NFL fandom in a way that’s authentic to the unique experience of TikTok,” he said.

 

Read Full Article

India’s mobile payments firm MobiKwik reaches rare key profit milestone

Indian mobile payments firm MobiKwik has reached a milestone very few of its local rivals can even contemplate: not burning money. The 10-year-old Gurgaon-headquartered firm said Tuesday it is now generating a profit excluding interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.

“We have been in an ecosystem where we have seen a lot of high-growth and several regulatory changes in the payments domain. But what we realized was that payments alone is likely not going to be a very profitable business,” Bipin Singh, co-founder and CEO of MobiKwik, told TechCrunch in an interview.

To get to the path of profitability, MobiKwik has made a number of significant changes to its business in recent years. It stopped participating in the race of getting more and more users and fight with the likes of Paytm, which has raised more than $2 billion to date.

Paytm remains unprofitable and an analysis of its financial performance shows that this is not going to change anytime soon. Google, which also offers a payments service in India, has no shortage of cash either.

Upasana Taku, co-founder and COO of MobiKwik, recalled an offsite meeting where someone asked her why Kotak and ICICI banks, both of which have about 15 million to 20 million customers, are profitable but wallet apps with tens of millions of users are not. MobiKwik, which employs 400 people, has 110 million users, she said.

In last two and a half years, MobiKwik has cut down on cashback it bandies out to users — a practice followed by nearly every company offering a payments solution in India — and focused on building financial services on top of its wallet app to retain customers and find additional revenue sources.

The company continues to focus on its mobile wallet and payments processing businesses that account for about 65% of its revenue, but its growing suite of financial services such as providing credits and insurance to customers is already bringing rest of the revenue, she said.

That’s not surprising. Fewer than 50 million credit cards are in circulation in India currently, and for people with limited income, getting a loan remains a major challenge.

“Even the population that has access to smartphones and cheap internet data can’t get a credit card in India. We found it a good match for the growth of our payments app. We started serving these users who have the discipline to repay money and have certain kind of income,” the couple said, who are now also donning the role of angel investors.

MobiKwik works with banks and other lenders to finance loans worth Rs 5,000 ($69) to Rs 100,000 ($1380). In the 18 months the service has been live, MobiKwik has offered 800,000 loans and disbursed $100 million. Its health insurance starts at as little as $1.3 a month.

MobiKwik expects its revenue to hit $66 million in the financial year that ends in March next year, up from $28 million a year earlier. The company, which expects to turn fully profitable in the next two years, plans to go public soon afterwards.

MobiKwik competes with a number of players, many of which are increasingly adding financial services such as loans to their platforms. Because these digital platforms are able to process loans without the need of salespeople and support staff, it becomes feasible for banks to chase customers with weak financial power.

India’s overall retail credit demand is expected to grow 60% to $771 billion over the next four years, according to the Digital Lenders Association of India.

Read Full Article

India’s mobile payments firm MobiKwik reaches rare key profit milestone

Indian mobile payments firm MobiKwik has reached a milestone very few of its local rivals can even contemplate: not burning money. The 10-year-old Gurgaon-headquartered firm said Tuesday it is now generating a profit excluding interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.

“We have been in an ecosystem where we have seen a lot of high-growth and several regulatory changes in the payments domain. But what we realized was that payments alone is likely not going to be a very profitable business,” Bipin Singh, co-founder and CEO of MobiKwik, told TechCrunch in an interview.

To get to the path of profitability, MobiKwik has made a number of significant changes to its business in recent years. It stopped participating in the race of getting more and more users and fight with the likes of Paytm, which has raised more than $2 billion to date.

Paytm remains unprofitable and an analysis of its financial performance shows that this is not going to change anytime soon. Google, which also offers a payments service in India, has no shortage of cash either.

Upasana Taku, co-founder and COO of MobiKwik, recalled an offsite meeting where someone asked her why Kotak and ICICI banks, both of which have about 15 million to 20 million customers are profitable, but wallet apps with tens of millions of users are not. MobiKwik, which employs 400 people, has 110 million users, she said.

In last two and a half years, MobiKwik has cut down on cashback it bandies out to users — a practice followed by nearly every company offering a payments solution in India — and focused on building financial services on top of its wallet app to retain customers and find additional revenue sources.

The company continues to focus on its mobile wallet and payments processing businesses that account for about 65% of its revenue, but its growing suite of financial services such as providing credits and insurance to customers is already bringing rest of the revenue, she said.

That’s not surprising. Fewer than 50 million credit cards are in circulation in India currently, and for people with limited income, getting a loan remains a major challenge.

“Even the population that has access to smartphones and cheap internet data can’t get a credit card in India. We found it a good match for the growth of our payments app. We started serving these users who have the discipline to repay money, have certain kind of income,” the couple said, who are now also donning the role of angel investors.

MobiKwik works with banks and other lenders to finance loans worth Rs 5,000 ($69) to Rs 100,000 ($1380). In the 18 months the service has been live, MobiKwik has offered 800,000 loans and disbursed $100 million. Its health insurance starts at as little as $1.3 a month.

MobiKwik expects its revenue to hit $66 million in the financial year that ends in March next year, up from $28 million a year earlier. The company, which expects to turn profitable in the next two to three years, plans to go public soon afterwards.

MobiKwik competes with a number of players, many of which are increasingly adding financial services such as loans to their platforms. India’s overall retail credit demand is expected to grow 60% to $771 billion over the next four years, according to the Digital Lenders Association of India.

Read Full Article

3 Discounted Apps That Will Transform Your Workflow

Sometimes, just one app can be the difference between struggling all day and finishing in five minutes. If you are looking for that killer upgrade, check out these discounted apps at MakeUseOf Deals — now with up to 95% off.

Jumper.Ai Lite Plan: Lifetime Subscription

If you work in marketing or run a business, Jumper.Ai can really jump start your sales. Available online and on mobile, the app turns your social and messaging channels into a storefront, driving up to 18 times more product engagement. Worth $1,020, lifetime Lite subscriptions are now only $49.

Cisdem Duplicate Finder for Mac: Lifetime Subscription

It’s easy to fill your hard drive with duplicate files, yet oh so hard to weed them out. Cisdem Duplicate Finder for Mac offers a one-click solution, with plenty of custom options. You can search particular categories, and the app will even find similar photos. Order now for $19.99 to save 75% on a lifetime subscription.

Gifox GIF Tool for Mac

GIFs are great for laughs, but they can also work as explainers and eye-catching content. Gifox GIF Tool for Mac helps you create your own moving images via screen recording. You can select any portion of the screen, trim the video and compress the file in one smooth workflow. The app is now 50% off at $2.49.

Like this deal? Check out Vault — you’ll get four premium tools, including NordVPN and Dashlane, to supercharge your online security. Try it free for 14 days now!

Prices are subject to change.

Read the full article: 3 Discounted Apps That Will Transform Your Workflow

Read Full Article

6 Spotify Sites to Discover New Music and Find Playlists You’ll Like

Unlike other music streaming services, Spotify’s openness makes it easier to discover new tunes from apps, friends, and third parties. Here are six cool apps to get new playlists or album recommendations.

Now, Spotify already does a good job of uncovering new music you might like through its features like Discover Weekly, Daily Mix, and Radio Stations. But when you step out of the Spotify bubble, there are better ways to discover new music. That’s what this fresh list of Spotify related apps is for.

1. Moodify (Web): Playlists Based on Songs and Musical Features

It’s easy for algorithms to create a randomized playlist based on an artist you like. Unlike most apps, Moodify wants to get specific and create a truly personalized playlist based on features you want in the songs, as well as tracks they’re similar to.

So here are the different adjustable musical features or parameters to get Moodify to create a playlist:

• Acousticness (digital, mix, analog)
• Instrumentalness (vocals, mix, no vocals)
• Tempo (50-200 beats per minute)
• Danceability (not proper, ok, great for dance)
• Energy (calm, fun, energizer)
• Mood (depressive, cheerful, joyful)

Apart from the parameters, you can nudge Moodify to look for songs that are similar to a few tracks you already like. Search for them in the provided box and choose from the Spotify results.

Once you click the Create Playlist button, the new playlist will appear in your Spotify app under the name “Discover Moodify.” If you like it, change the name to save it for the future, or create a copy. Before you use Moodify again, clear this playlist or the new songs will be added to it.

2. MagicPlaylist (Web): Create a Playlist Based on One Song

You have a song that you love. You want to listen to other songs like it. Head to MagicPlaylist and type the name of a track to get an instant playlist of similar songs (including the original).

You can choose the length of the playlist (one, two, or three hours) to add more or fewer songs. The playlist can be set to public or private and renamed too before you save it on Spotify. And before saving, you can search Spotify to add other songs that you want in the playlist.

MagicPlaylist isn’t a complicated algorithm, so it’s a mix of hits and misses. The developer says it works by searching for the original track you liked, finding related artists, and adding the top tracks of these artists.

Still, it’s more hits than misses, but one of the fastest ways to get a playlist. It’s especially useful to create a workout playlist for a few hours based on the kind of tempo and beats you’re looking for.

3. Discover Quickly (Web): Find New Music on Spotify

Made by two Spotify employees at a hackathon, Discover Quickly is a web app to find new music based on your interests. There’s nothing in here that Spotify doesn’t already have, but you get a much easier interface.

At the top of the page are quick links to your playlists, top tracks, and artists, saved albums, charts, genres, and new releases. Click any to see a collage of tracks. Hover over any track to hear a preview (or the full song if you have Spotify Premium).

Like what you hear? Click it to get a similar new collage menu for song and artist recommendations based on that track. Keep hearing previews and clicking what you like.

Every track you click is automatically added to the Discover Quickly queue. You can save this queue to a playlist in your Spotify account, or save all tracks to your Spotify library. Don’t want one of the tracks? Delete it before you save the queue.

It’s an intuitive way to discover new music without being overwhelmed, while still getting stuff that is available on Spotify.

4. Play-Later (Web): Discover New Albums on Spotify

Given how much Spotify pushes playlists and single tracks, you’d be forgiven for thinking that artists and bands now don’t release albums anymore. But the good old album is still around and kicking, and Play-Later is here to help you find them.

Every Friday, Play-Later lists albums released in the past week and ranks them by popularity. You’ll get the cover art, artist and album names, and the number of tracks in it. If something intrigues you, click Play Later. The album is automatically added to a playlist called “Play Later” in your Spotify.

You can see the last two weeks’ collections through quick filters, scroll to the bottom of the page to see every collection since November 2015. If you want the most popular albums on Spotify since 2015, head to The Music Bin.

As convenient as playlists are, there is still a charm to queuing up full albums and hear the music the way the artist envisioned it to be listened to.

5. Shuffle Spotify (Web): Random Playlist Based on Popularity

Shuffle Spotify is for those who are ready to explore a whole new world of music. This is one of the most randomized ways to create a playlist on Spotify.

The app asks you to say how many tracks you want in the playlist, and choose their minimum and maximum popularity ratings on the music streaming service. You can also name the playlist before you start.

Once you’ve chosen your settings, Shuffle Spotify will generate random tracks and you’ll find a new playlist on Spotify. You could discover some of the lowest-rated songs or get an eclectic mix, depending on how adventurous you’re feeling.

6. Playlistify (Web): Create Playlists From Setlists

You can’t be at every concert that your favorite artist performs at. But maybe you can get closer to the band by listening to the same setlist that they played. Playlistify is the simplest way to turn setlists into playlists for Spotify (and Apple Music too).

The app works with three popular setlist curators: 1001 Tracklists, Setlist.FM, and LiveTracklist.

Between these three, you’ll find tracklists based on live shows and concerts, music festivals, venues, radio shows, mixes, and more. Grab the URL of something that catches your fancy, paste it into Playlistify, and let it do its magic.

You’ll need to grant it access to your Spotify, of course. And at times, the mix might not be perfect. For example, it tends to favor studio tracks to live tracks, even though you’re trying to get the feel of the latter. But hey, it’s still a cool way to discover a fun new playlist for your favorite artist.

The Best Spotify Tips

Now that you’ve got new music added to your favorite streaming service, it’s time to start listening. But before you go, here are a few simple but essential Spotify tips that will enhance your musical experience.

Read the full article: 6 Spotify Sites to Discover New Music and Find Playlists You’ll Like

Read Full Article

Spotify Now Lets You Share Songs to Facebook Stories

Spotify now lets you share songs to Facebook Stories. You can share albums, playlists, and your profile, but if you share single tracks they come with 15-second previews. Allowing people viewing your Facebook Story to hear a portion of the song.

In May 2018, Spotify added the option to share songs to Instagram Stories. This adds a sticker to an Instagram Story, allowing viewers to click through to hear the song. Now, Facebook Stories is getting the same treatment, but with an added bonus.

How to Share Spotify Songs to Facebook Stories

As detailed on the Spotify for Artists Blog, Spotify now lets you share music directly to Facebook Stories. You can share songs, albums, playlists, or your profile, all of which will generate a link people can click to end up on the Spotify app.

However, if you share a single song (rather than an album, playlist, or your profile), anyone who views your Facebook Story will be treated to a 15-second preview of that song. They can then click “Play on Spotify” to hear the rest of the track.

Add some music to your story ?
Audio sharing to Facebook Stories is now available. pic.twitter.com/HSBgmxYd8G

— Spotify (@Spotify) August 30, 2019

To share a Spotify song to a Facebook Story, tap “Share” when viewing a track on Spotify. Select Facebook, choose to customize your Story, and post it. Viewers of the Facebook Story will be able to preview the track instantly, or click through to hear the rest.

Download: Spotify for Android | iOS

Read Our Beginner’s Guide to Spotify

This is beneficial to everyone involved. Ordinary users get to share their songs with friends. Artists get to share music with their fans. Spotify gets people interacting with their API. And Facebook gets another tool to improve engagement with Stories.

If any of your friends or fans does click through to Spotify after seeing a song on a Facebook Story you should direct them to our beginner’s guide to Spotify. Meanwhile, everyone else should find our Spotify keyboard shortcuts cheat sheet useful.

Read the full article: Spotify Now Lets You Share Songs to Facebook Stories

Read Full Article

Throw

Throw

Skype Adds New Messaging Features for Your Chats

Skype has added a host of new messaging features designed to improve the experience of chatting on Skype. This is an effort to catch up with the likes of Messenger and WhatsApp, which most people are more likely to use over Skype for simple text chats.

The best-known messaging apps started out offering barebones text chats, adding voice and video calls at a later date. However, Skype established itself as a tool for voice and video calls first, and is now trying to up its messaging game with new features.

Skype’s New Messaging Features

As detailed on the Skype Blog, Skype has gained a number of new messaging features. These features are designed to “help you boost your productivity when sending messages in Skype and enrich your overall chat experience.”

First up are message drafts, which let you return to a message you were halfway through writing at a later time. Any message you don’t send will remain in the corresponding conversation but be marked with “[draft],” allowing you to easily identify message drafts.

#TuesdayTip: Use the 'split view mode' to make sure you never mix up your conversations, again! pic.twitter.com/Vf0Os7cM9M

— Skype (@Skype) August 27, 2019

Skype now also boasts message bookmarks, which allow you to bookmark any message in Skype. All you need to do is right-click or long-press the message and click “Add Bookmark”. You can view all of your message bookmarks on the Bookmarks screen.

You can also now preview files before sending them. This allows you to check you’ve selected the right files to send, and you can even add a description. And if you send multiple photos or videos at once, Skype will now ensure they’re “nicely presented in a conversation”.

As a bonus, Skype has also expanded the split window feature. This feature, which lets you keep your chats organized in separate windows, was first launched on Windows 10. Now, it’s available on all versions of Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Download: Skype

Skype Features You May Have Missed

These new messaging features should help take your Skype chats to the next level. However, Skype is obviously capable of so much more. So, with that in mind, here are some handy Skype tips and features you may have overlooked.

Read the full article: Skype Adds New Messaging Features for Your Chats

Read Full Article

The 5 Best Ultrawide Monitors for All Budgets in 2019

10 Neat Ways to Create Beautiful Google Documents

Do you remember when Google Docs was known as Writerly? Yeah, that was a long time ago, but since then Google Docs has gone from a simple word processor to a powerful tool to make creative Google Docs.

Google is constantly adding new features to its word processing suite, which also consists of Sheets, Slides, Forms, Google Drawings, and App Script. This turns it into a professional tool that can compete with the best word processing programs out there.

In fact, with the help of add-ons and templates, you can turn your Google Docs suite into a powerhouse. Here are some tricks and tips that will help you make your Google Docs look pretty and stylish.

1. Paragraph Styles+

If you’ve typed up a large document before, then you’ll know the importance of having headers to break things up. Paragraph Styles+ gives you the flexibility to make your own headers outside of the program’s built-in editing tools. It will also help you make a Google Doc look good.

No longer are you constrained by the program’s header sizes. When using Paragraph Styles+, you can specify which font, size, style, and format you would prefer when you decorate your Google Doc. You can also save multiple styles.

To access a saved header style:

• Highlight the text.
• Open the sidebar by going to Add-ons > Paragraph Style+.
• Click on the header that you want.

Paragraph Styles+ also has the ability to make a table of contents for that mega-project you’ve been working on.

2. Lucidchart Diagrams

Lucidchart Diagrams is one of the top-rated apps available for Google Docs. It’s an incredibly in-depth creation tool that allows you to design charts and diagrams to decorate your Google Doc. Once you’ve created a diagram, you can insert it directly into the document. You can also share it.

There are two levels to the app. There’s the free account, which you can try out for an unlimited amount of time with limited features. You can also use one of the paid options which releases all features.

3. Translate

Now this one we love a lot. While we’re an English-based site, our writers (and readers) come from all around the world. It’s handy to have Google Translate sitting in the corner of your creative Google Doc.

To make it work:

• Highlight the text in the document.
• Choose the language of that highlighted text.
• Choose the language that you want to translate the text into.
• Click Translate.

As you can see, the number of provided languages is limited. Hopefully, they’ll expand it in the future.

4. MindMeister

MindMeister is for the mindmap fans out there. It’s quite simple to use, and a great way to make a pretty Google Doc—especially if you’re visually oriented.

To make a mindmap, highlight your bulleted list. Click on the MindMeister add-on.

When you click on it, MindMeister will turn your bullet points into a mindmap. This is an easy way to decorate your Google Doc and also simplify the information in it. It’s also one of the better tools out there when it comes to brainstorming a project.

5. Change Chase

Have you ever received a document and it had too many uppercase words or lowercase words in the wrong spots? What if this document was big, and you had to pick through it for individual instances where grammar went wrong?

No worries. Change Case is here.

This small, uncomplicated, no-frills add-on is incredibly useful when it comes to word processing. By highlighting the text that you need to fix, and clicking Add-ons > Change Case, you can change the case to your preferred style. A few clicks and everything’s corrected.

If you’re not interested in downloading Change Case, you can learn how to change the default fonts in Google Docs, as well to begin with.

6. Remove Line Breaks

Nothing can be more frustrating than copying and pasting from one document to another, only to see all the formatting errors pop up. PDFs are notorious for this; when you take a perfectly formatted document over to Word, it usually scatters like a shotgun blast.

Reconstructing these paragraphs to make your Google Doc look good is a laborious task. With Remove Link Breaks, however, the add-on will take any text you highlight and pull it back together.

7. Easy Accents

Like Translate, Easy Accents is a simple add-on for Google Docs that allows you to insert accented characters into your Google Doc without using a keyboard shortcut.

This is especially helpful if you’re typing in a different language and you don’t know those shortcuts. Easy accent also supports a decent number of languages, ranging from Afrikaans to Spanish.

8. Word Cloud Generator

Word Clouds are all the rage these days. They’ve become popular with the public, who are curious about what words they use, how often they use them, and why.

Word Cloud Generator allows you to create beautiful word maps that can help to illustrate your point in a creative Google Doc. It does this by reading your entire document, determining what your “theme” is, then making a visual from it. You can download these word clouds, change their color palettes, and adjust the number of words they’re pulling from.

It’s personally one of my favorite tools on this list.

9. Doc Tools

Doc Tools is a similar add-on to the previously mentioned Change Case. It can adjust individual words to match the uppercase and lowercase styles that you want.

However, Doc Tools also adds more useful features to decorate your Google Doc. It does this by having a toolbox where you can increase or decrease the size of your text, highlight text, or sort lists from A to Z.

10. Better Word Count

Finally, there’s Better Word Count. Because Google Docs already has a built-in word count system, you may think you don’t need it. However, Better Word Count brings you the basic stats on your document that much quicker.

As you type, Better Word Count constantly updates the word and character count in your document, which you can see along your sidebar. When you need to know how many words you’ve typed, just look to your right. There’s no clicking through another menu to find it.

Which Google Document Add-Ons Do You Love?

The nice thing about Google Docs is that it’s a constant work in progress. Third-party developers are always working together with Google to come up with new and innovative ideas to make your documents look cool.

Are you searching for other ways to make a Google Doc look pretty? Here’s how to embed a Google Slide into a Google Doc.

Read the full article: 10 Neat Ways to Create Beautiful Google Documents

Read Full Article

How to Print an Email From Anywhere

It’s less of a hassle to be paperless. But there are times when you need a physical printout of an important email. It may have a contract or an invoice attached to it. The hardcopy is still important as a failsafe. So, how can you print an email and where can you do it from when you aren’t chained to your desk?

Let’s answer all questions that come between your inbox and the printer.

How to Print an Email?

The “why” should you want to print emails can take several reasons. The “how” is just as easy in today’s feature-rich tools which give you not only a physical printer but also cloud printing and virtual printer solutions like Print to PDF and Send to OneNote.

Gmail is basic with its browser-dependent print controls. A desktop email client like Microsoft Outlook 365 and 2019 offer both manual ways to print emails and automatic workflows with the help of Outlook Rules.

But let’s look at the web-based Gmail first before we launch a desktop app like Outlook.

How to Print Email From Gmail

Printing a single message Gmail is easy. Open your Gmail and go to the mail you want to print.

Step 1: Open the specific mail or expand it if it’s part of a long thread of conversations.

Step 2: Go to the top-right and click the Printer icon. You can also right-click on top of the mail and choose Print from the context menu. Alternatively, use the Ctrl + P shortcut.

Step 3: The Print dialog is now displayed. Pick the printer you want to print to. Remember, you can print to your electronic printer, a cloud printer, PDF, or just “print” it to OneNote.

Step 4: Choose the other printer settings like the Layout and the number of pages you want to print if the message is spilling over to more than a page.

Step 5: Click on More Settings to expand the options available for printing in Gmail.

• To save paper, you can Choose Scale and constrict multiple pages to one sheet.
• To save ink, you can uncheck Headers and Footers and Background graphics.

How to Print an Entire Email Thread in Gmail

The Conversation view in Gmail can show a chain of 100 emails in one long thread. To print them all, go again to the top-right and click the Printer icon which now says Print All.

But you can also print one email by following the chronological order and opening that single conversation. Then, follow the above steps to print the mail.

What about printing emails with the Confidential Mode? The short answer is that you can’t. If the sender has turned on this privacy setting, then you cannot forward, copy, print, or download the mail.

The alternative is to take a screenshot of the mail and print it if you want to preserve some information before the mail expires.

How to Print an Email From Microsoft Outlook

Outlook can be a workhorse for printing one email or bulk printing multiple emails with attachments. With the enterprise nature of the Office software at the forefront, there are several ways to print emails from Outlook and save yourself time when bulk printing is involved.

Print a Single Email From Microsoft Outlook

Step 1: Launch Outlook and open the single email you want to print.

Step 2: Go to Ribbon > File > Print and choose the printer you want to use. Alternatively, use the shortcut Ctrl + P.

Step 3: In the Settings, choose Memo Style.

As you can see, Outlook gives you two print style options—Table Style and Memo Style. Printing in Table Style displays a list of all messages in your inbox. And choosing Memo Style prints the actual email.

Step 4: You can choose to preview both styles before you finalize the other Print options and hit Print in the dialog. The Print Options also allow you to select a specific page of a message with the Page range setting.

Print Attachments in Microsoft Outlook

Follow the above steps and select the Print attached files checkbox in the Print Options dialog box.

Use Quick Print in Microsoft Outlook

The Quick Print feature in Outlook allows you to print one email or a batch of them without opening any of them.

Step 1: Select one email or use the Ctrl key with the mouse to select several emails. Then, right-click and choose Quick Print from the context menu.

Step 2: If the setting for Print attached files is checked, then any attachment in the messages will also be printed.

Do note that Quick Print will use the default printer set in the Print dialog. If you want to use another printer, open the Print dialog and change the printer to the one available for your system.

Print a Selection From an Email in Microsoft Outlook

Want to print a specific section of an email and not the entire message? You can easily do this in Outlook, but you must use the browser as the bridge between Outlook and your printer.

Step 1: Open the email. Go to the Ribbon > Message tab > Move Group > Actions > View in Browser.

Step 2: Click OK on the security message box which pops up. The email is displayed in the default browser set up for Outlook.

Step 3: Select the text or section of the message directly in the browser window.

Step 4: Go to the browser’s Print feature or right-click on top of the selection and choose Print.

Step 5: Under Page Range > click Selection > Then click Print.

This can be a useful habit to save paper and printer ink when you just want to preserve part of an email and not the entire message.

How to Print an Email From an iPhone or Android?

Your desktop is tethered to the printer so a printout is just a couple of clicks away. But what about printing from your mobile phone?

You can use Print to PDF and save the document as a PDF file on your phone until you get access to a printer.

For Android and iPhone users, any mobile browser can help you print your email messages. Apple’s AirPrint service is a wireless solution that nixes the need to install drivers. It’s similar to Google’s Cloud Print for Android users. And both help you print emails, documents, and photos from anywhere.

Where Else Can I Print Documents From My Email?

Your own computer, mobile device, and a printer is convenient. But what when you are out and about without access to your own printer?

It’s not a problem in our hyper-connected world of today. Office supply stores, public libraries, business service centers, hotels, and restaurants can be the sources. Even FedEx and UPS are known to offer print and copy services for individuals, small businesses, and large enterprises.

Type “places to print near me” in Google Maps and it can serve up many more options. There are many more places to find a printer when you are out of the house. If everything else fails, rely on the kindness of strangers.

When Should You Print Something From Email?

The Think Before Printing campaign appeared several years back. Our eco-consciousness has hopefully become better now. Sustainable printing habits (for instance, double-sided printing) and products (recycled paper and power saving choices) have improved.

Also, email clients come with generous cloud storage and inbox management features. Apply the best practices of email organization and every snippet of data is accessible on any device.

So print out an email when absolutely necessary. Else, use Print to PDF from anywhere and store it in the cloud or export it to a note-taking solution like Evernote or OneNote.

Read the full article: How to Print an Email From Anywhere

Read Full Article

Facebook Is Tracking You! Here’s How to Stop It

Who is tracking you online? You assume your ISP and the government. Google tracks you everywhere online, and offline too if you carry an Android. But what about social media sites, like Facebook?

Facebook tracking is on par with Google. The social media giant receives multi-billion dollar fines for breaching privacy, tracking, and data sharing regulations in the US, European Union, and individual nations around the world.

Can you block Facebook tracking? Is it possible to stop Facebook tracking you around the internet? You can certainly try. Here’s how you stop Facebook tracking your online movements.

How Does Facebook Track You?

We’ve become a society intent on sharing… everything. How many times do you scroll through your Facebook feed and sigh at the information people are spewing forth? It goes further than that.

1. Facebook Like and Share Plug-In Tracking

The Facebook “Like” and “Share” buttons found on almost every website funnel data back into the Facebook advertising algorithm. The presence of the Facebook social share buttons means Facebook is hoovering up your data, regardless of whether you have an account or not. (What is a Facebook shadow profile, anyway?)

The European Union found that site owners could be held liable for transmitting private data to Facebook with obtaining the explicit consent of the users. The ruling doesn’t stop Facebook or other companies using social media plug-ins. However, it could force Facebook to offer users the chance to opt-out of tracking on websites outside of its control.

2. Facebook Pixel

The Facebook pixel “is an analytics tool that allows you to measure the effectiveness of your advertising by understanding the actions that people take on your website.” Sounds great, right? For a website owner, a Facebook pixel grants insight into how effective your advertising is. It does this by tracking the actions of the people using the site and feeding back to Facebook.

As with Facebook tracking via the Like and Share social plug-ins, the crux of the issue is whether Facebook provides enough information to users to make informed decisions regarding data tracking.

3. Facebook Cookies

Facebook places a cookie on your computer if you have a Facebook account. It also places a cookie on your computer if you use “Facebook Products, including our website or apps, or visit other websites and apps that use Facebook Products (including the Like button or other Facebook Technologies).”

Regardless of whether you have an account, if you even use a site using a Facebook Product, you receive a Facebook tracking cookie.

4. Facebook Tracking via Instagram and WhatsApp

Facebook owns several other major social sites and services. The largest of these are Instagram and WhatsApp, both giants in their own right. If you’re using Instagram, Facebook is tracking your data. The image-sharing social media platform is a Facebook Product with all the tracking and data privacy issues you can imagine.

WhatsApp, however, is a little different. Because WhatsApp is an encrypted messaging service. Therefore, Facebook cannot access the content of your messages and mine this data for advertising purposes. Still, Facebook can link your Facebook profile and WhatsApp accounts together to learn more about the friends you chat too.

Thankfully, WhatsApp users can turn off data sharing. Instagram users do not have the same data privacy option. If you want to switch, here are four privacy-focused WhatsApp alternatives.

What Does Facebook Know About You?

Facebook tracking serves a single purpose: advertising. Advertising remains the largest source of revenue for Facebook. That’s why collecting reams of data is essential for their business model, even after diversification into other areas of tech. After collecting your data for years, what does Facebook know about you?

For fun, let’s see what Facebook knows about me. Better still, let’s compare it to what it thought it knew about me in 2017. The following image displays my Facebook Ad preferences from 2017:

Now, my Facebook Ad preferences from 2019:

The jokes on them: I didn’t rate Call of Duty in 2017, and I’m still not a fan in 2019, either. Some changes, however, are more accurate. I do like board games, strategy games, and collectible card games. Nice to see my music taste has developed from just “Music” in 2017 into several different genres.

Regardless of what Facebook’s advertising preferences say about me, it perfectly illustrates the profile built to serve you advertising you will engage with, rather than a random spiel of useless ads.

You can see your Facebook Ad Preferences right here.

Facebook Tracks Users, Even Without an Account

I often hear people say they are free from Facebook tracking because they do not have an account. Well, the joke is on them (or us? All of us?!). One of the reasons Facebook’s advertising works so well is the immense amount of websites and services feeding data back to Facebook’s advertising arm. That includes data gathered using the methods laid out above.

When you visit one of these sites, regardless of your Facebook user status, Facebook receives an IP address, location, browser details, and more. And the best bit of all? Facebook tracking cookies never expire.

Why Is Facebook Tracking Me?

Advertising and money. At this point, most internet users understand that online tracking is de rigueur. Each link is another opportunity for Facebook or another advertising company to track us.

old person on Facebook: snapchat is tracking u now so the gov can spy on u!
same person:*checks in literally everywhere they go on Facebook*

— EJ Gomez (@EJGomez) July 12, 2017

Also, your data, regardless of user status, helps to increase the volume of advertising target data. It is a win-win for Facebook. Concise data that their business account holders can make better use of.

Facebook’s record on tracking and privacy is dire. In 2018, there was the Cambridge Analytica scandal. In 2019, the FTC fined Facebook $5 billion for failing to protect data from third-parties.

The EU fined Facebook $122 million for submitting misleading information about its WhatsApp takeover (they said they weren’t going to link data, then did exactly that). The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office fined Facebook the utterly laughable amount of £500,000 for breaching data privacy rules.

Tech giants like Facebook and Google are now so large that a $5 billion fine isn’t a deterrent. It is an operating cost, the price of doing business with your data.

Unfortunately, tracking and advertising are central to the modern internet. Have you ever tried running the privacy-focused browser extensions NoScript or PrivacyBadger (more on these extensions in a moment)? Many sites break without the enormous number of advertising and tracking scripts embedded in their code.

How Do I Stop Facebook Tracking Me?

The big question, the one you want the answer to: how do you stop Facebook tracking your movements around the internet? Is it possible to stop Facebook tracking you? Can you block a Facebook pixel?

Thankfully, there are several great solutions and, better yet, many of them will stop other invasive tracking practices, too.

Script Blocking

Some websites rely on scripts. In this case, the script is a small piece of code that calls advertising trackers to your presence on a page. You can block these scripts from running using a script blocking browser extension.

uBlock Origin

uBlock Origin is an excellent start. It features several built-in script-blocking lists and is easy to use too. Better still, it has dedicated scripts for Disconnect filters (Disconnect is another useful extension), as well as some that specifically take aim at social media trackers.

I would advise using uBlock Origin and whitelisting your favorite trusted sites—like MakeUseOf! It has blocked malvertising content on more than one occasion!

Download: uBlock Origin for Chrome | Firefox | Opera | Safari (All Free)

NoScript

NoScript is highly recommended but can be a steep learning curve. Your internet that works everywhere might suddenly be completely broken because of the blocked scripts. So while your privacy will be excellent, you might struggle to book flights, or even watch a video without tweaking your script settings. In that sense, it is highly customizable.

Download: NoScript for Firefox (Free)

Privacy Badger

Privacy Badger is one of the next best things to NoScript. Where NoScript is for techies (but worth learning, I might add), you could install PrivacyBadger on your Grandma’s computer, knowing she’ll be protected and able to book flights.

PrivacyBadger uses an easy-to-manage system of colored sliders. Green means okay, Yellow means third-party tracking but necessary for a functioning web, Red means content and scripts have been disabled.

Download: Privacy Badger for Chrome | Firefox | Opera (All Free)

Use a Privacy-Focused Alternative Browser

If you are using Google’s Chrome browser, you are being tracked. But you don’t have to fear your browser tracking your online activity. There are several privacy-focused browser alternatives you can use to stop Facebook tracking.

Epic Privacy Browser

Epic Privacy Browser protects you from “600+ tracking attempts in an average browsing session” and can see lower-quoted prices for flights and other services. It also has an integrated VPN with servers in eight countries.

Download: Epic Privacy Browser for Windows | macOS (Both Free)

Tor Browser

Tor is free anonymity software that usually runs as part of a modified Mozilla Firefox browser. It is well known as the home of darknet markets, dissidents, and other nefarious services. However, you can use it to stop trackers and keep your network traffic anonymous.

Download: Tor Browser for Windows | macOS | Linux (All Free)

Brave

Brave is a Chromium-based browser with a complete focus on privacy and security. It features an interesting approach to whitelisting: adding tiny micro-payments for your favorite publications.

Download: Brave for Windows (64-bit) | Windows (32-bit) | macOS | Linux

Advertising Opt-Outs and Disabling Third-Party Cookies

Users can opt-out of behavioral advertising using a regional tool.

• USA: Digital Advertising Alliance
• Canada: Digital Advertising Alliance
• EU: European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance

It can take a few tries to get each advertiser to accept your opt-out request. The EU site is especially slow!

Users should also disable third-party cookies in their browsers. You can disable third-party cookies via the Settings menu in your browser of choice. Stopping third-party cookies puts a halt on some advertising and behavioral tracking cookies making their way onto your system.

Here are five ways to check who is following you around the internet and some tips on how to block them, too.

Cookie AutoDelete

You can use a browser extension to delete third-party cookies automatically after leaving the site (some sites won’t work without them). Cookie AutoDelete works for both Chrome and Firefox, and allows you to customize the cookies you delete after each session.

Download: Cookie AutoDelete for Chrome | FireFox

Should You Block Facebook Tracking?

Facebook tracking serves one purpose: Facebook advertising.

Stopping at least some online tracking is a good thing. Maintaining, and even enhancing your online privacy is incredibly important. The march of organizations like Facebook and Google exposes our private data more than ever.

Serial Facebook posters reveal phenomenal amounts of personal data. Facebook can use your data even if you adopt restrictive privacy settings. Even if you’re concerned about what you post, Facebook is adept at drawing from and correlating private data.

Security expert Bruce Schneier believes, “We tend to focus on the data collection because that’s easier to see. I think the real problem are the correlations, which are much harder to see.”

No, I do not want my period tracking app to connect to my facebook account, thank you very much indeed

— Martina Behm (@strickmich) February 11, 2016

You have options to help you block Facebook’s tracking. Taking the privacy and security of your Facebook account into your hands isn’t arduous. But it does require a little effort.

A great place to start is this walkthrough of Facebook’s new privacy settings. It’ll help you understand much more about how Facebook is using your data.

Image Credit: Sabphoto/Shutterstock

Read the full article: Facebook Is Tracking You! Here’s How to Stop It

Read Full Article

6 Reasons Why Linux Phones and Laptops Aren’t Cheap