NEWS 4

Facebook gets emotive

Facebook's 'like' button is getting a makeover to allow users to be more emotive in their responses.

No longer will people be confined to 'liking' their friend's Facebook status, but they will also be able to respond with: 'love', 'haha', 'yay', 'wow', 'sad' and 'angry'.

• The company said it would start the pilot in Ireland and Spain on iOS, Android and desktops.
• The feedback from the pilot test will be used to improve the feature and the company hopes "to roll it out to everyone soon," Cox wrote in the post.

My opinion on this story is that Facebook are becoming a more advanced now and are empowering audiences to a wider views and values. They are giving the audience a chance to share more of their views and their emotions 

Google speeds up news article downloads on mobile devices

Dozens of leading news organisations, including the BBC, are taking part in a scheme that will allow their web-based articles to load more quickly on smartphones and tablets. Leaders of the Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) initiative promise that the stripped-back versions of the pages will be "lightning fast" to load. The move has been led by Google, which is providing use of its servers. 

Participants believe it may discourage the use of ad-blocking plug-ins. AMP works by simplifying the technical underpinnings of the pages involved. Much of the Javascript code used on normal webpages is absent, meaning articles should not only appear faster but use less battery power. Publishers can continue to tap into the same ad networks as before, but they will not be able to display some types of adverts including pop-ups and "sticky" images that move as users scroll down a page.

• Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Wordpress have said they also intend to make use of the technology.
• Facebook is a notable exception.
• The social network recently launched an alternative programme called Instant Articles, which speeds up the delivery of third-party content by hosting it on its own platform.

My opinion on this story is that technology is now advanced and becoming more faster and wider. Its becoming an easier platform to be on.