Those who have read my post 5 most wanted Facebook features might have got an idea that I am not the kind of a person who is happy with whatever is given to him. I like to quarry around until I find a few gaffes and when it comes to technology, I feel privileged in pointing out the missing plums in the cake.

On hearing the name social messenger, the first thing that flashes in our mind is ‘Whatsapp’, the messenger that gained popularity within days of its birth. Though surrounded by competitors that claim to be more feature-filled, whatsapp’s popularity has always been on the rise. But as the saying goes- “Nothing is perfect”, whatsapp too has a few features lacking that averts it from being the perfect social messenger. Here is a list of 5 features, which I would love to see in Whatsapp.

1) The login/logout feature: Though whatsapp has been created to be used as an alternative to the native SMS, the automatic login and regular pop-up notifications tend to irritate us at times. A login/logout feature is just what is needed for people who don’t want to be disturbed every time they connect to the internet.

yeah!!

2) The PC and Mac edition: Those who prefer laptops/PCs or Macbooks over smartphones might just be missing their favorite social messenger on their devices. Though whatsapp can be used in PC using emulators, an exclusive pc/mac edition is required for a richer user experience.

this one from Whatsapp+ looks great..

3) Themes: the only customizing option (appearance) available in whatsapp is its background. Even then, the background is visible only to the one who changes it. The default layout is not much appealing either. A few customizable themes along with a better User Interface might do the trick.(note: Whatsapp+, designed by XDA lets you customize the themes)

4) File Sharing: For students like me who send and receive study materials and other files most often through the messengers or social networks, the absence of document/pdf sharing feature in Whatsapp will be a big concern. This feature is available in Facebook chat messenger that also provides security so that no harmful files are transferred.

somewhat like...

5) More and better stickers/emoticons: This is where messengers like the one in Facebook, Viber and WeChat are much better off than Whatsapp. Though the stickers are not scarce, they are neither large, nor animated. Why not rent a few from Facebook?

And here are a few more that just couldn't make it to the list..

• a feature that allows you to take the screenshot of the chat in progress and share it.

• multiple group admins, limitless group members and a set of rules for a particular group.

• optional 'last seen', as in Hike messenger.

Got any more? Share it using the comment box.

Tweet tweet. 

Yep, that’s my mother tongue I am so very proud of. Who won’t be? Is there anything more exhilarating than having a whole kingdom named after your mother tongue? Maybe having a whole kingdom named after you. But being of a humble character, I won't ask for more.

Lately, I read the autobiography of my pal, the like button and that enthused me to write my own. So here you are Mr. Rey, this is the story I would like you to publish.

 I may not be something you could punch, hit or destroy, but that doesn’t make me less important.

 Let me divulge my real identity first of all, it is really disheartening to hear people call me “the twitter bird”. I am Larry, Larry the twitter bird. I am the last one or as I like to say ‘only one’ of my kind. I was never told about the species I belong to or how my ancestors looked like but that doesn’t dishearten me in any way.

 Simon Oxley, a British graphic designer was the very first person I saw and remember and he calls himself a proud designer of mine (A bit disappointment over the fact that I wasn’t born, but designed) I was just one among hundreds of illustrations he offered for sale on the iStock website in 2006, where someone from Twitter did not mind spending $15 on me. I overheard people saying –“Oxley’s bird is a slender, serene fellow, adorned only by a stylized eye and perched on a branch that splits off into an elegant Japanese-­influenced gathering of curlicues.” Whoa! My heart filled with pride and I became desperate for a mirror to look myself in.

my timeline..

I was barely three when Biz Stone, a developer performed a facelift on me but wasn’t quite pleased with his work as Doug Bowman (twitter founder) in 2011, performed yet another surgery and gave me the identity that I still carry around. In one of Bowman’s description about me, he said – “the bird has a beak and body that point toward the sky-the ultimate representation of freedom, hope and limitless possibility.”

Apart from twitter, you can find me on blogs and websites, sitting silently or flying around. There’s no doubt that I add beauty to every place I visit. However, many have tried creating imitations of me and people often confuse me with them. Always do remember, I am not just any blue bird, I am Larry, the twitter bird.

Signing off…

Yours,

Larry, the twitter bird.

A very happy and prosperous new year to all the readers and non-readers of The Socionauts. 2014 was a year significance for social networks. As we fervently wait for the new surprises that awaits us this year, let’s take a look at the highlights of the previous year and also peep into the future of the world of social networking.

•   19 Feb – Facebook buys Whatsapp for a whopping $19 billion. Soon after, whatsapp experiences downtime.  

• 
  
  5 March – Oculus Virtual Reality is acquired by Facebook for $2 billion. 3. July – Facebook initiates Internet.org, an initiative to provide free or cheap internet services across different nations.

• July – ‘Ello’ a brand new social networking site that claims to be ad-free created, a facebook page opened soon.  

• 1 August – Twitter acquires Mitro, a password security service.  

• September – Whatsapp adds the blue tick feature to symbolize read messages. While some welcome it, some look for ways to cheat it.  
  

• 30 September – Google’s first social networking site, Orkut closed down. 

• November – Katy Perry becomes the most followed person on Twitter with 61 billion followers.Shakira’s page becomes the most popular facebook celebrity fan page. Facebook’s official page and ‘Facebook for every phone’ page receive the most number of likes.

• Virat Kohli becomes the first cricketer to have 5 million twitter followers.

• Fifa world cup becomes the most tweeted topic with over 618,725 Tweets sent per minute.

• The golden tweet a.k.a the most re-tweeted tweet of the year was @TheEllenShow’s starry photo from the March Oscars telecast.

          What to expect in 2015

Alike 2014, 2015 is expected to be a great year for social networks. Let’s have a look at what could be expected from the giants:

• Twitter is planning to introduce  a curated timeline for new users to reduce the friction of having to find people to follow when first signing up on the social network.

• Whatsapp may include live calling features. More stickers and emoticons are also expected.

• At the analyst event, Twitter's team said it plans to introduce "significant functionality to private messaging" soon.
  

• New social networks such as ello are expected to gain popularity. Social messenger apps may also receive more users.

  

  the ello logo

• Both Facebook and Twitter may make notable acquisitions and more priority may be given to smartphone applications.

• Facebook and twitter may introduce buy now feature that allow people to buy products from e-commerce sites with just a click or two.Facebook is also expected to release service that allows users to send money online by using just the debit card information. 

• Internet.org is expected to extend its reach to more countries.

  

  internet.org

What are your expectations from social networks this year? Use the comment box below to share your views.

If you think that an addict like me is wired in 24X7, you got to widen your eyes a bit more and peep into our lives. Just like other  homo-sapiens, we do fall into pits, annoy our parents and siblings and strive hard to prove that we are just as crazy and stupid. Read on to find out what happened on the day I and my friend were away from the keyboard. 

“Sky is not the limit when you can camp in the stars”……

I agree the above quoted line is not apt for this post, but I couldn’t find anything better despite the existence of Google. All I want to say is that there is no limit for anything, not even how stupid one can be.

Cell-phones are the trend of today. But a cell-phone without a network is just like a Facebook page without a single like (I just can't get away).  Fortunately, the network providers make every possible attempt to make sure we receive the signals irrespective of our location.

We were in the Fun City, a theme park located in Bareilly,

reminded of  Eiffel tower

India. While the others who accompanied us were having the perfect day out, I and my friend Akshat were on a mission – to reclaim the reputation we had lost during our previous trip. And one way of achieving it was - riding the most terrifying ride out there – the “Free-fall”. Needless to say, not a single brave-heart from our team had experienced it before, a ride on it would mean - getting the title of “the most fearless teens on earth” and so, both of us set out to taste the thunder.

A wise philosopher once said - "If nothing goes right, go left" but you sure loss the sense of direction when you find yourself hanging 17 meters above the ground. This must be the concept behind the creation of this gigantic free fall tower. An almost 17 meter high pole with seats attached to it that lifts you to the point after which you could no further be lifted, provide you a split second time to take a look at the whole city and then, drop you as if you were of no more use to this world. 

Those who have experienced it would know that reaching the top is not a big deal at all, but dude, thats just the beginning of the game.

yeah! just what we calculated

So after calculating the mass, momentum, velocity and all those terms that leaped over our heads during physics classes, we hopped onto the seats. On reaching the top, the  first thing we did was enlarge the size of our iris in order to see the farthest possible. The bulb on the side of Akshat's head started glowing, he had struck upon an idea. He scratched his pant pockets and out popped a brand new cell phone. Akshat is one of the most curious people I have ever seen, I realized this when he told me the motive behind his move – “Can we receive the phone signals up here?”. I, known for my presence of mind, appreciated the idea. 

 

interested anyone?

It was now time for our free fall, it began with a shaking jerk, powerful enough to make the phone slip out of Akshat’s hand and make a free fall to the ground much faster than us and we followed it with a decreased velocity.

On finally reaching the ground, we wondered if picking up the shattered atoms and molecules of the Nokia 1100 would be of any use. There were tears in the eyes of Akshat and a sense of contentment in mine – we had regained our reputation.

                                                                 

 Preface

Before I start, I would like you to know that I am not just any button you usually come across clinging on to shirts, jeans, your mobile or a remote, I am the greatest of them all, more prominent than any other thing with the same sir-name as mine. 

 Hi there everyone, you may disagree to it but the fact is that each one of you love me, so much that the online ‘you’ cannot even survive without me. I may seem conceited but that’s the ultimate reality. People or things that have me by their side are more popular and sought-after and these are the ones who at times  embarrass me by putting a whole lot of time and effort on me. Some less-intelligent people might claim that I am not that valuable but these wise men are not aware of the amount of money my fans shell out just to get a glance of me. That’s enough of self-appraisal I guess. I just want to tell you people about me, my birth, my shot to fame and all so that the next time you hit me, you could be proud of doing it.

I was born in the minds of a great dude, in a beautiful site (to be pronounced ‘city’) called Friendfeed on October 30, 2007 and I marked the beginning of a new era in the World Wide Web. Within two days of my birth, I was more popular than errr, whatever. I was so cute, polite and ambitious that the social network giant, Facebook decided that they must have me. Adopting me would have been enough, but they went on to acquire the whole site I was born at.My path to fame was laid.

My presence is not limited to Facebook or other social networks, You can find me all over the Internet. I do have rivals like the +1 button (who is pretty much younger than me), but they hardly make me shriek. I am far ahead in the race and I am not gonna sleep (Yeah I have heard the story of the Hare and the tortoise).I am inclined to thank you all for this.

Another thing I love is the way people express their love towards me. While some hit the ‘like button’, some others punch me, a few guys destroy (not literally) the like button, some hindi speaking guys can be heard saying – “thoko like”. Through the years, Facebook has experimented with me, I recently underwent a plastic surgery though it didn’t disturb my identity much. They sometimes place me wherever they please. Facebook is also planning to give birth to my new competitor- the dislike button. I’ll definitely try to be in good terms with her, after all its all in the game.

Not a very long autobiography right? well, I am only seven. With the love you give me, I am sure to entertain you for years to come (even if dislike button isn’t much impressed with me). Keep thoking, hitting, punching and destroying me. 

signing off 
yours 
“Like button” .

like this picture?

Wanna show your friends how popular and loved you are? Just get more number of likes than them.

Be it a page, a status or a photo, there is nothing more pleasing on the internet than getting more likes than you ever expected. According to a small survey conducted by me, 67% of all facebook users revealed they felt depressed when they received less or null likes on their status. The numbers increased in the case of profile pictures.

Copying quotes to design your status, posing or shooting yourself in almost all the possible ways and places known to you, dressing up yourself and your hair and spending a quarter of your day in front of the mirror (and other reflecting surfaces) are just some of the symptoms that proves that you are just as desperate as your friend for likes.

All of you might already know all ways of getting likes, still, it’s my humble duty to share this:

1) The direct way: Simple and humble! The words that describe this method. All you got to do is befriend more people, post unique and interesting statuses, tag those who you think would like it. Talk to your friends occasionally and the most important of them all- spend time on the news feed commenting and liking the posts of your friends.

2) What you give is what you get: No matter how irritating it might be to like the photos of friends who keep on changing their profile pics every half an hour, if you are need of likes, make sure you keep your friends happy by providing them the likes they are in need of.

Certain groups and pages in fb are dedicated towards this service. All you need to do is like the pages/photos of the members of the group and they will return the favor. One of them is profile picture likers

yes it does!

3) Be a philosopher: and have many followers. You may be deprived of the likes you deserve as a result of the maximum reach limit for posts and photos. The only way to make sure your friends see your posts is to get them to follow you. Ask them to follow you and follow them in return. Another way is to get a friend with the most number of followers to like your posts.

4) The nothing is free concept: Another effective way to get a minimum of 1000 likes on your posts is to pay for it. There are a dozen sites that offer “likes” for a price. Give a try to like4like and likeasap, sites which claim to offer you free likes.

Likes on pages: There is in fact only one way to get more likes to your pages-promote. Irritate page owners by posting the link to your page in between the comments, chances are that someone might click on it (even if by mistake). Keep your audience thrilled and engaged by posting regularly so that they invite their friends to your page. If you are ready to shell out some notes, advertise.

I sincerely hope that you receive so many likes that even Facebook finds it difficult to keep a track on it.

Since its humble beginning in 2004, Facebook has rolled out a lot of features that benefit both users and business page owners. While some appreciate the change in its appearance and features, some believe that the old was gold. Suppose you were given a lamp and were asked to rub it. You do it and out comes a facebook genie, what would be your three wishes- more likes?, more friends?, more followers?, or will it be something more exciting. Though I am not lucky enough to get a lamp or a genie, there is no harm in telling what my wishes would be. So, here is a list of the features that I, my friends and maybe most of you wish to see on your favorite social network:-

the button we strive for

1) The ‘dislike’ button: Perhaps the most wanted feature as of now. We users are addicted to

the ‘like’ button but while some of the ‘likes’ come from our heart, some other ‘likes’ are for the sake of – ‘what you give is what you get’ policy. We often come across posts that are just dumb. They irritate us, disappoint us, frustrate us and drive us mad and following such posts, comes a message –“did you like my status?” and that is when you really wish there was a ‘dislike’ button. ( I am not talking about the ‘dislike’ button that emerges after you press the ‘like’ button.) Though there are softwares that help us do so, it would be great if it was official.

2) Gifs as profile picture: I don’t know if many have thought about it or not, but my genius friends

want it back

sure have. I guess, if it was not for facebook, mobile cameras would have lost its market. Almost every picture clicked can be seen hanging on the facebook wall the following day. No wonder people care so much about how they look online. But sometimes, a picture is not enough to say much about us.  Images took a new form called the ‘gifs’ also known as ‘pictures in motion’. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could display a series of pictures instead of just one? “Flip SG” was an application built to do just the same but was later abandoned and our beloved Facebook doesn’t allow us to upload images with extension ‘.gif’.

3) Themes: For people who really like to stand out from the crowd, even the appearance of their Facebook timeline matters. The blue-white theme may appear nice and appealing, but wouldn’t you be happier if you could change the appearance of your timeline? There are many sites which help you do so, but unfortunately, its limited to yourself. While you will be sitting admiring your new theme, the visitors to your timeline would still be seeing the same old thing.

4) The ‘ask a question’ feature: Did anyone of you even notice the sudden disappearance of this feature from your status box? Although I rarely used it, I still miss it. The reason behind disappearance of this feature from the wall and its reappearance on pages and groups is an unsolved mystery. Wouldn’t you love to have it back?

5) Hangout: Google+ users would know about this awesome feature. Hangout allows a maximum of 10 people to video-chat at real time just like a video-conference. Though Facebook allows video call, its nowhere near to this amazing thing.

Did I miss something? Post the feature you want in the comment section