social networking

Features

• Study: Facebook relies on good design to retain users

  What is Facebook's secret to keeping the world's largest user base content? Sticking to well-proven software design principles, one study has concluded.

• First Look: Facebook Single Sign-on

  Facebook is getting serious about on-the-go social networking with a suite of new features announced during the Facebook Mobile event on Wednesday.

• Can you trust Facebook Places?

  Facebook, the company many people don't trust to protect their status updates and personal information, is now in the business of collecting location information, thanks to the introduction of its Foursquare/Gowalla killer, Facebook Places.

• Who really runs Facebook?

  Quick: Who's the CEO of Facebook?

• Can Facebook privacy be simple?

  Facebook, according to its CEO, is built around the simple idea that people want to share things with "their friends and the people around them."  

• Is Facebook truly sorry for its privacy sins?

  Want an expert lesson in how to respond without actually responding and how to apologize without saying you're sorry? Then you need to read Facebook CEO Mark Zukerberg's quasi-mea culpa in today's Washington Post. Do it now; I'll wait.

• Good-bye to privacy?

  New Yorker Barry Hoggard draws a line in the sand when it comes to online privacy. In May he said farewell to 1251 Facebook friends by deleting his account of four years to protest what he calls the social network's eroding privacy policies.

• Social networking exposes business networks to risk

  Once upon a time, instant messaging was a consumer technology. That consumer toy worked its way into the corporate network and was eventually not just accepted, but embraced and leveraged as a valuable tool.

• The curious thing About Microsoft Kin

  Call me crazy, but something about Microsoft's Kin phone just doesn't add up.

• Will Twitter ads tweak tweeters?

  Now that Twitter has begun to display ads--pardon me, Promoted Tweets--in users' search results, the big question is how millions of loyal Twitter fans will respond. Reaction on the micro-blogging site has been muted thus far--more questions than commentary, actually--and it's apparent that most users haven't seen the new ads yet.

• Geolocation 101: How it works, the apps, and your privacy

  Facebook wants to know "What's on your mind?" Twitter asks "What's happening?" But that's getting old already. The burning question for the next wave of social networking is "Where are you?"--and services like Foursquare, Gowalla, Brightkite, and Loopt want you to use your smartphone to answer it.

• Social networks, criminal networks?

  One of Italy's 100 most wanted criminals was arrested in Isola Capo Rizzuto on Tuesday, thanks to his love of Facebook.

• Career Watch: Are you effective in your job search?

  The author of "Land the Tech Job You Love" thinks the way most of us look for a job is ineffective.

• 5 LinkedIn Groups to Boost Your Social Media Savvy

  How familiar are you with LinkedIn Groups? This section of the social networking site (found on the top navigation bar) is dedicated to communities of professionals based on common interests, experiences, affiliation and goals. Groups can be a great source of industry information and discussions, as well as an effective way to connect with likeminded professionals.

• 19 freebies for smart Web browsing, social networking

  Make the most of your browser.