Facebook Tunes Into Television’s Market

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

Facebook started as an advertisement free social media platform and it stayed true to this thought for a relatively longer but very soon the reality caught up with them. Currently Facebook earns millions of dollars each day through a very carefully installed ad network on its social media platform. Facebook ambitions are growing by leaps and bounds as it looks forward to enlarge its ad revenue in upcoming future. As per the report published in The Wall Street Journal Facebook is set on building a TV app which will work with the set-top boxes just like Apple TV.

Advantages of developing TV app

This particular TV app will help Facebook in encouraging the users in watching longer videos which has been eventual goal of the company. Facebook has plans to start testing of themed-roll ads which will play right in the middle of the videos present on its network. In similar fashion these kinds of ads will appear in the TV app as well over the time. Facebook has not made any official confirmation of going into the TV network with an app or bringing its own advertisement in such a manner for now.

Facebook plans to bring longer videos in the News Feed

So far Facebook has ensured that the users on its platform are not bothered with the longer videos on their News Feed but very soon this will be thing of past. Facebook will start prioritizing the longer videos right in the News Feed to generate more ad revenue. In order to bring longer videos it will first weigh on the percent completion or how much video is watch was user before they go away. In this manner the longer videos which are able to keep users engaged for large amount of time will find its way in the News Feed.

Facebook is actively making a series of tweaks in the News Feed algorithm which will help advertisers, content developers and publishers to push their content in the News Feed. Facebook is effectively trying to understand the user’s behavior or community as whole to bring more engaging content on the platform rather than indulging in penalizing the longer videos.

Why Facebook is developing a TV app? 

Facebook is expected to establish itself as YouTube video streaming platform wherein it has plans to first populate the platform with large videos then encourage content developers in delivering quality content on regular basis. It has been reported that Facebook has been in talks with a number of media companies to develop as well license a number of long form or TV style content which will range from scripted shows to entertainment as well as sports videos.

In simple words this app will establish Facebook as a serious leader in the streaming market wherein it will be able to distribute its new content along with the TV style advertisements in future. Facebook will certainly go ahead with its plans of asking higher price from the content developers, advertisers and other in future for displaying ads on the users news feeds.

How to Stop Windows 10 From Automatically Rebooting After Updates

It is extremely frustrating for the users to see their computer system each time it completes the updating process. This has been norm with the Windows OS which happens to reboot on its won each time it goes through the updating process. Windows has finally decided to do away with this functionality by bringing an update called Windows 10 Anniversary Update which eventually brought a new concept of ‘Active Hours’. Active Hour allows users to update their devices automatically during the time when machine is not in use. But even such feature is not good enough in stopping Windows from rebooting it after an update and this can play a huge spoilsport while working at later hours. Follow these smart steps to get rid of automatic rebooting of Windows after each update.

Step 1: Open Administrative Tools by going to the Control Panel

Press Start button and type in ‘Administrative Tools’ and press ‘Enter’ key. Now choose the ‘Task Scheduler’ from the list of options in the Administrative Tools window.

Step 2: Open the following path: Task Scheduler Library/Microsoft/Windows/UpdateOrchestrator

Now carefully look at the bottom of the window and you will find the ‘Reboot’ option which will certainly enabled at the moment. You are simply required to give a right click on that option and disable it from the menu.

This will help in eliminating the notorious automatic rebooting in the Windows OS after each update but a number of users have claimed that these failed to work in their advantage as Windows automatically switches back to the default settings in no time.

In order prevent such thing from happening in future you should open the window by typing in this address: C:/Windows/System32/Tasks/Microsoft/Windows/UpdateOrchestrator. Now carefully locate the ‘Reboot’ file that doesn’t have any suffix or file attachment and rename it as ‘Reboot.bak’. If you are unable to rename this file as it is a system file, now you will be required to ‘Take Ownership’ and this can be done by simply giving a right-click, then follow the steps as appears on your screen.

Some more smart steps to stop Windows from shutting down

Users should understand that these steps are designed to stop the Windows OS from rebooting itself but it will not stop the OS from updating itself. Windows has also brought some exciting features with Creators Update on Windows 10 which brings a greater amount of control over the updates. Now users will be able to opt out of the updates from the drivers or simply users can stop the updates by disabling the Windows Update service.

Though disabling the Windows Update service is an extremely risky affair as it stops system from the receiving the security updates which is necessary to secure devices in this era of prevalent attacks. Furthermore whenever system updates are acquired by a device then its needs to get rebooted in order to function properly. Now you know how to get rid of rebooting problem with these smart yet simple ways.

How to Take a Screenshot on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android

Screenshots have turned out to be the most innovative and smartest way to have a record of some important thing or to share information with others. This enables you to get a prove of anything or substantiate your point in no time. There are different methods of taking screenshots on different devices. The different devices include:
Windows Computer – You can easily take a screenshot of the existing screen without having to download any extra tools or software for it. All you need to have is a regular keyboard used in Windows and from that keyboard you just need to tap the print screen button.

This button is generally found on the top right corner of your keyboard and in some cases you also have to press the shift button to bring this function into the active mode. As you tap this button the computer will automatically go for a screenshot of the whole existing screen and will save it to clip board. If you wish to take extra screenshots then you will have to utilize an added program which is known as the Snipping Tool.

After downloading this program, you will have to search and locate your computer for the apt tool and then open the program. Press new and crosshair that enables you to choose the desired area that you intend to capture, as soon as you release the button you will then have to save the file. It is best if you include the Snipping Tool to your Start bar.

Mac – The best known device to feature finest screenshot ability is Mac. In this device you are provided with a short cut that easily selects the portion that you want to take image of. All you need to do is hold the shift and command keys simultaneously and also the number 4 button that will transform your mouse or trackpad into a crosshair. By using crosshair you are required to draw around the area that you want to take a snap of. After this step, your desired image will be protected as a .png file on your desktop.

iOS Devices – Inorder to go for a screenshot on an iOS device, like an iPad or an iPhone all you are required to do is hold on to the home button and the power button that appears on top right side corner of iPhone 6 and on the top of other iPhones issued before this. In this way the snap of your existing screenshot will be taken and will automatically get saved to Photos.

Android Devices – Taking screenshots on most of the Android devices is almost similar to the one’s we take on iOS devices. With the developed version of androids, the way to take screenshots have become even more easier, as you just need to hold on to the volume down and power button simultaneously. After the screenshot have been taken a quick options of animation will appear and your captured image will be saved to the Photos app in the screenshot section.

Nissan Offers Cheap Hybrid Electric Cars

Global warming, awareness to ditch one’s own vehicle and opt for public transport, governments bid to reduce the amount of cars from the roads and more regulations is making it tough for the car manufacturers to get more customers. Nissan is a Japanese automaker which is making leaps in the automobile sector with its affordable and powerful vehicle portfolio. However in a bid to keep its revenue coffers filling up; it has decided to move away from traditional by focusing on all electric or hybrid cars. This will help Nissan in manufacturing greener vehicles at the same time lowering the costs.

The first electric car for Nissan

Nissan started it mass market entry with the battery-electric vehicle called Leaf which was launched in 2010. Currently this car is the coveted world’s top selling electric vehicle but this car simply failed to reach the initial targets. Till today it has sold only 250,000 units on global scale which are not a great numbers when we take time taken into the equation. The major reason attributed to the sales failure of the all electric car has been revealed by the CEO Carlos Ghosn is that ‘going all electric is expensive affair’. Therefore Nissan is focusing on nearly electric car manufacturing for upcoming years which will help in saving more on the costs as well as it will help in fending off the competition from the rivals.

Nissan is embarking on the journey of creating gasoline-hybrid technology of next level rather than concentrating on fully battery powered vehicles with zero emissions ratings. Nissan will have to best the major competitors like Toyota which is known for making astonishingly awesome hybrid cars and the most notable one is Prius.

Nissan is taking a Hybrid Detour

This isn’t the first time Nissan is thinking of developing hybrid cars. In 2010 Nissan has invested in a limited range of hybrid cars wherein it was able to ship only 95,000 by March in the same year and its global sales stood at 5.4 million units. Nissan has its eye on the world biggest automobile market and it will be focusing only on affordable electric car for China. Nissan R&D is also working on a vehicle which will be able to run on electric power generated right from the ethanol.

Nissan has kick started its e-Note program wherein it will be building a compact hatchback which will possess the same motor from the Leaf but it will be a hybrid vehicle. This E note vehicle will give direct competition to the General Motors Chevrolet Volt which effectively switches to the gasoline engine when battery is running low. The e-Note vehicle will be sold at a starting price of $15,777 and its availability is currently limited to Japan only but quite interestingly this vehicle is 40 percent cheaper than the 2010 Leaf. Nissan has stressed that it has go for cheaper price point for its hybrid vehicle in order to attract new buyers or to get them to upgrade to completely electric car in future.

Google is Killing Its Experimental Hands Free Payment App

From March of last year, Google has been testing a new payment method that enables customers to pay for goods with their smartphones without touching it! This new innovation was aptly named Hands Free.

Google’s pilot app Hands Free was currently in its early stages of testing limited to only a handful of businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area.

What is Hands Free?

Hands Free is an app developed by Google that lets you check-out in stores without actually using your wallet or phone. This app was available to download for free on for android systems on Play Store and for iOS on Apple Store.

How does it work? 

Hands Free uses Bluetooth, Wifi and location services to detect whether you are near a participating store. When you have bought the things you want and are ready to check-out, all you need to do is tell the cashier “I’ll pay with Google”. The hands free profile will contain your photo identity and signature using which the cashier will then confirm your identity. The cashier will charge you only when Hands Free detects your Phone is near the store. Thus there is no need for you to take out your phone or even launch the app!

Why is it being Shut Down?

Google’s innovative experiment got its life cut down short by the latest announcement of it being shut down on 8th of February this year by Google itself. Official statement released by Google states that from the first launching of the pilot program, they were able to collect and learn a lot about the possible effects of the app from its adopters. This information along with numerous positive feedbacks would be used to develop a better version of hands Free that would be available to a larger number of people and stores. To focus their efforts on the new Hand’s Free, the current pilot version is being shut down.

With that being said, there is no definite time as to when the improved Hands Free would be out so similar alternatives like “Android pay” which offers easy and quick check-outs can be used. All the user information like pictures and signatures uploaded would be deleted to uphold the privacy of the users. To keep in touch with the development and news related to Hands Free, you can provide your email to get updates.

The verdict

Will Google give a brand new direction to the way people shop? The answer to that can be found when Hands Free is released yet again but this time with the full version. The promising results from the pilot experiment certainly yielded some beneficial results and it can be speculated that if Google decides to fully commit their efforts on delivering on the finished Hands Free app, it will be hugely popular. After all Google did promise to bring best of Hands Free technology to a wider audience base. As of now Hands Free has been shut down.