Anonymous messaging app Yik Yak is testing a photo feature

Yik Yak, the anonymous messaging app, is testing a new feature that would let users share photos, Mashable has learned.

Yik Yak is in the early stages of testing the feature on some college campuses for limited periods of time, sometimes as brief as several hours, in order to get feedback from users, according to sources familiar with the matter. Yik Yak confirmed the development to Mashable.

See also: How Ted Cruz's campaign speech played out on Yik Yak

Uploaded photos must be snapped from inside the app. (Photos from your camera roll need not apply.) Photos are moderated and approved by Yik Yak employees, which can result in a delay before the image shows up in feeds. Any photos featuring faces, nudity, or behavior the moderator deems "inappropriate" or "illegal" won't make into feeds. Read more...

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You're about to see a lot more baby photos in your Facebook feed

Facebook now has a dedicated feature that lets parents tag their children in photos.

The social network rolled out a new feature on Tuesday called Scrapbook for parents to create customizable shared photo albums of their children in the Facebook app and on the web.

See also: How to use Facebook for thank you notes

Scrapbooks differ from the traditional Facebook photo album in that multiple family members can contribute to the same album, which will appear in the Photos menu of each parent who collaborates. Parents can also tightly control who can see photos in scrapbooks and how their children are tagged. If parents don't want their child's name on Facebook, for example, they can choose to identify their child by a nickname or initials. Read more...

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Twitter launches Curator, its free Storyful competitor

Twitter just launched Curator, its new free tool for media outlets.

First unveiled in February, Curator is now available to any media outlet that applies on Twitter's website for access to the tool. It allows organizations to collect tweets and Vines based around specific topics, perform more advanced searches and get access to better analytics.

See also: Why Twitter launched Curator, a Storify competitor

Think of Curator as an even more advanced version of Twitter's advanced search. Users can fine tune their searches to find tweets based on very narrow criteria — such as exact location, word count or what type of smartphone was used. Read more...

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YouTube megastar Michelle Phan launches new lifestyle network

If launching her own beauty line and record label wasn't enough, YouTube beauty guru Michelle Phan announced today that she's partnering with Endemol Beyond USA for their new lifestyle network, ICON.

Phan will be the creative director for Endemol Beyond, which currently boasts 500 million monthly views via its multi-platforms: YouTube, Yahoo, AOL, Amazon Fire TV, among others. The 27-year old will mentor other online personalities while cultivating a streamlined vision for the network.

See also: 8 Not-So-Magical Secrets From a Former Disney Princess

Endemol Beyond, under the Endemol Shine umbrella, currently boasts over 500 million monthly views with its Premium Channel Network available across more than 20 platforms. Endemol Shine is best known for producing shows like American Idol, The Real Housewives of Atlanta, Man v. Food and more. Read more...

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Facebook is making it easier to find events you want to go to

Facebook now lets you subscribe to events from specific pages.

The social network is rolling out a new feature Monday that allows you to subscribe to events created by a specific business, band or other Facebook page.

See also: How to use Facebook for thank you notes

Facebook pages now have an "Events subscribe" button, which is listed in the menu beneath a page's Like button, which allows you to receive notifications whenever the business or group behind the page is hosting a new event in your area

You can keep tabs on all the events you've subscribed to in your events dashboard in the app and on the web. You can also unsubscribe from specific events in this menu. Previously, you had to remember to regularly check pages for upcoming events in their area or be invited through a friend Read more...

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Indie comedy starring all your favorite Vine celebs launches Kickstarter

Comedians and Vine stars Jason Nash and Brandon Calvillo have a new project that is largely inspired by their real lives: a full length film called FML: A Social Media Adventure .

The film centers around two men who travel across the country making short videos on a Vine-like app called Reload, trying to boost their social media following. Along with achieving viral fame, FML is also about the strong friendship between Nash and Calvillo's characters, as well as the real-life one that inspired it.

See also: 19 Viners Funnier Than Anyone You Know IRL

FML: A SOCIAL MEDIA ADVENTURE • Kickstarter Campaign Video from Fantail Entertainment on Vimeo. Read more...

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Should You Attend That Event? 9 Questions to Help You Find Out

Figuring out whether you and your team should attend a conference can be tricky. Getting out of the office sounds like a no-brainer, but when you start thinking about taking time "off," traveling, paying for the conference itself, and what you'll actually do once you get there, the answer starts to feel a little less clear.

So how can you figure out whether a conference is "worth it" to attend?

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1bIEbz9

Artists are changing profiles blue for Jay Z's new music streaming service

LOS ANGELES — If you're seeing blue on Twitter and Facebook, you're not alone

Many of the world's biggest artists are rallying behind Jay Z's new music streaming service Tidal by changing their profile and cover photos to teal blue on Sunday night.

See also: Billboard's new streaming formula jolts album chart: Guess who benefits?

Jay Z plans to unveil about Tidal's artist-friendly game plan on Monday at New York City's James A. Farley Post Office at 5 p.m. ET. Tidal will compete with platforms like Spotify as well as Apple's nearly ready and revamped music service involving Beats Music.

Among the artists supporting Jay Z's new venture are his wife Beyoncé, Kanye West, Rihanna, Madonna, Coldplay, Usher, Nicki Minaj and more heavyweights Read more...

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Selfies taken at site of NYC East Village explosion stir controversy

Snapping selfies has gone from cultural faux pas to accepted norm over the last few years, as our constantly connected world shares every aspect of daily life. But there are moments when taking one simply isn't appropriate

Here's a prime example: selfies uploaded to social media of Thursday's East Village explosion in New York City, which left at least 22 people injured (four of them critically) and resulted in two people missing.

See also: New security camera video emerges of Manhattan building exploding

Friday night #eastvillage @evgrieve http://bitly.com/1a7kLUg

— EventPhotosNYC (@Eventphotosnyc) March 28, 2015 Read more...

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How to use Facebook for thank you notes

For some strange reason, Periscope users are obsessed with your fridge

What's in your fridge? Periscope users want to know.

In the days since Twitter launched the live streaming video app, requests to peek into other users' fridges have, by our unofficial polling, proven more popular than just about any other comments during a Periscope video. Some enthused users are even using the #fridgeview or #showusyourfridge hashtags on Twitter.

See also: Brands (and puppies) flock to Periscope, Twitter's new app for broadcasting videos

Aaron Trent, a 29-year-old retirement planner in Greenville, South Carolina, was checking out Periscope with a friend Friday evening when they noticed users in virtually every stream clamoring for a look at the fridge. Read more...

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5 creative ideas for one-second Snapchats (besides full frontal)

How far in advance should you schedule a Meerkat?

Periscope's new Twitter account suggests livestreams you might like

Using Periscope, Twitter's new app for live streaming, but can't find any streams worth watching? A new account run by the service may be able to help.

The app has launched Periscope TV, a curated account that retweets links to broadcasts from celebrities, journalists and other notable users

See also: Hands on with Twitter Periscope, the app gunning for Meerkat

The goal of the account is to surface live streams from some of the app's more high profile accounts and give early users a way to find relevant streams outside of people they are already following

Periscope TV, which launched Thursday, has so far only retweeted streams from a handful of accounts, including Jimmy Fallon, Aaron Paul and the Huffington Post Read more...

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Meerkat and Periscope for concerts? Katy Perry says 'embrace the future'

LOS ANGELES — It's inevitable: Meerkat and Periscope, the rival live-streaming apps that have taken the world by storm this month, will be used at countless concerts by fans who want to instantly share their experiences with their friends, family and followers.

But how do artists feel about their ticketed shows being broadcast to non-concertgoers for free? Mashable asked Katy Perry — the most-followed Twitter user and one of the biggest current touring acts — to weigh in on these hot new live-streaming apps

See also: Hands on with Twitter Periscope, the app gunning for Meerkat

"You've got to embrace the future or you're left behind," Perry, 30, told Mashable on Thursday at the Epix screening of the TV special for her Prismatic World Tour Read more...

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A Simple Guide to Designing a Logo [Infographic]

I think most of us can agree there are generic logos in the world that we easily forget, and then there are great logos that we'll always be able to recognize (even without the brand's name attached). But what is it about a logo that makes you recognize it? What is it about the design that can elicit a memory or even a specific emotion?

If you're in the process of creating a logo for your company, you're in a unique position to make a powerful impact on how consumers perceive your brand.

via HubSpot Marketing Blog http://bitly.com/1EbBEtn

Animate robots and machines for our MashFlix Vine challenge

For this week's Vine challenge, we want to see robots and machines take over.

Build a DIY-style cardboard robot, or take kitchenware and create one made out of metal. Action figures and illustrations are fair game, too. Whether retro or futuristic, as long as it's a manmade machine of some sort, we're happy to see it in your Vines.

See also: The story behind the world's first robot zipper

The theme is in line with Alex Garland's latest feature film, Ex Machina , which we've selected for our next MashFlix event. It's a tale that touches on technology and the complications of artificial intelligence. Read more...

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10 LinkedIn Groups Every Entrepreneur Should Follow

There are at least three problems with this list. First, “entrepreneurship” is an extremely broad subject. Second, opinions are ubiquitous. Third, LinkedIn groups aren’t exactly scarce. Trying to highlight the best ones is somewhat of a fool’s errand, but you may be pleasantly surprised by what you find! With that in mind, here are ten recommendations to get you started...

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Why developers want to be on WhatsApp so badly

SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook is good at putting on a conference. Attendees at this year's F8 were greeted with a splashy tent-filled venue full of colorful lights, sounds of a carefully curated playlist, and piles of food around every corner

If that wasn't enough, day one's announcements and technical sessions were topped off with custom Patagonia vests and a Deadmau5 concert as a parting gift to the developers who paid nearly $500 to attend.

But swag, snacks and a free concert aside, for many developers the biggest news of the conference was Messenger Platform: Facebook's ambitious plan to turn Messenger into a massive hub of content along the lines of the chat apps that dominate in Asian markets Read more...

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Facebook: Oculus hardware will arrive in 2015

Virtual reality gaming is coming "this year," Facebook's chief technology officer Mike Schroepfer said on stage at day two of the social network's F8 Developer Conference in San Francisco on Thursday. He also said people would be able to game in VR on "something" shipped by Oculus.

Schroepfer showed off what appears to be an advanced version of Eve: Valkyrie, a game that puts users in the cockpit of a spaceship.

See also: Virtual Reality Is Ready to Manipulate Your Memories

"Why is VR going to work now, when it didn't work in the '80s and '90s?" asked Schroepfer. Because the technology is more advanced than before and ready for primetime, he said: "Each one of these core tracks of technology had to hit a minimum core viability...to get to that sense of presence to sense that you're truly there." Read more...

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Apple rumor mill: 3 iPhones could launch this year

It's not unusual for Apple to debut two versions of the iPhone each year, but this year, we could see the launch of three.

According to DigiTimes , which has a mixed track record for reporting rumors, the company is planning to release an additional model of its next-generation iPhone later this year. The three devices will be the iPhone 6S, the iPhone 6S Plus and a budget-friendly iPhone 6C.

See also: Everything you need to know about the changes coming to Facebook

Previous rumors suggested that Apple was phasing out its C-model phones. In 2013, Apple rolled out a lower-cost version of its flagship device, which has a plastic casing available in various colors, including white, green, pink and yellow. Read more...

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Mashable came to break the Internet at SXSW

And break the Internet we did.

Mashable has always had a huge presence at SXSW, and 2015 was our biggest year yet. People LITERALLY lined up around the block to see the best in digital entertainment come to life at our Mashable House, and came out in record numbers to cap it off at our giant annual MashBash.

So what made 2015 so great?

There was more to see

Welcome to the Mashable House

The Mashable House on opening day.

Tyler Tronson/Mashable

Mashable created a massive, larger-than-life mural that captured all of the year’s best viral moments, from Pharrell’s hat to Alex from Target. Left Shark? Check. Emojis? Double check. Kim Kardashian? Of course. Not only was it the centerpiece of the Mashable House, it was also one of the key attractions for attendees and celebrity guests. Read more...

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