Instagram Gives Perfectionists More Time to Work On Posts by Saving Drafts

Last month, Instagram announced that they were finally going to be adding a much desired update that would allow users to save drafts. Since then, this update has been rolling out to Instagram app users. Before this update, many Instagram users had to find unique ways to save posts they were working on. Some would turn their phones to airplane mode even. The trouble was that hitting the back button or closing the app would mean you had to start your post all over again. For those who spend a lot of time on their Instagram posts and are likely to be interrupted as they work on their posts, this was really impractical.

Many users are very excited about the new feature that Instagram is using since it will allow them to tweak with their posts until they are completely satisfied. Now when editing a post, if you hit the back button a prompt will appear asking if you would like to save the post as a draft. This means that if you get distracted or have to stop working on a post for now, you’ll be able to have Instagram save it for you.

Once you have the time to work on the post again, you’ll be able to find the post that you were working on in a special new section of your pictures library. You’ll be able to find these conveniently located above other photos. You can then open these drafts and continue working on them to your heart’s content, until you either save them as drafts again or post them. In this section, you will also find a “manage” button which will allow you to delete drafts when you don’t want them stored anymore.

There are a few restrictions to how these drafts are used that some users aren’t entirely happy about. One is that you cannot save anything to a draft until you have made visual edits, tagged someone, or started to write a caption on the post. This one is relatively minor compared to the other one which is that no more visual edits can be made to the image in the post. These aside, the new feature is a great one for many users of Instagram who would like to spend a great deal of time working with their posts.

Instagram Update Provides Users With a Way to Block Abusive Comments

With a groundbreaking update, Instagram is striking back against trolls and internet abuse. This particular social media site has been having many troubles with internet abuse because many of the users can stay largely anonymous. This has led to people commenting on photos with rude and hurtful comments that often include harsh language. Now these users won’t be able to get away with this so easily since Instagram has launched a filter that will block this type of language.

While Instagram will be providing a premade list of offensive words that people can block, users will be able to personalize this list so that they can block words and even emoji that they feel are offensive or inappropriate. This will allow each user to choose which words will not appear in the comments, allowing them to create a safer space to express themselves.

The main reason for Instagram being one of the first social media sites to try something like this is largely because Instagram has had many problems with abusive comments. In some cases, users have had to delete their accounts because of the level of abuse. Instagram doesn’t want to lose users of course, so they are doing what they can to make sure that users aren’t discouraged from being on the social media site because of the level of abuse they might have to endure.

Instagram’s plan is to allow users to implement these filters so that the users can post more freely. The idea is to make it so that people don’t have to worry about expressing themselves in unique and individual ways and receiving a lot of backlash because of it. The hope is that Instagram will be able to keep experiences on their social media site a lot more positive.

Twitter Makes Change to 140 Character Limit At Last

After their announcement about changes to character limits in May, Twitter users were left wondering when this was happening. Finally, some different changes were launched today. While the 140-character limit is still in effect, Twitter has gotten rid of many of the different items that used to count against it. The limit will no longer count videos, images, gifs, polls, and quotes, allowing users to have more free characters to use when Tweeting.

Some of the ways that this will effect Twitter users will be in the different ways they’ll be able to use Twitter. Users will now be able to provide context in replies since the quotes won’t count against you. They will also be able to add more visual pieces into Tweets in general. One of many users favorite changes is that they will no longer have to use a period prior to mentioning a name if they want that Tweet to go out to all of their followers.

With these many great benefits, it may come as a surprise that not all users are that excited about the changes. Many users have been pushing for these updates for a long while and are now looking for further updates. There are also some complaints that this won’t really make too much of a difference. These different elements didn’t take up too many characters before, so the lift on these counting toward Tweet length isn’t really that substantial of an increase. Many users are looking for more characters that they can use to express larger ideas.

While Twitter is probably making these changes to try and save its depleted user base, many are saying that this update is just too little too late. Such a small update is unlikely to be something that draws new users since those who weren’t interested in using Twitter before likely won’t be effected by this difference. Those who left already won’t be likely to come back just because of this change either. Twitter will just have to wait and see how these changes really end up effecting the number of Twitter users.

Twitter Updates Features to Attract Businesses

As Twitter continues to fight to stay prevalent among other types of social media, it has been working on some new changes that will make it so that businesses can find new uses for the platform. Since many businesses already use Twitter, Twitter has been working on building different features that can make it so that these businesses will be able to communicate and work with their customers while using this social media platform.

In their new update, Twitter has added a few new features that can make it so that businesses can more easily use their Twitter accounts as a place where customers can come for customer support. They have added a customer service tag that businesses can add to their account to designate which account (if they have multiple) is the one that provides support. They have also made the message button on business pages larger so that people can easily find this button. In addition to these other changes, they have added an area where businesses can show support hours and time zones so that people know when a good time to contact them is.

Twitter has seen more and more companies offering support through social media so this is really the next step to make it so that businesses will be able to use Twitter in a much better way. The goal of the new changes is to make it so that Twitter is a good social media site for businesses to give support from. With many businesses doing this and customers looking for new ways to get support, this may be the best way for Twitter to encourage people to keep their accounts or to make new ones.

For large businesses that may already have multiple accounts on Twitter, the new features will be perfect for directing customers to the right account to send questions to. Those smaller businesses, will be given new ways to interact with their customers and by listing service hours they can set specific times to employ someone to answer these messages. With the new updates to business Twitter accounts, businesses will yet another avenue to communicate with customers.

Twitter Makes Changes to Direct Messaging

In a recent move, Twitter released an update for their direct messaging application. The new changes to this particular feature of the website include adding typing indicators, read receipts, and also content previews beneath links that are sent over this messaging program. Many of these changes are ones that put this messaging program on a similar level to others used by different social media sites.

As part of the new changes to their direct messaging, Twitter has implemented read receipts. These make it so that users are able to see when the person who receives the message has looked at it. In addition to this, Twitter also has added typing indicators which are small boxes that pop up to let you know when the other person is typing. This can help you to avoid typing at the same time. These different features are all part of Facebook messaging already so there is nothing especially innovative about them.

Many people don’t really like having it so that the other person can tell if they have read a message. Luckily, Twitter has a solution for this. Users that don’t want to have read receipts sent to other users they are talking to can turn off this feature in the settings of the Twitter application. If they turn off read receipts, they will then be unable to see when people have read their messages in addition to other people not being able to see when they have read theirs’.

Twitter is continuing to add different features as they are struggling to compete with different social media sites. Many users are complaining that while Twitter continues to add updates, these are not the updates that Twitter users have been asking for. One update that Twitter users would like to see is a lift on the limit of how many direct messages can be sent in one day. For now, it looks like Twitter isn’t interested in making these user requested changes.

Latest Instagram Update Allows for Zoom On Photos and Videos

Instagram has long been one of the biggest social media sites for photo sharing, so it should come as no surprise that they have decided to make a new change that will make it easier for people to get a closer look at the pictures and videos that friends have changed. They are launching a pinch to zoom feature that will make it easy for users to zoom in to any image on their site.

This new feature is currently only being rolled out for iOS users, but the plan will be to make it so that Android users will also be receiving this update in a few short weeks. These users will all be able to zoom into videos and pictures with the mere pinch of their fingers making it easy to identify everyone in a picture, especially if it is a picture with many people in it. The zoom feature will really help people who want to get a closer look at something while looking at Instagram on their phone.

This feature will be available throughout the Instagram app, which will mean that users will be able to use it in many different areas. The pinch to zoom feature will work on their feed, other user’s profiles, and even in the new Explore tab. It will work on both pictures and videos that are shared making it easy for anyone to get a closer look at specific parts of these images.

The addition of this feature makes a great deal of sense since just last year Instagram decided to increase their default image size to 1080 x 1080. With these large pictures making their debut on Instagram, having the ability to zoom in to specific sections of an image to see everything better is something that is bound to be helpful. This excellent addition will definitely make Instagram a great place to view images.

Twitter Adds a New Night Mode That is Easier On the Eyes

After several smaller applications have released versions of their apps that are better for those using them at night, Twitter has decided to also jump on board with a new night mode. Their night mode features a darker color scheme perfect for using during the night. While the update was initially only available to Android users, it has been extended to iOS as well.

The purpose of this new mode is to help those who use the Twitter application in the night. There have been many studies over the last few years to show that a blaring white phone screen can damage vision and cause the natural sleep rhythms of the body to become confused. As a response to this problem, Twitter has joined other applications in adding a special night mode to their app. This will allow users to switch from their standard display to a darker one that is better for those tweeting in the evening or late at night.

For now, Twitter’s night mode has to be toggled on and off by hand, but there are hopes that this will eventually change so that Twitter’s display will change as it gets to a certain time in the evening. In the app on Android and iOS, users will be able to change what mode they are in by changing their Twitter settings. It is easy to access the areas where you can turn the screen from one mode to the other.

There is some speculation that this change in Twitter and in other applications may be foreshadowing some of the features of the future iPhone 7. Some wonder if Apple will use this phone as their chance to roll out a new screen that will have the ability to more easily display darker colors without using as much battery life. Of course, for that information, we’ll have to wait for news from Apple.

Instagram Launches a New Events Channel for Video

In the increasingly competitive world of social media, Instagram is working to compete with other social media sites. In a brand new update, they have added an events channel that is going to be used to display videos of recent events and events that are happening at the moment. This will allow users to view videos of events happening all over the world in something close to real time. This section of Instagram will be sorted based on what is recent, popular, and relevant to your own likes.

One of the initial criticisms for this new part of Instagram is that it is obviously a copy of Snapchat’s live stories. The features are awfully similar, so it is clear that Instagram is probably following a similar idea to Snapchat’s feature. Many users of Instagram are becoming frustrated about this since they don’t want these different changes. As Instagram is adapting, people are becoming more frustrated about the changes since the social media site is so different from how it was when they joined.

Some benefits of the new channel include allowing users to connect with Instagram users that they might not be able to see otherwise. They’ll also be able to enjoy big events that they might not get to experience because they are too far away or too expensive for a specific Instagram user. This is similar to the way that Snapchat’s live stories work, but seems to have a more targeted purpose.

In addition to the major update, Instagram has also made a few small updates that will help with the filming of videos in general. They have a few small updates including one that allows for zooming in and out while recording video and one that will allow iPhone users to use both cameras on their phone and switch between the two. All of these updates just show that Instagram is making great strides into the video aspect of social media.

Facebook Changes Code to Block Out Adblock Workarounds

While spending time on Facebook is fun, many people feel that the ads that appear all over Facebook are annoying. This has caused many Facebook users to look for ways to block ads that show up on this particular social media site. As a result, Facebook and Adblock Plus are engaged in a battle to help their users.

A few days ago, Facebook announced that they were going to be restricting software that removed the advertising displayed on Facebook. Shortly thereafter, Adblock came up with a workaround that would allow its users to again use their software to block ads on Facebook. This lead to a further update from Facebook making it so that the workaround was useless.

Facebook claims that part of the problem is that with the Adblock workaround many of the posts from friends were blocked in addition to the ads. Of course, whether this was the case or not, Facebook would not stand to benefit from any software that would block ads as they make money from the ads that display on the page. As a result, they attempt to stop software like Adblock from being used on their site.

While Facebook has currently managed to keep up with changes to ad blocking software, there is no telling whether they will be able to keep up in the same way in the future. It could be challenging for them to continue updating their website to make it so that users cannot use this software in the future. By taking quick action Facebook is establishing themselves as a site that is not to be messed with.

Of course, in all likelihood the battle will continue. The ad-blocking community is upset with Facebook’s latest change and feels that this will make it so that user choice is not a priority. They plan to continue working to make it so that they are able to slip through Facebook’s software blocking. Both Facebook and Adblock will have to work hard to come up the winner in this particular battle.

Twitter Makes Changes for the 2016 Olympics

In light of the 2016 Olympics, Twitter has been working on some new updates that are being made specifically so that users can easily follow the Olympic games and stay on top of the news that matters to them. Much like with the democratic and republican national conventions this will mean having special emoji. Twitter’s goal is to make changes that will improve the overall experience that users have while the Olympics is going on.

To start with, Twitter has added some corresponding flag emoji that will go with specific hashtags that Twitter users use while they are tweeting. This means that if people type a hashtag such as #USA then an American flag will be added to the hashtag as well. For the Refugee Olympic Athletes, they will be using a world held in two hands instead. These emoji will help to add a visual aspect to these tweets.

So that Twitter users will be able to follow the Olympics much more easily, Twitter is going to be adding a special place under Twitter Moments where users can easily follow along with what is being tweeted about the games. There are different accounts that can be followed in addition to recap moments that will make it easy for users to find medal counts, event results, and other important information. Users will be able to follow moments based on their favorite events and their own country.

Twitter owned applications including Periscope will also be on board to make it so that Twitter users are able to follow the Olympics better. Twitter Amplify will be offering many video highlights and Periscope will have an Olympics channel that will cover a wide range of content that will be related to the Olympics as a whole. These will be great places for Twitter users to watch content and get videos from their favorite events and athletes.

By adding these different features to Twitter, the social media site is helping to encourage users to engage in the conversation as this world wide event goes on. The different aspects of their updates are meant to make talking about the Olympics easier and more fun to do. Twitter’s obvious goal is to have people talking about the Olympics and going to Twitter to find the information about the Olympics that they are interested in.