Secret 'Twitter garden' reveals itself when you tweet

It's always good to stop and smell the roses, but sometimes you have to tweet to access them.

At least that's how it works with an interactive Internet-connected garden created by the U.K.'s University of Lincoln. Familiar plants greet onlookers, but when they tweet using a specific hashtag, electronic paneled screens dividing the plot into two distinct areas shift to reveal an area containing more exotic foliage.

The garden, called "Digital Capabilities," just won a gold medal at this year's prestigious RHS Chelsea Flower Show, which runs through Saturday. But its architects hope to keep it up and blooming as a permanent installation...

Read the full story here. Source: CNET

Twitter fights hacking with two-factor authentication

After a string of high-profile hacking incidents, Twitter has finally introduced a two-factor authentication system as a way for members to keep their accounts more secure.

On Wednesday, the information network rolled out the new login verification feature, which people can select to require entry of a six-digit code, in addition to their standard password, to gain access to their Twitter accounts.

"When you sign in to twitter.com, there's a second check to make sure it's really you," the company said in a blog post announcing the optional security feature.

The two-factor system mirrors that of Facebook's and requires members to provide a phone number to which Twitter can send a unique code with each login attempt. Twitter users can turn on two-factor authentication from their Account Settings page, where they can tick the box to "Require a verification code when I sign in." Users then need to enter their phone number, and Twitter will subsequently text the number for verification purposes.

"With login verification enabled, your existing applications will continue to work without disruption," Twitter said. "If you need to sign in to your Twitter account on other devices or apps, visit your applications page to generate a temporary password to log in and authorize that application."

The additional security measure certainly complicates the login process, but the extra step is one many Twitter users, particularly brand users, will welcome with open arms. Last month, the Twitter accounts of CBS News' programs "60 Minutes" and "48 Hours" were compromised by hackers. (Disclosure: CNET is a unit of CBS Interactive.) The Associated Press was also the victim of a particularly cringeworthy breach when hackers sent out a false tweet that claimed the White House had been bombed. This news caused an immediate dive in the stock market.

Two-factor authentication should help Twitter defend against hacking attempts and partly repair its reputation as a public square for people, businesses, and celebrities.

Source: CNET

Twitter for Mac update brings photo sharing improvements, Retina display support

Twitter's showing off an updated version of its Mac app today, featuring a number of key fixes, including improvements to photo sharing and a slew of new languages. On the image side of things, you can now share a photo by clicking on the camera icon in the tweet composing module, or just do it the old fashioned way by dragging pictures from your desktop. Also new in this version is support for Macs with retina displays and a total of 14 new languages, including Dutch, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Traditional Chinese and Turkish. Interested parties can download the update via the source link below.

[Source: Engadget]

Twitter Already Testing Two-Step Authentication

Twitter is close to rolling out two-step verification in response to recent hackings, according to Wired. The social network has reportedly begun internal testing before the feature becomes available in increments to users; the staggered release is to ensure smooth sailing. The extra security measure should reduce the risk of accounts, high-profile or otherwise, being hijacked, which has become a more frequent occurrence over the past few months.

Many other big-name companies have rolled out two-step verification to combat hacking. Basically, by implementing the heightened security measure, hackers will have a much more difficult time gaining access to accounts because they won’t just need a password, but a randomly generated code sent to a device, usually through SMS. I know every time I log into Google, I’m sent a six-digit code I need to input before I can actually login.

Wired wasn’t told how or when Twitter will introduce two-step verification, but with so many recent hackings, the company will surely want to get it pushed out sooner rather than later. If a simple SMS solution is planned, fine—that’s better than nothing at all. Before two-step is rolled out, though, keep your passwords safe, and watch out for misinformation from trusted sources.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Twitter narrows TweetDeck AIR and mobile app shutdowns to May 7th

Twitter has been warning for weeks that it would shut down TweetDeck's AIR and mobile apps sometime in early May, but it didn't say exactly when loyalists would finally have to move on. The company now has a firm date: May 7th. In just over two weeks, Twitter will both pull the apps from their respective stores and stop existing installs from working as the service's version 1.0 API rides into the sunset. While the persisting native and web-based desktop apps will lessen some of the sting, we'd suggest that you pay your last respects if you have fond memories of TweetDeck's early apps.

[Source: Engadget]

Twitter #Music app helps you find tunes by who you follow

With so much competition already existing in the streaming music world, the Twitter #Music app faces the same problem as every new service -- how do they set themselves apart from the competition? The answer for Twitter is discovery; more specifically helping users discover new musical artists along the lines of the ones they already follow.

It takes a few minutes to learn how to navigate the app, but once you understand the ins and outs you'll be flying. There are four screens: Popular, Emerging, Suggested, and #NowPlaying.

Popular features the artists who are currently trending on Twitter. Emerging showcases smaller artists who are building twitter buzz, although at the moment it's not clear how they judge if someone is "emerging" or not. Suggested compiles artists based on who you already follow. And #NowPlaying is based on the music your followers are listening to.

Music is displayed on tiles with the artist's picture or logo. Simply click on the tile and hear the song by that artist. It's a little disappointing that you're limited to only one song per artist to listen to, especially if you're using the most basic function where the music is simply an iTunes preview clip. The service allows you to connect your Spotify or Rdio account to listen to full songs however. Using the app with just iTunes clips feels like a waste of time, but when given access to the full song the potential for music discovery increases dramatically. For instance, I had no idea M83 recorded new music for the upcoming film Oblivion and now I do. Thanks, Twitter #Music.

#NowPlaying is the most actively social component of the service. It shows you what your friends are listening to and specifically which friend recommended it. Given the limited use of the service right now there weren't a lot of recommendations available for checking out, but it was neat to see what one of the obscure rock bands I like was sharing at the moment.

Whether this service strikes you as merely a fun distraction or an exciting new way to discover music will probably depend on how much you use your Twitter feed to discover music. I tested it with two different Twitter accounts, one for a music blog I write for that mostly follows bands, and my own personal account that basically only follows a punk band and rappers I think are funny.

The end result is easy to predict. The more artists you follow on Twitter the better the suggestions proposed for you are going to be. Otherwise you're going to find the to-be-expected list of Top 40 and popular indie rock acts you find in every streaming services recommendations.

It's also worth noting that suggested songs tend to pick older tracks for some artists. The band Alkaline Trio is represented by their newest single "I Wanna Be a Warhol" while indie rocker Kevin Devine brings up his 2005 song "Cotton Crush." "Cotton Crush" is a great song, but Devine has put out three solo albums since then. On one hand I appreciate including deeper cuts in an artist's discography; on the other it seems strange for a new music discover service to reach that deep when it only offers one song by an artist at a time.

Twitter #Music is a clever new way to discover music based on the stuff you already like. It's hard to judge the suggestions too harshly when you take into account they are largely based on the suggestions of mainstream Twitter users. The app more than makes up for it with their personalization based on your own personal use. I'd like to see future updates add the ability to listen to more than one track by a single artist, but even in its current form Twitter #Music is going to be getting a lot of use on my iPhone.

[Source: TUAW]

It Sounds Like Twitter Music Will Integrate With Some Big Services

Twitter’s new music app may not be available for us mere mortals, but that’s not stopping folks from snooping into its details. Right now, all that’s available to everyone that’s not Ryan Seacrest is a landing page, but not much else. Thanks to designer Youssef Sarhan, information on Twitter’s new initiative has been made available, and it looks like the service will connect with pretty much every big name out there: Spotify, Rdio, iTunes, Soundcloud, Vevo and YouTube.

A few of the connections were already mentioned in a previous rumor, though we didn’t know 100 percent how deeply the integration would go. Aside from some code elements detailing which services #music can connect with, Sarhan’s finding also reveals users will be able to purchase songs, suggest music, see artist biographies and follow users for easier music discovery.

In addition to an incoming app, it sounds like there will also be a Web interface to match, so every Twitter user can hop into the service once it launches (in a week). A lot of information has been extracted from the site itself, and it hasn’t even been made active. We’re bound to hear more throughout the weekend and week before the service officially launches to the masses.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Twitter Music Is Available… But Only For Celebrities

Bad news, folks. The Twitter Music iOS app is not launching today as originally expected, nor is it arriving this weekend — at least, not for the masses. If you’re famous, however, that’s another story entirely.

Yesterday AllThingsD pegged a Friday release, to line up with the opening of the Coachella music festival this weekend, but then recanted that in a new post today. Apparently only “influencers” are getting the music discovery app early. Whether you consider Ryan Seacrest an influencer is a matter of opinion, but that’s why the American Idol host and Dick Clark protégé was playing around with it yesterday.

What’s with Seacrest and mobile appdevelopers? They just can’t seem to stop pelting him with pre-release apps. (SeeZynga/DrawSomething 2.)

If Twitter Music’s any good, more tweets are likely to follow from other celebrities. Assuming no nasty or insulting tweets go out about the app, it’s kind of brilliant on the part of Twitter’s marketing team. Nothing like a little buzz to tempt the masses, and if there are any bugs, the stars are essentially beta testers who can help sniff them out ahead of a public release.

As for the rest of us, AllThingsD now says we’ll get our hands on it in a week. So hang tight, and try not to be jealous if you notice rock stars and personalities all atwitter over this. Think of it like they’re doing you a service.

As the name suggests, the app focuses on music discovery, recommending artists and songs based on a variety of factors, such as who the user follows. (Justin Bieber and Alicia Keys fans would get very different suggestions.) Clips play from right inside the app, courtesy of third-parties like iTunes and SoundCloud, and Vevo powers the integrated music video playback.

For now, it’s iOS only, but we’ll keep our eyes open for any announcements or leads regarding Twitter Music for other platforms.

Are you excited to get your hands on this new music app from Twitter? Think it could pull you away from Pandora, Spotify or another favorite? Weigh in.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

BBC Twitter accounts hijacked by 'Syrian Electronic Army'

Several BBC Twitter accounts were hacked today, seemingly taken over by a group calling itself the 'Syrian Electronic Army'.

Control of the Weather, Radio Ulster and Arabic Twitter feeds was wrestled away from the Beeb, with the hackers posting a string of bizarre weather reports for the Middle East.

Every dodgy tweet has since been deleted, though Digital Spy has used Storify to preserve the tweets posted on BBC Weather, if you're curious.

"Saudi weather station down due to head-on collision with camel," one tweet reads. The final tweet sent from the hijacked meteorological account read, "Syrian Electronic Army was here," with a link to the group's own Twitter page.

BBC Weather has apologised, tweeting, "Sorry about that, we were hacked. Normal service resumes."

To hack a Twitter account, you need the account holder's Twitter name and password. One way to make the microblogging service more secure would be to offer two-step authentication.

Using this process, when you sign in from a new location you have to enter your password as well as a one-use code that is texted to your phone. Facebook and Gmail both already offer this security option, which is extra secure as any would-be hacker would require access to the account holder's phone as well as their password.

[Source: CNET]

UK budget leaked on Twitter as government re-states 4G vow

The UK budget was leaked on Twitter today, granting politically minded surfers a sneak peek at George Osborne's number-crunching ahead of time.

The key aspects of the chancellor's new measures emerged early when London's Evening Standard newspaper tweeted its front page, which detailed the most crucial aspects of the annual ploy to make the UK more economically healthy.

The Standard posted an apology on its site, with editor Sarah Sands saying, "An investigation is immediately under way into how this front page was made public." The person who sent the tweet has been suspended while that investigation happens, the newspaper boss says.

As for the budget itself, there was little for tech and gadget fiends to get excited about (though we can all rally around 1p off a pint of beer). Mr Osborne did take the opportunity to re-iterate hisplans for the UK's Internet speeds, saying, "We're giving Britain the fastest broadband and mobile telephony in Europe."

That doesn't quite jive with Ofcom's report on the UK's broadband progress from earlier this month, which places the UK third for superfast broadband take-up, for example.

The UK will get faster mobile data this year, as operators have just walked away from a big spectrum auction with slices of bandwidth to use in 4G networks. That auction raised £2.34bn for the UK, but fell short of the £3.5bn Mr Osborne had already factored into the nation's budget.

[Source: CNET]

Official Twitter app updated with new 'top tweets' feature, smoother animations

It might be all doom and gloom for popular third-party Twitter clients, but at least the official app is getting some love. Twitter's own Android app has been updated to version 3.8 today, with a trio of new features alongside the usual big fixes. First up there's a new "top tweets" feature, which is supposed to make significant tweets from the past pop up when searching for specific topics. (We tried searching for "Election 2012" and "Olympics" to no avail, but Twitter had plenty of tweets to highlight when searching for "grumpy cat," including news of the disgruntled feline's upcoming appearance at SXSW.)

Other additions include the ability to see all replies to tweets in details view, and smoother animations for pull-to-refresh in the "Discover" tab.

[Source: AndroidCentral]

Microsoft ViralSearch project visualizes content as it spreads across Twitter

It's not a new component of Bing (not yet, anyway), but Microsoft has taken the wraps off a new small-scale search project at its TechFest event this week -- one with a particular focus on so-called viral content. Appropriately dubbed ViralSearch, the effort from Microsoft Research currently uses Twitter as a source for all its data, and offers a variety of ways to track and visualize how a story, photo or video spreads from one outlet or individual to hundreds or thousands of others. That includes a profile view of sorts, which lets you see how influential a particular person was in spreading an item, and how prolific they are in general. Unfortunately, it is still just a research project so you can't try it out yourself just yet, and there's no word on any plans for it to become a commercial product.

[Source: Engadget]