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Billions of images are uploaded to Facebook each day. With this huge number, the social network has to recompress all of the photos being uploaded to reduce storage costs and speed up its website. However, this move lowers image capacity and sometimes leads to slower loading times.

In a bid to address the issue, Facebook is pioneering the use of an obscure image format called WebP instead of the widely supported JPEG format. Although image sizes will be slashed by 25 to 35 per cent, the new format still has the same quality as a JPEG image.

WebP is search giant Google’s static image counterpart to its WebM video format. The compression technology behind the formats is nearly identical, but WebP’s features are tailored specifically to static images. However, the format is currently only supported by compatible browsers such as Opera and Chrome. Firefox and Safari cannot process these images.

In a short test, Facebook’s use of WebP irked many people who are using browsers not compatible with the format, as they encountered problems in saving and viewing their downloaded and edited pictures. It is not surprising that many internet users are against it.

Overall, the change in image format looks very advantageous to Facebook, as it could increase speed and boost the number of uploaded images on the social network. However, due to its limitations, the change to WebP could backfire as most users don’t exclusively use Facebook.

In an effort to make the format more accessible, Google is developing technology that helps web servers transmit WebP images to internet browsers that are compatible with the format.

Before there were text messages, pictures and videos, people communicated by way of the human voice. It should come as no surprise that websites and apps are now making it possible for people’s voices to be heard once again.

One of these apps is Dubbler, which launched its beta version on the Android and iPhone last December. This app provides users with an easy way to record as much as 60 seconds of their voices and share them via Twitter and Facebook, reported Mashable.

“I saw a lot of people texting and posting photos on social media, but no one really communicating with their voice,” said Matthew Murphy, Founder of San Francisco-based Appsurdity, the startup that created Dubbler.

“The whole idea is you don’t text your personality, you voice it. We wanted to give people a platform to share their voice and be heard.”

To date, over 200,000 users have downloaded Dubbler. During the first day it came out of beta last weekend, it was downloaded more than 55,000 times.

The figures are impressive given that this startup didn’t conduct any marketing or advertising. Instead, it relied on mere word of mouth and endorsements from social media influencers such as hip hop artists Wiz Khalifa and Common.

Meanwhile, its rival Eevzdrop will soon demonstrate its upcoming iPhone voice app at the 2013 South by Southwest (SXSW), a convergence of independent films, original music and emerging tech, which will be held in Austin, Texas from 8-17 March.

Google and major internet firms should not require users to reveal their real identity and pictures as it could have adverse consequences, according to Vint Cerf, the American computer scientist hailed as “one of the internet’s fathers.”

In an interview with Reuters, Cerf firmly disagreed with how Google handles the increasing number of personal profiles over the Web. Cerf, who is also an Assistant Professor at Stanford and a former DARPA scientist, explained that in certain situations, anonymous posting is the lone option.

“Using real names is useful but I don’t think it should be forced on people and I don’t think we do,” said Cerf, pointing out that Google’s YouTube and social network encourages people to use their actual names and photographs while interacting with other users.

Google and major internet firms should allow anonymity because many countries are asking the search giant to hand over information about certain users. Residents in some countries are also under fire for speaking out against their respective governments. On top of that, even democratic countries are silencing dissidents.

Cerf said in December, “At Google, we see and feel the dangers of the government-led Net crackdown.” Google admitted in November 2012 that government-led surveillance is becoming rampant.

But the executive clarified that he is not proposing an anonymous-only Internet. He feels the online firm should allow users to post information anonymously or under pseudonyms in certain cases. However, he added that there are situations wherein both parties really should know who they are dealing with.

Social media has dominated lives in many ways, from helping people stay in touch with friends to providing a source of information and means of commerce. Now it is emerging as a potent instrument for investing, according to The Wall Street Journal.

One innovative developer has created a trading platform in Twitter aimed at the typical investor, whilst a number of tech-savvy companies have used social media sites to gauge consumer sentiment on certain brands or companies whose stocks are traded.

However, most investors still source their information directly from the company itself, which is the same method used by investment guru Warren Buffett. This was the finding of a survey by the Brunswick Group.

Specifically, about 57 per cent of 500 sell-side analysts and institutional investors said information directly acquired from firms carries the greatest weight on their investment decisions and recommendations. Notably, around 85 per cent of the respondents ranked direct information as one of the most authoritative sources.

Rachelle Spero, a partner at Brunswick, said: “While investors and analysts are increasingly influenced by digital and social media as the basis for investment decisions, companies and managers should be encouraged that the vast majority look to information direct from companies as the main building blocks of their investment rationales.”

It cannot be denied that social media remains a very relevant tool in the field. In fact, around 14 per cent of respondents stated that social media is one of their most influential sources of information, a notable leap from six per cent during Brunswick’s previous survey in 2011. Moreover, 86 per cent of the respondents said social media is increasingly becoming an important source of investment information.

A positive ruling from the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has enabled Google to ramp up the transformation of its search engine into an “answer engine”, reported CNN.

Recently, the FTC ended its investigations into Google, concluding that the company did not break any antitrust laws when the search giant endorsed its own products in its search results over those of competitors.

The FTC concurred that the recent updates were designed to improve and speed up the search experience, another step towards creating a search engine that can instantly answer queries just like the super computer in Star Trek. This decision has spurred Google to go ahead with its plans to further enhance its search engine, said Whit Andrews, an analyst at Gartner.

In the past few years, the search giant unveiled several new services that simply answer queries. For example, if you type “temperature” into Google, the search engine will display the local weather report. Likewise, researching famous people triggers the firm’s “Knowledge Graph”, which includes a picture and some basic information about that individual.

Queries on local businesses also lead to a list of Google maps and reviews, while the “Google Now” Android application delivers information based on a user’s interests without the need to use the search engine. In addition, a travel search brings up a list of flights and airfares.

Although these new features are very helpful, they compete with portals and online services that rely on the search giant for search traffic and could irk content providers with whom Google maintains a mutual relationship.

A ruling by a US judge requiring news outlets to seek out permission before they can use a Twitter picture is expected to make waves in the online world, especially for news agencies and journalists.

According to the court, Agence France-Press (AFP) infringed the copyright of photojournalist Daniel Morel when it used pictures of the 2010 Haiti earthquake taken and tweeted by him and then distributed them without permission through Getty Images, Inc. The Washington Post also violated Morel’s copyright when it did not secure due permission before using photos from Getty.

Although AFP claimed that Morel’s photos can be freely used once posted on Twitter, District Judge Alison Nathan disagreed. She pointed out that the site’s Terms of Service (ToS) require news firms to obtain permission before they can use tweeted pictures. Nonetheless, Nathan ruled that re-tweeting of photos could be done freely.

Notably, Twitter’s ToS protects all users’ copyrights, especially those of photographers. In fact, a section in the Terms of Service contains instructions on how users can report a copyright violation.

The trial started in 2010 when AFP sued to get a ruling that it is legally allowed to disseminate tweeted pictures after Morel first accused them of violating his copyright. Morel then filed a countersuit against Getty, AFP and the Washington Post.

Initially, Morel asked for “tens or hundreds of millions of dollars” arguing that each illegal reproduction constituted an infringement. However, Judge Nathan noted that the AFP is only liable once for each violation, not every individual copy of the photos.