Google really cares about the web being faster. In 2010 it led a group of contributors in releasing a module for Apache web servers called PageSpeed. Today, the same group has released a version for Nginx, an alternative to Apache, which is also open source and used by massively trafficked sites like Netflix, Hulu, Pinterest, Airbnb, WordPress.com, Zynga, Zappos and GitHub. In alpha testing… → Read More
Foursquare today launched redesigned venue pages to focus on its Explore and Discover functionality, bringing them more in line with its homepage. The changes, which come two weeks after the company raised another round of funding and released an updated iOS app, are designed to capitalize on the traffic that Foursquare gets from Google, which has doubled the site’s traffic over the past… → Read More
Anyone who has had a computer and a connection to the Internet in 1999 quickly knew what it felt like to find any song that you wanted, and then listen to it almost immediately. Well, the immediate part wasn’t true, since you had to download the MP3s, which usually took quite a bit of time on a dialup connection. Since Napster, and it getting sued into oblivion (and then acquired for bits… → Read More
Mozilla is working with payment vendors and the W3C standards body to create a common API to make online payments, both on desktop and mobile, easier and more secure. To get this process going, Mozilla has implemented a new and experimental JavaScript API into its new Firefox OS for smartphones that will eventually allow web apps to accept payments. Mozilla argues that having a common API for… → Read More
Vyclone, a service for creating collaborative videos of events and locations launched its iOS app for last summer. Just about a week ago, the company launched its Android app and today, it is also launching a web-based experience that focuses less on taking videos than on editing them in the browser. To do so, the service partnered with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer team, though the editor… → Read More
Google just launched Zopfli, a new open source compression algorithm that can compress web content about three to eight percent more densely (PDF) than the standard zlib library. Because Zopfli is compatible with the decompression algorithms that are already part of all modern web browser, using Google’s new algorithm and library on a server could lead to faster data transmission speeds and lower… → Read More
Cloudflare, the content delivery network and website security company that launched at TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco in 2010, just announced that the majority of the world’s leading web hosting providers now support its Railgun web optimization protocol to provide advanced caching services and to improve their web performance. Railgun, Cloudflare’s tests show, can optimize dynamic content to… → Read More
Twitter has announced a much-needed update to its search product today, which will be available on all mobile devices: iOS, Android and mobile web. The company boasts that the update will help you find relevant tweets, trends and people to follow in a single stream. This is very similar to the experience that we’re starting to see make its way to the website. The update allows you to search… → Read More
Instagram has just announced that its full feed has made its way to the web, meaning that users no longer have to access through the dedicated mobile apps to check out all of their content, and participate in the conversation around posted photos. The web-based feed comes in both desktop- and mobile-optimized flavors, meaning you’re set if you’re using something like BlackBerry not yet graced by… → Read More
Today is Q4 earnings day for Facebook, and we’ve learned some really interesting things about the growth of the social network. Surprisingly to some, mobile DAUs have exceeded those on the web, for the first time in the company’s history. We knew that Facebook was focused on growing its network leveraging mobile devices and platforms, but it’s impressive to see this usage… → Read More
Yahoo plans to compete on mobile by way of partnerships, not hardware or operating systems, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer told Bloomberg at the annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, where the subject of the talk was the future of Yahoo’s business. The talk also delved into other areas of focus, including Yahoo’s homepage, media properties, and where it could compete on search and… → Read More
While it’s not the “fail whale” that became popular in years past, Twitter.com is indeed having some issues. According to a tweet by its support account, engineers are working on a “rendering” issue. A lot of Twitter users rely on mobile and desktop apps, so they might not visit the website at all. For those of you who do, though, the problem is impossible to miss. → Read More
We’ve been writing about HTML5 for quite a while, but, until today, the actual HTML5 specs and standards were still moving targets. Now, however, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has announced that the specifications for HTML5 and Canvas 2D are finally feature complete. This, the W3C notes, means that developers now have a stable target “for implementation and planning.” → Read More
Microsoft’s Surface is a bit slow out the starting gate according to tablet web traffic share numbers from mobile advertising network Chitika, which measures tens of millions of impressions coming from devices in North America. The MS tablet, which debuted on October 26, has just 0.13 percent of overall web traffic share according to a study conducted between November 12 and 18. → Read More
We told you about Matt Galligan’s news app for iOS, Circa, a few months ago. Basically, it breaks down “stories” into more consumable chunks so that you can follow something as it happens. It was particularly useful during the elections, as the narrative on who would become the next President changed almost every single second.
Today, Circa is announcing the addition of a web view to its… → Read More
There are hundreds of devices to choose from when you’re considering a new desktop computer, laptop or mobile device. We’re overwhelmed by all of the choices we have, but choice is good. When it comes to computing, as far as operating systems, there are three huge players: Microsoft, Apple and Google. Yes, Google.
A curious thing happened during Chrome browser’s rise to being the most-used… → Read More
Instagram is definitely not taking its foot off of the gas, even after being acquired successfully by Facebook. Today, the team is introducing a widget to help you spread the word about all of your great random Instagram photos, wherever you live on the web.
Since Instagram launched its web profiles, the thoughts of what Instagram could expand to past mobile has been a topic of heavy… → Read More
Realtime, a technology developed by a company which has been around since the Internet’s earliest days with the practically un-Googleable name “Internet Business Technologies,” has just received a massive $100 million investment to help fund its lofty plan to build the real-time web. The company offers a developer framework that now powers 2,000 real-time client applications, but, until now, it… → Read More
TechCrunch Disrupt finalist Pressly is an HTML5-based platform that turns online publications into tablet-friendly websites that work on the iPad, Android tablets or the BlackBerry PlayBook. The sites it produces are nearly indistinguishable from their native counterparts, like Flipboard and Zite for example, offering a similar experience for browsing through articles, images and videos. → Read More
Today, Strobe Inc. is launching a new platform that helps developers build HTML5-based Web applications for desktops, smartphones and tablets, and centrally manage them from a single interface.
The launch is a major leap forward in HTML5 app development. From one interface, teams can manage code (both test code and production code), configure the app’s deployment across platforms (Web, Android… → Read More
In 2011 everyone should know that links are the currency of the web. And Twitter is one of the primary mediums for link exchange. A tweet is 140 characters long, and there is absolutely no dearth of link shortening services to allow you to cram as many links as possible into a tweet. But is that really exchanging value? The basic principle of supply and demand suggests that the more quantity there… → Read More
The Web is dead, or at least in decline, declares Wired editor Chris Anderson in the magazine’s September cover story. The article is anchored by the startling infographic above, which shows the proportion of different types of traffic on the Internet. The Web, HTML traffic visible though a browser, is only about a quarter (23%) of the overall traffic, down from about half a decade ago. It’s… → Read More
Taptu, the mobile search solution, has been keeping an eye on the mobile web — specifically what they’re calling the mobile touch web, which I guess is slightly different from the non-touch mobile web — and has produced a fairly comprehensive report of their findings. Of particular interest is the fact that “there are a higher proportion of shopping and services sites on the mobile touch Web… → Read More
If you spend any amount of time using the Internet as we know it today, chances are you have suffered some inconvenience from the variety of interpretations of the various “standards” used to create the web. Every web browser renders web pages slightly differently; some Flash content isn’t compatible with older versions of Flash (and some versions of Flash aren’t supported on some operating… → Read More
Today marks the death of an internet giant. One of the first, one of the best. Oh GeoCities. What would we have done without you? Where would we have put our brightly colored, constantly flashing backgrounds? Who else had rotating .gifs for links and neon green page hit counters? There is no substitute for your plethora of font colors and sizes, for your broken HTML codes and page badges, for your… → Read More
Today we are trusting the web with our most personal and important data, from private photos and social graphs to finances and key work documents. Our hesitation to share such information has dropped over the years as our trust in our favorite services grows. Yet all the while, the web is actually growing less secure, as sites are left open to new attacks that can spread easily and leave users… → Read More
Linux users, rejoice! We’ve been a minority for a long time, but we’re slowing gaining more and more traction in the world. Word is that in the last twelve months, Linux use online has increased two thirds, up from 0.69% to 1.02% Sure, it’s still a trivially small number, but the continued growth of our favorite free software operating system has some pretty interesting ramifications. → Read More
I was so excited when I got my first Palm Treo: I’d be able to browse the Internet from anywhere! That happy moment was soon shattered by the realization that Blazer was a pretty crappy browser. My youthful exuberance was further crushed by the realization that accessing most websites on a 320×240 screen is only slightly better than a root canal. Even now, on my fancy new iPhone 3G, I still find… → Read More
Shocking news, everyone! Age plays a factor in how we figure out web site navigation! According to a new study in the journal Psychology & Marketing, younger kids do better with maps and visual “learning clues” while older kids are better at scanning lists of content. → Read More
A couple days ago we received a press release for a new service named CallingAmerica, which permits you to make free VoIP calls to U.S. phone numbers using only your web browser. Offered free of charge, users are required to look at advertisements for about 10 seconds before calls are connected (AdBlock Plus worked just fine to suppress the ads, by the way). → Read More
Austin, TX
Seattle, WA
San Diego, CA
Menlo Park, CA
Boston, MA
Disrupt Europe: Berlin Hackathon
Berlin, Germany
