Social Networking
Facebook’s Latest Patent Targets Search Behaviors
Serving up search results based on what your friends clicked: It’s been a hot topic lately, and one that Facebook has seen fit to claim as its own.The social networking goliath has just won a patent covering a certain type of search algorithm, one that is largely based on the interests and clicks of a user’s friends and friends-of-friends.Specifically, the patent is for “ranking search results based on the frequency of clicks on the search results by members of a social network who are within a predetermined degree of separation.”The patent continues, “Search results, including sponsored links and algorithmic search results, are generated in response to a query and are marked based on frequency of clicks on the search results by members of social network who are within a predetermined degree of separation from the member who submitted the query. The markers are visual tags and comprise either a text string or an image.” The listed inventors are Chris Lunt, Nicholas Galbreath and Jeff Winner. The patent application was filed almost six years ago; we’re uncertain how much this technology plays into Facebook’s Facebook current business and search strategies. Still, the patent calls into question whether users click — or buy, or watch, or behave in other ways — like their friends and peers do.What we do know is that Facebook search has been a priority for the company since its redesign earlier this year. At that time, the search bar on the site was given a prominent new position, and several under-the-hood upgrades rounded out the Facebook search experience.We’ve also seen a lot of sidebar ads and recommendations lately centering around what a user’s friends like within the site. All in all, the patent seems to line up with Facebook’s general mission to explore (and profit from) the synapses and connections within a social network.What do you think of this patent? Do you suppose we’ll see any major changes to Facebook search or any business moves based on it? For more Tech coverage: Follow Mashable Tech on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Tech channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad
Facebook Down for Many Users [UPDATED]
In the last couple of hours, Facebook has been unstable for many users (including us), according to numerous tweets from those affected. In the last 15 minutes or so, Facebook seems to be completely inaccessible.While downtime happens far more rarely to Facebook Facebook than, say, Twitter Twitter , world’s largest social network has occasionally had stability issues. It’s a big deal: With 500 million active users, complaints about downtime mount up pretty quickly.We’ve contacted Facebook to see what’s wrong. We’ll keep you updated as we learn more. Update: Facebook has reached out to us with the following statement: “We are experiencing site issues that are affecting some people. As a result, the site may be slow or time out for some users. We are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.” Update #2: Although it’s still slow for some, Facebook now seems to be working normally for most users. For more Tech coverage: Follow Mashable Tech on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Tech channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad
Facebook Down for Many Users [UPDATED]
In the last couple of hours, Facebook has been unstable for many users (including us), according to numerous tweets from those affected. In the last 15 minutes or so, Facebook seems to be completely inaccessible.While downtime happens far more rarely to Facebook Facebook than, say, Twitter Twitter , world’s largest social network has occasionally had stability issues. It’s a big deal: With 500 million active users, complaints about downtime mount up pretty quickly.We’ve contacted Facebook to see what’s wrong. We’ll keep you updated as we learn more. Update: Facebook has reached out to us with the following statement: “We are experiencing site issues that are affecting some people. As a result, the site may be slow or time out for some users. We are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.” Update #2: Although it’s still slow for some, Facebook now seems to be working normally for most users. For more Tech coverage: Follow Mashable Tech on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Tech channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad