Starting Wednesday, those yellow smiley faces, salsa dancers and birthday cake emojis you've been tweeting will finally appear on the web.
Twitter now supports emojis on web and desktop versions of the service. Previously, when users tweeted emoji images from their phone, the showed up as hollow boxes on the web.
The emojis appear to be a lesser quality image than they appear on mobile, and it's unclear whether or not they are supported on Tweetdeck. (Some Mashable employees can see them, while others cannot.) The update includes existing tweets that already had emojis as well.
Various messages are spreading regarding a browser called RockMelt. Many messages are in response to Facebook users complaining they are being spammed with invites to download the software,
whilst others are claiming it is a virus that is spreading across Facebook. RockMelt is actually an Internet browser based on the Google Chrome Internet Browser and was released in 2010. For those not
familiar with the term, an Internet browser is the software you browse webpages with - Windows comes pre-installed with Internet Explorer (the blue E icon).
RockMelt has been designed to work with social networking websites, specifically Facebook. (it has been dubbed the Facebook browser) This means that users using RockMelt have increased functionality when using sites like Facebook. For example a list of Facebook contacts online appears on the right hand side of the screen, despite a user being on sites other than Facebook.
However many users have claimed the browser is a virus or is spamming them. This is because in order to use the browser a user has to install a Facebook App called RockMelt.
Once the RockMelt browser is downloaded and installed a user is told they must first install a Facebook application. As a second step the user is given the chance to send invites to all their friends via the application to use the RockMelt browser. The step is entirely optional - users have the option of not sending any invites - however many users are sending the invites to their entire friends list, either intentionally or without fully realizing the consequences. (The browser has ALL friends selected as default which causes the problem)
This has led to many Facebook users receiving multiple invitations and messages regarding RockMelt which is why many are claiming they are being spammed.
Whilst the condition of having to install a Facebook App and give it permission to your account has been seen by many as a privacy intrusion, it should also be emphasized that Facebook users do not have to send out invites to their Facebook contacts to use the browser.
The message that claims RockMelt is a virus and states "do not open it" is has inaccurate as it is vague and unhelpful. RockMelt is not a virus and this warning is completely false.
Rumours that RockMelt wants to track your every move are exaggerated. Whilst their may be increased privacy concerns when using a browser which integrates with sites like Facebook, RockMelts privacy FAQs state they do not share any information they learn about you with any third parties.
RockMelt does not share any data about you, including your browsing data, with any third parties without your permission.
It also confirms that the RockMelt application will not post automatically from your account or spam your friends.
RockMelt will never post new status updates on your wall or your friends walls without your permission.
If you do not wish to use RockMelt, simply ignore the messages and invites. If you wish to use the browser, perhaps think twice before sending out invites to all of your Facebook friends. Such generic, automated invites can be seen as intrusive and spammy and may irritate your friends. This will also help to stop users associating RockMelt with unsolicited requests.
