China Un-Bans Facebook, Twitter in Shanghai

China is lifting its ban on a handful of heretofore banned websites within the Shanghai Free Trade Zone.

Included among those now considered acceptable are Facebook, Twitter and The New York Times' website.

The Shanghai Free Trade Zone, announced in July, has more free market-friendly policies than China at large. To that end, the Shanghai Free Trade Zone will entertain bids from foreign telecommunications companies to provide Internet services within the zone, sources told the South China Morning Post -- something that was impossible in the past.

The Shanghai zone is being treated as "a key proving ground for significant financial and economic reforms," the SCMP reported.

The decision to permit Facebook and Twitter within the special zone should not be mistaken as a sign that Beijing is knocking down its "Great Firewall," however. Earlier this month, China's Supreme Court announced stiffer penalties for people posting online rumors (and we're talking about the Communist Party's highly malleable definition of "rumor"). This decision has prompted popular social media personalities to tamp down their online musings.

Facebook's COO recently visited China as well.

[Sources: South China Morning Post; Tech In Asia]

Microsoft Teaming With Chinese Media Company

BesTV New Media, a Shanghai media company, announced Monday that it plans to embark on an entertainment development venture with Microsoft.

The duo, which together is investing US$237 million, plans to develop games and related services. This could be a way for Microsoft to sell its Xbox game console in China, which has long restricted video game consoles, The Seattle Times points out.

In a bulletin posted on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, BesTV said that it will hold a 51 percent share in the company, and Microsoft 49 percent. BesTV will choose the company's board chairman, while Microsoft will tab the CEO.

The name of the venture is "E-Home Entertainment Development." It will be registered in the aforementioned Shanghai Free Trade Zone.

[Sources: Xinhua and The Seattle Times via The Register]
Xiaomi Drops Red Star From Marketing

Xiaomi, the Chinese phone maker that recently hired Google executive Huge Barra to head the company, appears to have dropped the red star from some of its marketing mascot's attire.

In the past, the company used a bunny mascot that wore an Ushanka (one of those furry Russian hats). The Ushanka featured a red, five-pointed star, which has long been linked to Communism.

The star, though, may have been erased.

Tech In Asia spotted a star-less hat on Xiaomi's Taiwanese Facebook page. The star is also absent on materials for Miliao, Xiaomi's messaging app.

The bunny still has his red star in some images, including at least one with traditional Chinese writing, suggesting that the company could be tailoring the bunny's garb depending on where an ad is placed.

[Source: Tech In Asia]
BlackBerry Going Private

BlackBerry has agreed to a $4.7 billion deal to go private.

The $9-per-share offer, made by a consortium led by the company's biggest shareholder, Fairfax Financial Holdings, comes after BlackBerry's August announcement that it was mulling going private while it searches for a way to survive in the smartphone world that seems to have passed it by.

BlackBerry shares hit higher than $148 in 2008, the company's heyday. The stock price closed at $8.82 Monday.

BlackBerry can seek better offers until November 4; the Fairfax group would be able to match any such offers.

[Source: Reuters]

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How to Add Special Effects to Vine and Instagram Videos

Anyone can become "Instafamous" by adding a filter or a few hashtags to a cool selfie. The real pros live on video.


Vine and Instagram have provided unique platforms for users to showcase their creative ability. While a few seconds with a cellphone camera seems very limiting as a way to share videos, users continue to astound these social networking communities with their unique and clever approaches.






One of the most impressive types of videos on these platforms is the special effect video. Hands free, reflection and cloning videos are among the most liked and shared on Vine and Instagram, generating hundreds of “Whoa, how did you do that?” comments from fans eager to learn the tricks.


Well, here at Mashable, we’ve mastered the techniques necessary for these special effects videos, and we’re giving them to you, free of charge. Here’s a rundown of how to create some of our favorite special effects.

1. Hands Free


Skill Level: Easy

This is actually the easiest trick to master, and it requires nothing more than your phone. While the current app for both Vine and Instagram require you to touch the screen to record video, you can still do a hands-free Vine or Instagram video using the assistive touch feature on your phone.


If you have an iPhone, this feature is already available in your settings. Sorry, Android users, the assistive touch apps on the market don't offer this feature yet.


Go to Settings > General > Accessibility and scroll to the bottom of the screen. Under “Triple Click,” change your settings so that a triple click of the home button turns on Assistive Touch. Then go back one screen and tap “Assistive Touch” under “Physical and Motor,” to make sure that your assistive touch is activated.


Once it’s turned on, you’ll need to set up three gestures: a six second, one second, and instant touch. Tap “Create New Gesture” to create them. For the six second touch, touch the screen until the bar fills up the whole way. Save this gesture as “6 Seconds.” For the one second touch, you’ll need to move your finger, otherwise your phone won’t recognize the gesture for a whole second. We found that drawing a small circle gets the timing just about right. Save this as “1 Second.” For the instant touch, touch the screen for a second without moving your finger. Save as “Instant.”


Now, open your Vine or Instagram app, turn on assistive touch, select one of the gestures and record. Just remember to turn off assistive touch when you’re done filming, or every time you touch your phone it will hold for 6 seconds.


Protip: Even if you’re not creating a hands-free video, turning on assistive touch and using these gestures will keep your scene breaks even. This is a great tool for users who enjoy creating stop motion videos.

2. Alien Abduction and Other Spatial Tricks


Skill Level: Moderate

Wall walkers and abductee wannabes can gain this spatial effect in a really simple way: Flip the room on its side. In the Vine video above, the room is set up so that the “bed” leans against a wall, not laying on the floor. That’s why the table is flush up against the dresser, for support. When the “abduction” occurs, he simply had to walk and pretend he was being beamed up.


The only difficult aspect to achieving this effect is getting creative with your surroundings. Use a curb as a ledge and “hang” from it. Flip a room on its side and walk on the “walls.” Your only limit is your own creativity. OK, well, gravity, too. But you get the point.

3. Reflection, Cloning and Freezing Time


Skill Level: AdvancedAnother popular special effect involves reflections that don’t seem to want to follow their real life counterparts anymore, such as the one in the video below:

There's also time-freezing clones:

This type of post gets a little more involved than simply fixing your phone settings. You’ll need a regular camera that shoots video, set up in a way that it cannot be seen in the mirror, in addition to video editing software.


The basic idea is to film both parts of the video — both the “real” you and the cloned or reflection you — and then use your video editing software to splice the two together into one video. For a more detailed look at how to do this, check out this video tutorial from Joey Salads. While the tutorial focuses on reflection, cloning is very similar.


Once you have your custom video created, you’ll need to download two programs — Handbrakeand I-Funbox — to upload it to Vine or Instagram. Important: Your video need to be under 7 seconds long, or it will be too large. For a more detailed look at how to use these programs to upload your video to Vine or Instagram, use this tutorial from Dustin Walters.


Note on the above tutorial: Due to encoding reasons, some users find that the above method doesn’t always work. Try this: After you copy and paste the file name and go back to Vine or Instagram, and before you hit "Next," record one frame by tapping the screen once quickly with the camera covered, so you only record a black screen. This will probably help you upload the video.


Additionally, users have complained that Vine has removed their videos from the site, due to terms of use violations. This is a possibility, and it stops a lot of users from uploading custom videos out of a fear of a ban from the service. Upload at your own risk.


What are some other special effects you've seen in Vine and Instagram videos? If you're a video wizard, show us what you’ve got in the comments below.

official source 

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Sponsored Tweets

Sponsored Tweets

Introduction:Sponsored Tweets is a website that essentially allows advertisers to pay for Twitter users for posting their advertisements.

how it works ?

u post something when someone clicked u earn money 

how much i can earn ?

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requirements

100 tweets,50 followers,2 months atleast on twitter.

if u want to try it 

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