Facebook unveils social search tools for users

Facebook unveils social search tools for users By Dave Lee Technology Reporter 15 January 2013 Last updated at 18:24 The search tool can handle natural language queries Facebook has announced a major addition to its social network - a smart search engine it has called graph search. The feature allows users to make "natural" searches of content shared by their friends. Search terms could include phrases such as "friends who like Star Wars and Harry Potter". Founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg insisted it was not a web search, and therefore not a direct challenge to Google. However, it was integrating Microsoft's Bingsearch engine for situations when graph search itself could not find answers. Mr Zuckerberg said he "didnot expect" people to startflocking to Facebook to do web search. "That isn't the intent," he said. "But in the event youcan't find what you're looking for, it's really nice to have this." Finding folks Earlier speculation had suggested that the world'sbiggest social network wasabout to make a long-anticipated foray into Google's search territory. "We're not indexing the web," explained Mr Zuckerberg at an event at Facebook's headquarters in California. "We're indexing our map of the graph - the graph isreally big and its constantly changing." In Facebook's terms, the social graph is the name given to the collective poolof information shared between friends that are connected via the site. It includes things such as photos, status updates, location data as well as thethings they have "liked". Until now, Facebook's search had been highly criticised for being limited and ineffective. It's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages Mark Little, Ovum The company's revamped search was demonstrated to be significantly more powerful. In one demo, Facebook developer Tom Stocky showed a search for queries such as"friends of friends who aresingle in San Francisco". The same technology couldbe used for recruitment, he suggested, using graphsearch to find people who fit criteria for certain jobs - as well as mutual connections. Such queries are a key function of LinkedIn, the current dominant network for establishing professional connections. "We look at Facebook as abig social database," said Mr Zuckerberg, adding thatsocial search was Facebook's "third pillar" and stood beside the newsfeed and timeline as the foundational elements of the social network. Perhaps mindful of privacyconcerns highlighted by recent misfires on policies for its other services suchas Instagram, Facebook stressed that it had put limits on the search system. "On graph search, you canonly see content that people have shared with you," developer Lars Rasmussen, who was previously the co-founder of Google Maps, told reporters. Test case Mark Little, principal analyst at research firm Ovum, said he was"underwhelmed" by the announcement. "I think probably people were looking for somethinga little bit more strategic," he said, adding that graph search might well be a bridge to a more comprehensive search offering in the future. Play The BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones explains how the new search tool will work "On the plus side I think it's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages," he said. "If you are increasingconnections between friends and pages you areeffectively increasing the reach of advertisers." In his demonstration, Mr Stocky showed how graph search could help any attempt to go back over old content that a user may want removed. For instance, it could let someone use search queries - such as picturestaken at a certain location,such as a night club - and untag them en masse. Mr Zuckerberg said that graph search would launchimmediately as a beta test,and would roll out "very slowly". The tool will be usable from the blue banner that sits at the top of every Facebook page. "We're going to put an encouragement on the home screen of everyone's account so that everyone has the chance to look through these tools. "We're going to do this before graph search is fully rolled out."

Facebook unveils social search tools for users

Facebook unveils social search tools for users By Dave Lee Technology Reporter 15 January 2013 Last updated at 18:24 The search tool can handle natural language queries Facebook has announced a major addition to its social network - a smart search engine it has called graph search. The feature allows users to make "natural" searches of content shared by their friends. Search terms could include phrases such as "friends who like Star Wars and Harry Potter". Founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg insisted it was not a web search, and therefore not a direct challenge to Google. However, it was integrating Microsoft's Bingsearch engine for situations when graph search itself could not find answers. Mr Zuckerberg said he "didnot expect" people to startflocking to Facebook to do web search. "That isn't the intent," he said. "But in the event youcan't find what you're looking for, it's really nice to have this." Finding folks Earlier speculation had suggested that the world'sbiggest social network wasabout to make a long-anticipated foray into Google's search territory. "We're not indexing the web," explained Mr Zuckerberg at an event at Facebook's headquarters in California. "We're indexing our map of the graph - the graph isreally big and its constantly changing." In Facebook's terms, the social graph is the name given to the collective poolof information shared between friends that are connected via the site. It includes things such as photos, status updates, location data as well as thethings they have "liked". Until now, Facebook's search had been highly criticised for being limited and ineffective. It's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages Mark Little, Ovum The company's revamped search was demonstrated to be significantly more powerful. In one demo, Facebook developer Tom Stocky showed a search for queries such as"friends of friends who aresingle in San Francisco". The same technology couldbe used for recruitment, he suggested, using graphsearch to find people who fit criteria for certain jobs - as well as mutual connections. Such queries are a key function of LinkedIn, the current dominant network for establishing professional connections. "We look at Facebook as abig social database," said Mr Zuckerberg, adding thatsocial search was Facebook's "third pillar" and stood beside the newsfeed and timeline as the foundational elements of the social network. Perhaps mindful of privacyconcerns highlighted by recent misfires on policies for its other services suchas Instagram, Facebook stressed that it had put limits on the search system. "On graph search, you canonly see content that people have shared with you," developer Lars Rasmussen, who was previously the co-founder of Google Maps, told reporters. Test case Mark Little, principal analyst at research firm Ovum, said he was"underwhelmed" by the announcement. "I think probably people were looking for somethinga little bit more strategic," he said, adding that graph search might well be a bridge to a more comprehensive search offering in the future. Play The BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones explains how the new search tool will work "On the plus side I think it's going to help drive connections within the network between individuals and between companies and pages," he said. "If you are increasingconnections between friends and pages you areeffectively increasing the reach of advertisers." In his demonstration, Mr Stocky showed how graph search could help any attempt to go back over old content that a user may want removed. For instance, it could let someone use search queries - such as picturestaken at a certain location,such as a night club - and untag them en masse. Mr Zuckerberg said that graph search would launchimmediately as a beta test,and would roll out "very slowly". The tool will be usable from the blue banner that sits at the top of every Facebook page. "We're going to put an encouragement on the home screen of everyone's account so that everyone has the chance to look through these tools. "We're going to do this before graph search is fully rolled out."

Helicopter crashes into crane in vauxhall london

Helicopter crashes into crane in Vauxhall, London 4 minutes ago Play Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson: Helicopter 'plummeted straight into the ground' A helicopter has crashed into a crane at a building site in central London. Police said it appeared the helicopter had hit the crane on top of a building at about 08:00 GMT. They said it was too early to confirm any casualties. London Fire Brigade said the crash happened near Wandsworth Road in SouthLambeth. They said more than 60 firefighters were at the scene. Burning wreckage lay in the road, with all approaches to the Vauxhall Cross one way system closed. The fire brigade was also attending a second scene involving a crane in a precarious position on St George's Wharf. Police said they first received calls at 08:00 GMT and the London Ambulance Service said it was also at the scene. 'Enormous bang' Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson said the helicopter "plummeted straight into the ground". He said: "The building the helicopter hit is shrouded in mist." Play Eyewitness Chris Matthison: "There was an unusual buzzing sound and a dull thud" He said the crane at the top of the building was nowhanging down the side of the building. Nicky Morgan, MP for Loughborough, witnessed the crash. "I was walking towards Vauxhall tube station from Lambeth Palace area whereI have a flat," she said. "There was suddenly an enormous bang - I thoughtsomething exploded. "It was coming from beyondVauxhall tube station. "Then clouds and clouds ofblack smoke. "I presumed what it was I heard was the crane collapsing or the helicoptercrashing into it. 'Huge smoke cloud' "I heard the bang then sawthe clouds of smoke but there was too much in the way to see much at that point." Some witnesses reported the wreckage hitting two cars. Witnesses reported seeingdebris on the ground. Quinn Murray was cycling when he saw the crash. He said: "I saw the helicopter hit the top of thecrane and come down just to the left of the station. "There was quite a large amount of fire and a huge smoke cloud. It wasn't on the road, but into a building site where they are building the new Nine Elms area. "There's a huge number ofemergency services." Commuter Sherna Noah described seeing a "large plume of dark grey smoke"as she crossed Battersea Bridge at about 08:00 GMT. She said: "I was coming across the bridge and basically I could see a few cyclists on the bridge looking towards the water. "I looked over to see whatthey were looking at and could see a pall of grey smoke coming from the south side. "You could see a large plume of dark grey smoke." The BBC's Ross Hawkins said Wandsworth Road near Vauxhall station is closed.

Helicopter crashes into crane in vauxhall london

Helicopter crashes into crane in Vauxhall, London 4 minutes ago Play Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson: Helicopter 'plummeted straight into the ground' A helicopter has crashed into a crane at a building site in central London. Police said it appeared the helicopter had hit the crane on top of a building at about 08:00 GMT. They said it was too early to confirm any casualties. London Fire Brigade said the crash happened near Wandsworth Road in SouthLambeth. They said more than 60 firefighters were at the scene. Burning wreckage lay in the road, with all approaches to the Vauxhall Cross one way system closed. The fire brigade was also attending a second scene involving a crane in a precarious position on St George's Wharf. Police said they first received calls at 08:00 GMT and the London Ambulance Service said it was also at the scene. 'Enormous bang' Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson said the helicopter "plummeted straight into the ground". He said: "The building the helicopter hit is shrouded in mist." Play Eyewitness Chris Matthison: "There was an unusual buzzing sound and a dull thud" He said the crane at the top of the building was nowhanging down the side of the building. Nicky Morgan, MP for Loughborough, witnessed the crash. "I was walking towards Vauxhall tube station from Lambeth Palace area whereI have a flat," she said. "There was suddenly an enormous bang - I thoughtsomething exploded. "It was coming from beyondVauxhall tube station. "Then clouds and clouds ofblack smoke. "I presumed what it was I heard was the crane collapsing or the helicoptercrashing into it. 'Huge smoke cloud' "I heard the bang then sawthe clouds of smoke but there was too much in the way to see much at that point." Some witnesses reported the wreckage hitting two cars. Witnesses reported seeingdebris on the ground. Quinn Murray was cycling when he saw the crash. He said: "I saw the helicopter hit the top of thecrane and come down just to the left of the station. "There was quite a large amount of fire and a huge smoke cloud. It wasn't on the road, but into a building site where they are building the new Nine Elms area. "There's a huge number ofemergency services." Commuter Sherna Noah described seeing a "large plume of dark grey smoke"as she crossed Battersea Bridge at about 08:00 GMT. She said: "I was coming across the bridge and basically I could see a few cyclists on the bridge looking towards the water. "I looked over to see whatthey were looking at and could see a pall of grey smoke coming from the south side. "You could see a large plume of dark grey smoke." The BBC's Ross Hawkins said Wandsworth Road near Vauxhall station is closed.

Time to take sierra leone from lying hate mongers

Time to take Sierra Leone back from Lying Hate Mongers By Dr. Sylvia Olayinka Blyden (Officer of Order of the Rokel) Jan 11, 2013, 17:20 Email this article Printer friendly page You May Click Here To Read or Discuss Views About This Article Sorie Fofana & Umaru Fofana areamongst those who thrive on Chaos in Sierra Leone because they know they cannot compete or survive in an Ordered, Civilised& Decent Society where value for the truth is supreme. Latest gimmick is to stir Tribal hate by publishing dangerous lies... Many people have been asking to read the 8th January 2013 GLOBAL TIMES article of Sorie Fofanawhich sparked the proactive stance of the Head of State in granting an exclusive interview to us this week to condemn tribal stoking in the media. We have today published the article verbatim today. Alongside it, is another terrible and similarly unfortunate article which was Umaru Fofana’s lead story on his POLITICO newspaper of 10th January 2013. It appearsthat now the plot to incite the Mendes has boomeranged, opposition media agents like Umaru Fofana wish to turn their attention to inciting the Temnes in the country. A mostunfortunate situation. Sadly, these fellows (Umaru Fofana and Sorie Fofana) are not Mendes neither Temnes but they keep on stoking these tribal sentiments to serve their hidden motives to perpetuate chaos in our country. This shameful and disgusting use of tribal tools to score political points must be condemned. We are going to henceforth name and shamethe true enemies of this country’s peace and unity. Umaru Fofana, President of SLAJ and Sorie Fofana, publisher of Global Times are amongst the enemies of this country’s tranquility and unity