x404.co.uk
http://x404.co.uk/forum/

Twitter Changes
http://x404.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=17385		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  paulzolo [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 9:08 am ]
Post subject:  Twitter Changes
Yesterday, Twitter appeared to switch something off, and something else on. The thing they turned off was a really easy way to embed a Twitter timeline into a web page, and that method allowed you to style that data using CSS. It stopped working.

In its place are Widgets - you create them on Twitter’s web site, and paste a bit of code into your web page. Hey presto - your timeline is back. But there are some bad points. Firstly, you can’t style it using CSS any more. That is because the timeline is not part of your web page - it’s contained within an iFrame. This means that Twitter has control over the loo and feel of the stream, and it introduces a few extra goodies like a way to post onto the Timeline from within that web page. Some may like that, others won’t. It is well known now that Twitter wants timelines to be represented uniformly - and is insisting to App developers that if they want to continue to have (limited) access to Twitter data, they have to present it according to their wishes. Clearly, the iFrame is in place to enforce that.

And then I got thinking a bit more - it would be possible, using CSS, to obfuscate sponsored Tweets. Twitter won’t want that either. Hence the iFrame.

Then, when looking at the Widget set up, I noticed a check-box labelled “Opt out of tailoring Twitter”. Hmm - that’s interesting., I thought. I clicked on the little ? next to this. I get this page:
https://support.twitter.com/articles/20169421

This paragraph tells me something interesting:
Quote:
If you’re a current user, this feature offers dynamic suggestions about people you might enjoy following, keeping Twitter naturally aligned with your evolving interests. Here’s a preview of your tailored suggestions. They may also appear in the Who To Follow sections on the Home and Discover pages.


In essence, Twitter is starting to gather behavioural data about you, and it needs to use cookies to track this, and, of course, the iFrame links to their domain so they know who you are and where you are. This is the same as other social sites - Google+ and Facebook Like buttons are similarly contained in iFrames for much the same reason.

So, just be warned about this, and if you use Twitter, check your profile and switch the tracking features off and log out of Twitter in your browser just to be sure.
Author:  oceanicitl [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 9:11 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
Can't see anything in settings about tracking
Author:  timark_uk [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 9:13 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
paulzolo wrote:
So, just be warned about this, and if you use Twitter, check your profile and switch the tracking features off and log out of Twitter in your browser just to be sure.
Where is this in my profile settings?
Logging out of Twitter in my browser is not really an option for me as I don't use any sort of Mac client, I only use Twitter in the browser, so turning off this feature would be handy for me.

Mark
Author:  EddArmitage [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 9:15 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
I'm starting to get a bit bored with both FB and Twitter. FB more than Twitter at the moment, but both seem to be filling up with just too many people. I remember the good old days, when both were niche!
Author:  timark_uk [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 9:21 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
EddArmitage wrote:
I'm starting to get a bit bored with both FB and Twitter. FB more than Twitter at the moment, but both seem to be filling up with just too many people. I remember the good old days, when both were niche!
Just because Fb has a billion users … you don't have to interact with them all! (8+D

Mark
Author:  JJW009 [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 9:28 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
I got fed up with FB being popular that I created my own alternative. I'm the only person on it, so I never get bugged by random pokes now.

Regarding Twitter, I read an intersting and rather sweary blog post from a developer recently about how crap and restrictive their APIs are. His solution was to run a server logged in with a dummy account and scrape the data he was after.
Author:  EddArmitage [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 10:16 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
JJW009 wrote:
Regarding Twitter, I read an intersting and rather sweary blog post from a developer recently about how crap and restrictive their APIs are. His solution was to run a server logged in with a dummy account and scrape the data he was after.

The APIs seem to have been thrown up into the air, scraped off the floor, and then smushed back together again in an attempt to try and make a product that's more able to generate income. Bits have been removed, bits have been slightly mangled, and nobody seems to care about devs being able to continue to do interesting things with the data so people want to use the service.
Author:  paulzolo [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 11:05 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
For those who want to know - and I found this yesterday when I was trying to find out why Twitter had failed and what replacements (if any) were available.

Go here:
https://twitter.com/settings/widgets/
Create a new Widget

In there you will find the Opt Out check box.

Now, this page: https://support.twitter.com/articles/20169421 says the following:
Quote:
After signup, you can uncheck this box in your account settings next to the heading Personalization.
Image

Right now, it’s greyed out telling me that it’s not available to me yet. It’s under Account in Settings beneath Tweet Privacy. I don’t know why this one is greyed out, but the option in the Widget builder is available.

It also says:
Quote:
Anyone can turn on the Do Not Track browser setting to stop the collection of information for the feature. Learn more about Twitter’s support for the Do Not Track preference, including how to turn it on.
Author:  cloaked_wolf [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 11:28 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
Gathering behavioural data is the reason why I stopped using FB and never signed up for Twitter. Agree that FB was great when it was just about people who had gone to uni so any kid and their pet guinea pig couldn't sign up. Meant there was lots more hotty totty for my mate to perve (he had a habit of checking out girls' photos/accounts and then periodically checking his abs by lifting up his shirt).
Author:  oceanicitl [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 1:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Twitter Changes
I got this:

Personalization The feature to tailor Twitter based on your recent website visits is not available to you.
Author:  paulzolo [ Fri Oct 12, 2012 3:37 pm ]
Post subject:  Twitter Changes
oceanicitl wrote:
I got this:

Personalization The feature to tailor Twitter based on your recent website visits is not available to you.

I think they are testing it before making it available to everyone.
Page 1 of 1 All times are UTC
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
https://www.phpbb.com/