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Showing posts from October 13, 2024

YouTube Shorts Get an Upgrade: Now Up to 3 Minutes Long

On October 1, 2024, YouTube unveiled an exciting update that aimed to enhance creative possibilities for Shorts creators. The platform announced that starting October 15, creators would be able to upload Shorts up to 3 minutes in length, expanding the previous 60-second limit. While this extension was highly anticipated and welcomed, the phased rollout left many creators with questions and uncertainty. YouTube Liaison took to Twitter to address these concerns, providing essential clarifications as the new feature began rolling out.. What YouTube Announced YouTube's official announcement confirmed that Shorts would be extended from 60 seconds to a maximum of 3 minutes, starting on October 15. This much-requested feature aimed to give creators more flexibility in storytelling and content creation. "Starting on October 15, you can upload Shorts up to 3 minutes long. This was a top requested feature by creators, so we’re excited to give you more flex...

Bing Webmaster Tools Unveils Major Updates to Enhance SEO Capabilities

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Microsoft's Bing Webmaster Tools has announced a series of significant updates aimed at empowering webmasters and SEO professionals with more robust data analysis and AI-driven assistance. 1. Launch of "Recommendations" Feature In response to the growing need for personalized, actionable insights, Bing introduced "Recommendations" as an upgrade to its previous Insights tool. This feature helps webmasters optimize their sites for better performance and higher search rankings by offering tailored suggestions based on the site’s data. "Every website faces unique challenges. Discover how Bing Webmaster Tools is transforming its Insights feature to offer even more personalized recommendations to help you overcome any #SEO obstacle." - Microsoft Bing webmaster Team on X.com Image credit: Microsoft Bing Key Features: Deeper Data Granularity : Offering highly detailed analytics, this feature helps site owners pinpoint specific areas t...

Google’s Martin Splitt Shares Key Tips for Website Internationalization

Google’s Martin Splitt recently provided invaluable insights into internationalizing websites for a global audience. His tips are essential for businesses and webmasters aiming to improve their site’s performance in various countries and languages. From optimizing site structure to effectively using hreflang tags, Splitt breaks down the fundamentals of making your site accessible to different markets. Key Points: Pick the right setup : Choose between local domains, subdomains, or subdirectories for organizing international content. Use hreflang tags : Implement hreflang tags to guide search engines in displaying the correct language or region-specific page. Provide user-friendly options : Don’t force redirects—give users the choice to select their preferred version. Focus on quality : Only target countries that matter to your business and provide high-quality, localized content. 1. Setting Up Your Site for Internationalization Choosing the right...

Google Shopping Gets a Major AI Upgrade

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Google has just announced a major transformation of its Shopping platform, marking a significant improvement in how users discover, compare, and purchase products online. This update integrates advanced AI technology to create a more personalized, efficient, and interactive shopping experience, rolling out in the U.S. over the next few weeks. Key Points AI-Powered Search Assistance : The new Google Shopping delivers personalized AI-generated briefs, helping users make better purchasing decisions. Dynamic Filters and Virtual Try-On : Users can now narrow down preferences dynamically and use AR-powered virtual try-on tools for clothing. Personalized Home Feed : The new homepage features customized product recommendations based on user preferences and past searches. Deal-Finding Tools : A dedicated deals page helps shoppers find the best prices, with price comparison and tracking tools built in. Image credit: Google AI-Powere...

Internet Archive Restores Wayback Machine in Read-Only Mode after Series of DDoS Attacks

The Internet Archive, renowned for its Wayback Machine that preserves web history, faced a series of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks starting October 9, which temporarily took its services offline. Brewster Kahle , founder of the Internet Archive, shared updates via X ( formerly twitter ) , outlining the steps taken to restore functionality and safeguard the organization’s vast data repository. On October 10 , Kahle confirmed that the DDoS attacks affected both archive.org and openlibrary.org , leading to a suspension of services. He also revealed a breach that compromised usernames, emails, and encrypted passwords: "What we know: DDOS attack–fended off for now; defacement of our website via JS library; breach of usernames/email/salted-encrypted passwords." – Brewster Kahle, October 10. The Internet Archive’s team responded swiftly by disabling the compromised JavaScript (JS) library , upgrading security, and prioritizing data integrity. Alt...

A Fork or a Takeover? Inside WordPress.org's Controversial Move on ACF

The WordPress community has recently been stirred by a significant development: the fork of the Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) plugin by WordPress.org . This controversy comes amidst an already tense climate between WordPress and WP Engine , raising further concerns about open-source governance and power dynamics within the ecosystem. The forced takeover of Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) has added fuel to the fire, leaving the community divided on the ethical implications of this move. What Happened? The Forcible Takeover of ACF On October 12th, 2024 , the ACF plugin, which has over 2 million active installations , was forked by WordPress.org . The decision, led by Matt Mullenweg , CEO of Automattic , was justified under point 18 of the Plugin Directory guidelines, allowing WordPress to take control of plugins to ensure user safety and plugin quality. Tweet by WordPress.org : "Invoking point 18 of the plugin directory guidelines, we are introducing Secure Custom ...