Microsoft Yammer fixes a PDF file viewing issue on devices running Android Nougat with an SD card.

Yammer is Microsoft's social network for enterprises, a platform that lets you collaborate with team members "and stay on top of it all". Microsoft has updated Yammer for Android with a few fixes, no new features this time around.

Microsoft made sure users can view PDF files should their network block the download of such files. They also fixed an issue where users were having trouble viewing PDFs on Yammer on devices running Android Nougat with an SD card. This is no longer an issue and Yammer will now be able to open these PDF files stored on the storage card.

If you use Yammer at work, and if the update has been approved by your system administrator, get it in Google Play Store.

Instagram is testing a 'New Posts' button on Android that gives users control on their feed. New posts will automatically appear at the top.

Hey Instagram, you're not Apple. Take a minute to digest this fact. The other fact you need to take in is that users are always right and no matter how long it takes, in the end, you have no choice but to bend to users' will - which you call feedback. These changes you made will make users happy and that means more money for you.

In an update that is rolling out today, Instagram is giving users more control over their feeds. Instead of having the feed refresh automatically and take you to the top, Instagram is testing a "New Posts" button that lets users choose when to refresh their feed and go to the latest post at the top of the feed. The social network "...hope this makes browsing Instagram much more enjoyable." We hope so too Instagram.

In addition, and based on users feedback, the new version will make new posts appear first in users' feed. Instagram says, "that with changes, your feed will feel more fresh, and you won't miss the moments you care about."

Thanks a bunch Instagram for these most welcome updates. If you're an Instagram user, grab the update in Google Play Store to take back control of your feed.

Twitter introduces "bookmarks", a "read It Later" of sorts.

Twitter announced in a blog post yesterday the introduction of a new feature dubbed "Bookmarks", which will let users save Tweets for later. Say, you came across a Tweet about an interesting article and can't read it right away, simply bookmark it to get back to it later. "Bookmarks" is a sort of 'Read it later' feature, similar to how Pocket app works.

The steps to bookmark a Tweet is made easy with the new share icon under the Tweet. Select "Add Tweet to Bookmarks" and it will appear under the profile icon menu. Twitter says the "bookmarks" are private and can be removed at any time.  The new share icon also lets users share via direct message or to other social platforms, email and messages.

'Bookmarks" are now rolling out globally to any Android, iOS devices as well as Twitter Lite and Twitter mobile website. I have not received the update yet. If you're like me, check Twitter in the Play Store as the update may show up anytime from now.

Instagram releases two new tools: Stories Highlights and Stories Archive for Android.

Instagram has been on an update roll lately and today they are introducing two new tools for their users. The first is Stories Highlights. If you’re a serious Instagram user, you know that Instagram Stories are available for 24 hours only. That changes with today’s update. “Now you can more fully express your identity by grouping stories you’ve shared into highlights and featuring them on your profile.” These highlights will appear in a new section on your profile.

To create new Highlights, tap the “New” circle on the left and you will be able to choose stories from your archive. You will even be able to choose a cover and give it a name. Instagram says that your “highlight will appear as a circle on your profile that plays as a stand-alone story when someone taps it.” As I said above, Instagram has removed the 24 hours limit your highlights appear in your profile. However, you have the option to edit or remove them simply by tapping and holding on them.

Instagram will now also let you automatically save stories to your archive. “From there, you can easily switch between your Posts Archive and your new Stories Archive.” The most recent stories will appear at the bottom and tap on any of them to watch and share as a post or “add it to a highlight on your profile.” Before you worry, only you can see your archived stories and you can turn that off at any time in your profile settings.

Instagram is releasing this update to Android and iOS. Sorry for Windows users, as usual there’s nothing for you. Download and update Instagram for Android in Google Play Store.

Source: Instagram

Yammer for Android will now display two recipients' name when composing messages before showing "+1".

Microsoft acquired Yammer in order to bring a Facebook-like network to businesses. I don’t how this is faring out, but I do know that Microsoft uses it a lot internally. I’m just not sure for how long tough, but Microsoft seems committed to the app.

In the update that was published today, Microsoft is bringing some small changes when composing messages. Yammer used to show the first recipient’s name followed by a “+1” to save space. With today’s update, Yammer will now display the second name as well because Microsoft believes you do not need to save that much space. Now, should you add more than two recipients, then Yammer will revert back to the “+digit” to save space. This new feature also applies to groups.

If you’re a Yammer user, let us know how this feature works for you. The update is available now in Google Play Store for you to download.

Microsoft fixes Yammer crash on devices running Android 8.0 Oreo.

Yammer, Microsoft’s social network for the enterprise, has been updated on Android. The update does not add new features to the app, but includes some fixes that make it compatible with Oreo, the latest iteration of Android. This version of the popular mobile OS is also known as Android 8.0 and was released last month. However, the update is available on Google’s remaining Nexus and current Pixel devices. No other device manufacturers have released the update yet, but some, like Motorola and HTC have already announced the upgrade will be made available for some of their devices without specifying any dates.

That said, Microsoft has published an update for Yammer on Android that will prevent the app from crashing. In other words, Yammer is now Oreo friendly. Microsoft also fixed a crash on Android 5.1 and below version when downloading an attachment.

If you’re a Yammer user, grab the update in Google Play Store.

View Instagram Stories in mobile web browsers.

Instagram Stories lets you "share all the moments of your day, not just the ones you want to keep on your profile." Basically, you're sharing multiple photos and videos in a slideshow format and they will disappear after 24 hours. Up until today, Stories were only visible through the Instagram app on mobile devices. Well no more.

According to Instagram, 250 million users use Stories every day. Instagram will, in the coming weeks, make Stories available to users who use Instagram on the web. Stories is indeed coming to mobile web browsers. Another thing. Stories will be available for viewing only in mobile browsers. But Instagram said in a blog post that users will be able to post Stories from mobile web in coming months.

Until then, point your favorite mobile browser to instagram.com to view Stories when they become available. Otherwise, use Instagram for Android in Google Play Store.

Source: Instagram

Opera Max introduces new mobile data savings feature for Facebook.

Mobile data costs money and, unfortunately, some apps on our phones do not quite play nice when it comes to using data appropriately and Facebook is one of those apps that is a resource hog. Fully aware of that, Opera Max, a data savings tool made by the same company that built the Opera browser, is today introducing a new feature aimed at helping users save data when accessing the social network on their Android device.

In order to take advantage of this new data savings for Facebook, users will have to sign in to Facebook within Opera Max itself, a requirement that may make many uncomfortable with. In the event you're inclined to do so, tap the hamburger menu at the top left of the app or swipe from the left and select "Savings for Facebook", enter your credentials and you're done. The app will use a built-in browser to access Facebook mobile site.  Opera Max will also give you information on the data you saved. For that, tap the three vertical dots at the top right of the screen. This menu also give users control on quality of images, videos and music compression etc. 

If yu are on a limited data plan and a frequent Facebook user, give Opera Max a go. But if you feel uncomfortable signing in to Facebook through a third party app, you may as well use Facebook Lite for Android made by the social network giant.

Download Opera Max in Google Play Store.

Instagram on Android to get offline mode soon.

Instagram will be launching a new feature soon that will allow its users to access their content without an internet connection. Currently, Instagram requires an active data connection to work properly. Without one, the app is just useless. That will change soon as Instagram is set to introduce offline mode for its Android app.

Users will be able to view previously downloaded content in their feeds, leave comments, unfollow people and like friends' post. Instagram will sync any offline activity back to its servers once the user connects to the Internet again. 

Surely such a feature should attract more users in developing countries where data connection can be unreliable in some areas or help users with limited data to access Instagram at any time. Instagram did not announce a release date, but according to a Techcrunch report, "more will come in the following months."

Source: techcrunch

Google announces three useful Google+ new features.

Google+, Google's social network will receive an update next week, four days after Donald Trump's inauguration. This update brings with it some useful features and shows that Google is still serious about Google+ despite failing to attract users the same way its competitors do - Facebook has over 1 billion users while Google+ has about 100 million only, a bunch of zeroes less. Let's see what's in that update:

Hiding low-quality comments - Finally users will be able to have some control on comments on posts, which Google says will let users "focus on the comments that matter most." Users can still click "View more comments" to see them all.

Showing you more of what matters - Google+ has been redesigned to fit more information on the screen and less white space. Google also added zoom functionality to Google+ web.

Bringing back events - The last feature is for Google+ web only which will see the the coming back of Events. Beginning January 24, Google+ web will support the creation and joining of events.  

Will these updates make you use Google+ more?

Source: Google's blog

Instagram on Android will now translate your follower's bios and feed posts.

The last time I blogged about Instagram goes back to October 2015. It's not that I deliberately ignore it, but Instagram rarely publishes a detailed change log when they post an update to the store. Today is one of the rare occasions when they do so. Even f it's a minor update, it is worth mentioning, especially if you have among your followers friends or unknowns that speak foreign languages. 

In my opinion it is a feature you expect to see in any modern apps, but not all apps are equal. Thankfully, and finally Instagram chose to bring some modernity after recently redesigning their app icon. In this update, Instagram added the ability to translate profile bios and feed posts written in different languages. They invite you to "see translation" without giving any details about support languages.

Check out the update in Google Play Store.

Microsoft adds new improved sharing sheet to OneDrive for Android.

No doubt Microsoft is doing an awesome job pursuing their "mobile first" strategy on competing platforms. Take this update to their OneDrive app for Android as an example. The update was published on June 10 and I missed it since it did not show on my Nexus 6 running Android N; but it did on my Nexus 7 (2013) and it is a long awaited update, albeit a simple one.

Before that update, sharing a file on Onedrive was limited to sharing a link, sending file or inviting people to view the file. There was nothing that permitted sharing to the popular social network platforms we're so accustomed to, as shown in the screenshot below.

Thankfully, Microsoft took note of this limitation and updated their OneDrive app on Android to give users more option for sharing stuff. The screenshot below is quite self explanatory. Tapping the sharing icon will bring up the screen below with more options for sharing your file. It is no more limited to just the three options I've highlighted above, and Android users will get to choose among the apps they have installed on their devices plus the tree options I've already mentioned. You can see the difference after the upgrade with the screenshot below.

In the event you missed the update, get it in the Google Play Store for free.

Group post by topic with Google+ Collections.

Google+ is the place I go to for my daily tech news consumption and this is the place people who share my passion hangout too, away from the noisy facebookers crowd. Google+ may not enjoy the popularity Facebook enjoys, but it remains the favorite network for techies. Despite what's been said about it, Google is not pulling the plug on its social network and keeps updating the app for Android devices.

An update appeared on my Nexus 7 yesterday with a much of new features and enhancements. The most notable new feature is Collections which allows "pluses" - had to find a name for Google+ members - to group posts by topic.

The other new features are:

• GIF images now load much faster.
• Updtaed post designs.
• Performance improvements and bug fixes.

Visit Google Play store to download the update or join Google+.

Google+ updated with material refresh animation and new community page design.

Google+ app for Android got an update today that brings more material design to the interface. Members of various communities on Google's social network will notice after the update the page layout has changed and displays the communities' logo and banner more prominently at the top; so big that it takes about half the screen estate. I'm not sure what Google is up to here, but the image is very pixelated. Something I hope they will change in a future update. Given how other Google apps beautifully implemented the material design, I wonder what the Google+ team is thinking. 

As usual, the update also includes some performance improvements and bug fixes.

The update is available for download now in the Play store. Click here if you haven't already downloaded it yet.

Yammer speaks 11 additional languages and does on-the-fly translation.

Yammer, the enterprise social network, was acquired two years ago by Microsoft for $1.2 billion when Steve Ballmer was then the Software giant CEO. "The acquisition of Yammer underscores our commitment to deliver technology that businesses need and people love," said Steve Ballmer. Today Yammer is integrated into SharePoint and Office 365. It is also a multi-platform app.

The Android version of Yammer received an update today that adds 11 languages to it. The available languages are: Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Dutch, French (France), German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian and Spanish. In addition, Yammer also gets the ability to do on-the-fly translation.

Finally, there is the usual bug fixes. I like the wording used to describe the bug fixes which is very unlike the traditional "Bug fixes" we see in every app update. It reads: "Bugs have been terminated. They will not be back." Like :-)

Source: Google Play Store

Circle gets reduce app size and bug fixes.

Circle, the social app that lets you build your local social network by locating friends in your neighborhood or city was updated yesterday with the following:

-- Reduced application size substantially, saving you space and data.
-- Improved LinkedIn connect
-- Fixed bug regarding location fetching
-- Enhanced message notifications
-- Other minor bug fixes

Download: Google Play Store