Facebook email notifications driving you nuts? Here’s how to turn ‘em off

Ever innocently comment on, say, the latest baby picture from one of your Facebook pals, only to be hit with one email after another—all of them notifying you of everyone else who’s ooohing and ahhing? Yep, it gets a little nuts after awhile.

Well, Facebook’s recent redesign of its account settings page makes it a little easier to pinpoint where the torrent of email notifications is coming from—and how to turn off the spigot. Ready for a little peace and quiet?

1. Go to Facebook, click the Account link in the top-right corner of the page, then select Account Settings.

2. If you’ve ever visited Facebook’s Account Settings page, you’ll notice there’s been a little redecorating going on. Instead of a tabbed box of settings, there’s now a series of headings on the left side of the page, while your current settings (such as your displayed name, primary email, and Facebook address) are in the main column. For now, just click the Notifications option in the left column.

3. On the following page, you’ll see a bunch of settings for all the notification options on Facebook—and better yet, a brief rundown of the most recent notifications you’ve received, making it much easier to zero in on the event that’s triggered any annoying Facebook emails.

4. Find the comment, the calendar event, or the “Like” that’s sparked all the notifications? If so, click the nearby email icon to stop the emails cold. Note that by clicking the icon, you’re turning off all email notifications for a given type of event; unfortunately, you can’t stop notifications for, say, the exact “Oh, how cute!” comment you posted on those baby pictures.

5. Want to turn off other Facebook email notifications while you’re at it? Check out the list of settings below your most recent notifications; here, you’ll find settings for everything ranging from alerts when you’re tagged in a photo (a good notification to leave on, perhaps) to a pending purchase on your Facebook “Credits” account (ditto).

Have more questions about your Facebook settings? Let me know!

details refer HERE

Let's read a magazine

A touch to learn and discover with Timbuktu, first iPad magazine for kids

Learning, discovering… touching. There is a huge opportunity in the intersection between tablet computers and education: two young Italian entrepreneurs decided to explore it, launching Timbuktu, first News magazine for children on the iPad. Their mission is creating  editorial programs on touch screen for kids, for educators and parents too. Being next generation of educational publishing, using technologies as an instrument for imagination and discovery of the world.

“By 2015 we will have 40 titles plus the magazine in six languages, addressing also the Asian markets with a Chinese and a Japanese version” said Elena Favilli, journalist who studied at Bologna University and Uc Berkeley, Ceo of Timbuktu Labs and Editor in Chief of Timbuktu magazine, unveiling the opening of the iPad magazine on Japanese market in 2012.

Winner of the 2010 Working Capital Telecom Prize, start up competition sponsored by Telecom Italia,  Timbuktu Labs builds cross-platform reading experiences that bring the most advanced methods of education into the publishing market.

The today market of fifty millions tablets, 10 millions of which owned by people with kids, “Will become five times bigger in five years: this means a potential of 50 millions users”, said Francesca Cavallo, Creative Director and co-founder of Timbuktu, which has today users in more than 50 countries.

Timbuktu were among the finalists in the Start up competition at the Mind The Bridge Venture Camp last week in Milan. Where Favilli and Cavallo made an impressive pitch (some excerpts in the video above).

Stalked Steve Jobs - Christine Comaford

I Stalked Steve Jobs (And How To Get A Meeting With ANY VIP)

I was a young CEO and I needed answers. Steve Jobs had them. There was only one thing to do.
So I sent a FedEx letter.

Then I sent another.

Then I started calling.

Then I sent another FedEx, and called some more. Finally, after 7 FedExs and 12 phone calls, Steve’s assistant said he wanted to talk with me.

“You keep sending FedExs and calling. So let’s end it. What do you want?” Steve said, with his characteristic charm.

“Five minutes of your time. I really admire your accomplishments and as a young CEO I have a few questions no one else can answer.”

“Bring a timer.”

“I will. Oh—and thanks.”

He had already hung up.

My surface agenda was to get 5 minutes of advice, watch how Steve’s mind worked, bask in his brilliance, then have a breakthrough.

My subterranean agenda was to find hope again. It was the early 1990’s and I’d left my engineering post at Microsoft. I was depressed and wanted to know why we weren’t really changing the world as fast and as well as we could. Windows hadn’t deeply changed people, hadn’t deeply helped. Wasn’t technology supposed to do that? All I saw were the limitations of software, hardware, peripherals. I’d left feeling frustrated after years of 12-14 hour days pounding code that refused to become bug free.

Remember those chunky white metal kitchen timers from your childhood? The ones with the dial and the ticka ticka ticka sound and the “bing!” ringer? Two weeks later, timer in hand, I shaked Steve’s hand and set the dial for 5 minutes. We’re at a dark conference table at NeXT. He is slouching at the head of the table, to my right. Ticka ticka ticka.

I won’t bore you with the questions I asked, they were mere prompts to get Steve talking. What I do want you to know is that during this conversation, which was almost 18 years ago, Steve shared his vision of the future.

And it was glorious. He described a world where our computers were so seamlessly integrated into our lives that everything we needed was easily accessible. He described the iPod, iPad, iPhone nearly 2 decades before they hit the market. I watched how his brain moved—without limitation—from what might enhance a customer’s life, to what that would mean to them and how they would benefit, to how this would change the world.

He didn’t question that whatever he envisioned could, and would, be created. He didn’t agonize over whether current limitations would hold him back.

I could feel my brain expanding, it felt so big around Steve, so open and limitless. I was tracking him, following his twists, turns, expansions. I felt so smart around him, and it was glorious and freeing and…
Ticka ticka ticka ding! My five minutes was up. I rose to leave, bowing a little as I backed away.

“I’m not done with you yet. Sit down.”

And zoom! We were back in brain expansion mode immediately, flying into the future, the wind blowing our hair, everything possible, everything important. And we needed to create it. It was our destiny.

Forty five minutes later Steve released me. Sitting in my overheated car in the sunny Redwood City parking lot, my head bursting with the remarkable, complex, complete vision of Steve Jobs in my head, I made a commitment.

I would no longer see barricades. Stumbling blocks would now be seen as stepping stones to something better, or something to crawl over or walk around. Previous limitations would now be a mere triviality, at worst a slight inconvenience. There were insanely great things to create and we were here to create them and that’s all there was to it. All thoughts to the contrary were irrelevant.

10 kitchen tips to keep you slim

Keep healthy foods visible…

A study by researchers at Cornell University found that we are three times more likely to eat the first item we see in the kitchen than the fifth, meaning that keeping healthy food visible could aid your dieting goals. Try to make healthy food options more accessible by ensuring they are as appealing and convenient as possible, as well as making them visible and easy to find. Leave out a colourful fruit bowl, prepare a salad in advance, and put some chopped veggies at the front of your fridge, for example.

… And move ‘bad’ foods out of sight

Just as putting healthy foods in a prominent position can help your diet, it follows that the opposite is also true. While it may be best to avoid buying junk food completely, if you must stock up on the odd treat make sure they are hidden away at the back of cupboards to help prevent cravings. By making these foods a little more difficult to get to (store them behind piles of tins, in high cupboards or in locked drawers – whatever helps), you will also prevent mindless snacking and give yourself some thinking time to decide whether you really want to give in to temptation.

Get some fridge-spiration

To help stay motivated in the face of your cravings, try transforming your fridge from a source of temptation into an inspirational reminder of your progress so far. Consider sticking your favourite photograph of yourself on your fridge for a positive reminder of why you should resist those cravings next time you’re tempted to hit the fridge. Alternatively, stick on a motivational quote or a handwritten note to yourself listing five good reasons not to binge.

Opt for small, blue serving dishes

While many of us think we are eating standard portion sizes, this is in fact not always the case. To help reduce your temptation to overeat, try swapping your plates, bowls, glasses and cutlery for smaller ones, which will help control your serving sizes as well as how quickly you eat. Also, while you are making the switch, think about opting for a blue color scheme for your crockery, as blue is thought to act as an appetite suppressant.

Set aside an eating area

Whether you eat your meals in the kitchen or a separate dining room, it is important to set aside an area with a table where you can sit down and eat. Furthermore, it is important to ensure you actually sit there. Make it a rule never to eat out of packets or standing up and you will find that this drastically reduces your tendency to overeat. The process of putting food on a plate and sitting down to eat it not only reduces the tendency to mindlessly pick at food, it also increases your awareness of what – and how much – you are eating, and may make you think twice about doing it.

Keep your kitchen tidy

If you’re lacking motivation to cook, it may be that your kitchen’s to blame. Cluttered worktops and messy cupboards hardly act as an incentive to start whipping up a gourmet delight so, if you have to clear a path to the oven or forge through piles of half-opened packets of food to get to what you want, it may be time to give your kitchen a makeover. Treat your kitchen as a place for food preparation – rather than a rubbish dump, mailroom or storage space – and you may be more inspired to reach for the wooden spoon rather than a takeaway menu the next time hunger strikes.

Impose a TV ban

If you’re one of the large number of people who prefers to eat their meals in front of a TV or computer screen, then you could be sabotaging your diet without even realizing it. According to research findings published in the British Journal of Nutrition, eating when distracted can cause you to ignore signals from your body that you’ve had enough, leading you to eat more than you normally would. To help cut your calorie intake, make sure you keep distracting items such as the television out of your eating area, and try to keep the two activities separate.

Set kitchen “closing hours”

To help cut the amount of food you are consuming, it is helpful to make the kitchen out-of-bounds once you have finished your evening meal. Move anything you may need during those hours out of the kitchen (and no, this doesn’t include chocolate!), then turn off the light and close the door as a reminder to yourself that the kitchen is now closed. While you will still need to rely on your own willpower to stick to these rules, this should help reduce mindless snacking and trips to the kitchen next time you’re feeling bored.

Spice up your kitchen

Your cupboards and fridge may be packed with healthy items, but how’s your spice rack looking? You might not class it as a kitchen essential, but if you’re looking to cut calories in your meals it can help to keep a well-stocked herb and spice rack. Not only does adding herbs and seasonings to your meals add flavoring to your food without extra calories, but spices such as cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper and ginger can actually help promote weight loss.

Kill your cravings with vanilla

If you struggle to resist sugar cravings following your evening meal, it may be worth investing in a vanilla-scented air freshener or candle for your kitchen. A study at St George’s hospital, south London, found that using vanilla-scented patches on the back of participants’ hands significantly reduced their appetite for sweet foods and drinks.  It is thought that this is due to the smell of vanilla, which is believed to help suppress sweet cravings.

true or false??

Report: Facebook will give users more say over privacy to settle investigation

SAN FRANCISCO – Facebook is nearing a settlement with federal regulators that would require the world’s most popular online hangout to obtain approval from its users before making changes that expose their profiles and activities to a wider audience, according to a report published Thursday.

Citing people familiar with the situation that it did not name, The Wall Street Journal said Facebook has agreed to make the changes to resolve a nearly 2-year-old investigation by the Federal Trade Commission.
Both Facebook and the FTC declined to comment to The Associated Press.

If the settlement is approved by FTC’s commissioners, it would require Facebook to get explicit consent from its 800 million users before changing its privacy settings, according to the Journal.

Seeking a user’s prior consent is known as an “opt in.” Facebook sometimes makes changes that it believes will improve its social network and then leaves it to users to reset the things that they don’t like — a process known as “opting out.” Companies introducing a feature or service generally prefer an “opt out” system because fewer people take the steps required to get out of the changes.

The FTC opened its probe into Facebook after the website made changes that automatically showed users’ names, pictures, hometowns and other personal information available for anyone on the Web to see. That upset people who had deliberately programmed their privacy settings to confine that information to a specific group of friends or family.

As part of its proposed settlement, Facebook would also submit to government reviews of its privacy practices for 20 years, according to the Journal.

The audits are similar to the scrutiny that Internet search leader Google Inc. agreed to undergo earlier this year. That agreement settled an FTC investigation into Google’s handling of people’s personal information in February 2010 when it launched a service called Buzz to counter Facebook. Buzz exposed the email contacts of unwitting users, a breach that the FTC considered to be a deceptive practice.
Google is now in the process of closing Buzz to focus on another social network called Plus that debuted in June.

In an interview with Charlie Rose shown earlier this week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he believes the website’s changes over the past year have given users greater control over their privacy.

“I think we’re going to need to keep on making it easier and easier, but that’s our mission, right?” Zuckerberg told Rose. “I mean, we have to do that because now, if people feel like they don’t have control over how they’re sharing things, then we’re failing them.”

Watch out for the 12 Scams of Christmas this holiday season

The holidays are a time when many of us think about connecting with old friends, traveling to be with family and shopping until we’re blue in the face.
But all the busyness of the holiday season also makes it the perfect time for cybercriminals to prey on their unsuspecting victims online.
To help combat the perils of Christmas criminals, cyber security experts McAfee Inc. has released its annual list of the ‘12 Scams of the Holidays,’ highlighting some of the ways internet users are open to fraudsters and hackers that can take advantage of you.

1. Hotel “wrong transaction” malware emails
2. Mystery shopper scams
3. “I’m away from home” scams

4. Phony Facebook promotions and contests

5. Scareware, or fake antivirus software

6. Malicious content and websites
7. Malicious mobile apps
8. Mac malware

9. Zombie infections

10. Holiday phishing scams

11. Online coupon scams
12. “It” gift scams

What are some of your tips for staying safe online this holiday season, Yahoo! readers?

Person of the Year

I believe that nobody will disagree with Steve Jobs is the “Person of the Year” in 2011. Since he was a great inventor, many great and convenience devices to turn up because of him.


He has managed and leading up the whole Apple ran out of the sinking business, therefore, we glad for Mr. Jobs’ willpower and hard working to hold on straight until the very last moment before he passed away, and even he has well prepared how does Apple going for the next couple of years.

Steve Jobs, he not only changed the world, but “gave us that spirit again that something was possible.”


If chosen, Jobs would be the first person to receive the award posthumously. Does he deserve it?To say that Jobs “‘changed the world’ isn’t hyperbole?”  I can say, “Certainly, he did it!!”  It’s nearly impossible to imagine [the world] without a personal computing!

According to Walter Isaacson’s bio, Jobs thought he would win in 1982 for his work on the Macintosh. Instead, the award went to “the computer” as “‘Machine’ of the Year,” and TIME wrote a negative profile of Jobs that left the tech titan in tears. Now, almost 30 years later, it’s time he finally won.

“Will Steve Jobs be TIME’s next Person of the Year?”

11/11/11: ARE YOU ONE WITH THIS WEEK'S FATEFUL DATE?

WASHINGTON (AFP) - This coming Friday at 49 minutes before noon, people around the globe will experience a numerically auspicious hour and date unlike any other in modern times: 11:11, on 11/11/11.

While millions may marvel at the once-per-century string of ones on their clocks, mobile devices and calendars, to be sure much of humanity will hardly bat an eye.

But many numerologists, metaphysicists, psychics and their followers, occultists and conspiracy theorists will be watching for signs of some broad humanistic awakening, a harmonic convergence, even a portal opening into a new dimension, as some experts predict a major "shift in consciousness."

Thousands will gather for 11/11/11 ceremonies, trance dances or day-in-the-life video projects around the world, and several Facebook pages marking the date have popped up.

A Spanish charity for the blind named ONCE (Eleven) is holding a special lottery with 11 one-million-euro prizes and a super jackpot worth 11 million euros.

From Israeli-born psychic Uri Geller to "visionary" author and 11-11 expert Solara -- and even fans of the movie "This Is Spinal Tap," for whom the number 11 holds cherished meaning -- many are hailing the synchronicity of the date.

"It's certainly significant to have a triple master number" on the calendar, Solara, who goes by one name, told AFP.

"I envision a big shift in consciousness on the planet, and it's coming to a point with this date."

Solara lives in Peru, and while she is keeping her 11/11 plans secret, she says groups in more than 50 countries will mark the auspicious moment.

At 1111 GMT they will "join together and sit as silent watchers who oversee worlds within worlds," and whose perspective will "strengthen the resonance of trueness just by their presence," she said.

For numerologists, Freemasons and occult groups, 11 holds special resonance.

Some say it has psychic properties or represents a channel to the subconscious, while others stress its inborn duality, a reflection of the good-and-evil paradigm that Solara believes has been present since the dawn of humanity.

The Internet is humming with bloggers who insist the mystical 11 pops up with alarming regularity in schemes such as 9/11. Not only did the terror attacks occur on September 11, they note, but the twin towers resembled an 11, and the first plane to strike the World Trade Center was Flight 11.

Others cite the prophecy of Saint Malachy, who in the 11th century predicted there would be 112 popes before a biblical apocalypse. The current pontiff, Benedict XVI, is the 111th pope.

Historically the date carries weight. The World War I armistice was signed on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.

"There's an interesting synchronicity in how many things in this reality align with the number 11," said Ellie Crystal, an author, psychic, blogger and metaphysical explorer.

There was an 11/11/11 100 years ago, of course, "but human consciousness was not in the same place it is today," she told AFP.

Americans and others began focusing on 11:11 over the last several decades, with the advent of the digital clock.

"They'd see 11:11 and say 'hmm,' then they'd go about their business," Crystal said. "And the next day they'd see it again. It makes people wonder, what is this whole thing about?"

It's about pseudo-scientific bunk, an example of "confirmation bias" in which people spot hits but conveniently forget misses, insisted John Hoopes, a University of Kansas professor who specializes in knocking down such theories and uses dates like 11/11/11 to teach critical thinking.

Some people use numerology "to try and understand the world, but it has about as much scientific significance as the lyrics to 'The Age of Aquarius,'" Hoopes said.

Yet Crystal and others see 11:11 as a pre-encoded trigger, an "awakening code" that could elevate consciousness.

She said some are even convinced a physical portal will open on Friday, transporting believers across a bridge from the duality of this world into a new oneness.

"A portal will not open," Crystal asserted bluntly. And, barring a horror film named "11-11-11" coming out on November 10, there will be "no doomsday, nothing apocalyptic."

That could occur 13 months later, she quipped, citing a myth that the world will end along with the Mayan calendar on December 21, 2012.

But with a Christian radio broadcaster mistakenly predicting that the rapture would occur May 21, 2001, then on October 21, some are seeing a chance to inject humor into what will in all likelihood be just another day.

The Nigel Tufnel Day Appreciation Society has been petitioning to have November 11, 2011 christened Nigel Tufnel Day, to honor the guitarist in the classic "Spinal Tap" mockumentary who shows how his amplifiers "go to 11."

So just what will happen on Friday? Those whose brains are wired for 11:11 will notice a realignment, Crystal said.

"If you don't feel it, no biggie."

International Men’s Day

Take care of the world, it is your home!

The sea is stained in red and it is not because of the climate effects of nature. It's because of the cruelty of the human beings (civilised human) who kill hundreds of the famous and intelligent Calderon dolphins.

This happens every year in Feroe Island. In this slaughter the main participants are young teens.  WHY?   A celebration, to show that they are adults and mature!  In this big celebration, nothing is missing for the fun. Everyone is participating in one way or the other, killing or looking at the cruelty supporting like a spectator.

Is it necessary to mention that the dolphin Calderon, like all the other species of dolphins, its near extinction and they get near men to play and interact. In a way of PURE friendship.

They don't die instantly; they are cut 1, 2 or 3 times with thick hooks. And at that time the dolphins produce a grim cry like that of a newborn child.

But he suffers and there's no compassion while this magnificent creature slowly dies in its own blood

Its enough!!!

We forward this until it goes around the world that many more people will know about this shameful act.

4 Rules For Healthier Pasta

Cheesy, creamy pasta is the ultimate indulgence, but it’s usually loaded with refined carbs and artery-damaging saturated fat. To the rescue: our good-for-you versions of home-cooked classics, which knock the nutritional socks off traditional recipes. Follow our makeovers to cook a pasta meal you’ll feel great about.

1. Be smart about cheese
Use reduced-fat cheeses in place of full-fat versions. Also, opt for lighter varieties whenever possible: for example, switching from low-fat ricotta to low-fat cottage cheese saves 377 kJ (90 cal) and 8.5 g of fat per half-cup while still maintaining creaminess and satisfaction.

2. Make vegetables the star
Yes, tomato sauce counts (one half-cup equals one serving of vegetables). But why stop there? Try adding at least two other nutrient-rich vegies to every dish. You’ll bolster the flavour and the bulk—and enjoy a bigger serving size for very few extra kilojoules.

3. Go for wholemeal pasta
Switching from regular pasta to 100% wholemeal pasta can more than double the hunger-busting fibre per serving. A few popular pasta brands have 100% wholemeal versions, so keep an eye out for your favourites at the supermarket.

4. Choose at least 90%-lean meat
That includes poultry—make sure it’s ground from strictly breast meat. Adding more vegies can also help you cut back on meat in some dishes.

Tomato plants produce unique antioxidant

London: A new natural antioxidant synthesised by tomato plants is 14 times as potent as resveratrol, the wonder compound and antioxidant in red wine, which delays ageing.

Antioxidants have beneficial health properties, such as helping to prevent coronary heart disease and cancer. Therefore, the compound could have major applications in the pharmaceutical industry.

Researchers from the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP) in Spain have identified the compound, which was completely unknown until now, reports the journal Environmental and Experimental Botany.

IBMCP researchers point out that the antioxidant is also 4.5 times more potent than vitamin E and 10 times more potent than vitamin C.

"Many phenolic compounds are produced by plants in response to biotic or abiotic stress. These compounds have multiple effects, including antioxidant activity," IBMCP director Vicente Conejero said.

Biotic stress occurs as a result of damage done to plants by other living organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, beneficial and harmful insects or experimentally, according to an IBMCP statement.

This substance could have multiple applications. For example, in the food industry it could be used as a preservative in food for human consumption.

In the cosmetic industry it could be used in products for skin care, given its possible properties related to the prevention of ageing.

This powerful antioxidant would prevent changes such as fats and oils becoming rancid, which diminishes food quality extremely. It could also be used as a supplement to functional products.