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Facebook just changed its logo so slightly, you probably didn’t even notice

You know what's really cool? A slightly rounder lowercase "a."
Facebook quietly began updating its logo across its various properties this week, but the tweaks are so minor that many users likely did not notice. The new logo still combines the classic Facebook blue background with white lowercase lettering. The difference: Now the font is a little thinner and the "a" got a face lift.
For those font buffs trying to keep track: the old Facebook logo used the Klavika typeface; the new logo is a "custom typeface," according to the company.
See also: 40 Hidden Messages in Famous Brand Logos
"Now that we are established, we set out to modernize the logo to make it feel more friendly and approachable," Josh Higgins, Facebook's creative director, said in a statement provided to Mashable. "While we explored many directions, ultimately we decided that we only needed an update, and not a full redesign." Read more…More about Facebook, Branding, and Business

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Venture capitalists enter the space race with funding for satellites

Space Race 2.0 is heating up, with new satellite firms attracting venture capital to develop satellites that will contribute data to serve the needs of weather, climate, maritime and other customers that are constantly hungry for information
Yet it's often difficult to determine whether a new satellite firm is truly promising, or if it is likely to under-deliver
Each company tends to make big promises: democratizing access to space-based imagery, weather data and other valuable information by launching large fleets of small, relatively cheap spacecraft, known as cubesats.
See also: The life and death of Ikonos, a pioneering commercial satellite Read more…More about Weather, Business, Satellite, Startups, and Us World

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What is it really like to work as a game developer?

This question originally appeared on Quora.
Game developers, what is getting into the gaming industry really like? I ask this because this is one of the fields (computer science) I'm seriously thinking about. Is it really as cutthroat as I've heard? How is the pay? What is the indie scene like, and how is it different from the AAA scene? Is going to a CC for a game development degree a good thing? How are the hours, etc.?
Answer below by Quora user David Mullich, video game designer, producer and instructor.
The video game industry is currently growing at a healthy rate that is four times faster than the growth of the overall U.S. economy. However, there is a lot of chaos associated with this growth as publishers try to figure out appropriate business models that work with free-to-play and [the trend of] games becoming more of a service that you regularly purchase online rather than a product you purchase at a store. Read more…More about Gaming, Game Developers, Quora, Job Search Series, and Business

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Is Greece doomed? These are the 3 questions everyone is asking

Greece is in the ugliest situation imaginable: dead broke, humiliated in front of its European partners, destined to make spending cuts that leaders are convinced have already destroyed the country
Greece has already missed a payment to the International Monetary Fund and is seriously in danger of missing other payments on its debts. In August, banks and hedge funds will come knocking on Greece's door for their debt. If Greece can't pay them, it will create financial panic across Europe
It's easy to see the case for doom, but it's not time to throw in the towel yet. Greece could still negotiate its way out of its problems. First, however, it will have to answer three major questions Read more…More about Business and Greek Crisis

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Macy’s follows NBC’s lead and severs ties with Donald Trump

Another business relationship bites the dust.
Just days after NBC dropped Donald Trump over his controversial remarks about immigration, Macy’s announced on Wednesday that it will begin phasing out Trump's menswear products, which have been sold exclusively at the retailer since 2004.
See also: The reactions to Donald Trump's outrageous 2016 speech are absolutely golden
Macy's "discontinued" its business relationship with Trump because his comments were "inconsistent with Macy's values," a company spokesperson told Mashable on Wednesday. "Macy’s is a company that stands for diversity and inclusion. We have no tolerance for discrimination in any form. We welcome all customers, and respect for the dignity of all people is a cornerstone of our culture. We are disappointed and distressed by recent remarks about immigrants from Mexico." Read more…More about Nbc, Macys, Donald Trump, Business, and Politics

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So, what happens next for Greece?

The situation in Greece might seem very complex, but it's actually pretty simple: Greece owes a lot of money that it doesn't have, and it is being pressured to agree to terms it doesn't like in order to get the money it needs. It's not unlike your parents requiring you to clean your room in order to get your allowance
For years now, Greece has been forced to undergo severe cuts to its budgets and programs — commonly known as austerity — in return for money to help pay down its debts. Austerity hasn't worked, economists agree, and so do the current leaders of Greece, who believe that spending cuts have fueled a 27% unemployment rate and hammered Greece's economy Read more…More about Business and Greek Crisis

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Facebook video ads are coming — so look out, YouTube

Video ads on Facebook are right around the corner.
Facebook will be giving video publishers an extra push to publish video directly onto its platform as it shores up its massive video platform, it announced on Wednesday.
See also: Think Facebook is a media powerhouse? Just wait til its video player takes over
The social network is starting to run ads between videos for a small group of publishers including Fox Sports, the NBA and Funny or Die. Those companies will receive 55% share of ad revenues that run against their videos — the same split offered by YouTube
Facebook has been testing the model on a limited number of iOS users over the past few weeks and plans to widen the trial in coming months, adding in Android and desktop users as well, according to a release. Read more…More about Youtube, Facebook, Online Video, Business, and Advertising

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Size matters: Why it’s better for startups to be David than Goliath

This article is part of DBA, a series on Mashable about running a business that features insights from leaders in entrepreneurship, venture capital and management.
In the classic story of David and Goliath, David wins the battle through the use of clever tactics; he uses a sling to knock Goliath to the ground and then slays him. Likewise, today's small and nimble companies are the Davids of the world and should keep his strategy in mind. It's not about company size or budget. It's about what you do, and how you do it.
Startups often aim to overpower the juggernauts of their industry, yet many fall into a trap of one-upping their competition and focusing on features instead of understanding what their customers want and need. The behavioral economist Dan Ariely nailed it when he said that in order to make customers' lives better, you have to understand their needs and problems. Read more…More about Startup, Small Business, Dba, Customer Satisfaction, and Business

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PayPal buys international money transfer company Xoom for $890 million

PayPal is ready to make some new friends
PayPal has reached an agreement to buy money transfer company Xoom for $890 million, a move that brings millions of international customers to the company.
Xoom bills itself as "an international money transfer service" that allows people to send money across borders. Xoom said it served 1.3 million customers in the first quarter of 2015, bringing in $44.4 million in revenue
See also: Facebook Messenger payments is now nationwide
Xoom recently expanded into China and Pakistan, and is popular in a variety of developing markets — an advantage that PayPal President Dan Schulman highlighted. Read more…More about Paypal, Xoom, and Business

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Uber expands in India, making it the second largest market after the U.S.

Uber is going after Indian customers in a big way, announcing Thursday it would be expanding its service to seven new cities on the subcontinent, despite regulatory bumps along the way.
The move makes India Uber's second largest market after the U.S in terms of cities served.
See also: Uber now offers auto rickshaw service in India
Rolling out in the cities of Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, Indore, Mysore, Nagpur, Surat and Visakhapatnam, Uber now serves 18 Indian cities. The company also announced its president of Uber India in late May, Amit Jain.
"The rapid 40% [month on month] growth we continue to see in India is unprecedented and it is not surprising that some of the fastest growing cities in the world are also here," Neeraj Singhal, Uber's Head of Expansion for India, said in a statement emailed to Mashable. "Our data already shows that residents and visitors in each of these new cities have been eagerly waiting for Uber for sometime now and we expect to see a similar response here." Read more…More about India, Uber, Business, Startups, and Apps Software

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