Weekly Wrap-up: Google’s Knowledge Graph, SlideShark’s Presentation App and More

Google unveiled the Knowledge Graph. SlideShark makes giving presentations via your iPad easy peasy. Learn more about these stories and many more in the ReadWriteWeb Weekly Wrap-up.

After the jump you’ll find more of this week’s top news stories on some of the key topics that are shaping the Web – Location, App Stores and Real-Time Web – plus highlights from some of our six channels. Read on for more.

Google Goes Back to What It Does Well: Finding Things

Google released the Knowledge Graph this week and Jon Mitchell explains the ins and outs:

In the new Google, with the Knowledge Graph online, a new box will come up. You’ll still get the Google results you’re used to, including the box scores for the team Google thinks you’re looking for, but on the right side, a box called “See results about” will show brief descriptions for the Los Angeles Kings, the Sacramento Kings, and the TV series, Kings. If you need to clarify, click the one you’re looking for, and Google will refine your search query for you.

Learn more about how this will affect your search experience by reading Jon Mitchell’s Google Goes Back to What It Does Well: Finding Things.

Giving iPad PowerPoint Presentations Just Got a Lot Better

If you’ve ever tried to give a presentation with your iPad, you know it’s virtually impossible if you want to use presenter mode. That all changed with the recent release of SlideShark. Get a good look at the app by reading David Strom’s review of the presentation app, SlideShark.

More Top Stories

[Infographic] Taking HTML5 to the Next Level for Mobile

By 2013, there will be more than one billion HTML5-capable browsers in use throughout the world. Applications for those HTML5 browsers will be created by two million HTML Web developers, according to research from IDC. There is no question that HTML5 is going to be a major factor in mobile development during the next five to 10 years. The rise of HTML5 does not mean the death of native applications, but as the standard progresses, many developers will begin to incorporate more HTML5 into their apps than native code. More

Study: Facebook Timeline Improves Fan Engagement For Brands

Facebook posts by brands live longer on Timeline than they did prior to the social network’s massive overhaul, according to a study released Monday.

While the analysis by London-based social media analytics firm Sotrender is limited in scope, covering just 130 brands headquartered in the U.K. and 5,000 posts, it is the first such empirical review since Timeline became mandatory for all Facebook brand pages at the end of March. More

Computer Programming for All: A New Standard of Literacy

Everyone ought to be able to read and write; few people within the global mainstream would argue with that statement. But should everyone be able to program computers? The question is becoming critically important as digital technology plays an ever more central role in daily life. The movement to make code literacy a basic tenet of education is gaining momentum, and its success or failure will have a huge impact on our society. More

What Is the Point of: #Hashtags?

Whenever a new Web trend comes along, there are people who ask, “What is the point of this?” If millions of people are using something, there has to be a reason. In our “What Is the Point of…” series, we’ll explain it to you.

This week, we’re asking, What is the point of #hashtags? More

Staying Off Facebook Won’t Protect Your Privacy

Stay away from social networks and people won’t know who you’re hanging out with or what you’re doing, right? Wrong. When it comes to social networking, a recent study suggests, you can run but you can’t hide. More

A Discreet Guide to Using Mobile Devices in the Loo

Last year, British researchers swabbed 390 cell phones and analyzed what they picked up. Know what they found? One in six phones has poop on it. Four out of five are contaminated by some kind of bacteria. Sure, we all like to make our own calls while answering Mother Nature’s, but that’s just gross. Here’s a surefire way to avoid a crappy user experience on your smartphone or other mobile device. More

How and Why Your Startup Should Go Virtual

Working virtually sounds like heaven to many startups. After all, not having a central office staffed with employees saves money on rent, utilities, parking, etc., freeing you to invest in research, development or marketing.

On the other hand, operating virtually is no panacea. Before you make the virtual leap, you need to figure out exactly what working virtually means to your business. More

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