LOL is so old hat, Privacy Badger fights back, This Is My Jam archived, proof that typewriters suck, Yahoo advertises once more, and Tesla develops kinky robot charger.

LOL Loses Out to Haha

If you still use LOL in written forms of communication to signify you have made a funny, then you belong to a very small minority of people. That's because these days most people (51.4%) use "haha,"hahahaha," or "haahhaa". Even "hehe" is more popular than LOL, as it's favored by 13.1% of posters.

This is at least according to Facebook, which, in its infinite wisdom, decided to conduct some research into "The Not-So-Universal Language of Laughter". It's no surprise to learn that the laughing emoji came second to "haha" and its variants (with 33.7%), but the relative unpopularity of LOL IS a surprising insight.

According to Facebook, just 1.9% of the people who either made or reacted to a funny on the social networking site over the course of one week in May used LOL. I must admit I still use LOL, as it was the stock response in the early days of the Web. But then just as real languages evolve over time, it seems the language of the Internet is also evolving. ROFLMFAO.

The EFF Releases Privacy Badger

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has released a new browser extension/add-on which promises to prevent you from being tracked across the Web. The tool is comically named Privacy Badger, but its raison d'être is no joke.

Privacy Badger "blocks some of the sneakiest trackers that try to spy on your Web browsing habits". Working silently in the background, it blocks trackers following you around the Web without your permission. This should stop your browsing history being shared with third-parties, which should in turn stop you being bombarded with targeted advertising.

Privacy Badger, which has been in testing for over a year, is now available to all. It's currently compatible with Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox, with the EFF promising to add more browsers to the list soon.

This Is My Jam No More

This Is My Jam is shutting down, but unlike so many other online entities, its creators are doing all they can to keep the legion of users happy. The song-sharing service will soon be no more, at least "in its current form". However, the site is being archived to allow people to continue accessing all the songs that have been shared over the years.

When it launched in 2011, This Is My Jam was an essential tool, allowing you to quickly and easily share your favorite song of the moment with friends and strangers. However, with the increasing popularity of music streaming services, this is no longer the killer feature it once was. You can still post until September, so why not give the site a try before it goes read-only.

A Reminder That Typewriters Suck

Typewriters were once the most efficient method we had for writing formal documents. But now, thanks to word processors, they're no longer necessary. Not only that, but typewriters suck. At least compared to what we're now all used to. As Engadget recently discovered.

OverType is an online typewriter simulator that demonstrates just how annoying typewriters are to use. As made by Ben Wheeler, OverType simulates the annoying aspects of typewriters, with keys jamming and letters skipping. And worst of all? You can't simply click the delete key to erase all of your mistakes.

Yahoo Reclaims Famous Billboard Ad

Yahoo has reclaimed the iconic billboard in San Francisco it dumped in 2011. For 12 years, from 1999 to 2011, Yahoo advertised on this one billboard above Interstate 80, and it became something of a landmark for local residents and tourists alike. However, in the midst of its cost-cutting efforts, Yahoo fled the scene.

Now, as noted by VentureBeat, it's back, retaking its rightful place on that billboard. No one knows how long Yahoo will keep paying for the space, but this is just the start of an extensive advertising campaign to remind people it's still relevant.

Tesla's Robot Charger Gets It On

And finally, while you have probably already seen the video of Tesla's new robot charger prototype in action, you may not have seen this glorious remix. It only does one thing -- add Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" over the top -- but it changes an innocent video into something rather seedier.

This could be considered NSFW, but then it's only showing a robot charger plugging itself into a car. If you're old enough to understand what is being alluded to, then you're surely mature enough to explain to your boss what's actually happening. [H/T Geekologie]

Your Views on Today’s Tech News

How do you express amusement in written communications? Will you be installing Privacy Badger? Are you sorry to see This Is My Jam being archived? Do you love or hate old typewriters? Is Yahoo still relevant?

Let us know your thoughts on the Tech News of the day by posting to the comments section below. Because a healthy discussion is always welcome.

Image Credits: Chris Schrier via Flickr