StartupSearch

Welcome to the September 4 edition of the Startup Search Weekly Web Wrap-up. Each week we summarize news and announcements affecting the web technology ecosystem. In this week's issue: Facebook measures user engagement, Digg redesigns for rich media, YourMinis get a new coat of Flash, and Twitter takes a walk around the block.

Facebook alters application rankings

Social networking site Facebook introduced a new ranking system on Wednesday for application listed in the Facebook Platform directory. Facebook shifted its focus away from the total number of unique users per application and will now focus on total user engagement. A Facebook user's engagement is measured by total application page views, link activity when integrated with Facebook features, form submissions, and Flash actions.

Digg revamps its homepage

Social news site Digg rolled out new changes to its homepage on Thursday. The new Digg.com highlights videos submitted by its members by adding on-site viewing, thumbnails, and playback features. This visual refresh also paves the way for the release of Digg Images expected next month.

YourMinis upgrades widget API

Goowy Media launched a major update to its YourMinis widget API over the weekend. YourMinis widgets are now programmable through ActionScript 3.0 libraries, the foundation of Adobe Flash Player 9 and the new Flash platform. YourMinis widgets utilizing this new API will notice faster load times, access to more data types, and new event connectors.

Twitter visualizes your neighborhood

Micro-blogging site Twitter released a new visualization tool on Friday. Twitter Blocks displays your friends' Twitter updates in a three-dimensional Flash interface. Blocks is is just one of the new tools Twitter has introduced to help its members better grasp the mountains of data created in their networks every day.