One of the many things I like about Twitter is that it's constantly dynamic, and so there is a running commentary always happening (and especially in the midst of a newsy day like this one). A lot of the Twitterers that I follow are also bloggers that I have on my blog roll — exceptionally bright, witty, and insightful folks that I feel I've come to really know over the years.
I grabbed a few samples of some of today's Tweets that made me laugh out loud:
It's addicting, I have to tell you! I have Twitter up on a tab at work, and while I don't all that often contribute Tweets at work (because I get busy with my worky stuff), I do now and then check out the "chatter" and see what's up. (And sometimes I'll throw something out there — you only have 140 characters to say something and as a fast keyboarder/typist, it just takes me a few seconds). Like Karen from Verbatim explained, it's sort of like having quick water-cooler sessions on your desk top.
I'd be the first to say that Twitter is not for everyone. In fact, when somebody says, "I just don't get the appeal," I can totally understand where they're coming from. Some of us just have a need to "throw something out there", and we get a kick out of what others might be doing at a given moment, or reading what they are peering at through their window. Explaining Twitter makes it sound rather dumb. I can't defend it. You are either a Twitterer, or you are not. I'm sure there are also many many people who cannot fathom the appeal of blogging. (Maybe it's a DNA thing).
If you are interested in checking it out for the purpose of reaching out and meeting like-minded people (or people in your profession), I recommend these little pointers:
- Complete the bio, and use keywords that others can search to find you, i.e., teacher, lover of dachshunds, book-lover, etc.
- It's not made especially clear, but you can search keywords from others' bios by typing them in under the "Find People" and then "Search" tab. (I've never gone the "search by email" route).
- In that same tab, you can also search by a person's name. It's recommended that you use your real name so people can find you (if you want to be found).
- I think it's best to not follow a whole slew of people. It can get really overwhelming, and keeping it to people who matter or who really interest you makes viewing Tweets manageable and more enjoyable (and reduces the chances of missing a really good Tweet!)
- P.S. A "Tweet" is that up-to-140-character message you send/receive.
- You can either block people who follow you (there for a while I was getting a lot of Twitter-Spammers—the ratio of followers to followees is telling), or just choose to not follow them back.
- Use Direct Message to send a private Tweet to a specific person (kind of like ICQ or other message services).
- There are many free applications that work with Twitter that make it even more fun to use. My favorites are these:
- Snurl — With only 140 characters allowed in a Tweet, providing a URL to link people to something noteworthy takes up a lot of space, so Snurl "snips" it so you can paste it in your Tweet. Someday they'll probably allow us to make a link like we do in blogs, but for now this works well. There is also TinyURL which is also popular, but I haven't used this one much.
- Twhirl — Always-on-top desktop application so you can Twitter while in other applications (I use this all the time and love it!)
- Twitpic — You upload a photo, add a caption or message and it automatically becomes a Tweet with a URL to your photo that others can view.
- IsTwitterDown — If you're having troubles with Twitter, it very simply lets you know the status of the site.
Others include TwitterSnooze (allows you to temporarily "turn off" somebody who is being too verbose—I haven't used this one); Search Twitter — used to be called "Summarize", now Twitter has taken this over. Another way of finding people by keywords, etc.
You'll notice that I didn't include any information or links to applications regarding remote device Twittering (IPhone, etc.) because I'm not familiar with this. Eventually I may, but I'm around a computer all the time so I don't feel the need (plus my phone service charges for text messaging). I know this is a HUGE part of Twitter, and you can find a truckload of information on those internets! (Also in the Twitter FAQs).
On my blog's right sidebar (near the top) you'll see my current Twitter Updates, and you can click on "Follow me on Twitter" and it'll take you to my Twitter page and profile.
