Twitter
Twitter is the fastest growing social networking site on the internet today. However, it's amazing that so many people still have
no idea what Twitter is, or what it's all about.
The thing that separates Twitter from other social networking sites such as Facebook and Myspace is that it allows live conversations
with pretty much the world, and it's all done in small chunks of 140 characters or less. It forces the writer to think more concisely
what is to be said, and it makes it easier for those following the writer to understand what's going on.
There are basically two sides to Twitter participation. The first side is as a writer, or producer of content. That content might
be talking to other people; it might be providing links to content either created by you or someone else. Or it just might be
sharing other information, such as favorite quotes, or just the latest thought that's popped into your head. Either way, you're
putting something out for those who decide to follow you to see.
The second side is as a reader, someone who takes in what others have to say and then decides how to respond after the fact. The
reader could decide to just read what's known as the Twitter stream; the reader could decide to attempt to engage the writer in
conversation; the reader could follow links provided or absorb information provided for their own use; or the reader could decide
to share with their own followers the information provided by the original writer, in what's known as a retweet.
These two things are what separate Twitter from everything else. It offers the best opportunities for personal interactions,
sometimes immediately, and in some cases hours later, if you're using some of the voluminous tools that some people use to access
their Twitter accounts. Some people use Twitter to communicate their entire day; some use it to communicate what's going on with
their business. Some have used Twitter to communicate news quicker than news organizations. Some use it for purely marketing efforts.
Twitter is many things to many people, which is why it's growing so fast. Even celebrities are now getting into the mix, as
they're seeing how being on Twitter can help them to not only promote themselves, but protect themselves from false information
getting out on them.
There are many facets of Twitter that are both fascinating and irritating, pretty much like real life. I have to say that I like
Twitter a lot, and have met some fascinating people, including a few famous people and, or course, rich people. That, in and of
itself, is a pretty good deal.
