Why is the World a-Twitter?

Whether you’re a noobie who likes trying exciting, new technologies or you simply want to talk intelligently at the water cooler, Twitter should be on your radar. So what is it? Twitter is a social networking web site where you can post or follow “micro-blog” messages. It is yet another way to communicate with people you know, people you want to know, news services and more.

People who use Twitter exchange tweets, short messages limited to 140 characters that often are used to answer the question “What are you doing?” Once someone sends a tweet, the message is posted to their public profile (kind of like a blog), sent to their followers and becomes publicly searchable by anyone on Twitter.

How it Works

Anyone can sign up for a free Twitter account. You can easily and frequently send out messages using any internet connection or a mobile phone. Twitter has lots of help pages to get you started.

Start by searching for friends who already use Twitter, and start following their messages. The details they share may reveal a whole new side to their lives. Once you’ve seen what other people are posting, you’ll likely be inspired to write your own posts.

Did someone’s comment ruffle your feathers or get you excited? You have two options for responding. First, you can send an “@reply.” This is basically another public Twitter update that is directed at another poster by identifying them with the @ symbol and their username. For example, if someone with the username “steelerfan” starts badmouthing the Packers, I can write back a message like:

“@steelerfan your team may have won the Super Bowl, but the Packers are still the best football team in history.”

The second option for replying to a Twitter post is to send a direct message. These can only be exchanged between mutual followers-meaning they are following you and you are following them. Direct messages are private, and only the author and recipient see them. If I want to send a direct message to @steelerfan, it would look like this:

“D steelerfan sounds like you r a big football fan. I’ll forgive u4 not liking the Packers if you’d consider joining my fantasy f’ball league”

Note that the D in front of the poster’s username indicates that this will be sent as a direct message and not a public post or reply. If you prefer, there are additional buttons and shortcuts for sending replies and direct messages on the Twitter we site.

Follow the Leaders

With so many people sending so many messages on Twitter, most users narrow the messages they receive on their personal blog page by hand-selecting who they want to follow. In addition to people whom you already know, you may also want to follow people who you find interesting or who tend to write about things that interest you. People may also choose to follow you. Usually someone will follow you if they know you personally or professionally. But, some businesses, media outlets and topical gurus develop a large following based solely on their reputation and respected tweets.

Messages and their Meanings

As the Twitter user-base has grown, so has its usefulness. When it first emerged, much of the public envisioned a bunch of people posting that they’re having PopTarts for breakfast. However, Twitter has become much more that that. Tweets often briefly introduce more extensive discussions or topics and include convenient hyperlinks that you can click for more online reading. And, because anyone can send a public tweet in just a few short seconds, Average Joes everywhere are breaking news and influencing decisions in real time.

Other Uses for Twitter

The uses for Twitter are almost as endless as people’s creativity. Recently there was a contest to see who could write the best Haiku in 140 characters or less. We asked Noobie followers how they like to use Twitter, and here are the tweets we got in return:

Additionally, Twitter is used by:

• Bloggers to announce new posts.
• Event planners who want to announce upcoming events.
• Geographically connected individuals who also meet Twitter friends face-to-face in a tweetup.
• Businesses that want to monitor what people are saying about their brand, product or service.

How Will You Use Twitter?

As you can see, there are endless options for using Twitter. If you’re a noobie, it may take a little while to get used to some of the jargon and navigation. But, if you decide to give it a try, be sure to search for and follow mrnoobie.