I don't really get it. I keep hearing about "twittering" lately, and honestly I don't see how this is any different from anything already available. It's apparently putting up messages, but isn't that what "blogging" is? What's the difference? Apparently it has a character limit. Is that such a hard thing to impose on one's self? So these people are all logging into some twitter site on their cell phones and slowly typing in small messages every 5 minutes. That's fine I guess if they can stand the tedium, but I fail to see how it's any different than doing the same thing with a message board or "blog" or even instant messanger.
It's kind of a way to keep track of what a network of people are up to. A lot of people use it for their friends, but even more use it for professional networks. I have a few computer science teachers and professional contacts who I can keep tabs on and if they are doing something cool that I might want to use I can get in touch with them. The character limit is to make sure it doesn't become a blog. You are just suppose to put quick updates on your activity.
In one or two months it will be porn and 14 year olds.
DMiller Wrote:It's kind of a way to keep track of what a network of people are up to. A lot of people use it for their friends, but even more use it for professional networks. I have a few computer science teachers and professional contacts who I can keep tabs on and if they are doing something cool that I might want to use I can get in touch with them. The character limit is to make sure it doesn't become a blog. You are just suppose to put quick updates on your activity.
Most of the time though, it's just a way for egotistical people to pretend that other people care about them. :)
See -- the recent Doonesbury series with Roland Hedley and his twittering... hilarious stuff...
My question is really what makes it different than just using any of a million other already existing technologies? You say it's about updates, but heck doesn't a "blog" do that?
I guess what I'm asking is what is the technological or operative difference between this and any other method of keeping in touch? What does a twitter DO?
But is that ALL it is? Is it just a blog but with limitations? Is there anything else about it? Anything at all?
That is it. Like I said, though, it's pretty good for building a professional network. A friend of mine at Microsoft who I followed on Twitter got into a discussion with one of his other friends on Twitter about AP Computer Science and I started following the friend since he had a lot of good tips about CS and was trying to build his own network of teachers using technology. It's much more of a network than a blog.
But how is it a network any more than a blog is?
I just don't see that. It's exactly the same as a blog from what you've described, no functional difference except for the imposed length limit (which can easily be self-imposed, so I don't see the point there either).
It's Tendo City minus having to actually sign up.
Dark Jaguar Wrote:But how is it a network any more than a blog is?
I just don't see that. It's exactly the same as a blog from what you've described, no functional difference except for the imposed length limit (which can easily be self-imposed, so I don't see the point there either).
It's the connections you make with people. A blog is much more of a one-way conversation, although there usually is a comment system. Twitter is making short comments about what you are working on that others can respond to, and you can respond to the comments of others.