Definition of Twittering
Twitter is a blogging and social networking tool. Twitter users register an account and post small updates known as "tweets." Users can network by choosing to follow other users. Twitter is used by private individuals, celebrities, commercial enterprises and political or activist groups. As of April 2011, Twitter had 175 million registered users -- though how many of those are actually active remains under some debate. Using Twitter is called "twittering" or "tweeting."
Other People Are Reading
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Tweets
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With a character limit of 140 characters, tweets are much shorter than most blog entries. The purpose of a tweet is not to provide in-depth discussion but to give short bursts of real-time information. Tweets can include links to sites with more data. Hashtags -- short phrases preceded by a hash character -- help users find more tweets on a similar topic. For example, #quote is used to share quotes. The @ symbol is used to address a tweet directly to another user: @johnsmith would draw information to the attention of John Smith.
Re-Tweeting
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Re-tweeting a tweet means forwarding a Tweet to one's followers so that more people will see it. In this way, information can quickly go viral (be spread to large numbers of people) via Twitter.
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Direct Messages and Replies
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Twitter is not just a one-way broadcasting system. You can reply directly to a tweet using the reply function. Direct messages are Twitter's private message system. You can use this to send notes to specific individuals. No one but the intended recipient can read them.
Mobile Blogging
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You can send tweets via your cellphone. Tweets can be sent by text messaging to 40404. For cellphones with Internet access, there's a mobile website: m.twitter.com. Smartphones with full Internet capability can access the standard Twitter site (twitter.com).
Nudge
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Twitter users can prompt other users to update using the Nudge function. If a user has been silent for more than 24 hours, typing "nudge" followed by the person's username will send them a reminder to update.
Twitter Jargon
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The Twitter community has developed its own jargon, nicknamed "twitterese." The world of Twitter and its users is called the Twitosphere. Prominent Twitter users are called the Twitterati, while the rank-and-file are tweeple or tweeps. A twiller is a novel broadcast in twitter form. A tweetup is a small meeting organized via Twitter; a larger meeting is called a Twestival. Good Twitter manners and best practice on are twittiquette. Twam is twitter spam; twishing is phishing via twitter.
Twitter Guidelines
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It's a good idea to update your Twitter feed at least once a day to keep your followers interested. Tweets have to be short by their nature but you should use more than a handful of words so that your readers will understand you. Be polite to other users. Listen as well as broadcasting; reply to your friends' tweets so you add value to a conversation. Avoid tweeting when you're upset -- take a minute to cool down to you don't mistweet (write a post you regret later on).
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References
- Photo Credit Oli Scarff/Getty Images News/Getty Images
