Emerging Technologies Consulting

I first started using Twitter in early 2007.  When I signed up and collected a grand total of 7 friends, I thought what’s the point of this?  I’m pretty sure I actually said, “I don’t get it.”  Which is what a lot of people say about Twitter and other social media tools.  I finally got it in May 2007, when I atteneded Faculty Academy at the University of Mary Washington.  There, I collected more friends, friends who were at the conference.  We were able to have a conversation via Twitter about the presentations at the conference.  Sometimes people shared links.  Sometimes they asked questions.  Essentially, we were able to make the conference our own, and, I would argue, get more out of it, by actively participating and engaging with the content, rather than sitting and staring blankly at a panel of presenters.

2 years later, I can’t imagine life without Twitter.  I’m following over 200 people and over 300 people follow me.  Most of the people in my Twitter list are people that I have met in person.  I seem to collect new Facebook and Twitter friends every time I attend a conference.  But I’m glad.  I like having a variety of people in my list who provide a variety of perspectives on issues in my field.  I follow a lot of educational experts, including technologists, professors, and even students.  I also follow social media experts and I have a collection of friends who are in a variety of professions.  The thoughts and links I get from these people are almost always interesting and there have been many times during the day when a small group of us might be reading an article “together” and commenting on it.  It’s a little like water-cooler talk, but also a little more than that.  Besides having these kinds of conversations, I’ve sent out many a question via Twitter that gets answered much faster than if I’d sent out email.  The other day, for example, I wanted to know what other virtual worlds were out there besides Second Life and got 5 or so recommendations within 10 minutes.  Since I work alone at home rather than in an office filled with people, I also like Twitter for making me feel like I am in an office filled with people.  Just like in an office, sometimes I send out Tweets (what the messages sent via Twitter are called) saying that I’m tired or need coffee or a snack or that I’m frustrated with the web site I’m working on.  Or sometimes I talk about the great episode of The Daily Show I saw or how I just finished reading The Watchmen.  It is, as some people have called it, ambient intimacy.  It’s a way of maintaining connections to people you’ve met in a way similar to what you would do in real life.

So, how does Twitter work?  How do you use it?  There are plenty of articles out there that explain how Twitter works and what it can be used for.  David Pogue has a good one on using Twitter for whatever works for you (I think that’s a good philosophy for any technology).   Social Computing Magazine explains some ways for non-profits to use Twitter.  If you’re just getting started, the video below by Common Craft, a company that creates great videos to explain different kinds of technology, is a good beginner’s guide.

I don’t know how long Twitter will last, but I suspect it’ll be around for a while since so many people find it useful.  If you want to follow me via Twitter, I can be found at ETechConsulting or lblanken.