Ok, so it seems a bit weird to blog about Twitter, and indeed to twitter about blogging… but I thought I’d mention it since I’ve been giving Twitter a go. I’m not too sure about it still, but I benefit (?) from the fact that I work around a bunch of geeks, so several friends and colleagues use Twitter and it gives me a little two way interaction.
So for those that have no idea what I’m talking about so far…. Twitter is referred to as micro-blogging. If you consider blogging as a bit like making diary entries, that you choose to make public (as I do) Then micro-blogging is writing small one-liner diary entries to comment on the random things you’re doing right now. Nothing you want to write anything about as such, just an entry that over time builds a picture you can look back on to remember what you have been up to. And of course the point is that it is also public. So if people care they can read these updates.
So basically there is only really much value if you are mostly in a position to get on line. Obviously if you can’t ‘tweet’ every time something occurs to you then you probably won’t get into the habit. Obviously me being a complete geek, I have a Nokia 770 which I carry with me all the time. This runs some software called Mauku, and whenever I’m at home I have it running and can easily reach to update or read updates.
At work, I can’t get connected because of some defects I have with EAP connectivity https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3655
https://bugs.maemo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3656
However my Nokia E61 phone (yes I’m a Nokia fanboy) does support connecting at work, so on that I run an application called ‘Twibble’
And so In my two main locations I can stay connected, so this adds a little to the value. Though the next stage is to figure out a sensible dataplan that would mean I could also update from wherever I happen to be, without it costing me a fortune.
So that’s a bit of the how… but as for why – I guess that’s a question of personal taste. I find it fairly interesting to follow the updates of friends and colleagues, sometimes people say things that spark ideas, or point you to things of interest.
Just today someone that has followed my recent twitters asked about me possibly taking a woodturning commission, so I guess it has served a purpose in terms of making connections I might not otherwise of made.
Right now I’m off to check out www.vobes.com, I have no idea what it is, other than that someone I follow has twittered that they are watching and listening and ‘enjoying it thoroughly’….