TWITTER

Web 2.0 and Twitter
A new way to communicate
Alfredo Ascanio (askain) Email Article Print Article
Published 2008-09-10 06:29 (KST)

People involved in the digital world have many communication tools available with what is called Web 2.0. One service that sends messages with more impact is Twitter.

Jack Dorsey created this micro-blogging service on July 13, 2006. With Twitter, you can send 140-character-long messages to subscribers explaining what you are doing at any given time.

Many organizations (and even politicians such as Barack Obama) use the tool as a means to promote themselves and keep users (or, in the case of Obama, supporters) informed.

It is a powerful way to penetrate the market of users. For example, Obama holds the record at 70,000 for number of Twitter followers.

The service is not yet as popular as e-mail or Skype, but Twitter use can be ingenious. For example, journalism professor Jay Rosen, of the University of New York, uses Twitter to "bounce" ideas about the U.S. presidential campaigns.

Other new uses include writing novels or short stories by delivering what are called Twillers.

Twitter is very easy to use. Once you register at www.twitter.com, you can send messages through your computer or cell phone. You send the message to Twitter's servers, which in turn forward a copy of the message to your subscribers.

My page with my stories is at twitter.com/askain2. Once you are enrolled in the service you can refer to someone by putting the "at" symbol in from of a user's name: for example, @askain2.

You can also send messages on the Hellotxt.com Web site or use programs such as Twitteroo or Twhirl, which serve as intermediaries.

You can use e-mail to re-send messages or comments to Twitter via twittermail.com, or even an instant messaging service such as MSN.

Installing Fringe on your cell phone lets you communicate with Twitter as well as access other services such as MSN and Skype.