And I really mean everybody. Every blog has an opinion on Twitter. Except – most people who don’t care about “web2.0″ don’t even know what it is. So, in case you’re not as web-crazy as I am, here’s the nutshell version: it is a way for you to announce to your friends what you’re currently up to. The first I’ve ever seen a this suggested for the web was a post by Merlin Mann where he talks about the idea of personal status pages .
The Twitter folk took it a step further. They allow you to subscribe to the status pages of a number of your friends, and you can choose when and where to get those messages. If you always need to know where your friends are, you can even get it as text messages on your cell phone. Basically, it’s instant messaging in a group, over instant messaging, the web, and your cell phone.
And it has started really taking off as of late. Or, as the Many2Many blog calls it, it “tipped the tuna”.
There are people who think it’s the best thing since sliced bread – Robert Scoble and Don MacAskill, for example. There are also quite a few people who think this is simply Web-2.0 junk and predict its imminent implosion. Finally, there are people like Dave Winer who are skeptical about Twitter, but are willing to give it a try. (Of course, he turns it into another River-Of-News channel – what else did you expect?). That’s the camp I find myself in.
I couldn’t immediately see it as tremendously useful, but given the amount of people who are simply in love with it, it is probably more than just a fad. There’s something they’re doing right. After all, Dodgeball is pretty much the same idea (plus location information) but it never took off quite the same way.
After trying it for a week (using the amazing Twitterific as the Mac side of the equation), I must say that it has grown on me. It’s inspiring to see what others are working on – it’s almost like being plugged into one giant consciousness. (How’s that for new-agey!?)
So, in case you were wondering what I’m up to (or if I’m adding your most urgent wish to iCalFix), you can follow me at http://twitter.com/groby. And if you have any twitter links that you think I should follow, I’d love to hear from you!
(Oh, and if you want some “out-there” applications for it – read about home automation with Twitter….)