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Monday, September 17, 2012

The Twits who Tweet on Twitter

Having nothing much to write about, I think I'll ponder the place of Twitter in the universe. Or the Twitterverse, if you prefer.

Well, at least in the modern world's universe here on Earth.

Include Mars... the new rover is tweeting too. @MarsCuriosity - follow if you're interested in exploration of Mars.

First, a word to my followers: thank you! I hope that I send along tweets that are of interest to you, and hopefully of enough interest for you to then forward them to your followers as well. Twitter is a fantastic way to get the word out fast.

The downside, of course, is the brouhaha that can be stirred up by fake tweets, like fake celebrity deaths, for example. These things spread like wildfire and do nothing but fill up timelines with a bunch of baseless stuff that can be quite upsetting to some. Please people, do a little fact checking first; it goes a long way. #learnedthehardway

Side note: For those who don't know what a hashtag is, #learnedthehardway is an example of one. It's more commonly used for things like, oh, #TheWhiteHouse or #nameoffavoriteshow or #lasvegasnews etc. etc. etc. You can search Twitter for specific hashtags, and all tweets about that specific topic/person/what-have-you will come up for you to see. More info can be found at the Twitter Help Center.

Now, for those whom I follow: thank you! Your presence in my life, even if only through your tweets, helps me feel much more connected to the rest of the world. Those who know me know that a) I'm a homebody to begin with, and b) I have an autistic son that has made it necessary (and easier) to be more of a homebody than I used to be. And believe me, that's saying something.

Some of my favorite folks to follow (after immediate family and close friends, of course) are entertainment news folks, and entertainers themselves. I won't list them all here, just check out who I'm following at my pages for @senushemi and @LV_PWilsonFan. I also enjoy a lot of local news and entertainment Twitter accounts. Then there's the paranormal community, and world news, Star Trek people, the autism community, and NASCAR. Every Twitter account I follow is something or someone I'm interested in. I'm sure there's plenty more out there, but I follow too many already.

Which brings me to my next point, for those who follow me but I don't follow you back: Please don't think I'm not interested in you. Sadly, like everyone else, I only have so many hours in a day so I have to keep the timelines somewhere near manageable (or at least close enough I can pretend they're manageable). It does no good for either of us if I end up skimming past your tweets because I simply have too many to read. I could spend all day just reading and commenting on the tweets I get as it is. 

So to all those I wish I could follow but can't, my family thanks you. Otherwise they may not have clean clothes or meals when they really need them, you know? (Not really, but it seems like that some days).

A final thought for those who aren't on Twitter because they think they're too boring to send tweets: hogwash, I say! I know Twitter started out as a "hey, guess what I'm having to eat now" kind of thing, but it has quickly grown into so much more than that. Do you have a favorite charity you'd like to get the word out for? Tweet about it! Is there a particular topic or person you're really interested in? Follow Twitter pages for those topics and people! Got a really cute pic of your pet that you just gotta share? Tweet a link to the pic! Even if all you do is pass along things that interest you (and, therefore, may also be of interest to those who follow you), Twitter is a fantastic tool. Don't be afraid to use it.

Of course, be careful what you tweet; your tweet may potentially be seen by the entire world within minutes, so please double check what you're posting before you click on the "Tweet" button. Used correctly, Twitter is a fantastic medium for fast communications of all types. 

Used incorrectly... well, I think y'all know the answer to that one. #twitterfail




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