Hello, My Name is Matt and I’m a Twitterholic…

Lately, I’ve been wrapped up in a new web phenomenon known as Twitter. Twitter is a micro-blogging site that allows users to send updates, or ‘tweets’, to their personalized page for others to follow via web, text message, or third-party app. The beauty of the service is that it limits users to 140 characters, forcing one to condense their thoughts into bite-size posts of information. The service has only been around for a year, but has gained enough momentum to secure a rumored $15-$20 million in third round VC funding from Spark Capital. This funding couldn’t have come at a better time, Twitter has been plagued with numerous bouts of downtime mostly attributed to the growing pains of new users.

As hip as the tech crowd may see Twitter, there seems to be a line drawn in the sand on how the rest of the population feels about such a service. Some feel that it is a great medium to share information quickly and keep tabs on their friend’s activities (such as what they’re eating at the moment). These tend to be the tech-savvy crowd, also considered early adopters. They test out all of the new gadgets and tech before it trickles down to the rest of the world. The other side of the fence are the skeptics and those who simply do not understand the power of a micro-blogging site. These are the people set it their ways of receiving their news from a box with moving pictures or the paper thing with words on it that magically appears on their doorstep each morning.

Truth be told, services like Twitter deliver information much faster than traditional television news or print. Therein lies the question of the validity of such information, but false information tends to weed itself out given enough voices (ie. Wikipedia). Twitter can, and has, been used to relay important information in emergency situations. In one documented case, bail an imprisoned US student out of an Egyptian jail. CNN even has a Twitter account to broadcast breaking news. @cnnbrk

However one feels about the service, Twitter is the new wave of getting information to the masses instantly. The nay-sayers will eventually see the light and jump on the bandwagon so we can all live in Twitter-harmony. This is, of course, assuming Twitter uses their new VC funding to upgrade their service and eliminate downtime, not swim in it like Scrooge McDuck.

I must warn n00bs, Twitter is highly addictive and can lead to a loss in productivity at work, hypertension, diabetes, seizures, and blurry vision. Ok, maybe not all that, but it is highly addictive so proceed with caution. You have been warned.

follow me on Twitter: @mattmusgrave

~ by mattmusgrave on May 23, 2008.