MetaChat - I don't get

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18 May 2007

I don't get twitter. It's repeatedly mentioned as the greatest thing since URLs, but I don't really see the point. Do you?

post by: signal at: 16:35 | 25 comments

For those of us without any friends, it provides a comforting sense of presence to ease us through the long thankless day.

posted by chrismear 18 May | 16:40

This too shall pass.

posted by CitrusFreak12 18 May | 16:50

I just see it as one more bit of web junk to clog up my life. In the last few months I have been closing accounts at all kinds of things. I find stuff like Technorati, Digg, Twitter etc. pointless really. I still like seeing friends pictures an Flickr and I love it here at mecha but that's about all I want to bother with.

posted by arse_hat 18 May | 16:56

I think I've seen/read more threads with the subject "I don't get twitter/Vox/myspace/etc" than any other type of discussion around those topics.

I think it must be a sign of a good, or at least popular, product.

posted by mullacc 18 May | 16:56

I don't get flickr.

;)

posted by dabitch 18 May | 17:07

I get Vox, MySpace, and flickr. I can't for the life of me figure out what Twitter is for.

posted by eamondaly 18 May | 17:10

I am "getting" wis.dm

I wasn't going to share it, because I am selfish like that but I am enjoying it so much, I just can't keep it to myself. I am expecting it to be the next rage on the page.

posted by getoffmylawn 18 May | 17:14

Ain't no freakin' way I am ever going to successfully limit my all comments to 140 characters. I need room for my words to breathe, my thoughts to expan

posted by wendell 18 May | 17:18

I don't get twitter, myspace or vox. I just don't have the attention span, or the time, for them.

posted by essexjan 18 May | 17:22

I just don't have the attention span, or the time, for them.

I get the feeling twitter is specifically for the attention-span challenged.

posted by signal 18 May | 17:32

I've only recently gotten the telegraph, myself.

posted by jonmc 18 May | 17:33

I didn't get Twitter either, until I realized that it was like IM status messages. And I love IM status messages, even when I'm available I have one up. I've always wanted to find a way to put my Yahoo Messenger status messages onto my site; with Twitter, I can (kind of) do that. Whenever I implement my new blog layout, that is.

posted by rhapsodie 18 May | 17:36

This will not yst cvalley.

posted by iconomy 18 May | 17:55

I don't use twitter, because I'm not a twit.

posted by Eideteker 18 May | 17:57

I do use twatter, though.

posted by Eideteker 18 May | 17:58

There should be a Twyttr. You know, for the Welsh.

posted by jonmc 18 May | 17:59

Twitter reminds me of what blogging was like in 1999...everyone talking about what they had for breakfast, etc.

I have been using Twitter for a few months now and I don't find it very useful, even if I find interesting some of the things my friends post to theirs.

That being said I think there are good uses for it, especially if one is using Twitter on their cellphone. For example, you are supposed to meet people somewhere only to find out it is closed. One message to your Twitter account and all the friends who were supposed to join you know to go to Plan B. I also like the idea of receiving messages from news groups. BBC News for example.

posted by terrapin 18 May | 18:19

Isn't that BBC thing exactly what RSS is for?

posted by matthewr 18 May | 18:27

matthewr: twitters can be received on one's cellphone as an IM. I don't have a cellphone, but I would find the news feeds feature useful if I did

posted by terrapin 18 May | 19:02

Except in text-message form.

I kinda see Twitter the way I see optimized-for-handheld stylesheets. Both are transitory, stopgap kinda things, aimed at bridging the gaps between existing technologies, making new technologies work harmoniously with old ones, that kinda thing. Note: I'm no tech pundit.

posted by box 18 May | 19:04

well put, box

posted by terrapin 18 May | 19:06

I don't ~~get~~ use Vox; at least not very much. I won't go as far as to say just because I don't use something that it must therefore be pointless. Different fun for different folks. Yay.

posted by ThePinkSuperhero 18 May | 20:44

box, i think that's pretty much the essence of technology itself.

posted by treepour 18 May | 22:53

I think I've seen/read more threads with the subject "I don't get twitter/Vox/myspace/etc" than any other type of discussion around those topics.

You forgot "I don't get laid."

posted by stilicho 19 May | 06:54

Twitter is fun if you have funny friends.

posted by ColdChef 20 May | 19:43

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