Gathering around the virtual coffee pot

Nearly a year ago, I finally cornered someone at a conference at asked her to explain Twitter to me.  I knew people liked it, but why?  Her explanation, and seeing others use it at the conference, got me to try it...and I got hooked!

Twitter is described as a microblog, but what it really is -- at least to me -- is a gathering around the virtual coffee pot.  When I worked in a corporate environment, useful information was often exchanged at the coffee pot.  Critical discussion would often start with the words "want to get a cup of coffee?" 

Working by myself means that there are no profound conversations around my coffee pot. However, now I have those conversations with many others during random moments in our days.  We...

• Exchange tips and techniques
• Troubleshoot problems
• Offer support
• Pass around things that make us laugh
• Share joys and sorrows
• Offer professional advice
• Coordinate events

All without leaving our desks.  We don't have to wander down the hall and wait for others to arrive.  We only need to open up Twitter and a group is already there.

One thing that was important for me was to find the right Twitter tool.  Using Twitter.com was okay, but I like TwitterFox better.  You might want to check out this list of Twitter tools, if you like Twitter but don't like using it through the web site.  Of course, you could just ask your Twitter buddies for suggestions of useful Twitter tools -- I bet they'd be glad to offer up some suggestions!

BTW if you are using Twitter and want to connect to other SLA members, leave a comment with your Twitter ID.  Mine is jahurst.

Comments

[Nicole Engard]

I have to agree. I didn't use Twitter at all until I got a job working from home - now it's a great way to keep in touch. My preferred method is IM - I have IM open all day to keep in touch with colleagues, so it just makes sense to use Twitter for this as well.

My Twitter ID is nengard.

[pollyalida]

Like you and Nicole, I work from home and sometimes feel a bit disconnected and twitter definitely creates connections! But just like email, phone, doorbells, etc, I do turn it off when my brain needs to really focus. Could be I lack a strong multitasking gene? :-)

[pollyalida]

left off my twitter id: grdnldy

[Steve Oberg]

Jill,

I agree about Twitter. It's very very very important to use the tool for Twitter that fits you. I've tried several and frankly this is why I haven't used Twitter that much, because none of them really seemed to "fit" how I do things. Recently I tried Twitterfox and I really like it. I also use a Twitter client on my Blackberry and a different one on my iPod Touch. My Twitter id is FamManLib.

[Daniel Lee]

Great article! Plans are afoot to establish a conference wide twitter page for SLA2008 in Seattle. Stay tuned.

Daniel Lee
SLA Innoviation Lab

My twitter id is: yankeeincanada

[Stephan]

The first time I visited Twitter I left the site after just a few seconds. I am giving it a second change and have registered and started using it. Didn't know about the tools though so thank you for the tip.