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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to not understand Twitter ..............

74 replies

BeCool · 14/06/2013 15:15

I can do FB - no problem. I use a computer all day - I'm go genius on it but I get along.

But Twitter is a total mystery to me. I opened an account years ago but never got my head around it. I've asked people to explain it but I still don't get it.

Now I just had a look at the MN Bounty Twitter feed (I believe it is the correct terminology) and my head is hurting - it's like text speak but with lots of @#@~####:'s all thrown in. And all these links - WTF is going on?

I once entered a photo comp on Twitter - or at least I think I did. I have no idea if my photo got to where it was ment to go, or how indeed I would find out.

I thought at least the MN Twitter I'd be able to manage

It makes me feel out of touch and (gasp) old ! Most of the time I don't really care, but really is it that tricky? Is FB destined to be my social media limit? Does anyone else not get it? Am I being a Luddite?

OP posts:

Alisvolatpropiis · 14/06/2013 22:17

Yanbu

If you're used to Facebook then twitter can leave you feeling a bit

But if you find people with similar interests,or indeed polar opposite ones, it can be very interesting.

Plus often on twitter you will see the news/people tweeting rumours they shouldn't that eventuall turn out to be true well ahead of normal media.

If you're interested in giving it a go,"tweet" about things you are interested in, use #'s - for example "my child said xyz and I found wanting to throw myself in the floor shouting and screaming #shitkidssay.

Or what's going on the with Murdoch's? Is the TB rumour true? #murdochs.

The #'s will lead you to people tweeting about the same things and who you might find interesting

MmeLindor · 14/06/2013 22:22

here, try this for profile

piratecat · 14/06/2013 23:20

thanks, it's just not working. bah i don't want a black background, it's horrible!!

Original poster

BeCool · 15/06/2013 00:00

Wow I'm inspired. Some of what you have all said is getting in.

I think I need to get used to it visually.

So glad this thread has evolved into a MN TWEETING 101 class rather than everyone shouting YABU etc. shd really have gone in Chat

OP posts:

CalamityGin · 15/06/2013 08:36

But how do you all keep up?!? I am following a mere 3 people and there are reams of tweeds everytime I log in and then of course there are the conversations that ping up around these tweets seems you have to be permanently plugged in and I've got things to do! How do you keep up?

wamabama · 15/06/2013 08:40

I prefer it to FB. Didn't take me long to understand that the @ is to address it to a person on there and the # is to get things 'trending' and so it comes up when people search certain tweets. E.g if you want to see what people are saying about Eastenders then #eastenders and there you go. Does that make sense?

The text limit is irritating because I do like to go on but other than that I love Twitter. FB isn't for me, way way too personal.

exoticfruits · 15/06/2013 09:30

I haven't a clue how you keep up, calamitygin, I can't possibly read much of the people I am following.

Tee2072 · 15/06/2013 09:50

Helping to keep up is where a reader like TweetDeck or HootSuite are useful.

You can then assign those you follow into lists and then create columns of those lists so you can read certain bits and ignore others, as you choose.

WhizzerAndChips · 15/06/2013 09:55

But how do you all keep up?!? I am following a mere 3 people and there are reams of tweeds everytime I log in and then of course there are the conversations that ping up around these tweets confused seems you have to be permanently plugged in and I've got things to do! How do you keep up?

Lists! I use the lists function on there as I'd miss loads of tweets if I didn't use that as I follow far too many people
I have RL friends in one list, so if I want to read their tweets I can just read theirs and it filters out everyone elses.
Another list for bloggers I follow. Another for the news. Etc. You get the gist. I'd be swamped with crap and miss everything if I didn't have my trusty lists of good stuff

meglet · 15/06/2013 10:26

You can't beat watching telly while tapping away on twitter. It's like a virtual living room all watching the same show.

TBH I don't really keep up. I've not got my head around lists, I'm fond of the randomness of all the people I follow jumbled in together.

It also gets the news first, by the time it's 'Breaking news' on the telly it's already been on twitter.

starsandunicorns · 15/06/2013 10:54

Im not great at twitter but use it for traffic and train update and a few celbes if u click on their profile uoy and check out who there are following and then follow them.( like on fb clicking on someones friends and adding them )

rubyanddiamond · 15/06/2013 11:16

I like twitter, but i think you need to think a bit about what you want to use it for :) I use it semi-professionally, so I follow people in my industry and in related industries, plus a few others I find interesting. Lots of people tweet links to other pages (as you can't write much in 140 characters) with a short explanation of the story. That means you can follow interesting people and get links to interesting pages from all over the world without having to trawl through lots of web sites and blogs.

I tweet out things that interest me, mainly (loosely) related to the subject i work in, but occasional other stuff too. You can't keep up with everything that everyone else posts though, you just have to accept that!

CalamityGin · 15/06/2013 11:38

and who here tweets/follows under their actual name?

SoniaGluck · 15/06/2013 12:09

I had an account but didn't get it for ages. Then I thought it was silly not to learn - so I got a crash course from DD2 and just plunged in.

It's brilliant for finding out stuff you might not know through other means. For example, I found out on Twitter that Catriona McPherson is going to be at the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival which I probably wouldn't otherwise have discovered until it was too late.

I am still a bit chary of replying to people that I don't know personally. It feels like a bit like imposing yourself and I worry that they might be thinking: "Who is this weirdo?". In actual fact, they probably don't notice or just ignore (which is arguably worse

I dare say that I'll get over that in time.

Bunbaker · 15/06/2013 13:31

"but use it for traffic and train update"

Twitter aren't the only website that does that though. It would never occur to me to look up travel information on Twitter. I use other websites instead.

starsandunicorns · 15/06/2013 13:55

Bun no its not the only website but i get all the info in one place for the roads that i use and train company too. I use the highway angency, one for the m6 i can type the motorway junt in the search and any probs comes up. I found it useful. Instead of using a load of websites.

I found that i can do twitter on the way to the car from work i can get all the info i need

Tee2072 · 15/06/2013 15:45

Calamity I use the same name as here, but my Twitter has a link to my blog which has my actual name.

Why?

FryOneFatManic · 15/06/2013 19:44

I think I've just got it! I have an anonymous account. May get a more official one later.

Finally

One question, when you add a hashtag to your tweet, is it included in the 140 character limit?

BreconBeBuggered · 15/06/2013 19:50

Yes, it is. Everything's included, even the spaces.

FryOneFatManic · 15/06/2013 20:02

Thanks. At least I'll be prepared for when DD gets an account......

MmeLindor · 15/06/2013 21:03

Don't try to keep up - or worry you'll miss something. Either use lists or just accept that you are reading a snapshot of the day's tweets.

I've forgotten who asked and on ohone so can't scroll back - I'm on there - look at the link Euphemia posted earlier - that's me. I use that name to tweet too

whatisyourview · 15/06/2013 21:25

People hashtag things (I could hashtag this #hashtagging) and its convenient for things like Hurricane Sandy

WhizzerAndChips · 15/06/2013 21:30

and who here tweets/follows under their actual name?
Me. Well, my first name with a random letter/number after it.

Trills · 15/06/2013 21:53

I tweet under my actual name.

I follow loads of people and just dip in occasionally to see if anyone is having any interesting conversations.

You don't actually have to read all the tweets that people make, and nobody really expects you to.

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