Does Twitter have to be useful?

Picture_10 Maybe I’m missing the point.

You cannot throw a cat without hitting a blog talking about Twitter.  Everyone seems to have pretty strong opinions about it.  It seems to be a love  or hate thing.

A couple Twitter bits of love:

Kevin Lim’s Theory is the Reason goes into incredible depth on its who’s using it, why they’re using it and how to use it better.

Tara Hunt of Horse•Pig•Cow exalts Twitter for helping her keep grips on her thoughts, activities and friends.

A bit of Twitter disdain:

Kathy Sierra’s Creating Passion Users suggests that Twitter is further strain on our already stretched attention spans and ability to focus.

Darren Barefoot at DarrenBarefoot.com takes a shot or two at Twitter and then does a very funny look at what Shakespeare’s Twitter entries might look like.

And now…love or hate, people are working hard at justifying Twitter’s existence by morphing it into a business tool.  Mike Sansone has an interesting idea over at Converstations about how to use Twitter for finite teams.

Even Technorati’s Buzz TV is getting into the conversation.

Here’s my question.  Why?

Are we at a point where we can’t just enjoy it as both a distraction and a diversion?   That it’s a link to our friends and colleagues and sometimes they say something interesting and sometimes not?   It’s fun.  Sometimes its serious and sometimes it silly.  In the week that I’ve been using it, my friends have made me laugh out loud and stop and think.

I’m not so sure it needs to be anything more.  At least not for me.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

6 comments on “Does Twitter have to be useful?

  1. Gavin Heaton says:

    Drew … I think you have nailed it … Twitter’s value lies in its humanising of the digital space. It allows us to share not just our insights but also our banal thoughts, wishes and our humour.

  2. Gavin,

    Yes…and human connection does not always have to be profound or intense. I was talking to Mike Sansone about this the other day.

    I love that within a few hours someone can tell me what work is consuming them and then the next Tweet is talking about cleaning up cat vomit.

    That is real life. It makes me feel more connected to the people I share the blogosphere with.

    I don’t need it to be more than that.

    Drew

  3. Good insights. I’ll let you know how I feel in a week or so.

    Today seems to be a tough day for Twitter’s infrastructure.

  4. Roger,

    I do wonder how the Twitter team is dealing with this huge influx of traffic.

    It’s only fun if there’s a flow to it. I wonder how long we’ll be willing to wait for them to iron out their troubles?

    Drew

  5. Renee says:

    I just joined the Twitter craze. Not sure what it’s all about, but I’m up for giving it a shot. If anything…it keeps me aware!Everything is always changing and I’m trying to stay up to date.

    As a newbie, I’ll let you know what I think in a week or so!

  6. Renee,

    Be sure to come back and give us your commentary. I will warn you — if you are getting it via your cell phone, check your text messaging package!

    I think you’ll find it more intriguing than you think…

    Drew

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *