Qwitter - A Tool for Twitter

I have been experimenting with Twitter. I haven’t decided whether I like it or not. It certainly has enormous possibilities. For example, it can link local area business people, like real estate agents who might want to let their network of people know about a particular property that is a bargain. Today, I received some email from security people asking what I thought of Twitter as an emergency broadcast system. My immediate thought was the Twitter ‘fail whale’. That is the Twitter screen that indicates that there is trouble (possibly an overload) on the system. Perhaps that idea is a future possibility.

Twitter forces one to condense thoughts within a one hundred and forty (140) character limitation. That is a good exercise for someone like me who has a tendency to be a bit verbose. However, that limitation also can lead to misunderstandings and miscommunications. People simply may stop following.

One tool to apply to Twitter is Qwitter:

“Qwitter e-mails you when someone stops following you on Twitter with a message…”

link: Qwitter

This service would be positive in that it can alert one to possible misunderstandings on these short messages. If a particular Twitter entry caused many people to stop following, that might be good to know and possibly to correct. On the negative side, it lets people know that someone has left as a follower. Sensitivities may be bruised. There is a wee bit of privacy (if there is any privacy) lost. It is easy to imagine a whole list of troublesome possibilities if one is sensitive to people not continuing as a follower. Some may look at a service like Qwitter and just say “I don’t want to know” (or “I don’t care”).

Qwitter raises some privacy and security issues. However, Twitter raises the same issues. Qwitter is a tool - and like most tool, it can be subject to abuse. I would be interested in what more experienced Twitter people think - I still consider myself a Twitter amateur.

Catherine - yes, it’s “DogReader” on the Twitter space