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Happy birthday Twitter - here are my top tweets

Rory Cellan-Jones | 08:17 UK time, Monday, 21 March 2011

I’d like to say happy birthday to an old friend - although when I say “old” we’ve only known each other for four years.During that time, the way I run my working life and communicate with friends, contacts, family and the wider world has been transformed. I’m talking about , which was born five years ago today.

Whenever I’ve written about the micro-blogging service (and is that really a good definition any more?) there have been plenty of complaints from those who think Twitter is a) a waste of time, b) not a proper subject for this blog, c) believe it will be gone as soon as the next fad comes along.

But I think that the business founded in San Francisco in 2006 has really proved over recent weeks that it is part of a profound change in the way we communicate. So I’ve selected a few tweets which tell the story of Twitter as I’ve experienced it.

This image of a downed plane in New York's Hudson River was posted to Twitter by Janis Krums (@jkrums)

This first one will do nothing to change the minds of those who think Twitter is a waste of time. It is : “Watching The Apprentice”. Why on earth would you be interested? But things could only get better.

Never mind 140 characters - : “Arrested”. It was sent by James Buck, an American student who was covering an anti-government demonstration in Egypt when he was arrested. The tweet alerted his friends in the United States and Egypt as to what had happened - and was an early sign of how powerful a tool Twitter could be.

I noticed as I woke up one morning in May 2008. He had spotted a tweet from a Chinese blogger about an earthquake and was off to check the US Geological Survey website. I turned on the radio but the massive earthquake had not yet made the news. It was the first sign that Twitter might be the place to see breaking news.

Tweet from Robert Scoble

Janis Krums was on a New York ferry when an aircraft landed in the Hudson River. He took out his phone, . It was the first image of an extraordinary event, and proved that Twitter could be about more than just 140 character trivia.

Now this was trivial - , as this shows. But the British actor and writer was among the first celebrities to spot the potential of Twitter as a means of communicating directly with fans, rather than through the traditional media. Despite falling out of love with Twitter on several occasions and going quiet for days on end, he now has an audience of 2.3 million followers. Other celebrities looked - and learned.

, having been removed by the police. In January 2010 Paul Chambers, frustrated to find his travel plans disrupted by snow, tweeted this: “Robin Hood airport is closed..You’ve got a week and a bit to get your **** together, otherwise I’m blowing the airport sky high.” The police and the airport did not see the funny side. Mr Chambers was arrested, fined and lost his job.

He was one among many, including politicians, sports stars, and even the odd 鶹ҳ executive, to discover that careless tweeting could prove costly. But his case also showed that the Twitter community would rally around a member in their hour of need. After his conviction, , using the hashtag #iamspartacus.

During the UK general election of 2010, the political classes suddenly decided that Twitter was the place to be. signalled that the Conservatives’ coalition talks with the Liberal Democrats were back on, after hours when it looked as though they had stalled. It was Twitter, not 24-hour news channels, that was first with this news.

Tweet by William Hague announcing resumption of talks with Liberal Democrats

On Friday 11 March I woke up at 0630 - and did what I always do first, checked Twitter. I spotted and a tsunami warning. This time, when I turned on the radio, news was beginning to filter through of the terrible events, although at that stage it was not the lead story. But within an hour Twitter was overflowing with information and pictures from Japan and mainstream news organisations, where checking social networks is now second nature, were reflecting what they saw there.

So, yes, Twitter is still full of trivia and celebrity gossip, and sure, it does need to prove it can be a sustainable business. But if it were to vanish tomorrow, I would be among the millions seeking out another way to communicate and share news at lightning speed.

Comments

  • Comment number 1.

    This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

  • Comment number 2.

    Why not simply replace every single one of your tweets with "LOOK AT ME, I'M DESPERATE FOR SOME ATTENTION", because that's all you really want isn't it? There's nothing more boring than people commentating on their life and it usually highlights a massive inferiority complex.

  • Comment number 3.

    Rory, you've got your links mixed up - the "#iamspartacus" link goes to William Hague too.

  • Comment number 4.

    Completely agree with you; Twitter may not provide in-depth analysis of any given situation at any given time, but over time many individuals providing little bits of information gives the big picture. This is useful for gaining an unbiased perspective on events. In addition, it's quicker than any other media source!

  • Comment number 5.

    If those really are the top tweets of the last few years then I have been reassured that I can do without it

  • Comment number 6.

    yes it's quick we get that, but a text message warning you to run after an earthquake will tell you just as quick as a tweet, a tweet just comes with some boring comment attached; I would imagine that 99.9999999999999% of tweets have no relevance to the receiver either; still a massive yawn to me.

  • Comment number 7.

    Cassius is over
    Cassius away
    Cassius these daydreams, these daydreams

  • Comment number 8.

    I don't get it either. What is this obsession with wanting to know everything that happens before anyone else? A desire to save the planet? Maybe it's just a paranoic desire not to be left out of anything. Or, as mentioned earlier, just a need to feel useful and that you are somehow important in the scheme of things. If Titter finished tomorrow, peoples lives would remain totally unchanged, no, actually they would be changed, for the better because there would not be the ultimate stress of not knowing the trivia that everyone else does. What kind of insane motivation is there for the first thing you do each morning is check whatever dribble has been Teeted?

    Social networking sites serve one purpose - to extract money from you and to give cyber wannabees the portal to demonstrate what you always suspected but never realised before the internet, that people are generally stupid, have nothing to say and will get into an argument with someone across the world within 4 posts, Teets or Faces over something purile and usually Jingoistic.

    Rolling News, Breaking News,Titter = Instant Addiction and Instant Gratification. The World will chug along as it always has for the last billion years quite happily without blogging teeting involvement. It just Doesn't Matter. And please don't use the argument that "it can save lives" just because someone "Teeted" an event across the world that would have been better placed in their own countries emergency inbox.

    It just goes to show, you CAN fool nearly all the people nearly all of the time.

    PS This is only my 4th public post on any media in 18 years of Internet use - don't use Acebook, don't use Titter and I know just as much, if not more, than you.

  • Comment number 9.

    This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

  • Comment number 10.

    Living in Bahrain which has witnessed massive social upheaval in the last month, I have seen the worst side of Twitter, where it has become used as a tool to spread rumour, speculation and downright lies, fuelling anxiety, fear and hatred.

  • Comment number 11.

    One of my favourite Twitter moments was when the hashtag #letdimblebysleep started trending after David Dimbleby had been on air for over 15 hours during Election Night (and the day after) last May.

  • Comment number 12.

    It seems many who have commented on this article still know little about the advantages of Twitter. I am a member and I have worked hard on building up my account.

    Over the last two and a half years I have found friends, likeminded people who I speak to on a daily basis via mostly Twitter (and on occasion text, email, etc.) in doing so I have built up links with people from 16 through to 60, students through to employees and business owners.

    Just this weekend I went to a book signing where I got to meet one of the people I follow and who follows me. No, we didn't decide to meet up at the signing. She was the author. She knew who I was the second she saw me as did I. As an aspiring author, that is an amazing connection to have created.

    Then there is the power of groups - groups of people who follow the same likes. Take for instance the television show Skins, there are hundreds, thousands even, fans on Twitter who gather round and talk about the show, show their support for the show. Now here's the most important part - tell the writers, creators and actors their views on the show. This has not only allowed the people behind the scenes to see EXACTLY what the fans think, but it's HAS and will continue to have an influence in what happens in the show.

    For the first time fans and general 'ordinary' people have the power to impact things that before they had no control over or very little ways of communicating their opinions across.

    There are competitions daily, weekly from charities who network with thousands of supporters and businesses trying to keep their profile high.

    There are companies such as a pasty shop in North West England who when I complained about their product sought me out and solved the issue, twice.

    These are the other powers of Twitter that may not get seen very often, especially not by those who consider Twitter to be solely to shout about your life and tell people what you're doing.

    I have seen Twitter users in distress gain support when they're alone, I have seen Twitter users have questions answered within seconds, I have seen Twitter users meet and fall in love...all thanks to 140 characters and the network that creates.

    So before you judge the power and usefulness of Twitter, don't spend your time writing comments about something you know little about. Use it, utilise it and then come back and tell us if it's as 'look at me I'm so wonderful' as some of you seem to be claiming.

    And in response to Barone, Twitter may not save lives directly...but I know for a fact missing people have been found thanks to the spreading of messages about their disappearance. That isn't including the number of people who use it as a support network where they may not have one elsewhere.

  • Comment number 13.

    I'd like to say happy birthday to the WWW and Linux, both are 20 this year. Twitter depends on both these technologies. Will Twitter live to see its 20th birthday?

  • Comment number 14.

    Possibly all those who are deriding Twitter (etc) as just a fad are of the same set who derided the Internet and Mobile Phones as just a fad.
    Life would be different without them - as to whether it would be better is subjective, and sure if you feel it's better without then abstain.
    It's still early days for Twitter, there are so many commercial advantages to it if companies look at it seriously - and potentially room for competitors.
    What's better, phoning all your friends individually about a change of plan or sending a single message to Twitter?

  • Comment number 15.

    I've been on Twitter for just over 3 years and generally it has no everyday social use like Facebook. Indeed you could argue that Foursquare is of more benefit to individual users. Twitter really is just one big chat room.

    However, there are 2 new trends in Business and Marketing that Twitter is primed to exploit, Viral and Crowdsourcing.
    If people like or dislike something, eg a TV advert, it takes only moments for them to tweet about it. That kind of data PR companies used to spend a fortune on.

    I remember following the tweets on Eurovision a couple of years back, you could tell who was going to win as the people who tweeted were also picking up the phone to vote.

    Plus there is no quicker way to get a message out there or gain feedback.
    Send a complaint to @O2 or @Virginmedia and they are right back to you, faster than a telephone call.


  • Comment number 16.

    (sigh) Yet again, the media have missed the point of Twitter. It is more than a news gathering service, and so much more than a celebrity "Hey, listen to this" forum.
    For me, an educator, Twitter an electronic staffroom that spans the globe, and allows me to ask questions to other like minded people. I can find answers quickly to information that I need, I can answer the questions others ask, and I can learn from the outstanding classroom innovation of others.
    This is the side of Twitter that never makes the news, but for me is the whole point of social networking. It connects me with other people in the same profession.

  • Comment number 17.

    The first time I found Twitter useful was on New years Eve, before a trip to London.
    I asked if anyone knew of somewhere to have dinner that would be open on New years day & was child friendly, but not touristy.
    Someone recommended Little Bay in Farringdon.
    My Family & I had the most wonderful dinner & I have been back since.
    I would never have gone there if it hadnt been for someone who folows me & had local knowledge.
    OK, I do follow a couple of "celebs", but other than that, I follow people in the same line as me (I am a DJ for a community radio station in Leeds) and friends who tweet.
    It can be a useful tool if used properly, and its not all about "look at me" from celebrities who want to keep some sort of profile, although there is far too much of it about.
    Once they stop using it for empty, self serving comments, it will be a fantastic tool.

  • Comment number 18.

    I think that boasting about having never visited twitter or not having a facebook is just the latest in a long line of stock comments psudes use to try and justify things that are too deep for them in the hope that others will think they are somehow clever.

    Before this you had people who claimed not to own a tv because it was full of bilge (seems they were unaware of documentaries), before that they claimed to have never watched ITV, before that never to have owned a radio or never to have been to a cinema etc. If you go back in time long enough you'd probably find similar people claiming never to have read one of these 'new-fangled book things' or that only lesser people than they read anything that was made with a printing press or in English rather than Latin.

    What these psudes don't realise is that far from looking like a 'free thinker' or 'intellectual' with these sweeping generalisations they just look like unpopular luddites. In order to get facebook or twitter to work properly you need a few friends or you need to be intelligent enough to use the block option when you get a request from 'mafia wars' or 'farmville' (unless you actually want to play them). Of course, psudes only like to pretend they're intelligent so they've not worked that out.

    You can't be intelligent if you close yourself off to new experiences in order to look 'cool', if you try something and find out it's not for you then fair enough you've learnt something, but to deride something just because of a perceive impression is just dumb.

  • Comment number 19.

    comment 2, YSB:
    "LOOK AT ME, I'M DESPERATE FOR SOME ATTENTION", because that's all you really want isn't it?


    No not really. If Twitter isn't relevant to you then feel free not to use it. However, do yourself a favour and learn what it actually is and why people like myself use it so that you don't sound like such a dismissive fool.

    I'm a web designer and twitter is one of the most relevant and useful tools on the net. I follow fellow industry people and community sites that publish useful articles, tips and general industry buzz. it's great to keep up with industry developments as tweeted by relevant people to me. And I think that is what twitter is for. It's certainly not a 'micro-blogging site' and nor do I give a **** about celeb nonsense.

    So now you know why *some* people use it and it's purpose. Don't lump us all with the sad celebrity followers.

  • Comment number 20.

    Maybe I am missing something but people must have too much time on their hands. How do you ever find anything on Twitter - how do you scan through all those messages on a BB/Ipad to find anything of relevance? Real life is much more fun.

  • Comment number 21.

    Does Twitter have to have a point? I enjoy the irrelevance of finding out what others are doing. There's no point to it, just mild amusement, a place to vent and the occasional bit of breaking news (but that's not important).

    If you are looking for something that has a deep purpose or meaning then stick to mainstream news sites and your work e-mail account. For a bit of fun, opinion and lots of people who'll listen to your own brand of drivel, Twitter is perfect.

  • Comment number 22.

    I've only been a Tweeter for six months, prefering Facebook for the best part of two years before hand. I now use Twitter to follow friends and family abroad, I follow players from my favourite football team, bands and musicians, journalists, official news outlets, magazines, like minded people and anything else that catches my fancy.

    The main point is though, if you don't like it, don't use it. What harm does it do you?

  • Comment number 23.

    So what is Twitter? - if not a micro-blogging site or an attention-seeking tool,

  • Comment number 24.

    Who cares? Twitter is for kids and like fashion, will die out soon. Rory you are old enough to know this by know

  • Comment number 25.

    19. At 13:22pm on 21st Mar 2011, Evan Skuthorpe wrote:

    Don't lump us all with the sad celebrity followers.

    No worries, I'll lump you in the 'insulting and irritating geek that thinks messing around on the web doing pointless things to create a "buzz" can be described as work' category.

    Thanks for helping me compartmentalise you.

  • Comment number 26.

    Rachel, Twitter is many, many things.

    It is a chat room. It is a newsroom. It is a place to talk to people you might never meet in the 'real world'. It is a best friend. It is a big support. It is Google without visiting Google. It is a debating forum. It is a place to follow celebrities. It is a place to tell actors and writers how great their work is. It is a place to give honest feedback to companies. It is somewhere to win prizes. It is somewhere for charities to spread their wonderful message. It is a place for jokes, a place for quotes, a place for articles from childcare to writing, business management to driving theory tests. It is spam. It is x-rated. It is people talking about their lives. It is a documentary. It is useless. It is useful. It is 'cats' telling us about their lives. It is the fake Queen making everybody laugh.

    I could go on and on and on...those are only a fraction of the things people use Twitter for. Some of those aspects may be considered microblogging, but some aren't. Some use it to just follow celebrities, some aim to get as many followers as they want...but the majority of people use it to do a lot of different things.

  • Comment number 27.

    @Rachel #23
    The answer to that is anything you want it to be.

    If you want attention for you, your brand or your ego then that's what it is. If you want to chat to friends, people or celebs then that's what it is. If you want somewhere to vent, tell bad jokes or share the contents of your last meal, why not?

    Why does everything need to be labelled as something? Can't Twitter just be Twitter?

  • Comment number 28.

    sagat4 - Twitter may be used by a lot of young people, but it is by no means 'for kids'. You, like many, seem to know little about Twitter.

    If you don't understand a film do you claim it's for children and grumble everytime anyone say it's any good? I can't imagine so...so why do it about Twitter?

  • Comment number 29.

    YSB - post 25.

    I'll simply it for you. Think of it as a conference where you go to meet your fellow industry types to talk business. Maybe re-read what I posted 2 or 3 times if it helps...

    Insulting? Oh the irony!

  • Comment number 30.

    @YSB - idiot! It's human nature to share experience. Doesn't mean they're attention seekers with an inferiority complex. The very fact you've posted a comment here invalidates your argument!

  • Comment number 31.

    YSB - post 25.

    Also, you say I'm a geek. You do realise you're COMMENTING on a BLOG about TWITTER on a TECH part of the 鶹ҳ web site?

    You sound like a rather out of touch geek to me.

  • Comment number 32.

    YSB - have you ever actually used Twitter? And I don't mean signing up to it, not understand it/dislike what you see so never use it again. I mean actively use it for a period of time?

    Twitter is a fantastic resource for many charities and businesses alike. The world is changing, Twitter is a resource the world is actively making use of.

    You have a right to dislike it, to not want to use it. But please don't insult people simply because you want to sound like you know what you're talking about.

  • Comment number 33.

    Rory - Twitter is essentially the Instant Messenger of today, only on a broader, more open, and 'social' format.. No longer requiring people to know each other to gain and share information.

  • Comment number 34.

    Gosh. Replies & comments! This is amazing. Is there anyplace else I can post nonsense and get polite & informative replies?

    Having read all the advantages of Titter and with all this new found knowledge and armies of mates, exactly what use individuals put it to apart from a voyeuristic urge to peer into someone elses lives? Of course Big Brother started all that and now it's going to be the all nude BB 'cos people got bored with, er, nobodies spouting nothing and being celebrities in their own lunchtime.

    Deeds, deeds and more deeds are needed, not words. Hands on, face to face. Twitter et al remind of the worlds biggest beauracracy, the CIA. It literally feeds on itself but it has no meaning and no purpose and has never worked.

    I did learn some interesting stuff about Titter from these replies for which I give thanks and one has to wonder, just like the mobile telpephone; how on God's Earth did we ever manage without it?

  • Comment number 35.

    This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

  • Comment number 36.

    @18 - Oll

    Do you really believe that? Then you are no better than us luddites my friend. Why should my life mimic yours? I've used Facerubbish and found no value in it. I don't eschew it to be cool, I mock those that use it as a comfort blanket. Need some self-belief? Just go and check how many friends you have on Facerubbish and try and forget that half them didn't want to know you before and the other half still don't know you from adam. Regardless, I just wish people and companies would stop telling me I need a Facerubbish account otherwise I'll miss out. Gloat now, but you just wait til there's 10 Facerubbish-a-likes and if you're not on them all you're not getting all the facts, right now, before anyone else.

  • Comment number 37.

    This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

  • Comment number 38.

    This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

  • Comment number 39.

    Neo - You should watch your mouth fella. It's easy for cyber warriors to dish out insults like that, try it in the real world and see where it gets you. (probably the dentists)

    This may be a blog about technology but it started life as a featured link on the main 鶹ҳ web page. Since I pay for this entire service via my licence fee, I'll comment all I want. To be honest not had this much fun in ages, you geeks are a precious bunch aren't you!

    Someone else has already said, this Twitter nonsense wll be something else in a decade's time and for sure you'll have bought into the next big pointless app.

  • Comment number 40.

    Glad to see others are freely allowed to call me :-

    A 'tard'
    A fool
    Simple (inference)
    An idiot
    A geek

    However, a bit of return fire and you go all moderating on me.

    Typical 鶹ҳ, if someone doesn't fit their pre prepared agenda then comments are not allowed. Just like everything else you cover, bias by ommission. Should have guessed really.






  • Comment number 41.

    @YSB (which, as it happens, is an insult I chant most times I go to a football match)

    I'm sure most of the Twitterati on here are grateful that you don't tweet, and you are certainly adding little to this discussion. We can't see what you wrote that so upset the moderators, but I for one trust the 鶹ҳ to behave reasonably most of the time. Irrational rants about bias are seldom credible, whereas a reasoned critique alleging bias might make stimulating reading. Fancy trying that?

    Will Twitter still be around in ten years? Most probably not, but that's not to say it won't have had immense value.

    BTW, I thought it was me that was paying for this entire service...

  • Comment number 42.

    Dear Sir/Madam,

    Thank you kindly for your email.

    That was a very interesting bit of state censorship, from my perspective. Was it because it was the first approved comment on the 鶹ҳ blog that was only talking about Happy Birthday Twitter. Was another 鶹ҳ blog contributor just a little bit jealous of that grand prize position. As I can remember that one liner, as being one of my test tweets on Twitter that only give you a measly 140 (ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.) characters to play around with. So my contribution was in no way “off-topic” as it did have a great deal of importance to me as part of my online users experiences, that does include a private account of Twittering that still has a 鶹ҳ link within my two tweets. Now if that is not enough to have my contribution reinstated then this whole process of so call moderation, is nothing more than the Council Graffiti Removal Van destroying works of Art on the Southbank.

    Shame on you 鶹ҳ.... boooo boooo.

    Kind regards,

    Mr. Sean Tunctan

  • Comment number 43.

    "an insult I chant most times I go to a football match" - Hmmm, now why would there be reason to chant this "most times" at a football match? It's only applicable to a handful of games and that suggests to me you are telling little porkies aren't you? Trying to look 'in the know' to your Tweetie pals are we?!

    So I'm adding nothing to the discussion eh? I can only presume you must work for the 鶹ҳ no?!?!?

    Anyway, I agree because this isn't a discussion so I can't add anything to something that isn't taking place. A discussion often involves people with different points of view and each is allowed to freely express their opinion.

    What has occurred on this blog is pretty much a one sided view of things (ie Twitter is amazing and ever so useful blah blah blah). There have been a minorty of opposing comments and these have been met with insults rather than the 'reasoned critique' you crave.

    I believe in fighting fire with fire and when I responded to those insults, I was moderated. I would imagine it's like this in China.

    If you believe the 鶹ҳ acts reasonably most of the time, your agenda must accurately match theirs. No one can seriously suggest that the 鶹ҳ reports on a whole range of matters with anything other than blatant bias towards left of centre thinking. Twitter is precisely the type of new age tool that these Beeboid champagne socialists simply adore. It provides them with the mechanism to spout to the world as they preach what is good / bad / right / wrong etc and at the same time gives them a false sense of belonging and worth as they mistakenly feel a large volume of people are interested or care what they say.

    In reality it's the blind leading / following the blind.

  • Comment number 44.

    If I were stlll working for a big corporation I probably wouldn't bother with Twitter. It's really not about news as far as I'm concerned. It's about networking and ideas. I'm self-employed and it's vital to keep myself visible, to keep promoting myself and to keep networking with fellow professionals. Twitter's fantastic for that and for keeping abreast of interesting ideas, blogs and articles. People who dismiss it as trivial and pointless do so only because they can only think of trivial and pointless ways to use it. That seems to show a lack of imagination.

  • Comment number 45.

    @43

    Yes, most times! Last time was the Marseille game last week as it happens, Heinze being the unfortunate target. And I don't have any "Tweetie pals", having only tweeted once, in 2008, after consuming a little too much alcohol!

    Nor do I work for the 鶹ҳ - far too establishment for my tastes, always gushing about the royal family or global warming, or running silly anti-Europe stories. My point was that in moderated blogs, a wide range of opinions are expressed, including a great many that are antipathetic to the 鶹ҳ and the poor old blogger. So those that are removed must be doing considerably more than disagreeing with the blogger. Your view that an organisation like the 鶹ҳ needs a tool like Twitter in order to "spout to the world" is bizarre.

    I don't actually know what it's like in China, but I rather doubt it's like this!

  • Comment number 46.

    Try browsing through the tweets of senior 鶹ҳ personnel, particularly news editors. You might just see things in a different and non bizarre light.

  • Comment number 47.

    YSB - post 43

    "the 鶹ҳ reports on a whole range of matters with anything other than blatant bias towards left of centre thinking. Twitter is precisely the type of new age tool that these Beeboid champagne socialists simply adore."


    WOW! Paranoid maybe?

    And all this time I thought Twitter was an innovative new tool that's relevant to over 200 million users world wide.

    If you don't understand it or need it or like it then that is fine. Some people still don't like/need/use mobile phones too.

  • Comment number 48.

    Evan out of morbid curiosity I've just had a scan of your Twitter account to see how you are using the innovative new tool, particularly in relation to business.

    Wow, you've really been making good use of it haven't you? Pictures of drunk women, drunk men, pictures of pints (how innovative!) rants about all sorts of things including racist abuse against the English eh?

    Yes indeed, what a great tool.

  • Comment number 49.

    This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.

  • Comment number 50.

    YSB

    Thanks for the stalk. I really don't know where to begin with you... As I said, Following people on twitter who work in any given field that relates to what you do is probably beneficial. For me in the digital field it certainly is.

    What you probably saw was my own account for friends and others, not my work related one. Do you know how to click the second placed google link when searching my name? They have computer lessons at the library you know.

    Nice try on the race card too. Did you actually click the link by chance? No, didn't think so. You'd see it points to a Channel 4 documentary? If you knew anything about the web or Twitter you'd know I must have clicked a 'Tweet' button. This fancy little things then send you to your twitter page which auto-populates with the title and link to the given web page. Channel 4 racist? You said it, not me.

    You'll also see link to photos of friends via Flickr which also works in a similar way. What's Flickr? Probably just another pointless web craze that you hate that.

    You really must be a sad angry person who hates any thing you don't understand. Out of interest I clicked on your 鶹ҳ blog account and saw nothing but ranting and raving as evident here.

    Anyway, I have some pointless crazy internet stuff to waste my time on so thanks for all the fish.

  • Comment number 51.

    Brilliant, just jumped back on your Twitter account so I could cut and paste word for word your racist abuse about the English which had absolutely nothing to do with Channel 4 and guess what "This person has protected their tweets"!!!

    No further questions your honour.

    Now get back to drinking cider, playing multiplayer games with your chums, sharing really interesting pictures of pints of beer and pretending to be busy in the digital field.

    Tweetie bye!


  • Comment number 52.

    #51 I think your behaviour has fully justified Evan's decision to protect his personal tweets.

  • Comment number 53.

    Oh the joys of the internet YSB, I can block gooses like you from stalking me!

    So just to double check... you hate Twitter, 鶹ҳ, me, photography, art and creativity in general, other peoples friends, other people, pubs and so on. I'm gonna go on a limb and guess you hate the iphone as it's 'gimmicy' also? Or text messages - what a waste of time those are...! Facebook - no friends huh? How about advances in entertainment and technology in general? Not for you sorry...

    By the way, just to clear things up, racism is descrimination based on race, not nationality. I'm white Australian from a white British background... So I'm sure even you can figure out my 'racist' Tweets about 'the english' are infact, not racist. Any more straws you want to clutch?

    For everyone elses benefit, I like twitter as it's useful. Feel free to agree or disagree, it doesn't have to be for everyone. But it is here and it is effecting the way people and business communicate for the better. Just don't be angry about stuff you don't understand or use like my poor friend YSB.

  • Comment number 54.

    Keep 'em coming Evan, I never realised this blog could be so much fun. It's nice to know I've got under your skin. I know this is true because despite you trying to act oh so intelligent, you are now making crazy, wild assumptions that have no logic or reasoning.

    Hate Twitter? Hate's a bit strong and it's difficult to have feelings towards a computer application. What I utterly dislike are people that use Twitter and pontificate how amazing it is and how we should all be on it when the reality is it's little more than a modern day chatroom.

    Photography? Love it, have 3 digital cameras, various online albums and numerous applications on my PC. No grounds whatsoever for you to suggest I hate it, a failed assumption, one of many.

    Art and creativity? No problems there either. You're not suggesting Twitter is an art form are you? Now that really would be stupid.

    Other peoples friends...other people...pubs....??? Seriously, what have you and your pals been smoking? I'd suggest you lay off it a while, there's no sense at all in suggesting I don't like those things. It's plain to see you have lost the argument and have now moved towards deriding me personally to attempt to make your extremely dubious points stand up.

    iPhone? Got one of those, think it's great. If you must know, my business is selling Smartphones so to be honest with you Evan lad, I quite like technology in general. Hmmm, this one's not quite going the way you expected is it fella?

    Facebook - Ah, I see, this how you crazy people judge how popular you are eh and since I don't have a Facebook account that makes me a sad loner does it? Right ok I get it. Keep taking the tablets son and ignore the real world that's out here. The 60 seconds I spent on your personal Twitter account told me all I need to know about how wild, crazy and popular you guys are. Sending each other pictures of beer.....mental!!!

    You'd better Google 'Racism' before you get yourself into serious trouble, your definition is way out of date. Also, why would you mention someone's country of origin in the middle of a derogative tweet if you were not prejudiced against people of that country and held pre determined negative views against them? But you're not racist though eh?

    Seriously, I'm not going to reply to any more responses but feel free to have the last word if it makes you feel better. I've got some real stuff to do, look after my family, do some business deals, meet some people (actually in the flesh would you believe!) and generally exist in the real world.

    I knew my original comment would ruffle some feathers and it was made deliberately to antagonise Twitter users, thanks for the sport. As I've said, for me it's nothing more than a jumped up chatroom, you can bang on about it all you want, you won't change my opinion. In fact, having this little debate with you has reinforced by opinion that's it's (mainly) populated by people with huge inferiority complexes that have consistently failed to develop and maintain real relationships in the grown up world. Someone else on here has already used the phrase 'comfort blanket' and I couldn't have put it better myself. Hold it tightly Evan, stroke your face with it, never leave home without it and you'll be just fine.

    And PS, we've got the ashes!!!

  • Comment number 55.

    YSB - I think all the twitterati here have really got to you. If you don't like it, move on and don't bother responding to every comment you read about yourself. BTW - twitter would let you make those comments that have been removed by the 鶹ҳ moderators. Give it a go, create your own account and make all the statements you want in the way you want. Proper free speach. I'll follow you.

  • Comment number 56.

    Oh you poor thing. Taking all this time out of your 'real life' to comment on something so useless as twitter.

    I think from the outset of your first post you're just a judgemental antagonistic miserable sad so and so. All the best to you chump.

  • Comment number 57.

    Having read post 54, for some reason I'm reminded of the words of post 2. Can't think why......

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