Twitter Misses Ad Targets - But Outlook Bullish

So Twitter is still struggling to get its revenue model off the ground but it is making headway. In the early days of Twitter I was highly critical of the value of the service. Now that it has matured and we have tools and processes to weed out the Twitterhea - I think the business is a useful tool.

eMarketer is reporting that their initial revenue projections for 2011 will be missed. However they remain upbeat on the future

Check out the article for a full analysis on where Twitter's revenue is going. Twitter has no where near the revenue potential of Facebook. And actually not getting spammed is one of the nice things about Twitter.

In my view - I believe that there is plenty of opportunity to MAKE money via the Twitter platform. Indeed way more than can be had through the restrictive practices of the big 3 F.A.G. gatekeepers.

That indeed counts for something

Cheers

Are Microsoft and Yahoo Still Relevant?

Yahoo has had its share of troubles lately and is still struggling from a degree of missteps combined with neglect and a smattering of hubris.

So let's consider things in context. Let's just look at email. With Facebook entering the fray - Yahoo still has more subscribers than the other two closes competitors (Gmail and Hotmail) combined.

But Yahoo is struggling to redefine itself in a world where search is dominated by Google and where the portal concept is slowly dying. People want more than just a gateway to content. They want to get there faster with less clicks. And Yahoo just doesn't hack it. The Social web is just so big that just by concentrating on it - as Facebook has - that the value can be mined. So Yahoo can be ignored by those who matter - the users and the advertisers.

Microsoft's value is harder to ignore. It owns several platforms not least of which is XBox. But the de-emphasis on the brand Microsoft has made the uber-brand less relevant. Of course it still carries its relevance in the corporate arena but even here it is under attack. The upsurge in Bing has clearly allowed them to stay in the game. But its a hard fought battle. But look at the brand cemetery from Redmond. MSN is probably about as relevant as Yahoo.

It is of course easy to go for the media darlings - Google and Facebook at the top end, with strong showings from Apple (iEverything) Groupon and Twitter. The long term winners must continue to make their brands and value proposition relevant. For this you have to be relentless at making your brand topical.

Good luck with that!

Where Do You Get Your Social Media Information?

Most of us are pretty harried and very busy people. We are drinking from a large number of fire hoses. Just staying current in our dedicated fields is challenging enough. But what happens when we get lots of new stuff coming down these pipes?

Well we rely on friends and those we respect to help us out. We read - a LOT. Authoritative publications and websites are what we are used to. Humans are creatures of habit and we actually don't really like change all that much.

But something has happened. Our traditional sources of trust for knowledge are slowly eroding. They are disappearing from the landscape. Newspapers are a prime example. But also trade journals have moved away from standard paper to more on-line medium. Great for the forests but not so good for our brain cells I believe.

So who do we trust and where do we go to get our information about social media. Surprisingly most of us eschew actually gaining the experience from well Social Media itself. The very people who used to be the determinators of our adoption of all media seem to find Social Media "Challenging". So says a study by the Creative Group. But actually it gets worse. They dont even go to these tools to learn about them. Regular readers know I am not a huge fan of Twitter. I am also not a FBA (Facebook Addict). I recognize the value of these tools but I am also realistic in my consumption and usage.

Advertising and marketing executives were asked, "How challenging is it for you to stay current on social media trends?" Their responses:
Very challenging 9%
Somewhat challenging 56%
Not challenging 35%

The same group of executives also were asked, "What do you consider the single best resource for staying current on social media trends?" Their top responses included:

Conferences or seminars 23%
Networking events or industry association meetings 18%
Webinars or online training 17%
Trade publications 15%
Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn posts 14%
Blogs 7%

So by just reading the Professor's rantings - you become members of an elite group.

In my day job - I have been asking people I work with and interact with where they get their information on. One group of bloggers are - not - surprisingly ALL OVER Social Media. But in the main most people (barstool research) have really little direct interaction with Social Media.

This is dangerous. Everyone needs to know what is exactly going on. Even if a lot of the material being pumped our can be absolute drivel.

And then of course their are the addicts... How did they end up that way?

Same way all the usual suspects did

Cheers

Rant For The Day - Twitter Again

OK so this is not really a rant its more of a rant-ette...

I have not had a good rant(ettte) about Twitter lately. However it does irk me that almost every time I try to use it - the system is down. Over capacity etc etc.

On my usual round of talking to friends colleagues etc etc I have been subtly asking about how people think. Oh yes there are a lot of zealots out there and probably an even greater number of Twitter Luddites. However I do get a sense that Twitter is a small but occasionally necessary evil. It can have good value but on the other hand it just adds up to more digital noise and useless junk.

So I started to think about how other people think about it. I came across a very good article in Webpronews which is a pretty reasoned article.

I think its time we put Twitter in its place. Conventions come and go. But if we are to take advantage of Twitter then Twitter itself needs to step up and police it better than it does today.

So my suggestion of the week is a Tweet-o-meter. If someone doesn't like a Tweet then they can flame it by hitting the Tweet-o-meter. This will then be added up that if this person gets constantly flagged with bad tweet-o-meter hits then the ability to push Tweets becomes restricted. The more Tweet-o-meter hits negative the more restrictive the use by the offending party. This in my view will instill a sense of discipline into Tweeters. Once they pass the threshold they become a Twit because he or she has become (–noun Informal) "an insignificant or bothersome person."

And of course no one wants to be labelled a Twit... do they....

Cheers

OMG Twts Decl in Oct!

First reported last week by Comscore, Twitter traffic is headed downwards. Now Nielsen is confirming the trend. However by some very big numbers:

According to data provided to eMarketer by Nielsen, traffic to Twitter.com was down a dramatic 27.8% between September and October 2009, falling to 18.9 million unique visitors.

Could this be the end of Twitter - hardly - but it does confirm that there is a solid pattern into technology usage.

Once abandoned technology is seldom if ever re-adopted. If you dont believe me come and have a look in my garage.

Interestingly Facebook continues to power ahead

Ouch!

Poll Results on Twitter

So here you go final results on Twitter are as follows:

I am a Luddite (60%)
I find it useful (18%)
I am a sneek peeker (12%)
I am a manic Tweeter (9%)

So this represents you as readers. FYI the Results represent about 1% of readers.

Cheers and thanks for participating

CAPA and IAG's Airline Dummy's Guide To Social Media

Almost but not quite but a very good (and thorough) piece on Twitter and Blogging with focus as a how to get ahead on Twitter as an airline.

Entitled The Airline Industry and Social Media - A Review & Analysis it is available from CAPA or IAG. Mention The Professor - via a chat link and you will get a 10% discount from IAG. (Because I am a nice person). You can purchase it here. it was prepared as a joint venture from IAG, CAPA and the Travelstrategist.com. (NOTE the Professor does not profit from this discount).

This report is explained in pretty simple and (for a Dummy like me) straightforward.

I recommend this report to any airline considering taking the plunge into the Digital Dysfunctional world.

One caveat. Do it quickly. This information and the background info will age fast. However for now it is a great tool for some guidance. The dos and don'ts are points to be taken by anyone - airline dummy or not.

Cheers

The Professor's Readers are "Luddites" when it comes to Twitter

So the latest poll of the Professor's readers was about their attitude to Twitter.

I have left this one up for a long time. I would have thought that the readership was smooth suave and sophisticated. More James Bond than Jummy Cagney, Think Erudite.

Well when it comes to Twitter - the sentiment is that they are Luddites and it would appear - happy to be so.

Latest poll results with 9 days left to go are:

I am a Luddite (57%)

I am a sneek peeker (15%)

I find it useful (15%)

I am a manic Tweeter (13%)

Hmmmm anyone care to explain this?

I will comment on it at the end of the poll.

Cheers

Warning... Facebook is Forever - v3.0

I love Microsoft Outlook. Like many people I live in it - it really does help run my life.

Also like many people I have a page on Facebook.

For some time now Facebook has been making access to the pages open. I doubt that many people have been thinking about this. However perhaps you should. Whatever is on your Facebook public profile page or if you have set you account to the default open - then you can have a picture or comments that you might not necessarily thought was viewable outside of Facebook. Think again.

The line between a closed user group and open social networks is now blurring rapidly. The concept of a differentiation between your "true social" and your "extended social" network is no longer totally in your control when you commit to technology such as Facebook. I have commented that many of the open apps out there are building links to the various social network tools like Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Linked-In etc. There is a battle going on between these players for mind share and we are going to be collateral victims whether we like it or not. Let me give you a specific example - there are others - but this one scares the living daylights out of me!!!

I am always trying to look for new tools to improve my productivity. I drown in email as I know many others do. So I found a great tool, I have been using it for about a year now - xobni. That's inbox spelled backwards. Its a great tool... but...
there is a catch. They mine data from the social network accounts and show the data on them.

Well a warning they are using the open access links to access the data on your Facebook. At first it was just the image. Well now it has gone deeper as the access into your social network goes viral.

So if your picture or latest comments on Facebook happen to be of a salacious nature - then it will appear in the image box to the right. More so its conceivable that when your job interview email arrives on the desk of XYZ Corp for the job of newest hot shot of Client relations it will also bring up other data. Also it is quite conceivable that there was a relationship between a third party that you both know (for example the chap who got you that interview) who just happened to be having an affair with the same person you are having an interview with the relationship will show up... OK so a little far fetched but the possibility has been there for a while and is now very real. Oh yes and by the way - I pulled a few things off my Facebook as a result. I think I am going to edit some of my "network" out.... Also I think I am a little late to the party on this one. I did a search using variants of "Where does Facebook Appear" and there is a lot of instances to give you sleepless nights.

So once again - you have been warned. Facebook is forever...

Cheers

So Let's Look Deep Into Twitter - UPDATE

I have been scouring around looking for a good independent source of information on how Twitter is used.

I finally found one.

Have a look here... it is everything you want to know about Twitter and how people use it.

http://sysomos.com/docs/Inside-Twitter-BySysomos.pdf

It is a fascinating look a the world of Twitter. Some interesting results are that a large percentage of stuff is generated by Bots of some sort or another. I suspect that number will rise dramatically over time. Of course as we have seen then there are surrogate Tweeters (people who Tweet on behalf of others) and other what I would term insidious behaviour that not only damages the credibility of the Tweeter but of the whole value of Twitter.

Of course you don't have to agree with me - far from it. But anyone assuming that Twitter will continue to grow and become a force for the future must take into consideration the amount of crap that goes with it.

So I say again - when will someone come up with a value service that lets me control the amount and relevancy of the Tweets that are out there...

Dream on - or maybe not... I am the eternal optimist.

For another look at Twitter - including 40% of mindless babble - look at the white paper from Pear Analytics

http://www.pearanalytics.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/Twitter-Study-August-2009.pdf

Lord help us from the crap!

Cheers

Twitter "A Fad?"

I realize that there will be a lot of people who will not be happy about this post. But I only report the facts ma'am.

Disclaimer first!

I am not a huge fan of Twitter and believe that the adoption of Twitter is overblown and hyped. Having used it - I believe it has some value in specific circumstances - but not to the level that the hype might have led all of us.

So it was very interesting to read about the media storm around Matthew Robson (aged 15 years and 7 months) and his piece which Morgan Stanley has published:

http://media.ft.com/cms/c3852b2e-6f9a-11de-bfc5-00144feabdc0.pdf

OK so this was widely reported. Now comes some hard evidence that says that the expectation of the behaviour of teenagers by adult pundits may indeed be all wrong.

Today eMarketer published some interesting stats from Neilsen and (surprisingly HBR). In April, Nielsen Online found that only about 40% of the service’s new users return the following month. A Harvard Business School study estimated that most Twitter users sent an average of only one tweet in their lifetime.

Find the article here:

http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007185

I highly recommend reading both Matthew's piece and then the hard data from eMarketer. It puts things in context.

So it would seem that Twitter may at best be a niche tool and service may indeed be a fad.

At this point you will probably hear some of the audience exclaim that I am a curmudgeon. At the appropriate time perhaps I am. However I am not keen to use Twitter to communicate my message. It is just too restrictive and not functional enough.

Twitter is at least more useful than Second Life as a business tool. However its fall from grace may be just as spectacular. After all its just Twitterrhea...

Cheers

The Future Past History of Twitter

Thanks to Professor Joe for this one....

http://mv.asterisco.pt/cat.cgi?A%20Future%20History%20of%20Twitter

Quite entertaining!

However there is a serious point underlying the humour here. Twitter is flavour de Jour. Does it have legs as a utility application?

I am struggling with this question. I do believe that Twitter can have value - I commented on this after the Mumbai attacks and experiencing it at a conference (PCW last November).

But there is so much drivel coming out of the Tweets that people are putting out. We still have bad behavior. Let me give you an example. I follow several bloggers who are what I loosely call "Scoopers" they are in a situation to put out nuggets of information that have importance to the context that is my particular set of interests. However this is where the mining of these nuggets gets hard. Because one of the chaps who does this (and really valuable stuff there is too) also intersperses the tweets of value with absolute drivel about his lunch habits.

So I have come to a conclusion that one thing that unfettered data has unleashed on us is the lack of valuable context. In Newspapers for example the medium creates the context. Thus if a journalist I follow and read for his wisdom publishes in a Newspaper I can easily see and know that he is speaking from his professional view. Imagine if you will that all of a sudden his personal emails appeared right next to his columns? That is how I feel that me (as an audience member) is being "abused". I really dont want to know about his intimate details. I dont want or need to know about what he thinks about the color of the waitress's uniform.

Twitter doesnt care. Indeed there are many social media "channels" or outlets that also subject the reader to the same abuse. Facebook - are you listening.

However my biggest complaint about Twitter is the sheer volume of data that is pushed out unfiltered. So the big part of the history that is missing - and to me the killer Twitter app/behaviour - is/will be the context button.

So someone out there PLEASE invent a Twitter filter mechanism that is going to protect me from this digital garbage that is drowning me.

And here is an appeal. If you must Tweet - then consider that there is a social context to your output but also consider the need for a business context.

Twitter - I think you have to put this into the design and enhance the value of Twitter. I for one as a Tweet watcher will be much happier.

And thank you for limiting your Tweets.... Have a nice day!

"Everyone's Gone To The (Twitter) Moon"

(Parody with a tip o' the hat to the original by Jonathan King 1965)

Web full of people, all alone
Facebook full of users, never home
Idol full of singing, out of tune
Everyone's gone to the Twitter moon

MySpace full of sorrow, completely wet
Obama's full of money, all in debt
Wall Street disappears in the middle of June
Everyone's gone to the Twitter moon

Long time ago, life had begun
Everyone went to Google's sun

Teens full of Tweets, engrossed and full
140 Characters full of nothing at all
Hands that can only lift a Phone
Everyone's gone to the texting moon
Everyone's gone to the Cell phone moon
Everyone's gone to the Twitter moon

Fade...


"Twitter's growth has accelerated from 33% in January, to 55% in February and now 131% in March. At a growth rate of 131% a month, literally every single person alive on the planet will have a Twitter account by the end of this year." www.revenuetoday.com

Warning: Facebook is FOREVER

I cringe - as I am sure most of us do - when I think of some of the really stupid things I did as a teenager and "young" adult. However since I am old the capturing of these indiscretions and events was limited to first hand experiences and perhaps the odd, bad and decaying photograph.

This past weekend one of my old school friends came by and we hadn't seen each other in a very long time. Pulling out the old photo albums was a big laugh for us all. We did get around to discussing the difference between our own generation and those of our offspring. He even has grandchildren. What a frightening thought and we were born on the same day.

So what of today's teens and young adults. Yesterday I did a post on the use of Twitter. Today there is some additional research out on behavior of Teens and Social Networking. Despite the staggering sheer numbers and percentages (75% of all teens access a social network site or use one of the many tools in 2009), the impact of their behavior seems to be well understood.

These virtual hangouts are rarely private. The relationships undertaken and engaged are not just bilateral but multilateral and very fluid.

I suggest you check out eMarketer's piece on the subject.

http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007041

One paragraph really caught my eye:

"Over 60% of those surveyed acknowledged that the things friends wrote in their profiles could harm their careers. In addition, 48% said they could be embarrassed by what they themselves wrote, and 38% said they regretted some of the items that had appeared on their pages already. "

That has become the price for the value. It somewhat de-sensitizes the participants. Just because everyone is doing it doesn't make it right - in my public and personal opinion - this is not something I am going to give up easily and never without question. Definitely not for all time and for every situation.

Speaking from my perspective - I have been tracking people on the social network sites for purposes of understanding them. When it comes to hiring people (which my team does on a fairly constant basis) for both contract and full time recommendations - I ALWAYS check. (and not just Google alone). From the social networking side - I am always looking to see if there is someone we know and have in common that I can get an opinion on rather that just relying on the polished public version of what is being said.

The Wayback machine can actually reveal some pretty horrid stuff about you as does Google and other tools. And yes Virginia it is FOREVER... This blog too!

1979's tag line for the first Alien movie is updated...

On the web EVERYBODY can see you...

You have been warned

OK So... What Is Twitter?

I get a lot of invites to Twitter. I doubt that I am alone. I have been on Twitter for a while and as regular readers know - I am not enamored with the concept of Twitter.

So I have taken to asking people what they like/dislike about it - but more importantly what they think Twitter is.

Using the famous barstool research methodology, the most common response is "Web 2.0" or "its a social networking thing."

And what does Twitter think it is? And I quote:

"About Twitter

Twitter is a unique approach to communication and networking based on the simple concept of status. What are you doing? What are your friends doing—right now? With Twitter, you may answer this question over SMS or the Web and the responses are shared between contacts."

So anyone using Twitter to communicate more than status s\is not playing the game properly.

Well I think that's about 8 Million.. or so - including that well known Tweeter John McCain who personally approves his Tweets...

Web tracking firm Comscore did a study in February on Twitter users. Here is part of the study results:

...Twitter users who are in the 35-to-44-year-old age group spend nearly 20 minutes on the microblogging site at any given visit, according to comScore. That's compared to those aged 18 to 24 who only spend 5.3 minutes on the site, and 25- to 34-year-olds who spend 5.8 minutes tweeting and reading tweets. However, after the 35-to-44-year-old age group, time spent on Twitter drops off again. Users aged 45 to 54 spend 7 minutes on Twitter, but the number bumps up to 9.3 minutes for those aged 55 to 64.

Personally I think the numbers have more to do with dexterity and ADD than a usage profile.

What do you think?

Cheers

Scientists Warns of Twitter Dangers

OK - I just could not resist this one...

Several Scientists including Professor Mary Helen Immordino-Yang - lets call her Prof 18.57% as that is how much her name takes up out of the standard Twitter message space of 140 characters - have issued warnings in recent studies.

According to CNN there are a wide variety of de-sensitizing influences at work on us as a result of such things as Twitter.

I recommend you read this article from the post on the news channel...

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/TECH/ptech/04/14/twitter.study/index.html

You be the judge but I for one - am just drowning in all these Tweets....

Cheers

Hws Twtr 4U?

Twitter seems to be everywhere. I groaned last night to see Twitter even on a TV commercial. Its everywhere on the US Cable News networks. It brought out people on the streets in Moldovia. ITS EVERYWHERE.

Granted it has its uses - and I am sure that there are a goodly number of people who are very happy with it and are madly Tweeting away to their friends. Heck yes - I even Tweet occasionally.

So how is it doing in terms of traffic say compared to MySpace, FaceBook and 2nd Life?

Facebook with no business model (who needs one!) has just passed 200 million users. It is maturing and newbies are coming from the older more affluent types rather than just college users. It has spread wildly throughout the world except for China where it is officially frowned on. Its fellow competitor MySpace seems to have lost momentum. And probably last year around May it lost its pole position to Facebook. Secondlife has been slowly declining as people moved on to shinier toys to play with. The Real World is way more interesting than the virtual one. Twitter on the other hand has shot out of nowhere and is now well into the top 100 sites. Remember that it has a number of non-web activities so the actual amount of traffic being generated makes it probably one of the largest perpetrators of ... digital junk. Yes friends it seems like the whole world has caught the Twitterrhea disease.

Just wait till someone starts sending ads through the Tweets... UGH!!!

Will The Airlines REALLY Use Social Media For Consumer Interaction?

Everyone is all a-Twitter these days. Wonderful and wild stories are circulating of Airlines being eagle eyed and capturing and more importantly responding to messages that are dealing with real time issues via Twitter, FB or blogs. Alaska, jetBlue and Southwest are frequently named for doing just that.

OK everyone ...
Stand back.
Get your noses out of the Koolaid trough.
Take a deep breath.

Is there anyone out there who honestly thinks airlines are going to have armies of people who are sitting around waiting to read every Tweet on some little problem? is it just me or is this a completely MAD notion?

This is NOT the right use of Twitter, nor is it an expectation that anyone in their right mind should even think is realistic.

The airlines have never - repeat never - engaged in two way communication with their consumers except at the coal face - boarding gate and onboard.

Don't get me wrong - there are some good uses of Twitter, Facebook and Blogs for the airlines to communicate with their customer base. But let's be realistic, this is not 1:1 it is 1:N where N is many - as in thousands or millions.

Forums and message boards have been managed by airlines and other suppliers for many years - this is not new. Social Media is just a spiffed up version of these tool sets. Just read the blogs put out by the suppliers. Some are refreshingly honest and even helpful. But most are still put out by - well PR Hacks. Even Southwest's efforts in Social Media is managed by their PR department.

I am slamming their efforts - far from it - I think this is a very positive trend. But let's not kid ourselves that this is not an open and frank dialogue and customer interaction tool.

If you believe that this is the case and you disagree with me - then clearly you believe in the tooth fairy and I have some choice ocean front real estate in Nevada you might be interested in.

Cheers

Reflecting on Blogging, Tweeting and Social Media

So I admit that perhaps I am not as youthful as I once was. Social Media has definitely changed the way we do things. It has altered my life. It is decidedly a 2.0 activity. However I cannot say that I am truly comfortable with the chaotic nature of the communication tools.

Blogging was not something I took to easily. I am not a writer or a Journalist. However I hope that what I contribute to the ether is useful and valued. I do have people come up and say so (real people real conversations) as well as quite a lot of feedback. Not everyone agrees with things I write. That is one of the beauties of the new channels of communication. It is direct and it is clear and the 2 way nature of the channel makes its impact all the more greater in contrast with the traditional media.

Over the last 2 days, I subjected my Facebook and Twitter network to my Tweets streaming from the CASMA Sprint 2009 conference.

Twitter has a definitive function in Social terms but I remain skeptical about its generalized business use. I think it can be so in the future but right now it's just not quite there.

I dont think I am going to do it again - at least for a while. It requires a degree of responsibility and well it just interferes with the process of comprehending to what is being said perhaps my multi-tasking skills are not quite as good as I thought.

So my reflection on the process is that I think there are some things I am very comfortable with - such as Blogging and Facebook. These are more akin to DIY Publishing and a personal website.

However I still prefer the more normal use of email because I can target to specific people and groups knowing that my addressing is real and controlled. This is not the case for Blogging, Facebook and even more so for Twitter.

The decline of conventional media like newspapers to me is a lost asset, a national treasure. I morn the death of my own local paper. But I am as much of a contributor to its demise as anyone. I haven't used a classified ad in well 6 years that I can remember. I use Craig's list. I largely ignore the news paper ads. So much paper goes straight to recycling. I have a DVR and skip through the commercials. So with all these new tools come new responsibilities and new realities.

It is these new obligations that I find a little hard to absorb. But the biggest issue of all is what I would call the infoglut. Junk data. The extra work that I have to invest to sort through the trash of people's ramblings (mine included). I do try to keep my output focused and valuable. But others don't. There seems to be an expectation that someone (the magical hand of god) will rise and cure this problem. That is part of what I find a conundrum. The expectation that someone else will fix it. I have no such confidence. I also don't feel good about choosing solutions that are clearly bad or compromised just because its the only option out there. The rise of power of Google is a good example. On balance doesn't make Google a universally good company.

So with this - I complete my 999th Blog entry.

Tomorrow - maybe even today - then I will write my 1000th

Cheers

Worldwide Outbreak of Twitarrhea.

Surprising to some - it may be said - but the Professor is not always an early adopter of technology. He is however a very keen gadget hound and usually tries everything at least once. He opines (in the third person) that its a bit like sushi... how do you know if you are going to die unless you try it...

OK so back to the first person and I think I have said before that I find Twitter a little obtrusive. Now I am beginning to find it annoying in certain cases. I do find there are some very good times when Twitter Tweets are very useful. I have noted before that they are great during conferences and probably during emergency situations. But for the rest - well I just have a hard time justifying my very precious time with perhaps a lot of junk.

So my problem is that I don't have the ability to edit it or to know if the person is sending valuable information in the tweets or just describing the contents of their lunch. So it would seem that we are now beginning to suffer a worldwide viral explosion of the new disease Twitarrhea.

This new and it would seem quite pervasive disease is characterized by very often quite rational and sane people using their cellphones to engage in mindless activities and opinions of seldom any relevance. And just because it can be done in 140 characters should not be an excuse to send a stream of the effluent.

It this wasn't bad enough it seems that there is a secondary disease that affects an even greater percentage of the population called Spanish Tweettimetheftuenza. (With full apologies to the people of the Iberian peninsula). This secondary disease could be more harmful to the world than Twitarrhea in that it has now stolen many billions of minutes of people's time causing reduced productivity in the workplace and relationship strain and breakup.

For some extreme examples of Twitarrhea - I refer you to the famous Robert X Cringely.

http://weblog.infoworld.com/robertxcringely/archives/2009/03/escape_from_the.html?source=NLC-NOTES&cgd=2009-03-16

I often admonish my readers to be careful and be warned to terrible afflictions. This is perhaps the most important warning I have given to date.

DON'T DO IT. If I may quote one of the most famous statements of all time (and butcher it just a little) from Walt Disney's Bambi:

"If you cannot Tweet something nice then don't tweet anything at all"