how much of a nerd are you?

Ok, so while on twitter today....

Yeah, I know. I'm a nerd. Sort-of. Any blog that might start with "while on twitter today" automatically brings in you into that club. But for me, I'm just hyper-interested in how people communicate, so, most of the time, I just join because it sort of quells my inner monster. I have to figure out this new thing, so I join and in doing so, up my nerd quota.

I have been using twitter specifically to see how it works. I joined during the Canadian elections to check in a see how the liberal parties and NDP were using it. I didn't even search for the conservatives. Why would I need more blather in my life? Anyway, it was interesting to get updates from the parties, and I was more engaged than I ever have been, so I guess it worked for me. I ran a polling station too, so I earned more points for joe-citizen involvement. But the quest to conquer twitter began because of the man in the post before this one - Mr. Obama. He used twitter to announce his running mate. As a communicator, this was a pretty ballsy decision. He recognized the value of twitter and gave an exclusive story/piece of information to a whole young technology-aware group of people who had already spoken up and said - yeah, us, our generation? yeah, we like our info in bite size pieces. We like it quick and easy. We like it delivered in this way - and we don't have time to watch the news at 6 o'clock - no, we, us, our generation, we want you to speak to us directly.

The thing is, people have a fixed view of what they think this technology is. When I bring it up in conversation, people glaze over and think it's just another time waster. What I've learned is exactly the opposite. Twitter is a social engagement tool that is very functional. You can tune in or out. You can choose what info you want. You never get too much and if you want more info, there is usually a link, or a person to follow, that will flesh out the story or the idea. The example I've used in what type of info people generally post online is this - rather than send a message that says "I love my shampoo" people are getting on twitter and saying "I love my shampoo because XXX" and the XXX is a link to more information. People make it functional because it's more interesting. I currently follow @themediaisdying since I tend to work with a lot of media and they update and let everyone know what they've heard about layoff or role changes in the media in North America. Quickly. Functionally. It's digestable and informative.

I've been particularly enamored that the people who are giving it the most credibility are in the political arena. Basically, by getting Obama and any other political party hooked up on twitter, they are saying, yes, we accept this is a form of valid social engagement. It's legitimate. And if you don't pay attention you'll get left behind.

So now that you're interested, I dare you to sign up and look up the folks @twestival. You'll see that they're using this platform to engage people from all around the world to raise funds for charities. They're bringing what is a simple free technology platform into the real everyday world and they're making people stand up and make a difference. I don't just think it's interesting - I think it's the new way that people should approach things. So, look up @twestival and ask them to RT (retweet) the info. You'll be impressed.

In other news, if you want to waste your time or laugh a little check out these guys. Another exercise in micro-blogging... You'll come out understanding what FML means and you'll have something to talk about at your next social gathering. Enjoy!