When I started using Twitter, I found hundreds, possibly thousands, of suggestions, tips and resource guides. There was: 101 Twitter Resources ; Ultimate guide to Twitter Tools and Resources for Journalists ; 101 Must See Twitter Resources , and many others. All great resources, but they were focused on quantity, not quality.
As a new user, it’s pretty unsettling to know that there’s this whole social network with it’s own language, syntax, etc. It’s overwhelming to then see lists of 101, or 50, or even 20 resources. Not that these sites don’t provide what they advertise, or that they aren’t useful.
So, as a reasonably new user, I have put together this small guide to Twitter resources. Its concise and not overwhelming. However, if you explore any of these sites, you will quickly find links and references to other sites. In that way, I guess this list can become exponentially more useful as you search the tangents.
Blogs and Sites
Big Juicy Twitter Guide – Caroline Middlebrook is a great resource, not just for Twitter, but for blogging in general. I have found a great deal of value in this Twitter Guide and also in some of her blogging and traffic lessons.
TwiTip.com – This is a great blog/resource published by Darren Rowse. Darren doesn’t contribute every day, but utilizes guest writers from many popular blogs and companies. Though this has higher level articles, it’s not too offputting for new users.
Twitter Fan Wiki – This is a true wiki: anyone can add or edit the pages. This is a cutting edge resource for Twitter software, users, and background.
Desktop
Twhirl – Twhirl is a Adobe AIR powered desktop client. It’s one of the best for entry-level users due to it’s simplicity and simple design.
TweetDeck – TweetDeck is my preferred client. It allows you to separate your tweets into multiple columns for easier digestion. For example, instead of displaying your @mentions, DMs, and All Friends in one column, you are able to separate these and even create search columns. Without TweetDeck, I would have never become a Twitter fan.
Directories
WeFollow – WeFollow is a user powered directory. Twitter users submit their names into up to three categories. Great idea, after all, isn’t Web 2.0 all about user generated content?
Twellow – Twellow calls itself the Twitter Yellow Pages. Well, it certainly seems as advanced as the Yellow Pages… However, in spite of it’s bad design, this site is a strong resource. The main advantage is the sheer number of users listed.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Nice quick guide Erich. You’re certainly right about the NMB list. I wrote that back in January of last year and it really isn’t a great resource for people who aren’t very techie. I’ve just been thinking about putting a new one together that’s a simple walk-through. Thanks for calling it out
Shawn,
I did find it useful, but only now, after a few weeks of Twittering.
I was looking at a few stats about Twitter and most people have very limited depth in their use: They get an account, add a few friends, and then neglect to update. That’s what I did for a while.
Now that I’ve started using Twitter more and discovered what a great resource it is, I thought a brief version would be helpful and not cause people to feel the need to do everything at once.
Thanks for the comment and have fun updating.
Eric
Does anyone know of a Twitter app that will tell you which of the people you’re following are actually following you back?
MyTweeple is said to do it, but you’d have to scroll through your entire list on multiple pages. It’s inefficient at best. I was looking for something more straightforward.
Thanks for the post, Eric D!
@ericpursh
Hey Eric P.,
You can try a service that John Chow has called Twitter Follower. Check it out here:
http://twitterfollower.com/