think native

I don’t think an online movement has ever attracted the kind of naked contempt and sometimes actual anger that Twitter does, from those who don’t understand it.

So when I have a friend who is asking incredulously why I waste my precious time on Tweetie or Tweetdeck, this is how I try to explain it.

It’s not a glorified Facebook status

I think much of the confusion comes about as a result of people viewing it as a social networking tool. I don’t believe that Twitter is about conversation, like Facebook or discussion forums or even instant messenger. As the term ‘microblogging’ suggests, the focus is much more about broadcasting.

It’s is about sharing valuable stuff; news, opinion, ideas, entertainment (for some of us hearing somebody rant about their tube journey constitutes entertainment).

No, I’m not interested in what Britney had for breakfast either

So if Twitter is a multi-million-channel broadcast network, then you simply need to choose which channels you find most valuable. If you don’t want to know celebrity gossip or the latest football transfer rumours or the finer points of fluid dynamics, then choose accordingly. After all, one man’s tube rant is another’s comedic gold.

There are no lead times to sharing

Not even the time it takes to write a blog post like this. That valuable stuff I mentioned earlier can be sharing instantaneously, in some cases making that valuable stuff even more useful.

It allows valuable stuff to travel across our natural spheres of connectedness

You don’t have to create valuable stuff in order to create value - the Retweet allows this valuable stuff to quickly jump the usual barriers to word-of-mouth, utilising a myriad number of people who overlap into different circles of influence. This is why an idea can spread so quickly across the Twitterverse.

It feels good to share

Whether it’s the cynic’s opinion that everybody wants their 15 seconds of internet fame, or a more humanist one, that everyone wants to feel that they’re contributing to the greater good; there’s no denying the personal satisfaction when something you have found or created begins to spread through the community. It’s kind of addictive. But that’s ok, because it means more people will share more valuable stuff more often.

So that’s what I reckon Twitter is for - probably the only slightly controversial thing I’ve said is that Twitter isn’t about conversation. However, as with this blog post, there’s always an opportunity to discuss something that’s been shared - so it’d be great to hear what you think.

A friend of mine recommended this producer out of Finland who creates beautiful ambient and downtempo electronica - here’s his bio:

“Planet Boelex is an electronic music project originating from Finland, started in 2004, consisting of only one member. Self-taught, learning music by experimenting on computer-based “tracker” softwares. Planet Boelex released the first freely downloadable EP “Sinking in the soup” in Janurary 2005, on one of the oldest netlabels in existence, Monotonik. This five track release shaped the sound of Planet Boelex, which could be defined as soft, melodic electronica, fused with influences from ambient and IDM. Still faithful to the style, continuing with new EP releases on the netlabels Ogredung, Monotonik and Kahvi Collective, all freely downloadable under the Creative Commons -licensing. During the years 2006 and 2007 Planet Boelex has performed live in Finland, Estonia, Italy, Croatia, United Kingdom, Russia, Latvia and Lithuania.”

All his music is free and available to share under the Creative Commons 3 license (attribution and no commercial uses, with no derivative works), so click on over and enjoy!

http://www.boelex.org/

The Moleskine is reputedly (or is that ‘allegedly’) the notebook of choice for artists and writers, counting Picasso, Matisse and Hemingway among its owners. Of course it’s hard to see the real history of the brand through the slightly smokey marketing but that hasn’t stopped them amassing a loyal and creative fanbase.

I came across this group in Flickr, mainly because one of our painfully talented designers at Saint is a contributor (and definitely one of the best).

http://www.flickr.com/groups/moleskinerie/

Proof that we don’t need to leave old ways of creativity behind in order to share and build communities online - it’s dedicated to beautiful examples of Moleskine notebook pages: sketches, collages, in some cases just delighting in the handwritten word in this era of digital type.

Here’s one of my favourites:

And more here from Rob.