# Twitter and Vote



## kc5fm (Oct 12, 2008)

Twitter.

It's been mentioned in the California wildfire thread.

It could be a useful tool, IMO, for monitoring for civil unrest during the election given the resource popularity. Another resource is reporting some difficulties.


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## JeepHammer (Oct 10, 2008)

kc5fm said:


> Twitter.
> 
> It's been mentioned in the California wildfire thread.
> 
> It could be a useful tool, IMO, for monitoring for civil unrest during the election given the resource popularity. Another resource is reporting some difficulties.


I wonder what happened to all those riots and stuff they were forecasting...?
Looks like sports fans were way more dangerous than voters.


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## TechAdmin (Oct 1, 2008)

Twitter is an awesome concept for emergency information but I think it could be abused as well giving out false information.


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## kc5fm (Oct 12, 2008)

*Tweets*



Dean said:


> Twitter is an awesome concept for emergency information but I think it could be abused as well giving out false information.


In the social networking arena, it would be important to know who you are following.


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## TechAdmin (Oct 1, 2008)

Very true! Would be great for my area to get tornado warnings texted straight to my cell phone.


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## kc5fm (Oct 12, 2008)

*Working on it*



Dean said:


> Very true! Would be great for my area to get tornado warnings texted straight to my cell phone.


YOu can already do that, Dean.

MyStateUSA and EmergencyE provide that service.

However, I'm working with some vendors to offer that service out to Twitter. Until then, follow WeatherWatches at Twitter.


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## kc5fm (Oct 12, 2008)

*Twits*



Dean said:


> Twitter is an awesome concept for emergency information but I think it could be abused as well giving out false information.


In the case of the Mumbai event, it was noted during the heat of battle that the enemy was monitoring Tweets.

There's a good summary of the event.

The Twitter service allows direct connections. These hit the cellphone of the person following you. They are not posted on your personal timeline.

The American Red Cross is using Twitter as part of their Safe and Well program.


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## Laddyboy (Dec 5, 2008)

What exactly was the website Twitter made and used for as originally intended?


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## endurance (Nov 26, 2008)

Just before the DNC came to Denver, the state started up an automatic notification service. I signed up the first week it was available and cancelled the service the next week. I was getting 3-10 e-mails a day telling me about road closures that weren't anywhere even close to me. If you can't screen out the meaningful events from the meaningless events, it's just more background noise.

I haven't checked out Twitter yet, but I'll give it a look. I'm already a Blackberry addict, so all I need is another gadgety feature.


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## kc5fm (Oct 12, 2008)

*Twitter*



Laddyboy said:


> What exactly was the website Twitter made and used for as originally intended?


Twitter  is part of the WEB 2.0 effort.

There is no new Internet. The version 2.0 Web is the way the net is used with a plethora of new applications.

Web 2.0 for most folks speaks to social networking sites. Twitter was a 140-character social network effort. Why 140 characters? That's the character limit for many cell phones on Text Message.

Like this site, a social network site comes along to enable communication. Unlike this site, using Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, etc. there is no EASY way to interact from a mobile device. Looks like Dean is adding Web 2.0 interfacing to the site. You can share to Facebook and a host of others.

This is very important to the Generation X and Y folks. They care about who they follow. In fact, they very well may be selective about who they follow. Their followers will want to know their every move (so they think).

Twitter, in its most rudimentary form, is a GIANT party line (item four on my phone) where everyone's comments about anything are recorded. YOUR Twittering is roaming through the room, hearing something said that makes you think something you write back to the person commenting. One continuous buffet of text could be used to describe Twitter.

Part of the Web 2.0 experience is that, for example, on FACEBOOK and MySpace, I have friends. They like those respective services. Some are on both; most are not.

So, as a concerned Civil Servant, I want to engage my Citizens in the place where they are. I don't want them to have to go outside so they can hear the siren when I sound them. I want to give them WARNING inside, where they are, so....

Now, there are services, such as HelloTxt and Ping that let me send my 140-character update that goes to Twitter, Facebook, and Myspace simultaneously. That, in turn, hits their cellphone, email, or web page, depending on how they have their service configured.

OH! There's more! It slices and dices!

Using the adjunct services, such as OutTwit (Outlook to Twitter interface) and HelloTxt, I am no LONGER limited to the 140-character limit. I can write the GREAT American Novel, such as this post, and Twit it to the World. THAT defeats the purpose of quick, IMO. 

Features such as TwitPic lets one Tweet their pictures to their followers. Utility here is that the Citizen can send me a Twit of the tornado they are telling me they are seeing so I'll believe them enough to sound the sirens. 

OH! There's more!

Now I can update Twitter by SMS and Email and when I post to the Altus EM Blog, the update is also sent to Twitter, automatically.

Since I don't have time to sit and monitor mostly boring chit-chat resembling that where Hors d'œuvres are served or a bar, especially a sports bar when the University of Oklahoma is playing, there's a process that scans Twitter and sends me an email of the search terms that interest me. It should be no surprise that Altus is one of them.

Remember, this is communication in its most basic form (at least it's supposed to be). Therefore, it can be used for all sorts of causes, some of which are less than honorable.

The GEN X & Y folks have no problem with this because they KNOW who they follow. After all, they are their _friends_.

As someone noted elsewhere, when one gets information they need to know the communication is accurate. This ONE fact alone is why Snopes is so valuable.

After all, how do YOU know I am who I say I am. Only one person here has actually seen me, face to face.

So now, all that to say that Twitter is a social networking site that ties people together.

One of these days, I'll learn to write less.


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## kc5fm (Oct 12, 2008)

*Using Twitter*



endurance said:


> I haven't checked out Twitter yet, but I'll give it a look. I'm already a Blackberry addict, so all I need is another gadgety feature.


AWH! A gadget GEEK! We are friends already. 

Starting out in Twitter, don't expect miracles from the git-go. It IS a valuable tool especially for communicating with teams and the GEN X/Y folks.

Google [ame="http://www.google.com/search?q=Twitter+101&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-USfficial&client=firefox-a"]"Twitter 101"[/ame] and read all the guides. Someone who has more time than I needs to combine all the guides. 

Here's one of the better ones.

Here's another one.

And one more written by a Blackberry User.

IN the mean time, feel free to follow Altus EM.


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## Homer_Simpson (Oct 19, 2008)

I noticed there are no post to the Prepared Society twitter page, I am following it.

I'll have to look at the crackberry twitter info, thanks for the links


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## TechAdmin (Oct 1, 2008)

Sorry we plan to get started this week with it. Been swamped lately.


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## Homer_Simpson (Oct 19, 2008)

Dean said:


> Sorry we plan to get started this week with it. Been swamped lately.


know the feeling, can't seem to get anything done these days


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## Avarice (Oct 3, 2008)

The crackberry! Haha. 

I have a Myspace and a Facebook and I think that is about all I can handle! I don't have time to let people know what I am doing every second of the day....nor do I care to have them know!

But hey, whatever works for ya.


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