Harnessing The Power Of Twitter
Wednesday, March 26th, 2008Are any of you using a service called Twitter? I’ve been using it for a month or so and can see the possibilities for using it in conjunction
with the Bookshare email list for getting things done and supporting the community. It can lighten the load for the email list, making list membership more workable for those who work
full-time. The email list would still be important for answering questions about scanning, validating books, and such. Twitter could help us keep in touch with other volunteers and would let us talk about the books we’re working on, the websites that help us find those books, and the links we use to get things done. We can also share the titles of books we like and ones we’re ordering to scan. For now, I usually hold off on sharing these things since the email lists have such high traffic. So if the lists are so noisy, why am I suggesting another communication tool? Won’t this just add to the noise? It’s actually reducing the noise level for me, so let me explain.
Twitter is a tool that can complement the list in a powerful way. It’s portable, flexible, doesn’t require any special software, and can help us keep up with various projects in real-time. If you’re using Twitter, follow plumlipstick and I’ll follow you. If you’ve never heard of Twitter, I’ll explain. It works with screenreaders, Braille displays, and even on talking cell phones.
First, the address for Twitter is
http://www.twitter.com .
First I’ll explain what Twitter is and then show you how it can work for Bookshare members and volunteers. Here’s a summary from the Twitter website:
What is it? Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co-workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to
one simple question: What are you doing? Bloggers can use it as a mini-blogging tool. Developers can use the API to make Twitter tools of their own.
Possibilities are endless!How do I use it? Tell us what you’re doing in 140 characters or less! Send your thoughts, observations, and goings-on in your day. Whether you’re “eating
an apple” or “looking foward to the weekend” or “Heading out of town” it’s twitter-worthy. Join us here. All of your personal information including your
phone number is, of course, confidential.But… what is the point? As it turns out, your best friend is probably interested in knowing if you’re “loving the new Radiohead album.” And yes, your Mom may want to know if you’re “skipping breakfast in favor of a latte.” You might want to know if your significant other “feels like taking a roadtrip.” Find out what your friends are doing; keep each other abreast of your quotidian rituals.
Do I need anything special to use Twitter? In order to use Twitter you will need one of these things: an internet connection or a mobile phone.
How can I send updates to Twitter? Send updates to friends and family about what you’re doing in the way that works best for you. Update in myriad ways:
- • from your phone
- • from IM
- • from your logged-in home page
- • from m.twitter.com
• from any of the third party applications on Twitter Fan Wiki , made
by the talented folks who’ve utilized our API.
Now, how can Twitter help us? Here are just a few thoughts. I’m only scratching the surface here.
As of now, I don’t email the Bookshare mailing lists when I start scanning a book. I scan about 20 books a week, and I think some of the email list members who are already complaining about traffic would get annoyed if I sent 20 emails to this list with the title of each book I work on. With Twitter, I could post the title of each book as I start scanning because the
message is very short and is stored on a website, not in someone’s email in box. Right now, I’m scanning a book called The Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder. I can put a note on Twitter saying so. Say that Amber sees my note. She may reply to me and tell me that she wants to validate. So I post to Twitter when the
book is ready. Amber grabs it, and it’s validated quickly. Everyone else gets the read the book more quickly.
Or, say I’m vvalidating a book and am really enjoying it. I can post about that and about the fact that there’s another book in the series that goes first but that isn’t on Bookshare. Darrell Shandrow might see that and realize that he has that book on his shelf at home. Because Twitter uses one-line messages that can be accessed by a cell phone, he might even see this during a break at work or while he’s waiting around for a ride to pick him up from a meeting. He could post that he’s going to scan it, saving
me the cost of buying the book.
Now, this is where it really gets interesting. Public Twitter posts are saved on Google and Yahoo. So say that you are scanning a really popular or cool
book, and a disabled person is searching for an accessible version of that book. Remember, it’s not in Bookshare yet because you’re still scanning it.
You’ve posted about it on Twitter though. The blind searcher sees your Twitter post about the book and asks how she can get a copy. She’s just made the
connection with Bookshare. The person wants the book, so she signs up for Bookshare membership. Her membership becomes active around the time your scan is approved into the collection. Bookshare has gained a new member without spending a dime of its own money on marketing or publicity because we’re doing
it for them. By doing this, we have just leveraged the power of Bookshare’s volunteers and increased Bookshare’s ability to reach people in other places.
What do you all think? Is it worth a try? If you think so, visit
me on Twitter and see what it looks like. Then register for yourself. It’s free and safe. They have audio captcha so blind people can use the site. If you have a hearing impairment, let me know and I’ll help you sign up. The captcha is a one-time deal, and you can still use Twitter just like everyone else. You can use Twitter from your web browser or from your cell phone. No software is installed on your system. You can meet some new friends or get to know your current friends better. You can also be more sociable this way because you won’t
be adding to the volume of the mailing list if you want to talk about your kids, favorite music, your dog, or your garden. See you on Twitter.
