Troubles with Twittering

Even though the popular microblogging tool Twitter has become one of the most popular social networks in the world, many people still experience a lot of troubles with Twittering.

Use caution when tweeting!

If you're having any sort of problems in your twittering efforts, you've come to the right place. You are not alone - many other users who are new to Twitter experience the same difficulties and troubles with twittering. These difficulties usually include dealing with the Twitter interface, interacting with other users, and finally, the last section will cover what sort of troubles excessive Twittering can have in your daily life.

For someone who's new to Twitter, the site’s main page can seem like a complicated and confusing place. Many people have trouble understanding the meaning of the Twitter terminology and the symbols that people use for direct messaging, linking and more. Once you understand the components of your home page, following the latest activity that's going on becomes a lot easier.

• The core of your own twittering activity takes place in the field at the upper left of the screen under the phrase "What are you doing?" This is where you can type up to 140 characters to let people know what you're up to, post links or anything else you'd like to share.
• Just under this field is the list of people that you're following. In this stream you may see "@" and "#" symbols. The "@" is used to directly reply to someone - your message shows up both on your home page and in their message area (see below). The "#" is a hash tag symbol that links to other "tweets" that are based on the same keyword.
• In the upper right menu bar you'll find your picture, name, number of people following you, the number of followers you have and your total number of tweets.
• Under this, there are four pages you can visit - Home, @yourname, Direct Messages or Favorites. Your Home Page displays what's outlined above. **@yourname displays every update someone typed in that they directed to you using the "@" symbol.
  • Direct Messages are like an email inbox where people can send you private messages directly.
  • Favorites is the page that lists your favorite Tweets that you clicked on the star symbol next to them, because you liked the Tweet and wanted to save it.
• Under the search bar, you'll find a "Trending Topics" section that lists the top, most popular keywords on Twitter.
• Finally, the last section on the menu bar is the "Following" section, where you'll find small bio photos of the user profiles for people that are following you.

The major benefit of Twitter is the fact that other people who are on Twitter can follow your updates by becoming your "follower," and you can interact with them both publicly (through @replies) and privately (through direct messages). Some people have trouble messaging on Twitter because it isn't always obvious someone has sent you a public reply message, so unless you check your account often you could miss them. Many people don't even know where to look to find those messages. By understanding the Twitter messaging scheme, you'll be able to avoid this problem.

• Direct Public Messages – These are also known as @replies. If you want to publicly post an update on someone else's home page, you can do so by prefacing the message with the "@" symbol. This message shows up on your home page as well as theirs. When someone sends you a direct public message, you'll see it on your home page and you can also find it by clicking on the @yourname link in your right menu. This will display your entire history of public messages.
• Private Messages – Also known as Direct Messages, or "DMs." If you want to send someone a message but don't want to post it publicly on your wall or theirs, then just go to their profile and click on the "Message" command under the "Actions" menu item on the right. On your own home page, you'll see the number of direct messages people have sent you by the number next to the "Direct Messages" link in your right menu. By clicking on the link you can retrieve those messages. Note: you can only DM someone who is following you, and other people can only DM you if you are following them.

It's important to understand the methods that are available to communicate with others on Twitter, because one of the best ways to gather a good following is by interacting and communicating with other people who are part of this very popular social network.

Sometimes it isn't always obvious what sort of trouble you may find yourself in because of Twitter. However, celebrities serve as excellent examples of how you need to be careful when you use Twitter, or you may find yourself in a bit of hot water.

• Fined for Tweeting - In March of 2009, Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, was slapped with a $25,000 fine by the NBA for complaining about the refereeing of a particular game.
• Celeb Troubles - Fashion designer Dawn Simorangkir sued Courtney Love for Twitter insults.
• Privacy Trouble - British presenter Jonathan Ross accidentally shared his email address with the public.
• No Team Tweeting - The Texas Tech football team is banned from Tweeting during games.
• Military Secrets - Senate hopeful Mark Kirk gets in hot water for sharing his location while on military duty.

These stories should serve as a reminder that you should treat your tweets as though you were sharing the information with the entire world - because you are.

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