@Twitter‘s app has been updated and now is a universal app (works on iPhone & iPad). They took away the custom URL shortening option? #FAIL

I guess Twitter is trying to stay on top of this one because not too long afterwards a nice, friendly email arrived detailing some upcoming changes to Twitter and how 3^rd Party Apps would interact with their service. Specific to me was this section:

Update 2: t.co URL wrapping

In the coming weeks, we will be expanding the roll-out of our link wrapping service t.co, which wraps links in Tweets with a new, simplified link. Wrapped links are displayed in a way that is easier to read, with the actual domain and part of the URL showing, so that you know what you are clicking on. When you click on a wrapped link, your request will pass through the Twitter service to check if the destination site is known to contain malware, and we then will forward you on to the destination URL. All of that should happen in an instant.

You will start seeing these links on certain accounts that have opted-in to the service; we expect to roll this out to all users by the end of the year. When this happens, all links shared on Twitter.com or third-party apps will be wrapped with a t.co URL.

What does this mean for me?

• A really long link such as http://www.amazon.com/Delivering-Happiness-Profits-Passion-Purpose/dp/0446563048 might be wrapped as http://t.co/DRo0trj for display on SMS, but it could be displayed to web or application users as amazon.com/Delivering- or as the whole URL or page title.
• You will start seeing links in a way that removes the obscurity of shortened links and lets you know where each link will take you.
• When you click on these links from Twitter.com or a Twitter application, Twitter will log that click. We hope to use this data to provide better and more relevant content to you over time.

Thanks for reading this important update. Come and check what’s new at http://twitter.com.

Thanks,
The Twitter Team

So now Twitter wants to track shared URLs to ensure the target is safe. I’m sorta ok with this. I mean why wouldn’t I support efforts that make my online experience safer, right? I don’t, however, like giving up freedoms in the name of safety. I don’t enjoy giving up control. I don’t like how Twitter wants to eliminate what may be a legitimate source of income for many users. I don’t like Twitter doing something that makes it harder for companies trying to track and measure their efforts to reach a willing market.

In truth, the only real reason Twitter has for seizing control of how URLs are shortened is to lay the foundations on which they can monetize their service. This is the beginning of a bad relationship with their millions of users. I guess Twitter hasn’t been watching Facebook to learn what NOT to do.

What are your thoughts?

Be Informed Before You Put it On

I recently received a dire warning via email not to wear this shirt. The email also dutifully suggests everyone not blindly buy something and wear it without first understanding its true meaning.

I couldn’t agree more.  I think that once you know the facts of an issue or position its then up to the individual what they then do. To me, it matters not your position on an issue so much as whether yours is formed from ignorance or facts.

So would or wouldn’t you wear it based on some facts or would you make your fashion and other decisions in the dark? Let’s hope it’s on facts because at some point others will see your decisions and ask why you chose to put that on.  It’s a fair question, so have a real answer ready.

Oh, and I love your hat.

So here we go.  If you care to follow then add me, ObiOrion, on Digg.com.  Right now I don’t see my own profile when I do a search so it may take a little time to appear.  I’ll update this post when it does.

Also, since I love comments I’ve left the sign blank on purpose.  Let me know here or @Obiorion what you’d like to see on it. Please remember, this is a family program.  I’ll pick the best one.  Sorry, I can’t afford an independent firm to administer this sweepstake.  The winner will forever have a warm, special place in my heart

Thanks and pass it along!

What are you doing or has school already begun?

I’m far from an expert on Twitter.  In fact, I only gave it a try after hearing a real expert go on and on about it for probably the tenth time.  What I’d classify myself as would be a borderline addict.  I’m more a voyeur than anything else.  Don’t let the 10500+ tweets fool you.  I read more than I tweet.  Also, I’ve been exchanging comments on twitter for a little over a year and for a time the majority of my tweets this past year were about ABC’s LOST <==R.I.P. I’ve noticed questions/issues raised about those a person follows versus followers.  It’s almost childishly comes off as I’ll follow you if you follow me and it made me wonder why people follow others and how they choose whom to follow.

In my case I tend to follow users that seem intriguing, engaging, or offer a service of interest.  As for the reverse, well I offer no service so my first guess would be that oddly enough they find me intriguing and/or engaging enough to follow.

Alas, that guess isn’t always correct.  I learned that back when I protected my tweets.  Not going to get into why because that’s not all that important.  What is is while I was protecting my tweets I’d get follow requests almost daily (yeah, I was suprised too) and in searching for some means of validating the requests searched for a tool to help.  What I needed back then was a means of building a picture regarding the requester.  Short of reading their tweets, I wanted to quickly see if we had anything in common.  In the world of twitter that commonality would be in the people we followed or those that followed us.  After getting several recommendations via the HiveMind I settled on one and gained better control.  In the process I came to learn of tools that completely managed your follow/followers for you.

It happened when I stopped following someone then months later they asked if I was still out there because they hadn’t seen a tweet form me.  Of course I’m not normally a rude person so I responded directly to them.  Turns out, according to them when I unfollowed them they instantly, via 3rd party utility, unfollowed me.  Now I’m not in anyway offended but left wondering why they followed me in the first place?

In truth, I didn’t give the exchange another thought until some pointed out that it’s a common tactic of those who seek only to inflate their numbers to follow people hoping for the follow back.  Sort of a mutual stroking, if you will.  And once they get the follow of that person they then unfollow.  Now in the instances that this tactic has been mentioned the people sharing all seemed miffed.  Upset at being duped into following that person who no longer followed them.  (Confused yet?)  I have to ask why get upset at all?  So what if that person only followed you to get you to follow them and hence build up their follower numbers?  Unless you too are using some automated app to manage your followers then you chose to follow them, right?  So now what?  Unfollow back.

See how it’s pretty childish?

Now I don’t give a hoot who you’ve followed or how you’re cleaning your follow list and getting rid of accounts that have stopped following you.  But for people who feel the need to announce this too all please take it a bit further and ask yourself why you followed them in the first place.  If it’s purely because they followed you then you’re no better then those often referred to as SMD’s (Social Media Douches).  Maybe, just maybe, it was a change in their tastes, interests, or needs that resulted in the unfollow.  Even so, it’s still your business again whether or not you’re going to continue following them.

In the end follow or unfollow — I need not know.  Just do me a favor and grow up about it.

Oh, and it would be so cool if I had 500+ followers.  Yes, I’m being a little snarky.  Key word “little” 

Thoughts?  Why do you follow people on Twitter?