Journals by RSS
Journals by EmailTwitter has different uses for different people. For me, it’s primarily a professional development tool.
I follow a number of technical writers. I also follow the #techcomm hashtag. I keep Twitter open while I work (to this point, we’re allowed to do so). When someone I follow posts a link on a subject that I’m interested in, or an interesting link is posted to the #techcomm tag, I copy the link to my tasks list in Gmail with a few words from the person’s tweet so that I remember what it’s about.
I usually don’t follow these links while at work for a couple of reasons. First, I’m in the middle of working and don’t want to derail myself by clicking the link; second, the links are typically shortened, and I have no way of knowing where they’ll go (at least not with Twhirl, the Twitter client I’m using). I don’t want to follow a shortened link to a questionable site at work, so I leave them for reading on my personal machine at home so I’m not taking any professional risks.
It is a bit annoying, though, when you’re following a hashtag, and after one person tweets with that hashtag, a bunch of other people retweet. Then you get a broken record clogging things up. But that’s the price of following a hashtag, I suppose.
Out of the people I follow, @dmnguys is the most prolific poster of links to tech comm information and related subjects, such as user experience design and usability. Thanks, Scott and Aaron. I don’t read everything, but you give me a good variety to choose from.
Sometimes I post something that’s just a thought I find humorous. But most of the people I’m connected to via Twitter are technical communicators, so Twitter is a way for me to interact with people in my field with whom I may not interact otherwise. I probably don’t offer them as much as they usually offer me, but over time, I hope that will change.
Related entries (auto-generated):
Well-Phrased Links Help Both Users and Technical Communicators
My First Five Years as a Professional Communicator
Informal Help via Electronic Conversation Can Lack a Certain Professional Quality
Follow-up: A Skill for the Extroverted Technical Communicator
Seriously, Aaron shares in the duties, whether posting or passing on links.
Ben Reply:
January 27th, 2010 at 7:44 am
I read your recent post about the fact that Aaron really does do some of the posts, so I guess it hadn’t sunk in yet.
I’ve updated the post to give you both credit. Thanks for setting me straight.
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Scott Reply:
January 27th, 2010 at 11:53 am
I think that Aaron enjoys being the silent puppeteer in the background. Leaves me to either take the heat or taste the shoe leather
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