OK, so before you start, you can read that in different ways, and it made you look didn’t it. Exactly.
But I have to say, it was refreshing to hear Simon Chen calling it as it is and expressing something that I’ve been waffling on about over beers for some time but never here… WTF is it about Second Life and Twitter?
Sure, I get the fact that it’s nice, and very addictive, to get and send texts all the time, and that you can form a closer relationship with a community (or join in with a community) via that, but even on that front it just doesn’t grab me.
And it’s not really micro-blogging, because it’s not really publishing… it’s more like micro-email.
Same with Second Life… it’s full of whizz-bang FX, and again it’s got a very addictive quality (speaking as an old skool Sim City-er!), but fundamentally it does little for me except remind me of hanging out in a chat room all those years back, with voice.
Besides, it’s even more screwed than Twitter as it’s entire model depends on people using an alternative environment, at least Twitter has the web / phone thing just about right.
For my $0.02 I don’t think you’re too old Simon, I think it’s just a matter of taste… whereas facebook, blogging and web apps (although I’m not too sure about Mahalo :) have a kind of universal appeal, dare I say to be subverted as you wish, and can slip into anyone’s pocket, the specific thing about SL and the big ‘T’ is that they aren’t.
They’re geared towards very specific audiences, and for those audiences, they’re the best thing since sliced bread. They get hooked, and this is why (I suspect) we get to hear so very much about them.
Which isn’t to say that they’re not worthwhile, just that it’d be nice to hear slightly less about them.
But then, addictions can be very consuming.
James,
I agree with you. I just don’t understand the Twitter phenomenon. I feel like it has become some kind of digital fraternity. Or it is like my childhood days when the CB radio was all the rage in the states. I would sit and talk to strangers for hours on that thing, but basically we said nothing.
It seems as if people are trying so hard to find an educational application for Twitter, but I still don’t see one.
Can anyone explain the big deal to me?
I know… in terms of educational applications I’ve been racking my brains as to how that could work but can’t get further than ‘admin and information’ and ‘class community (kindof… but not really).
Nice read, I agree with you
Dale
http://dzrbenson.com/blog/
Hi James,
Twitter is amazing for education – after all it’s primary function is to distribute links and act as a social media aggregator and distribution channel. In other words, act as a reference/referring tool this post will help you get started :)
BTW I can’t see my details with white writing on a yellow back ground, and can you add in the Preview module? :) Thanks dear
Hi James, I’m involved in a love-hate relationship with Twitter myself so I enjoyed your post. Seems like all the cool kids in my field use it, so if I don’t what does that mean? I’ve accepted that I’m an outsider and a dork but when I don’ t ‘listen in” on the tweets I feel like I’m falling behind in something more than the latest gossip–it’s a form of professional development to stay current. But I also feel that participating is like being someone’s media wh*re or licking the popular boy’s shoes. LOL Seriously, I just switch it off when I’m sick of the whole thing and get back on when I feel like it or have free time. Same with hanging out in the edublogosphere, I might add.
Please, who can you send me to who might answer my questions about fixing my edublogs.org space since the Christmas 2007 updates disabled my old theme? Thanks!
Hi Suzanne, what was the theme? To the rest of ya thanx for the ideas and sympathy ;)