Generally, I really enjoy using Twitter. I’m not exactly sure why that is, but all in all I like it. I think it mostly has to do with exposing me to a subset of people that I don’t get in my IRC and IM windows. However, there are some trends in use that piss me off…
- Thanking people for following you. Stop it, right now, everyone. Just freaking stop it. If over 1% of your tweets are thanking people for following you, I will smack you when next I see you. Maybe I’m bucking the etiquette, but this annoys me more than anything else.
- Feeling that you need to follow the people that follow you. No, you don’t. Its a broadcast medium, and while it can be used for chat, it doesn’t mean you have to. The closer your following:follower ratio is to 1:1 the less I think you actually have to say and thought you put into Twitter. If you’re reading the whole world, how to you have time to create your own thoughts?
- Changing your avatar more often then you change underwear. You’re not that pretty nor witty, knock it off.
- Tweeting only that you have a new blog post. Stop it! I already have an RSS reader, kthx.
That’s my top four. I’m sure I’m guilty of some from time to time, but damn it, stop it! I try to. And I’m sure I’ll come up with more, maybe I’ll make this a series.