Michael Arrington put up an interesting post on TechCrunch recently regarding Twitter’s continued growth in popularity, stating “I realized that in the last two months a subtle shift occurred: I now need Twitter more than Twitter needs me.”
For me Twitter became indispensable in March 2008, when my usage skyrocketed (I started using a desktop client to read and write messages) – see image above. It is now an important part of my work and social life, as I carry on bite-sized conversations with thousands of people around the world throughout the day. It’s a huge marketing tool, and information tool. But it is also a social habit that’s hard to kick.
While I hate to agree with him, it really made me wonder if we become so dependent on services that no others will do. Twitter, like most online applications has many copycat competitors. Jaiku and Pownce quickly come to mind, and while I knew that neither seemed to have the power to attract a wide audience that Twitter has, I had hoped that Pownce would compete well against Twitter due to its advanced features.
I was wrong in thinking this would be the case, as even Pownce and Jaiku supporters jump on board the Twitter bandwagon, some telling themselves that Twitter is just their status update, and Pownce is their communication tool, isn’t that right Kevin Rose?
When I saw Kevin Rowse, one of the people responsible for Pownce, using Twitter more and more, I realized how powerful the brand had become. I think we can safely say that like Coke, Kleenex and others, Twitter has become synonymous with being “the” short update service.
I still think though, that some missteps could ruin Twitter, and I hope that Twitter, and other online services dependent on users adoption keep that in mind as they continue to move their businesses forward. Just remember, even search engine popularity has changed over the decades, so continue to be forward thinking, serve your user base, and take care of your users, or no matter how popular you think you are, they will leave you.
If you want to follow me on Twitter, check out www.twitter.com/davidcubed
Oddly enough, the system I use the least is also my most powerful. My desktop computer was put together by me, and includes an Antec Sonata II case, Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 processor, two gigabytes of DDR2 ram, and 750 gigabytes of hard drive space. I use a wireless HP keyboard, a super cheap Logitech optical mouse, and have a reasonably decent 19-inch Samsung LCD. I have both Ubuntu Linux and Windows Vista on this computer, and I spend about equal time in both operating systems now.
I have two laptops, though one has become my wife’s more than mine. I have my MacBook Pro which I do almost all of my work on, and then a IBM ThinkPad T43 which I check out web development work using Windows XP. The MacBook Pro was purchased just before the most recent update in its specs, meaning mine is a 2.16GHz model with a single gigabyte of ram. Of course I use OS X 10.4 on the MacBook Pro, but I hope to update to Leopard as soon as certain important things are fixed.
My camera is a few years old now, but it is one of the first free gadgets I received from my blogging work with 
For the myriad of podcasts I do, I have my trusty USB microphone, the Samson Q1U which I ordered off someone on eBay. It is a very professional feeling microphone and works really well for podcasting. For the most part, any sound degradation you hear in the podcast is usually due to my incompetence as an audio editor.
To help me unwind or just to keep me happy, I have my two consoles, the Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii. I consider these to be some of the smartest purchases I have made, despite also being the most tempting distractions.