Twitter for Dummies - Laura Fitton [50]
Unfortunately, Twitter removed the Track feature, but you can still get the scoop by using search in a similar way:
1. Browse to Twitter Search.
You can scroll to the bottom of any Twitter page and click the Search link or just go to http://search.twitter.com.
2. Enter the search term you want to track in the text box and click Search.
A screen appears, showing the results for all mentions of the term you want to track. You have the option of subscribing to an RSS feed for the search terms — a great idea if you’re a business user and want to monitor mentions of your name, products, brands, or categories.
Remember, search offers advanced features to fine-tune what you want to keep track of. From the Search home page, click Advanced Search and add parameters like sender, recipient, optional keywords, required keywords, timeframes, and even “emotional sentiment” of the tweets you want to see.
Chapter 8
Twitter Minus Twitter.com
In This Chapter
Taking Twitter on the go
Sending your tweets through e-mail and to RSS
Using third-party Twitter applications
Sharing tweets on social networks and blogs
Tweeting even when you’re unavailable by using auto-tweets
You can easily get attached to Twitter simply because once you really get started, you’re bound to discover many interesting and useful things it can do for you. You can literally take Twitter — and the information, ideas, and friends you connect with on Twitter — everywhere. Mobile applications and text messages give on-the-go users the ability to update their timeline and access their network. E-mail and RSS feeds also allow you to pipe your Twitter stream into your favorite RSS reader or e-mail, or onto your mobile device. Because the Twitter platform is so flexible, you can almost do everything you want with Twitter without needing to visit Twitter.com.
Look around the Web, and you’ll see Twitter has become a staple on popular social-networking sites and a standard sidebar feature on many blogs. Because of the many ways that users can access and share Twitter on the Web, you can discover it in all sorts of useful places, from tweets about specific neighborhoods on RentWiki (www.rentwiki.com) to live widgets on major media sites like ABC.com during President Obama’s 2009 State of the Union address.
In this chapter, we show you how you can use Twitter without having to browse to Twitter.com. When you realize how you can access Twitter from anywhere, you’re bound to discover ways to make it even more useful to you.
Tweeting with Your Cellphone
Many twitterers use the service almost exclusively on their mobile phones. You can use Twitter on your mobile device in three ways:
SMS (text messages) to and from 40404 (or your country’s short code)
Twitter’s mobile Web site (http://m.twitter.com) if you have a Web browser on your cellphone
Downloadable applications for smartphones such as the BlackBerry or iPhone
Literally dozens of applications come out for Twitter every couple of months. For more information, and to find the latest Twitter tools, check out Laura’s startup Twitter directory and marketplace oneforty (www.oneforty.com).
Via text messaging
Although text messaging (or SMS) is the most basic way to access Twitter via your cellphone, you need to first make sure that your cellphone plan encompasses unlimited texting. Otherwise, your monthly bill may end up skyrocketing. Check before you enable SMS updates!
After you make sure that you can afford your mobile texting plan, you can easily use SMS to update Twitter on the go. (Turn to Chapter 2 for instructions on how to associate your cellphone with your Twitter account.)
One caveat: The maximum length for a standard text message is 160 characters, but Twitter’s maximum is 140 characters. You have to manually verify that you aren’t going over the Twitter