This Is Why Twitter Is So Compelling!

I know some bloggers aren't into Twitter, not seeing the point of it or wondering what the attraction really is if they do most of their work on PC and don't have a smartphone.

I used to think the same. In fact, I only registered with it when I got my iPhone, and planned it to be just a 'broadcast' option for my blog when I eventually did sign up.

But Twitter has a way of sucking you in. You quickly get the hang of the little fads and foibles, the cliques, who will communicate with you and who won't, the traditions (like #ff) and the peculiarities.

And what you most appreciate is the immediacy of it, and never more so than at times like yesterday afternoon, when poor Bob Holness died.

As news broke on Twitter, and people posted messages of condolence, some hapless fool in Ed Miliband's office (Guido thinks it likely to be Kenny Young, or someone working to him) decided to do the same. It's easy to see why, it's a chance to humanise the Dear Leader, who was probably still firefighting the furore caused by Diane Abbott's unwise Tweet the previous day.

The rest, of course, is history. Immediately, his unfortunate and somewhat Freudian typo was flashed around the Twitterverse and a new Twittermeme was launched: #EdMilibandGameShows

And the Tweeps were merciless....

But the award winner for its vicious accuracy must surely go to Mr Eugenides for this little gem:

And that is why I love Twitter! It's pithy, it's concise, and most of all, it's immediate.