*UPDATED* The Twittering point

I won't go to much about Twitter. Plenty of other people are doing just that. But Twitter seems to reaching some kind of tipping point, partly evidenced by the vast take up among bloggers I read (well done Drew B for being one of the first to Tweet) and partly due to the sheer volume of people twittering which is apparently causing problems for Twitter's servers at certain times of the day.

Personally, I like Twitter when it's put to the right use. I also like Ian Delaney's view of Twitter:

"People who post updates up to a dozen times a day (and more) would probably need to be blood relations or on their way to deliver vital medication to you in order to warrant a subscription delivering updates on their every movement."

On the other-hand people like Steve Rubel are looking deep into the value of Twitter as the next great comms/web tool and seriously seeing tweets replacing blog posts.

But here's something else not many people are talking about. Take a look at the chart below:

While there has been a Twitter explosion over the past three months, Jaiku, which is an almost identical tool to Twitter, has barely lifted its head above the parapet.

Why is that? Metcalfes Law? Or something else? One feature I like about Jaiku is that it allows you to insert snazzy little icons to illustrate what you're doing and how you're feeling.

Plus Jaiku's webspace is more web 2.0 and down-right nicer than Twitter. But it goes to show that functionality and 'who came to the party first' syndrome plays a big part in getting noticed. Perhaps Heather Hopkins at Hitwise can help out with some stats??

I like Twitter for the right reasons and can see why people dislike it for the right reasons. But if you want to understand Twitter's popularity, take a look at this grpahic from Mashable's Pete Cashmore (apologies for pinching it off Ian Delaney):

*UPDATED*

• Heather Hopkins has kindly taken up the challenge and posted some really fascinating stats about Twitter/Jaiku.
• Drew B has penned an epic salute to Twitter's greatness - as well as some top tips to make the most of your feed.

Technorati tags: Twitter; Ian Delaney; Metcalfe's Law; Jaiku; Drew Benvie; Heather Hopkins; Hitwise

Comments

[Stephen Davies]

Hi Simon,

At the same time, I think Twitter's launch into the blogosphere is quite small. The largest spike in that chart is only 172 mentions.

Not a huge amount really.

[Simon]

Very good point, Stephen. But for the sake of the post even 172 compared to Jaiku's share (17 at most, I think) demonstrates a major disparity between the two.

[Petteri Koponen]

Guys, guys, I have to disagree - it is in fact obvious that Jaiku is wiping the floor with Twitter... in the Finnish-speaking blogosphere :)

Actually, we haven't even joined the game yet and when we do, there will be more than enough space for both companies. Jaiku is still in a true beta mode (as opposed to a few other "betas" that have been around for years :), missing a few features that are critical for our value proposition and not yet being marketed at all. Let's take a new look at the situation later this year.

At the moment we are quite enjoying being an underdog and we are preparing for the big push of the next months, supported by our extremely passionate users; we getting tons of good ideas and even concrete help from many of them.

[samantha wilcox]

I think (and this may be naive student/PR101) that most products have a market leader / established name and this is no different on the net...I-Tunes as opposed to I-Mesh, YouTube instead of Veoh, I think it will be no different with Twitter-type tools.

[Linda]

Hi Simon, what would you say is the right use? Today I have twittered on about Eurovision and Mother's Day - is that any good? I suspect not!
Take care.

[Simon]

@Petteri
Thanks for stopping by... I was criticising Jaiku. I actually signed up to you guys first! Good luck when you launch properly - I look forward to it!

@Sam - we'll wait and see!

@Linda - I think you are using Twitter for the right reasons... if you joined a load of friends all watching an event eg. Eurovision then you could have loads of fun (sic) sharing your thoughts in ral time...

[Ellee]

I know I should get into Twitter, I have friends who swear by it, it's their new best friend.

Just dropped by to say good luck on Saturday, and you don't want to take Grunig on your honeymoon, I'm sure. I'm sure you will finish your assignment on time.

And don't forget to keep us posted!