Short and to the pointWhat is unique is that your messages are limited just to 140 characters, which is why some people call it a "microblogging" tool. You have to keep your messages brief and to the point

How to use

The Newbie. “What am I doing?”

The Newbie signed up for Twitter less than three months ago and thinks it’s all about lifestreaming: “Watching my cat roll over.” These people quickly progress to a different type of use or abandon Twitter when no one pays attention to them. Motivation: curiosity about Twitter. Recommended approach: understand.

The Brand. “What can I get away with?”

The Brand balances the tension between using Twitter as a marketing tool and socially engaging people so as not to appear to be using Twitter as a marketing tool. Motivation: greater brand awareness. Recommended approach: observe.

The Smore. “What’s in it for me?”

The Smore (social media whore) sees Twitter primarily as a self-promotion tool to get something from people although a transparent Smore (“Bubbles”) is often a delightful person. The delusional ones are the pains. Motivations: making a buck off and gaining followers. Recommended approach: tolerate.

The Bitch. “What can I complain about?”

Despite deriving this name from female dogs, this is usually an angry man who envies people who generate content. They can be briefly amusing in a “shock jock” kind of way, but their bark is greater than their bite, and their bite is greater than their insight. Motivation: generating angry reactions. Recommended approach: block.

The Maven. “What’s interesting in my niche?”

The Maven is an expert in a field such as recruiting, marketing, or web design. If you’re interested in their field, following them is a rich, rewarding, and time-saving experience. Motivation: getting retweeted and recognized as an expert. Recommended approach: follow.

The Mensch. “How can I help?”

Mensches are few and far between. They lurk in the background until people need help and then they either know, or know how to find, the answer. They are seldom well-known or highly followed, but they save you tons of time and effort when you want to know something like the ideal dimensions of a profile background. Motivation: helping others. Recommended approach: adore.

Now comes the hard part: What kind of Twitter user are you? To make Twitter an effective tool, you need to be a Brand, Maven, or Mensch. To go even further, you need to be able to adopt the roles of Brand, Maven, Mensch, and a touch of the Smore, and that is truly an art. For all my Twitter tips in one place, go here.

To get you startedHere are some quick and easy steps to get you started on Twitter.

Twitter has become a global phenomenon with people of all ages. Twitter was founded by Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams in March 2006 and launched to the public in July of 2006. The popular Web site is a social networking and micro-blogging service that allows users to post their latest updates in 140 characters or less. It is essentially massing texting via a Web site. To “tweet” is probably one the simplest thing you can do—all you need is a Twitter account and you are on your way. Here are some quick steps and tips to get you on Twitter.

• Step One Open you preferred Internet browser and go to http://www.twitter.com. Click on “Sign Up Now,” which should be on the right.
• Step Two Make your Twitter account by filling in the appropriate information and giving yourself a username.
• Step Three You can find friends on Twitter through your email accounts, such as Gmail, Yahoo!, AOL, Hotmail and MSN accounts. Also, Twitter will give you a list of people among your email friends who have Twitter accounts. Select those who you would like to follow on Twitter from this list and most likely, unless they’re a celebrity, these people will follow your tweets too.
• Step Four Now that you’re officially a Twitter member with a list of friends and followers, it’s time to become a Tweeter. Write what you’re doing, interested in, or just any random comment you may have to start a conversation on Twitter. Write this in the text box under “What’s happening?” and then click update. This is how you update you Twitter and let people know what you’re up to.

How to use Ten Twelve by now) Ways to Use LinkedIn. Most people use LinkedIn to “get to someone” in order to make a sale, form a partnership, or get a job. It works well for this because it is an online network of more than 8.5 million experienced professionals from around the world representing 130 industries. However, it is a tool that is under-utilized, so I’ve compiled a top-ten list of ways to increase the value of LinkedIn.

• Increase your visibility. By adding connections, you increase the likelihood that people will see your profile first when they’re searching for someone to hire or do business with. In addition to appearing at the top of search results (which is a major plus if you’re one of the 52,000 product managers on LinkedIn), people would much rather work with people who their friends know and trust.
• Improve your connectability. Most new users put only their current company in their profile. By doing so, they severely limit their ability to connect with people. You should fill out your profile like it’s an executive bio, so include past companies, education, affiliations, and activities. You can also include a link to your profile as part of an email signature. The added benefit is that the link enables people to see all your credentials, which would be awkward if not downright strange, as an attachment.
• Improve your Google PageRank. LinkedIn allows you to make your profile information available for search engines to index. Since LinkedIn profiles receive a fairly high PageRank in Google, this is a good way to influence what people see when they search for you. To do this, create a public profile and select “Full View.” Also, instead of using the default URL, customize your public profile’s URL to be your actual name. To strengthen the visibility of this page in search engines, use this link in various places on the web> For example, when you comment in a blog, include a link to your profile in your signature.
• Enhance your search engine results. In addition to your name, you can also promote your blog or website to search engines like Google and Yahoo! Your LinkedIn profile allows you to publicize websites. There are a few pre-selected categories like “My Website,” “My Company,” etc. If you select “Other” you can modify the name of the link. If you’re linking to your personal blog, include your name or descriptive terms in the link, and voila! instant search-engine optimization for your site. To make this work, be sure your public profile setting is set to “Full View.”
• Perform blind, “reverse,” and company reference checks. LinkedIn’s reference check tool to input a company name and the years the person worked at the company to search for references. Your search will find the people who worked at the company during the same time period. Since references provided by a candidate will generally be glowing, this is a good way to get more balanced data. Companies will typically check your references before hiring you, but have you ever thought of checking your prospective manager’s references? Most interviewees don’t have the audacity to ask a potential boss for references, but with LinkedIn you have a way to scope her out. You can also check up on the company itself by finding the person who used to have the job that you’re interviewing for. Do this by searching for job title and company, but be sure to uncheck “Current titles only.” By contacting people who used to hold the position, you can get the inside scoop on the job, manager and growth potential. By the way, if using LinkedIn in these ways becomes a common practice, we’re apt to see more truthful resumes. There’s nothing more amusing than to find out that the candidate who claims to have caused some huge success was a total bozo who was just along for the ride.
• Increase the relevancy of your job search. Use LinkedIn’s advanced search to find people with educational and work experience like yours to see where they work. For example, a programmer would use search keywords such as “Ruby on Rails,” “C++,” “Python,” “Java,” and “evangelist” to find out where other programmers with these skills work.
• Make your interview go smoother. You can use LinkedIn to find the people that you’re meeting. Knowing that you went to the same school, plays hockey, or shares acquaintances is a lot better than an awkward silence after, “I’m doing fine, thank you.”
• Gauge the health of a company. Perform an advanced search for company name and uncheck the “Current Companies Only” box. This will enable you to scrutinize the rate of turnover and whether key people are abandoning ship. Former employees usually give more candid opinions about a company’s prospects than someone who’s still on board.
• Gauge the health of an industry. If you’re thinking of investing or working in a sector, use LinkedIn to find people who worked for competitors—or even better, companies who failed. For example, suppose you wanted to build a next generation online pet store, you’d probably learn a lot from speaking with former Pets.com or WebVan employees.
• Track startups. You can see people in your network who are initiating new startups by doing an advanced search for a range of keywords such as “stealth” or “new startup.” Apply the “Sort By” filter to “Degrees away from you” in order to see the people closest to you first.
• Ask for advice. LinkedIn’s newest product, LinkedIn Answers, aims to enable this online. The product allows you to broadcast your business-related questions to both your network and the greater LinkedIn network. The premise is that you will get more high-value responses from the people in your network than more open forums. For example, here are some questions an entrepreneur might ask when the associates of a venture capital firm come up blank:
  
  • Who’s a good, fast, and cheap patent lawyer?
  • What should we pay a vp of biz developer?
  • Is going to this conference worth it?
  • How much traffic does a LinkedIn link generate?
• Integrate into a new job. When people start a new job, ordinarily their roots aren’t that deep in the new company. However, with Linkedin, new employees can study fellow employees’ profiles and therefore help them get to know more people faster in a new company. (contributed by Vincent Wright)
• Scope out the competition, customers, partners, etc. This seems like it’s a no-brainer, but you can use LinkedIn to scope out the competition’s team as well as the team of customers and partners. For example, your competitor’s vp of marketing came from Oracle…she’ll probably believe that business is war. (Kev)

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How to use

How do I view a feed?

When you visit a webpage, the Feeds button will change color, letting you know that feeds are available. Click the Feeds button, and then click the feed you want to see.

How do I subscribe to a feed?

• Click to open Internet Explorer.
• Go to the website that has the feed you want to subscribe to.
• Click the Feeds button to discover feeds on the webpage.
• Click a feed (if more than one is available). If only one feed is available, you will go directly to that page.
• Click Subscribe to this feed.
• Type a name for the feed and select the folder to create the feed in.
• Click Subscribe.

How do I add a feed to the Favorites bar?

To add a feed to the Favorites bar, subscribe to the feed, and then select the Add to Favorites Bar check box in the Subscribe to this Feed dialog box. If you've already subscribed to the feed, you can click the Add to Favorites Bar button to add the feed to the Favorites bar. To learn more about the Favorites bar, see Customize your Favorites bar.

Does a feed subscription cost money?

No, it's usually free to subscribe to a feed.

How can I view my subscribed feeds?

You view feeds on the Feeds tab in the Favorites Center. To view your feeds, click the Favorites button, and then click Feeds.

Can other programs display my subscribed feeds?

Yes, Internet Explorer provides the Common Feed List to other programs. This allows you to subscribe to feeds with Internet Explorer and read them in other programs, such as an e mail program.

What does RSS mean?

The acronym RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication, and is used to describe the technology used in creating feeds.