Twitter is a social networking site with a very limited focus.  Its sole reason for being, say its authors, is to allow its users to answer the question “what are you doing?”  Think of it as your Facebook status.  That’s it.  Really.  It has been dismissed and mocked by those that do not quite understand it, only later for them to succumb to the temptation themselves.  More recently, ‘celebrities’ have been signing up in droves, joining the throng in what looks to be this year’s new toy.

In fact Twitter has been around for at least a couple of years, and was for the longest time a niche exploited by Silicon Valley tech folks like Leo Laporte (twit.tv, leoville.com, @leolaporte) and his friends.  Even John C Dvorak (dvorak.org/blog, @therealdvorak) was late to the party, rubbishing Twitter for the longest time before finally succumbing to its advances.  Now he’s a regular user and happy to be so.

So what is it about Twitter that makes it so popular?  Different strokes for different folks, it has to be.  People with a huge following like Dvorak or Laporte can use Twitter to their advantage, to crowd source or get a message to a huge number of people almost immediately.  The folks who are following them are hoping to find out something new, interesting or funny from someone they admire or have an interest in.

There is an element of voyeurism too.  Jonathon Ross and Robert Llewellyn are happy to share with you their day-to-day activities in a way which brings their followers closer to them, and allows them to directly interface with their fanbase.  It brings a feeling of being connected.  For the less famous of us, Twitter is about the following, and an opportunity to get a reply from a person that you would likely otherwise never have the opportunity to meet.

Stephen Fry is a phenomenon.  He does little more than provide an insight into his daily schedule and provide some of his clever wit, yet he has amassed a following which at the time of writing this is second only to the president of the USA in the twitter rankings.  Fry does little if nothing in the way of self promotion, so it would appear his following is nothing short of a reflection of the adoration his public has for him.

Twitter is replacing blogging in many places.  This no doubt has a lot to do with the ease at which one can contribute – updates can be made via the web and many many clients for both handheld devices like the iPhone as well as PCs and Macs.  There is also the 140 character limit, which has led to this form of communication to be referred to as micro-blogging.  Short sharp ‘tweets’ are much easier to throw out than thoughtful, considered blog postings.

There is something for everyone in Twitter.  Get signed up and follow some folks you like.