Integration+With+Other+Tools

INTEGRATION WITH OTHER TOOLS
Twitter has become one of the most widely used social media technologies in use today. From its humble beginning as a single website, [|**Twitter.com**], tweets are now being sent from cell phones, 3rd party software applications and even from other Web 2.0 technologies; just about any other online media outlet supporting widget coding.

=**WEBSITE WIDGETS**= Twitter offers a free, customizable widget to place on websites, blogs or wiki spaces. Widgets are programs that perform some simple function, such as providing a weather report or stock quote, and can be accessed from a computer desktop, webpage, mobile phone or subscription television service. Visitors to a site can view past tweets that were sent or received and new tweets being posted in real time. Usually the widget will provide a button allowing visitors an opportunity to follow the Twitter account being displayed. Unlike the more popular use of sending and receiving tweets, websites tend to only show tweets that were sent out by the Twitter account owner. Examples of this type of usage are websites maintained by non-profits, local or state governments, and other businesses in the private sector. These entities use tweets to notify followers of changes to their websites or to disseminate information. By not allowing followers the ability to post tweets on these Twitter accounts, the entities are limiting their liability for litigation.

=**BLOGS & WIKI SITES**= Blog sites and wiki spaces are other areas where Twitter has been integrated. Like websites, both blogs and wikis can display Twitter widgets. An enhancement over static website viewing is the added ability of using tweets to update the sites. Blogs especially are unique in how Twitter integration has opened new possibilities for site owners; blogs are becoming viable sources of income in today’s social media crazed environment. Having the ability of updating a blog with late-breaking news by way of a Twitter posting ensures news is delivered instantaneously – a giant step from older technologies like televised news and newspapers.

=**3RD PARTY SOFTWARE**= 3rd party software developers are slowly migrating from the old mentality of denying API access to other vendors, and are now embracing the idea of allowing add-on and add-in modules for Web 2.0 technologies such as Twitter interfaces. The software giant Microsoft Corporation allows startup companies like TechHit to integrate their Twitter interface, [|TwInbox] into Microsoft Outlook by way of an add-in. Outlook users can now check their emails and send or receive tweets from inside the Outlook framework.

Microsoft’s new direction on this has veered from the old mentality of software exclusion (forcing out competition) to an openness-philosophy of inclusion (interacting with outside parties for mutual benefit). By embracing inclusion practices, Microsoft is ensuring end users are continuing to use their products, but not necessarily in the manner for which they originally intended.

Since its founding in 1998 the [|Open Source Initiative] (OSI) has paved the way for new technology to be written, enhanced and pushed out quickly enough to match the limitless suggestions users make for new features. Twitter has been stretched from its original concept into a social device that now includes [|TinyURL], [|YouTube] video embedding, micro blogging support, MP3 compatibility and image viewing. As an Open Source standard, Twitter successfully demonstrates that interfaces can be molded into many facets to meet the needs of end users whenever their personal tastes changes or evolves.

Developers are using various APIs and programming languages to roll out Twitter integration tools at a rapid pace. Adobe Corporation’s [|Adobe Air] runtime environment is used by TweetDeck to capitalize on web-to-desktop bonding. Sun Microsystem’s Java language has recently included (hardcoded) [|Web 2.0 packages] into its framework to facilitate creation of Java based Web 2.0 technologies and interfaces. One such interface is [|Tweeter], a 100% pure Java application.

=**CELL PHONES**= Telco companies are generating a boom for the cell phone manufacturers. Voice and data towers are merging and their coverage areas are beginning to overlap, thus creating a larger footprint with better reception. Faster data access provides cell phones with a medium for mobile applications to interact with the Internet. Today’s cell phones rival personal computers in Web 2.0 technologies due to their extreme portability and access to broadband Internet networks. Blackberry is pushing out an [|official Twitter application] on November 16, 2009. Currently the two main Twitter applications being used are [|Twitterberry] and [|UberTwitter].

=SOURCES= Microsoft Corporation. (n.k). "//Open Source Announcements//." Accessed November 14, 2009 []

Peacock, M. (2009). "//Web Publishing Roll up: Twitter, Mobile Equality and YouTube for Reporters//." Accessed November 14, 2009 []

Sloan, P. and Kaihla, P. (2006). "//Blogging for Dollars: It's not just a hobby - some small sites are making big money. Here's how to turn your passion into an online empire//." Accessed November 14, 2009 []