Twitter - for the uninitiated . . .

Following a request for help on understanding Twitter from Clare over at Battlements of Rubies, I realise that explaining how Twitter works to the uninitiated is a bit like that old (but still very amusing) joke about explaining the rules of cricket to a foreigner.

When you first look into Twitter and what it's all about, if you're like me, you search for an account and look at their timeline (list of Tweets from the account holder in chronological order).

If you don't have an account yourself yet or have an account but are not 'following' many people then it looks like some sort of 'gobblydygook' as you will see a lot of disconnected statements some of which you can probably tell are replies to something or other.

To get the whole picture you need to be able to see the Tweets of the people the account holder is talking to.

Like many things, the best way to 'get it' is to set up an account and begin following people. As you become more familiar with how it works and more confident you'll find you naturally want to join in (at least, I think most people feel like that).

I would guess that most people have a spread of people they follow. A good starting point might be to add a few News sites like @BBCNews, @breakingnews and for Catholics how about @catholic herald, @lukecoppen @news_va_en? A lot of bloggers are also on Twitter; add some of your favourites to your 'following' list. You could add a few Twitter accounts of things you are particularly interested in; I follow a few sports sites; it might be politics (e.g. @number10gov), music, films, art galleries etc.

Twitter has jargon like any other social media. Here is a glossary of some of the more common terms. And here's the official Twitter version.

So, now you know your Tweeps from your twerps and your Followers from your stalkers, all you have to do is get Tweeting.

It really is quite simple . . .

I've just been looking at Mulier Fortis and her post on having someone explain the laws of cricket to her, reminded me of the famous joke, 'Cricket as explained to a foreign visitor.' Here it is again for those who need reminding:

You have two sides, one out in the field and one in.

Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in

and the next man goes in until he's out.

When they are all out, the side that's out comes in

and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out.

Sometimes you get men still in and not out.

When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out,

and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in.

There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time

and they decide when the men who are in are out.

When both sides have been in and all the men have out,

and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in,

including those who are not out, that is the end of the game!

You see, it's quite simple really!