A few days ago, (early August 2011) OLD Twitter was removed.  This has bought about a tweet crisis for some Twitter users. Katie and Michelle share their views regarding this sad event…

Hi – I am @KT_Little and I LOVE ‘Old Twitter!’ I joined Twitter March 2010 and there was really only one way to view– old school way! I preferred to view my tweets this way as it was less cluttered and easier on my eyes. As of June of 2011 Twitter has been issuing warnings to users that ‘old twitter’ would be disappearing and the ‘new twitter’ would remain the new interface forever.  I know I am not the only user that has this point of view.  Below I want to share the reasons why I loved ‘Old Twitter’ and what recommendations I have for users who have no interest in ‘New Twitter’

Old Twitter Rocks!

For a year I have always been using ‘Old Twitter’ because I have enjoyed viewing the layout and structure.  Every time I would log in on twitter.com I would immediately switch to ‘old twitter’ because the ‘new twitter’ interface seems so confusing and bogus.

Alternative Platforms

When ‘Old Twitter’ was phasing out I tried a bunch of different platforms on my laptop to see which was more convenient and easier to read/navigate. Depending on your device – I am recommending two platforms that I quite enjoy.

  1. For laptop users – I suggest using Hootsuite because the interface is far less cluttered and allows you to have your tweets in separate columns.  Another nice feature is the keyword search – which allows users to type in 3 different words and will create a column for them as well.  I currently have 2 accounts – my other one is @yourpuppynanny – which is my dog sitting business.  Hootsuite makes it really easy to switch to other Twitter accounts easier.
  2. For iPod Touch, iPad and iPhone users – I suggest using Echofon. Even though not alike to Hootsuite this is a great tool to use when you’re on the go and wanting to scan easily through the twitter stream. Instead of viewing tweets in column format you can view in rows. Personally I like this because it looks more like a dialogue conversation format than looking up and down. Unfortunately you can’t make extra streams on your account like you can with Hootsuite keywords. Also Echofon makes it easy for you to add multiple accounts.

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Michelle writes….

The threats were with me every day. “Look out”, the message on the screen seemed to say “any minute we are going to replace Old Twitter with New Twitter”. At first I was worried. I even took the threat seriously, and one day lured by the promise of the new and presumably better model I switched. That switch lasted for less than a day, probably less than an hour. I begged my tweeps to tell me how to escape back to Old Twitter, the version I had fallen a bit in love with, who wasn’t so fancy but did as it was told. A full year passed, and another six months, and those threats were not so dissimilar to the empty threats I sometimes throw at my children.

Or so I thought. Two days ago, Old Twitter was ripped out from under me and there is no way back. So I will stay with New Twitter until I can find a replacement, a version as simple to navigate as the original but perhaps with a few new bells and whistles. Mostly I will leave out of spite, annoyed that rather than having a choice the New has been forced upon me before I even had a chance to pay my respects to the Old.  Eighteen months wasn’t nearly long enough.

Bye bye Old Twitter. It was fun while it lasted.

(Biogs below)

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KATIE completed her undergraduate in communications from Augsburg College and holds a graduate degree in leadership and management with a focus on social media from York St. John University in York, England.

Katie’s strong background in customer relations, communications and leadership has contributed to her success as a top community manager and landed her a job at a Social Network consultancy company.

In her spare time Katie caters to the whims of many canine companions through her business Your Puppy Nanny where she provides “loving care for when you’re not there…”

 

 

 

 

 

MICHELLE @mamabook is an Australian now living in USA with her family. In between tweeting, She also reads, writes and parents. Michelle and her family recently left their beloved home in Sydney for California, where Rosie the dog recently joined them.  She writes about all of this, and more at 4kids1dogblog.blogspot.com