People Search Digest

Recent technology seems to have a heavy emphasis on staying connected with other people. With social networks blossoming and cell phone technology in a perpetual state of progress, it’s becoming increasingly easy to stay as connected to someone virtually as it is in person.

In that same vein, Twitter is social networking and micro-blogging site that allows users to post their latest updates. An update can be about anything, is limited to 140 characters and can be posted via three methods: web form, text message, or instant message.

The company has been busy adding features to the product like Gmail import and search. Recently they launched a new site section called “Explore” for external and third party tools that interact with Twitter, as well as a new visualization tool called “Twitter Blocks.” Twitter Blocks give you a three dimensional visual of what your friends and their friends are doing. It’s like a 3-D map of your friends and extended network. If you need to find someone in your extended network, it’s a great tool - social search at your fingertips through a variety of mediums, no matter where you are!

Since its launch in 2006, Twitter has made quite a name for itself by constantly popping up in techie news. The site gave rise to two major competitors in Pownce and Jaiku, but still remains on top of its game. Yappd tired its hand in the me-too service game, but quickly fell to the wayside only two months later.

Twitter seems to be standing strong by having a strong following of people who love the site. A really interesting idea is the new service, Tweeterboard, which is basically conversation analytics for Twitter created by Gene Smith of nForm. It’s a way of seeing who is influential on Twitter, based on their conversations with other Twitter users. Other services, like Twitterposter, base influence on how many followers you have. Tweeterboard looks at who talks to you, but captures links posted to Twitter to generate a list of the most popular.

Due to its increasing popularity and satellite statistical sites, Twitter has a big shot at breaking into the mainstream in 2008. Most recently, a new service created by Brad Kellet of Pantsland, allows you to track exactly how frequently you use Twitter. Twitter Stats offers a key range of statistics based on your username. It generates easy-to-read charts that let you track your Tweets per hour, day, and month. It even lets you see how the top users rank.

As far as sites go, Twitter has put in its time and seen growing results. There is no reason to think that it couldn’t potentially become a people connecting powerhouse in the New Year.