A confession: I hate being asked to use silly, stuffy, or infantile words when ordering or describing something. I’m more comfortable with European languages is better than most (I’m a Canadian with German as my first language), but it drives me a little mad to have to order something in grande or venti from a Seattle-based coffee chain (especially when grande doesn’t mean large!). What the heck is wrong with medium? And if there is a burger joint that sells a ‘dubbleyummy moomoo burger’, I’ll just ask for “the third one down on your list, please.” I always say please, even when I’m annoyed.
I know that this ‘special’ language creates brand community and that I am in a very small minority. Still, I wanted to take the moment to share my annoyance.
With each new social media channel, the world’s languages acquire more strange words that I don’t like saying in public. I do, but only because people pay me to. We started with blogging, friending (blech), eBooks, podcasts, RSS feeds, widgets, and webinars. Then along came Twitter. The language used around this channel probably generates more strange looks and wrinkled brows than all the other combined.
Here is this man’s guide to some key Twitter vocabulary.
Tweets
The 140-character posts you can make on Twitter. I just call them posts.
Mentions
You use mentions when you want to alert someone to the fact you have mentioned their name in a tweet. When you type the @ sign followed by someone’s Twitter name (e.g. @clemensrettich) it shows up on that person’s ‘mentions’ list. I call them mentions. I don’t have a problem with that one.
RT or Retweets
You can repost what someone has written by retweeting it. You put RT in front of their name (e.g. RT @ladygaga). Very similar to mentions. In a RT you ‘re-broadcast’ a person’s Tweet to the rest of your followers. I call them RT’s. A bit obscure, but better than retweet. Seriously. The fact that intelligent people can say “I retweeted you” with a straight face is a sure sign of the end of western civilization.
DM or Direct Message
A DM or Direct Message is a private message visible only to the person whom you are sending it to. To direct message someone, just type ‘D’ and the name of the person (e.g. D clemensrettich). I call them direct messages. I like that.
Hashtag
Of all of the odd little abbreviations that people use on Twitter, this one causes the most confusion. A hashtag (AKA ‘number sign’ or ‘#’) in front of a word identifies it as a ‘topic’ to the rest of the Twitter community. If you want the Twitter community to be aware you have written something on a ‘trending’ topic (yes, you read right … trending), use a hashtag. Example: including #facebook in a tweet you have just posted about Facebook will ensure that anyone currently scanning on that topic will see your post. I use the word hashtag, but I feel like I should be using a pocket protector every time I do.
Timeline
What Twitter calls the history of your posts mixed with the posts of people you follow. Identical to the Facebook Wall. I call it “the history of your posts”.
So there you go. In a Starbucks and Twitter world, much is asked of those who want to take part. Silly words are just the cost of entry. Use them, or feel left behind. Not much of a choice if you ask me.
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