Twitter provides a way for individuals to share information with one another in real-time. They can share news stories, reviews, complaints and even special deals.
We call these short 140 character messages "tweets" or "tweeting." These messages are broadcast to other Twitter users that follow you and shown on your Twitter profile page. You can also use private messages through Twitter to your followers, this is called a direct message or a DM.
Twitter began in 2006 and has gained notability and popularity worldwide. Twitter is ranked as one of the top 50 websites on Alexa's web traffic analysis. The number of daily users vary, but in March of 2009 Nielsen.com ranked Twitter as the fastest growing site in the Members Communities category. eMarketer estimates that there were over 6 million registered Twitter users in April of 2009. Their research also projected that by the end of 2009 that number will double to 12.1 users.
Twitter is often used in campaigning, education, emergencies, protest and politics, legal proceedings, and public relations. Businesses can use Twitter to promote their products and services as well as provide customer services and listen to be being said about their companies.
