What are MeFites doing?

October 10, 2007 5:27 PM

Now you can check out what some Mefites are posting to Twitter thanks to the Recent Twitters by MeFites page.

A while back we added an option to link to your stuff at social sites from your Metafilter profile page. At that time I mentioned that, "...we plan on pulling in your data from these other sites eventually where possible." And first up is pulling in Twitter posts (called, ugh, tweets). If your Twitter updates are public, and if you've added your Twitter username to your Metafilter profile, your Twitter tweets will show up on the group page and your latest tweet will appear on your profile page. (To see this in action on a profile page, check out mathowie's profile—his latest Twitter status is right above his Flickr photos.)

If you don't want your Twitter posts showing up here, you can make your Twitter updates private. (Click Settings at the top of the page at Twitter, check "Protect my updates", and click Save.) Or you can remove your Twitter username from your Metafilter profile.

Let the stalking begin!

posted by pb to feature requests at 5:27 PM (62 comments total)

I am not on twitter. Even I'm not that narcissistic.
posted by jonmc at 5:30 PM on October 10, 2007 [1 favorite]

Neat!

Now, can we get an improved, more granular site search, please please please? [/ungrateful, entitlement-swollen bastard who is too old to 'get' Twitter]
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:31 PM on October 10, 2007 [4 favorites]

awesome.
posted by Phire at 5:32 PM on October 10, 2007

Thanks for reminding me why I don't need or want Twit
posted by Eideteker at 5:36 PM on October 10, 2007

ter
posted by Eideteker at 5:36 PM on October 10, 2007

MetaFwitter? Or TwittaFilter?
posted by fandango_matt at 5:42 PM on October 10, 2007

or MetaTwit?
posted by fandango_matt at 5:42 PM on October 10, 2007

MeTwat?
posted by eyeballkid at 5:45 PM on October 10, 2007

I AM that narcissistic! pb rulez.
posted by sneakin at 5:48 PM on October 10, 2007

I find it's a lovely way to vent. I have no idea whether context is clear, but I don't much care. It's just shouting into the ether.
posted by Karmakaze at 6:10 PM on October 10, 2007

How long does it take to propagate across to metafilter? I updated mine 14 minutes ago (apparently) and it's not showing up yet. Not that it matters that much, just curious.
posted by shelleycat at 6:43 PM on October 10, 2007

Metafilter looks for updates once every hour around 25 minutes past the top of the hour. So it'll take some time to hit the site depending on when you update.
posted by pb at 6:47 PM on October 10, 2007

Well, that is kind of neat, but is it in any way useful? Not to be too "old media", but it feels like listening to one side of 50,000 conversations at the same time.
posted by Rock Steady at 6:55 PM on October 10, 2007

I'm strictly old media, man. Strictly old media.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 6:57 PM on October 10, 2007

Bug: On profile pages, the "Twitter" in "XXXXX's last status posted to Twitter:" barely shows up against the blue background. (Firefox 2.up-to-date, WinXP)
posted by Rock Steady at 6:58 PM on October 10, 2007

This is very creepy. Thank you.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 7:03 PM on October 10, 2007 [2 favorites]

Once an hour feels about right for site this big. None of us are important enough that our writing.must.show.now and it will give a decent snapshot. So I like.

The kitten is awake now so I go vote.
posted by shelleycat at 7:12 PM on October 10, 2007

I'm there as bunnyfire. Deal. (It's my metachat name, natch.)
posted by konolia at 7:21 PM on October 10, 2007

Whoa.
posted by unknowncommand at 7:27 PM on October 10, 2007

If you ever want (or need) to know what I am doing, it is usually either:

1) working
2) drinking
3) sleeping
4) jerkin' it

Sometimes it's even one or more at the same time.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 7:43 PM on October 10, 2007 [2 favorites]

(two or more, that is)
posted by mr_crash_davis at 7:43 PM on October 10, 2007

@Rock Steady: Thank you! I've been looking for the right analogy for Twitter, and now I have it.

I'm also glad that I'm not the only person on the internet who doesn't understand the appeal of Twitter. It's just a badly implemented chat room.
posted by JDHarper at 7:54 PM on October 10, 2007

Aggregated syndicated blather on a cracker.
posted by deern the headlice at 8:17 PM on October 10, 2007

stavrosthewonderchicken: "Neat!

Now, can we get an improved, more granular site search, please please please? [/ungrateful, entitlement-swollen bastard who is too old to 'get' Twitter]"
*shuffles over to sit beside stavros*

I mean, I see what it does and all, I just don't understand why.
posted by dg at 8:26 PM on October 10, 2007

Can we get a nicer URL? What's wrong with just /twitter.mefi, or even /twitter?
posted by brownpau at 8:36 PM on October 10, 2007

I was just disappointed to discover, when I tried to sign up for the handle of "jayder" on Twitter, that it was already taken.

And then my disappointment was replaced by delight when I realized it was taken by me.

I had made a total of three tweets prior to today. Maybe the MeFi connection will have me tweeting more often.
posted by jayder at 8:37 PM on October 10, 2007

huh.
posted by boo_radley at 8:43 PM on October 10, 2007

neato
posted by muckster at 8:51 PM on October 10, 2007

F.....O.....L......L......O......W

M........E
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 9:31 PM on October 10, 2007

I do not and probably never will understand the point of twitter.

I actually put my bourbon down to type that, because I know you were all wondering.
posted by middleclasstool at 9:41 PM on October 10, 2007 [1 favorite]

Good god, man, pick it back up!
posted by flapjax at midnite at 9:48 PM on October 10, 2007

f you ever want (or need) to know what I am doing, it is usually either:

1) working
2) drinking
3) sleeping
4) jerkin' it

Sometimes it's even one or more at the same time.

Since the premise of Twitter is that you are saying what you are doing at this very minute, to send out a tweet that you are "jerkin' it" would suggest you have admirable dexterity.
posted by jayder at 10:05 PM on October 10, 2007

Does Twitter still not support long URLs? WTF?
posted by delmoi at 10:26 PM on October 10, 2007

I signed up for an account on that preposterous site because of this. Thanks a lot.
posted by delmoi at 10:32 PM on October 10, 2007

I guess I'll have to sign up too. Damn.
posted by cortex at 10:45 PM on October 10, 2007

My puppet posts on my Twitter account.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:56 AM on October 11, 2007

to send out a tweet that you are "jerkin' it" would suggest you have admirable dexterity

Obviously somebody's never visited Second Life.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 1:12 AM on October 11, 2007

Very cool. I don't like Twitter that much, though. I'm more of a Jaiku type of person. Now that Jaiku has been bought by Google would that make them important enough to implement something like this, only for Jaiku instead of Twitter?
posted by sveskemus at 2:19 AM on October 11, 2007

The twitter URLs don't seem to have rel="nofollow" set like the rest of the profile pages.
posted by Skorgu at 3:56 AM on October 11, 2007

I'd have to figure out how to text to use this? Probably not going to happen.
posted by octothorpe at 4:38 AM on October 11, 2007

But Delmoi depending pn what client you use, it will automatically Tiny Url 'em for you.
posted by sneakin at 4:59 AM on October 11, 2007

I love Twitter. I am all over UR WEB KITTEH!
posted by triv at 5:26 AM on October 11, 2007

I've never heard of Jaiku. A web search turns up a lot of articles about Google acquiring Jaiku, but not much about the service itself. I don't really text, so mobile phone apps aren't much use to me. I use IM though...
posted by Karmakaze at 5:58 AM on October 11, 2007

Time zones notwithstanding, you can almost set your watch by other people's twitters. "Attempting to wake up," "english muffin for breakfast," "off to work," etc.
posted by desjardins at 6:07 AM on October 11, 2007

Karmakaze, Jaiku is much like Twitter but with much better support for actual conversations because you can comment on other people's "tweets". For me Twitter is just a bunch of people talking at each other or into the ether whereas Jaiku a bunch of conversations.
posted by sveskemus at 6:35 AM on October 11, 2007

Now please code me being able to change my password already.
posted by boo_radley at 7:14 AM on October 11, 2007 [5 favorites]

boo_radley is a terrorist. Changing one's own password would be a security risk.
posted by dmd at 7:46 AM on October 11, 2007 [1 favorite]

fap fap fap
posted by Stynxno at 7:51 AM on October 11, 2007

oh-kay I joined. Now what? Do I have to do a trick?
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 10:26 AM on October 11, 2007

Oh god I joined too.
posted by trip and a half at 10:28 AM on October 11, 2007

Now please code me being able to change my password already.

'round these parts, we only fix shit that ain't broke, pardner.
posted by quonsar at 1:10 PM on October 11, 2007

Yeah, I joined too - couldn't help myself. I still don't know what it's for though.
posted by dg at 3:30 PM on October 11, 2007

Am I the only person who can't read the twitter visited links on MeFi profile pages, because their color almost matches the stock blue background?
posted by phaedon at 5:18 PM on October 11, 2007

It's supposed to be boxed in with a white background, phaedon.
posted by puke & cry at 5:48 PM on October 11, 2007

Hm. I'm referring to the "Recent twitters from all" link that is right below the box. If you click through it's impossible to see. Are you saying somebody already brought this up and I missed it?
posted by phaedon at 6:16 PM on October 11, 2007

The best analogy I can come up for Twitter is that it's a mini blog. But instead of long blog entries, you can type one or two line snippets about what's going on. You can tell everyone how wonderful your grilled cheese sammich was or when you're poopin' (stynxno!) or when you're leavin' on a jet plane. It's simple and silly and fun. Of course, you'll most likely have to like blogging in the first place. You don't even have to own a phone that can text, I twitter from the internets.
posted by deborah at 11:20 PM on October 11, 2007

*Tries twitter on for size. Looks in mirror. Thinks "hmmm..." and " Not good for regular life, but if I was trekking across the Himalayas this would rock..." .*
posted by Skygazer at 7:21 AM on October 12, 2007

I can imagine so many scenarios where this image is an appropriate response.
posted by sparkletone at 9:13 AM on October 12, 2007

Thanks for putting this together. This is much easier than looking for Mefites on Twitter. Now I can just start from here and add all of you! :)
posted by melissa at 11:46 AM on October 12, 2007

cortex, follwing no-one is surely a vanity.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 12:25 AM on October 14, 2007

I can't actually look at twitter from work; fuckers block it, and w3m doesn't support it. So it's been sort of a slow-burn thing so far: I haven't been in a position to follow nobody other'n by reloading the mefi rundown now and then.

Gimme time.
posted by cortex at 8:14 AM on October 14, 2007

SOS!!
Recent Twitters isn't picking me up. Whyyyyyy?
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 10:55 AM on October 31, 2007