strobe.cc
about / source

Don't call them tweets.

Published
06 Nov 2010
Edited
17 Nov 2010 (history)
Tagged
Writing ยท Article

Or blog entries, or Facebook posts.

Here’s a quote from a recent article about Android:

I think Google Android chief Andy Rubin best addressed [Steve Jobs’] argument with his recent tweet.

Another one, from an analysis1 on the same subject:

In theory, Android is more open than Apple on the software side; Andy Rubin’s point is irrefutable.

1 Full disclosure: I helped write it.

One of these leaves me thinking about what Mr. Rubin said; the other, about where he said it.

Such neologisms are occasionally appropriate, and can convey helpful information and context to the reader. However, the popularity of Twitter, Facebook, and other "new media" ensures that your audience will have a broad set of stories and experiences keyed to these terms. Invoking the proper names for these tools can burn through much of your reader’s acutely finite attention span.

Other formats: PDF. ReStructuredText source.