5 Ways That Twitter Can Make Your Life Better
Most people use Twitter, the top micro-blogging service, the same way they use Facebook status updates -- as a narcissistic mini-diary of their lives' mundane events. But Twitter can be more than a distraction and time killer. In fact, it can follow breaking news, set alarms and reminders, track packages, and stay organized. Here are five ways to get more out of Twitter than just updates on what your friends' cats are doing.
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1. Keep a to-do list
Twitter provides a simple way to use our favorite online task manager, Remember the Milk (RTM). First, sign up for an account with RTM and then follow RTM on Twitter as you would any other member. Use Twitter to send direct messages to RTM, and they'll appear as items to your to-do list. You can even check off completed items, get reminders, or assign tasks using commands like !complete (i.e. text "d rtm !complete call jimmy," to mark off that you've called 'Jimmy'). You can find the full list of commands on the Remember the Milk Twitter Bot help page. At first, the commands may seem a little convoluted, but if you're someone constantly on the go, you'll find that being able to quickly update your to-do list with a text message can be quite handy.
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2. Get breaking news
One of the great things about Twitter is occasionally scooping the news media on major world events. Whether it's the latest on earthquakes or plane crashes, up-to-the-second news usually makes it to Twitter first (just make sure to take that news with a grain of salt, since it's not always 100-percent verified). Sometimes you're just lucky enough to be following somebody caught in the action, but you can also use applications like TweetDeck and Seesmic Desktop to create auto-updating searches for specific topics and keywords on Twitter.
You can also get breaking updates from news sources such as CNN, the BBC, and The News Wire (which has seemingly built its entire reputation around Twitter reporting). Or get hometown news by following your local newspaper or TV news channel for nearly anywhere, such as Southwest Florida; New Haven, Connecticut; Staten Island, New York; and Denver, Colorado among countless others.
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3. Set a reminder or alarm
Make friends with the Twitter bot called Timer to set basic alarms and reminders. Simply send a message to Timer (type 'd Timer' when using Twitter via SMS) with the number of minutes and a message. For example, "45 diner with mom" will send you a direct message via Twitter in 45 minutes reminding you to meet your mother for supper. (Hopefully she's buying.)
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4. Track packages
As with any other Twitter bot, you interact with TrackThis by adding it as a friend and sending it messages. Provide a tracking number followed by a nickname for the package, and TrackThis will send you updates, via direct message, every time your delivery hits a new waypoint. Now you'll know when a shipment leaves the warehouse, crosses the state line, and arrives at your local post to languish for a week before someone bothers to deliver it. TrackThis works with all of the major shippers, including the US Post Office, UPS and FedEx
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