What is Twitter? Easily explained

A blue bird as a symbol, a funny name - that's what Twitter stands for. But what exactly is that? We explain it to you in this article.

Twitter: What is it?

Twitter (English: "Twitter") is a blogging service and social network. All registered users who can become part of the service free of charge have the option of sending short messages with a maximum of 140 characters via the network. These are called "tweets".

Twitter: The story

• Twitter was founded in March 2006.
• The regular name was initially "twttr".
• Twitter founder Jack Dorsey also made the first tweet, tweeting: "just setting up my twttr."
• Twitter has been mobile since 2010, since then there are apps for Android and iOS.
• The number of users experienced a rapid increase: 105 million people were registered as active users in 2010, 304 million in 2015
• The current logo has existed in this form since 2012.
• Twitter has also been listed on the stock exchange since 2013.

Twitter: The main functions

Twitter is characterized by functions similar to the other social networks Facebook, Instagram or Snapchat:

• A unique selling point is still that tweets are limited to 140 characters, even if this regulation has now been softened, so that photos, videos or quoted tweets no longer fall under the 140 characters.
• The hashtags are characteristic of Twitter. They link all the tweets in which the corresponding hashtag occurs. For example, if you search for "#chip" on Twitter, all tweets that contain this hashtag will be displayed.
• Of course there are also followers on Twitter. As soon as you follow another user with your account, their tweets will be displayed in your own timeline. You can also set push notifications for the corresponding accounts via the mobile apps.
• If you like a tweet, you can either make this clear by clicking on a heart. Twitter calls this process a favorite. Alternatively, you can retweet a tweet, which means that you automatically transmit the content of the tweet to all your followers.
• Creating lists is also practical. Only the tweets of the accounts that you add to the list are displayed in a list.
• In addition, Twitter offers other functions such as archiving or direct messaging.

Overall, Twitter is characterized above all by its speed. You will notice something new in the personally relevant subject areas at an insane pace, after all all major newspapers and many of their editors are represented on Twitter and also spread your news in this way. The quick and easy interaction with other users is also practical because 140 characters can be typed quickly. In principle, Twitter can be used as a better RSS feed reader. For example, follow our CHIP Twitter account, do not miss any news from the world of technology.

The next practical tip shows you how to arrange your timeline chronologically on Twitter.