The Twitter phenomenon is the newest, trendiest Web 2.0 social networking movement to grip the imaginations of technology aficionados. A debate is emerging around whether Twitter will eventually replace blogging. Twitter employs "micro-blogging", or updates up to 140 characters per entry. Blogs, on the other hand, are generally more content rich and often reflect the knowledge and opinions of the author. So could Twitter really replace blogging - Really? It just might!

Accessing and updating one's Twitter page involves the very simple process of essentially texting an SMS message to the Twitter stream. No need to open a browser, log in, compose your thoughts and such. Twitter is great for sharing a quick bit of information, like a video or a URL - on the fly. Twitter is very easy to use from a cell phone or PDA and is the absolute best social networking tool for people on the go.

Twitter is opening up the blogging arena to users who don't necessarily have a lot to say - but they do have something to say. Twitter allows users to post thoughts quickly, succinctly and without filler content. Twitter allows users to send updates to individual users or to followers. Such Twitter messages, or Tweets, generally contain location information, current thoughts, jokes, a reference to a video, song or web page or any number of quick messages.

One active blogger notes the decline in frequency of fellow bloggers' blog postings with the rise in Twitter popularity. This blogger notes that even though authoring his blog is a creative endeavor, a sort of mental housecleaning, Twitter is irreplaceable for posting short and quick messages to followers or other users. For this blogger, even though Twitter has its place in his repertoire, the new technology probably will not entirely replace blogging.

However, even this blogger confesses that his intentions when creating his blog site were to update his blog once per day, but as with most blogs - and intentions - the goal fell by the wayside. Twitter is most attractive to the tired, the overworked and the aphasic. Quickly get your point out without having to put a lot of thought into it.

So how could Twitter replace blogging? It could happen! When the audience for blogs shifts to Twitter, and the bloggers lose the bulk of their audience to the Twitter stream, the heyday of the blog will be over. Like it or not, Twitter is here to stay.

Learn more about this author, Tammy Clevenger.
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