1. Facebook – Truly, this one is a no-brainer. One of @TheMrsThornton’s earliest downloads and still probably the most used, I’ve actually got pictures of her asleep with the app open, fingers still on the screen.

2. TweetDeck – Along the same lines as Facebook, this was an early download that she still checks constantly. Bare in mind, I do the same and even have the desktop version installed on my work machine, but hey! Its my job. She’s tried a few other twitter apps but keeps coming back to the good stuff… and have i mentioned she’s topped 550 followers? Not bad for someone who thought twitter was dumb, not six months ago.

3. Traffic Rush – While I haven’t delved into this one quite yet, it seems to be my better half’s fall back when she’s exhausted all other options. Apparently you’ve got to stall or slow down cars as they come into intersections before they crash. I think I’m more of a “watch ‘em crash” kind of guy.

4. Whrrl – This one is my fault. Business partner and location based media monster, Whrrl has a handy app that some in high places say is the next twitter. Imagine tweeting with pictures all the while being associated to a location. Now that they’ve added societies and fun facts, Whrrl is more engaging than ever. I really can’t speak much on this considering I’m checked in at home right now for my 33rd time and I’m in the founders society.

5. Words with Friends – The subject of Ben’s tweet and the most recent of offenders, this handy app seems to eat away at the attention spans of all who play it. Yes, I’ve got the app and yes I play it but nothing to the level of the ladies. Ben and I have played a few games against each other for lack of things to do while the wives were buried.

There you have it. 5 ways to lose your wife via iPhone app. Newlyweds, dodge these apps on both sides, long-timers looking for a break, I hope you took notes. Either way, these apps are functional and very entertaining. Check them out via the links provided.

oh, and all links are to facebook pages to keep from popping your iTunes with each link. You’re welcome!

This got me thinking and I broke down and downloaded the first free news app I found. What did I learn from this new MSNBC app? Pay attention here… Absolutely Nothing I hadn’t picked up via twitter in the previous two days. Hmm… have I gone rogue? Shunning traditional media for this new wave stream of BS from biased and inconsistent sources?

No actually. I follow several of the traditionals on twitter but for the first time in our history, I’m able to check sources via crowd-sourcing. A media outlet might tell you something is going on but in most cases, it’s already gone on and they’re giving you’re their interpretation. Now we pull points of view from those on the ground, half-way around the world in real time. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it Fox News… (sorry, couldn’t hold it back any longer)

So no, none of this is breaking news. We all have at least heard about this phenomenon of real-time news gathering via social media… I only post this because it snuck up and eased my attention all the way away from my typical sources… and I’m alright with it. I wonder what’s next?

Cable is already on its way out. Apple TV and other “On Demand” systems like my beloved U-Verse are easing ahead of traditional cable purchase in my house. I’m starting to realize that I can buy episodes for a buck or even seasons of my favorite programs for $20 and enjoy myself every time I turn on the TV. At what point do we stop paying premium prices for 600 channels we don’t ever watch? When will at&t offer a VOD only package? That would do it! Rent/buy the shows you want, spend the rest of your previously $150 cable bill on “away from the boob-tube” activities.

Traditional news is dead or dying, television and radio are en route to a similar death, newspapers are moving to digital and according to Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt, the distribution distinction between TV, Radio, and the Internet will be gone by 2015 (barring the end of the world and all). Take a look! We are probably within one generation of not knowing what a paper boy is. Hell, my picture frame in my office doesn’t stay on one image for more than a couple of seconds. And somehow we’re not only ok with all this data but we’re buying in at record pace. Don’t believe me? Check to see if you mom’s on facebook yet. Mine is.

So I guess its not a matter of whether or not you’re plugged in, the question is “Are you plugged in enough?” Comments on this rant? Please? This one has had my head spinning for a few days now.

So back to my picture, what is your perception of the photoshoped creative icon?  Mine shows my actual face, the logo of my company, and even a little of that style… and FMT says it’s creepy… like Harry Potter creepy.  You know, the guy with the weird eye?  No? Google, it… no here, let me – http://tinyurl.com/mogjue

Let’s start from the top. What are you trying to achieve? …and don’t say more business. Do you want to find new business through twitter conversations or inform and generate buzz though YouTube videos? Maybe you’d prefer to show alternate product views on twitter and field comments. The options are endless but you have to start by deciding what level of engagement you want from your customers as well as what you’re willing to provide. Remember that social media is a two way street… hence the “social” aspect.

In a nutshell, I think your best bet is to decide whom you want to reach… write that down, no really. I’ll wait. Got it? Good. Next step, figure out where they hang out and how involved they are in their particular communities. Use tools like twitter search to search your brand or product then view conversations that include that brand or product. Try to match that level of engagement on that platform. Step three, engage in conversation. Do not spam. I repeat, DO NOT SPAM. If you want to mention a special you’ve got, make sure the people you’re talking to want to hear about it.

Finally, like a good golf swing, it’s all in the follow through. Follow up with those people you’ve built a relationship with. Nothing says thanks like a facebook/twitter shout out and thank you. Everyone on twitter loves to see their name in the “mentions” column on TweetDeck. Make it a habbit.

So there you have it. A quick run through on getting started. Needless to say, this is only one man’s opinion and it’s very high level. I accept no responsibility for your results… unless they’re good of course. Got any pointers you’d like to add? Post them below! Comments are cooler than mentions in my book.

The latest round of upgrades to the system involve some user experience changes and more importantly, spam filtering upgrades allowing you to filter out posts from newly created accounts as well as those using multiple trending terms in a single post. I liked that these filters can be adjusted on a sliding scale.

Tie these filters to previously available filters for usernames and available moderation of feeds and you can make any feed suitable for the church bulletin. They’ve got more upgrades on route and Michael has even suggested customizable feed views so that when I post a link like this:

http://jaythornton000.tidytweet.com/CollectiveBias.atom

It could formatted to match my site, very cool concept, especially for setting up third party feed sites.

The long and short of TidyTweet is that it’s a powerful tool that is going to keep improving. If you have need for twitter feeds, take a look at their site. The product is great and the guys behind it are second to none.

TidyTweet is one of the latest Twitter tools to cross the feed and one of the first in a while that caught my attention. I’ve since implemented and am helping with the beta testing… for a price.

My charge was a brief interview with Michael,  lead developer of TidyTweet at Rockfish Interactive, one of the more progressive agencies I’ve come into contact with. This is what Michael had to say. ~it’s a read but worth it, trust me.

[me] Tell me about TidyTweet.

[Michael] TidyTweet was built to solve a serious problem that we personally encountered at Rockfish Interactive. At Rockfish, we build engaging websites that often include social elements such as Twitter feeds. For example, a company may want to display the last 10 tweets that mention their brand. This is a great way to engage the community and show the buzz around a product or brand. However, doing this occasionally tends to attract spammers who mention a keyword or brand just to get their tweets listed on that page. So, rather than just write an internal tool to solve our problems, we decided to build it as a product to help others in the same position.

TidyTweet is a web-based service designed to help individuals and companies create customized Twitter feeds that they can protect from inappropriate content, spam, and any other content they want to filter. Simply create an account on TidyTweet.com; create your feed using search phrases and filters; grab the RSS feed or embed code; put it on your site and you’re all set. We’re currently in a private beta testing phase and offer the following features:

• Various moderation levels such as requiring manual approval or auto-approving after a delay
• Built-in and custom inappropriate language filters
• Auto-approval of specified users
• Auto-rejection of specified users
• Customized URLs for accounts and feeds
• Multiple output formats such as ATOM, RSS, and an HTML/Javascript widget

What changes and additions are you planning?

Our next couple of features will be focused on more proactively fighting Twitter spam. Our research has shown that a large amount of Twitter spam comes from 2 sources: brand new accounts and/or accounts tweeting using hash tags of 2 or more trending topics.
New Accounts: Once Twitter realizes an account is a spammer, they will shut down the account which means that spam accounts have a limited lifespan. By automatically rejecting new accounts, we will immediately cut down on a large amount of spam.
Multiple Trending Topics: One tactic used by spammers is to include multiple trending topics in their tweets so that anyone viewing those trending topics will see their tweets. For example, “Watch movies for free online #iranElection #Michael Jackson #google”. By eliminating any tweets with multiple trending topics, we’ll be able to eliminate this type of spam.

What are your key markets?

Any users looking to include a Twitter feed on their website will benefit from TidyTweet. Users can range from casual bloggers who want to show their tweets on their blogs to large companies who want to include social elements on their sites. TidyTweet will especially help companies who want social elements but can’t afford to take on the liability of including unfiltered community-driven content on their sites.

How long have you been developing TidyTweet?

The idea for TidyTweet was first tossed around approximately 6 weeks ago. Rockfish has always been an entrepreneurial company and immediately committed to seeing the idea come to life. Six weeks later, we’re in private beta testing.

Have there been any unforeseen challenges to date?

Developing a product around Twitter and specifically Twitter spam has been both exciting and challenging due to the ever-increasing popularity of both. Twitter continues to release new features and is constantly making tweaks to their products, and spammers are constantly finding new ways to use Twitter to push their message. This means that we have to constantly stay on top of changes to Twitter and remain proactive in fighting to eliminate spam.

How might someone get in on the beta test group?

Registration is free, and our signup page can be found at http://tidytweet.com/BetaSignup.aspx. We are approving a limited number of people for the beta test group on a first come, first serve basis. However, someone who feels like they would make a good candidate for beta testing and hasn’t already been approved can send a tweet to @tidytweet mentioning this blog entry, and we’ll do the best we can to make an exception.

So there’s the long and short on TidyTweet. Even as we work through the few bugs I’ve hit, I’m supremely impressed with the usability of the tool and recommend it across the board. Look for updates from Michael and myself on twitter and don’t hesitate to contact them directly with any specific questions you might have. Here are all the ways you can get in touch with TidyTweet.

Homepage: http://tidytweet.com
Email Support: tidytweet@rockfishinteractive.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/tidytweet
Feedback forum: http://tidytweet.uservoice.com
Rockfish Interactive: http://rockfishinteractive.com

@jaythornton000 – the slow growth.
This account started with only a few followers and following. I knew each and every one of them, personally, and we basically used the service as an instant messaging platform for the longest time. But times have changed. Global buy-in has allowed for a type of cultural overview by viewing twitter, hence my following of new people that I don’t know but share industry or interest with me. Too many words between periods? Sorry.

I’ve been known to blindly follow in the past but have since cleaned up the mess that caused. Now I’m relatively careful of who I follow and regularly un-follow those that spam. I actively seek out local users and sift through those who find me to keep my groups focused.

The result of all of this you might ask?
Following: 828
Followers: 864
Updates: 1,823

@JayatJBHunt – calling all followers.
I started this account by searching out industry types via the common channels, twibs, twellow, twitter search, etc. and following any and all within the industry. Then I started thinking… it would be beneficial to get some followers in the business world. We haul freight for people that make and sell products. Let find those guys. This turned into a “get everyone we can” strategy where I’ve joined several of the link trains and the rest is history.

The result of this?
Following: 1,190
Followers: 908
Updates: 301

The overall result is obvious. Gauged and deliberate follower strategy leads to slow growth of a more engaged audience, and rightly so. They’ve got over 1,800 tweets to have learned about me and make a decision. Further, they’re all part of or speaking on topics of interest to me. This group of people is interesting, provide awesome links and regularly engage in conversation. This is my golden group.

The other group, not to bash, but I really don’t know a lot about yet. We’ve only just met, we don’t converse and when we do we’re talking on different subject matter. Businesses talk product, I talk transport and marketing, we talk sports? I don’t know. I’m still learning this group.

So there you have it, my general assessment on two Twitter strategies. Comments?

Granted, I am obsessed with twitter but I’m also not big on scrolling the standard interface. I’m more the “has it running in the background” guy that checks periodically for updates from groups, @’s, and DM’s. I see this as a viable option for the on the go time.

So now the question arises of whom should you follow? Everyone is different and uses Twitter for unique reasons. I look at it as a way to connect with like-minded industry types and local social media and ad types, which means I’ve got some serious cleaning to do. Here is my cleansing strategy. It’s loose but effective.

The Sniper approach – This is where most of my casualties of followership have occurred. During the day I’ve typically got either TweetDeck or the TwitterGadget for iGoogle running. As those I follow break my cardinal rules (20 posts in a row, consistent “get 16k followers overnight” posts, etc.) I unfollow. It’s an active pursuit and you have to be monitoring but it’s better than going line-by-line on your following list.

The Time-to-Burn approach – As the title suggests, this is one of those rotting in front of the television on a rainy Sunday afternoon while the kids are napping activities. It’s also recommended that you have a movie you’ve seen a million times running in the background. All you do is open your following list and scan down the list, line-by-line, page-by-page, unfollowing any and all that appear to be spammers. They’re usually easy to find. Usernames like @12kfromtwitter or @asdfjhsaduew (names are made up, but you get the point) are a dead give away.

The Anti-Social Networking approach – are you the victim of your own early naivety? You’re following any and everyone from an early attempt to gain followers and now you miss the few and far between messages from the 6 people you actually want to hear from every day? Maybe you need a clean slate. While I don’t recommend it, there are tools out there that will let you unfollow everyone on your list. Take a look at the Mutuality tool from Huitter (http://www.huitter.com/mutuality/). This tool will allow you to unfollow everyone on your list, those who don’t follow you, and even make sure you’re following everyone who’s following you (not recommended). The trick here is to view the report upon completion and re-follow those you actually wanted to keep hearing from.

These are just a few ideas on maintaining a healthy network on Twitter. I find twitter infinitely more enjoyable with a well groomed following list. Remember, twitter is like proper diet, Garbage in = Garbage out. Get focused and you’ve got yourself a powerful tool.