This document provides guidance on how to effectively communicate within Twitter's 140-character limit by explaining several shorthand conventions: 1) Common abbreviations help maximize space, like "RT" to retweet and "@" to tag other users. 2) Hashtags (#) organize tweets by topic and make them searchable. 3) Emoticons (:)) add expression within few characters. 4) Links are often shortened to fit. The techniques outlined help Twitter users communicate concisely while crediting sources and filtering discussions.

1. HOW TO READ A
TWEET
by @ellsbeth
October, 2009

2. Space is at a Premium
Each post, or Tweet, on
Twitter can only consist of a
maximum of 140 characters.
Therefore, space is precious.
This means that many things
get abbreviated in order to
conform to the space
alotted.
cc licensed flickr photo by gtrwndr87: http://flickr.com/photos/mattmendoza/3248177419/

3. @
The @ symbol is put before
a Twitter username at the
beginning of a tweet in
order to “address” the
tweet to that person.
cc licensed flickr photo by cindy47452: http://
flickr.com/photos/cindy47452/1796528206/
Tweet “Address”
Tweet by @geowashington

4. RT
Credit your sources by using RT at the beginning of a tweet to
indicate that you are “Retweeting” information, resources, or
ideas you received from some someone else. Put your source’s
username after RT.
Retweet Source
Tweet by @smithsonian

5. via
Another way to credit your sources. Via appears in parenthesis
at the end of a tweet, followed by the source’s username.
Tweet by @stevecase
Indicates info is from another source. Source
cc licensed flickr photo by Lin Pernille ♥ Photography:
http://flickr.com/photos/linnybinnypix/1189891134/

6. Links
Many tweets contain live hyperlinks to different resources on
the internet. They are often shortened from their original form
to take up less space in 140 character tweets.
Tweet by @nasa
Live Hyperlink
cc licensed flickr photo by Kenny Miller: http://
flickr.com/photos/kennymiller/536653708/

7. Background Knowledge: Tags
In order to understand the
next term, be sure you
understand the concept of
Tags on the internet. A tag
is a label used for the
purpose of identification
or organization. Twitter,
blogs, and many other
websites use tags to cc licensed flickr photo by cambodia4kidsorg: http://
flickr.com/photos/cambodia4kidsorg/260004685/
categorize and organize
information.

8. #hashtags
Developed as a tag to organize and filter tweets, #hashtags are
searchable and agreed upon by a group.
They can be used to:
-Filter search results for a topic
-Participate in a live chat
-Find information from a conference
-And more...
Clickable, Searchable #hashtags
Tweet by @ted_talks Tweet by @jswiatek

9. Some Education #hashtags
Feel !ee to search for these tags to get an idea of how they are used.
Conferences: Search & Filter: Live Chats:
#iste2010 #historyteacher #edchat
International Society for Resource shared by and for A live education that occurs on
Technology in Education history teachers. Tuesday evenings. Anyone can
Conference in Denver, 2010. participate by including the
hashtag.
#teachertuesday
#gls2009 Used on Tuesdays to
Games+Learning+Society recommend good teachers to
Conference in Madison, WI, follow on Twitter.
2009
#eci831
#tedtalks Common tag used by credit &
Annual conference on “Ideas non-credit students involved in
worth sharing.” A large amount the University of Regina’s Social
of the high caliber presentations Media & Open Education
are recorded & available on the course.
internet.

10. Emoticons
A representation of a writer’s mood or facial
expression using text. :)
Emoticon Directory:
http://www.sharpened.net/glossary/emoticons.php
cc licensed flickr photo by somegeekintn: http://flickr.com/photos/somegeekintn/3810233454/

11. Ever
Evolving
Each of the examples
given here were not
included in the original
use of Twitter. They are
all user created and
adapted by Twitter
developers. Language on
Twitter will continue to
evolve as new needs are
recognized by the cc licensed flickr photo by jurvetson: http://flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/3191311715/
community.