The Mother Of All Twitter Lists

I follow too many people on Twitter - 45,000? - for my Twitter stream to make any sense to me. I will log in and before I click on the Mention button - the Twitter inbox - I will glance through the first few tweets in my steam, and sometimes I will find a snarky comment from someone - Having Coffee - that I will retweet and then I am done. That is not to say I don't want to follow people. I have gone to great lengths to build my lists on Twitter. I add people to my lists every day, most days.

But there are a few problems. Twitter allows you to create only 20 lists. I don't get it. Why is 20 such a magic number? Why not 30? Why not 40? Or 25?

And I want a composite list. There should be an automatically formed mother of all lists. That list should have people that are on all my various lists. That is me wishing I were not following 45,000 people. But 2009 was heady times.

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Tweet Embed Option Needed

Image via WikipediaNo, Biz, Twitter Has Real Issues

I think Twitter needs to give me the same embed option that YouTube does. Very often I feel the need to embed a tweet at my blog. And I ended up taking a screen shot, using the Paint software to resize it and all. It is tedious. It is a few different steps. I think it is like five steps. Takes a lot of time I don't have.

Linking to a tweet is not the same thing. Just like linking to a video is not the same thing. And taking a screen shot makes the tweet go dead. The links freeze. There is no retweet button.

A tweet is like an atom. It is a basic building block of the web. And we should have the option to take the atom wherever.

Did someone say Jack Dorsey is back at Twitter?

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Wait, is it already on? Perhaps not yet for Blogger. Where is Evan Williams when I need him?

No, Biz, Twitter Has Real Issues

Image via WikipediaI am a huge fan of Twitter, an avid user, and I have blogged extensively about the service at this blog. I joined the service the same day Demi Moore did. Coincidence.

And I understand the media thing Biz Stone is alluding to here. The media likes drama. They report of fights where there are no fights. Friction sells better than peace.

But I do believe Twitter does have real issues.

Twitter does not have that Gladiator Steve Jobs, or the Knight In Shining Armor Mark Zuckerberg. But that lone warrior Founder CEO is not the only formula for grand success. Maybe greatness can also arise out of collective leadership.

This is tricky for me. Fred Wilson is my favorite solo blogger. I know the guy - one of the perks of living in New York City. Blogger continues to be my favorite social media platform, and that is an ode to Evan Williams. But I have been openly vocal at this blog about having wanted to see Jack Dorsey as the Founder CEO for Twitter.

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Founder CEOs are not gifted by other team members or by VCs. Founder CEOs don't depend on outside parties for their power. They keep the power they started with. Larry Ellison, my favorite character in tech, comes to mind. You need some raw street smarts, some bare knuckles fire in the belly to swim with the sharks.

The Founder CEO is an extremely rare animal. But it is my favorite animal. And I have been open in my fantasy of wanting to have seen Jack Dorsey be that to Twitter. Did the Board mess up? Did Ev mess up? I don't know the details. The cast of characters involved lead me to give them the benefit of doubt. But I love Twitter enough that I do wish it had had that Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook has pivoted relentlessly. Facebook used to have a wall as the primary feature. It learned the stream from Twitter.

I do believe Twitter has real issues as of today. I am hoping Jack Dorsey can pull a rabbit out of the hat in his second coming.

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