“What’s the difference between Cinderella and the Australian team?… Cinderella knew when to leave the ball.” Sorry, couldn’t resist it, England won the Ashes 3-1 and not only do we retain the urn, but I get my sleep-patterns back.
But while there is a great deal of difference between Cinderella and the Aussies, what is the difference between Facebook and Twitter? I’ve previously posited that Facebook is ‘Look at me!’ and Twitter is ‘Look at that’, but I’m moving on to a completely different distinction.
Recently an old friend contacted me on Facebook, thus opening a portal into several other friends who I’d lost touch with over the years. While it was odd that his profile picture was of a German Shepherd and was called Monty (which he’d named after me), this was a wonderful experience and helps me keep from Facebook suicide.
Then it dawned on me. Facebook is for old friends, Twitter is for new friends! That’s the difference between these networks! Over the past 18 months I’ve had a number of ‘Twomances’ on Twitter with similarly minded men and I now count several of them as mates that will be ‘rollin’ long after the bubblegum craze’.*
Granted, most of these Twomances began as business-orientated relationships but my love affair with Twitter is because it has become my salon, my attempts at being part of an intelligentsia and my own public getaway. I seem to have more in common with fellow-Twitter-travellers than people I work with or the barflys I’ve always been fascinated by, but are now irritating me.
The possibilities for new friendships are endless and I would imagine that Twitter is also likely to lead to slightly more physical relationships than my Twomances. If there is one thing I don’t understand and that’s modern-day dating (married for nearly ten years etc), but I would imagine while you would be more likely to get a shag by speed-dating or online dating sites, Twitter-dates might lead to a more meaningful relationship.
Conversely, Facebook may bring back together old flames and has probably broken down many a marriage, but these are vivid examples of how social networking is revolutionising our behaviour. But you may know this already and like Cinderella and the Australian cricketers, I am somewhat late to the ball.
Monty Munford has more than 15 years' experience in mobile, digital media, web and journalism. He is the founder of Mob76, a company that helps tech companies raise money and exit. He speaks regularly at global media events with a focus on Africa, writes a weekly column for The Telegraph, is a regular contributor to The Economist, Wired, Mashable and speaks regularly on the BBC World Service.
