Are you a twitter shitter?

found at http://www.penny-arcade.com/

I'm still on the fence about twitter. I can't find the strength to update everyone that I'm feeding my dog, but I've enjoyed learning a bit about people that I know and work with in reading just these type of things. I hate lurking in and not contributing to systems like these, but I have still not bought in to it's value. (By the way, we have two dogs)

Alan, Rob and John have expressed their views and I find that I agree with all of their points. But I need some one to sell this to me. Pretend it is not a free cacophony of seemingly random information. Why would I buy into this? Would anyone pay for this service?

Keep in mind this blog is free and so is probably the reader that you use to aggregate it and others. However, IBM Lotus and competitors make money selling these as products and can express value in doing so. Three years ago, I was still explaining blogs to people, so I feel that the pattern should be there, but I don't see it.

The value may be in automating updates in some way. An RFID system knows that I just walked into a Starbucks. Mastercard lets you know I am enjoying a vanilla latte. A Notes agent reports that I've opened a Document in a certain Database. Yet this sounds disgustingly obtrusive and reeks of Big Brother.

What am I missing? Or am I over thinking this one?

P.S. Follow my silence - http://twitter.com/macguidera