More third-party Twitter apps fall to 100,000 user ceiling

Tweetro and Tweet Lanes hit token limit 

 

 

A pair of popular third-party Twitter apps, including the only one designed for the new Windows 8 UI, are the latest to fall victim to the company's increasingly tight API restrictions.
Tweetro for Windows 8 has been denied permission to exceed the recently-introduced 100,000 token (user) limit, Twitter places on apps developed by outside companies.
The app reached the limit on November 10 and has been unsuccessful in his application for an exemption, meaning new Windows 8 users are unable to sign up.
Twitter has been progressively tightening restrictions on apps which access its timeline as it seeks to direct users to its official suite of apps and web services.

Does not qualify

Twitter told New Zealand-based developer Lazyworm in an email: "As you know, we discourage developers from building apps that replicate our core user experience (aka "Twitter clients"). We know that there are developers that want to take their passion for Twitter and its ecosystem to unique underserved situations. As such, we have built some flexibility into our policy with regard to user tokens – which went into effect September 5th, 2012.
"…Unfortunately, It does not appear that your service addresses an area that our current or future products do not already serve. As such, it does not qualify for an exemption."
The key word there seems to be 'future' as Twitter is yet to release an official client that plays nice with the new Windows 8 UI.

Tweet Lanes ends development

Another app to hit the 100,000 user limit is Tweet Lanes. As a result developer Chris Lacey will cease further development.

"It saddens me greatly to announce that going forward, I won't be actively developing Tweet Lanes as I have to this point," Lacey wrote to users.

"The cold hard reality is that with this immovable, 100,000 user ceiling, my plans for growing and eventually monetizing the app are no longer feasible.

"This will likely be disappointing news for many of you, but given I spent a good chunk of my spare time for 10+ months working on this app, believe me when I say this decision pains me more than it does anyone else."

The Twitter API changes will come into effect in March 2013, but the company, as evidenced by these developments, is already working hard on enforcing them.

Twitter users with few followers may escape action over offensive tweets

Lawmakers debate social media 'reach' 

 

Social media users with few friends or followers may be more likely to get away with posting offensive material, whereas more popular accounts may face prosecution, under new laws.
The Director of Public Prosecutions, Kevin Starmer QC is developing guidelines which will combat the growing influence of Twitter and Facebook, while also protecting the nature of free speech online.
According to a Telegraph report, Starmer said it may be appropriate for the reach of a social networking account to be taken into consideration before the police take action over "grossly offensive" tweets, mainly due to the sheer scale of potential offenses.
He said: "Millions of cases could potentially be put through our system. More cases than the combined number of every other offence on the statute book."

Setting boundaries

The apparent haste to establish boundaries comes following a host of recent incidents, which attracted the attention of the authorities (i.e. those who carry handcuffs and big sticks).
First came the arrest of a teenager who tweeted Olympic diver Tom Daley abuse regarding the death of his father. Despite Daley retweeting the message, the offender was was not prosecuted due to the relative obscurity of his Twitter account.
Just last week, a Kent man was arrested after posting a photo of himself burning a Remembrance Day Poppy on Facebook.
The arrests relate to section 127 of the Communications Act, which outlaws the sending of "grossly offensive" messages via telecoms networks.
Section 127 has "never quite had the focus it has had over the last 12 months," said Starmer.

Twitter accidentally reset passwords

Hack apparently much smaller than it seemed 

 

A number of Twitter users have received emails prompting them to change their passwords because their accounts may have been compromised.

Update: Twitter has posted a slightly shame-faced note on its status site claiming that a lot of users receievd the emails by accident.
"In this case, we unintentionally reset passwords of a larger number of accounts, beyond those that we believed to have been compromised," the statement explains.
Seemingly affected users were also prompted to reset their passwords when trying to log in on the Twitter website.

Dodgy

Original story continues:
Some accounts have been spotted posting dodgy tweets – it's fair to say if TechCrunch advises you that you could make $250 a day working from home, it's not a legit endorsement of CNBC7workhome's services.
Twitter hasn't said how many accounts are affected but it seems to be a fairly large-scale hack given the outcry on the site itself.
If you're at all worried about the security of your account, just go to Settings/Password to change your password even if Twitter hasn't told you to.

Obama's 'Four more years' tweet the most popular of all time

A tweet sent out by Barack Obama to herald his re-election as President of the United States has rapidly become the most popular of all time.
The post, which simply read "Four more years" and was accompanied by a photo of Obama embracing his wife Michelle, had already been retweeted over 350,000 times just an hour after it was posted.
The same tweet had been favourited by 122,000 Twitter users, with both numbers growing exponentially.
The victory tweet surpassed the previous record held by teenage pop sensation Justin Bieber which had received 223,376 times, according to The Atlantic.

Record breaker

Obama, whose campaign has harnessed social media extremely effectively even before he became a presidential candidate in 2008, has amassed a whopping 22 million followers on Twitter.
The record-breaking proclamation of victory came towards the close of a frenetic election night on Twitter, which will likely break records for posts and activity.
However, not all of the Twitter-based news was positive. The Apprentice U.S host Donald Trump (himself, fleetingly, a republican presidential hopeful) caused a furore with a barrage of explosive tweets.
"Lets fight like hell and stop this great and disgusting injustice! The world is laughing at us," he tweeted from his @realDonaldTrump account, which has 1.3 million followers.

Twitter to integrate Instagram-like filters for photo sharing?

NYT report claims competing service on the way

 

Twitter is planning to add in-app photo filters in order to compete with Instagram and Facebook according to reports.
The New York Times claims the company will include the option to add a host of retro-like filters to photos directly from its mobile apps.
Apparently, the company wants its users to by-pass Instagram and share directly to Twitter, but still enjoy similar photo-enhancing tools.
The NYT reports that, following Facebook's billion dollar acquisition of the hit photo-sharing application, Twitter had considered purchasing a rival service in order to keep up.
However, the top brass at the company may have resolved to build the extra functionality itself and keep everything in house. Twitter has declined to comment on the report.

Marginalising third-parties 

The report comes as Twitter continues its efforts to marginalise third-party services by tightening its API restrictions.
Twitter has claimed that the changes are in aid of providing a consistent experience for its users, but in reality, it is looking to squeeze out companies that make money from Twitter in order to pocket that cash itself.
Less than a month ago we reported on speculation that Twitter was building its own video hosting service in order to squeeze out TwitVid, yFrog and the like.

Let's Fly

we introduce a new version of Twitter. We’ve simplified the design to make it easier than ever to follow what you care about, connect with others and discover something new. You’ll see this new design both on Twitter.com and mobile phones, so that you’ll have a familiar experience any time, anywhere. We’ve also updated TweetDeck to be consistent with this new version.

Four new tabs bring you instantly closer to everything you care about. Visit fly.twitter.com to learn more about the changes.

We’ll be rolling out the redesigned Twitter over the next few weeks. You can see it immediately on the just-updated versions of mobile.twitter.com, Twitter for iPhone, and Twitter for Android. You can get early access on your computer by downloading and logging into Twitter for iPhone or Twitter for Android. We’re working on updates for other apps, such as Twitter for iPad, and will share news as they become available.

What we’re announcing today is just the beginning. We now have a framework in place that we will quickly build and iterate upon to help users connect with whatever is meaningful to them.

#letsfly

How Twitter Helped Me Build My Personal Brand

So many of my c-level executive clients and potential clients are surprised that Twitter is such an integral part of my personal branding and social media marketing efforts, even though it’s wildly popular and stories about its value for business-building and job search abound.
They still think Twitter is a time-drain for people who have nothing better to do than tweet about what they had for lunch, or other trivial matters.
My Twitter ROI was dismal at first when I started tweeting seriously late in 2008, and I thought I was wasting my time. It took about 6 months of tweeting several times every day (except weekends) before I could see that my time spent was gaining traction, and I was beginning to make a mark.
I certainly haven’t been as heavy-duty a tweeter as many others, but I’d say my Twitter schedule is realistic for someone who is actively job seeking. Some say it’s better not to tweet too much anyway, and risk overwhelming your followers.
Because tweeting is micro-blogging, Twitter is a natural complement to my blogging efforts. It fits in perfectly with the kind of marketing that works best for me – spreading my own content across various social media channels, showcasing my writing skill and its value to c-suite job seekers.
It’s all about getting my brand and promise of value noticed by potential clients and those who can lead me to more clients, and getting recognized as an industry thought leader and expert.
The idea is to get on their radar and stay top of mind with them so that, when they have a need for my services or know someone who may, they’ll reach out to me.
Sounds just like job search networking, doesn’t it?
Good networking on Twitter, just as in real-life or through any social media channel, works when you think “give to get” – promote and help others, and they’ll likely reciprocate. I’ve built professional friendships with all kinds of people (other career professionals, executive job seekers, social media experts, entrepreneurs, etc.) with whom I’ve formed alliances.
We’ve become brand evangelists for each other. I support them by retweeting them, tweeting their blog posts, spreading the word about them and referring them to good-fit clients. They’ve reciprocated by referring potential clients to me and sometimes their contacts in the media who are looking for career experts to interview and/or to contribute to their publications.
One of my Twitter strategies is using relevant keyword phrases often, in my retweets and original tweets, and/or adding hashtagged (#) keyword phrases at the end of tweets, if it will still leave room for others to retweet them.
Savvy Twitter users search these phrases for information, products, services, and to find people to follow. Here are some of my recurring keywords:
#C-suite
#PersonalBranding
#JobSearch
#Executive
#SocialMedia
#LinkedIn
#Blogging
Other strategies I use to attract potential clients, colleagues and thought leaders within my niche:

• Using hashtags on my relevant keyword phrases strategically, tweeting with and without them.
• Retweeting people I want to notice me, if they’ve tweeted something relevant and worthy.

And my efforts have paid off:
When I published my executive branding and job search ebook, I knew I could rely on my Twitter network to help promote it.
Many of my blog posts have gone viral, broadcasting my name and business on many other sites. People have referred to and linked to my blog posts on their blogs, helping to build SEO on my sites and bring more visitors … all potential clients or people who can refer potential clients.
About 15-20% of visitors to my blogsite come from Twitter. If I’ve tweeted an especially popular blog post of mine, that number can jump to more than 50%. Those visitors are people who probably otherwise wouldn’t visit my site. Every visitor is a potential client or may know someone who is.
Some clients who found me by Googling relevant keyword phrases, landing them on my blogsites, said they wanted to work with me because of my Twitter and other social media involvement, indicating my expertise in online identity and online reputation management. They watched my ongoing activity in the Twitter stream on my blogsites.
Leading job search experts who found me on Twitter have included me in their lists of approved career services providers.
Your takeaway:
As an executive job seeker, if you build a realistic strategic plan to incorporate Twitter into your search campaign – even as little as 10-15 minutes a day – you’ll get the word out about your unique promise of value to the companies you’re targeting.
Many of them are on Twitter, tweeting opportunities and updates on their products and services, which could alert you to needs of theirs that you can fulfill. Job search experts are on Twitter, tweeting valuable (and free!) information that can help you. They’re all active on Twitter. You should be, too.

Twitter buys Android security firm Whisper Systems

Twitter has acquired an Android security firm, but exactly what the social-networking company wants to do with it is currently unknown.
Whisper Systems announced on its blog today that it will become part of Twitter. Although the company didn't disclose an acquisition price, it did say that it will bring its "technology and our expertise into Twitter's products and services."
Whisper offers a range of security products--currently all in beta--that focus on safeguarding device data, network connections, backups, and calls. Considering that, it's quite possible Twitter will try to improve the security of its mobile apps with Whisper's technology.

That said, don't expect to see Whisper's apps, including TextSecure and RedPhone, to be available for a while. Whisper said that as part of its transition to Twitter, it will be forced to take its services down until the social network decides to put them back up. However, they will all be making a comeback.
For its part, Twitter hasn't publicly commented on the Whisper acquisition and has not immediately responded to CNET's request for comment.
Twitter has been on a tear as of late, acquiring a host of companies across several different markets. Last December, Twitter "acquired" personnel from Q&A startup Fluther and followed that up in May with the purchase of TweetDeck. In August, Twitter acquired Bagcheck, a small gear-sharing startup.

#YearInReview: Hot Topics and Top Hashtags of 2011

Today’s edition of Twitter’s #YearInReview highlights the leading topics and hashtags of the year. From news of Mubarak’s resignation in Egypt to buzz about which McDonald’s restaurants serve McLobster, the top trends that emerged on Twitter in 2011 reflect the diverse things that matter to us in our daily lives.

The list of Hot Topics and Top Hashtags charts the keywords that rose the fastest in conversation over the course of the year. This reveals what grabbed our attention most dramatically in 2011, and which events, inventions, changes and ideas made the deepest impression on us.

Among other things, we saw history unfold in the Middle East, mourned the passing of Elizabeth Taylor, celebrated National Whipped Cream Day, and cheered for the Dallas Mavericks, Texas Rangers and Wayne Rooney. We wondered about Charlie Sheen, speculated about the Sony NGP, and raved (or raged) about Rebecca Black. And we tYp3ed LyK tHi5.

More than anything, these trends demonstrate how Twitter connects people with common interests. Instead of watching the news, the Super Bowl and Pretty Little Liars at home alone, we watched them together on Twitter. We shared our thoughts about the world we live in, and we listened as others around the globe chimed in.

For more on how Twitter identifies trends, visit our help center.

#YearInReview: Who Joined Twitter in 2011?

If you joined Twitter this year, you’re in excellent company: other new Tweeters include Nelson Mandela, Joe Biden, Plaxico Burress, Christina Aguilera, Salman Rushdie, New York Times Executive Editor Jill Abramson, and the Pope.

Today’s #YearInReview list highlights some of the leaders, athletes, entertainers, journalists and other notables who dove into the Twitter stream. And they’re just a few of the 100 million people around the globe who use Twitter to see what’s happening in the world right now, share stories and information instantly, and connect to anyone, anywhere.

If you’d like to see who else is on Twitter, check out our guide to Twitter's suggestions for Who to Follow.

#YearInReview: The Year in Stories

The December edition of Twitter Stories highlights ten remarkable moments of 2011. From the man who inadvertently live-tweeted the raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound to the homeless dad who was reunited with his daughter after years of separation, this list, which doubles as the annual “Year in Stories,” chronicles how people use Twitter to make a difference in ways that are both personal and universal. Here's one story:

Around the world, people sent more than 60 billion Tweets in 2011, each one reflecting a particular perspective and point in time. To choose just ten of these to sum up the year is virtually impossible. Instead of attempting to identify the “most important” Tweets of the year, we’re recognizing ten Tweets that are emblematic of the many resonant moments that happened first on Twitter—or could only happen on Twitter.

As these instances show, a single Tweet can bring you closer to neighbors and heroes, immerse you in political change or disaster relief. You might even get a steak dinner where you least expect it.

If you’ve got a Twitter story to tell, use the hashtag #TwitterStories and follow us at @TwitterStories.

Once in a lifetime

Increasingly people flock to Twitter to discover information and connect around occurrences like natural disasters, sporting events and cultural moments. And then there are times when Twitter is where you might go to experience an infrequent curiosity.

Take last Friday, which was November 11, 2011. Whether you were inclined to crack a joke about this rare binary occurrence, wax poetic about its meaning, or join in a global game to share photos at 11 a.m. and 11 p.m., numerology dominated the conversation.

This clip is a visualization of all the Tweets mentioning 11:11 on 11.11.11. Each “1” is a location that moves with the conversation on Twitter. Their scale varies depending on the volume of Tweets posted from the location they represent. You can see the main wave move from right to left, and then a second one that occurred at 11 p.m. around the world.

A special thanks to our own @miguelrios, whose visualizations of this data demonstrate moments on Twitter that can unite us all.

Introducing Twitter Stories

Stories.twitter.com

Today we’re launching the first in a series of Twitter stories. Read about a single Tweet that helped save a bookstore from going out of business; an athlete who took a hundred of his followers out to a crab dinner; and, Japanese fishermen who use Twitter to sell their catch before returning to shore. Each story reminds us of the humanity behind Tweets that make the world smaller.

Tell us your story

Help us uncover more stories. Tell us how you or someone else have used Twitter in an interesting way. Submit your story by mentioning @twitterstories or by using the hashtag #twitterstories. Include a link to a photo or video that helps illustrate your story to the world. Each month we’ll curate a selection of profiles to share.

Follow @twitterstories to get the latest stories or check the site every month for a new collection.

Twitter, TV and You

Twitter is transforming the way we watch TV. Reading and writing Tweets has become the new water cooler, helping us connect in real-time around our favorite shows, competitions and events. On Twitter, you get closer to the characters and shows you love, as stars, writers, directors, news anchors and more live-tweet from behind the scenes.

 

 

And now things are getting even more exciting for Twitter and TV — and more specifically fans of The X Factor USA. We've partnered with the show so that starting next week, you can cast votes for your favorite contestants via Twitter. Fans have taken to Twitter during live television events to voice their opinions with Tweets for years. Now you can officially affect the outcome of the show by voting for which contestants should stay and which ones need to go.

To vote, follow @TheXFactorUSA. Then submit your vote through a Direct Message (a private way to communicate on Twitter) so as not to spoil the results. All votes are sent directly to The X Factor to be counted. Tweets do not count as votes.

The easiest way to vote is by visiting twitter.thexfactorusa.com. We’re also featuring Tweets from the judges, the host and the final contestants to get inside every angle of the action. You don’t have to wait for voting to begin though. Join the conversation with other X Factor fans today with #XFactor and tell Simon what you think — he’s listening!

From singing competitions to awards ceremonies to dramas, watching your favorite shows is better with Twitter. In addition to tuning in to The X Factor on Twitter, here are other ways to get closer to your favorite television shows and stars:

• TV stars live-tweet to give you a behind-the-scenes glimpse into what’s happening on your screen. From Kyra Sedgwick live-tweeting the summer’s finale of The Closer to Masi Oka bringing fans behind the scenes of Hawaii 5-0, stars use Twitter to talk to viewers and viewers are talking back.
• #Hashtags organize the conversation. You’ve probably spotted hashtags on your television screen this year. From #DWTS to #BigBangTheory to playful hashtags like X Factor’s #BestMomentSoFar, hashtags are the front door to the shared conversation on Twitter. Search for them on Twitter and add them to your own Tweets to join in.
• Twitter lets everyone become a TV critic, 140 characters at a time. Show creators, actors, producers and executives search Twitter to gather feedback — and they’ve been known to revise a show’s storyline based on what fans are saying.

We’ve collected best practices across the industry to help producers and TV executives keep innovating around Twitter and TV.

Twitter and iOS 5: Sharing made simple

Twitter is now fully integrated into Apple’s new iOS 5 mobile operating system, available for the first time today. Now it’s even easier to share and read Tweets on your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Simply enter your Twitter login information into your device settings, and you’ll always be connected to your Twitter account. This means you can tweet directly from Apple apps like Camera, Maps, Photos, Safari and YouTube, along with third party apps, such as Chomp, Flipboard, LivingSocial, Instagram, MadPad, PopSugar, Showyou, SoundTracking and Zynga's Words with Friends.

You can also take advantage of the latest version of Twitter for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, which now allows you upload images directly to Twitter (pic.twitter.com). Download the Twitter app now from the App Store.

Follow the NHL action all season long

This year’s @NHL season starts tonight and goes through June. Thanks to Twitter, hockey fans can check in on every angle of the action, anytime. Here’s how:

Follow the players.
No matter your allegiance, you can find a favorite player on Twitter. A few suggestions: Washington Capitals captain @Ovi8, New York Ranger @BrandonPrust8, San Jose Shark and Calder Cup finalist @LoganCouture, or Flyer @Max25talbot. Find more with the NHL’s players list.

Go behind the scenes.
The league’s Senior Vice President @NHLShanahan keeps fans up-to-date with the latest news on player suspensions and fines, including personal video explanations. Insiders @Real_ESPNLeBrun, NHL columnist Pierre LeBrun, and Canada’s @TSNBobMcKenzie share news, analysis and insight into the action. And if Fantasy Hockey is your game, stay informed with @NHLcomFantasy and @ESPNFantasy for tips and suggestions.

Get instant updates.
Turn on SMS notifications for your favorite accounts and make sure you never miss a goal all season long. You can learn about it here.

Follow the teams.
Every team in the NHL is on Twitter. Follow your favorites for updated scores, player information and news. Check out the full list below.

Eastern:
Atlantic: New Jersey Devils [@NHLDevils], New York Islanders [@NYIslanders] New York Rangers [@thenyrangers], Philadelphia Flyers [@NHLFlyers], Pittsburgh Penguins [@pghpenguins]

Northeast: Boston Bruins [@NHLBruins], Buffalo Sabres [@SabresDotCom], Montréal Canadiens [@CanadiensMTL], Toronto Maple Leafs [@MapleLeafs], Ottawa Senators [@NHL_Sens]

Southeast: Carolina Hurricanes [@nhl_canes], Florida Panthers [@FlaPanthers], Tampa Bay Lightning [@TBLightning], Washington Capitals [@washcaps], Winnipeg Jets [@NHLJets]

Western:
Central: Chicago Blackhawks [@NHLBlackhawks], Columbus Blue Jackets [@BlueJacketsNHL], Detroit Red Wings [@DetroitRedWings], Nashville Predators [@PredsNHL], St. Louis Blues [@St_Louis_Blues]

Northwest: Calgary Flames [@NHLFlames], Colorado Avalanche [@Avalanche], Edmonton Oilers [@NHL_Oilers], Minnesota Wild [@mnwild], Vancouver Canucks [@VanCanucks]

Pacific: Anaheim Ducks [@AnaheimDucks], Dallas Stars [@DallasStars], Los Angeles Kings [@LAKings], Phoenix Coyotes [@phoenixcoyotes], San Jose Sharks [@SanJoseSharks]

Share a photo via text message

Sending a text message (or SMS message) has always been one of the easiest ways to share information and keep up with your favorite accounts on Twitter. SMS is currently available in about 80 countries and nine languages and usage continues to grow. Nearly four billion SMS messages are sent and received on Twitter every month.

Starting today, you can share photos on Twitter by including a photo in your text message. It’s simple: just enter the text of your Tweet as you normally would, attach a photo to the message and send to Twitter. This feature is currently available with the following carriers*: AT&T, Verizon Wireless and C Spire Wireless in the US; Vodafone, O2 and Orange in the UK; Vodafone Italy; Rogers Communications in Canada; VIVA Bahrain; and, TIM Brazil. We’ll continue to work with more carriers to enable their customers to share photos via text message.

Here are a few other text messaging updates and tips to check out:

• Fast Follow: Last year we announced that anyone in the U.S. can instantly receive Tweets on their phone, even if they don’t have a Twitter account, by simply sending a text message. This feature is now available globally with any carrier that offers Twitter SMS. Read more about how Fast Follow works here.
• SMS Commands: There are a few useful one-word commands that you can send to Twitter to get information.
  • "Suggest": lets you get suggestions for accounts to follow
  • "Stats": sends you your basic profile info, including your bio info, number of followers and the number of accounts you follow
  • "Help" or "Tips": to get handy Twitter SMS tips

Send “follow @twittermobile” to Twitter to keep up with the latest mobile Twitter news.

Five new languages

Today, we’re increasing Twitter’s reach by launching in five new languages. Twitter is now available in Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Hindi, Filipino and Malay. Last week’s announcement of 100 million active users worldwide shows Twitter’s current reach; with these new languages Twitter will now be more easily accessible to almost half a billion people around the world.

Twitter now fully supports 17 languages. Our crowd-sourced translation process relies on a dedicated community of volunteer translators to both translate and moderate twitter.com, support pages, Twitter apps and more. Many thanks to our 290,000 (and counting) volunteer translators.

We will continue to add more languages to the Translation Center for crowdsourced translation. Coming soon to the Translation Center: Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Polish and Hungarian.

One hundred million voices

Five years ago, Twitter came to life when @jack sent the first Tweet to his seven followers. Now, 100 million active users around the globe turn to Twitter to share their thoughts and find out what’s happening in the world right now.

More than half of them log in to Twitter each day to follow their interests. For many, getting the most out of Twitter isn’t only about tweeting: 40 percent of our active users simply sign in to listen to what’s happening in their world.

Twitter’s global reach gives a voice to people around the world and as far away as the International Space Station. After launching Hindi, Filipino, Malay and Simplified and Traditional Chinese in the coming weeks, Twitter will support 17 different languages.

Our 100 million active users range from passionate early adopters to recent converts. They include:

Leaders.Thirty-five global heads of state use Twitter as a primary way to communicate with their constituencies, from @JuliaGillard in Australia to Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, @CFKArgentina. In the United States, frequent Tweeters include every Cabinet agency, 84 percent of state governors, and every major candidate for President. City leaders, like Mayors @CoryBooker of Newark and @MayorOfLondon among many more, share local news. More than 40 percent of the top global religious leaders are on Twitter, including @DalaiLama and the Pope, who sent his first Tweet from @news_va_en in June.

Athletes. Many US professional sports players are active on Twitter, including two-thirds of the NBA. Every team in the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL and MLS tweets, as do cricket players in India, European football stars and many other celebrated athletes around the world. Fans and commentators join in for some of the most colorful conversations on Twitter.

Humanitarians.Additionally, over 99 percent of America's top 200 non-profits are on Twitter. Recently, in response to Hurricane Irene, @Fema created a special list of accounts to followfor the most up-to-date and official information, while @redcross signed up lists of official volunteers to assist in four-hour shifts to disseminate the latest information to those affected by the storm.

Entertainers.Eighty-seven percent of Billboard’s Top 100 musicians of 2010 are active on Twitter, connecting with fans to engage their audiences. Each of the top 50 Nielsen-rated TV shows are represented on Twitter. And who doesn’t love a daily dose of hilarity from their favorite comedian? Both new talent like @MindyKaling and @AzizAnsari and seasoned pros like @SteveMartinToGo and @ConanOBrien keep us laughing.

Reporters.Major newsrooms from @AJEnglish to @WashingtonPost actively use Twitter to supplement their reporting efforts. Reporters share stories and photos from the front lines, like New York Times reporter Brian Stelter’s on-the-ground coverage of the devastating tornado that hit Joplin, MO in May. Ordinary citizens break news and give us a view we might otherwise miss, like the now-famous Space Shuttle image that was retweeted over 2,300 times, and the first photo of the US Airways plane that landed in the Hudson River in 2009.

Thanks to all of you, we have 100 million reasons to celebrate.

Your all-access pass to the NFL

Tomorrow night, the New Orleans Saints (@TheSaints) and Green Bay Packers (@packers) kick off the 2011 NFL season. And with every NFL team and nearly half of all the players tweeting, you can get closer than ever to all the action.

Whether you’re a casual fan or a gridiron die-hard, Twitter gives you a richer, 360-degree view of the game. Here are a few tips to make sure you don’t miss any of the action or behind the scenes insight:

• Follow the NFL for the latest information about games, schedules and news.
• Stay ahead of your friends and improve your fantasy football team’s chances. Check out ESPN Fantasy Sports, Yahoo! Sports and CBS Fantasy News for the latest insider updates to manage your roster.
• Turn on SMS notifications for your favorite football accounts, and make sure you never miss a touchdown. You can learn about it here.
• And, of course, you can search for teams and individual players to find related Tweets and accounts.

We’ve also made it easy to discover new football-related information with Twitter accounts for each team in the NFL. These accounts automatically select and retweet the top Tweets from official team accounts, coaches, players, owners and local media — bringing you the latest Tweets from your favorite team.

NFC
East: The Washington Redskins [@RedskinsTweets], the Philadelphia Eagles [@EaglesTweets], the New York Giants [@GiantsTweets], the Dallas Cowboys [@CowboysTweets]

North: The Green Bay Packers [@PackerTweets], the Minnesota Vikings [@VikingsTweets], the Chicago Bears [@CHIBearsTweets], the Detroit Lions [@LionsTweets]

South: The Atlanta Falcons [@FalconsTweets], the Carolina Panthers [@PanthersTweets], the New Orleans Saints [@SaintsTweets], the Tampa Bay Buccaneers [@BuccaneerTweets]

West: The San Francisco 49ers [@sf49erstweets], the Arizona Cardinals [@CardinalsTweets], the Seattle Seahawks [@SeahawksTweets], the St. Louis Rams [@STLRamsTweets]

AFC
East: The Buffalo Bills [@BUFBillsTweets], the Miami Dolphins [@Dolphins_Tweets], the New England Patriots [@NEPatriotTweets], the New York Jets [@NYJetsTweets]

North: The Baltimore Ravens [@RavensTweets], the Cincinnati Bengals [@BengalsTweets], the Cleveland Browns [@BrownsTweets], the Pittsburgh Steelers [@Steeler_Tweets]

South: The Houston Texans [@TexansTweets], the Indianapolis Colts [@ColtsTweets], the Jacksonville Jaguars [@JaguarsTweets], the Tennessee Titans [@TitansTweets]

West: The Denver Broncos [@BroncosTweets], the Kansas City Chiefs [@ChiefsTweets], the Oakland Raiders [@RaiderTweets], the San Diego Chargers [@ChargersTweets]