In my post Twitter’s #FollowFriday #FF – Over the Top. Literally I explained what Twitter’s FollowFriday or FF means, how this Twitter meme started and how FollowFriday should and shouldn’t be used.
In short, FollowFriday is a way to recommend a few people to your Twitter-followers. For at least 2 reasons: to acknowledge those favorite tweeters and make it easier for your followers to find new interesting people.
However, many people don’t use the FollowFriday correctly. For instance, they spend several tweets just mentioning dozens of @people and they repeat the tweets (retweet) about each recommendation they get @themselves. That is annoying for people seeing these tweets appearing in their timeline.
In this FollowFriday post I suggested some Twitter Etiquette Rules as well as some alternatives for the FollowFriday approach.
Now there is another alternative, which can either be used alone or as an adjunct to the normal FollowFriday-tweets:
Twitterlists!
The Twitter List feature is designed to make following and suggesting groups of tweeters easier. Everyone on Twitter can create up to 20 lists with a maximum of 500 Twitter people each. Others can follow these lists as well. So instead of FollowFridays you could construct lists of your favorite Twitter people for others to follow. There is one disadvantage of this approach: context is lost. You can only put people on a list without any further explanation why. Of course, you can create separate lists of categories of people, in my case librarians, doctors and funny people for instance, so others have an idea what to expect.
Some people think Twitterlists make FollowFridays obsolete. However Twitterlists and FollowFridays could reinforce each other. At least that’s what I will try using the following approach.
I will construct a FollowFriday Twitter list on basis of my FollowFriday-tweets. They provide the context. Because Tweets get lost, I will gather those tweets on a separate page, so you can always find my elaborated FF-recommendations there.
For Twitter-newcomers, who know me, but find it difficult to find interesting people to follow, this may be a useful starting point.
In selective cases I also plan to write a #FF post to put someone in the limelight. I intend to do the same with bloggers.
By the way I only include people with useful tweets on the lists, so people with great blogs but with not so interesting or very infrequent tweets won’t be included.
As time goes, I may also prune the list, because the number or quality of the tweets or my preference may change.
What is a good tweet? That is personal, but I think that people should be original, helpful, social and up to date and provide good information (with links) .
When you’re on Twitter you like you can follow my FF-list here:
http://twitter.com/laikas/followfridays-ff/
The Following people are included on my FF-list (listed chronologically according my tweet-timeline)
** means that I often have a chitchat or social talk with that person and/or that he/she is very helpful).
- @allergynotes , currently @drves (doctor, immunology, health 2.0, **) 2x
- @berci (doctor, scientist, **)
- @conorato (health 2.0)
- @shamsha (medlib, **) 3x
- @amcunningam (doctor, education, skeptic, **) 2x
- @pudliszek (medlib, **) 2x
- @eagledawg (medlib, **) 2x
- @pfanderson (medlib, geek, **)
- @digicmb (medlib, geek, NL, **) 2x
- @sarchet62 (lib, med. anthropologist, geek)
- @dreamingspires (publishing, Aussie, **)
- @staticnrg (survivor, health 2.0, science, **)
- @bonnycastle (education, **)
- @andrewspong (publishing, skeptic)
- @DrShock (doctor, psychi, NL, **)
- @aarontay (lib, geek)
- @MarilynMann (science, cancer survivor, lawyer, skeptic, pharma)
Following tweets could not be traced back: - @flutesUD (scientist, PhD-student, **)
- @palmdoc (doctor, geek)
- @doctorblogs (doctor, EBM, health 2.0)
- @bgaustin (EBM)
- @northerndoctor (doctor, GP, EBM, Skeptic)
- @Blue_Wode (EBM, Skeptic)
- @precordialthump (doctor, ICU, Aussie, **)
- @sandnsurf (doctor, ICU, Aussie, **)
- @bitethedust (Remote Pharmacist, Aussie, Art, **)
- @giustini (medlib, web 2.0)
- @jstaaks (lib, psycho, UBA, bieptweet, NL, **)
- @ENTHouse (doc, ENT, **)
Based on the Next #FollowFriday recommendations (as far as I could trace them back):
- #followfriday @allergynotes @berci @conorato @shamsha @amcunningam 2 name just a few #Nextfriday I will mention other people w/useful tweets
- #followfriday “medlibs” bc of their TWEETS! @shamsha @pudliszek @eagledawg @pfanderson @digicmb @sarchet62#nextfriday More
-
#Followfriday 4 truly responding 2 tweets and providing good tweets themselves @dreamingspires @digicmb@AllergyNotes @shamsha @Pudliszek
-
RT @alisha764: #followfriday This week, shout out 2 @eagledawg 4 great updates, keeping @medlibs running, & Friday Foolery posts! – YEP!
- #followfriday @staticnrg 4 describing her own journey as a cushing patient, doing a lot 4 her fellow patient, while keeping a broad interest
- The other #followfriday goes to @bonnycastle who has designed a beautiful medical education wiki and is always willing to help (via twitter)
-
#followmonday instead of #followfriday follow @andrewspong 4 Open Access Week October 19-23, 2009 http://www.openaccessweek.org/ #STweM
- This #followfriday goes 2 @DrShock. Perfect Med Blog, good tweets & nice guy, always ready 2 help and give advice.
- #Followfriday @amcunningham bc this GP is nice, soundly critical, likes discussions ; specialized in education, but has a broad interest.
- My #followfriday goes to @aarontay , a techy librarian from Singapore. Has many tips as a tweeter and a blogger http://is.gd/2ssJ3 #ff #fb
- #fussyfollowfriday #followfriday @MarilynMann 4 her excellent, original tweets i.e. about pharma & clinical trials – but pls another avatar
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Laika's MedLibLog 
[…] Laika's #FollowFriday #FF Twitter List « Laika's MedLibLog […]
Nice post!
As a Twitter-newcomer I know that recommendations are very important to build up a good following-list. I didn’t know FF, until now that is 😉 and although I’m not in the medical business I like the way you publish these fine lists. Great job!
When art imitates life: (twitter graffiti)
Best use of #FF / #FollowFriday so far!
LOL!
[…] Lists are also useful tools for recommending people (see post). You could construct lists of your favorite Twitter people for others to follow. I have created a […]