hi everyone
I really need some advice here. I have just got a twitter account, and I'm learning how to send tweets (ok to say something sensible in so-many-characters-allowed). I've so far learned that if people follow us, we are (supposed to) follow them (if appropriate)?

does anyone know how to do a twitter chat?
and how do i find all the chat messages later?
Also, how often do you look at your twitter?
Do we only look at notifications?
TBH I can't look at my phone all day, or simply jump up whenever it goes BING!

grateful for any advance
thanks
love satchi

Are you using it for professional or personal purposes? Some people mix the two but I prefer a bit of demarcation myself.

>I've so far learned that if people follow us, we are (supposed to) follow them (if appropriate)?
You're not obliged to. It can get a bit unmanageable if you do that. Maybe focus on following individuals whose bio suggests you'd like to read their tweets. If it's someone you sort of know, do follow back though.

>does anyone know how to do a twitter chat?
Do you mean publicly or via direct message?

>and how do i find all the chat messages later?
Hashtags may help, but it depends on your answer to the previous question

>Also, how often do you look at your twitter?
More often than I should!

>Do we only look at notifications?
Your choice - you can tweak your notification preferences, or just read your timeline/feed

>TBH I can't look at my phone all day, or simply jump up whenever it goes BING!
Nor should you.

hi hazyjane
I have just done a direct message but I would like an open chat, yes it is a public chat I am thinking about, for study purposes, well it is not a study but it is just talking about a social topic. The twitter feed just increases by the second, how do I find all the chat-tweets later?
thanks
love satchi

Just to add... Twitter can be a fantastic tool for academics, particularly with respect to networking and staying in touch with your field. But it does require a bit of patience, both to learn how it works and develop enough of a network to make it interesting. I'd say that it probably starts to get interesting and comprehensible once you've got about 20 or so followers and you're following 50 or so others; before that it can be a bit like talking into an empty room.

Before starting your own I'd have a look at other chats, which can sometimes be ongoing topics (e.g. search for #PhDchat or #ECRchat) or might sometimes be schedule discussions organised by a person/organisation. Just have a read and you might get a feel for how it works. If there's a particular Tweet you'd like to come back to later, use the 'Favourite' button and it will be saved in your favourites list.