VALPARAISO | The Internet sensation of Twittering reached a cultural landmark of sorts a week ago, when lawmakers were found to be sending out tweets during President Barack Obama's address to the joint session of Congress.
So the timing was perfect for the first Northwest Indiana "Tweetup" last week at Evelyn Bay Coffee Co. in Valparaiso, where about 30 Twittering veterans and novices gathered to share tips and Twitter IDs.
Kathy Sipple, a social media consultant in Valparaiso, organized the event and also teaches a "Twitter 101" class to help people get started using the free service.
For the uninitiated, Twittering is a service for sending out tweets -- quick bursts of communication that are no more than 140 characters -- to friends, family, co-workers or complete strangers. Tweets can be sent via computer, cell phone or handheld device.
"I have heard before the comment that Facebook (a social networking Web site) is for connecting with people that you used to know, Twitter is for connecting with people you want to know. You can start following people and you don't have to have a reciprocal arrangement," Sipple said.
She touts the real-time searchability of Twitter, which made it the earliest source for information on recent events like the Hudson River plane landing and the terrorist attack in Mumbai, India.
That immediacy also works on a personal level, as Schererville resident Mary Beth Stockdale learned late last year.
Stockdale, who serves as connect director for Suncrest Christian Church in St. John, was using Twitter to connect with other churches and ministries.
On the day after Christmas, her husband, Bill, suffered a heart attack at home. As the paramedics began working on him, Stockdale sent out a quick Twitter message: "Please pray, paramedics here - hubby's having chest pains. Thanks!"
Returning from the hospital that night she saw hundreds of responses, along with people who re-tweeted her message, prompting even more prayers online.
"It sold me on Twitter," Stockdale said, adding that the messages she continued to get during her husband's recovery were very soothing.
In January, at a leadership network conference in Dallas, she said she met probably 90 people who had been praying for her family, even though they did not know them.
"I got to meet them and thank them in person," Stockdale said.
Amanda Thomsen, of Valparaiso, said Twittering helps put out the word on her blog for Horticulture magazine at hortmag.com/kissmyaster.
She also has made unique use of the ability to send photos to Twitter via her cell phone using twitpic.com, snapping a picture of a flat tire she got on the way to work to show her boss why she was going to be late.
