With the return of Bird House Rules, I am getting back into my groove on this blog. Que Publishing has been instrumental in bringing me back into this groove after contacting me concerning All a Twitter. As mentioned in the previous BHR,  the book is being featured once again in Barnes & Noble Bookstores everywhere, and asked me “Whatever you can do to get the word out…”  I sent out a query to my Twitter and Facebook networks, letting them know that I was available for interviews.

From Twitter I heard from long-time-friend of the Bird House @Odin1eye who featured me in a particularly fun interview on his blog View From Vahalla. This blog features podcast reviews, commentary and rants on Social Media and the world it impacts, and (now) interviews. Odin1eye and I talk about about how Twitter has changed, where it is headed, and what went into the writing of All a Twitter. Here’s a selection from the interview:

No, you’re not seeing things. I’m back, and I’m coming out of the Bird House swinging!

It’s been a long break, the first half of it expected and the other half completely unexpected; and I return to talk about foursquare, Please Rob Me, and the current concern sweeping through the Twitterverse. Adding to the debate of how much information is too much information comes FortheHack and their stand against sharing GPS coordinates for neat-o badges and free stuff from various vendors in the real world. Hear my own view of it from the Bird House and pick up a few twips in this episode on how to stay safe while sharing with your fellow Twitterakians.

Guest introduction by Starla Huchton

Featured movie and TV clips:

• Firefly
• The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
  
• Monty Pyhton’s “How Not to Be Seen” sketch
  
• Army of Darkness
  

Featured People and Stories:

• Security Expert Robert Siciliano
• Siciliano’s Twitter posting to CBS segment on “Please Rob Me”
• Siciliano’s tweet concerning “Please Rob Me”
• Exchange between me and Brand Gamblin
• Brightkite

Album Artwork by Paul Fischer of Dancing Cat Studios

 

 Episode #9: Location, Location, Location [9:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (715)

Feel free to syndicate this audio, and provide feedback or topics you’d like to hear discussed on Bird House Rules at 703.791.1701, tmorris (at) imaginethatstudios (dot) com, Twitter, or here at the Bird House Rules Blog!

Welcome to Birdhouse Rules, the Official Podcast of All a Twitter and Sams Teach Yourself Twitter in Ten Minutes.

I know on Twitter i have been promising to cover TweetDeck and my bad habit of double-posting (which on writing these show notes I just did…) but then when working through my follow requests, I got hard hit by the avatar you see with this post. Yes, if you see that image (and the variations on it) you will have been hit by a spambot that prefixes all their IDs with “STi_”. These useless accounts will fill your feeds with random links that serve no other purpose other than to annoy the crap out of you.

But what really bakes my birdhouse about the various “STi_” accounts is that they are posing as real people.

Welcome to spam on Twitter.

In this episode I cover the ways to tell if you are being spammed on Twitter. The offending tweets are broken down into three categories, and we also take a look at how some spammers are working into your feeds in order to use you and a delivery mechanism. Take a look at these screen captures from Stephanie Lloyd‘s account…

If you click-and-enlarge the left image, you will note that Stephanie’s tweets are coming from her feed are coming from recognizable applications. The right image, though, is a tweet coming from an API. That is just one (of a few) ways to tell that the spam your getting from friends isn’t their fault.

So tuck in and get ready — it’s a Feast of Spam at the Bird House.

Guest introduction by Indiana Jim

“Spam” from Monty Python’s The Final Rip Off

Album Artwork by Paul Fischer of Dancing Cat Studios

 

 Episode #2: Lovely Spam, Wonderful Spam! [9:57m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (748)

Feel free to syndicate this audio, and provide feedback or topics you’d like to hear discussed on Bird House Rules at 703.791.1701, tmorris (at) imaginethatstudios (dot) com, Twitter, or here at the Bird House Rules Blog!

What started off as just a little pick-me-up has now turned into quite the trend on Twitter. People are now swapping out their avatars for candid shots of them with All a Twitter!

Katharina in Austria started the movement with this fun little “thank you” for my advice in the book…

And Gary in Texas took a page (pardon the pun) from the Grammar Gal herself, Mignon Fogarty, with his tribute picture…

July 27. 2009 was one crazy night! I had PodioRacket on Blog Talk Radio All a Twitter over my upcoming appearance. Host Rhonda Carpenter was all kinds of excited to talk Twitter with me, but you might notice in the first ten (yes, as in one-zero-10) minutes, Rhonda is flying solo…while LIVE on BTR…

Why? Two words: Vonage Fail!

When I finally did get into the mix, the talk turned to All a Twitter and other aspects of the Twitter lifestyle and culture, and the time got by us so fast that we schedule a return visit for Wednesday, August 5, starting at 9pm. With Phil Rossi and Philippa Ballantine rounding out the PodioRacket pandemonium, tune in this week for my return visit! Until then, have a listen to Part One!

 

 PodioRacket is All a Twitter (Part One) [89:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (675)

Feel free to syndicate this audio (making sure the link is pointing back to PodioRacket), and provide feedback or topics you’d like to hear discussed on Bird House Rules at 703.791.1701, tmorris (at) imaginethatstudios (dot) com, on Twitter, or here at the Bird House Rules Blog!

Welcome to Birdhouse Rules, the Official Podcast of All a Twitter and Sams Teach Yourself Twitter in Ten Minutes.

This is the Pilot Episode or more commonly referred to as “Episode 0″ in podcasting. I’m introducing myself and my podcast to you, just so you know what you can expect in the next ten minutes, give or take a few minutes. With special thanks to Andrew Stone and TweetDeck for the inspiration, enjoy this informal formality of a new podcast’s first step.

Guest introduction by Phlippa Ballantine

Album Artwork by Paul Fischer of Dancing Cat Studios

 

 Episode #0: The Pilot Episode [8:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (758)

Feel free to syndicate this audio, and provide feedback or topics you’d like to hear discussed on Bird House Rules at 703.791.1701, tmorris (at) imaginethatstudios (dot) com, on Twitter, or here at the Bird House Rules Blog!

Megan Enloe has been a friend and colleague of mine for many years. We first met at the New Media Expo (now part of Blogworld), and she is both a fan of all things podcasting as well as a professional Social Media consultant on the West Coast. She is also where I first heard “It’s Social Media, but without the Social…”.  I latched on to that and have used it in talks, workshops, and in print. (Sadly, Megan was so jetlagged when she said it she does recall saying it. I got permission anyway, and give credit where credit is due. So there.)

Just yesterday I found out that Megan is also All a Twitter!

Joining the ranks of images, videos, and reviews, Megan posted this TwitPic representing California in All a Twitter sightings. With her critical eye on all things Social Media, I can’t wait to hear her feedback on my Twitter takes. Remember to tweet your TwitPics and 12seconds videos, and leave a review at Amazon.com, letting me know exactly what you think. I’d love to hear from you!

And if Megan looks familiar to you… 4th row, 7th from the left, just under the SciFi Channel’s logo. (A key featuring the book cover’s Rogues Gallery will be coming soon…)

Thanks again for picking up your copy of All a Twitter, Megan! I hope you learn something new.

You remember my friend Gregory Lemon who was anxious to find out the status of my upcoming podcast for this blog? Well I found out why he was so anxious about my still-in-the-works iTunes link…Sigma Media is All a Twitter!

Greg posted that his copy arrived and shared with me and his relative networks this TwitPic. I am anxious to hear what he (and those of you also receiving your copy) has to say about my tutorials and observations on Twitter. Remember to leave a review at Amazon.com, letting me know exactly what you think; and feel free to TwitPic yourself with your copy of All a Twitter and tweet me with your questions. I’d love to hear from you!

Oh, and Greg…production on Bird House Rules starts this morning. More news to come!

Thanks again for picking up your copy of All a Twitter. I hope you learn something new.

Good morning, Twitterakians!

It occurred to me that in the first week of All a Twitter being released, many in my circles are talking it up and giving it a nice, solid introduction to the world. I am both honored and humbled by the support I’m receiving from the Twitter community. I’ve been treading lightly when it comes to promoting the book on Twitter. One of my dilemmas is wanting to tap into Twitter’s promotional power without becoming “yet another huckster” who is turning Twitter into just one more place to push their crap on to people. I so do not want to be “that guy” on Twitter. However, the book won’t sell itself.

Then it dawned on me…well, okay, maybe not “dawned” as that can be subtle, beautiful, and gradual. No, this was more like accidentally cutting the rope Wile E. gave me thereby releasing the ACME anvil suspended over my head: hashtags. (You know, Tee — hashtags? From Chapter Six, page 123?)

Regardless of what side of the argument you are on concerning them, hashtags are a nice way of raising awareness without being obnoxious about it. Hashtags (a keyword preceded by a pound sign, such as #allatwitter, for example) are convenient tracking devices for tweets. If enough people use them, All a Twitter could easily creep into the Trending Topics of Twitter alongside Harry Potter, Firefox 3, and New Zealand. This way, I can promote (and so can you) in a fashion that won’t be considered abusive or obtrusive.

So please, when you are talking about All a Twitter or if you have a question for me concerning Twitter, use this hashtag:

#allatwitter

And don’t be embarrassed by a question and ask me in a DM. Share with the network! There’s a good possibility a few people are wondering the same thing you are, but have not quite mustered up the courage to ask me.

Thank you again for all the support, kind words, and “At-a-boy’s” for this week’s premiere. Keep talking, keep tweeting, and if you would care to have me on your blog or podcast to talk Twitter, drop me a line!

Now, it’s officially official!

I also came up with an easier-to-circulate link, thanks to Bit.ly. Go to http://bit.ly/AllaTwitter and order your copy of All a Twitter today! And feel free to share this video across the blogosphere.