I really like the idea behind Twitter, but everytime I go to use Twitter it is down for one reason or another. I’d also like a little more control over my data and since I’m not interested in broadcasting my Twits to the world, there’s the Prologue Theme for WordPress.
As you can see, Prologue turns WordPress into a Twitter clone. I have a separate WordPress install on my server that is password protected where I update my status, etc. WordPress has a post-by-email option, so typically I just send an e-mail from my Blackberry the secret e-mail address I set up, and then those updates get propagated to my Twitter clone.
It works surprisingly well. The biggest pain is the eye rolling from my wife when she notices I’m updating my status again.
I’m curious, why have private status updates?
That particular theme was actually commissioned by Automattic itself, which I believe uses it to essentially create a private Twitter-like environment for workgroup purposes (sharing statuses, but only amongst a small group and on a server they control).
I use it for time tracking as well as a component of my homegrown MyLifeBits-style system.
I was actually thinking about that last night before I read this. 37Signals has a tool they integrated into Basecamp that answers the “So, what are you working on right now?” question. It seemed like a private Twitter would do the same thing.
Of COURSE you are mimicking MyLifeBits. That matches your obsession with data. Me, I can’t shed the past fast enough some days.
Yes…ironically, Basecamp did that right after the Prologue theme was released. When Automattic announced the Prologue thing, they worked a dig at Basecamp into the announcement. Ah, digerati politics.
As for data, its not an obsession. I’m sure lots of people have 9 million screenshots of their WoW sessions that they’re busy tagging so that someday they can upload those to their web server too!
Screenshots? You’re not recording video and tagging each individual frame? I’m very disappointed in your performance and this will look bad when it comes time to determine your raise at this company?
Sadly, when I play games on the computer, I’m almost always a) using FRAPS to grab a screenshot every second, b) running the S-Video out to a DVD recorder (been experimenting with the Neuros OSD the past couple weeks), and c) logging all text where possible (i.e., chat and combat logs in something like WoW).
In my basement I have several racks filled with bins that contain CD/DVD cases…about 20-30 TB worth of archived data at the moment.
Wow.
I just don’t know what to say to that. I’ve never had the financial werewithal to do anything like that, but I bet the results are an incredibly rich resource for your life. I have terrible memory and I could see how great it would be to be able to look all that up whenever you want to do so.
BTW, there are more mundane uses for a private Twitter — there’s a lot of neat thing people use Twitter for that are cool but I just don’t want to share with the rest of the world.
For example, I’m in a constant battle with my weight, and every morning log my weight and then throughout the day log any exercise along with what I’m eating. I tag those GTD-style @weight, @workout, @food so they’re easy to find and follow.
Similarly, I have tags and log whenever people ask me to do something or when I ask someone to do something, record notes, etc., calls made.
I do that all from my Blackberry via e-mail that then gets posted to the twitter clone, so rather than trying to maintain a notebook or remember to enter things in text files on my desktop, etc., notes just get dumped into the Twitter clone for later analysis if needed.
Hmm…interesting synergy of micro-blogging, done on a full sized scale. Instead of having friends and family turn to twitter to find out what I’m up to, simply setting up a subdomain and using the prologue theme might be a much simpler solution. Thanks for the tip!