A couple of weeks ago I was preparing for a district workshop that I would teach and decided to consult a colleague that makes good use of technology in his classroom. “What would you include in the workshop?” I asked. I had listed a rough agenda for him to peruse. Included in the agenda was an item referencing Twitter. His response, “I’ve stopped using Twitter a while ago and exclusively use Plurk now.” There was a small bit of surprise and a lot of wonder in my reaction to this news. I had spent the last six months developing my Twitter presence, looking for people to follow and slowly developing followers. It seemed strange to cast it all aside for something new.
I decided to give Plurk a try. I had read about Plurk in July, took a quick look at it, and returned to Twitter because I knew no one on Plurk. I signed on and created an account. My first Plurk was “Experiecing Plurk for the first time.” I was greeted with seven welcome messages and after finding my colleague, Paul Bogush, I was indoctrinated in a true personal learning network. “Say goodbye to Twitter”, Paul responded. It was the truth. I have to thank Paul Bogush for ’sponsoring’ me during my first Plurk experience. With one Plurk,
“Friend a colleague, who’s just starting Plurk” I had a host of new contacts. The best part is that I learn something each time I log on to Plurk.
On Twitter people post links and info but very little responses occur. On Plurk I can ask a question and most of the time instantly have an answer from a variety of Plurk friends. I’m amazed at how much easier it has been to establish myself on Plurk and how much more I already use the service. Plurk has Karma. The more you Plurk and respond to other your Plurk Karma increases. It’s an interesting motivator, because when you log on and see that your Karma had dropped because you missed a day it simply makes you want to Plurk some… “Say goodbye to Twitter” was so right
