Release the hounds!
Well, it won’t be a free-for-all, 10,000-character limit type of change. Instead, in an update Twitter plans to release within the coming months, adjustments will be made to what counts towards your 140-character restraint.
In an interview with The Verge, CEO Jack Dorsey said, “Generally, we want to make sure we’re encouraging a whole lot more conversations on Twitter. This is the most notable change we’ve made in recent times around conversation in particular, and around giving people the full expressiveness of the 140 characters. I’m excited to see even more dialog because of this.”
Here are some alterations that will simplify how you post on Twitter:
- Replies: To make things more straightforward to who you are engaging with in a reply, @names will no longer count toward the 140-character limit. Now users will be able to express their full thoughts instead of worrying about restraints.
- Media Attachments: Currently, @usernames in replies and media attachments (photos, polls, GIFs, and videos) act as characters against the limit. When the new update rolls around, you’ll have more room for text without worrying about attachment restrictions.
- Retweet Your Own Tweets: This is a great way to reach a broader audience and express the importance of your Tweet. A new retweet button will be added to your content after it is posted. Don’t go unnoticed anymore!
- No more .@: Begin tweets with an @username without the period. New posts will now reach all of your followers. Save that all important single text line to be seen by more people.
The key components of these changes are to make Twitter usage faster and more viable in reaching a broader audience. It’s a string of adjustments that can make using the service less daunting for core users and more transparent for the new ones.
We hope in the future, more changes (like the ability to edit after posting) will help Twitter bounce back from its perceived downward spiral.
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