Is Twitter Becoming More Like Google?
Are The New Twitter Changes Making Twitter More Like Google?
You may have heard about the new changes yesterday over at Twitter. Twitter itself tweeted about it and at first I was worried, why change something that works great?
Search is simpler with autocomplete, results from only people you follow and more blog.twitter.com/2012/07/simple…
— Twitter (@twitter) July 6, 2012
After reading about it this morning I like it! You can now search for someone by their real name and their Twitter username will show up. Nice feaure! Some people have complicated usernames and I can never find them. Now it will be easy. Sorry for those that don’t want to be found.
Spelling – Have trouble spelling? No worries now! They will auto correct your spelling. Now that’s more like Google. But what will happen to those younger folks that never learned to spell? Will they ever need to spell correctly now? This new feature is also available on iPhone and Android phones.
Search Results from those you follow – You can choose to see result on topics by those you follow instead of everyone in your stream. A nice way to engage with your peers on any given topic. You can still choose to get search results from All or Top if you still want to; I like that they still kept those features too.
Do you want suggestion when you are searching for something? Twitter now offers Related Suggestions for you. This one sounds more like Google too. They will provide relevant topics to your search that are happening now on Twitter.
Do you like to have Search Autocomplete? Sometimes I do not like this feature on any search engine if I am searching for a specific word or term. This will now be available on Twitter too. This means before you finish tying a word Twitter will complete it for you. How will the younger generation ever learn to spell with all these added features?
So after researching the changes and playing with it over on Twitter I really like what they have done -
How about you?
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About Lisa
Helping Others to Thrive Online Through Social Media, Blogging and SEO. What good is knowledge if you cannot share it with others?
20+ years experience in marketing/advertising with 3 years experience blogging, social media and SEO.
28 Responses to Is Twitter Becoming More Like Google?
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Hi Lisa,
Thanks for always looking out for changes
Here you have list out changes very well. I’ve read different sort of articles and posts about this but there are mostly lot of off-topic info. I like the changes Twitter did except for search autocomplete feature. I’m not a big fan of autocomplete and if I have to go with long keywords it does bug me. So I always disable autocomplete on Google. Wondering that Twitter has such option too. Do you know? 
Cheers…
Hi Mayura, as of know I don’t believe you can disable the autocomplete on Twitter. I’ve searched around a bit on it. I just read to type slower
The younger generation is lost, spelling wise..
Auto completion is OK to work with, provided you don’t really know where you are searching for. What I mean is that if you don’t know the exact spelling of a search term auto completion will erm… ‘auto complete’.
Right Jan but if you know what you are looking for and Google or Twitter doesn’t know – you are in trouble
Hi Lisa
I guess it is only natural that Twitter are looking for improvements and those you mentioned in this post are for sure some nice features. However I am not using Twitter’s website much anymore. I have been using Tweetdeck for a long time instead.
Thomas recently posted..My Google Analytics Stats Report for Q2 2012
Thomas, you really like Tweetdeck? I used it for a while but not a big fan. There are so many ways to be on Twitter. Amazing, isn’t it?
I just love Tweetdeck. I have also tried HootSuite, but went back to Tweetdeck. What app are you using yourself Lisa or are you using their website (www.twitter.com)?
Thomas recently posted..Wi-Fi Analyzer Tool for Android Smartphones
Thomas, I really like using the website itself (mostly on smartphone and sometimes Tweetcaster) though I use Buffer, Just Retweet and Tribber too. I did like Hootsuite over Tweetdeck but hear it may ditch Twitter?
Woohoo!! I LOVE autocomplete! Great option there and spelling, well that might be a PITA if it doesn’t understand acronyms and my very own lingo.
Only thing I don’t see useful is the real name search because a lot of ppl, like myself, only use a first name or no actually real name at all. I look forward to the change. 
I love it most of the time, until Google or Twitter doesn’t understand what I’m looking for. The name search is something I like as I’ve searched before endlessly to come up empty handed.
Hi Lisa,
I love auto completion. It might be because I am from Norway and I need all the help I can get
Jens P. Berget recently posted..What I am doing at 9 pm in Norway during the Summer (pics)
Hi Jens, Thanks for comment – do you speak another language aside from English?
I speak Norwegian, and Swedish and Danish is similar to Norwegian so I’d say I speak those languages as well. But that’s it
Jens P. Berget recently posted..Why I Love Sundays
Wow, that’s a few languages Jens! I wish I could speak another, I took French in school for years and it wasn’t my favorite subject.
Informative Lisa!
I never really knew about the Twitter changes! I guess it was because I was busy trying to sort of my blog issues yesterday – some hacker problems, which is resolved now.
But this does sound a lot like Google indeed! And it surely is a boon for the youngsters who won’t really have to struggle with their spellings now.
I also never really liked the Search Autocomplete option and always prefer to type in the full word instead.
Thanks for sharing and letting all of us know.
Harleena Singh recently posted..How to Find Purpose in Life and Be Happy
Hi Harleena – you are welcome. Had you upgraded yet to the newer WordPress? Glad it got resolved. There are times I do not like the autocomplete myself, can give wrong info.
If I just wait long enough, they will sort all this out. I barely have made it into Facebook world. I’m not ready to Tweet yet, but when I do, it will hopefully be simple enough even for me!
Galen Pearl recently posted..Thinking Out Loud
Galen, you would love Twitter. It’s really great with blogs. I have some slideshares for beginners you could check out.
Love the comment about young people and their spelling. It does appear to get worst each year or I am getting older. I am just getting into the twitter side of things. I like it. I have to say that I have not successful join the Google side of things yet. Hope you are having a great Monday!
Thanks Cynthia. I find Twitter is getting a little more like Google with their search features. I do like it!
Hi Lisa,
I wasn’t aware that Twitter made these changes. I will go to Twitter and see what the new features are like and if it makes twitter more user friendly. I like that finding people on Twitter will be much easier now. Nothing worse than spending more than 5 minutes on there trying to search for someone.
Justin Mazza recently posted..The Secret To Creating Change In Your Life (It’s Not About Taking Action)
Yes Justin, it does make it much easier. Some people have hard Twitter handles to remember. This helps a lot!
Hi Lisa! I really like that I can search for topics within the people I follow but I am not a fan of autocomplete at all. A lot of niches have their own language and the autocomplete fills in the wrong word. It can be frustrating!
I would agree with that one Jen, thanks for coming by and reading.
I haven’t gotten a chance to play with it. Is it weird? I trust Twitter search more than Google sometimes. It is like having a self curated search engine. As long as you follow folks that only share high quality stuff. It looks like some apps are going to be put out of business if Twitter’s own search system works better.
Hi Susan, which apps do you think? Interesting thought.
As u can c I won’t b abel to find any one on Twiter! I don’t care for this feature.
I’m sorry you don’t like this feature Rebecca, don’t worry too much I’m sure something will change, it always does