How instant is a Twitter update?
August 10, 2007 10:43 AM Subscribe
How long does it take for a Twitter update (via SMS) to reach a follower (via SMS), all between Dutch mobile phones in the Netherlands using the UK (+44) Twitter number?
Response by poster: Thanks, tksh. A day is pretty steep, no? I just tested it now and it seemed near-instantaneous, say a minute or two. My friends and I want to use Twitter to inform each other of our whereabouts, meet-up times etc at a festival next week.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 9:19 AM on August 11, 2007
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 9:19 AM on August 11, 2007
This was a few months ago when I tried out Twitter for a few weeks so things might have changed. The quickest was half a day and the latest was 30 hours I think. It could've just been Rogers -- SMS isn't that big here.
posted by tksh at 12:10 PM on August 11, 2007
posted by tksh at 12:10 PM on August 11, 2007
Best answer: it depends on the load Twitter is experiencing. Especially in the first quarter of this year when they grew exponentially (after SXSW etc.) sms updates sometimes didn't arrive at all, or took hours to arrive. Nowadays the updates usually arrive *very* fast (as in under 15 seconds)
I'm in Belgium using the +44 number. Updates from friends in Belgium to the +44 number arrive about as fast as direct sms messages.
(I used it during Rock Werchter (which you being in .nl will probably have heard about) to provide automatic updates of the the schedule and related news, without any problems (twitter.com/werchter, twitter.com/marquee, twitter.com/mainstage))
posted by lodev at 11:16 AM on August 12, 2007
I'm in Belgium using the +44 number. Updates from friends in Belgium to the +44 number arrive about as fast as direct sms messages.
(I used it during Rock Werchter (which you being in .nl will probably have heard about) to provide automatic updates of the the schedule and related news, without any problems (twitter.com/werchter, twitter.com/marquee, twitter.com/mainstage))
posted by lodev at 11:16 AM on August 12, 2007
Best answer: I know next to nothing about Twitter, but bear in mind SMS is a low priority "best efforts" service on the mobile network.
Normally, there is plenty of bandwidth for the tiny text messages, but if there are going to be constraints where SMS is delayed to allow voice comms, it would be at the networks international boundaries, where interconnect costs are higher than within their own networks.
posted by bystander at 3:44 AM on August 13, 2007
Normally, there is plenty of bandwidth for the tiny text messages, but if there are going to be constraints where SMS is delayed to allow voice comms, it would be at the networks international boundaries, where interconnect costs are higher than within their own networks.
posted by bystander at 3:44 AM on August 13, 2007
Response by poster: lodev - do you work for Werchter?
This is about Lowlands, of course. My plan is to keep friends up to date of location etc. as stated above, but it's also nice for contributing to the 3VOOR12 (VPRO) Twitter feed - I'm a little surprised there's no official Lowlands Twitter.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 4:59 AM on August 13, 2007
This is about Lowlands, of course. My plan is to keep friends up to date of location etc. as stated above, but it's also nice for contributing to the 3VOOR12 (VPRO) Twitter feed - I'm a little surprised there's no official Lowlands Twitter.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 4:59 AM on August 13, 2007
gnfti: nope, it was just a personal initiative. It's certainly nice for "broadcast sms" to friends (keep in mind though that you're smsing internationally, so it'll probably cost you up to € 0.50 to update, but receiving is always free). I was planning to do it for Pukkelpop as well (also this weekend, and with lots of overlap with Lowlands), but I'm leaving on holday this friday.
If you want I can give you the code to automagically send the schedule, all you need is a linux shell account and mysql database.
posted by lodev at 5:07 AM on August 13, 2007
If you want I can give you the code to automagically send the schedule, all you need is a linux shell account and mysql database.
posted by lodev at 5:07 AM on August 13, 2007
Response by poster: Wow lodev, that's a really cool initiative. I've got a half a mind to take you up on your time schedule code offer and actually run it myself - but I haven't exactly got a spare linux box lying around, and also I fear it might be less feasible for Lowlands given the insane amount of stages.
As for the cost, I wouldn't mind if it were a bit higher than domestic sms, but I believe texting to the UK should actually be the same as within Holland for most Dutch mobile plans/providers. I could be wrong.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 8:49 AM on August 13, 2007
As for the cost, I wouldn't mind if it were a bit higher than domestic sms, but I believe texting to the UK should actually be the same as within Holland for most Dutch mobile plans/providers. I could be wrong.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 8:49 AM on August 13, 2007
Response by poster: FWIW, the messages tended to arrive within minutes, even considering the congested network. Usefulness for meeting up etc. seemed not to have been compromised.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 7:20 PM on February 18, 2008
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 7:20 PM on February 18, 2008
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by tksh at 5:58 AM on August 11, 2007