--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When it first emerged, Twitter was widely…" description: "\"“When it first emerged, Twitter was widely derided as a frivolous distraction that was mostly good for telling your friends what you had for breakfast...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/995/steven-johnson-9014_business-model_when-it-first-emerged-twitter-was-widely_2714863.jpg" --- # When it first emerged, Twitter was widely derided as a… ![“When it first emerged, Twitter was widely derided as a frivolous distraction that was mostly good for telling your friends what you had for breakfast. Now it is being used to organize and share news about the Iranian political protests, to provide customer support for large corporations, to share…” quote by Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/995/steven-johnson-9014_business-model_when-it-first-emerged-twitter-was-widely_2714863.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/995/steven-johnson-9014_business-model_when-it-first-emerged-twitter-was-widely_2714863.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/995/steven-johnson-9014_business-model_when-it-first-emerged-twitter-was-widely_2714863.jpg) > ““When it first emerged, Twitter was widely derided as a frivolous distraction that was mostly good for telling your friends what you had for breakfast. Now it is being used to organize and share news about the Iranian political protests, to provide customer support for large corporations, to share interesting news items, and a thousand other applications that did not occur to the founders when they dreamed up the service in 2006. This is not just a case of cultural exaptation: people finding a new use for a tool designed to do something else. In Twitter's case, the users have been redesigning the tool itself. The convention of replying to another user with the @ symbol was spontaneously invented by the Twitter user base. Early Twitter users ported over a convention from the IRC messaging platform and began grouping a topic or event by the "hash-tag" as in "#30Rock" or "inauguration." The ability to search a live stream of tweets - which is likely to prove crucial to Twitter's ultimate business model, thanks to its advertising potential - was developed by another start-up altogether. Thanks to these innovations, following a live feed of tweets about an event - political debates or Lost episodes - has become a central part of the Twitter experience. But for the first year of Twitter's existence, that mode of interaction would have been technically impossible using Twitter. It's like inventing a toaster oven and then looking around a year later and discovering that all your customers have, on their own, figured out a way to turn it into a microwave.”” [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Twitter evolved beyond its original design, showing how users repurpose tools for new functions. **In simple terms:** Tools can be reshaped by users. Key Takeaway Embrace flexibility and user innovation. Themes technology innovation culture Mood analytical curious Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - social media strategy - product development - community building Key Concepts exaptation user‑driven design Questions to Reflect On - How can designers anticipate user‑driven changes? - What safeguards are needed for evolving platforms? A Different Perspective Relying on user adaptation can create unpredictable challenges for creators. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Business model](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-model/) [Customer support](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer-support/) [Designed Twitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/designed-twitter-2836025/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Invented Twitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invented-twitter-2836022/) [Looking Around](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking-around/) [Tweets Event](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tweets-event-2836024/) [Twitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twitter/) [Twitter Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twitter-existence-2836023/) [Using Twitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/using-twitter-1592212/) ## Related quotes > [In my mind if you're over 25 and using Twitter you need to have a word with yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-lock/in-my-mind-if-you-re-over-25-and-using-twitter-you-need-to-have-a/) [Sean Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-lock/) > [Some peckerhead accused me if using Twitter to draw attention to myself. Isn't that why everyone uses Twitter?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-peckerhead-accused-me-if-using-twitter-to-draw-attention-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I wonder if Karl Ove Knausgård would've written the same books today had been using Twitter. It wasn't around when he was writing those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-goldsmith/i-wonder-if-karl-ove-knausg-rd-would-ve-written-the-same-books-today/) [Kenneth Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-goldsmith/) > [I started using Twitter a lot and realized I had a lot of fans. Then I saw that I can share my music on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maluma/i-started-using-twitter-a-lot-and-realized-i-had-a-lot-of-fans-then-i/) [Maluma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maluma/) > [I avoid using Twitter and Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coco-martin/i-avoid-using-twitter-and-facebook/) [Coco Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coco-martin/) > [A lot of folks focus on using Twitter as a marketing tool. They'll have a bump that says something like 'Tweet about the NewTeeVee…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sloan/a-lot-of-folks-focus-on-using-twitter-as-a-marketing-tool-they-ll/) [Robin Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sloan/) > [I wasn't really using Twitter before 'Pan Am.' It was a good way to promote the show and be with the viewers on Sunday…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karine-vanasse/i-wasn-t-really-using-twitter-before-pan-am-it-was-a-good-way-to/) [Karine Vanasse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karine-vanasse/) > [I started using Twitter about year after its very early adoption and ended up investing in it around that same time. I'm involved with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-started-using-twitter-about-year-after-its-very-early-adoption-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I stopped using Twitter for a while just because I got sick of it and I started using it again, but I don't check…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-schur/i-stopped-using-twitter-for-a-while-just-because-i-got-sick-of-it-and/) [Michael Schur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-schur/) > [When I started my career, I saw that everybody was using Twitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maluma/when-i-started-my-career-i-saw-that-everybody-was-using-twitter/) [Maluma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maluma/) > [I was using Twitter a lot on my phone, and was realising there was a massive gap between the link on the tweet and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-d-aloisio/i-was-using-twitter-a-lot-on-my-phone-and-was-realising-there-was-a/) [Nick D'Aloisio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-d-aloisio/) > [Everyone is on Facebook and age is not a determinant of whether a reporter is using Twitter as part of their newsgathering and marketing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-rosenstiel/everyone-is-on-facebook-and-age-is-not-a-determinant-of-whether-a/) [Tom Rosenstiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-rosenstiel/) > [I hate to break this to you: One of these days I'm going to die. I expect that when I croak I'll no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-hate-to-break-this-to-you-one-of-these-days-i-m-going-to-die-i/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [If I had a girlfriend I would write her letters instead of using Twitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/if-i-had-a-girlfriend-i-would-write-her-letters-instead-of-using/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) > [A lot of kids, especially football players, had been using Twitter for recruiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-darnold/a-lot-of-kids-especially-football-players-had-been-using-twitter-for/) [Sam Darnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-darnold/) ## More by Steven Johnson > [Most new movements start this way: hundreds or thousands of individuals and groups, working in different fields and different locations, start thinking about change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/most-new-movements-start-this-way-hundreds-or-thousands-of/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“Edison invented the lightbulb the way Steve Jobs invented the MP3 player: he wasn’t the first, but he was the first to make something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/edison-invented-the-lightbulb-the-way-steve-jobs-invented-the-mp3/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“Early risers strolling along the Thames would see the toshers wading through the muck of low tide, dressed almost comically in flowing velveteen coats,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/early-risers-strolling-along-the-thames-would-see-the-toshers-wading/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“Build a tangled bank.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/build-a-tangled-bank/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [If we didn't have genetic mutations, we wouldn't have us. 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It was, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/the-birth-of-the-civil-rights-movement-was-intimately-bound-up-in-the/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [Popular culture, on average, has been growing more cognitively challenging over the past thirty years, not less. Despite everything you hear about declining standards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/popular-culture-on-average-has-been-growing-more-cognitively/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“From am overall eclsyste,s perspective, if you're going to have 10million human beings trying to share an environment with other life-forms, it's much better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/from-am-overall-eclsyste-s-perspective-if-you-re-going-to-have/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [Nothing really says ... interactivity - which was so exciting and captures the real, the Web Zeitgeist of 1995 - than 'Click here for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/nothing-really-says-interactivity-which-was-so-exciting-and-captures/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“An innovation, or cluster of innovations, in one field ends up triggering changes that seem to belong to a different domain altogether.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/an-innovation-or-cluster-of-innovations-in-one-field-ends-up/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [Every childhood has its talismans, the sacred objects that look innocuous enough to the outside world, but that trigger an onslaught of vivid memories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/every-childhood-has-its-talismans-the-sacred-objects-that-look/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [I suspect millions of people from my generation probably have comparable stories to tell: if not of sports simulations then of Dungeons & Dragons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/i-suspect-millions-of-people-from-my-generation-probably-have/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“It is a great testimony to the connectedness of life on earth that the fates of the largest and the tiniest life should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/it-is-a-great-testimony-to-the-connectedness-of-life-on-earth-that/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) [Explore all 76 Steven Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) ## More Business model quotes > [Napster has pointed the way for a new direction for music distribution, and we believe it will form the basis of important and exciting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-diller/napster-has-pointed-the-way-for-a-new-direction-for-music/) [Barry Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-diller/) > [“Compared with working just to make a living, it’s much easier to do what you love and get paid for it. You just have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-guillebeau/compared-with-working-just-to-make-a-living-it-s-much-easier-to-do/) [Chris Guillebeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-guillebeau/) > [I always admired Netflix's business model; they are really good at what they do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-ballinger/i-always-admired-netflix-s-business-model-they-are-really-good-at/) [Colleen Ballinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-ballinger/) > [“Network marketing was once seen as a business model for those who do not have something going on in their lives or who does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olawale-daniel/network-marketing-was-once-seen-as-a-business-model-for-those-who-do/) [Olawale Daniel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olawale-daniel/) > [In my experience, in the real-estate business past success stories are generally not applicable to new situations. We must continually reinvent ourselves, responding to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akira-mori/in-my-experience-in-the-real-estate-business-past-success-stories-are/) [Akira Mori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akira-mori/) > [As business models evolve, as the way you distribute content evolves, as the ability to do things online changes in terms of pricing or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-kotick/as-business-models-evolve-as-the-way-you-distribute-content-evolves/) [Bobby Kotick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-kotick/) > [The problem with Wal-Mart is that it's a business model premised on offering the customer low prices at any cost - any cost to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-featherstone/the-problem-with-wal-mart-is-that-it-s-a-business-model-premised-on/) [Liza Featherstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-featherstone/) > [“structure of the social division of labor. 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The answer was: Sell computers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dell/i-started-the-business-with-a-simple-question-how-can-we-make-the/) [Michael Dell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dell/) [Browse all 403 Business model quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-model/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When it first emerged, Twitter was widely derided as a frivolous distraction that was mostly good for telling your friends what you had for breakfast. Now it is being used to organize and share news about the Iranian political protests, to provide customer support for large corporations, to share interesting news items, and a thousand other applications that did not occur to the founders when they dreamed up the service in 2006. This is not just a case of cultural exaptation: people finding a new use for a tool designed to do something else. In Twitter's case, the users have been redesigning the tool itself. The convention of replying to another user with the @ symbol was spontaneously invented by the Twitter user base. Early Twitter users ported over a convention from the IRC messaging platform and began grouping a topic or event by the \"hash-tag\" as in \"#30Rock\" or \"inauguration.\" The ability to search a live stream of tweets - which is likely to prove crucial to Twitter's ultimate business model, thanks to its advertising potential - was developed by another start-up altogether. Thanks to these innovations, following a live feed of tweets about an event - political debates or Lost episodes - has become a central part of the Twitter experience. But for the first year of Twitter's existence, that mode of interaction would have been technically impossible using Twitter. 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