How is twitter different from other social networking websites?

Unlike other content-based social networking websites, which allow the user to create contents like uploading photos, videos, keeping a blog and incorporating various multimedia programmes, Twitter operates by managing the simplest mode of social networking, that is sending and receiving messages. Perhaps, the simplicity has made it the fastest growing website in the social networking category.

How did it develop?: It was developed by Evan Williams, Biz Stone and Jack Dorsey. Williams is the same person who created Blogger, which was later acquired by Google for whom he started working. After leaving Google, Williams and Stone started their podcasting company called Odeo. It was named Twitter by Stone, because the exchange of short bursts of information is like the chirping of birds (uttering short tweets in succession).

Twitter was a product of Odeo that became so popular that Williams bought out Odeo and Twitter from investors and formed Obvious Corporation. Jack Dorsey joined the Obvious Corporation and Twitter came up in its present form. In March 2006, it split off from Obvious and Twitter Incorporated was formed.