Great way of connecting people in a social networking environment, reliable uptime, use of channels a big bonus.

Until recently it was a case where you were a Jaiku user or a Twitter user. Now - at least in my case - I’ve noticed the chain swaying more towards Jaiku.

Launched in 2006, Jaiku is a microblogging service allowing users to post presence updates / thought streams enclosed within 140 characters, updating either via web interface at Jaiku.com, SMS delivery or via Jaiku’s S60 application (mobile).

I was introduced to Jaiku prior to planning for PodCamp Ireland and was an instant convert. The limits on 140 characters are lifted in subsequent replies or comments, allowing full threaded conversations and interaction - perfect for following conversations in order; Jaiku Channels also offer an ideal way for separating conversations completely, focusing topic-driven conversation in one location, something I’m using at present on four different fronts while not annoying the public. That said, channels are accessible to the public i.e. anyone can join them, with options to establish closed channels rumoured to be coming.

Other useful features include subscription control over any number of a given user’s feeds e.g. should you choose to provide your flickr feed, blog feed, last.fm feed, del.icio.us feed in your Jaiku profile, other user can choose to opt in or out of receiving updates from your other social streams, not just Jaiku.

The overall interface on the site feels tighter and certainly a lot fresher - must be the Scandinavian influence. Also impressive are the flash badges /widgets provided to keep your blog readers up to date with your Jaiku presence.

SMS delivery is reliable and almost instant, in some cases SMS updates arriving before a screen refresh, thus keeping you updated in relative real-time when on the go.

From the top-down I feel Jaiku is the friendlier, certainly more reliable of late, choice for micro-blogging and long may their early success in this area continue.

Rated 4/5 on Sep 12 2007 by Ken McGuire
Review Tags: blogging, jaiku, micro-blogging, presence, unifeed
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