Q:  What does the @ sign do in Twitter?

A: Starting a tweet with @name is known as a reply.  It will cause that tweet to be seen only in the newsfeed of the recipient as well as anyone who is following both you and the recipient. Starting a tweet with any other character (except “DM @name,” which initiates a direct message) will cause it to show up in the newsfeeds of anyone who is following you.

As an example:

My Twitter handle is @jengrappone.  @gradiva is following me, and you’re following us both, but @JensFriend is only following me.

If I tweet:

@gradiva thanks for the great idea!

The following people will see the tweet in their feed:

• Gradiva (because she is the recipient)
• you (because you follow both the sender and the recipient)

If I tweet:

Hey @gradiva shared a great idea today!

The following people will see the tweet in their feed:

• Gradiva (because she follows the sender)
• you (because you follow the sender)
• JensFriend (because she follows the sender)

Because these are public tweets, not direct messages (DMs), they can also be seen by anyone who happens to look at my profile on Twitter (www.twitter.com/jengrappone).

Sometimes people in a debate, or participating in a conversation that they want others to notice, will add a random character in front of the username, for example:

.@gradiva you stole that idea and everyone needs to know!

.@jengrappone hecks yeah I did, and I’d do it again!

This will cause each tweet to display to the followers of each sender.

Readers, do you know any other tips or tricks for Twitter replies? Share them in the comments!