As most Twitter users know, the micro-blogging service limits messages, or “tweets,” to 140 characters. When the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (DC) set up a Twitter account a few months ago, it started posting the same service alerts that subscribers already received by email. Because some of these exceeded Twitter’s length limit, the service automatically truncated them. “As a result,” writes The Washington Post, “Metro’s updates sometimes leave the agency’s 1,507 followers scratching their heads.” But, as the Post reassures its readers, Metro is on top of the situation. “We are working with our IT department and with the rail operations control center to tighten the language so that it can meet the 140-character limit,” said spokeswoman Cathy Asato. “It’s an evolving tool, and we want to make it be the most useful thing it can be.” Link to full story in The Washington Post. Link to WMATA’s Twitter page.
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