When Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, and Ev Williams first met in San Francisco in 2005, few could have guessed how their creation of Twitter would transform online communications. A few years later, people worldwide were sending a billion tweets, every week-even more during events such as revolutions in the Mideast, or the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
The three grew up in different American cities, with little in common beyond a passion for how computers can help people communicate. As a boy, Jack was fascinated by maps, city streets, and computer software. As young men, Ev and Biz each built careers around the new world of "blogging," then joined forces to start a company in San Francisco.
How did Twitter go from an idea in Jack Dorsey's mind to become one of the fastest growing American businesses in history, and affect millions of people around the world? It wasn't only because Jack, Ev, Biz, and others at Twitter knew how to write fancy computer code or raise money from investors. It was because Twitter filled a basic human need to communicate and feel connected.
Chapter 1 The Magic of Maps 11
Chapter 2 East Coast, West Coast 23
Chapter 3 Setting Up Twitter 35
Chapter 4 Building the Buzz 47
Chapter 5 A Plane in the Hudson 57
Chapter 6 New Twitter, New Challenges 73
Chapter 7 Twitter 'Round the World 83
Chapter 8 Staying Connected 93
Timeline 103
Sources 104
Bibliography 107
Websites 108
Index 109
Overview
When Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, and Ev Williams first met in San Francisco in 2005, few could have guessed how their creation of Twitter would transform online communications. A few years later, people worldwide were sending a billion tweets, every week-even more during events such as revolutions in the Mideast, or the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
The three grew up in different American cities, with little in common beyond a passion for how computers can help people ...