8 Tools to Help Filter Your Twitter Stream
Filtered by Followers: Twitter Tim.es and MicroPlazaAfter you log in with your Twitter username, The Twitter Tim.es creates a page that displays stories by filtering through what the people you follow have tweeted the most. The Twitter Tim.es shows who has posted the story along with a blurb to give you an idea of what it's about. In some cases, the service shows the full text of the post. It also gives you options to view popular stories on Twitter from media sources and Twitter Lists.
MicroPlaza helps you see what's being shared by many people -- both the people you follow and all Twitter users. MicroPlaza puts more emphasis on what people say about the link by prominently displaying their tweets directly below the link and allowing you to easily see all the tweets on the link. This is probably the most flexible filtering tool. You can change how the streams are displayed, see what's most popular today (or this week or this month), even assume the identity of other Twitter users and see what their sources are sharing. MicroPlaza also bookmarks links (though I wish it synced with other bookmarking services).
Curated by Editors: The Hourly Press
Rather than automatically including all of your followers, The Hourly Press enables you to select your own Twitter "editors." Those users are weighted more heavily in the algorithm of what is being shared or cited on Twitter. The Hourly Press then takes the 10 highest scoring links and creates an hourly edition, which is displayed on a customized URL. The Hourly Press I created, for example, is socialjournalism.hourlypress.com. When I want to see what the buzz is, and haven't been on Twitter for a little while, I check this site to see what my trusted sources think are important.
