Twitter is a service for friends, family, and code workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing? (From the Twitter FAQ)
Plurk is a really snazzy site that allows you to showcase the events that make up your life, and follow the events of the people that matter to you, in deliciously digestible short messages called plurks. (From the Plurk FAQ)
Now - why is Plurk better?
1. There's more of a "group" feel.
Arguably, both sites foster communication between different people, but I'd definitely give Plurk the edge here.
Let's say I ask a question, and several people reply. The key difference with Twitter is that the other people don't see the other replies, whereas on Plurk they do. This means you're not just asking questions that encourage people to reply to YOU. You're encouraging a proper discussion where people can reply first to you, but also to each other.
Anyone who enjoys using a blogging forum or a chat room should definitely give Plurk a try. Chatting on Plurk is like going to a bar with some friends, whereas chatting on Twitter is like sitting in a meeting with people who make you feel a bit uncomfortable.
2. Discussions can go on for more than a few minutes.
Sometimes you ask a question and people aren't around to reply to it, or you post during a busy period and other comments get in the way. However, some of the people who read your comments may only keep up with a few people, so they will reply - though not always immediately.
The good thing about Plurk is you can reply to a message from the day before and everyone will be able to see what you were talking about in the first place. This keeps the comments in context and can stimulate some more "meaty" discussions (not just those relating to meat pie). Or, people can take your comments out of context and make jokes. It's a lot harder to do that on Twitter.
3. It's easier to find new friends.
On Plurk, as the discussions are contained in boxes rather than split out as individual comments, you're much more likely to find others who share the same views as you than you would on Twitter.
If a friend starts a discussion, you may get into a discussion with one of their friends. You may then add them as a friend. This just doesn't seem to happen on Twitter. There may be more people on Twitter, but how are you going to find them?
4. There's more space on the timeline.
For the hardcore Twitter user, the Plurk timeline takes a bit of getting used to, but it works well. Instead of a busy period causing every comment to vanish off the first page every time you refresh the page, several discussions can be stacked in the same time period. This is a huge benefit if you like to engage in multiple discussions at a time.
Also, to view older Plurks, you can just scroll back in time instead of waiting for previous pages to load. Moving to another page in Twitter often seems to take a while, whereas scrolling in Plurk is quicker. Even if it does take a while to scroll through all those Plurks...
5. You press Enter to complete a Plurk.
From my own experience and from the comments of other users, the web version of Twitter is not that great, but it seems everyone's happy to use all the third party applications instead. What I don't understand is this - if the basic interface isn't that great, how are ordinary people - non-techies - getting through the door?
In the web version of Twitter (i.e. via Twitter.com) you type your message and click Update (although I guess you can use the tab key). In Plurk you just press Enter. For a service that revolves around short messages, doesn't it make sense that it's as quick to add a comment as possible? Although, I can see why you might want to slow a few people down...
6. More formatting options.
Some people say simple is best, but come on, bold and italic text is hardly going over the top. Twitter allows plain text and links, nothing more. (I don't include the "@" replies, Plurk does those too, they're still links.)
Plurk... well, it doesn't have a lot of options, but you can do italic *like this* and bold **like this**, though the asterisks show up too. However, a really nice touch is the way you can create a hyperlink by including the link here (and the clickable text in parentheses). Sorry Twitter, you just can't match that one. You really should though. It's good to have options.
7. Smilies.
Again, there are people who will say that smilies are not really necessary, but I have seen people say this and then go all out with the smilies on Plurk or a web forum. Admittedly, a comment that only contains a smiley face isn't much on its own, but is it any worse than "lol" or "nice post"?
8. My Plurks/Responded.
These two little tabs provide quick access to the Plurks you created (i.e. your discussions, not your replies), and all the Plurks you've responded to. More importantly, all of the replies to those discussions will be grouped together. Ah, I do like organisation!
9. Private discussions.
Twitter allows the use of Direct Messages for one-to-one messaging. Plurk allows the same - just write a private Plurk to one person.
But Plurk also allows private discussions. You can create a discussion for some or all of your friends, which is a lot better than locking down your entire timeline (the only option in Twitter that comes close). Sometimes, you just don't want to say it in public.
10. Better profile editing options.
I know what you're thinking. People will mess up their profiles as they do on MySpace. Well, perhaps a few people have, but I've seen some truly wonderful Plurk profiles. You have much more scope for personalising your profile and you can use CSS if you wish.
Twitter, on the other hand, only allows you to add a background image. OK, so it might "do the job" for a number of people (I've seen a lot of well-known bloggers doing this), but guess what - it's totally inaccessible, and it won't be picked up by search engines. Time for a rethink, perhaps?
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