Grafitter is a way collecting information about your self over time while sending updates with Twitter, using IM, saving bookmarks on Delicious, and writing a post on Blogger. Grafitter visualizes the information you record in graphs.
If you've been using Twitter, Delicious, or Blogger, you can use it now. Go to the top bar and enter the username.
If you want to record specific information (e.g., your mood, what you ate, the miles you run), use the Grafitter format when sending a Twitter update, while talking to Grafitter IM bot, saving a Delicious bookmark, or writing a Blogger post.
The Grafitter format is an easy way to record information about your self in a structured way.
The format builds on the Twitter hashtags,
prefixing words with a pound sign such as #hello to mark them as tags.
Here are some examples of the Grafitter format:
Making a Grafitter update is easy. Just log in to your account on Twitter, Delicious, or Blogger, and follow the Grafitter format when making an update.
You can also practice using the Grafitter format on this page.
Just use the text field on top bar of the Grafitter site. Just select a source and type in your screen name or your friends', then enjoy the graphs.
Grafitter is only as useful as you make it. If there is something about your life that you are curious about, start recording it and study your graphs.
A Twitter-based Graphing Tool
- CMU Homepage Stories, March 31, 2009
Twitter graphing tool, Grafitter, offers surprising personal insights
- Pop City, March 11, 2009
Grafitter - visualize your twitter data
- Twi5, March 11, 2009
Something to Smile About
- inspire innovation, March 10, 2009
Carnegie Mellon's 2009 Smiley Award:
Twitter-based personal graphing tool takes top prize
- Dr. Dobb's Portal, February 26, 2009
Twitter-Based Personal Graphing Tool Wins Carnegie Mellon's 2009 Smiley Award
- CMU News, February 20, 2009
Grafitter was designed and developed by Ian Li (ianli@cmu.edu), a researcher, designer, and artist living in Pittsburgh, PA.
Ian Li explores technologies on personal informatics. He creates technologies that help people collect and see information about their selves. He has applied his research on motivating physical activity, increasing mood awareness, and office activity awareness.
Grafitter is one of his efforts to make it easy to collect information oneself. Check out his Grafitter page.
The unexamined life is not worth living.
- Socrates
Gnothi seauton. (Know thyself.)
- Temple of Apollo
The palest ink is better than the best memory.
- Chinese proverb
The following are the different technologies that made Grafitter possible.
