It was a long weekend in the United States, and for some here at home a long weekend without the popular UberTwitter app for Blackberry and iPhone.

UberTwitter and its Android-based cousin, Twidroyd, were shut down on the weekend due to 'policy violations'. The local impact on the tweeting community was profound; in BlackBerry country (i.e. Jamaica), UberTwitter was a very popular phone application for reading and posting tweets.

To be fair, the impact wasn't just local, it was far-reaching. UberTwitter was, after all, one of the most popular Twitter clients. And, the lockout happened without any prior warning, leaving users to speculate what was wrong before announcements we finally made.

Eventually, adjustments were made, so Twitter addicts can rejoice. UberSocial (the new name for UberTwitter) and Twidroyd have been restored. BlackBerry users will have to download the new version of the app to access the features that we have come to know, love and, apparently, can't live without.

A visit to AppWorld (BlackBerry's app store) can prompt the free download. But, feel free to avoid the cumbersome, clunky, hard-to-navigate AppWorld by using your browser to visit ubersocial.com/blackberry to download the new and improved app directly to your handset.

There are no guarantees that UberMedia, the makers of UberSocial, won't run afoul of Twitter again, leading to another blackout. So, it's time you exercise some options to ensure unfettered access to Twitter.

Twitter for BlackBerry is the official, RIM-supported app for the platform, and it has been recently updated, so a new version is immediately available. The new version boasts features that UberSocial users have had for a while, such as retweet notification in the timeline, geo-tagging and autocomplete hashtags. Threaded direct messages (so they look more like BBM) and @mention ribbon notification (a little red asterisk appears on the screen when mentioned directly) are long overdue and finally standard with the update.

UberSocial already has these features and then some; the former UberTwitter, now UberSocial, lovers applaud the app's ability to track trends, monitor retweets and display posted images from within the app. UberSocial is definitely functional, but, unlike Twitter for BlackBerry, it is supported by advertising.

Can you use both? Certainly. Simultaneously? Yes, but I don't recommend it.

Rumour has it that UberMedia has acquired TweetDeck, another popular Twitter client. If true, we can expect another wave of updates to UberSocial as the technologies combine to add to features. The feature I am most looking forward to is handling multiple Twitter accounts in a single app. Certainly for business users, this will boost Twitter accessibility.

If all else fails, you can still always access Twitter directly from the website, no app required. The most important lesson to learn from the blackout is this, options abound. Never let yourself get locked in to one way of doing things.

Twitter limits unlimited access

>> Tech Glitch:

Collin says that his BlackBerry can't stay charged throughout a day.

BlackBerry apps can be running in the background and draining both your battery and your handset's processing power without your knowledge. When finished with an app, close it, not just minimise it. To see which apps are running, press and hold the Alt key and the Return key.

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