Twitter and free text messages
1st June 2010 (revised 9th February 2015) | Marek Walford
NB: Vodafone and 02 have already withdrawn this service and I expect others to follow. An alternative solution is to install the Twitter app on your phone and turn on notifications.
Sightings of scarce birds are now being posted to a Twitter account (twitter.com/berksbirdnews). It is possible to receive Twitter updates on your mobile phone via text messages. Most UK mobile carriers will include messages received from Twitter in your text bundle and some won't charge anything at all! You can therefore get real-time Berkshire bird news texted to your mobile phone for free! Please check with your carrier to find out if charges apply to you. The links on the right might be of use.
You can create a Twitter account and start following berksbirdnews using your phone. To create a Twitter account text "START" to 86444. To start following berksbirdnews text "FOLLOW BERKSBIRDNEWS" to 86444. Charges may apply. Alternatively follow the instructions below to create an account using your web browser.
Create an account at twitter.com
- Go to www.twitter.com/signup.
- Fill in your details and click "Create my account".
- Follow the on-screen prompts.
Start following berksbirdnews
- Go to www.twitter.com/berksbirdnews.
- Click the "Follow" button.
The "Follow" button will be replaced with the word "Following" with a green tick next to it.
Set up your mobile number
- Go to www.twitter.com/devices.
- Fill in your details and click "Start".
- Follow the on-screen prompts.
Get Twitter updates on your mobile phone
- Click the mobile phone icon next to the "Following" word.
The mobile icon will turn green indicating that you will now receive text messages.
FAQ
Will I be charged for the text messages?
Neither Twitter or me will charge you for receiving text messages from Twitter. However, your mobile carrier might. Charges will vary depending if you have a contract or pay-as-you-go phone. Some carriers don't charge anything, some include them in your text bundle and some charge at your usual text message rate. My research shows that, generally speaking, it's free to receive text messages from Twitter (usually with a fair usage policy of about 500 messages per month). Please check with your carrier to find out if charges apply to you. The links on the right might be of use.
Which species will I receive messages for?
You will receive messages for a pre-determined list of species which have been chosen for their relative scarcity in the county. These species
are indicated on the Berkshire List page by the 
icon.