Tweetie

Tweetie is the latest entry in a growing number of apps for posting updates to Twitter. Unlike other programs that rely on Adobe's AIR platform, Tweetie is a native OS X app which allows it to be more tightly integrated with the operating system.

Tweetie's interface is very simple. Icons for switching between the timeline, @ replies, DMs, and search are all arranged along the left side of the window. The program smoothly animates the transitions between each section and provides breadcrumbs at the top of the window so that the user can navigate backwards. The interface is well executed and very responsive.

The program also includes a number of features that are missing in other apps. Tweetie has robust support for multiple accounts which are presented as icons in the bar on the left of the window. You can also follow and unfollow directly from within the application, access complete user profile information, and view direct messages as a conversation thread in a similar manner to iChat. For a 1.0 release, the program is extremely well polished and stable.

Tweetie probably isn't for everyone. Those that prefer the column style layout of TweetDeck and Seesmic Desktop will most likely stay with those apps until such features are available in Tweetie. Also, users that work on both Windows and Mac platforms may appreciate the consistency of the same application in both environments.

Tweetie is available in both free (ad supported) and paid versions.