Twitter is the social networking and microblogging service that simply poses the question, “What are you doing?” That simple little question can at times be rather compelling - especially on a day when John McCain announces his V-P choice or Obama gives the “big speech.”

At first, the thought of tweeting seemed like a total waste of time to me. That’s until the recent L-A earthquake helped me realize Twitter’s real-time news potential.

If you’re not a Twitterer or can’t see “the point” - consider 3dogmedia.com’s list of the”Top 10 Reasons Why You Must Tweet.” My list fav is #1 on that list. It’s the story of how Twitter ensured a happy ending for a long-distance relationship.

Photo courtesy of Wired Blog Network

In March of this year Stephanie Sullivan (who at first thought Twitter was ridiculous) is believed to have been the first woman to accept a Twitter marriage proposal.  Now she uses it all the time to stay in touch with her fiance, Greg Rewis. According to the Wired Blog Network:

Rewis proposed…shortly before midnight March 2: “@stefsull - ok. for the rest of the twitter-universe (and this is a first, folks) - WILL YOU MARRY ME?” Sullivan’s reply: “@garazi - OMG - Ummmmm… I guess in front of the whole twitter-verse I’ll say — I’d be happy to spend the rest of my geek life with you.”

And the rest is, quite possibly, Twitter history in the making.

Sullivan, 46, is the founder of  W3 Conversions in Wilmington, North Carolina. Rewis, 44, is group manager of “creative solutions evangelism” for Adobe Systems and lives in Phoenix. The net helps keep the couple stay connected when they’re apart.

“E-mail, Twitter, Flickr and Skype are the staples of a long-distance relationship — not to mention extraordinarily high cellphone bills!” Sullivan said.

But you can get also visual with Twitter - with the help of Twitter Vision. It’s sort of a Twitter global TV mashup. And it’s addictive and is best viewed in 3D.

But I digress…

The point is if you’re new to social networking Twitter is a fun, vicarious way to dip into the social web. Getting a Twitter account is simple, free and fun. Actively tweeting can even help with search rankings. So the next time someone asks “What are you doing?” tell them with a tweet.