Share and view photos and videos on Twitter

Twixxer is a photo and video sharing component for Twitter.com users who are normally restricted to text-only updates that contain links to media. It is comprised of a browser add-on and a web service. Firefox users with the Greasemonkey extension can install a user script that adds functionality to pages on Twitter.com. Users can upload photos and receive a short URL to include in an update. The URL is a link to a large version of the photo, but anyone who has the tool installed will see a thumbnail under the updates on Twitter.com. With videos, users can paste the URL of a Viddler or YouTube video and receive a shortened URL that will display a video player for users to watch the video without leaving their stream.

What happens with users who try to view your updates without the tool? They get the same experience they would usually get, clicking through to see the content. If they click through to view the content, they will see a link to download and install the tool.

» Download Greasemonkey
» Download Twixxer User Script (current version: v2.1)

Photo Upload Form

You don't need to set up an account or sign in to any photo sharing site. Twixxer includes a photo upload form and I'll host your photos for free. I just hope I don't go broke! Photos can be uploaded from Twitter, meaning you don't have to go to another site to upload photos. All you have to do is upload a photo, copy the URL it provides, and paste it in your update.

Preview Thumbnail

A small version of each photo is created and injected into pages on Twitter.com for users who have the Greasemonkey user script installed. Users can then click on the image to view the full size version. Users who do not have the Twixxer user script installed will only see the link, which they can click to view the full size photo.

Video

If you want to share a video from Viddler or YouTube, all you have to do is copy the URL into the form, submit it, then use the URL it returns in your update. Users with the Twixxer user script installed will have the ability to play the video on Twitter, while those who don't can click the link in your update to view the video on Twixxer.com.

Short URL

Photos and videos submitted using Twixxer are assigned a special Twixxer.com URL. Viddler, YouTube, and Flickr URLs are pretty long, but with Twixxer, you will get the same URL length as you would with a URL-shortening service like TinyURL.