I've been using TweetDeck for some time, so I'm still pondering how I missed the boat on this by three and a half weeks.  I just heard about TweetDeck User Streams today, and maybe that's for the best, because at this point I don't have to pine for it.  User Streams is currently available for download from the TweetDeck website.

Using Twitter's new streaming API, User Streams does away with TweetDeck's existing method of updating your columns on a timed basis (once a minute for instance) and replaces it with awesome.  By awesome, I mean real time feeds for each of your columns, including any searches you have running.  I cannot express how truly fantastic this makes TweetDeck.  I never liked waiting sixty seconds to find out if someone replied to me or said something worthwhile.  In the early days of TweetDeck, I found myself ignoring it quite often in favor of using the Twitter website for this very reason.  At some point, I couldn't handle clicking that little refresh box any longer, so I came back. 

With User Stream, TweetDeck will be all I'll ever need, and I think most users, from casual lurker to power user, will agree.  I've seem some uber power users who are following tens of thousands of other users state that it's a bit hard to keep up with.  Why you wouldn't be using lists to manage who you actually pay attention to at that point is beyond me.  I couldn't keep up with an "All Friends" list of 40 thousand anyway.  Could you?  

The other instance where User Streams becomes a bit difficult to manage is in the case of trending topics and other extremely popular search terms.  Results simply come in too quickly to keep track of. 

As I'm writing this, I have a search column open (in real time no less!) for "User Stream".  Reactions coming in are mixed, though most are positive.  Some, like me, are very excited about seeing updates in real time and being able to see @replies from your friends to users you don't follow.  Others are complaining that streams are too fast to effectively keep up with.  It's hard to say how well real time updates will translate to Echofon's iPhone Twitter app.  I don't see it being quite as useful as with a desktop app.

The ability to see @replies to users you don't follow is a big plus for me.  I was thoroughly disappointed when Twitter initially made the changes to the @reply system because I used my friends' replies as an easy way to find quality users to follow and converse with.  TweetDeck has my sincere gratitude for bringing this back in their app.  

Words cannot fully express my excitement.  This is what Twitter should be:  a more fully realized real time news and networking utility.  What do you think?  Updates coming too fast?  Or are you on board with User Stream?  

User Stream is pretty simple to figure out, and of course it's free, but if you're the kind who likes to see a demonstration video first, check the video below from Tech Crunch.

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