Ubuntu 10.04 was supposed to be “social from the start,” but anyone who gave Gwibber an honest try is probably a little disappointed. Facebook integration is buggy and Twitter – while generally good – will periodically simply not update.

If you’re anything like me you love the idea of Gwibber, but wish it worked better. As such, you may be looking for an alternative Linux Twitter client to use until they work out their issues. Maybe though, you’re simply ready to find a new program to be loyal to – regardless of what’s installed by default on your system.

With this in mind I’ve decided to profile a few of the many Twitter clients available for Ubuntu.

Adobe Air apps, such as TweetDeck, aren’t mentioned here although we’re aware that Tweetdeck works in Linux. This list is for native Twitter clients. Everything here loads quickly and does what you’d expect, so let’s take a look.

Twitux

This one, as you can see, sports a really simple interface. It also starts up quickly, which is certainly a contrast from Gwibber. Sure, these’s only one column viewable at a time, but you can quickly choose between your friend’s feeds, the public and messages directly to you. There’s no function, the program doesn’t show many tweets, and there’s no way to scroll back further that I could see.

Ubuntu users can simply click here to install Twitux; users of other distributions should check their package manager for “twitux” or check out the Twitux page at Gnome Live for downloads.

gTwitter

This one sports a really short list of recent tweets, shown in a simple interface. It’s a really quick way to update Twitter, if that’s all you’re looking for, but there’s no search function and no way to view more tweets even if you want to.

You can find gTwitter in your repositories, or Ubuntu users can click here to install.

Qwit

I like this one. Based on KDE’s QT4, as the name implies, Qwit is quite feature filled. It supports multiple accounts, and you’ll always see various tabs on the left allowing you to check out your feed, your messages and more. You’ll also notice a “more” button, very useful if you want to keep reading Tweet.

The program does a good job of tracking your API usage, meaning if it stops working you’ll know why. The interface can be customized, and the program even inclues URL shortener integration.

I highly recommend this one, if you’re looking for a good KDE Twitter client. Even if you use Gnome, this one’s awesome enough to use anyway.

Ubuntu users can click here to install Qwit, users of other Linux distributions need to only check their distro’s package manager for the program or download Qwit from the project’s Google Code page.

Alternatively, users of any Linux distribution can use the portable version of Qwit found over at PortableLinuxApps. This is particularly useful if you’re a Gnome guy, like me, and would prefer to not install any QT dependencies on your system.

Mitter

No nonsense here. Mitter comes equiped with a simple, two-tab interface: messages and replies are quickly accessible. Sure, the configuration is basic, and the Gnome-ish interface isn’t anything you haven’t seen before. But Mitter stands out because it can be used from the command line, which is awesome.

You can download Mitter from Google Code; you’ll even find a Debian package. Users of other distros may have to resort to compiling, sadly.

Pino

Looks nice, doesn’t it? Pino supports multple accounts, sports a simple interface and even comes with support for Ubuntu 10.04′s message notification indicator. You’ll see simple buttons for different screens, which is really nice. You’ll find URL shortening and perhaps some other things that can make you happy.

Find out more about Pino, including downloads, at Pino’s web site.

Conclusion

This is by no means an exhaustive list; I’m sure our readers can point out many more fine examples of Linux Twitter clients. Please feel free to highlight the best things I’ve missed below. Also feel free to ask any questions that need answering, because I want my readers to be happy. Let me make you happy.