Twitter announced yesterday that it is hooking up with X-Factor to allow tweeters to cast their votes from inside their Twitter accounts. "Fans have taken to Twitter during live television events to voice their opinions with Tweets for years," the company wrote in its blog. "Now you can officially affect the outcome of the show by voting for which contestants should stay and which ones need to go."

To cast a vote through Twitter, you first must "follow" . When it's time to cast your ballot, send a message to that Twitter address. Messages are private missives sent to a user of the service. Only messages will be counted as votes. You can still tweet at the X-Factor account, but tweets aren't counted as ballots.

Since the , and all have Twitter accounts, you can tweet with them, too.

For some habitual online networkers, tweeting while watching TV shows has replaced no-tech activities such as ranting or kibitzing with friends about a broadcast. For those new to this new form of interacting with a boob tube, Twitter offers these tips:

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