Studies showing its growth, however, suggest text messaging is quickly turning "n2 a significantly popular way to comunik8." Verizon Wireless spokesperson Michelle Gilbert said that text messaging has found its favor among students because of its low cost and practicality. "I think text messaging has become so popular specifically among high school and college students because it's cheap and it's very efficient," Gilbert said. According to Verizon Wireless, text messaging in the United States grew 700 percent during 2002. During the first six months of 2003, more than one billion text messages were sent and received by customers on the Verizon Wireless network alone. Almost 27 million wireless phone users in the nation use text messaging, according to Wireless Week magazine. Nearly three-fourths of text messages are between friends, Wireless Week said, with the remaining quarter occurring among business contacts. Verizon Wireless has even published an illustrated "text message dictionary," which decodes nearly a thousand words, phrases and symbols common to text messaging and to Internet communication in general. The entries range from well-known phonetic representations (easy=ez) to longer acronyms (who died and left you in charge=wdalyic) to somewhat curious translations of popular lingo (how's it going=wassup). Sophomore Carrie Howell said that the similarities between instant messaging on home computers and text messaging make the latter an easy system to pick up for many Internet-savvy students. Though the language used in text messaging and instant messaging is often similar, the two differ in format. In some ways, text messaging is more akin to e-mail in that the messages are first stored on a server before they are opened by the recipient. In instant messaging, the users communicate directly back and forth, with virtually no delay between sending and receiving a message. Some wireless networks have even made instant messaging an option on phones, so that users can enjoy the benefits of instantaneous, "real-time" conversation. The efficiency and mobility of text messaging is one of its greatest appeals to college students, Gilbert said. "College students are on the go," Gilbert said. "And a lot of times, where they are they can't take a phone call." Howell said that the discreet nature of communicating with text messages has its advantages. "I text message people because if they are in class or at work, I won't be bothering them," she said. Howell also said that sending text messages is useful for short notes, but that she prefers talking to her friends for more involved conversations. "I do it if I just have a quick question, or just a note to let them know I am thinking about them," she said. "If it is going to be a long conversation, I just call them." In addition to students, Gilbert said that text messaging has become increasingly popular among working professionals. "It's really taken off in the business world, for a number of reasons," she said. "These individuals are in meetings, and they may need to receive a message from their family or from a team member, but they can't exit the meeting to take a call. So they can send and receive quick notes with the information that they need at that moment." Telecommunications professor Joe Misiewicz serves as director of the Idea Mart, an innovation think tank for the College of Communication, Information and Media. Misiewicz said that while new technologies like text messaging are convenient in the corporate world, the absence of face-to-face interaction can hinder communication. "I run into alumni who were in companies where pretty important stuff gets transmitted through e-mail, like firings or a change of work policy," he said. "Managements just assume, 'Hey, that's what your generation's used to, so I don't have to give you the details. You ought to be able to assume from the words I used what I mean and the inflection of what I mean." Misiewicz said that he sees the value in having text messaging available in emergency situations, but that he feels its main attraction is its status as a recent, gadget-related trend. "I do have a little bit of concern that it's a toy," Misiewicz said. "Why should a parent or even a youth spend that much of their hard-earned money on that feature unless there's a real serious purpose?" Whether for entertainment or for more serious reasons, text messaging's popularity proves that an increasing number of consumers enjoy its ease of use and unobtrusiveness. "I will probably still do it when I get out of college," Howell said. "It's a nice and fast way to contact people.
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
