Webb 1 Cindy Webb Argument Paper Ms.

Carlton 25 April 2012

Text Messaging: Communication on the Go Richard Jarvis was attending a Christmas party in Newbury, England in 1992 when he received the first SMS or short message service wishing him Merry Christmas on his cell phone from Neil Papworths computer keyboard in Paris. In 17 years SMS, or text messaging, has gone from being an enhancement for pagers to one of the most popular forms of communication today (nytimes.com). What is text messaging? The Encyclopdia Britannica Online definition for text messaging is The act of sending short messages with cellular telephones using the Short Messaging Service (SMS), which has a limit of 160 characters per message (Britannica.com). Short Messaging Service or SMS is a means of transmitting short alphanumeric messages no longer than 160 characters over mobile networks. SMS messages can be sent to other mobile users around the world (wirelessdevnet.com). Ask a teenager the meaning of text messaging and he/she will tell you it is a fast and easy way to keep in contact with all his/her friends at the same time (borderzine.com). Some parents will say the definition of text messaging is peace of mind. These parents can communicate with their tweens, teens and college kids in a discreet way. It is less awkward for a child to text a parent in front of friends than to make a phone call (foxnews.com). Other parents will say the definition of text messaging is a distraction. Kids have been known to be up all hours through the night texting with friends (borderzine.com). A business persons definition of text messaging

Webb 2 might be to get information in a brief, quick message that can be delivered on a Blackberry (districtchronicles.com). Ask an educator the definition of text messaging and he/she could say it is the deterioration of todays literacy. Teachers who have had to red pen a report because 2 has been used instead of to or no capital letters when needed blame texting (Vosloo 2). The definition of text messaging is similar no matter what reference book or website is used. Sending short messages to a smartphone, pager, PDA or other handheld devicewhich supports messages of up to 160 characters (encyclopedia2.thefree dictionary.com). Ask someone the definition of text messaging and it will be as different and individualized as the person sending a text message. There are numerous reports of schoolwork being full of acronyms and non-conventional spellings. Some people believe that text messaging, with its abbreviated textisms, is harming our language. Text messaging is not harming the written language. In his book, Texting: the gr8 db8, David Crystal explores the fears many of todays teachers, parents and language experts have about text messaging and how it is affecting language. Text messaging is used because it saves time in a world that wants instant gratification. But text messaging is also fun. There are an extraordinary number of ways in which people play with language creating riddles, solving crosswords, playing Scrabble, inventing new wordsChildren quickly learn that one of the most enjoyable things you can do with language is to play with its sounds, words, grammar and spelling. (The Linguist 11). Over the past five years, researchers in several countries have collected large numbers of text messages several hundred, sometimes a thousand or so and the results are the same wherever you lookSo c u l8r in English with the 8

Webb 3 replacing the sound eight, has its parallel in German with gute n8, where the 8 replaces the acht of Nacht. For the book, I collected about a dozen or so languages and found the same sort of abbreviatory process turning up in all of them (Spotlight 18, 19). Communication is ever changing and communicating in code is not new; smoke signals, Morse code, and the telegram all preceded todays text messaging. In ancient Egypt, artists, craftsmen, and metalworkers communicated by hieroglyphics and at least three other scripts on statues, temples and tomb walls. Shakespeare had several thousand made-up words (his own name was signed in six different ways)Who even knows what p.m. stands for? (Post meridiem, Latin for after midday, first recorded by a lazy delinquent in 1666.) (newsweek.com/id/150449). The truth is texting is just another form of abbreviation. There are several features of texts that give the impression of novelty, but some date back 100 years (The Linguist 9). When you see TTYL (talk to you later) on a text message dont forget it was not very long ago when written letters were signed SWAK (sealed with a kiss). People have always been apprehensive about new technology from the invention of the printing press instrument of the devil, telephone fears of a breakdown in family life, to radio and television concerns about brain-washing. Text messaging is just the most recent focus of peoples anxiety; what people are really worried about is a new generation gaining control of what they see as their language (guardian.co.uk/edu). Text messaging will become as obsolete for tomorrows youth as writing in a diary is today. Communication is truly always evolving and that heathen Shakespeare would have been onboard (newsweek.com). While spelled incorrectly in a conventional sense, many textisms are phonologically acceptable forms of written English (Vosloo 3). Which [sic] doesnt let the teenager who

Webb 4 LOLs in a term paper off the hook but thats not so much a question of language ability as of judgment. It, too, should go the way of all slang ever inappropriately used a classroom - rebuked with a red pen, not seized upon as a symptom of generational decline (newsweek.com). The reality in todays world is that students know when writing a school essay that textisms are not appropriate (Benefits). Text messaging has put a new spin on the importance of reading and writing. Before cell phones, it wasnt hard to hide poor reading skills from friends in school. Technology is elevating the importance of reading to a new and higher level of understanding (Baggott). The experts also wrote that the associate between text messaging and phonological awareness has been found during their study.According to the researchers phonological awareness has been associated with good reading skills for a long time. This way kids are using more written language and it is great fun for them (Benefits). Not only are kids texting friends, but they are also texting their parents. Communication between parents and teens can become easier with text messaging. Texts can be sent and received even if the cell phone service is weak. Teens can use text messages to let parents know they are ok in situations where a phone call would cause grief from their friends, or that they have arrived safely at their destination (Parents should embrace text messaging: study). Text messages are for short messages not long conversations. Acronyms are commonly used in text messages due to the 160 character limit. A friend may end a message BFF, best friends forever, XOXO, hugs and kisses, or L8R, later. A coworker may text OTP, on the phone, NRN, no replay necessary, TBD, to be determined or FYI, for your information. The website www.netlingo.com has several lists of acronyms used in everyday text messaging. (netlingo.com)

Webb 5 Text messaging is fast, modestly priced and not nearly as aggravating as someone talking on a cell phone in public. There is a downside to text messaging. The most dangerous aspect of text messaging is driving while texting. Studies have shown that texting while driving is dangerous (CNN.com). Another negative to text messaging is that its so impersonal. Unfortunately, some people carry it to such an extreme that it takes the place of other contact such as the phone or in-person conversation (Burgess). To hear the voice of the person on the other end helps to determine if that person needs a kind word to get through the day or congratulations for a job well done. There are three main differences between personal exchanges using a hand written note and text messaging. They are; speed, intimacy and written language. To compose a personal note, one must first sit down with a writing instrument, paper and a hard surface on which to write (Habluetzel.pdf:4). To tap out a text message, one must have a handheld device capable of sending and receiving text messages. A person can move about freely inside or outside while sending and receiving a text message (Habluetzel.pdf:4). Shakespeare wrote that brevity is the soul of wit. This [sic] means, in other words, that the most effective messages are communicated with the least amount of words (Killian). Most handheld devices have a small keypad with several letters and symbols assigned to one key and a small screen. Because of these obstacles, text messages are short, to the point and sometimes abbreviated (Habluetzel.pdf:5). While a hand written letter and a text message tapped out on a device seem entirely different, there are similarities. Both are based on absence, they are personal (as opposed to public and collective); they can foster feelings of presence; they both expect reciprocity (Habluetzel.pdf:8). The direct approach developed in text messaging can be transferred onto the

Webb 6 hand written page. Dont use ten words in a sentence when five will communicate the same point. Through brevity, your writing will stand out as profound and powerful (Killian). The effects of text messaging on todays society have been both positive and negative. Texting can be a great tool, when used correctly. Technology has changed the way people communicate with each other. Hand written letters have been replaced with emails, blogs and web sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Todays text messages are yesterdays postcards (Habluetzel.pdf:1). During the 1990s there were only a handful of people who thought SMS would become popular. Brennan Hayden was one of the few believers. Hayden was an engineer for an Irish wireless company, Aldiscon, which invested in text messaging. He believed one day SMS would become its own form of communication. Hayden sent the first commercial text message in June 1993 (nytimes.com). Now this technology is used everyday by businesses, parents, children, teenagers and the President of the United States. In the words of the 1989 Virginia Slims cigarette commercial, UCALWB Youve come a long way, baby.

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Works Cited Accidents prompt summit on distracted driving. cnnpolitics.com August 4, 2009 <http:// www.cnn.com/2009/politics/08/04/distracted.driving/index.html>. Associated Content News May 24, 2008 <http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/783729/ the_negative_effects_of_text_ messaging.html?cat=9>. Baggott, Kate. Literacy and Text Messaging How will the next generation read and write? Technology Review December 21, 2006 <http://www.technologyreview.com/printer_ friendly_article.aspx?id=17917&channel=business&se>. Benefits of Text Messaging for Children. eNotAlone.com March 8, 2009 <http://www.enotalone.com/ article/19396.html.>. Bonisteel, Sara. Parents Use Text Messaging to Keep Tabs on Kids. FoxNews.com. 06 Dec. 2006 <http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,234282,090.html>. Burgess, Louisa. The Negative Effects of Text Messaging Put the Phone in Your Pocket. Associated Content News May 24, 2008 <http:// www.associatedcontent.com/article/783729/ the_negative_effects_of_text_messaging.html?cat=9>. Crace, John. Gr8 db8r takes on linguistic luddites. Guardian.co.uk. 16 September 2008 <http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/sep/15/academicexperts...>. Crystal, David. Txting: frNd or foe? The Linguist December 2008/January 2009. www.iol.org.uk>. Gupta, Puneet. Short Message Service: What, How and Where? Wireless Developer Network. <http://www.wirelessdevnet.com/chanels/sms/features/sms.html>. Huang, Lily. The Death of English (LOL). Newsweek.com. 2 August 2008 <http://www.newsweek.com/id/150449/output/print>.

Webb 8 Habluetzel, Caroline. The Remediation of Love: Text Messaging as Writing. Avenue Journal. Volume One, Issue One <http://mcgill.academia.edu/CarolineHabluetzel/Papers>. Killian, Jeremy Scott. Lessons About Writing Learned from Text Messaging. Online posting. 13 Oct. 2008. <http://www.jeremyscottkillian.com/portfolioblog/?p=20>. Marquez, Cesar. Negative Aspects of Text Messaging. Borderzine.com. 21 Oct. 2009 <http://www.borderzine.com/2009/10/negative-aspects-of-text-messaging/>. Parents should embrace text messaging: study. 3news.co.nz September 23, 2009 7:03 A.M. < http://www.3news.co.nz/Parents-should-embrace-text-messaging-study-/tabid/ 412/articleID/122275/cat/411/Default.aspx>. Reese, Victoria Marie. Text messaging more than just childs play. The District Chronicles. 13 Sept. 2009 <http://www.districtchronicles.com/home/index.cfm?=displayArt...>. Shannon, Victoria. 15 years of text messages, a cultural phenomenon. New York Times on the Web 5 December 2007. 21 October 2009 <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/05/ technology/0tiht-sms.4.8603150.html?_4=1&pagew...>. Pilewski, Mike. The joy of txt. Spotlight. November 2008. <https://www.spotlight-verlag.de/ aktionen/pdf/spotlight/magazin.pdf >. "text messaging." Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. 1981-2008. The Computer Language Company Inc. Nov. 2009 <http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/text+messaging >.
"text messaging." Encyclopdia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopdia Britannica Online. 09 Nov.

2009 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1099476/text-messaging>. Vosloo, Steve. The effects of texting on literacy: Modern scourge or opportunity? Shuttleworth Foundation. April 2009.

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