Janet Collins
Billy MDo you text or do you call?
September 12th 2008 14:39
In the debate about texting or calling both have good arguments. I am a late convert to texting and I can give plenty of reasons why this is a good way to communicate.
A few years back a friend of mine told me how she thought texting a message was ridiculous, it took lots of time and was very impersonal. Not being a “texter” myself, I did like the idea that I no longer (mostly) had to hear someone shouting down a mobile phone on the bus letting everyone know what they were doing on the coming evening.
The argument has been raised on several occasions since. I once heard an older man in a restaurant saying “if someone texts me and can’t be bothered to call I don’t respond”. The younger female to whom he was speaking responded “I find it easier to text than to call sometimes”.
While this might have an almost generational and cultural difference to it, there are some pretty good arguments for the "texting" mehod. Think how many times do you call someone and it goes to the voicemail anyway? Then they call back and you may be tied up somewhere and it goes into your voicemail as well.
I have to admit, I was slow to get to the texting method of communication. I too am so used to typing and email that it simply took me too long. Further, the pre-emptive text mode was just too frustrating.
I have changed. I now can communicate far more effectively by texting and would like to share a few pointers with those who cannot bear communicating in this way.
My sister for example said that she was reluctant to ring her children on their mobiles once they had started driving. Concerned that they would try to answer the phone while driving a car, the texting idea seemed far safer and more practical. For me, I can text anyone at anytime whether it be early in the morning or late at night and I can just wait for them to respond. I am not interfering or ringing them at an inconvenient hour and therefore can get a message to them rather than having to wait for the right time.
It is also a cheaper option. Picking up messages from message bank continually can be rather expensive. You also don’t need to worry about being in a quiet enough place for your voice to be heard. Many a time I have made a phone call in what I would call a pretty quiet place and noise seems to come out of nowhere. It is also very frustrating playing "phone tag". Texting eliminates this.
Once you get the hang of it, you don’t have to worry what time it is, that you have interrupted someone’s dinner or any other social arrangement and you can keep in more constant contact than what you can do with a personal call.
The personal phone call has its place though and I will never discredit its importance in communicating with friends, family and colleagues. If I want to have a good old chat I still use the phone (and I am one still left with a landline) for a long friendly conversation.
For the quick messages you want to relay to friends or colleagues, texting is a very practical way to do it. It keeps you in touch constantly. You just have to practice.
Do you text or do you call?
A few years back a friend of mine told me how she thought texting a message was ridiculous, it took lots of time and was very impersonal. Not being a “texter” myself, I did like the idea that I no longer (mostly) had to hear someone shouting down a mobile phone on the bus letting everyone know what they were doing on the coming evening.
The argument has been raised on several occasions since. I once heard an older man in a restaurant saying “if someone texts me and can’t be bothered to call I don’t respond”. The younger female to whom he was speaking responded “I find it easier to text than to call sometimes”.
While this might have an almost generational and cultural difference to it, there are some pretty good arguments for the "texting" mehod. Think how many times do you call someone and it goes to the voicemail anyway? Then they call back and you may be tied up somewhere and it goes into your voicemail as well.
I have to admit, I was slow to get to the texting method of communication. I too am so used to typing and email that it simply took me too long. Further, the pre-emptive text mode was just too frustrating.
I have changed. I now can communicate far more effectively by texting and would like to share a few pointers with those who cannot bear communicating in this way.
My sister for example said that she was reluctant to ring her children on their mobiles once they had started driving. Concerned that they would try to answer the phone while driving a car, the texting idea seemed far safer and more practical. For me, I can text anyone at anytime whether it be early in the morning or late at night and I can just wait for them to respond. I am not interfering or ringing them at an inconvenient hour and therefore can get a message to them rather than having to wait for the right time.
It is also a cheaper option. Picking up messages from message bank continually can be rather expensive. You also don’t need to worry about being in a quiet enough place for your voice to be heard. Many a time I have made a phone call in what I would call a pretty quiet place and noise seems to come out of nowhere. It is also very frustrating playing "phone tag". Texting eliminates this.
Once you get the hang of it, you don’t have to worry what time it is, that you have interrupted someone’s dinner or any other social arrangement and you can keep in more constant contact than what you can do with a personal call.
The personal phone call has its place though and I will never discredit its importance in communicating with friends, family and colleagues. If I want to have a good old chat I still use the phone (and I am one still left with a landline) for a long friendly conversation.
For the quick messages you want to relay to friends or colleagues, texting is a very practical way to do it. It keeps you in touch constantly. You just have to practice.
Do you text or do you call?
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Comment by Jarrah
Back to the Eighties
I'm not too young, but I cannot stand people that are scared of change and technology.
They're no different than their parents generation, and the generation before.
Time is not going to stop, so get on board and stop whining.
yeah..