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Txt Like a Teen

Entry 359, on 2006-07-03 at 16:10:57 (Rating 1, Comments)

I heard an interview this morning with a person running a course which teaches "old folks" how to use txt messaging on cell phones. The main reason for running this course was to enable them to communicate with their grandchildren. I was thinking, what does this say about changes in our society?

There is nothing wrong with txting. I use it myself, but my daughter and her friends use it so much more. They can occasionally generate 100 messages a day. Most of them are totally vacuous and sometimes consist of a single character or word. So what's the point? All forms of communication have their place, and anyone who dismisses txting should consider that similar things were said about the phone when it was first introduced.

Its important for middle aged and older people not to ignore or be antagonistic to a technology just because they are not familiar with it. And its important for younger people not to use a technology which may not be as effective as they think, just because its trendy. There must be a way to utilise new technologies without letting it take over or assume too much significance in their lives.

I think I have a good attitude to new technology. I utilise most of them but don't rely on any one too much. For communication I use phone, cell phone, txt, email, Skype, instant messaging (text, sound, video), and occasionally I actually really talk to someone! If I lost any of these it wouldn't worry me too much, but I still find them all useful and enjoy trying new ways of doing things (by the way, I would be in the "middle aged" category above).

So next time I see an older person refusing to use a technology just because its new I will quote this example of the "txting grannies" to show that anyone can do it!

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