Although SMS technology has been around for over a decade there are still a lot of misconceptions and questions surrounding the use of the messaging service, and this is probably due in part to the association of the technology with teenagers and young people. Some adults unfamiliar with the technology assume that it has connections with other ‘young’ phenomena (such as the internet, music downloads, and so forth), which is simply not the case. SMS is an easy and fun technology which can be used by anyone with a mobile phone.
One of the most common questions asked about SMS is to do with ‘emoticon’ speak or ‘smilies’. Emoticons are the small faces or actions which portray an emotion or feeling – a smiley face, a winking face, a sad face, a confused face, and so on. In a way emoticons have become a form of short-hand speak used in part because of the restriction of characters in SMS (160 characters maximum) and in part because of the speed of hitting two or three symbols rather than having to write an entire sentence. ‘I am happy’ can quickly be written by typing out the : and ) symbols, which combined show :) . Of course, to understand emoticons you need to understand that in most instances they are read sideways rather than upright, and this is because of the restrictions of the characters used.
Another common question relating to SMS is about sending photo or picture messages, known as MMS (Multimedia Message Service). In actual fact, SMS and MMS are quite different, as the MMS requires more memory space (it sends a photo – an object which is much larger than text) and costs more money to send. While a message can be sent along with the MMS, it is almost always cheaper and easier to send an SMS (text only, without images).
One of the most common questions asked about SMS is to do with ‘emoticon’ speak or ‘smilies’. Emoticons are the small faces or actions which portray an emotion or feeling – a smiley face, a winking face, a sad face, a confused face, and so on. In a way emoticons have become a form of short-hand speak used in part because of the restriction of characters in SMS (160 characters maximum) and in part because of the speed of hitting two or three symbols rather than having to write an entire sentence. ‘I am happy’ can quickly be written by typing out the : and ) symbols, which combined show :) . Of course, to understand emoticons you need to understand that in most instances they are read sideways rather than upright, and this is because of the restrictions of the characters used.
Another common question relating to SMS is about sending photo or picture messages, known as MMS (Multimedia Message Service). In actual fact, SMS and MMS are quite different, as the MMS requires more memory space (it sends a photo – an object which is much larger than text) and costs more money to send. While a message can be sent along with the MMS, it is almost always cheaper and easier to send an SMS (text only, without images).