Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm aware of this too. Recently, a close friend of mine (mid 50's like I am) told me her daughter said she's a "rude texter". In that she doesn't put exclamation points and smilies.
I agree with you. Sure! is much better than Sure.
Tell your friend that her daughter is being rude to her mother by implying rudeness on her part, allegedly by the lack of unnecessary exclamation points and smilies. That is just ridiculous.
When I write a text, it has the same high quality spelling, grammar, usage and punctuation that I employ when using a laptop.
I realize people can be lazy when texting. However, I refuse to lower myself to gutter trash writing just because other people enjoy wallowing in gutter trash writing.
As the old saying goes, just because everyone else is jumping off a cliff, does that mean you have to as well?
I've been using mostly elipses rather than periods for many years now in texts...because they leave things open for the person to respond...exactly as the original source states. I rarely use emojis unless I need to be especially emphatic and think I'll be misunderstood without them and I limit exclamation points to three!!!
When I send a text message, many sentences seem to come off as possibly rude if I just end with a period. I find myself ending sentences with exclamation marks or smiley faces to convey friendliness, though in real life I'm a "grammar/spelling/punctuation snob."
Example, I texted a friend today to see I found she wanted to join me for a movie today. She texted back asking if tomorrow would work. I then texted "Sure." To my eyes, that seems like I could be saying "Ok, I guess so, but I'm not thrilled about it." So I changed it to Sure!
My intended message of "Yes, that's totally fine" seemed more clearly conveyed.
Have we (I) just gotten so used to overuse of exclamation marks and smiley faces that periods seem blunt and negative? Or am I overthinking this?
You are overthinking this. But it raises an important point.
Texts are great for specific kinds of communication, such as "pick up milk on the way home" or "running ten minutes late." It's a pretty godawful way to communicate for anything that requires nuance or subtlety. And for really important matters of the heart or business, it's a surefire sign that a lobotomy has taken place.
You inadvertently raise the biggest problem of all with texts: They might be quick, but far too easy to misinterpret. So then one has to resort to putting emojis on the damned message as if one is a thirteen-year-old. Might be fine with your bestie or your romantic interest, but to most it makes the sender look developmentally challenged. Instead of using a smiley face or a thumbs up, how about actually thinking for an additional few seconds on how to make yourself more clear?
In truth, a thirty-second phone call can be a great deal more efficient than twenty minutes of texting back and forth (Or e-mails for that matter), chiefly because so much of communication is in tone and emphasis, rather than simply the words themselves. In a business setting particularly, so much of communication relies on subtle clues rather than the words that are spoken or written. And people who fail to pick up on the signals invariably are left wondering what the hell happened when they didn't get the sale, didn't get the second interview or got laid off.
And for those who whine, "But...but...I get annoyed by phone calls," congratulations. You're a contributor to the lack of communication in the world today. You are, without realizing it, deepening the social isolation that characterizes so many lives today. You cannot be bothered to talk to someone for thirty seconds so, instead, you choose to communicate through what is ultimately a less precise form of telling someone what's on your mind. Text aren't quicker than speaking. They just have the virtue of being one-way.
The consequences are easily found in the forums on City-Data, with its zillion posts asking for help deconstructing text messages. These are especially sad when, in truth, a simple phone call would have resolved matters one way or another. Those of you who prefer texting to talking have voluntarily abandoned the basic art of conversation and deliberately chosen to let your primary form of communication atrophy. Then you wonder why you have relationship problems, work problems, and friendship issues. It's all interrelated, you know.
Last edited by MinivanDriver; 01-04-2018 at 07:54 AM..
The consequences are easily found in the forums on City-Data, with its zillion posts asking for help deconstructing text messages. These are especially sad when, in truth, a simple phone call would have resolved matters one way or another. Those of you who prefer texting to talking have voluntarily abandoned the basic art of conversation and deliberately chosen to let your primary form of communication atrophy. Then you wonder why you have relationship problems, work problems, and friendship issues. It's all interrelated, you know.
And yet, here we all are discussing issues in text, not in a big CD conference call...
And yet, here we all are discussing issues in text, not in a big CD conference call...
Well, no. Texting is abbreviated mobile communications, whereas this is long-form written communication. Aside from the fact that both require words, the two are nothing alike. I mean, you might as well say that a book or a magazine article is a text if you use that criterion.
I would never text in a business or work related situation in the first place. Not appropriate at all.
Most people I do text with do not use periods to end their messages so when I suddenly get a message with one, I can't help but assume that they want to "end the conversation" and are angry or irritated. Most of the time that is completely true.
So when I text with someone who always ends their messages in periods I can't help but be automatically stressed, wondering if something is wrong even when I know that it's just how they message. Makes the whole interaction unpleasant and I recently realized that I just avoid texting these people unless completely necessary... And they probably appreciate it, as none of the "proper grammar" types like joking /casual chat via texts. It does sour friendships/relationships as it seems like we can't get past the formalities.
Well, no. Texting is abbreviated mobile communications, whereas this is long-form written communication. Aside from the fact that both require words, the two are nothing alike. I mean, you might as well say that a book or a magazine article is a text if you use that criterion.
Text, as in printed characters. Long-form or not, it doesn't easily convey tone or the subtle clues of body language.
Text, as in printed characters. Long-form or not, it doesn't easily convey tone or the subtle clues of body language.
Unless one is a skilled writer, true. This is why, when writing an important e-mail, one should always proofread the heck out of it and perhaps edit it a couple of times before hitting the SEND button. Good writing is, in truth, rewriting. But, in that event, you've just made my point for me. Texting is terrific for fundamental, fact-based communication. But beyond that, it's for dolts.
"Can you pick up the dry cleaning on the way home?" is a pretty hard message to misinterpret, along with, "Hey, already seated in the back of the restaurant" or "My meeting is running long. Can we push back our phone conference to 2:30?" These are unambiguous statements that, short of illiteracy on the other end, no one can get wrong. Texting is ideal for this kind of stuff.
The problem arises when the communication needs get more complex. Asking someone for a date on Saturday night is a lot more nuanced than asking when and where to meet at the baseball game.
So now, the OP is fretting over punctuation for crying out loud, when an actual phone call would have eliminated such worries in all but the most socially clueless individuals.
texting is a quick way to tell somebody something without making a big ta-do over it.
so there is or isnt punctuation, big deal.
ok, so now we have texting police...
omg, the horror
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
is much better than Sure.
