Text messaging isn’t just for hip teens or gadget-obsessed Japanese mobile phone users; mothers have been using it in greater numbers to keep in touch with Dad and the kids.
“U B good k luv mom” could replace the little handwritten note inside a kid’s lunchbox. Why waste paper and create more trash for the Earth when Mom can just send a text message to the kid’s cellphone instead?
AOL’s T9 Texting Outlook Survey said 30 percent of Moms have been using their omni-present cellphones to tap out text messages to family members and others.
The survey said among moms who text message, 65 percent of the messages they send are for fun or social reasons, while 28 percent are to coordinate family schedules and errands.
Texter Mom mostly sends messages to Dad. (“whr R U? Y did U frgt 2 walk Fido?”) 30 percent of Moms zap a message to him most of the time, while 29 percent send more messages to their friends (“OMG kids r @ school lets shop”). About one in five mothers mostly text their children.
That weird shorthand isn’t just something the kids do. Three out of four moms approve of using those abbreviated words and other texting lingo to send messages quickly. (Why they always seem to be in front of me at the traffic light is a matter best left to the philosophers.)
AOL recommends a few tips to increase Mom’s, and everyone’s, joy of text. Be courteous, don’t use ALL CAPS, and share those feelings with smileys, the survey said. And watch yer, oops, your spelling.
We have a couple of suggestions to add to that list. First, please don’t text and drive. And second, remember that Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 14th. Here’s a hint – sending her a text message is nice, but a card will go over much better. K?
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David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
