The Migration Away From Computers
I’ve briefly touched on how cell phones can be used by news services to reach communities that don’t have access to computers and the Internet, but lately I’m becoming more and more convinced that we are migrating away from computers in general. And I haven’t even played with an iPhone yet—actually, I would suggest that the iPhone is in an entirely different category because of its computer-style interface and connection to the Internet. What I’ve been looking into is text message access.
Social Networks
Online social networks are offering ways to connect with contacts outside of their websites. Google’s Gmail and Yahoo! Messenger both have features allowing chat messages to be sent to cell phones. There are also a number of free Facebook applications allowing users within Facebook to send messages out to cell phones. There is also an application aptly named Chat To Text that offers a paid service connecting a range of social networks with cell phone text messaging.
The technology isn’t new, there have been free web services sending text messages to cell phones for years. What is different is the ability to connect a larger group that may not have otherwise shared personal contact information such as a phone number, allowing social networking connections to move beyond the computer.
Information Access
Another area that is expanding through text messaging is access to information. Google is a prime example here. By sending a text to 466453 (Google) you can ask for information found in their features including directions, definitions, and even conversions offered in the calculator. I’ve been taken to the wrong location by my GPS (I just love when it tells me to turn into someone’s driveway as if it’s a street) and turned to text message directions to get back on the road, headed in the right direction.
Photo Sharing
Along with text messaging and calling, cell phones have all sorts of bells and whistles. Photos are one, with many phones now able to take decent digital photos. Unfortunately some phones don’t offer easy access to the stored files. Services like Pikchur.com come in here, offering a personalized email address to send photos to through MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) as opposed to SMS (Short Message Service). Not only does this enable moving the photos off of the phone, but these sites also form networks of people sharing content and provide the option to simultaneously post to multiple networks.
Overall, we’re moving away from the need for a computer and Internet access to connect to networks that were originally formed online. Other countries may be far ahead of the States in cell phone features, but we’re getting there.