Latest Podcast



Featured Articles

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

UK service providers must notify customers when they connect to a different network

New rules from UK telecoms regulator Ofcom will protect customers when they use their mobile phone on a foreign network. In addition, customers will be alerted if they are inadvertently roaming, perhaps because they're near an international border.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Global smartphone market is set for recovery, says new forecast

A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

New Hutchison/Vodafone network would be biggest UK operator

Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

UK mobile payment service Paym to close in March 2023

UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Which? seeks payout for Samsung and Apple smartphone owners

Consumer protection organisation Which? has been given permission by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal to represent Apple and Samsung smartphone buyers in a legal case against chip manufacturer Qualcomm.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS

Opinion Articles

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

f u cn rd ths thn wts th prblm?

Iain Graham writes:

Text language. Why do they do it?  What an interesting question!  Normally asked by people who have never ever sent a text, believing it to be the invention of the devil!! "Texters are vandals, doing to our language what Genghis Khan did to his neighbours eight hundred years ago" asserted Jhn (sorry) John Humphrys of Radio Four fame writing in the Daily Mail. The new 'text language' has been blamed for many things including:

Erosion of children's ability to spell,
Abandonment of all punctuation and capitalization,
Worsening marks in examinations,
Children growing up into adults who are unable to to write 'proper' English, and
Eventually, the language as a whole inevitably declining.

The interesting point to make here is that there has never been any clear evidence to support any of the above fears. This reassurance comes from the work completed by David Crystal, honorary professor of linguistics at the University of Wales, Bangor. He should know, he has written or edited over a hundred books on the subjects of language and writing.

"The end is nigh" people say to me on receipt of yet another communication by text from one of their offspring!  Well I don't think it is!  I speak as a typical fuddy duddy and Grumpy Old Man well set in his ways and a convert, yes, a convert to sending texts as a quick and largely non-intrusive way of communicating with a whole range of different people.

I will admit that I have not, and will not change my way of sending a text, (grammatically correct, accurately spelt and punctuated) but I have no objection to those that abbreviate for the sake of cost and use emoticons for illustration and fun!  Yes, language should be fun!!

My point is this, language has to evolve and change otherwise it will die, and if the use of texts and the language used therein helps monosyllabic teenagers communicate better and more frequently, then so be it.

Communication methods are moving on at a very fast pace and in a few years time sending texts could seem as archaic a method of communication as the typewriter and the telegram do today. Whatever happens I'm fascinated by the subject and believe that with the common everyday use of texts we are seeing a demonstration of a language in evolution at a fast pace!!

g2g h2cus

Print
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Rate this article:
No rating

Categories: OpinionNumber of views: 8613

Tags:

Leave a comment

This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data.
Add comment

Recent Podcasts

Podcast - 9th December 2009

This week there's our usual look at the biggest mobile industry headlines - including Google's new photo-powered mobile search service - and Chris Caudle from the IMPDA tells us how the UK's independent mobile phone dealers have coped with the last 12 months.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 2nd December 2009

Iain Graham, James Rosewell and Mark Bridge discuss the week's mobile industry headlines, from Samsung's touchscreen success to the future of Nokia's manufacturing business. There's also an interview with Guy Phillipson of the IAB about mobile advertising, consumer concerns and online mobile services.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 25th November 2009

This week we talk to Shazam CEO Andrew Fisher about the mysteries of mobile music discovery. And, as usual, there's a look at the week's mobile industry news - from T-Mobile's data leak to the launch of O2-backed virtual network giffgaff.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 18th November 2009

Mobile VoIP provider Nimbuzz launches an international calling service, so we talk to company CMO Neal Fullman. And we also take a look at the week's other headlines, from Samsung bada to text messages in GCSE exams.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 11th November 2009

This week we're talking to Simon Wainewright from SitexOrbis about using mobile technology to protect lone workers. And there's a lot of other industry news as well, from EU Telecom Reform to Rick Astley's iPhone worm.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
First7172737476787980Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Twitter @TheFonecast RSS podcast feed
Find us on Facebook Subscribe free via iTunes

Archive Calendar

«November 2024»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
28293031123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
2526272829301
2345678

Archive

Terms Of Use | Privacy Statement