# PC text to SMS message -is it possible?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [May 19, 2011, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443 "2011-05-19T13:45:46Z")
**Posts on this page:** 16
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Thinktank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thinktank)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/1 "2011-05-19T13:45:46Z")
Hi I’m sorry to do it, I’m here basically because I don’t have time/lazy.
I’m trying to send a SMS/text message to someone for support during their exams, but I wrote a really long one which will take me at least twice the time to write on my phone ( the exam hasn’t happened yet)
Is there a way (hopefully simple) that I can transfer the text that I wrote on my computer to the SD card or other memory in the phone to then use as my text message? My phone btw is old, a Sony Ericsson W710i flip phone hehe
Please don’t tell me about other ways to send SMS’ for free or online or otherwise; this is the only way I can be sure it gets to where it needs to go.
Thanks in advance.
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### Author:  [@Gus\_Gusterson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gus_Gusterson)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/2 "2011-05-19T13:54:00Z")
You could use an online service to send the message to your phone and then forward it to the ultimate recipient.
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### Author:  [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/3 "2011-05-19T14:28:33Z")
Send yourself an email from your phone. You should be able to just send a text to your email address. When you get the email, you will have your phone’s email address. Then, send your typed-out text to the phone via its email address.
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### Author:  [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/4 "2011-05-19T14:29:40Z")
> [@Gus\_Gusterson](#):
>
> You could use an online service to send the message to your phone and then forward it to the ultimate recipient.
Or just use the online service provided by your cell phone carrier to send the message to the recipient. I know I can do that with Verizon.
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### Author:  [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/5 "2011-05-19T14:30:28Z")
> [@Thinktank](#):
>
> Please don’t tell me about other ways to send SMS’ for free or online or otherwise; this is the only way I can be sure it gets to where it needs to go.
I don’t get this part. Why would you think this won’t get your message to where it needs to go?
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### Author:  [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/6 "2011-05-19T14:34:19Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#):
>
> I don’t get this part. Why would you think this won’t get your message to where it needs to go?
Precisely. I regularly use Yahoo Messenger, Google Chat and Google Voice to send text messages from my PC. It’s always quick and just as reliable as sending via phone.
I also hope that you mean that for “support during their exams” you don’t mean when they are actually taking the test, unless the professor/teacher allows outside help (though this might explain the length issue).
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### Author:  [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/7 "2011-05-19T14:40:52Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#):
>
> Precisely. I regularly use Yahoo Messenger, Google Chat and Google Voice to send text messages from my PC. It’s always quick and just as reliable as sending via phone.
>
> I also hope that you mean that for “support during their exams” you don’t mean when they are actually taking the test, unless the professor/teacher allows outside help (though this might explain the length issue).
I want finals like that. Teach I would like to use my life line now.
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### Author:  [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/8 "2011-05-19T14:45:16Z")
You could use facebook if you both have a account with SMS registered with them. A major benefit is that if you exceed the allowable characters facebook adds ‘reply n (m?) for more’
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### Author:  [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/9 "2011-05-19T15:24:40Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#):
>
> I don’t get this part. Why would you think this won’t get your message to where it needs to go?
The only thing I can think is if the intended recipient won’t know to receive it. But she could still send it to her own phone, then forward it.
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### Author:  [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/10 "2011-05-19T15:37:41Z")
Find out if their carrier has an email to sms gateway then email the message to their phone as text. For example sending email to [1234567890@sms.att.net](mailto:1234567890@sms.att.net) makes it show up as a text message on the phone with the 1234567890 number (i think that’s the correct ATT address, done rely on me).
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### Author:  [@sweepkick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweepkick)
#### Post date: [May 19, 2011, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/11 "2011-05-19T16:15:11Z")
> [@Fubaya](#):
>
> Find out if their carrier has an email to sms gateway then email the message to their phone as text. For example sending email to [1234567890@sms.att.net](mailto:1234567890@sms.att.net) makes it show up as a text message on the phone with the 1234567890 number (i think that’s the correct ATT address, done rely on me).
This.
Here’s a list of carrier SMS email gateways for US cell providers:
[http://www.obviously.com/tech\_tips/SMS\_Text\_Email\_Gateway.html](http://www.obviously.com/tech_tips/SMS_Text_Email_Gateway.html)
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### Author:  [@Thinktank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thinktank)
#### Post date: [May 20, 2011, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/12 "2011-05-20T01:54:04Z")
Just to clarify and add additional “Thanks Yous” I should mention the recipient lives in Poland -it’s an international text 😉
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### Author:  [@BobC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobC)
#### Post date: [May 20, 2011, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/13 "2011-05-20T09:36:54Z")
I use Skype for international calls and long texts , easy and cheap
www.skype.com
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### Author:  [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)
#### Post date: [May 20, 2011, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/14 "2011-05-20T09:41:31Z")
> [@Thinktank](#):
>
> Just to clarify and add additional “Thanks Yous” I should mention the recipient lives in Poland -it’s an international text 😉
It’s been a while since I used IM but I seem to recall that I could send an SMS using AIM by IM -ing the full phone #. E.g. “+12345678901.”
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### Author:  [@komolono](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/komolono)
#### Post date: [May 20, 2011, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/15 "2011-05-20T17:29:31Z")
I bought my daughter a “good deal” - 1000 SMS for 15 dollars/month. Well, she sent 1200 and those 200 SMS were $$$$
Your SMSs go throught your ISPs SMS service.
Anyway, I programmed her an easy portal/gateway for SMS using my nokia N95 in the USB-port with something like this
open\_serial\_port(“COM4”, 57600, 8, “None”, 1, “None”);
write\_serial\_port("AT+CMGF=1
");
…reading\_port:
write\_serial\_port(“AT+CSCA=”+???"
");//???=number of your SMS operator\_service\_center
write\_serial\_port("AT+CMGS=“your number”
");
…reading\_port
write\_serial:port(what your message would be);
write(chr(26)); //ending bash
It is easy to do this with programs like terminal, beacause your phone is also a modem´. But more code is needed
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### Author:  [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)
#### Post date: [May 21, 2011, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pc-text-to-sms-message-is-it-possible/582443/16 "2011-05-21T13:59:58Z")
What I do is email myself the text, then copy it from the incoming email on my iPhone and paste it into an SMS to send off. Meh, I get lazy and hate typing on the touchscreen sometimes.