# texting question **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 23, 2017, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169 "2017-12-23T22:13:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![flaming\_yawn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cab0a1/32.png) [@flaming\_yawn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flaming_yawn)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2017, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/1 "2017-12-23T22:13:53Z")
What is a polite way to end a texting conversation of back and forth banter? There should be a universal symbol that means " Ok I’m done good-bye" ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2017, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/2 "2017-12-23T22:21:24Z")
Eggplant. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2017, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/3 "2017-12-23T23:31:40Z")
Turn your device off. If they say something later, tell them your phone died. I ain’t got no mercy for long winded texters. One of my daughters writes novels on text messages. Drives me insane. She could voice call and say it in 2 min. Don’t get me wrong I love the convienance of texting. And I do it often, but short and concise is my motto. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2017, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/4 "2017-12-23T23:43:40Z")
I know it feels awkward, but just stop responding. That’s the way most people do it. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2017, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/5 "2017-12-23T23:52:01Z")
What’s wrong with “Hey, got something to do right now. Text you later”? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/6 "2017-12-24T00:02:24Z")
How about “Ohh my God no, no, no what are you doing, and why the hell did you turn my phone on dictate mode you sick bas…” ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/7 "2017-12-24T00:26:13Z")
Let’s go back, as in radio days, to ending messages with “out” if the conversation is finished. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/8 "2017-12-24T00:37:37Z")
KthxBye ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/9 "2017-12-24T00:44:19Z")
The etiquette among my friends is to just stop responding. If it’s a really important conversation, like someone’s venting about something upsetting, I explain why I have to step away. Then I come back later and we pick up where we left off. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/10 "2017-12-24T02:11:31Z")
“OK, gotta go now” What is so complicated? mmm ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/11 "2017-12-24T03:06:16Z")
I thought that the whole point of texting was that you’d answer whenever it was convenient, and as a corollary you can end a conversation by just not responding. I dunno; maybe it’s different with the current generation that has their phones surgically attached. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/12 "2017-12-24T03:11:04Z")
Oh, right, forgot why I opened this thread in the first place: [Moderating] Moving thread from CS to IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/13 "2017-12-24T03:13:27Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > “OK, gotta go now” > > What is so complicated? > mmm There ya go. Or since you’re texting, GTG. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/14 "2017-12-24T03:17:41Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I thought that the whole point of texting was that you’d answer whenever it was convenient, and as a corollary you can end a conversation by just not responding. I dunno; maybe it’s different with the current generation that has their phones surgically attached. If you’re in the middle of a conversation- back and forth texting about something, it’s not awful to just disappear but it;s nicer if you say “hey catch you later, gotta go, TTYL” ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/15 "2017-12-24T03:35:35Z")
Aaaaaarrrrrggggghhhhh… ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/16 "2017-12-24T04:17:45Z")
Texting is great because its asynchronous communication so when you get a message you don’t have to respond until its convient to you sometimes there is a delay because you got a phone call sometimes its because you don’t want to respond either way the correct way to handle it is to stop rezponding. If the conversation you walk away from is still worth having when you get back you can pick up where you left off since its written directly above or if it wasn’t or you don’t want to continue you can move on to something else. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/17 "2017-12-24T06:12:09Z")
When I’m texting with a Deaf person in real time, we use something that is a carryover from conversations on TTYs. “SK.” It means “Stop Keying.” Really old TTYs were “keyed” not typed. So even though for a whole generation of machines, they had keyboards that resembled electric typewriters, you still typed “SK.” Occasionally I catch myself using SK with a hearing person. If they know what it means it’s pretty convenient. If they don’t, they assume it’s a typo. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/18 "2017-12-24T19:07:00Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > There ya go. Or since you’re texting, GTG. Well, I might have thought that meant grab the gonads or something. mmm ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/19 "2017-12-24T20:39:42Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > When I’m texting with a Deaf person in real time, we use something that is a carryover from conversations on TTYs. “SK.” It means “Stop Keying.” Really old TTYs were “keyed” not typed. So even though for a whole generation of machines, they had keyboards that resembled electric typewriters, you still typed “SK.” > > Occasionally I catch myself using SK with a hearing person. If they know what it means it’s pretty convenient. If they don’t, they assume it’s a typo. In the world of amateur radio, SK has come to mean the ham operator has died. It’s short for silent key and refers to the CW/morse code keying device. Reading a bit, the original meaning was closer to what you describe. Now, I’d use the Q code of QRT to indicate the end of a radio session. Reading about the recent death of AOL’s AIM (Instant Messager) brought back to mind some similar codes like AFK (away from keyboard), BBL (be back later), BRB (be right back) and, of course, TTYL (talk to you later). We were so much more polite back then! ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2017, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169/20 "2017-12-24T20:54:49Z")
Going back even farther, to the cross-country telegraph days, telegraph operators would end a message with XXX. As this was a combination unlikely to occur in most conversations, you could assume it was only there to indicate the end of transmission. And if you didn’t get the XXX, you would assume more is coming. This is based on an old, unreferenced memory that I heard someplace; I could be misremembering some details. Modern day journalists have treated the XXX as Roman numerals for “30” and use 30 to indicate the end of an article or manuscript. Anyway, I’d like to recommend we go back to XXX to mean that you are done with the text conversation. It can also be interpreted as three goodbye kisses! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/texting-question/805169.md?page=2)