# txt spk **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 3, 2011, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581 "2011-05-03T16:01:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/41 "2011-05-04T17:43:53Z")
> [@Salem](#): > > and to **drastic\_quench** as well… > > Really? Cause the few people I text with use it as a conversational tool. What you’re saying makes sense and I could see the use in that. Almost like leaving a sticky note on someone’s desk. But my business partner (who is old like me, so I understand her) and both of my daughters, who are obviously younger, definitely use it as a substitute conversational tool. They text, I text back, they text again a few seconds later… you get the picture. It’s a total pain to have to keep going back to the phone and I’d just as soon talk to them. I know my younger daughter does it because she’s texting from class, so her need for silence is clear. And in that sense, if I really need something from her before she gets out of school, I can and do “drop her a note”. But it just doesn’t seem to always work like that. Yeah, my annoyance threshold is about five consecutive call and response texts. At that point, just call me. ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/42 "2011-05-04T20:31:07Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Samuel Johnson would like a word with you. > > [A Dictionary of the English Language - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Dictionary_of_the_English_Language) I certainly did not mean to slight Mr Johnson for his contributions to Lexicography. He predated Webster and certainly pushed towards standardizing English language and spelling. However, I wasn’t referring to Webster’s Dictionary when I was talking about his influence on codifying spelling, but rather his [Blue Backed Speller](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noah_Webster#Blue_Backed_Speller) books. These had a much larger impact on spelling standards than Johnson’s dictionary, which was largely an academic work, ever did. Of course it should be noted that Lexicograpy is a massively interconnected field and much of Webster’s Blue Backed Speller books were influenced by Johnson’s work. One could argue that Johnson innovated and Webster implemented, but that would be oversimplistic as well. Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2011, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/43 "2011-05-06T16:44:41Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > No it is not easy. I went from a phone with a keyboard to one with T9 only and regretted it. Believe it or not, for me a QWERTY layout is faster and more intuitive than remembering which number key has which letters on it. If I still had my T9 phone, id typ lik ths 2. I didn’t say texting on a T9 is easier than on a QWERTY phone - I said that texting in full words on a T9 is easier than texting in bullshit abbreviations on a T9. The last T9 phone I had had a predictive dictionary in it, which certainly helped. But even without, when you factor in being understood and being replied to, it’s easier in the long run to spend an extra 45 seconds. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2011, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/44 "2011-05-06T16:47:38Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > The last T9 phone I had had a predictive dictionary in it, which certainly helped. Mine doesn’t. And I don’t think I can get one on my plan. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/45 "2011-05-06T18:14:11Z")
Correction: T9 \*is \*corrective text, not a description of a typical phone keypad. tdn, go into your settings and see if there’s an option to switch to it. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2011, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/46 "2011-05-06T18:28:18Z")
That would be cool! I’ll take a look later on, my cell is not with me. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2011, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/47 "2011-05-06T20:49:49Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > Yeah, my annoyance threshold is about five consecutive call and response texts. At that point, just call me. Same here. One or two questions I’ll answer but more than that then I’ll wait 15-20 minutes before I answer anymore just to annoy the other person. Well techincally the only person who texts me is my roommate who for some reason has this hatred of talking on the phone. Acceptable: Them: Do you need milk? Me: Yes Them: Regular or chocolate? Me: Regular Them: k Not acceptable: Them: Do you need milk? Me: Yes Them: Regular or chocolate? Me: Regular Them: k Them: Can you check to see if TV show x is set to record it starts in five minutes? 35 minutes later and the show is already over: Me: Lemme check. Me: Yeah its set. Them: But did it record? Me: Lemme check 5 minutes later: Me: Yeah it recorded.\* Seriously if he had just called me all of this could have been said and done in less than a minute. But then I wouldn’t have had the fun of messing with my roommate. \*Actual real text conversation including time pauses. EDIT: I’ve told him many times that I don’t keep my phone glued to me like it is a vital organ like some people these days, my roommate, and to not expect me to answer his texts right away. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/48 "2011-05-07T09:38:55Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > I don’t think everyone has predictive text, or knows that it can be turned on. Actually, I have it, but it annoys me so I turn it off. I’d rather just use QWERTY. > > Isn’t the main reason for “text speak” that you only have 150 characters? That’s what I thought. Not only that, but some people just can’t use it. They can’t conceptually handle text that doesn’t match what they are trying to type while they are trying to type it. I’ve tried and tried to get my mom to get it. She actually types a bunch of random letters until she gets the “spell?” button, and then uses that (which does not use T9, obviously) to type things in. She won’t even let me turn off T9 for her: then she claims it doesn’t work right. And if I try to get her to use T9–she can maybe handle it for a few days before she forgets. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2011, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581/49 "2011-05-07T09:44:08Z")
> [@Tahssa](#): > > Same here. One or two questions I’ll answer but more than that then I’ll wait 15-20 minutes before I answer anymore just to annoy the other person. Well techincally the only person who texts me is my roommate who for some reason has this hatred of talking on the phone. > > Acceptable: > > Them: Do you need milk? > Me: Yes > Them: Regular or chocolate? > Me: Regular > Them: k > > Not acceptable: > > Them: Do you need milk? > Me: Yes > Them: Regular or chocolate? > Me: Regular > Them: k > Them: Can you check to see if TV show x is set to record it starts in five minutes? > > 35 minutes later and the show is already over: > > Me: Lemme check. > Me: Yeah its set. > Them: But did it record? > Me: Lemme check > > 5 minutes later: > > Me: Yeah it recorded.\* > > Seriously if he had just called me all of this could have been said and done in less than a minute. But then I wouldn’t have had the fun of messing with my roommate. > \*Actual real text conversation including time pauses. > > EDIT: I’ve told him many times that I don’t keep my phone glued to me like it is a vital organ like some people these days, my roommate, and to not expect me to answer his texts right away. And since your goal is to piss off your roommate, he has no reason to ever do what you want, either. In fact, I wouldn’t use your toothbrush. He’s not stupid: he knows you’re just pulling this passive aggressive bullshit, and two can play that game. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/txt-spk/580581.md?page=2)