From the editor

From the editor
Turn on to texting aeap, iykwim

By RoxAnna Sway, Editor in Chief
May 01, 2008

Perhaps, like me, you think you are so smart for being over 40 years old and figuring out all this computer and Internet stuff. We zip around the globe online every day, bouncing e-mails back and forth and congratulating ourselves on our technological savvy. After all, most of us older professionals didn't grow up on the computer; we came to it later on (post-school or in school) and had to learn it. And learn it we did—to get a job, communicate, buy stuff and a lot more. gmta? Today, toddlers tackle computers at the age of 2. Cruising online is second nature to them before they start first grade. lol.

Now that we are tied to the screen all day, the world—or at least the younger generation—is rapidly moving on. I recently heard Don Tapscott, co-author of the book "Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything," talk about the newest generation of tech-users. Tapscott did extensive research, surveying young people on their use of technology, and he found that they no longer use e-mail—in fact, they have negative thoughts about it. They think sitting at a computer to do anything is "old fashioned"—something associated with their parents (and grand parents). gal. He asked a group of teens—he calls them N-gen, for "Net generation"—if there were any circumstances where they would use e-mail. One teen indicated that she might use e-mail to write a thank you note for a gift to a friend's mother. rme.

Text messaging is rendering computer terminals and standard e-mail obsolete. Those of us who can't crank up our thumbs and have at it may be doomed to obsolescence. Texting is a newly evolving communications format—and for teens, it has become second nature. After all, if prw, and the message is fyeo, what better way to create your own, adult-free universe. weg. According to an article in The New York Times—"Text Gap: U R 2 Old (Or R U)?"—for kids, texting is about an identity-shaping and psyche-changing new format that depends on mobile devices, ranging from cell phones to sophisticated PDAs, iPhones and the like. It started with text, and now images and video are integral components of this holistic new medium. And it is about hf and kpc.

In today's time-starved world of buzz and react communications, this teen tech-shorthand is bound to catch on and will, no doubt, spread into the wider culture. Already, many parents who want to communicate with their kids must learn to text. In a survey by AT&T, about half of the participating parents said they had learned how to text message from their kids, and more than 60 percent of them said that it helped them communicate better. (Of course, when kids don't want to talk to their parents, they can just turn off their devices.)

We are entering a time of transition—with computer screens being replaced by much cooler, user-friendly devices that are portable, and that bring power and control to the individual (as opposed to the content provider). With that come changes in attitudes and expectations. Kids and teens have already made this shift. The rest of us are in danger of becoming technology laggards.

Tapscott describes the new landscape as being collaborative and open-sourced, filled with "ideagoras" (idea marketplaces) and "prosumers" (consumers who help businesses make decisions and co-create products). It functions at the speed of electrons, and it moves with people, wherever they go, around the globe.

Old media used to mean the printed word; now it means desktop computer terminals. New media is untethered, mobile, miniaturized, never ceasing and constantly evolving—and it is totally controlled by the user. Businesses will need to figure out new ways to communicate with their customers in the new, new media.

By the way, I have provided a glossary below of the texting terms used in this editorial—just in case you don't know what they mean and want to get up to speed. lol.

eod. brb next month. gbh in the meantime. b4n.

im me at: rsway@ddimagazine.com

Glossary of texting terms used in this month's editorial:

aeap—as early as possible
b4n—bye for now
brb—be right back
eod—end of discussion
fyeo—for your eyes only
gal—get a life
gbh—great big hug
gmta—great minds think alike
hf—have fun or having fun
iykwim—if you know what I mean
kpc—keeping parents clueless
lol—laughing out loud
prw—parents are watching
rme—rolling my eyes
weg—wicked evil grin

Source: The New York Times