texting

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'TigerText' iPhone App Bails Out Philanderers

App automatically deletes text—or sext—message trail

(Newser) - Tiger Woods probably wishes he’d had TigerText, a new iPhone app that automatically deletes sensitive text messages and cleans up cellphone call records. When a user sends a TigerText, it resides on the company’s servers. After the recipient reads the message, the system deletes it immediately, 5 days...

Biggest Ripoffs in US
 Biggest Ripoffs in US 
Feb 2, 2010 5:58 PM CST

Biggest Ripoffs in US

Phone texts, movie popcorn, and textbooks are overpriced

(Newser) - Text messages may be the biggest ripoff in America. It costs 1/3 of a cent for carriers to send a message, but they can hit you with a 20-cent charge on pay-per-text plans. That's a markup of 6,500%. More bad deals from CNNMoney :
  • Movie popcorn, 900%: No surprise here,
...

Feds Ban Texting by Truck, Bus Drivers

Under rules, effective immediately, fines run as high as $2,750

(Newser) - Drivers of trucks and buses who text behind the wheel will be subject to thousands of dollars in fines, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced today. The federal prohibition, which takes effect immediately, applies only to commercial vehicles. But distracted driving is one of LaHood's top issues, CNN reports. "This...

Finally! A Sarcasm-Specific Punctuation Mark

Experts not sure you need to pay $1.99 to get it across

(Newser) - Sarcastic people around the world, rejoice—a father-son team has finally developed a punctuation mark purpose-built to make sarcasm clear in written and electronic communication. “Questions have the question mark, exclamations have the exclamation point,” reasons the elder creator. The SarcMark is “the 21st century’s punctuation....

Red Cross Pulls in $8M In Text Message Donations
 Red Cross Pulls in $8M In Text Message Donations 
haiti earthquake
Jan 15, 2010 12:01 PM CST

Red Cross Pulls in $8M In Text Message Donations

Relief agency says it can handle more cash for earthquake aid

(Newser) - Text messaging has proven to be a wildly popular method of donating to the relief effort in Haiti. As of 8:25 this morning, the Red Cross had pulled in more than $8 million through text messages, Fox News reports. That’s the most mobile donations “that we have...

America's Got Texting Fever: Census

Number of messages sent doubled in 2008

(Newser) - Text messaging has taken the nation by storm, with the number of messages sent doubling between 2007 and 2008, according to a new Census Bureau report. Americans hit send 110 billion times in December 2008, up from 48 billion in December 2007, the bureau says in its annual “statistical...

Cheaters, Beware Your E-Trail
 Cheaters, Beware Your E-Trail 
Dec 9, 2009 9:27 AM CST

Cheaters, Beware Your E-Trail

How could Tiger Woods be stupid enough to text his alleged mistresses?

(Newser) - If Tiger Woods really did send flirty text messages to Jaimee Grubbs as she claims, then he’s a moron. Did he miss the John Ensign scandal? Or the Kwame Kilpatrick one? Or heck, Puck’s sexting incident on Glee? Digital missives brought down all three. Of course, it’s...

SANTA BABY, DID U GET MY TXT?

AT&T rolls out new way to contact the man in red

(Newser) - After last year’s pedophile scare, the Postal Service has cracked down on adults who want to reply to kids’ letters to Santa—and AT&T is stepping in to keep the lines of communication open. Naughty and nice correspondents of all ages who want a speedy reply from jolly...

James Lipton Begs You Not to Sext

Sexting is on the rise, but Lipton asks you to 'give it a ponder' first

(Newser) - Teen sexting is on the rise—and just in time, James Lipton is here to assess the threat and give naive picture swappers everywhere some sage advice. A new survey by MTV and the AP shows that nearly one-third of youths have sent or received nude photos, Wired reports. To...

Teens Cop to Texting and Driving—But Say Dad's Worse

No age limit for bad behavior behind wheel

(Newser) - One-third of 16- and 17-year-olds say they have written text messages while behind the wheel. Despite that, young drivers are actually more responsible than many adults: 48% of respondents aged 12 to 17 say they’ve been in the car with a driver who was texting. One boy said his...

Why Grandma Texts Better Than You

Careers that revolved around shorthand give grannies fast fingers

(Newser) - Text messaging opened up a new—and better—method of communication for Matthew DeBord and his mother (gone were the days of “rambling, nonlinear” phone calls), but he was shocked when he realized his 70-year-old mom wasn’t just good at texting: “Mom texted like someone who’s...

Multitasking Causes Serious Brain Drain

Constant switching of focus is inefficient, can lead to trouble

(Newser) - Multitasking isn’t helping you do anything faster, and constant exposure to multiple electronic media makes people really bad at—multitasking. “When you’re pushing yourself to perform two or more tasks, especially complicated tasks, it’s not beneficial,” a researcher tells the Boston Globe . “It’s...

Federal Workers Banned From Texting While Driving

Executive order is part of larger push against distracted driving

(Newser) - Federal employees are now forbidden from sending text messages while driving on government business or operating government vehicles. The new executive order, signed by President Obama last night, also encourages executive agencies to adopt texting bans for contractors, reports ABC. "To put it plainly, distracted driving is a menace...

Distracted Drivers Killed 5,800 in '08

(Newser) - Accidents caused by distracted drivers killed at least 5,800 and injured another 515,000 last year, according to data pulled from police reports and presented today to Transportation Department conference on the issue. The actual figures may be significantly higher, say Transportation officials, since distraction is often hard to...

90% Want to Outlaw Texting While Driving: Poll

Younger Americans slightly more tolerant, but 83% still in favor of ban

(Newser) - An overwhelming majority of Americans think texting while driving is such a bad idea it should be outlawed. A new poll finds that 90% of us support a ban; the most contrary demographic is, rather unsurprisingly, young'uns aged 18 to 29—though a robust 83% are in favor of a...

Truckers Fight to Keep Computers in Cabs

As ban on texting while driving gains grounds, drivers want an exception

(Newser) - With Congress considering legislation to ban text messaging while driving, the trucking industry is fighting to keep its in-cab computers. Truckers use the machines to get directions and talk to dispatchers without having to pull over, saving them precious time on long hauls. The industry says the devices are less...

Traffic Tweets Send Mixed Messages
Traffic Tweets Send Mixed Messages
Sep 19, 2009 7:38 AM CDT

Traffic Tweets Send Mixed Messages

States send updates, but prohibit drivers from reading them

(Newser) - Safety experts complain that states are undermining their own no-texting-while-driving laws by offering motorists constant Twitter updates on traffic conditions, the AP reports. At least 22 states with laws that essentially ban drivers from using smartphones and similar devices behind the wheel provide such information, and, in some cases, readily...

Emoticons Invade Academia
 Emoticons Invade 
 Academia 
Sep 7, 2009 4:44 PM CDT

Emoticons Invade Academia

Teaching millennials causes new frustrations for college writing professors

(Newser) - College professors have lamented the state of student writing for centuries. But today’s Internet-obsessed culture brings new, infuriating errors to Writing 101 as students brazenly use colloquialisms like “:-)” and “LOL” in essays. “Occasionally, I've seen someone using the number 4 for the word 'for,'”...

Experts Doubt Gory Crash Video Will Trim Teen Texting

(Newser) - A horrifying car crash video graphically highlighting the gory dangers of texting behind the wheel has been viewed some 4 million times online. But experts doubt that it will significantly change teen driver behavior, reports the New York Times. The video-gone-viral has been the buzz of schools since it was...

Families' Mornings Start with Tech Check

Families boot up computers, phones on waking

(Newser) - When it comes to morning routines, the modern family has a new set of priorities, many of which require a screen, the New York Times reports. “It used to be you woke up, went to the bathroom, maybe brushed your teeth, and picked up the newspaper,” says an...

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