courtesy of slashdot...
short version: slate has an article proclaiming e-mail, at least as a tool for personal communication, is dead. long version here.
commentary: lorenz cites a bunch of reasons that i think are perfectly reasonable re: why e-mail use is down among younger users: it’s slower, it’s more formal than alternatives such as texting, IMing, it’s “what mom & dad do”, etc. but i think he completely whiffs on one of the biggest reasons, at least vis a vis e-mail vs texting.
mobility.
e-mail requires the use of a computer, or a blackberry/smartphone. but as anyone who’s tried using those little keypads knows, the suckers are not easy to use to type meaningful/long messages. so they’re inconvenient. and using a laptop requires lugging it around, charging, etc.
but a mobile phone has the merit of always being with you. it’s faster, it’s always accessible and since usually you can just hit reply, doesn’t even require typing the recipient’s address.
and because it’s easier, and because you can text to an e-mail address, anyway (it’s how i get some pictures off my phone when i don’t wanna bother finding a cable), that does kinda beg the question of what role is left for e-mail then for younger users in personal communication.
considering that e-mail is a vector of phishing or viruses, maybe they’ve got the right idea?
this isn’t to say that e-mail itself as a whole is dead, though. e-mail is massively useful in professional settings: a formal, written record of a discussion is invaluable—even if outlook lets you edit an e-mail you rec’d*. and even though most corporate e-mail systems now inject legal disclaimers to the end of all e-mails sent from within them. and even though searching through your mail folders can be a very nearly herculean labor…an issue that microsoft insists they are addressing in future versions of outlook.
hm…
ed
* i think that this is among the stupidest things outlook does. i can take an e-mail from someone else and replace the entirety of it with something else entirely—whatever i like. it completely negates e-mail’s status as a written record! i’m not sure why this “feature” exists, to be honest. if anybody’s got a theory, i’d love to hear it.
silverwhisper posted on Nov 19, 2007
| views: 388
Comments
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queenparanoia said on Nov 19, 2007....
e-mail dead?????of course not!!what's next??? they say that communicating through brain waves are the "in" thing...although that would be so cool.. =) -
Mr_Box said on Nov 19, 2007....
I still use my email all the time.
Text messages are nice when you're out and about and just have a few quick things to say. But it couldn't possibly replace email for me.
I'm far too long winded to say everything I want in a text message.
I don't use Outlook though. I've never even opened the program up. I use web mail instead.
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evil_twin said on Nov 19, 2007....
I love email. I doubt it'll ever be obsolete for me. Old fashion letters are obsolete and I don't miss writing those. My handwriting always sucked and I used to use a typewriter before I had a computer! But I don't think text messages are quite the same as a good old email. And I'm addicted to IM chat, but that only works if the other person is actually around at the same time.
Everything has it's purpose and I don't see email going away any time soon.
-evil_twin LA
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muckpar said on Nov 19, 2007....
Just as I was beginning to use it, the darn thing is becoming obsolete. -
the_infernal_optimist said on Nov 19, 2007....
I strongly dislike using text messages for an ongoing conversation. It takes forever to say what I want to say, and I refuse to use the shortcuts that'd make any English teacher twitch.
I dread the day when texting is "the" form of communication for all ages. Ugh.
Outlook lets you do what?? I guess you could never use e-mails as proof of anything if you use that program.
~Infernal
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silverwhisper said on Nov 19, 2007....
queen: well, this determination has already been made in korea--and that was almost 3 years ago!
mr box: sadly, i do use outlook--every office i've ever worked in used it, and it became easier to use to keep track of things like family b-days, that sort of thing. and i know what you mean re: the short messages you send via text vs what you send in e-mail. :>
kyle: i dunno, man. even though i used chat for the very first time ever last week, i find myself eschewing e-mail for personal stuff, in general.
muckpar: well, i wouldn't quite say that it's obsolete--the article is really talking about the kids, not most people.
infernal: i detest text-ese, myself. :> and yes, outlook will let you do that. try it out sometime. although i should point out that the mail server that delivers the e-mail to your inbox will keep the original version that it sent you in its archives...
ed -
Zayda said on Nov 19, 2007....
Ed, about editing email with Outlook. The way our Outlook is set up at work, if I edit something within an email someone else sent, it tags those edits with my name.
I can't get rid of that either.
It can become frustrating, for instance, if someone sends me a list of questions and instead of copying the questions, I simply hit reply and then scroll down to answer the questions within the text of their email because it automatically inserts my name in a funky color text and when you hover over my name, a small mouse-over comes up with stating edited by/date/time.
As to the subject of the article. I don't think email is dead as personal communication, not based on how much I use it daily for personal communication. But then again, those that I use email with for personal communication are usually people who don't IM.
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silverwhisper said on Nov 19, 2007....
super z: really? that's actually good to know, so thank you.
i find that if i set outlook to edit the e-mail, it will permit me to do that (using outlook 2003) without leaving any evidence of that. i don't believe i've ever encountered an office where that wasn't possible, although perhaps it's a feature that my previous employers simply haven't disabled?
heh...fair point re: e-mail vs. IM. :>
ed -
bloc said on Nov 19, 2007....
"e-mail requires the use of a compute"
iphone to the rescue :)I like email for a few reasons. It's an open standard (as compared to IM). It's good for records, when I see something going south I can make sure to give my advice via email. In a few months when the subject comes up, and tough questions asked, I can say, "hey, reread that email I sent".Having said this, I use IM's and text messages for the bulk of my communication. -
skald said on Nov 19, 2007....
Seems to me that some people don't know how to use e-mail anyway. I requested service on a page and I had to choose day and time. They said they would get back to me and never did so I am taking my business elsewhere . This is just a sample. Guess next time I use the phone. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 19, 2007....
bloc: good point re: proprietary standards for IM--something i didn't consider.
skald: they never got back to you after insisting you choose a date and time?! that's just bad business!
ed -
beyondtheveil said on Nov 19, 2007....
Ed- As quickly as things change in the tech world, I'm reluctant to say it will be around for the long term. It certainly is not dead now though.
When the next super gadget comes along to replace the pc, it will be dropped as quickly as the letter was when email hit us. I'm guessing the replacement will be a small portable unit that's wireless and everything will be stored in a personal place on the net.
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silverwhisper said on Nov 19, 2007....
i think that super-gadget will likely be a new phone of some kind, to be honest. the iphone is very nearly there, from what i've seen of it, but still too expensive to be the gadget itself, if you ask me.
ed -
bloc said on Nov 19, 2007....
I can't wait to get an iphone. I'm holding out for the first revision (hopefully they bump the storage substantially). -
silverwhisper said on Nov 19, 2007....
perhaps oddly, i know someone who works for AT&T and they aren't being issued iphones. weird, no?
you will, i trust, post a review once you have one? :>
ed -
bloc said on Nov 19, 2007....
of course -
TinSoldier said on Nov 19, 2007....
Homey don't text.
And I don't IM either.
Bleh. Forums and blogs and emails, oh my!
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Expendable said on Nov 19, 2007....
Wait until someone figures out the txt virus. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 19, 2007....
bloc: cool, i shall look forward to that. :>
TS: in which case, homey is teh suxx04, n00b! 3y3 |)0 |\|0+}?h3@4 j00! :D
ex: i have difficulty believing the SMS protocol is anywhere near as open as the e-mail protocols, to be honest. besides, worst comes to worst, you take out the battery and reset it. ?
ed -
CreativeWoman said on Nov 19, 2007....
I email a fair amount. I would say that instant messaging is probably my favorite way of communicating though. I like that "live" interaction. Texting is great too. I would probably be addicted to an iPhone or anything similar if I had one. :-)
CW
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TinSoldier said on Nov 19, 2007....
ed: for those of us who have been around a computer for awhile, 1337-speak looks just like the line noise that one would get when disconnecting a modem.
I'm just sayin'!
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silverwhisper said on Nov 19, 2007....
CW: if i had an iphone, i'd be addicted to it for certain!
TS: [buffer overrun] -
TinSoldier said on Nov 19, 2007....
+1 rep! -
Fallyn said on Nov 19, 2007....
*laughing*
i use nearly all forms of communication known to man.
texting, phoning, email, IM, blogging, hand written letters,
the only one i don't use a lot anymore is yelling across the yard.......
it's so much easier just to text my dad and say hey can you run to the store......or dinners ready...or whatever.
no more calisthenics jumping up and down to get his attention. :P
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sheltercrow said on Nov 19, 2007....
Welcome to the Vis-à-Vis Website
Vis-à-Vis is a specialist organization providing French language courses in France, Belgium and Canada. One positive advantage of this for you is that we know the schools we use in these countries by heart, which means we can give you clear and objective advice.
Vis-à-Vis my e-mail I would have no communication except by post which is reserved for paper spam and bills.
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wombat said on Nov 19, 2007....
I found out that some think e-mail is obsolete when I moved and got the Internet specifically so my son could e-mail me every day. He says, I am on (other more snappy sites) and I think I recieved 10 e-mails from him in a year and a half. I used to email more before SC private messages--but I still get a few from people not on SC. I always get excited to see that little message that I have 1 new mail! Nine times out of ten, though, it is junk mail.I like email, and hope it sticks around as long as I have access to the Internet.I like regular old snail mail letters, but am often lazy about answering. -
Lioness said on Nov 19, 2007....
Obsolete? I disagree. Emailing is still, so far, a very useful mode of transmitting information. Used for official matters, It is still more formal than texting or IMs.
Although like the others, I also use IM or the mobile phone for personal matters.
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hotaka said on Nov 19, 2007....
My email is nearly dead because I spend too much time on SoulCast instead of following up email messages. -
silverwhisper said on Nov 20, 2007....
fallyn: if i had a yard, i'd yell across it, myself. :D
sheltercrow: strange choice for e-mail providers.
wombat: funny thing, my parents have e-mail but AFAICT, they never use it! my mother asked me to e-mail my brother something and i was thinking, "for pity's sake, mom, you can send him an e-mail yourself, you know!"
lioness: for official matters, yes, absolutely. i'm not so convinced about informal ones, though, i'll confess.
hotaka: i have the same problem!
ed