Reading Response 2 - email
With email, text messaging, and instant messaging programs all gaining popularity in the last ten years, I have had my fair share of misunderstandings. For example, I have had friends email and IM me with long strings of letters that are supposed to stand for something. I have sat staring at the computer filled with acronyms ttyl, tmi, lmao, gtg, brb, a/s/l, lol, and even the classic such as AWGTHTGTTA (are we going to have to go through this again). After some further research on the internet learning IM lingo, I realize I would probably not have a clue what a young teenager who uses these acronyms is talking about on the internet. I have sent emails to friends that were friendly and I have gotten back responses filled with sarcasm. The 6th habit of successful emailers warns against sarcasm and even changing fonts and capitalizing your letters. Reading our textbook has reemphasized the importance of clearly writing emails and other forms of writing.
Even though email, text messaging, and instant messaging are all new forms communication, email is used most often in the workplace. IMing and text messaging are both still used as an informal communication tool whereas email has become far more professional. As the book points out on page 613, the body of your email should be well thought out and should help accomplish your purpose. IMing and text messaging are both closer “substitutes” to using the telephone. In the workplace, if something needs to be taken care of right away, a phone call would likely take place. By using email, you are able to think for an extended amount of time and revise your thoughts. Also, email can provide an electronic copy of your messages which can be forwarded to others or saved for another time. Emailing is just a quicker more efficient way to send snail mail and I do not see it leaving unless something even better presents itself.
Comments
Just like the commercial
I like what you wrote in your first paragraph about the numerous acronyms out there that kids these days are using online or while texting. This reminded me of that phone commercial where a mother is asker her daughter who she has been texting all the time. The daughter responds with one acronym after another. Luckily for us who don't use them on a regular basis there is captioning at the bottom of the screen interpreting the daughters acronyms. Hopefully emails will never get to this point or I'm going to be in some trouble when my boss starts using them to tell me my tasks for the next day.
Documentation
Your analysis about why email is used is spot on. However, there is another big advantage to using email - if you write an important one, you want that information archived. For instance, if you make an agreement with a boss, employee, or client about project details or any kind of monetary sum, you want that information saved so you can reference it later if disagreements arise. I was recently working on a freelance project for a writer, and the author and I agreed on a set fee for the work. By the time it was completed, the author wanted to pay a significantly lower fee. Because I had the first email, I was able to prove the original terms of the agreement. Otherwise, I would have been left with no choice but to take the lower sum. This happens all the time when people get confused or change their ideas about who in a team is doing what tasks, or the agreed upon fees for a project. That's why you should archive all important emails at work in easy to search folders.
Reply
All of those abbreviations that people use when they text and IM are so confusing. What gets even worse is then my sister’s start using the abbreviations when they are talking ...I just don't get it sometimes. Maybe if I text messaged I would understand it but my phone doesn't have texting capabilities. But I think that texting and IMing really hurts people our ages and people younger than us emailing capabilities. We start using those informal abbreviations in our emails and it just sounds horrible. I think texting and IMing only hurt our professional emailing skills. So if we are going to text and IM we only need to work harder on writing emails.