Communicating
Online Communication
In the past, email was the best way to communicate with people online. But today, there are many different ways to talk online, allowing you to do things like:
· Make phone calls from your computer and even see the person you're talking with
· Share with lots of friends at the same time without sending an email to each of them individually
· Engage with different websites by making comments or posting your own content
Over the next several pages, we'll take a look at some different methods of online communication, including chat, video calling, text messages, and status updates.
How people communicate online
When people are not online, they use a variety of communication methods, including phone calls, written letters, and face-to-face conversation. We use these different methods depending on the situation. Online communication is very similar: People may use instant messaging, video chat, or social networking depending on the situation. You can choose whichever methods best fit your needs. Here are some examples:
No matter how you communicate online, you'll need to think about privacy and safety. Each service that we'll discuss has its own privacy settings. It's helpful to review these settings before using any service to avoid revealing your conversations and personal information to a broader audience.
Act as if you were communicating offline: Remember, everything you write online is relatively permanent, so even passing comments could have negative consequences for you or someone else in the future.
Chat and instant messaging (IM) are short messages sent and read in real time, allowing you to converse more quickly and easily than email.
Chat and IM are generally used when both (or all) people are online, so your message can be read immediately. By comparison, an email message won't be seen until the recipient checks his email, meaning that chat and IM are better for quick messages and conversations.
Chat vs. IM
The terms chat and IM are sometimes used interchangeably. However, they can have slightly different meanings:
· Chat often occurs in a virtual chat room, which can include many different people who may or may not know each other. Many chat rooms focus on a particular topic or interest.
· IM usually includes a list of your contacts, called a Buddy List or Friend List, which allows you to see who is online. IM is especially suited for one-on-one communication, but it's possible to send messages to multiple people at once. IM is technically a kind of chat, and some IM services use the term "chat" instead.
Pros and cons of instant messaging
Will chat or IM work for your needs? Review some of the pros and cons to help decide:
Pros:
· It's instant; you don't need to wait for the other person to check his email.
· It's great for quick messages, questions, or notifications.
· Compared to email, it's easier to carry on a conversation (or even multiple conversations).
· You can stay logged in while doing other things on your computer, which makes it easy to multi-task.
Cons:
· If someone is not online, you may have to contact him another way.
· It's not as convenient as email for lengthy or complicated messages.
· It's not always instantaneous: If your friends are busy or away from the computer, it may take a while for them to respond.
· Since people may type quickly or use abbreviations, messages could be difficult to understand. Also, as with email, it's possible to misinterpret someone's tone.
Texting
You've probably heard people talk about text messaging, or texting. Text messages are short messages (usually 160 characters or fewer) sent from one mobile phone to another. It's similar to instant messaging, except that you won't need to log in—you'll just send messages directly from your phone.
Typically, texting is not free, although your mobile carrier probably offers service packages that include a certain number of texts per month (or even unlimited texts). If you don't have a texting plan, you'll generally be charged whenever you send or receive a text message.
Text messaging is also known as SMS, which stands for Short Message Service.
Why text?
Many people ask the same question: "Why would I send a text message when I could just call the person?" One of the main reasons is that it's faster, at least for short messages. It can easily take several minutes to "send" your message with a phone call. With a text message, the same message could be sent with a text in just a few seconds.
There are also times when it's not really possible to call someone, like if you're at a meeting, or in class, or any other place where you're not able to talk easily. Texting is often the best alternative in these situations.
Do note that typing on a mobile phone tends to be slower than typing on a computer. To speed things up, people often use abbreviations and acronyms. If you're not familiar with these abbreviations, it can be difficult to understand some text messages. To see some of the most common acronyms, check out the Top 50 Popular Text & Chat Acronyms.
Texting without a mobile phone
Text messages are designed to be sent from one mobile phone to another. However, there are some websites, such as textem.net, which allow you to send a text message from a computer to a mobile phone.
This can be especially helpful if you don't use texting on your phone but need to contact someone who does.
Pros and cons of text messaging
Will text messages work for your needs? Review some of the pros and cons to help decide:
Pros:
· Texts can be sent and received with almost any mobile phone—not just smartphones.
· They are great for quick messages, especially if you are away from a computer.
· People you text will see your message either immediately or the next time they look at their phones.
· It's possible to send text messages from a computer to a mobile phone.
Cons:
· Text messages generally cost money, unless they are included in your mobile phone plan. Also, recipients may also be charged when they read the message.
· The 160-character limit makes text messages unsuitable for longer messages.
Unless your mobile phone has a full keyboard, it may take a long time to type your message.
Direct Messaging
Many websites allow you to send direct messages: private messages sent from one person to another. In many ways, direct messaging is very similar to email, but with a few important distinctions:
· It has fewer features than email.
· It's only used to communicate with other people who use the same website.
· You don't get your own email address, which means that you can't really use direct messages as a replacement for email.
When are direct messages used?
Direct messages are often used when email is not an option. For example, eBay sellers may keep their email address private, but you can always contact them through eBay's direct message feature. Direct messages allow both parties to communicate without sharing their email addresses. For convenience, you can usually have direct messages forwarded to your email address.
There are two main types of websites where you might use direct messages:
· Online stores: If you have a question about an item, you might send the seller a direct message. This is especially common on websites like eBay and Etsy where items are sold by regular people, not retailers.
· Social networking sites: Websites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn let you send direct messages to other users. This allows you to send a private message without posting it to a public profile.
Pros and cons of direct messaging
Will direct messages work for your needs? Review some of the pros and cons to help decide:
Pros:
· Your contact info stays private. Neither person has to reveal an email address.
· You can send private messages that are visible only to the recipient.
· It gives you an alternate way to contact friends if you lose their email addresses.
· It's included with sites you may already use, such as eBay, Facebook, and Twitter.
Cons:
· Like email, it may take a long time for the other person to see your message.
· It can't really be used as a replacement for email, and its usage is more limited.
Social media
Imagine you're at a party. You might be talking to one person, or a small group of people, but other people can join the conversation. This is basically how social networking sites work. Conversations are more open and public, which can provide a richer social experience than other forms of online communication.
Communicating in a social network
Once you've joined a social network, you can start posting your thoughts, questions, pictures, links, videos, or anything else you'd like to share. These are called social posts because they are visible to other people, unlike direct messages or email. Posts will appear on your activity feed, which is visible to your friends on the site.
Social posts are known by many different names, but they are most commonly called status updates. You can use status updates to let your friends know what you're doing or to say what's on your mind. Some social networking sites have unique names for their social posts. For example, on Twitter a post is called a tweet, while a post on Pinterest is known as a pin.
Will social posts work for your needs?
Review some of the pros and cons to help decide:
Pros:
· You can communicate with a lot of people at the same time.
· It's easy to post your thoughts, pictures, links, and more.
· It provides a richer social experience than email or instant messaging.
· You can stay in touch with people who live far away or who you don't see often.
Cons:
· If you have friends who use a different social networking site (or don't use any at all), they won't see your social posts.
· You can accidentally post sensitive information that will be seen by many different people.
· Things that you post may be permanent, so you have to be careful not to post things that could harm your reputation in the future.
· Some sites have complex privacy options, which may be a bit confusing to set.
One of the great things about the Internet today is that anyone can join the conversation. Instead of just reading webpages, you can engage and share things you find with your friends.
Whether you're reading a news article, watching a YouTube video, or shopping for a great deal, there's a good chance you'll be able to add a comment or use a social plug-in to post it to your social networks.
Leaving feedback with social plug-ins
If you're viewing something online, you may notice buttons with the Facebook or Twitter logos. These are called social plug-ins, and they're designed to let you give feedback on a webpage. When you Like, recommend, or tweet a website, a link to that page will be posted on your profile, allowing you to share that site with all of your friends at the same time.
While Facebook and Twitter tend to be the most common social plug-ins, there are many others you can use. There is often a "Share" button you can click to see more options. Depending on the website, you may be able to share content in the following ways:
· Reddit allows you to post and vote for websites you like, which is similar to Liking a page on Facebook.
· Some sites have a +1 button, which is similar to the Like button.
· You can pin a link on a Pinterest board.
· You can email an article or link to someone.
Sharing and comments
People use comments to give feedback, ask questions, or simply continue the conversation. Comments sections often appear at the bottom of a page or article. Not all webpages have comments, but they're especially common on blogs, news sites, video sites like YouTube, and image hosting sites like Flickr.
When viewing or posting comments, be aware that some people intentionally try to start arguments (often called flame wars) by posting outrageous or offensive comments. These people are known as trolls or cyberbullies. While it may be tempting to respond to these comments, it's usually best to ignore them.
Wondering if you should start adding comments and using social plug-ins?
Review some of the pros and cons to help decide:
Pros:
· Interacting with the things you see on the Web provides a better online experience than simply reading webpages.
· You can easily provide feedback on a page by telling the author what you think or adding information that may be useful to other people.
· When you find something you like, you can share it with your friends, whether it's a product, article, video, or other website.
Cons:
· Trolls and cyberbullies may add negative or offensive comments.
· Things you post may become permanent, so you have to be careful not to post things that could harm your reputation in the future.
· With social plug-ins, it's possible for companies to track your browsing history to collect data about your preferences.
Blogging
Have you ever wanted to create your own magazine or newsletter? Would you like to promote your home-based business or build your personal brand? Have you always wanted to create your own website, but didn't know how? Today it's possible to do these things by creating a blog (short for weblog). Best of all, it's free and relatively easy.
Many blogs focus on a particular topic or interest, like music, cooking, technology, or parenting. Others are less structured and cover a variety of topics. It's easy to find a professional design for your blog, even if you don't know much about building a webpage.
Different types of blogs
You don't necessarily have to be a writer to create a blog. Some blogs focus on a particular type of media, such as video or photos, instead of having full-fledged articles. Others have shorter posts, which won't require as much writing and which may be less time consuming. Below are some common types of blogs:
Video blog:
Also known as a vlog, this is a type of blog composed mainly of videos. Many YouTube channels are classified as video blogs.
Photoblog:
This is a blog that is mostly photos, with or without descriptions.
Microblog:
A microblog consists of very short posts. Status updates are a form of microblogging. Twitter and Tumblr
