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Common word keys

makes SMS quicker and WAP chat possible
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My last mobile phone choice was based on one thing - I wanted one that would vibrate, since I was always missing calls when I had my previous phone set to 'silent' or 'discreet'. I was just about to get a Nokia 3310 when I saw that it has a special 'SMS chat feature'... something that displays your text messages like chat. Hmmm. I thought this was a thinly veiled ploy to encourage the user to send more text messages. I saw a different phone, and realised that I could have WAP for the same price so why should I waste my time on the 3310?

Now that I think about it (and inspired by annotations here describing the ineffectiveness of using two thumbs to type messages), would it really be much trouble to add another few keys (perhaps on the back or the side of the phone) with commonly used words? I'd like a button for 'question' words (where, when, how, why, what), one for answer words (yes, no, maybe, perhaps), a pronouns key (the, he, she, it, etc. (I'm not all that clear about pronouns!)), and so on.

I think six of these common word keys (CMK) would be enough - three or four like I've described, and maybe another two that 'learn' from the most used words I tend to write in text messages? Like normal letter/number keys do now, if you press CMK1 once, you see "where" on the screen, if you press it twice you get "why" (or by scrolling through the options, as happens with predictive text). When SMS-ing, the star key on my phone has 48 options (it's the special characters key) - others have six different letters you could use (if you count accented ones)... when I've written a word and predictive text is switched on, it may give me ten options to scroll through, and it will learn other words I write myself. Surely a small number of CMKs would speed up a large part of our text messaging time, and would enable Instant Messaging or other chat systems to be developed for WAP.

(This is a longwinded idea I know. I tried to keep it down.)
lewisgirl, Jul 17 2001

Mobile phone with keypad http://commerce.mot...Whtml/v100_red.html
Not strictly what you were looking for but if you SMS a lot it might help. [st3f, Jul 17 2001, last modified Oct 17 2004]

[link]






       One thing that I noticed about the internet games that come in Windows XP is that they have a pre-selected list of common statements. Maybe the cell phone could contain a general list of responses such as, "Ok, thanks." or "I will be there shortly"
Jscotty, Sep 08 2005
  

       List of prewritten messages ("Quick Notes") from a Motorola V330:   

       1. Call me when you get this.
2. When can we meet?
3. Where are you?
4. Where is the meeting?
5. Talk to you soon.
6. What is your number?
7. I am late and will be there in ___ minutes.
8. I am here.
9. Sorry I missed your call, I am in a meeting.
10. Thank you
11. I love you
12. How is it going?
jutta, Sep 08 2005
  

       Need some other ones:   

       13. Okay, okay, please stop calling me.
14. Meet me in front of the 50-foot tall red plastic Buddha with the lasagna stain.
15. I found your phone; please call it.
16. I wuv you, you wittew snookums.
17. Test please ignore
18. I'm on a bad date, please call me in ___ minutes.
phundug, Sep 08 2005
  

       Unrelated, but I have been shopping for a cellphone. From all the info I can find online, no cellphone ever works; even though they never work, the reception is bad, the keys are impossible to press, the interface is clumsy, the camera has extremely poor quality, they break easily, the carrier has worse customer service than microsoft, and they will steal your firstborn child.
Laimak, Sep 08 2005
  

       How about one labeled "Start?"
bristolz, Sep 08 2005
  

       What, followed by about fifteen menus [bris]? With a little animated paperclip too, I shouldn't wonder.   

       This is just another thing to memorize. My life is complicated enough already. Bone.
moomintroll, Sep 08 2005
  
      
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