Well, this isn't actually a Rant, but I hope you enjoy this regardless.
Ocassionally I need to get a message to a friend or family member. It's not urgent, but just a quick note and I don't actually want to talk to them, just send them a quick text message.
Sure you can do this from your cell phone, but using T9 can be a pain in the ass. If you are at your computer there are a few choices.
1) Send to Phone - If you are using FireFox there is an extenstion available that will add a little phone icon to your tool bar. You can highlight text in your browser and click on the phone icon and the text will appear in the pop-up box. Enter the phone number and choose the phone carrier and the message is sent. It's pretty useful, but only if you know the cell phone carrier.
2) Teleflip.com - With this service you don't need to know the cellular carrier. Send an email to the 10digitphonenumber@teleflip.com and your message will be sent to their phone. They will then be able to reply to your message since it is coming from your email account.
3) Using AIM - In AIM (or any client that you can log in to AIM with, such as GAIM or Trillian), type +(Number) where number is 1(area code)(7 digit number). For example; an IM to +12223334444 would send a text to (222) 333-4444. This is quite handy as well since you don't need to know who the cellular carrier is.
Hope you find these tips and suggestions helpful.
