Ping ([info]zestyping) wrote,
2006-07-02 19:28:00
  • Previous
  • Memorize
  • Share
  • Next

[idea] Fire-and-forget voice messages.

I think the big advantage of text messaging is not that it's text, but the ability to fire and forget. Sometimes it's too much trouble to make a voice call — you don't want to wait for the other party to pick up, you don't want to interrupt the other party, or it isn't urgent enough to require immediate, live acknowledgement by the other party. So you send a text message. But that means you have to futz with the text entry on your phone — usually dozens of button presses for even a short message. The word prediction on phones is getting better these days, but it's still tough to write a longer message or to use punctuation.

People find fire-and-forget so useful that they'll put up with stupid, cumbersome text entry interfaces just to get it. I think it happens fairly often that people send text messages in spite of them being text, not because of it.

What if you could fire a voice message? Hold down the Record button on your phone, say "I'm standing in line at the theater now. How many tickets should i get?" and press Send. Your friend's phone beeps instead of ringing, and when they press Play they hear your 5-second message. It's much faster and easier for you than typing in a text message, and much faster and easier for your friend than going through the (still stone-age) process of picking up voicemail. And your friend should have the option of replying by texting you "4" or saying "four tickets please — stay outside and we'll meet you there in ten minutes."

This should be trivial to implement in software on today's phones. These phones can already send pictures to each other; sending sounds would be a piece of cake. The question is, why don't they already do this? Surely this is not a new idea. Everyone knows that the United States is years behind in mobile phone technology, but even more puzzling, why don't phones already do this in Europe or Japan? Maybe they do?
Tags: idea

  • Post a new comment

    Error

    switch

    Your IP address will be recorded 

     
    Help
  • 34 comments

[info]fanlain

July 3 2006, 03:09:35 UTC 5 years ago

when we were in tokyo, we noted that nearly everyone seemed to txt msg each other rather than calling. it was completely the opposite in the usa. i much preferred the japanese way b/c there's only so many really loud cell phone users that i'm thrilled about having conversations foisted upon me (this really pissed me off on my morning train commute b/c it was impossible to read and caltrain never responded to my repeated requests to have one goddamn train designated as a quiet, no cell phone car for those of us that choose to read (and i was one of a few - americans also seem to read a hell of a lot less on commutes than other countries). the record would be a neat feature too although i'd be pleased if they also just made typing a whole lot easier or offered phone choices where the interface either focused more weight on voice for users that prefer that and maybe some that put more weight on easier text typing for those that prefer to txt msg over voice.

[info]leolo

July 3 2006, 03:36:02 UTC 5 years ago

I suspect the reason is a combination of inertia and economics.

Economic reason : they get to charge you a fee for a voice mailbox. Voice-message would have to cost more then voice mailbox, but then I suspect that text-messaging would be cheaper so folks would stick with it.

Inertial reason : "new" is scary to large companies. They already have a very similar feature so why introduce a new one?

[info]chimerically

July 3 2006, 07:03:41 UTC 5 years ago

Don't most companies provide free voicemail, though? Cingular does for me, at least ...

Another facet of the "inertial" reason: companies are offering services that are very similar to this, and they're often afraid of offering something that's so close that it'll either be confusing to customers (the use cases aren't differentiated enough) or overly redundant (customers get it, but the use cases still aren't differentiated enough). Of course, in reality it's impossible to predict what purposes users will invent for a new technology in practice without actually deploying it, but since companies can't throw around money like that they have to make their best guesses.

[info]darcydodo

July 3 2006, 06:11:23 UTC 5 years ago

I think my Sprint phone does have this option, actually. I haven't tried using it, though.

[info]chimerically

July 3 2006, 07:00:22 UTC 5 years ago

So one reason texting is big in some places, such as Scandinavia and Japan, is because it's cheap (and calling is relatively expensive). But it's not entirely financially motivated. Mimi Ito has done a lot of research on mobile phone use in Japan and found that the culture of quiet and respect makes texting a particularly attractive mode of communication. It's discreet, it's silent (except for clicking keys), it's semi-synchronous (can by asynchronous if needed). People can do it and still observe the silence rules on the subway; teens can do it from a nook of their house without disturbing their parents.

Some folks found that the discreetness factor was also important for teens in Finland, the UK, and the US. They could text in the morning, throughout school (if they were careful enough), and even under the covers.

Interestingly, I read somewhere else that asynchronous messaging was considered gauche among some Chinese businessmen: it was so necessary to be able to gauge the listener's reactions and tailor the response that email and even voicemail are looked down on. Conversely, most are more than happy to chat away on their cell phones anywhere, like we do here.

Anyway, there's just a bit of the cultural stuff that I've been learning about recently. While the technological scene in the US is different than it is in, say, Japan or Scandinavia, it's not just because we don't have the same technology available (technological determinism) -- there are also other reasons certain behaviors, such as texting, are big elsewhere but not as big here.

Back to the original idea ... I think this would be great, though disambiguation is sometimes difficult with audio if you don't have the possibility of immediate feedback. But we have these troubles with voice mailboxes already. This would make it a lot easier, indeed.

[info]sadie_sadie_ml

July 3 2006, 13:56:30 UTC 5 years ago

I still like text... I'm thinking email versus phone.. in my office you can send a message to someone's VM pretty easy and pick it up in 2 buttons and a password... I find it annoying when someone leaves me a VM instead of email.. In fact, I would love to convert my VM to email...

What are the advantages of your system over walkie talkie?

[info]zestyping

July 4 2006, 08:41:09 UTC 5 years ago

Voicemail is stuck in the stone age. On a mobile phone, you should be able to see a list of your voicemail messages, who sent them, when they were sent, and whether they're new — just like text messages — and hit a single button to play one. It's pretty silly that we still have to call in and press digits to step through voicemail messages one by one in a fixed order.

[info]sadie_sadie_ml

5 years ago

  • Loading...

[info]zestyping

5 years ago

  • Loading...

[info]zestyping

5 years ago

  • Loading...

[info]sadie_sadie_ml

5 years ago

  • Loading...

[info]letoams

July 3 2006, 14:49:24 UTC 5 years ago

it is *because* it is text

You miss some of the advantages of text.

Putting a phone to your ear in company breaks the thread of real life while you "step out" and listen to the call, the voicemail, or the 5 second voice message.

A text message, you can just glance at your phone while still being part of your real life. Other people will continue talking to you and you continue listening, while threading off to read your txt message. You can then pick a 'dead moment' to answer the message.

Apart from that, text has an advantage when you need to send precise information, such as an address, phone number, reservation number, timeslot. It is much quicker to pull up a txt message to read the address *again* because your memory sucks, compared to listening to the voice message again.

[info]owens888

July 3 2006, 18:13:50 UTC 5 years ago

Re: it is *because* it is text

Um, reading text messages in the middle of a conversation with other people is also rude.

I think my phone (T-mobile) has some feature like this already. But I've never used it, because it costs me to send and receive text messages, and I can't imagine them not charging me to send voice messages.

[info]zestyping

5 years ago

  • Loading...

Anonymous

July 4 2006, 16:51:21 UTC 5 years ago

Adoption is the reason

To be honest, I think the main reason this hasn't happened is that in other countries (like UK, Japan), texting has been adopted so much more enthusiastically in the US that there is no need for it. I can text without looking at my phone, MUCH easier than I can leave a voice message (even if I could record it and send it off). There are a lot of advantages to txts as a poster above has noted, in terms of the interaction with it being more discreet.

As for the US -- I think it's because they're waiting for you guys to get on the texting bandwagon along with the rest of us ;-)

Anonymous

July 4 2006, 16:51:49 UTC 5 years ago

Re: Adoption is the reason

Sorry, forgot to say, this is Meri

http://blog.meriwilliams.com

[info]huc_et_illuc

July 9 2006, 09:57:23 UTC 5 years ago

(I like the fire-and-forget idea and have been telling it to people who also seem to like it)

Were you aware of the existence of an Interrupting Ping joke? Jen just told it to me, and it made me happy.

[info]justanothergeek

July 10 2006, 22:51:35 UTC 5 years ago

I agree with the poster who mentioned that Push-to-Talk services like Sprint/Nextel offer are very similar. I think the main difference may be that those messages are not "stored" if the receiver has their phone off.

Anonymous

July 19 2006, 20:43:20 UTC 5 years ago

huge difference

To me, that's like saying you could always just gnaw on the loaf of bread - but hey, slicing it seems pretty neat.

I hate the real-time aspect of phones, and think easier "fire and forget" voicemail would be the perfect thing.

The reason no-one has made it yet, is that they're not as clever as Ping :) Get on it!

[info]auros

July 25 2006, 06:35:50 UTC 5 years ago

We developed the software to do this, on about half a dozen different phone OSs, at Lexicus in 2001. We called it Multimedia Message Service, MMS. I have no idea what's happened to it since then.

[info]sarilion

November 2 2006, 01:57:39 UTC 5 years ago

when you use a nextel to person-person talk, there's a signficant lag time, and you can alert them before you send.. I leave that function on speaker, so I can usually hear it from across the room.

[info]zubache

July 12 2007, 16:33:45 UTC 4 years ago

Allegra
Allegra blog
Pharma shop

Anonymous

August 25 2007, 20:39:26 UTC 4 years ago

Free Proxy Access

Your IP address reveals your point of entry to the Internet and can be used to trace your communications back to your ISP, your employer's network, your school, a public terminal.
Use our Free Web Proxy to surf the internet anonimously at http://peak40.com

Anonymous

September 25 2007, 17:38:35 UTC 4 years ago

Want to start your private office arms race?

Want to start your private office arms race?

I just got my own USB rocket launcher :-) Awsome thing.

Plug into your computer and you got a remote controlled office missile launcher with 360 degrees horizontal and 45 degree vertival rotation with a range of more than 6 meters - which gives you a coverage of 113 square meters round your workplace.
You can get the gadget here: http://tinyurl.com/2qul3c

Check out the video they have on the page.

Cheers

Jacob Roder

Anonymous

October 7 2007, 08:14:44 UTC 4 years ago

pharma best top

Hi

Bye

Anonymous

October 27 2007, 03:52:18 UTC 4 years ago

Hello

Hello!
How are you?

[info]mikewinter

November 29 2007, 00:34:18 UTC 4 years ago

I agree completely

I cant go one day with out my instant messenger because sometimes emails are too long winded and calls are too time consuming. very interesting post.

- mike
Coffee

[info]kaskaskas

January 20 2009, 18:46:18 UTC 3 years ago

http://www.dantelhavlu.com


Thanks...God Sharing...


dantel örnekleri, dantel modelleri

[info]asanmaster

February 9 2009, 18:41:21 UTC 3 years ago

http://www.budget.com.tr


Never a thank you to write this is not spam I wrote with my own See You...:)
rent a car, araba kiralama, araç kiralama

Anonymous

January 12 2011, 02:17:39 UTC 1 year ago

Like to know what is Carnival Game Rental Los Angeles?

Living in the Metropolis has it's return but comparable with all things, there is evidently a downside also! Dwelling in the core of the action is essential, as you must be in the loop. My boss, Rolland, frequently sais the problem. The truth is, he uses the better part of the daytime to reflect all but stuff similar to these things. In spite of this, for my associates Irwin, Kathrine along with Tod, this Town is the solitary home to settle. For me the urban being is remarkable! I won't pop in the clubs. I noticeably desire a fine Barn Gathering and with the information of [url=http://boomerevents.com/index.php]Carnival Game Rental Los Angeles[/url] it has been for all time a rare event!
Life needs us and us all need from time to time more or less significant leisure, to find a way to sustain with our daily hassle!!
I'm Herbert Mendez and I trust your next wedding will be a bang!

Anonymous

February 3 2011, 21:38:52 UTC 1 year ago

pecispxc tapa

wcul mkyok free sex videos (http://www.porntubehunter.com) bdvktb f ke v ggp

Anonymous

February 7 2011, 13:49:09 UTC 1 year ago

ectfyqkk jghb

mjde tzpnj weight loss and calories (http://www.pe6.us/meratol/) auyvjp r dp v iuc

teyh ktrez [URL=http://www.pe6.us/meratol/]calories in[/URL] sydjxg b ow r ifx

Anonymous

February 10 2011, 23:35:49 UTC 1 year ago

Nice Forum

I have been surfing on-line more than 3 hours as of late, yet I never discovered any interesting article like yours. It is beautiful value enough for me. In my opinion, if all website owners and bloggers made excellent content material as you probably did, the internet will likely be much more helpful than ever before.



_______________________________
[url=http://www.primeescorts-london.com]london escorts[/url]

Anonymous

March 31 2011, 23:51:45 UTC 1 year ago

Should I buy a huge engagement ring...

A question for everybody. Guys, do you feel the need to go all out and spend lots of cash on an engagement ring to please your girl?

Ladies, does the size of the ring actually increase how much love you feel for your man?

I dont have a huge amount of money but the ring I brought home for my woman the other day she said was to small so that hurt and now I don't know what to do. So, what's your comments?
Create an Account
Forgot your login or password?
Facebook Twitter More login options
English • Español • Deutsch • Русский…