Discussion: Is texting still relevant with mobile Qwidget available?

One of the topics discussed at the ALA User Group meeting concerned texting.  A user group attendee asked: is texting still relevant now that the Qwidget is available on mobile devices such as the iPhone?  Those attending the meeting made the following points:

· Yes – despite high visibility of smartphones, most people still have non-data mobile phones.

· Texting is asynchronous – someone can get back to you at a later time.  Conversely, using the Qwidget on a smartphone dictates that the conversation flow in real-time (of course, if the librarian is not available, the user can send a message to the library via the email option…)

· In-depth reference questions, as well as directional or ready reference are being asked via text – format does not hinder the patron.

· Some libraries still don’t have or can’t get Qwidget on their website.

What do you think?  Feel free to post your comments to the blog!

Comments

[Noel C.]

Another important thing to keep in mind is that the popularity of text messaging is due to our abilities to "time shift" our communications: I text when I have time and you reply when you have time. In these cases, both parties are not required to be present for the communication to take place.

This point is similar to the asynchronous point above, but I wanted to point out that it's why texting is so popular in general, not only in the context of library reference.

Part of that asynchronous "back and forth" is due to the fact that text messages are a "push" technology on the mobile device. On my phone (smart phone or not), I get a visual notification of a new message/response, making the communications more user-friendly.

[Ahniwa]

I was gonna say what Noel said, more or less. Suffice to say, text messaging and the mobile Qwidget are very much different things, and if I had to pick one, I'd even say that text messaging is more important.

Of course, that's without thinking about staffing issues and such, since SMS creates a new, local-noly workflow where Qwidgets act the same as chats (with coop or national backup).