In chapter 5 Gleick discussed ciphers the uses and slight history of ciphers. There are a few different things that come to my mind when I first think of the word cipher. The first being encrypted code that one would need the key to figure out. Next is how people today either talk over text, Facebook or any other networking sight. I remember in the past when I first got my phone I hated typing everything out fully because it took some time for me to do it. Then I finally realized that everyone is just shortening words to make them faster and easier to type or text. I still do that, even though the phone I am using has advanced enough to where it would take the same amount of time to text a full word as it does to type it. Some of my friends seem to dislike that I do that and say since I do I must be lazy. Imo (in my opinion) I think that it is not that I am lazy it has come to the fact that texting like that is now a habit.
I found that the text shortening to be just like the ciphers that were used. Even if the reasoning for them to have been used was different. Gleick talks about how the ciphers where used to allow people to still communicate but to save money because each letter cost money. While a reason people shortened the words for texting or typing on network sites was due to either limitations of characters they can write, or to simply save time and still be able to get your point across.
Truthfully until reading about this in the book I never thought of ciphers as being just simple things people used to communicate. It may be cause of all the movies and such that I seen, but anything that involved a cipher I always thought to be a very very complicated type of thing. I never even imagined the correlation between how I text and ciphers and still probably not would have. It is quite amazing when one learns that he or she has been doing something without realizing it. Though after thinking about it more and more I do feel fairly stupid for not making the connection sooner.
I completely understand where you are coming from and I enjoyed reading your post because I could relate to the personal aspect of it. Technology plays a huge role in these ciphers. Before the inventions of text messaging on a cell phone and instant messaging on a computer, we communicated with e-mails, and before that over the phone or via mail. I believe ciphers over text messages and instant messengers are definitely the most widely accepted. To me this is because texting and IM’s are meant to be short and quick. You don’t send a job proposal over a text, instead it is usually sent over e-mail. Now when it comes to e-mails, I find that they usually consist of more proper speech. I admit to using ciphers over texting, but to me e-mailing is more personal and has the respect of business within it, so I always keep that in mind. Now one of my biggest pet peeves is when people use their ciphers in actual verbal conversations. I understand why someone would shorten this in a text message, considering texts are meant to be fast and rapid. But when people try to shorten up their speech with ciphers, I can’t help but giggle to myself. I just wonder, “Why don’t you just say the actual words and sound a little more educated.” That may be a bit harsh, but what can I say everyone has his or her pet peeve.
ReplyDelete-Melanie Hughes
I totally have the same pet peeve except I don't giggle. I look at them strangely at first and if it continues I stop them. It may be mean to do, but it is what I do. I also agree with the way emails are to you. Even when I was emailing a friend I would still make sure to use full words even when we were basically IMing using emails.
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