Week One, Response One: "Why Are All Our Words in Bubbles?"
INSTRUCTIONS: Before you begin, please read this short article from The New York Times: "Why Are All Our Words in Bubbles?" By Jonah Engel Bromwich. Once you've finished, read the following commentary and follow the Blogger instructions found on Cobra to post a comment answering the questions in the final paragraph. You should also comment on at least one of your classmate's replies. Please let me know if you have any questions, concerns, or difficulties posting.
In the article, Bromwich discusses how text boxes found on cell phones and social media platforms have soft, rounded edges, and appear like bubbles even when they don't necessarily need to, like on Facebook's commenting sections.
Some of the people in the article agree that the "bubbles" function like quotation marks and provide a comic-like feeling to otherwise emotionless text. Others believe the bubbles soften tone and contribute to less ambiguity in text messages.
When it comes to social media and text messaging, one of the biggest complaints users have is how messages can often be perceived in a different manner than that in which the user sent the original message. How many of you have experienced a time when someone sent you a message, and you weren't quite sure how to react or respond because the message felt confusing, or like it could have multiple meanings?
For example, my husband, who isn't too keen on text messaging in the first place, uses "lol" as a punctuation mark. It doesn't matter if the sentence is actually funny. He might text me and ask, "Can you drop that check off in the mailbox before work lol," and because I know him and how he texts, I don't think twice about the "lol" being used as a question mark; however, because he has gotten in this habit of using the acronym in this way, it does throw me off when he chooses *not* to use it in a text message. And more often times than not, he omits it when he's having a bad day at work, or is frustrated about something else unrelated to the message.
So, what about you? Have you ever thought about the ways that text boxes and speech bubbles contribute to the conversational feeling of sending a text or posting a comment? What texting "habits" do you or others you know have that define how someone might interpret your/their message? In what ways do you think companies like Apple and Facebook can lessen ambiguity through texting and messaging features?
In the article, Bromwich discusses how text boxes found on cell phones and social media platforms have soft, rounded edges, and appear like bubbles even when they don't necessarily need to, like on Facebook's commenting sections.
Some of the people in the article agree that the "bubbles" function like quotation marks and provide a comic-like feeling to otherwise emotionless text. Others believe the bubbles soften tone and contribute to less ambiguity in text messages.
When it comes to social media and text messaging, one of the biggest complaints users have is how messages can often be perceived in a different manner than that in which the user sent the original message. How many of you have experienced a time when someone sent you a message, and you weren't quite sure how to react or respond because the message felt confusing, or like it could have multiple meanings?
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| IMAGE: Message received reads "K." Receiver sends back an image of an unhappy chihuahua. |
For example, my husband, who isn't too keen on text messaging in the first place, uses "lol" as a punctuation mark. It doesn't matter if the sentence is actually funny. He might text me and ask, "Can you drop that check off in the mailbox before work lol," and because I know him and how he texts, I don't think twice about the "lol" being used as a question mark; however, because he has gotten in this habit of using the acronym in this way, it does throw me off when he chooses *not* to use it in a text message. And more often times than not, he omits it when he's having a bad day at work, or is frustrated about something else unrelated to the message.
So, what about you? Have you ever thought about the ways that text boxes and speech bubbles contribute to the conversational feeling of sending a text or posting a comment? What texting "habits" do you or others you know have that define how someone might interpret your/their message? In what ways do you think companies like Apple and Facebook can lessen ambiguity through texting and messaging features?
I have never really thought about the ways that text boxes and speech bubbles contribute to the conversational feeling of sending a text or posting a comment. I have thought that it was cool that the creators made the speech bubbles because it gives a bit of a feeling of being a part of or creating your own comic strip, so to speak. In the article, they say how difficult it can be to determine the mood or context of what is being said. Although we have emojis to express emotions and such, I think it would be cool if we could select a certain type of speech bubble, like one with jagged edges to express anger or irritation, or a curvy one like a cloud to express a thought. I am a joker by nature, but sometimes people on the receiving end of my texts don't realize I am joking. While I enjoy texting rather than calling, I think it sucks that texts are taken out of context because you can't hear the tone of voice the comment is being said in. This is one downfall I see for text messaging or commenting on any other social media. When I am being funny or expressing anger or agitation, I will use emojis simply because you cannot hear the tone of my voice or see my facial expression when I say whatever I say. I have to admit, part of me actually misses the old days when you had to pick up the phone and call somebody to communicate, rather than sending a text. Phone calls are more intimate and definitely more private than the communication methods of today. With texting, you sometimes have to be careful of what you say because you never know when someone may screenshot the conversation and share it with the world. I say this because nothing seems to be sacred or private anymore. It seems to me that while you think you are having a conversation with one person, that conversation ends up being with your coworkers, or your family or just anyone. Don't get me wrong, I am not dogging social media. In some cases, I think it is a wonderful thing; but in other cases, I think it is the cause of a lot of ruin to people's character or reputation. Why? Because people take things way out of context much too often, and as sensitive as this society has become, everyone gets offended at everything. It really is sad to me. Another thing I find sad is the use of abbreviations, or typing words without vowels. Why? Call me old school, but I prefer to write out the word so I know that the person on the receiving end can understand what I am saying. Too many times, I have received texts that are abbreviated that I have no clue as to what the person is trying to say. I also think that the abbreviations show that people are getting lazier and lazier. I used to be a manager and when I would go over applications, I would be appalled at some of them. There were several that I would never call for an interview because they used texting abbreviations! I felt that if the applicant couldn't take the time to write out the words completely, they will not take the time to do the job completely and accurately. One way I think companies like Apple and Facebook can lessen the ambiguity through texting and messaging features is to enhance the voice to text feature to determine your tone of voice. If it can determine your tone of voice, then maybe it could put the text in a certain mood-type bubble. That would be interesting to me, if they could come up with the technology to determine the proper speech balloon based on your mood or tone of voice. Tone of voice is everything when talking face to face with people, so why can't it be used to properly get your point across in a text?
ReplyDeleteI do like how you mentioned texts being taken out of context. It is important for us to find ways to convey what we mean by using more than words at times, otherwise our intended tone or emotion may be misunderstood.
DeleteFor me I have never thought about what the texts boxes looked like. I just thought that the boxes were normal shaped boxes. I did not think that the boxes could express emotions to. I thought it was all in the wording. When I text I spell out what I am trying to say and I try to use the correct punctuation so that they know what I am feeling when I am texting them. Companies like Apple and Facebook should use softer edges for a text box. They should also have different text box shapes so that if people are feeling angry or sad they could change the shape so that it fit how they are feeling at that moment in time.
ReplyDeleteSincerly, Sydney Schurvinske
I like your idea of having different text shapes for different emotions, I would've never thought of that. I think this could be a successful tactic that companies could use to improve their products.
DeleteI really like the idea of having the different text shapes for emotion. It could be very useful to people who have a hard time getting their emotion to come across. With one click they can easily show their emotion with the other person.
DeleteI like the thought of having different types of text boxes/shapes for different types of texting emotion. It would take texting a new step up and most likely positively enhance the overall experience.
DeleteI personally never thought about the text boxes. Now after reading the article, it makes since on why they picked the shape. I like to spell out the words when I am texting. To me the "text lingo" is a little messed up. To me when emotions come out in text is when the person shortens the words. For an example okay, when someone k's me the automatic emotion that comes through is angry. For the companies, they should add someways to change the shape, color, and add some emotion down to a certain text box. Then the person that I am messaging would know my emotion.
ReplyDelete- Nicole Brewer
I feel many companies such as apple strive to be socially friendly to all ages but also keep things simplistic. I have a feeling if companies began to add these different ways to manipulate the look of your text or comment that it might not only take away the professional aesthetic of their platform but also leave some users feeling left behind if they don't know or have time to utilize these features.
DeleteI have to agree with the idea of allow the shape, color and or ability to add emotion to messages.
DeleteIt never has occurred to me the thought process behind chat bubbles. I am an Apple product user, so everyday I am surrounded by the subtle yet actually not so subtle impacts of such a simple design. It's something that registers in our subconscious, yet we are generally unaware of its impacts.
ReplyDeleteBreaking down the shape, a chat bubble is a curved, smooth almost shiny (for apple products) rectangle with soft edges and the simplistic design of the "chat" logo itself which is the part that is a curved triangle at the bottom right of the text sent. For person A, lets say me for example, my message would be in blue on my phone. Any text that is sent to me is a light grey with the chat triangle pointed to the left, as if that is where the other person is.
The shape of the bubble gives the effect that there are two people sitting across from each other, almost as if you'd imagine a comic with the chats coming from each person. The needs for humans as social beings to communicate is used to the companies advantage by giving the feeling of a personable conversation by means of the chat bubble shape. This is what has lead to people becoming addicted to phones; the needs for socialization. However, this need has had a negative turn because of smartphones and the apps that companies have created for them. We now have everyday access to the internet, meaning we don't have to leave our beds to achieve social interactions which has lead to the decrease in person to person contact since it is now mainly done by electronics. As stated in the article, "Smartphone use has, arguably, the potential to develop into an addictive behavior, similar to gambling, which can interfere with our everyday life". I think for myself, I am definitely guilty of becoming addicted to my phone and my laptop.
Moving on to the emotional parts of a message sent, I think it depends on who the message is being received by. For myself, I read a message in the other persons voice which gives me an idea of how they would say in person the text they sent. However with new social medias, new text chat has arisen. "LOL" is the most widely used I believe. In middle school, it seemed people would actually use this instead of "haha" indicating what was said by text was funny. Now, most people just add "LOL" at the end of sentences out of need for the extra effect of it, or a new meaning. Some meanings would be a question mark, or giving the effect that the person sending the message is upset and sends the message in the subtle use of lol instead of actually stating their anger. This has lead to myself and others not being able to depict the emotion of it. An example of this would be when my best friend sends a message to me and ends it with lol, or simple only sends lol. I can no longer ,most times, tell if she's upset or actually amused which has led to conflict between us or what its meant to replace.
In conclusion, texting and the design behind it has really shaped our generation and the way we think. I believe the design of the text bubble is ingenious and works to the companies benefit, yet also gives us the much sought after human contact that we desire. As texting and social media evolves, so do we. However because it keeps evolving, some things lose their original meanings as seen in the example of "LOL". I don't believe it's up to the companies such as Apple to clarify meanings of messages, yet the people who are the consumers, or users of the product to clearly define what they mean.
From Chris Fascian,
ReplyDeleteIt never occurred to me that the shape and even the edges of the chat boxes were so thoughtfully designed. The ability for people to pull emotions from colors and shapes, not just from words is interesting to me. The tone of the conversation can almost be altered by something as simple has a harsh edge to a bright shade, not just ending a text with a period or using all caps. We are so used to seeing these boxes that many probably don't notice that they originated from comic book chat bubbles, and evolved from there.
I had no idea that the text bubbles originated from comic book chat boxes. I just thought that they were very similar in shape. I also thought that the companies like Facebook and Apple cane up with the text bubbles on their own.
DeleteFrom Brie,
ReplyDeleteI never noticed the shape of text boxes until people on facebook began to complain that their comment section began to come out in bubbles, but I've also never been bothered by it. I understand why the design is a bubble and I think it's an interesting concept and might just cause people to be kinder to one another. Bubbles also allow to make it feel like an actual conversation and makes youre brain realize the difference between one statement and the next.
I remember back when facebook messages weren't in in bubbles too. It was a lot harder to follow who said what just like the comments.
DeleteFrom Leo,
ReplyDeleteI have never paid attention to how text boxes were shaped before reading this article. It is interesting for me to see how such small details can completely change how a text message is percieved. I think that having messages come out in a bubble shape is a good idea becuase it makes them come across softly keeping the tone of conversations nice and lighthearted. It will be interesting to see what other changes companies come up with to affect the tone of text conversation by simply changing how the message looks.
From Leo,
ReplyDeleteI have never paid attention to how text boxes were shaped before reading this article. It is interesting for me to see how such small details can completely change how a text message is percieved. I think that having messages come out in a bubble shape is a good idea becuase it makes them come across softly keeping the tone of conversations nice and lighthearted. It will be interesting to see what other changes companies come up with to affect the tone of text conversation by simply changing how the message looks.
From Amy,
DeleteLike you Leo I have never paid attention to the shape of the text boxes either. I agree that it is the little details that can make changes in perception without even knowing it! I like how you pointed out that the bubble shape gives the message a softer tone.
From Leo,
ReplyDeleteI have never paid attention to how text boxes were shaped before reading this article. It is interesting for me to see how such small details can completely change how a text message is percieved. I think that having messages come out in a bubble shape is a good idea becuase it makes them come across softly keeping the tone of conversations nice and lighthearted. It will be interesting to see what other changes companies come up with to affect the tone of text conversation by simply changing how the message looks.
From Leo,
ReplyDeleteI have never paid attention to how text boxes were shaped before reading this article. It is interesting for me to see how such small details can completely change how a text message is percieved. I think that having messages come out in a bubble shape is a good idea becuase it makes them come across softly keeping the tone of conversations nice and lighthearted. It will be interesting to see what other changes companies come up with to affect the tone of text conversation by simply changing how the message looks.
I believe Bitmoji capitalized on the idea you are getting at here. They created a way to personalize the emotions you are projecting as opposed to using the generic emojis that are universal to each person. I don't see it being likely that companies providing an option to change the shapes of boxes to become a popularized idea, however, new ideas for content within the messages might surface in the near future to help make silent conversation more similar to vocal conversation. After all, Bitmoji was taken up extremely quickly as a third party service to many of the big phone manufactures and applications designers.
DeleteBitmoji never crossed my mind when thinking of this topic. You are right though bitmoji is a good tool to personalize your emotions. The creators of bitmoji made the emotions and reactions realistic and personal. It is fun and easy and person can get the idea across using an bitmoji.
DeleteFrom Gary,
ReplyDeleteIn all honesty I never really thought about the shape of text bubbles. I guess I just send a message and put my phone away til I get a reply. Now that it has been brought up it does cross your mind like, "yeah why that shape?". This article definitely brought it to light and I find it really interesting that there is an actual, plausible meaning behind this. Previous comments have talked about different ways we should make the message shapes and they are all cool ideas but at the same time I like the message bubbles. Something about them just comes across as appealing even with how simple they really are. I don't know just a thought.
From Lucas,
DeleteLike you I always just texted without really thinking about the text bubble before this article. I think we agree on a lot about the topic. For example I also like how simple and clear the bubble is. The bubble makes you focus on just the message, I could not imagine if it had jagged edges because that would take away from the message itself and could be interpreted in a variety of ways just based on the border. I think they should not change the bubble until they have a very good way that is not confusing to show connotation.
I’m with you on this one, I have never really put any thought as to why my messages were shaped like this. And I never would have noticed the correlation between comic books and iPhone messages. But I think that it is cool to actually see the impact that comic books have had on the world today.
DeleteI have always thought of silent conversation needing a sort of cage, or in this case, bubble to separate thoughts and ideas in a conversation. Without something splicing each one of our ideas it would be difficult to understand what someone was thinking and at what time. For instance, without these bubbles someone may ask someone two different questions but without clear separation they may be responded to as one. Not to say that two texts warrant two responses, but it is important to be able to see at what time people said what idea. A second text can often amend a previous text due to a change in opinion or clarification. Without this structure of individualized thoughts it may become unclear as to what someones original stance was on a topic as you cant see the clear break in their train of thought to realize it was a moment of pause for them to think. I believe if it weren't for bubbles, regardless of shape, silent conversation would have much less flow and not resemble a conversation through verbal speech as much as it does now.
ReplyDelete-Nate Parsons
I like what you said about the separation of thoughts and ideas between text messages, Nate. It makes a lot of sense, the way you put it. A lot of the time, I will get texts or see comments on Facebook that are one long run-on sentence. Sometimes it is difficult to determine exactly the point the person is trying to get across when they don't use punctuation or simply just send another text to separate their statements. I have to admit, when I get texts in the fashion I just stated, it kind of annoys me. Especially when I know the person talking to me knows how to structure a sentence properly!
DeleteThis is my first time blogging so please bear with me. I honestly have never put much thought into this subject. I guess its just one of those things you use every day and never pay attention to. I am from the “older generation” and remember reading the comic strips every Sunday in the paper. As a kid this was the best part and often only part of the newspaper I was given to read. I never noticed a connection between those comics and current communication until reading this article. Interesting topic.
ReplyDeleteFrom Lucas,
ReplyDeleteI have not really really ever thought about the text boxes shape. I always thought it was just a style that Apple used and other companies started to use because it is so familiar. It was very interesting to learn that they actually have a purpose. I agree with the article that these bubbles create a more of a soft and nicer tone. I could not even imagine how many times I would interpret the connotation of a text if it had ridged edges. I think it is because people associate the jagged ridges with a cold or angry tone. I do not have any texting habits but one of my friends has one were he will send five or six messages just to get one thought out. It is very confusing to interpret because it is like putting together a puzzle and you just have to wait for the pieces. One text can seem nice but the next could seem angry. So you just have to wait for him to finish and put everything together in the same tone. I think it is very hard for companies to lessen ambiguity through texting because I think they would have to add a feature that gives the option for a person to give the tone of a message. I do not think people would really use this so they would have to make a more drastic change which would slow down the texting process. Texting is supposed to be a quick means of communication and if you compromise the efficiency of texting this would upset people. I think this problem will always occur in texting unless a very good design is created that people would accept. Even though the article was very short it was very interesting to learn something that affects on a daily basis that I really did not know had a purpose.
I never thought of the reason why apple and facebook made there messages a cartoon bubble. I notice that some people put lol after every sentence to lighten the seriousness of a message, that can either make a person be defensive if it is a serious matter. Apple and Facebook can lessen ambiguity by letting the sender edit there messages by color maybe letting the sender set different colors to set tones such as happy,sad,angry,and so on.
ReplyDeleteI think it is cool how they got the form of texts messages from comics. And I think it’s ironic how for the longest time I have seen the world kinda look down upon comic book readers as like a nerd, and they almost ostracized and called outlandish since everything is done online nowadays. However I learned today that we have more in common with comic book readers than we realize. I also find it funny because I really never thought that they way something was shaped could have such a psychological impact on someone, like its roundness makes it apear more friendly. However I also would have to agree, and I personally know and experienced that since there is no body language with text. An innocent text can somehow come off as rough and aggressive. And it is so,etching I feel that social media is aware of but has found no real solution for. I guess somethings you can’t replace, like actual face to face conversations. 🤷🏿♂️
ReplyDelete^From Tyler
DeleteFrom Jedidiahn Lancaster,
ReplyDeleteI have thought about the ways that our text, chat, and comment bubbles are bubbles. I always thought they did it because it was the way speech bubbles were in comics. I found it to be a way for the past to have an influence and feel nostalgic. People that I know around my age, including myself, will, when upset, not use capitals when talking. For myself it is a way of portraying a more soft spoken voice. I would say a way for big companies to lessen ambiguity would be doing something for people to be able to show their emotion in their messages.
The shape of text boxes never really crossed my mind before this article. The bubble shape seems to fit whatever someone is saying regardless of the emotion; it's up to us who send the message to use language and even emojis to show the emotion we're trying to express. The bubble shape most likely feels so natural because it imitates talking in comic strips.
ReplyDelete-Maria Eppich
It does feel rather natural-I guess that proves either how integrated it's become with us or how much we really focus on when texting
DeletePersonally, I have never noticed the shape of the text box. All of my attention is focused on actually reading the text. I don't think the shape of a text box can effect the emotion anymore than the mood of the conversation and emoticons. With the development of emoticons it has become easier to identify the mood coming from the other person.
ReplyDelete- Elliott Idleman
i like consticancy i think most people now like that in text bubbles
ReplyDeleteOkay so, 1. please excuse my display name, I have no clue how to change it.. I've had this email since I was in grammar school. I've never thought about the way messages were displayed on a text box, but it's always been something about the color. Because I am an iPhone user, when I text other iPhone users the messages are blue, I think we all know that. Blue is a calming color and the shape of the text box gives it a softer undertone. The way I text, you know I'm upset when i type with lower case letters, or you know I'm even more pissed if I end my text with dots (ex. "ok..."). Usually, I know the people I text., replies like "k" could mean two different things, if my boyfriends texts me that I know he's upset, but if my friend, Branetta, texts me that I know its just a normal reply. I, also, like the way Apple has added the app where we can add gifs to our messages and can reply with gifs, it makes the conversation more interesting and it, also, keeps the conversation going. other ways where Facebook and Apple keeps the conversation flowing are the read receipts and the bubble that indicate when a person is typing, it's instant.
ReplyDeleteI can understand why they chose this approach to messaging and posting, however, it feels a little lazy.
ReplyDeleteDespite having emojis, symbols, and even changing the format, communication over text is going to present the same problem-interpretation.
Symbols gain new meanings over long periods of time. This little change can be taken the same way or even go unnoticed, thus, has little meaning.
Unless you actually know the person or have communicated long enough meanings will always be skewed-but that's how ALL communication works so why this problem is mostly presented in texting 90% of the time feels more like a cultural disconnect than anything.
Nobody seems to talk about misconstrued meanings in writing letters, do they? Heck, even in real life meanings can STILL come across the wrong way just as often. If I had a dollar for every time I had to tell somebody "sorry, I can't tell what you meant. Was that sarcastic? I'm bad at detecting sarcasm." I'd have enough money to go to college debt free.
-Jojo Soule