How to send a text message from a Blackberry Curve cellphone

Texting is an easy way to spread good news.

Merry Christmas was the first text message sent to a cellphone. The text was sent from a computer because back in 1992, cellphones didn't have the ability to translate the keystrokes form the keypad to letters of the alphabet. The BlackBerry Curve smartphone is equipped with a full QWERTY keyboard fully capable of creating text messages, and sending them overt the wireless network to another cell or smartphone. Limited to 160 -characters, text messages are sent and received instantaneously, and allow sender and recipient to carry on a conversation without placing a voice call.

Instructions

Send Text Message

1. Click the "Menu" key located on the left side of the trackpad to open the expanded home screen menu.

2. Click the icon marked "SMS and MMS."

3. Click the "Menu" key. From the popup menu, scroll down and click "Compose SMS Text."

4. Type the name of the contact in the blank at the top of the screen, below "SMS."

5. Click the email or telephone number of the contact in the "Send message to" dialogue box.

6. Type the message in the blank space. Click the "Menu" key then click "Send."

Tips & Warnings

• The Menu key is also called the BlackBerry key, and is stamped with the white BlackBerry logo. The SMS/MMS icon stands for Shore Message Service/Multimedia Messaging Service. SMS is another name for text message.

• If the contact is not in your contact list, type the number in the blank "Use Once" blank.

References

• "Th3 New York Times"; 15 Years of Text Messages, a 'Cultural Phenomenon'; Victoria Shannon; December 2007
• BlackBerry: Send an SMS Text Message