Is it Goodbye to Emails?

[french frank]

In the early days when my friends were a little slower than I was at starting emailing, it was annoying to send to a new 'recruit' and get no answer for a week or so, thus making it necessary to ring them up and tell them I'd sent them an email ("Oh, I never look to see as no one ever sends me an email.")

Having been in front of the curve in the beginning, I now find I'm behind the curve. I send an email and get a belated reply a week or so later ("Sorry, I didn't see your email"). Other people seem to barely check their emails, preferring WhatsApp, texting, tweeting (X-ing?), instagramming, or whatever they use, on their mobiles.

Is this common? I hate using my phone for anything other than various useful apps like PlantNet, BusChecker, RailPlanner, Weather, Camera, Clock.

[Petrushka]

I find that I'm using my phone more than my laptop these days, perhaps because some of the keys no longer work properly on the latter!

I prefer text to email but draw the line at using the phone for making payments even though it should be as secure as the laptop.

[smittims]

A recent Woman's Hour discussion revealed that many younger people prefer texting to speaking phone calls, almost to the extent of deveoping an aversion to the latter.

I 'registered ' with The Spectator some months ago to read one article on their on-line edition, and they now send me two e-mails every day, most of which I delete without reading. And when Scottish Power discovered my e-mail address they 'assumed' I'd chosen to 'go paperless' , so I missed the payment deadline for my bill while waiting for the paper copy to arrive. I had to do my 'disgusted retired colonel' act and they apologised and refunded the late charge. As Kingsley Amis said, 'you've got to keep on at them'. .

[Old Grumpy]

If I am phoned on my mobile the call is usually not answered as I do not carry my mobile everywhere I go inside or outside the house. The phone goes to voicemail. If the caller leaves a message I will respond, but if they don't, then I assume the call was not important and I do nothing. My offspring have suggested I should call the number back and say "you missed-called me".

I still use email as I want nothing to do with anything run by Zuckerberg or Musk!

[french frank]

If I am phoned on my mobile the call is usually not answered as I do not carry my mobile everywhere I go inside or outside the house. The phone goes to voicemail. If the caller leaves a message I will respond, but if they don't, then I assume the call was not important and I do nothing. My offspring have suggested I should call the number back and say "you missed-called me".

I still use email as I want nothing to do with anything run by Zukerberg or Musk!

I don't know where voicemail is on my phone :-). I have a new (non-optional) digital landline and often don't notice the green message light when a message has been left for me. I'm telephobic and don't phone unless there is no other way to contact someone.WhatsApp is very useful (street and family groups), and texting quite convenient but I don't like using the keypad (jab, jab, jab, oops no, bother, delete, delete ). Emails are better on the computer for longer messages.

So it's email for me too. Spam has increased over the past few weeks. I usually just delete them, but the ICO has instructions on how to report them so I shall start doing that. I suspect many may be scams rather than spam but without clicking on links I don't know which they are.

[Pianorak]

I prefer using WhatsApp on my laptop rather than the phone.

[french frank]

I prefer using WhatsApp on my laptop rather than the phone.

So do I. But I see its icon is now grey (instead of green) and it's telling me I have to upgrade from "old".

Done. Seems as if it's beta. The new icon is yellow. But WhatsApp, like texting, is fine for short snappy exchanges. Email seems better - on the computer - for anything lengthier. The phone also has something called Messenger which a couple of people seem to contact me on. Dunno exactly what it is.

[eighthobstruction]

I like email as it corrects my grammar a spelling....(tries to anyway)...

[Serial_Apologist]

I like email as it corrects my grammar a spelling....(tries to anyway)...

Mine tries to Americanise mine.

[Pulcinella]

Mine tries to Americanise mine.

You can probably set your default to UK rather than US English.

I certainly believe that 'the young folk' don't check their emails as often as their texts/media messages. I often text to say that an email's on its way!

[teamsaint]

You can probably set your default to UK rather than US English.

I certainly believe that 'the young folk' don't check their emails as often as their texts/media messages. I often text to say that an email's on its way!

Do you send a whatsapp to warn about the the warning text ?


more importantly, does anybody have a hack for dealing with the impossibility of sending messages from or within football stadia ?

[Pulcinella]

Do you send a whatsapp to warn about the the warning text ?


more importantly, does anybody have a hack for dealing with the impossibility of sending messages from or within football stadia ?

That's really what I meant (though a text would work just as well): I have notification alerts set up on my phone for most WhatsApp and text messages, but not for emails, so for example when my friend in Rome is about to send some editing or I send it back we alert each other that an email is on its way!

[Old Grumpy]

Messenger is part of Zucker's Meta empire and does what it says on the tin (used to be FB Messenger, I think).

[french frank]

You can probably set your default to UK rather than US English.

I certainly believe that 'the young folk' don't check their emails as often as their texts/media messages. I often text to say that an email's on its way!

I started this thread because my octogenarian brother replied (very tardily) to my email with a WhatsApp message, saying he preferred it. So emails are presumably becoming like writing letters, things of the past. At least a letter arriving is less likely to pass unnoticed.

Btw, I was asked on a YouGov survey whether I would have any objection to Royal Mail letter deliveries being three times a week. I said I'd be delighted to get three letters a week. Haven't had one in years.

[Serial_Apologist]

Btw, I was asked on a YouGov survey whether I would have any objection to Royal Mail letter deliveries being three times a week. I said I'd be delighted to get three letters a week. Haven't had one in years.

The only ones I get these days come in envelopes with windows - apart from at Christmas.