Text is a funny thing: conventionally, it imbues someone with an indefinite amount of time, such that they may collect, edit, and share their thoughts. In other words, there’s a much further distance from initial idea conception to getting the word (ahem) out.

On the other hand — with respect to prior inventions like the telegraph and fax machine which prompted quicker communication — “realtime” chat on computers has shortened the distance greatly.

As a result, I’ve noticed this amusing distinction: people I know and admire who can write intensely intellectual papers peppered with words I never knew existed, yet resort to “how r u?” when instant-messaging me. People who do prosper with correct punctuation in “IM” and all that usually tend to be faster typists — their bandwidth of the written word is a “fatter” one, so to speak, and they have more slack to play with, more grace for spending a few seconds to ^H and correct errors.

At face value, it seems lazy and sloppy to condense more words down to single letters, but as long as the understanding is not lost, that’s what matters. And in the same vein of how Palm ascribed Graffiti to a portion of its success and how cellphones have “intelligent” text prediction when inputting words on those cramped keypads and even hold texting championships, any beneficial means necessary to quicken the pace of written communication is valued.

Time here is the defining factor, the fulcrum on which the balance of a conversation’s flow rests. Wait too long, and the other side may think it rude that you’re distracted or AFK without telling them so. But find a chat partner whose flow you can sync with, and it creates a special chemistry ripe for getting to know each other better.