Instant Messaging Or Writing Emails? Which do you prefer?
By hexebella
@hexebella (1136)
Philippines
March 4, 2011 3:27am CST
A lot of people, whether young or old are addicted to IM's i.e, yahoo messenger, Gmail chat, skype, msn, FB chat and spending a lot of time doing this activity for communication. But sometimes even classmates and colleagues who see each other everyday are engaged in IM's. For those overseas, it is a good way to communicate with their love ones and friends. But in my case, I hate to sit and spend time with IM's especially if there is nothing important being talked about. I see it as a waste of time as there are much more productive things to be done and I don't want to be tied up with non-sense talks. On the other hand, I prefer to write emails to communicate with friends and family. I enjoy more telling my stories and events in my day to day life by writing emails no matter how long it is.
What about you? Which do you prefer and which do you enjoy more?
3 people like this
21 responses
@shah3949 (6)
• India
4 Mar 11
I think Writing Emails are better than Instant Messaging because Emails Writing is safe than IM and it is Secure thats why i am prefer do Emails but other side if you want to say hi hello so its better Instant Messaging....
hhhmmmmmmmmm Can't Say Exactly....... :)
1 person likes this
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
4 Mar 11
Hi shah!
thanks for responding and welcome to MyLot!
I also prefer writing emails than IM's in getting my messages across. With email writing I can control the time and I can decide when to write the email. Unlike with IM's, I feel like I am bound and obliged to respond for each message thrown at me.
Have fun here in MyLot!
1 person likes this
@squaredsoft (93)
• United States
5 Mar 11
Although emails are more secure than IMs, most emails that people use (outside of corporate or government type systems) are not completely secure. Peoples' emails get hacked everyday, so you still have to be careful and use your best judgment.
@cathy1990 (220)
• Philippines
4 Mar 11
of course i prefer instant Messaging from the word instant you can received and reply
immediately from the person where you'll send the message. you don't need to wait.
1 person likes this
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
4 Mar 11
Hi cathy!
Thanks for commenting.
Indeed that IM's are more convenient on issues that require reply. But for just the sake of chatting and nothing important is discussed, i would prefer to write emails, I am more in control of my time. :)
Have a nice weekend and happy my lotting!
1 person likes this
@voldrox (7191)
• India
4 Mar 11
Hello hexebella,
Well, spending a few minutes to chat is worth it, but not more than an hour at the maximum. I don't do that either, i am not one of the chatting people types, although long before i really liked to do that and would be online most of the time, but it's different now. I get online when there is something important i want to do. I am no longer a fan of the IM's. I don't email much either, but yeah if there is something interesting i want to share then email is probably the best thing. Have to agree with that. I don't see email and IM's stand together, i mean i don't compare them. Both have different purposes and are a little different too. Good day.
1 person likes this
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
4 Mar 11
Hi voldrox!
Thanks for responding. I just hope that people would value the other person's time and not to keep them online for so long. Sometimes I find it difficult to leave the chat hence I don't go online. Even my FB chat is switched to offline. If there is something important to talk about, I wouldn't mind going online, like the time that I was applying for a work abroad, I went online to talk to the HR in regard to the documents required and how to speed up processing.
Cheers!
1 person likes this
@shia88 (4571)
• Malaysia
4 Mar 11
Hi,
For me, it is depend on who and how important is the message
I am going to tell another party.
If another party is online and convenience,then I will use instant
messaging service to chat directly with him/her,or else, I will send him/her
an email.
Sending an instant messaging can definitely save times and will get the reply
instantly.
1 person likes this
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
4 Mar 11
Hi Shia!
Yes you're right, with important issues, it's better to use IM's but if non-sense talk, better use the time with something productive. However, we can not dictate the happiness of people who enjoys non-sense talk with IMs.
Cheers and Happy my lotting!
1 person likes this
@speedytypist (571)
• United States
4 Mar 11
For me it depends on the occasion or a case or the location or urgency of something to deal with. My husband is in the US and I am here in the Philippines. We're so grateful for technology that makes us closer together though we far from each geographically. We used skype most of the time. It's more lively with cam, mic, etc. But in some matters like we need to do and submit documents for each other to read or review we used email. On the other hands, Emails is good too especially if we want to treasure our communication and keep it. I am planning to print our talks in Skype but I guess, it takes a 1 bound of bond paper...need to pick up some important things. I guess Im's is good for chit chat, everyday update and people who wants to type short messages at a time. But If the person you want to communicate well live in the province that go to the computer shop once in week or in month I guess email is the best idea.:)
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
4 Mar 11
Hi speedytypist!
Thanks for dropping by.....I also have a friend whose husband is in the US and they are online almost 24 hours a day with the cam, even they don't chat, they would like to see each other what the other is doing. It's a good medium to keep long distance relations intact and others are convenient with it. But at the end of the day they end up with unfinished task for the day. For someone I love, i could invest an hour maybe to chat as I need my time to do other things also.
Have a nice weekend and happy myLotting!
1 person likes this
@thatgirl13 (7294)
• South Korea
4 Mar 11
ermm i think i prefer Instant Messaging. coz it's easy like talking to the other person. It's fun and convenient according to me. But well i like writing e-mails too. Actually I like them both =D
1 person likes this
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
4 Mar 11
hi thatgirl!
I believe that there's a lot of people who enjoys this communication medium, maybe it depends also who you are chatting with. But I have this feeling that when I get trapped with IM's, I feel like I don't have freedom at all as I am obliged to reply right away LOL! Unless with very important matters that require reply at once, IM's would be a better choice.
Thanks for responding and happy mylotting!
1 person likes this
@daeckardt (6237)
• United States
5 Mar 11
For me, they are about the same. It mostly depends on whether I need to get an answer right away or if there is no rush, but also if the person I need to talk to is online at the time or not. Sometimes, I will tell the person to contact me on IM because I can't see them online. In those instances, email is better. But if I had emails going back and forth very quickly, I would ask them to switch over to IM so that there wouldn't be so much wait time to get an answer. If I have a lot to say, email is better because it is hard to follow chat messages in a small chat window.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
10 Mar 11
Hi daeckardt!
I agree that it all depends on the urgency of the matter and the user's preference whichever is comfortable. When there are urgent messages my friends would call me to advise me to go online thereby saving on long distsnce or overseas calls. In terms of non-urgent issues, I love to write emails and pour out all my thoughts continously without interruption.
Thanks for responding and happy mylotting!
@lhenpaule (495)
• Philippines
5 Mar 11
I engage in emails, FB & YM, but the way and the manner i use them is depend on the necessity at the moment. Often, for official matters or business related matters i always do it in emails. In FB, i usually spend my leisure time there, just to update myself with my friends and relatives, more of some personal note, while in YM i rarely visit this one, unless a relative of mine abroad would request that they talk to me thru YM.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hello lhenpaule!
As I already mentioned in one of my responses, it really depends on the situation and individual preference. Although IMs are addictive to some people, it is better to put limitation as time is very important. In my case, i don't want to use IMs with casual chatting as it eats up my time and I am obliged to reply right away.
Thanks for commenting and happy mylotting!
@chaijudin (506)
• Indonesia
5 Mar 11
i prefer e-mail , because we can read a full massage for what we think
but so slow to get respond mostly mail to big company
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hi chaijudin!
Yes, emails are more descriptive and you can arranged your thoughts in expressing them. With IM's it's intstant like a face to face conversation. Both has their own advantage and disadvantages, so users should be practical in choosing which is suitable for them.
Cheers!
@megamatt (14292)
• United States
17 Mar 11
E-Mails one hundred percent. Instant Messaging is just a time wasting thing and I am not a really big fan of it. I can really understand how many people would really enjoy spending a lot of time dealing with instant messaging. However, to say the very least, it is not my cup of tea. So I tend to really stick with e-mails, as it allows me to get my thoughts out in a clear and concise manner and it allows me to offer a little more thought, while instant messaging is just a bit more off the cuff.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
18 Mar 11
Hi megamatt!
I think that for people like us who would like to express our thoughts in a manner that would be appreciated by the receiver and to get the message across crystal clear, email writing best suits us. I could see some engaged in IM's are just exchanging emoticons. However on a case to case basis that instant reply is required, IM is the solution, but not to stay for hours exchanging instant messages.
Thanks for responding and happy myLotting!
@cmang83 (285)
• Malaysia
5 Mar 11
For me, i prefer instant messaging because we can get the respond immediately just after we ask. But email, we have to wait and we are also not sure that our friend will check email or not, when will he/she check his mailbox and etc.
But Instant messaging is different. If my friend didn't give me respond, i will ask again and again until he/she give me feedback.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hi cmang!
Instant messaging is a better option for matters that reauire immediate attention as you can get the reply instantly. But for issues that are not so urgent, instead of chatting in IMS, I'd rather write an email to express my thoughts.
Thanks you cof your comment and happy mylotting!
@RamRes (1723)
• Argentina
11 Mar 11
I use them both, but I'm more interested in IMs actually. I admit, each has its uses and good times to send each. For keeping in touch with online friends and to tell the dumb things about life, I prefer MSN and Skype, they are good and I feel like I'm actually talking with them, and is the closest I can be to a real life meeting with an online friend, more if they have webcams.
Emails are good for pinging people I didn't see in a long time, maybe those friends that haven't been in MSN for a long time or those that I don't know his whereabouts. Maybe an email simply telling "how are you" is a good thing to make them remember I exist and I care about them.
For me, my emails are often short and telling trivial things or asking for a meeting personally or on MSN. And on those meetings we talk about all those non-sense things that we like.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
13 Mar 11
HI RamRes!
Individuals are really different from each other and have different preferences. Your preferences are exactly opposite mine LOL! Indeed we have to use whichever is convenient for us and enjoyable.
Thanks for your comment and happy myLotting!
@squaredsoft (93)
• United States
5 Mar 11
Overall, I prefer IMing to emails, but it can change for individual situations. I'm personally very thankful no one at work knows about the messenger that comes with the Office software.
IMs offer me instant gratification, and I only talk to people with who I WANT to talk to, so I'm not wasting my time.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hi squaredsoft!
I agree that these communication mediums depends on the situation and individual preferences.So you don't want to share with your colleague that IM integrated in your office software :)?
Yeah, don't waste your time with IMs, time is gold.
Cheers!
@anthonyiem (166)
• United States
6 Mar 11
I prefer instant messaging because it's so much faster, email takes forever. A 5 minute conversation on a instant messaging service can take months on email.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
10 Mar 11
Hi anthonieym!
LOL! I guess your friends are lszy to write emsils and impatient as well to wait for emails to come......uh ohh it's no longer email....it must be snail mail! Yeah, it is also good to know the behavior of your community so you know what to use with them.
Cheers and happy mylotting!
@dreamy1 (3811)
• United States
4 Mar 11
It depends on who I'm talking to. With my boyfriend I prefer IM. With certain friends I just prefer to email them once in a while. I'm not naturally a talkative person so I sometimes don't have a lot to say and on IM I might have a conversation then I might not say anything for a few minutes and I don't want to seem like I am ignoring them I just don't have anything else to say. With some people I have a lot more to say than with other people.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hi dreamy!
Indeed that it is difficult to keep a chat/IMs going with people who are not so close to us unlike with families and close friends, it won't be a problem as we can talk about anything. With urgent issues that require response right away, I have to use IM but not for casual chat. Email writing is more convenient for me as I can do it on my own time.
Thanks for responding and happy myLotting!
@amirev777 (4117)
• India
4 Mar 11
Hi
I prefer writing mails because i am not very comfortable typing on my mobile phone. Also you have limitations when you type a SMS and you need to fit your entire message within that limit. But when you are writing an email, you can write a more detailed message.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hi amirev!
Same with me, I prefer writing emails, it is more convenient as I can do it in my own time. However on some cases, like urgent matters that requie instant reply, I use IMs but not for chatting.
Thanks for responding!
Cheers! and happy myLotting!
@penrockerchic (1903)
• Philippines
5 Mar 11
I use instant messaging more often than sending emails to people I know. I think it's a lot more convenient for me. I'm not addicted to IM's, it's just that I only use them when I want to say something to a particular person. Long emails would take more of my time, I think. I send out private messages though when a person I want to talk to is not online on any chatbox or IM's I have. I try not to get addicted to them 'cause they would eat up most of my time and lesser time for me to do more productive things during my day.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hi penrockerchic!
Instant messaging are really addictive to some people. I have colleagues in the past that they are chatting even during working hours. I also have friends who keep on sending me offline messages in IM's but at times that my connection get stucked while opening them (if there are more than one), i can not retrieve the message anymore and it happened to me several times.
Thank you for responding and happy myLotting!
@callito (99)
• United States
5 Mar 11
I prefer the chats or IM's. They're faster and more fun. Some of them even have emoticons included which make your chatting more cool. Emails take some time but they're good as well. The main difference is time. Chats are faster and that's why i prefer them to emails.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
8 Mar 11
Hi Callito!
Indeed your right that the difference is the time. For me, I want to commnuicate on my own time and I don't want to be tied up in a conversation for so long as I find it difficult to disengage myself from the chat. However with the urgent matters, I would resort to IMs to get the reply instantly.
Thank you for commenting and happy myLotting!
@cyan9306 (65)
• China
4 Mar 11
hi hexebella,just like you,I prefer writing emails to instant messaging.I don't think I am good at chatting with people about life bagatelle.It's easier for me to write down my thoughts slowly and i enjoy the expectations on receiving replies when waiting.Instant messaging just makes me don't know what to say.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
6 Mar 11
Hi cyan!
Thanks for commenting....indeed email writing is enjoyable for me firstly because the time is in my hand, I am not obliged to be in the computer at a particular time. Also, I love to write my thoughts in a creative way for the reading pleasure of the receiver. However, in cases that responses are required right away, I have to use IM's for faster communication.
Both are beneficial and we can choose whichever is convenient for us. Thanks to technology.
Cheers!
@Deddit (8)
• United States
4 Mar 11
I like using email for both a one-off message, or an ongoing conversation that is not time dependent or doesn't require much attention (though, email is sometimes also the best way of getting someone's attention), but I also do not prefer IMing. I much prefer a group-chat, such as IRC; to be able to have a conversation with multiple people, and a more active scenario is my personal preference.
@hexebella (1136)
• Philippines
6 Mar 11
Hi Deddit!
Welcome to MyLot! I tried group chat in the past maybe once or twice but I find it more difficult so I did not prosper with that. Yeah, it's because of the time that I am not much comfortable with IM's but I agree that it is the fastest way to communicate.
Thanks for commenting and have fun myLotting!