According to NextWeb, Google is offering an exclusive feature to Indian Google+ users through which they can update their stream using text messages.
To update Google+ through text messages, you will have to initially add your phone number in Google+ settings, following which Google will text you a verification code which has to be added in the Google+ settings. Optionally, you can also add a security PIN for extra security and avoid spoofing of text messages.
160characters.org reports on Jaybee which aims to help those with a range of illnesses and disabilities to communicate widely via SMS.
Jaybee uses various ‘triggers’ such as hand movements, touch screen, head movements and even a simple blink of an eye, to transform predictive text phrases into very realistic British voices which add character to communication.
Designed initially for people with Motor Neurone Disease, JayBee allows users to say exactly what they want to say. It learns their communication patterns using technology initially used by TIL in the Space Industry.
Here's a company planning on using SMS to send some good news.
Qantas Airlines will be sending their Frequent Flyer members an SMS alert well before their flight advising that their upgrade has come through, rather than when they arrive at the airport to check in for their flight.
The Namibian Domestic Workers Union (NDAWU) has launched a two-month campaign in which it invites the public to 'select' the appropriate wage category for domestic workers. All Africa reports.
The campaign was launched by the general secretary of NDAWU and Namibian Farmworkers Union (NFU), Alfred Angula.
Angula said the SMS survey is towards the setting of a minimum wage for domestic workers, which is currently non-existent..
"Domestic workers are of the most disadvantaged workers, they are very lowly paid, and their work is undervalued," emphasised Angula..
He said the union has opted to do the survey by SMS to allow for greater participation, after which the data will be collated and a proposal for a minimum wage formalised to the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel's third-largest cellular telephone service provider, Orange, are at odds over the use of the firm's SMS system to send emergency alerts to the populace in wartime, Xinhua reported via Trend.
And the dust-up couldn't have come at a more critical time: during a week-long national drill, "Turning Point 5," in which the military, police, government ministries, rescue services, some 80 municipalities, and the country's 7.5 million residents practice responding to a simultaneous massive missile attack on the Jewish State.
A crucial part of the this year's annual drill comes on Wednesday, when a newly-installed alert system is scheduled to send out hundreds of thousands of SMS messages to the population in order to test out the technology. There are an estimated 10 million cellphones in use in Israel.
The message that will be sent by the Home Front Command will say, "Drill -- have a nice day, from the Homefront Command."
The idea is to eventually phase-out outdoor air-raid sirens, which are often unheard indoors, by the infirm, or in certain areas of the country.
This year during the course of a mobile interaction design class at Lausanne Switzerland's EPFL, students had to come up with an idea for - and design an application on mobile phones - to improve the livelihoods of people living in rural communities in developing countries.
Here is one of their projects: EasySMS which enables illiterate people to read, compose and send text messages.
About 700 million illiterate people in developing countries are currently excluded from the benefits of text messaging. Most of them reside in rural areas in which mobile phone coverage and ownership is growing rapidly and SMS are cheap or even free.
EasySMS application empowers illiterate people to read, compose and send text messages through available text-to-speech solutions to their contacts.
The composition of messages is facilitated through pictograms and previously received messages. Contact identification is aided by visually search-able avatars.
To understand the meaning of each word of the SMSs users receive not only the meaning of the whole message: --> the message is played in a karaoke like style --> each word of the message is a playable button: the user can click on each word to hear it.
Sex syndicates have resorted to offering prostitutes to their regular customers via SMS, China Press reported via The Star Online.
The daily reported that the SMS messages contained descriptions of the prospective prostitute, including her body measurements and age.
A 58-year-old man, who only wanted to be known as Chen, said he would usually receive three to four such SMSes daily and it had put him in an embarrassing position.
-- SMS for sex in Singapore (2007) - In Singapore, in an attempt to elude the law, some pimps took their prostitutes off the streets and put them online and meetings are arranged by SMS.
-- Prostitutes Want Text Messaging Service (2006) - Prostitutes in New Zealand requested a free text messaging service from Vodafone, like the "safe service" set up for hitchhikers.
Puntersearch dates back to 2003 and stood out for it's audacity. It was a prostitute finder service which allowed users to search by location or personal attribute - such as hair colour. Thankfully, itt's no longer online.
According to Miami-based healthcare technology company ER Texting, Inc., more hospitals are publicizing emergency room wait times through text messaging but for reasons that go beyond driving patient traffic.
Using ER Texting, patients can send a text message to a dedicated SMS short code (4ER411) and instantly receive a message in return which lists the emergency room wait times for participating hospitals in their area. The application enables patients to find hospitals with the shortest wait times using any mobile phone.
While the technology was originally marketed as a means to drive traffic to emergency rooms, hospital executives have discovered the added benefits of improved patient satisfaction and load balancing.
Jetstar, Australia's low cost airline, has introduced a boarding pass via SMS service, along with self-service check-in kiosks at all the 18 Australian and New Zealand domestic airports from which it operates. ITWire reports.
The issue of the SMS boarding pass can be automatic. When they book their flight customers can request either SMS or email delivery of the boarding pass and it will be delivered 24 hours before they are due to fly.
Customers holding an SMS boarding pass without check-in baggage can go straight to the boarding gate. Those with baggage can scan their SMS boarding code at a Jetstar self service kiosk in the check-in area, collect their boarding pass, bag-tags then drop their bags at the bag drop and board their flight.
Facebook is launching a new security feature that helps prevent unauthorized use of your account. WEWS newsnet5.com reports.
The optional security feature only works if you opt in. It’s called Login Approvals. When you login into Facebook from an unrecognized computer, you need to enter a code that’s sent to your mobile phone. If you don’t have your phone with you, you won’t be able to access Facebook until you go to a recognizable computer.
Times of India reports on a SMS service launched by The Jaipur Development Authority, enabling users to file a complaint against any illegal construction in their locality.
Naba Wangré, manager of the child labour project at the Burkina Faso Red Cross, sends bluntly worded text messages to government officials, employers, traditional leaders, teachers, business owners and housewives several times a year, trying to reduce the widespread exploitation of domestic workers by raising awareness of their rights.
... Sending text messages via cellphones is one of the most effective ways of passing information to a mass audience, said Ken Banks, founder of FrontlineSMS, which tries to help non-profit organizations deploy mobile technology.
Project Masiluleke in South Africa was one of the most successful examples of behaviour change as a result of an SMS campaign, in which text messages with HIV awareness and testing information organization were sent out, resulting in a spike in voluntary testing.
After more than five years of planning, a national emergency alert system that will send messages to cell phones - in case of a terrorist attack, natural disaster or other serious emergencies - is set to launch in New York City and Washington by the end of year.
The New York Times reports on an emerging trend in illegal border crossing — the use of cell phones to guide migrants to safe passage.
... The Border Patrol has been noticing cases of migrants crossing alone but in cell contact with guides who keep out them of the reach of the authorities.
311 is New York City's phone number for government information and non-emergency services.
It can not only be dialed but can now be contacted via text messaging. Any questions or concerns can be texted to 311-692 and a response will be sent in minutes.
A key clue leading up to the attack that brought Osama bin Laden to justice was a lack of a phone or Internet connection on his property. By forgoing modern communications technology, he may have drawn attention to himself.
A report in The National Journal mentions that it was the National Security Agency, which gathers America’s electronic intelligence, which determined, in some secret manner that didn’t tip off the government of Pakistan, that the compound had no phone or Internet.
In a bid to fight bogus alarmist messages that cause unnecessary panic, Malacañang has launched the "Official Text Message" system to provide accurate updates to the public in times of disasters and other emergencies.
In a public-private partnership in public safety and disaster communication, the country's telecoms have volunteered for the timely broadcast of accurate messages to their subscribers during typhoons, floods, earthquakes and other emergencies.
The “Official Text Message,” that will come from concerned government agencies, will come from the mobile number 1456.
According to Smart Gorillas, there are now as many as 20 towns offering a pay-by-SMS car parking system across Belgium. Antwerp, the first town in Belgium to launch this service, registered its five millionth transaction this week.
For the whole of 2010, more than 2.8 million parking sessions were paid by SMS.
To start a parking session the user sends an SMS message with a structured message containing the number of the parking terminal and their license plate number to the short number, 4411. To end a session, the users sends “Q” by SMS to 4411.
KT Corp., SK Telecom and LG Uplus all appeared to be upset by recent remarks from Choi See-joong, chairman of the Korea Communications Commission, who told lawmakers Wednesday that the government will be considering persuading telecom companies to offer text messages for free.
“These companies are not state-run, and the money the government is talking about is not some fees for state utilities,” said one shareholder at a local telecom firm who declined to be identified. “I have my rights and I also don’t want to see any value eroded at the company I invested in.”
In Bangalore, you can follow up on cases listed for a hearing in the high court with a simple text message, according to The Times of India.
Litigants, lawyers and representatives of the government and other organisations can get details through an SMS.
Simply register your name and cell phone number on the court's website and you will receive in return an SMS with a user ID and password. You can then login and enter the number of the case you want to track.
If you are in Singapore and have an emergency, dial 995 - or send an SMS or MMS.
The new service, to be available in August is part of Singapore Civil Defence Force's drive to boost its responsiveness and operational capabilities by leveraging on technology.
Cellular service provider MTN said on Wednesday that it has launched a mobile phone life insurance scheme in Ghana in a bid to expand mobile financial services for low-income markets. The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
The South Africa-based company touted the service as "the first of its kind in the world" - not true though - South African insurance company Metropolitan Life introduced a service called Cover2Go in 2007, using Clickatell mobile messaging technology, to offer insurance cover to those on lower incomes in South Africa.
The MTN he service lets mobile phone users buy life insurance by sending a text message to a number that will take them to a series of menus, or by going to an MTN service centre to register for a policy that can then be managed by phone.
Clients will pay their premiums through the company's mobile money service.
According to Arab News, Google launched a new service Saturday enabling Gmail SMS users to send SMS service from their accounts.The new service is introduced with a partnership between Google and Saudi Telecom Co.
Last week Google extended its Gmail SMS chat functionality to three more African countries: Tanzania, Uganda and Malawi, after Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana and Zambia earlier this year.
Google has extended its Gmail SMS chat functionality to three more African countries: Tanzania, Uganda and Malawi. The New York Times reports.
Gmail SMS allows anyone worldwide to communicate with fellow Gtalk chat users even when they're away from their computer. This year, Google added the extension to Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana and Zambia.
Africa is a continent of mobile users so this tool seems like a good move by Google.
Gmail users can send and receive SMS messages for free using the service. (Non-Gmail users can SMS for regular text charges.)
Mobile operators are beginning to expose their core capabilities, such as SMS text messaging, to developers, encouraging them to innovate with these capabilities, and most importantly, paying the developer for every transaction they create across the application programming interface or API. The Guardian reports.
This allows a developer like Hamish Rickerby of Glimmer Design, who currently has 11 apps in the app store for both iPhone and iPad, to integrate these new API business models into his current apps.
Rickerby's latest app, TextDeck, is a Mac OS app that allows Mac users to simply and quickly send SMS messages from their Mac desktop.
... These new operator APIs are giving smaller developers access to markets they've never been able to reach before.
Twitea.me is a service which enables people who do not have a smartphone or a permanent mobile internet connection in their phone or laptop to be in contact with their social networks – such as Twitter and Facebook - through SMS messages.
HeyWire is a free, ad supported texting app for iPhone and Android that connects with Twitter, Facebook and GTalk. TheNextWeb gives it a review.
By far, the coolest part of this app is the fact that international users will never have to pay to text to a U.S. number again.
Here’s how: Download the app and HeyWire assigns each user with with a real phone US +1 number. Right away you can use that number, over an Internet connection, to text with anyone in the +1 area code, skirting international fees.
HeyWire is available in over 146 countries. So get your friends signed up for HeyWire, and you’ll never have to pay for a text to them again if you text them within the app. You can also text them from 30,000 feet in the air if you happen to be on a WiFi enabled plane.
The Swedish postal service is allowing customers to pay their postage via text message instead of stamps, according to The Local, Sweden's news in English.
... A similar system is set for launch in Denmark on April 1st allowing users to send a text message, prompting a special code to be sent back.
The code is then written down on the letter and serves as proof of the postage having been paid, the Sydsvenskan newspaper reports.
... According to Anders Åsberg, heard of marketing and development with Swedish postal service Posten AB, the risk of forged codes is no greater than it is with traditional stamps, as both must eventually be read by postal service scanners.
The country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI), has launched an additional channel for redressing customer grievances- 'SMS Unhappy Service'. [The Financial Express]
Under this system, the 14 local head offices have so-called “Happy Rooms” that deal with the customer grievances. Any customer who wants to lodge a complaint sends the message “Unhappy” to a specified number (8008202020 ). The Happy Room then calls the customer and records the details of the complaint.
According to 
To update Google+ through text messages, you will have to initially add your phone number in 
Here's a company planning on using SMS to send some good news. 
The 
Sex syndicates have resorted to offering prostitutes to their regular customers via SMS, China Press reported via 
Now here's a really great use for text messaging. 
In Burkina Faso, domestic workers - mostly children are underpaid, sometimes work up to 18 hours per day, and often experience exploitation and abuse. 
According to 
According to 
The Swedish postal service is allowing customers to pay their postage via text message instead of stamps, according to 
