Ben Lippert

Who would have guessed a person’s thumbs would become such major assets to our social lives? Texting might not be news to most people; however, a new means of reading funny messages might come as a surprise.

Texts From Last Night SD State Style is a Facebook group dedicated for laughs. It was created by Derek Kramer, a junior graphic design major who wanted a localized version of the official Texts From Last Night Web site (textsfromlastnight.com). Both Web pages offer the opportunity for people to post the text messages they wake up to in the morning.

Kramer said he got the idea from the original Web site. However, the biggest influence came because he and his friends were sick of the original Web site not posting their submissions.

Kramer said he is pleased with the growth of the group. He created it over Christmas break, and within the first four days, the group had one thousand members. There are currently just over 2,200 members, and that number is steadily increasing.

For some users, the benefits of the group are a mixed bag. Tim Carlson, a senior business economics major, said he does not follow the group very closely.

“I haven’t written any wall posts or (contributed) anything to the group,” Carlson said. “I have read the group’s page, but not very often since I joined the group.”

Carlson explained that he joined the group because he received an invitation from a friend.

Haley Fitzhugh, a junior consumer affairs major, has had similar experiences with the group. She said that she rarely reads the group’s page and does not follow it very closely. Just like Carlson, she joined the group because a friend invited her.

On the other hand, Megan Kahler, a senior advertising major, follows the group more closely. She has been a member for about a month and contributed to the wall posts once.

“It’s kind of funny to read, especially since I know most of the people,” Kahler said.

Despite the many social benefits of the group, there also come some potential problems. Since the bulk of posts are literally “texts from the previous night”, some of them can be explicit and maybe even self-incriminating. When a person posts a message their name and profile picture appear as well. If the text were to talk about drinking or illegal activities, that person might put themselves at risk. An example of this would be minors who publish posts about drinking.

Kahler does not see this as being a problem. She said there is no way for the police to prove who sent the texts.

Due to the fact the group is only partially anonymous, Kramer stressed the importance of being careful when posting.

“As much fun as it is, it could come back to haunt you,” Kramer said.

Obviously, this group would not exist if not for texting. Carlson, Fitzhugh and Kahler all agreed that texting is their preferred method of communication. Fitzhugh thinks it is easier to make plans through texting because the person receiving the message can respond when they have time.

Carlson agreed, saying there are situations that texting is a much better alternative. While both Fitzhugh and Carlson think there are benefits, they also stressed that it can be very distracting.

“I don’t think I get distracted by texts in class, but I do get distracted when my friends are constantly texting in social situations,” Carlson said.

Due to the popularity of texting and the proximity of the SD State network, the group has seen rapid growth. Kramer is optimistic about the future of the group. The group has made progress, but he would like to see more people join.

“I hope everyone will join and have fun, as cheesy as that sounds,” Kramer said.