What is SMS?

Short Message Service (SMS) is a service available on most digital mobile phones (and other mobile devices, e.g. a Pocket PC, or occasionally even desktop computers) that permits the sending of short messages (also known as text messages, or more colloquially SMSes, texts or even txts) between mobile phones, other handheld devices and even landline telephones. The term text messaging and its variants are more commonly used in North America, the UK, and the Philippines, while most other countries prefer the term SMS. Text messages are often used to interact with automated systems, such as ordering products and services for mobile phones, or participating in contests. There are also many services available on the Internet that allow users to send text messages free of charge.

圖片參考：http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/SMS_Message.jpg/202px-SMS_Message.jpg



圖片參考：http://en.wikipedia.org/skins-1.5/common/images/magnify-clip.png
SMS arrival notification on a Siemens phone
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS

2007-01-03 23:13:54 補充：
As with most other services and modules of functionality of the GSM system, no individual can claim the parenthood of SMS. It might be worth while to note this, since such attempts may still be seen - also from people that never took part in the GSM work on SMS.

2007-01-03 23:14:00 補充：
The idea of adding text messaging to the services of mobile users was latent in many communities of mobile communication services at the beginning of the 1980s.

2007-01-03 23:14:18 補充：
Experts from several of those communities contributed in the discussions on which should be the GSM services. Most thought of SMS as a means to alert the individual mobile user, e.g. on incoming voice mail, whereas others had more sophisticated applications in their minds, e.g. telemetry.

2007-01-03 23:14:24 補充：
However, few believed that SMS would be used as a means for sending text messages from one mobile user to another.

2007-01-03 23:14:55 補充：
As early as February 1985, after having already been discussed in GSM subgroup WP3, chaired by J. Audestad, SMS was considered in the main GSM group as a possible service for the new digital cellular system.

2007-01-03 23:15:01 補充：
In GSM document 'Services and Facilities to be provided in the GSM System' (GSM Doc 28/85 rev2, June 1985), both mobile originated and mobile terminated, including point-to-point and point-to-multipoint, short messages appear on the table of GSM teleservices.