You probably do it in the car, all over campus, and maybe — no, probably — even in class. I bet your professor has even caught you once or twice.

It’s the note passing of the 21 century: text messaging. And, according to Verizon Wireless’ evaluation of its own customers, wireless use of text messaging in the Raleigh area has increased by six and a half percent in just the last two years.

There’s no doubt that a lot of people use their cell service providers’ text services — more than 56 million text messages were sent and received by Raleigh’s Verizon subscribers in April of this year.

Elizabeth Daw, a senior in English, texts a lot.

“I text every day, throughout the day. … Maybe 50, no 30, [per day].”

Daw, who had 104 text messages in her inbox at the time of the interview, is definitely not alone. Maria Terry, a student in the summer English as a Second Language program, said she doesn’t text in America, but in her home country of Peru she texts more than she calls.

While it is amusing to see the near-exponential growth of such a non-personal method of communication, the question is no longer about whether cell phone owners will use the service, but “why do they use it?” and “how does it affect their communication and lives?”

Terry appreciates the practical reasons for texting, but admits that the real reason she texts at home in Peru is because of the cost.

“In my country, it’s much cheaper to text message than to call,” said Terry.

As far as Americans are concerned, however, the cost of texting is definitely not the reason to do it. For some carriers, individual text messages can cost up to 20 cents each.

Robert Schrag, a professor of communication studies, said text messaging owes its popularity to two characteristics.

“[Text messaging] can be done relatively unobtrusively,” he said. “Plus it’s very private.”

Daw, on the other hand, said convenience and efficiency are the reasons she texts

“You can multi-task easier and it’s faster and more to the point,” she said.

Those reasons why text messaging is popular — privacy, subtlety and directness — may be responsible for affecting the way a communicative message is understood and influencing a possibly improper response from the receiver.

According to Schrag, “every communication medium changes the message.” You have probably experienced something like it during your own text conversations.

When people write out a text message, they tend to use shorthand, simplified spellings and they almost always leave out punctuation. These tenets of the English language, when left out, can affect a seemingly simple message.

Take the word “what,” for example. You text your new boyfriend about a new restaurant you want to go to. Perhaps you shortened your words a bit, for conciseness. He responds with “what,” which can mean any number of things including “I don’t understand,” “Which restaurant? I haven’t heard of it” and even “You’re an idiot, cease texting me now.”

Of course, no text messaging problem is worse than sending a message to the wrong person. Daw recalled a time when she sent a text to the wrong friend once, leading to a slightly embarrassing situation. There’s no limit to the issues that can come up because of a few faulty finger movements — have you ever accidentally sent an innuendo to your mom? Someone probably has.

A mixed-up conversation is never a good thing, but what about mixed-up language? Some have proposed that communication technology like texting and instant messaging are changing the language of their users. “Words” like “r” and “gr8” are sneaking into the vocabulary of students in the classroom so much so that a New Zealand high school has deemed text-speak appropriate for its students to use.

But is the English language changing as a result? Schrag says it is not. Though he said he doesn’t “have enough data to assert that [those students] don’t have the language skills,” Schrag calls the mix of English with text-speak merely a “lack of awareness” on the part of the students who use it.

Text message technology has changed more than just what people say and mean. It reaches deeply into the lives of users. Crimes have been solved because of a careless text message, as in the case of two Catawba County teenagers last week.

Text messaging while driving also is thought to have caused car accidents, to the point where some states are making it illegal to text while behind the wheel. It isn’t illegal in North Carolina, however, and both Daw and senior in environmental technology Leanne Poole admit to doing it, but only sometimes, and usually just to respond to an incoming message.

On a less dire level, texting is probably also taking users’ attention away from the more important things in life, like a professors’ lectures, time with family or a conversation with friends over dinner.

“My little brother is 15, and you can’t even talk to him when he’s texting,” Poole said. “He’s like a vegetable.”

But not everyone is glued to their cell phones’ screens. Paul Williams, a senior in mechanical engineering, has a certain disdain for text messaging.

“It dulls the conversation in communication,” he said, “I find it the most pointless communication method ever, next to instant messaging.”

The future of texting may seem even more “pointless” to a lot of users. Already, some companies are utilizing the text for advertising. Schrag said that promotional uses of text messaging will probably increase, that spamming may be a problem at first but that eventually text users will choose the information they receive.

So whether you love it, hate it or just use it because everyone else does, Schrag said that text messaging will be around for quite a while.

“The attractions of texting … will keep texting around.”