Yep – that’s right – you can send text messages to phone using Outlook e-mail… or any other email client.

This is one of my favorite, but yet completely simple tips to use. I have a friend who you can only seem to reach by text and a sister that is easier to find that way as well. Unfortunately, I don’t always have the opportunity to pull out my cell phone to text information to one of them, and I’ve found that “texters” don’t seem to check their e-mail as often as I do.

Using this simple message addressing system lets me e-mail and to them it’s texting.

The best of both worlds!

Now, I can already hear you thinking … but I wouldn’t even begin to know how to address the message and my computer isn’t connected to the phone line.

No problem because addressing the message is a breeze and you aren’t actually phoning them, so that connection won’t be necessary.

So, the only issue to address would be how to … well, address it.

The format will look like this:

10 digit phone number@ carrier’s extension

I’m sure you know the phone number; it’s the last part that is stumping you.

Once again – no problem.

You could choose to have them text you at your e-mail address. Obviously the address for the phone will be the “From” of the message.

Or… we could look it up.

I ran a quick internet search using “cell phone carrier email extensions”.

Lots came up – many of them had a list of the biggest carriers, and I found this one at Wikipedia ^[1] that is quite a bit more detailed.

Once you’ve got the extension, you’re set to go – texting from your computer – no need to locate your phone – and you can contact those hard to reach people without interrupting your day with a volley of beeping, singing or ringing text messages coming into your phone.

You’ve got to love it!

~ April