Unspoken rules governing cell phone use manners

It may not seem like it when the public transport passengers yell while talking on the phone, despite the annoyance of people around, but most Americans believe that there are unwritten rules of etiquette on the use of cell phones.

Check emails, send text messages and make phone calls when you're with other people are certainly a lack of "manners with the phone.

Also write messages on a date is strictly prohibited.

However, most respondents in an online poll said it would not be offended if they received a thank you note electronic card instead of writing, and 75 percent said it had no objection to the use of laptops or cell phones in the bathroom.

"The label is first and foremost a question of conscience," said writer and protocol expert Anna Post, who nevertheless described the results of the survey by Harris Interactive for Intel as "quite startling statistics.

The 62 per cent of 2625 adults who participated in the survey were in agreement in that cell, laptops and other electronic devices are part of everyday life.

The 55 percent also believed that the demands of businesses make people have to be connected, even if that means take the laptop on vacation or answer the phone during a meal.

But despite that need, and general acceptance towards the technology, people became more sensitive about the uses of these devices on holidays and during religious activities.

Almost 90 percent of Americans believe that using the cell phone during a religious ceremony is unacceptable, and 30 percent admitted they would feel offended if you receive an email indicating a desired gift.

But more than half expressed its intention to send electronic greeting cards instead of traditional ones.

"There are matters of common sense," said Dr. Genevieve Bell, an ethnographer and director of User Experience Group at Intel, adding that the social rules of when and how to use appropriate technology are still forming.

Furthermore, the label on electronic devices is different in different parts of the world.

For his part, Post believes that the tag technology will become more important over time, especially in traditional meetings, to be more difficult to determine what is appropriate and what is not.

However, the limit placed on the cards of thanks.

"I stand by the written thank you note," he said.