Part of Twitter's beauty is that you can send and receive messages from your desktop and from your mobile phone—meaning Twitter goes where you go. Many people find that because their status changes a lot when they're out and about, SMS updates on the phone are a natural fit.
To set up your phone for sending, head to Settings → Devices and type in your phone number. If you want to receive messages on your phone, too, make sure you select the little box for this option. Your mobile carrier will charge you standard text-messaging rates for Twitter updates, so keep an eye on volume. (As we describe in Chapter 5, you can specify which of your followees' messages you get on your phone.)
To post a message from your phone in the US, use the code 40404. In Canada, use 21212. In the UK, Vodafone users can text to the local UK Vodafone short code 86444; people on all other UK carriers should use +44 7624 801423. In Sweden, use: +46 737 494222. In Germany, use +49 17 6888 50505. Anywhere else, use +44 7624 801423.
To help make your phone use more efficient, Twitter has created a handful of commands you can use. Those shown here are from the Twitter help pages. For a complete list, head to http://help.twitter.com → Getting Started → The Official Twitter Text Commands.
Of course, if you use an iPhone or BlackBerry, you can skip the SMS geekery by using one of the sleek mobile Twitter clients described in Chapter 2. Not only are they easier and more fun, they also save you SMS charges.
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