Changes

[[File:lighterstill.jpg]][[File:Letter.jpg|right|frame]]

[[File:lighterstill.jpg]][[File:Letter.jpg|right|frame]]

A '''letter''' is a written message from one [[person]] to another. The role of letters in [[communication]] has changed significantly since the [http://en.wikipedia.org/19thCentury 19th century]. Historically, letters (in [[paper]] form) were the only reliable means of communication between two persons in different locations.

A '''letter''' is a written message from one [[person]] to another. The role of letters in [[communication]] has changed significantly since the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/19th_Century 19th century]. Historically, letters (in [[paper]] form) were the only reliable means of communication between two persons in different locations.

As communication [[technology]] has diversified, posted letters have become less important as a routine form of communication; they however still remain but in a modified form. For example, the development of the telegraph shortened the time taken to send a letter by transferring the letter as an electrical [[signal]] (for example in [http://en.wikipedia.org/Morsecode Morse code]) between distant points. At the telegraph office closest to the destination for the letter, the signal was transferred back into a hard copy format and sent as a normal mail to the persons [[home]]. This allowed the normal speed of communication to be drastically shortened for larger and larger distances. This required specialized technicians to encode and decode the letter. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/Facsimile facsimile (fax)] [[machine]] took this one step farther and an entire letter could be completely transferred in electronic form from the sender's house to the receiver's home by means of the telephone [[network]] as an image.

As communication [[technology]] has diversified, posted letters have become less important as a routine form of communication; they however still remain but in a modified form. For example, the development of the telegraph shortened the time taken to send a letter by transferring the letter as an electrical [[signal]] (for example in [https://en.wikipedia.org/Morsecode Morse code]) between distant points. At the telegraph office closest to the destination for the letter, the signal was transferred back into a hard copy format and sent as a normal mail to the persons [[home]]. This allowed the normal speed of communication to be drastically shortened for larger and larger distances. This required specialized technicians to encode and decode the letter. The [https://en.wikipedia.org/Facsimile facsimile (fax)] [[machine]] took this one step farther and an entire letter could be completely transferred in electronic form from the sender's house to the receiver's home by means of the telephone [[network]] as an image.

Today, the [[Internet]] has become the predominant [[medium]] for sending letters. The term e-mail, meaning electronic mail, has entered into everyday [[speech]]. By [[analogy]], the term letter is sometimes used for e-mail messages with a [[formal]] letter-like format. Historically, letters exist from the [[time]] of ancient India, ancient Egypt and Sumer, through [[Rome]], [[Greece]] and China, up to the present day. Letters make up several of the [[books]] of the [[Bible]]. [[Archive]]s of correspondence, whether for [[personal]], [[Government|diplomatic]], or [[business]] reasons, serve as primary sources for historians.

Today, the [[Internet]] has become the predominant [[medium]] for sending letters. The term e-mail, meaning electronic mail, has entered into everyday [[speech]]. By [[analogy]], the term letter is sometimes used for e-mail messages with a [[formal]] letter-like format. Historically, letters exist from the [[time]] of ancient India, ancient Egypt and Sumer, through [[Rome]], [[Greek|Greece]] and China, up to the present day. Letters make up several of the [[books]] of the [[Bible]]. [[Archive]]s of correspondence, whether for [[personal]], [[Government|diplomatic]], or [[business]] reasons, serve as primary sources for historians.

[[Category: General Reference]]

[[Category: General Reference]]

[[Category: Languages and Literature]]

[[Category: Languages and Literature]]