Using Technology To Stay in Touch When Out of The Country

Using Technology To Stay in Touch When Out of The Country
DJ Miller
2/12/2015
Updated:
4/23/2016

There was a time when writing letters was the most viable way to stay in touch when a loved one was out of the country. This is because phone calls were very expensive and the internet had not existed as of yet. Now with the advent of many different technologies and programs, staying in touch is one of the easier things to do with just a couple clicks of a mouse or swipes on a phone screen. Here are some of the easiest ways to stay in touch while abroad.

Skype

Downloading Skype is essential if you or a loved one is out of the country for any reason. Not only can you instant message with a loved one but you can also video chat with them. There are many versions of Skype that are free and that are used by various people and even businesses. Skype has made telecommuting much easier as someone can be brought into an important meeting via video call so they don’t miss out on anything while abroad. The hardest part of using Skype is trying to figure out the time difference of the person that you are trying to contact and whether they will be awake.

Facebook

Facebook is a great way to stay in touch whether you are out of the country or just across the country. Staying up to date on your loved ones lives is easy if they are active on this social media platform. The instant messaging feature is great if you are busy on the computer and cannot direct all of your attention to the conversation or cannot talk on the phone. This is also great if you have a relative who is not great at communicating via phone or text because commenting on a Facebook wall usually at least garners a like.

Twitter

Many families and friends watch TV shows together pretty frequently and this is a great thing to bond over. Twitter is a great way to have a real time commentating on a show between two people. The instant quality and easy of the short messages used make Twitter perfect for this. Keeping up with the interests of a loved one is very easy via Twitter because many people retweet things that interest them or that they can relate to.

Instagram

Although these are only pictures with captions, Instagram is a great way to see what cool things that a loved one or a business partner has been doing. This is also a great way to stay up to date with what people you don’t know are up to including many celebrities that frequent this social media outlet.

As you can see, the days of waiting for letters is over and the days of instant contact are here! These are not all of the ways that you can stay in contact but they are definitely a great place to start. Don’t lose touch because now there really isn’t an excuse to not stay in touch.

DJ Miller is a graduate student at the University of Tampa. He's an avid gadget geek and spends most of his time reading or writing. He is a huge fantasy sports fan and even runs his own advice site for Fantasy Help.
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