How to Send SMS Messages from a Computer / PC?

In general, there are two ways to send SMS messages from a computer / PC to a mobile phone:

1. Connect a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem to a computer / PC. Then use the computer / PC and AT commands to instruct the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem to send SMS messages.


2. Connect the computer / PC to the SMS center (SMSC) or SMS gateway of a wireless carrier or SMS service provider. Then send SMS messages using a protocol / interface supported by the SMSC or SMS gateway.
   If you do not want to develop SMS software or applications but just want to use your computer / PC to send text messages, you may want to read our Quick Guide for Non-Developers.
   The 1st Way: Sending SMS Messages from a Computer Using a Mobile Phone or GSM/GPRS Modem
   The SMS specification has defined a way for a computer to send SMS messages through a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem. A GSM/GPRS modem is a wireless modem that works with GSM/GPRS wireless networks. A wireless modem is similar to a dial-up modem. The main difference is that a wireless modem transmits data through a wireless network whereas a dial-up modem transmits data through a copper telephone line. More information about GSM/GPRS modems will be provided in the section "Introduction to GSM / GPRS Wireless Modems". Most mobile phones can be used as a wireless modem. However, some mobile phones have certain limitations comparing to GSM/GPRS modems. This will be discussed in the section "Which is Better: Mobile Phone or GSM / GPRS Modem" later.
   To send SMS messages, first place a valid SIM card from a wireless carrier into a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem, which is then connected to a computer. There are several ways to connect a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem to a computer. For example, they can be connected through a serial cable, a USB cable, a Bluetooth link or an infrared link. The actual way to use depends on the capability of the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem. For example, if a mobile phone does not support Bluetooth, it cannot connect to the computer through a Bluetooth link.
   After connecting a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem to a computer, you can control the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem by sending instructions to it. The instructions used for controlling the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem are called AT commands. (AT commands are also used to control dial-up modems for wired telephone system.) Dial-up modems, mobile phones and GSM/GPRS modems support a common set of standard AT commands. In addition to this common set of standard AT commands, mobile phones and GSM/GPRS modems support an extended set of AT commands. One use of the extended AT commands is to control the sending and receiving of SMS messages.
   The following table lists the AT commands that are related to the writing and sending of SMS messages:
   AT command
   Meaning
   +CMGS
   Send message
   +CMSS
   Send message from storage
   +CMGW
   Write message to memory
   +CMGD
   Delete message
   +CMGC
   Send command
   +CMMS
   More messages to send
   One way to send AT commands to a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem is to use a terminal program. A terminal program's function is like this: It sends the characters you typed to the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem. It then displays the response it receives from the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem on the screen. The terminal program on Microsoft Windows is called HyperTerminal. More details about the use of Microsoft HyperTerminal can be found in the "How to Use Microsoft HyperTerminal to Send AT Commands to a Mobile Phone or GSM/GPRS Modem" section of this SMS tutorial.
   Below shows a simple example that demonstrates how to use AT commands and the HyperTerminal program of Microsoft Windows to send an SMS text message. The lines in bold type are the command lines that should be entered in HyperTerminal. The other lines are responses returned from the GSM / GPRS modem or mobile phone.
   ATOKAT+CMGF=1OKAT+CMGW="+85291234567"> A simple demo of SMS text messaging.+CMGW: 1OKAT+CMSS=1+CMSS: 20OK
   Here is a description of what is done in the above example:
   Line 1: "AT" is sent to the GSM / GPRS modem to test the connection. The GSM / GPRS modem sends back the result code "OK" (line 2), which means the connection between the HyperTerminal program and the GSM / GPRS modem works fine.
   Line 3: The AT command +CMGF is used to instruct the GSM / GPRS modem to operate in SMS text mode. The result code "OK" is returned (line 4), which indicates the command line "AT+CMGF=1" has been executed successfully. If the result code "ERROR" is returned, it is likely that the GSM / GPRS modem does not support the SMS text mode. To confirm, type "AT+CMGF=?" in the HyperTerminal program. If the response is "+CMGF: (0,1)" (0=PDU mode and 1=text mode), then SMS text mode is supported. If the response is "+CMGF: (0)", then SMS text mode is not supported.
   Line 5 and 6: The AT command +CMGW is used to write an SMS text message to the message storage of the GSM / GPRS modem. "+85291234567" is the recipient mobile phone number. After typing the recipient mobile phone number, you should press the Enter button of the keyboard. The GSM / GPRS modem will then return a prompt "> " and you can start typing the SMS text message "A simple demo of SMS text messaging.". When finished, press Ctrl+z of the keyboard.
   Line 7: "+CMGW: 1" tells us that the index assigned to the SMS text message is 1. It indicates the location of the SMS text message in the message storage.
   Line 9: The result code "OK" indicates the execution of the AT command +CMGW is successful.
   Line 10: The AT command +CMSS is used to send the SMS text message from the message storage of the GSM / GPRS modem. "1" is the index of the SMS text message obtained from line 7.
   Line 11: "+CMSS: 20" tells us that the reference number assigned to the SMS text message is 20.
   Line 13: The result code "OK" indicates the execution of the AT command +CMSS is successful.
   To send SMS messages from an application, you have to write the source code for connecting to and sending AT commands to the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem, just like what a terminal program does. You can write the source code in C, C++, Java, Visual Basic, Delphi or other programming languages you like. However, writing your own code has a few disadvantages:
   You have to learn how to use AT commands.
   You have to learn how to compose the bits and bytes of an SMS message. For example, to specify the character encoding (e.g. 7-bit encoding and 16-bit Unicode encoding) of an SMS message, you need to know which bits in the message header should be modified and what value should be assigned.
   Sending SMS messages with a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem has a drawback -- the SMS transmission speed is low. As your SMS messaging application becomes more popular, it has to handle a larger amount of SMS traffic and finally the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem will not be able to take the load. To obtain a high SMS transmission speed, a direct connection to an SMSC or SMS gateway of a wireless carrier or SMS service provider is needed. However, AT commands are not used for communicating with an SMS center or SMS gateway. This means your have to make a big change to your SMS messaging application in order to move from a wireless-modem-based solution to a SMSC-based solution.
   In most cases, instead of writing your own code for interacting with the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem via AT commands, a better solution is to use a high-level SMS messaging API (Application programming interface) / SDK (Software development kit) / library. The API / SDK / library encapsulates the low-level details. So, an SMS application developer does not need to know AT commands and the composition of SMS messages in the bit-level. Some SMS messaging APIs / SDKs / libraries support SMSC protocols in addition to AT commands. To move from a wireless-modem-based SMS solution to a SMSC-based SMS solution, usually you just need to modify a configuration file / property file or make a few changes to your SMS messaging application's source code.
   
   The links to some open source and free SMS messaging libraries can be found in the article "Free Libraries/Tools for Sending/Receiving SMS with a Computer".
   Another way to hide the low-level AT command layer is to place an SMS gateway between the SMS messaging application and the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem. (This has been described in the section "What is an SMS Gateway?" earlier.) Simple protocols such as HTTP / HTTPS can then be used for sending SMS messages in the application. If an SMSC protocol (e.g. SMPP, CIMD, etc) is used for communicating with the SMS gateway instead of HTTP / HTTPS, an SMS messaging API / SDK / library can be very helpful to you since it encapsulates the SMSC protocol's details.
   Usually a list of supported / unsupported mobile phones or wireless modems is provided on the web site of an SMS messaging API / SDK / library or an SMS gateway software package. Remember to check the list if you are going to use an SMS messaging API / SDK / library or an SMS gateway software package.
   Major Drawback of Sending SMS Messages through a Mobile Phone or GSM/GPRS Modem -- Low SMS Sending Rate
   Using a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem to send SMS messages has a major drawback, that is the SMS sending rate is too low. Only 6-10 SMS messages can be sent per minute (when the "SMS over GSM" mode is used). The performance is not affected by the connection between the computer and the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem (i.e. the SMS sending rate is about the same no matter the mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem is connected to the computer through a serial cable, USB cable, Bluetooth link or infrared link) and does not depend on whether a mobile phone or GSM/GPRS modem is used (i.e. the SMS sending rate is about the same no matter a mobile phone or a GSM/GPRS modem is used). The determining factor for the SMS sending rate is the wireless network.

How to download video to iPhone

If you are one of the many owners of the very new iPhone in Canada, then you would surely want to know how to download music to iPhone. It is completely understandable to want to know how to do this in a relatively cheaper way. The usual rate for each song downloaded onto this latest gadget is at $0.99. This is pretty low, if you are just out to download a couple of songs. But who wants to download just a couple of songs, right?Surely you are out to get as many songs as allowed by your budget. And getting two albums' worth of songs can easily consume any person's allotted budget! So, is there a relatively cheaper method of getting these songs legally?There are actually three methods to do this.

When you want to download music to iPhone In Canada, you can keep in mind these three methods. The first is to visit websites that offer this particular service for free. There are so many website that you can find on the Internet that offers this service for free. But you have to bear in mind that there can be problems when you make use of this service.Since there are many people using these websites simultaneously, downloading can be very slow because of the strain their servers would be placed upon. The platforms for these sites are not that safe as well, so your system can be prone to all kinds of threats found on the web.Another cheaper method to download music to iPhone is via mainstream services. These services include HMV and iTunes. Mainstream services actually impose a charge for each download. The great thing about these music libraries is that they are very extensive. In fact, you can easily find more than a million songs in these libraries! What's more, these music files boast of superb audio quality.

The last method is to make use of what is known as a paid membership service. Just like iTunes and HMV, these music libraries are very extensive as well. A one-time membership fee is placed upon its members, which is roughly $49.99. However, after you pay this fee, you can now download as many music files as you want. What's more, the platforms for these sites offering paid membership services provide you high-end protection from computer viruses, malware, adware, and spyware.With these many cheaper methods to download music available, any iPhone user can certainly save much money in getting the hottest and latest songs in the industry! Go ahead and try any of these methods to download music to your Canada iPhone now!.(By:sakvoyaj)

Cell Phones' Working

Cell phones or cellular phones are so called as they cover compartmentalized, cell like areas. The origin of the Cell phone can be traced back to the year 1973 when Motorola came up with World`s first cellular portable telephone which was commercialised as Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. These days, new cell phones are being added at a rapid pace. The parts of them typically consist of following: circuit board; antenna; keyboard; LCD - liquid crystal display; battery; microphone; speaker. In recent times, they are available with a wide range of functions.

To list a few functions, depending on the type of cell phone you choose: store contact information; keep track of appointments; set reminders; prepare to-do lists; send/receive e-mail; play games; send text messages (sms); access to internet; watch and enjoy TV; built-in calculator; integration with other devices like GPS receivers, MP3 players, etc. Cell phones, operating on radio frequency, have come up with an innovative cellular approach to counter limited availability of RF spectrum. Now, several cell phone towers are used to cater to a large geographic area. Each tower (base station), covers a circular area called a cell. A large region is split into a number of cells allowing different base stations to use the same channels/frequencies for communication. This enables thousands and thousands of mobile telephone users to share far fewer channels.

Another important aspect is that, phones need less power to transmit to reach any base station as each base station covers a smaller area. Reducing the required transmit power reduces the size of the battery and thereby the weight of the phone. This has led to miniaturization of cell phones which would not have been possible without the cellular technology.When you use your cell phone, following things happen. First the phone locates base station having strongest signal, and requests for a channel assignment. The base station permits channel assignment and the call gets accepted. The call is then forwarded to the local telephone network if it is to a regular phone otherwise it is transmitted through the cellular network. The call is then sent to its destination through the telephone network. When the cell phone is switched on, SID (System Identification Code) on the control channel compares it to the SID programmed into the phone. If the SIDs match, the phone understands that the cell is communicating with home system. The phone sends a registration request, along with the SID and the MTSO keeps track of the phone`s location in a database. If the SID on the control channel does not match the SID of your phone, then the phone is in roaming.

The three technologies commonly used by 2G cell phone networks for transmitting information: frequency division multiple access (FDMA); time division multiple access (TDMA); code division multiple access (CDMA).GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) implements TDMA, to connect to the specific service providers in different countries. GSM uses subscriber identification module (SIM). SIM stores all the connection data/identification numbers needed to access a particular wireless service provider. Standard 2.5G protocols used widely are GPRS, EDGE to name a few. Some latest 3G protocols are: Universal Mobile Telecommunication Service (UMTS); Wideband Code-Division Multiple Access (WCDMA); High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA); Evolution Data Maximized (EVDO).A few popular cell phone models in the market have been offered by Nokia, Ericsson, Motorola, Samsung, LG, etc. with each model with its own range of collections.The year 2008 may be a high watermark in the cell phone history with Nokia N-Gage 2, HTC Dream, Apple iPhone 2, BlackBerry Touchscreen, Sony PlayStation Phone which are expected to be launched.