

Texting SMS pioneer Matti Makkonen 20 years on - shill
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20555620?1=1

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pdog
Given the amount of research they put into determining the 160 character
limit[1], it's disappointing that Twitter had to limit themselves to 140
characters (to allow for usernames).

[1] -
[http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2009/05/invented-...](http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2009/05/invented-
text-messaging.html)

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DHowett
I believe Twitter had to restrict status updates to 140 characters not due to
usernames but instead due to the fact that SMS messages are 160 septets (1120
bits, or 140 8-bit characters) not 160 8-bit characters.

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seiji
That's an extremely fancy way of saying SMS was created with a focus on 7-bit
characters.

