Ranked No. 8 in Apple Inc.’s iOS App Store, Snapchat has become quite a phenomenon. Snapchat is an application for Apple’s iOS devices and Google Inc.’s Android devices for sending pictures and videos along with short text messages.
The Snapchat user begins by taking a photo or short video clip. They are then able to add a short message, or draw across the photo or video. Snapchat makes itself stand out from other applications by featuring a sender designated viewing time. After designating their photo or video to be viewed from anywhere from one to 10 seconds, they choose who they want to send it to.
“It makes texting more fun,” said Meghan M. Geoghegan, senior liberal studies major at California Baptist University.
Geoghegan first learned of Snapchat through students in the Cottages she oversees as a resident assistant. She said she mainly uses Snapchat to send silly pictures to her best friends.
“It’s pointless but fun, nonetheless,” Geoghegan said.
When viewers receive a photo or video within the application, they are only able to see it for the amount of time the sender has allowed. Once the time has expired, the file disappears forever.
Users are able to screenshot the photos to save them to their device, but Snapchat alerts the sender that someone sneakily saved an embarrassing photo or video.
Candace S. Berg, senior liberal studies major, said that she probably uses Snapchat two to three times a week,
“I like taking silly photos and sending them to people, and making them laugh,” Berg said.
Berg said she likes to Snapchat close friends. Her advice to Snapchat users is not to make an ugly face because friends will take screenshots.
“(Snapchat is) the newest trending app … unless there’s a new one I don’t know about,” Geoghegan said.
Snapchat opens up a window for friends to withhold more embarrassing photos of each other, and it sheds a new light on using photographs or videos to take place of simple SMS, or Short Message Service.
