ABSTRACT
As Evans (2013) notes, “The world is mobile!” and data he presents show that over 1,250 million smartphones and tablets were sold in 2013 (compared with just over 250 million desktop computers). These handheld devices run small programs, called apps, that are typically downloaded from online stores. There have been over 6 billion such downloads for the two principal operating systems: iOS and Android. Mobile devices, like desktop computers, when used online, can arguably be said to serve two functions: access to information resources and shortening distances between people. Over 50 social messaging apps have had more than a million downloads on Google Play, and over 14 billion messages are sent on WhatsApp a day (Evans, 2013).
