Tweeting, texting render avid users 'present yet absent' - USATODAY.com

Fran Stover sent out an electronic "It's a boy!" birth announcement, complete with picture, when she upgraded to a burgundy BlackJack II from Samsung in March. She nicknamed "him" Jack. When she knew she wouldn't have access to him for a spell, she worried about hurting his feelings and wondered if she should hire a babysitter.

Lucy Hackman flew to Bermuda last month for a wedding. On her way to the hotel, she fixed her attention not on the miles of ocean outside her taxi window but on the tiny window of her BlackBerry...