Those 3 Little Dots

What is it about the magic of those three little dancing dots? You know the ones I mean.

I’ve been watching Ted Lasso (highly recommend) and there’s a whole story arc about two people chatting in a dating app. Each of them, sometimes alone, sometimes with their friends, are seen staring at those little dancing dots. Each waiting to see if there will be romance and adventure in their future.

The anticipation of what words will appear while we watch those dots is often filled with hope and sometimes dread. Either way the waiting can be agonizing. It feels a little Pavlovian how those dots immediately trigger anticipation or anxiety.

I know that not everyone has the internet or a phone or computer so saying this fascination with these dancing dots is universal is a gross overstatement. However, enough people feel it and wonder about it that there are many articles written about it. Yes, I went and looked.

It’s called the “typing awareness indicator” and, apparently, there are complex rules about how it works depending on the app you are using. For instance, if the dots disappear, it doesn’t necessarily mean the person has stopped typing. They could just be taking too long. But also the reverse can be true, sometimes.

Whatever the rules, we’ve learned to react to them. And I know it’s not just me because if it were there wouldn’t be entire scenes in a hit show dedicated to the waiting for those dots to change into words.

Here’s to hoping that all your dancing dots fill you with happy anticipation.

Be well my friends.