Until Google Makes Texting Goggles, Too

We've all seen it happen; it's tragic, really. You or a friend has scoured the scene and finally found Mr. or Ms. Right. The pair's burgeoning relationship falls flat on its face as a result of--you guessed it--overzealous or just plain wrong texting.

To try and remedy the love lives of its textually-challenged customers, AT&T brought in a "love expert" to create "Textiquette," a set of rules to govern those virtual sweet nothings. Watch AT&T's instructional video, "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Texts" here, and check out UTB's additional texting rules after the jump.

1. If you wouldn't say it in person, don't say it in a text. This applies to bold declarations of love, the calling-out of personality flaws, and racy suggestions. Not only are you likely to freak out your love interest, but you also run the risk of him or her showing the text to others. Trust us, your new boy toy's friends do not need to know exactly what you want to do in the stacks.

2. Overeager = bad. We're not advocating being standoffish or ignoring texts (a major no-no), but do let a little time pass in between texts. Similarly, there's no need to send multiple texts in a row during an exchange. What you're saying should be concise enough to fit in one text. (Special note for you Blackberry owners out there: Yes, we know, you BBM instead of texting. Don't badger your significant other via BBM; these rules still apply to you, even though you're too cool to text.)

3. Limit abbrevs. If you speak in one acronym after another, or shorten words excessively, the recipient of your texts isn't going to understand you. Pretty simple.

4. Don't keep tabs. If you've managed to get into a relationship with the object of your textual affections, don't use your cell as a tracking device. A short, simple "thinking of you" text every now and then is fine; constant "where are you?!?" texts aren't. You'd hate it if it were done to you (we hope), so don't do it yourself.

Do you have any additions to our list? Leave a comment!