Understanding GSM Character Set

Understanding GSM Character Set SearchSearch
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Shumie
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, October 31, 2003 - 08:46 pm:   

I used a PHP-script as descript in: http://support.nowsms.com/discus/messages/1/867.html

I'm sending this text:
Handelsruim TH
Sint-Nicloaaspla
Antwerpen
Opp.: 400 m²
1.500,00 €
03 223 55 64
ocmw-antw.tehuur-tekoop.net
-> BFGG-17

If I do strlen() I get the result of 117.
(This text is 117 characters long.)
But NowSMS is sending it over 2 SMSes and.
The € (Euro) sign isn't converted correctly.
Please can you give somme support.

Kind regards,
Karel Mertens
Bryce Norwood - NowSMS Support
Board Administrator
Username: Bryce

Post Number: 1022
Registered: 10-2002
Posted on Saturday, November 01, 2003 - 06:30 am:   

Hi Karel,

The superscript "²" character causes the message to be sent out using Unicode encoding.

If any characters are outside of the GSM character set (or extended GSM character set), then NowSMS automatically uses Unicode encoding to send the message out. The problem with Unicode encoding is that when it is used, all characters must be specified in Unicode format, and it has a limit of only 70 characters per SMS message.

The "Send text message" form in our web interface can be a good tool. The character counter will tell you if you are using Unicode characters or not.

Then there are some characters like the Euro character (€), plus {, }, [, ], ~, ^ and , which are part of the extended GSM character set, and they take up 2 characters if the message is not in Unicode format. (The character counter will show this. This is why the character counter will sometimes display a count longer than the string length.)

Here is the GSM 7-bit alphabet as defined in ETSI GSM 03.38. These characters can be used in a standard SMS message without requiring special encoding.

Hex0x1x2x3x4x5x6x7x
x0@ΔSP0¡P¿p
x1£_!1AQaq
x2$Φ"2BRbr
x3¥Γ#3CScs
x4èΛ¤4DTdt
x5éΩ%5EUeu
x6ùΠ&6FVfv
x7ìΨ'7GWgw
x8òΣ(8HXhx
x9ÇΘ)9IYiy
xALFΞ*:JZjz
xBØ1)+;KÄkä
xCøÆ,<LÖlö
xDCRæ-=MÑmñ
xEÅß.>NÜnü
xFåÉ/?O§oà


LF = line feed (0x0A)
CR = carriage return (0x0D)
SP = space character (0x20)
1) = Space holder for escape character. This character means that the character is from the GSM default alphabet extension table, and the extension code follows.

Here is the GSM 7-bit default alphabet extension table as defined in ETSI GSM 03.38. These characters can be used in a standard SMS message without requiring special encoding, but require 2 characters instead of 1.

Hex0x1x2x3x4x5x6x7x
x0    |   
x1        
x2        
x3        
x4 ^      
x5       
x6        
x7        
x8  }     
x9  {     
xA        
xB        
xC   [    
xD   ~    
xE   ]    
xF  \     



Of course, now that I go through all of the trouble of posting these character tables, I see that there is a bug in the current version of the gateway, and the handling of the Euro character.

When a Euro character is included in an SMS message, the current version of NowSMS is forcing the message to be sent in Unicode format, meaning only 70 characters per SMS message.

I sent you an update the gateway which fixes this problem. For anyone else who is experiencing this problem, if you have an urgent need, please e-mail nowsms@now.co.uk, otherwise this will be released shortly in a "patch 2" for the v5.0 release version. (The fix will also be included in versions after v5.0.)
kulwant
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, December 19, 2003 - 07:14 am:   

how to send SMS through e-mail?
Bryce Norwood - NowSMS Support
Board Administrator
Username: Bryce

Post Number: 1421
Registered: 10-2002
Posted on Friday, December 19, 2003 - 08:49 pm:   


quote:

how to send SMS through e-mail?




Without some sort of SMS connectivity (either through a service provider or a GSM modem), it is generally not possible.

The primary exception is in the USA, where most mobile operators have e-mail domains setup that allow you to send to phonenumber@operator.specific.domain.name.

The exception for the USA is that the SMS charging model is different there. In most of the world, the sender pays for SMS, and it is not possible to charge the sender if the sender is an e-mail address. In the USA, both sender and receiver pay, and the operators make an exception for e-mail to SMS, only charging the receiver.