Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, along with chief engineer Andrew Bosworth, last week announced a new Facebook messaging service that some predicted would be a “Gmail killer.” But Zuckerberg made it clear that the service is not designed to “kill” e-mail, though he did imply that e-mail may be in its waning years. High school students, he noted, increasingly shun e-mail in favor of instant messaging and sending messages via Facebook.

“We don’t think that a modern messaging system is going to be e-mail,” he said.

The idea behind Facebook’s messaging system — which is being rolled out gradually to a few thousand users at a time over the next few months — is to aggregate e-mail, chat messages, some text messages and Facebook messages in a single mailbox that you can access on the service or through your existing e-mail inbox.

Those in attendance at the announcement, as well as other journalists, were given early access to the service. So I now have a new e-mail address that ends in @facebook.com. And if anyone sends an e-mail message to that address, I can read it in the messaging area on my Facebook account. There are even ways to get text messages delivered to you on Facebook.

You can also configure Facebook to deliver a copy of those messages to another e-mail account, which you can also use to respond to Facebook messages. Facebook doesn’t directly offer a way to view your regular e-mail (such as a Gmail or Yahoo account) on Facebook, but I was able to accomplish that by configuring Gmail to automatically forward a copy of all incoming mail to my new Facebook e-mail address.

Although there are ways to use the messaging service without being logged into your Facebook account, it’s nevertheless a potential moneymaker for Facebook. That’s because most people are likely to read and send messages from within their account, which means they’ll be spending more time on the service and having more exposure to Facebook’s advertising. A Facebook representative told me that the company does not plan to display advertising based on the content of messages, as Google does inside Gmail messages.

Beyond the advantages for the company, there are some interesting benefits — and perhaps some drawbacks — for users. One benefit is that you don’t have to check multiple sources for messages.

Another advantage of the system is that it’s easier to control spam and messages from people who are lower on your priority list than your Facebook friends.

Another feature, which could be seen as an advantage or drawback, is that all your interactions with each person are consolidated into a single stream or thread.

For example, if my wife and I were to exchange messages, all of my notes to her and her replies to me would be in a single long “exchange,” not unlike Gmail’s “conversation” e-mail view. But there is a difference. Gmail by default links messages based on subject line. If my wife were to send me a message with a new subject line — say, “please pick me up at the airport” — that e-mail would be in its own thread with its own subject line. But Facebook is lumping all messages between you and each of your friends into a single thread with no separate subject lines.

That might be great for love letters, but it’s not going to work for business correspondence, especially between colleagues who exchange a lot of e-mail. In some situations, subject lines can be critically important.

Another problem with the messaging system is that it’s not really a consolidated inbox. There are no simple ways to get all of your text messages delivered to Facebook, and unless you forward your mail from another service or only give out your Facebook e-mail address, you’re still going to have to check your other e-mail accounts along with your Facebook account.

But my big question is whether Zuckerberg is right when he supposes that young people are likely to permanently adapt to alternatives to traditional e-mail. While it’s true that kids are developing some new habits that will last a lifetime, it has always been the case that some teen habits change as they get older, especially as they enter the work force.

I live in an area of Palo Alto with really bad AT&T cellular service, which is a problem because my daughter’s iPhone gets spotty coverage and because I sometimes review cell phones and other devices that run on the AT&T network and have to test them elsewhere to get a strong signal.

So, like some of my neighbors, I was initially pleased when I heard that AT&T was planning to build a cell tower somewhere near my home. Until, that is, my wife informed me that it might be in the form of a 75-foot-tall fake tree just behind our backyard.

It turns out that the nonprofit Eichler Swim and Tennis Club, which is just across a narrow creek from our yard, had agreed to let AT&T erect the tower in exchange for $20,000 a year, which comes to $67 for each of its 300 members.

Based on the plans we’ve seen, it would dominate the view from our bedroom and backyard. My wife Patti is up in arms and so are several of our neighbors.

They’re not alone. Faced with the prospect of a fake tree looming over our back fence, I’ve become a “NIMBY.”

Short for “not in my backyard,” NIMBYs are people who want the benefits of some type of facility — like power plants, garbage dumps or cell towers — but want them located in someone else’s backyard. I’ve always thought of NIMBYs as a bit selfish. Vital facilities have to be placed somewhere, and why should certain people get to avoid having them in their neighborhood just because

But in this case, there’s no need to put the cell tower in any residential neighborhood. There are commercial and light industrial areas close enough to provide excellent coverage that are not in the immediate vicinity of homes or schools.

We’re former members of the Eichler club and have always considered it a welcome part of our neighborhood. When we moved here, we knew we would hear the sounds of families swimming and playing tennis and we were OK with that. We even gladly put up with noisy early morning swim meets and occasional cars parked in front of our house because we support family recreation.

But when the city issued a use permit for the facility back in 1958, it was for recreational use between the hours of 7 a.m. and 11 p.m., not for transmitting radio signals 24 hours a day. In 1960, the city ruled that the club’s swimming pool couldn’t be used by a private swim instructor because that “commercial enterprise” violated its use permit. If it’s not OK for a “commercial” swimming teacher to give lessons in the nonprofit club’s pool, why would it be OK for a giant corporation to erect a cell tower on its grounds?

Unlike some of my neighbors, who fear the electromagnetic field generated by a cell tower, I’m not convinced that living near one is dangerous to people’s health. But several people in the area have expressed concern that the tower would be less than 600 feet from Palo Verde Elementary School. They worry that the electromagnetic radiation from the antenna could have long-term negative effects on the health of the school children and nearby residents, and point to studies that suggest such dangers.

A neighborhood website, www.StopFakeTree.org, links to articles suggesting that living near a cell tower can cause sleep disturbances, headaches, difficulty concentrating, depression, memory loss, irritability, skin problems and dizziness.

The Federal Communications Commission’s website disputes that evidence, saying “there is no reason to believe that such towers could constitute a potential health hazard to nearby residents or students.” And a 2002 report from the World Health Organization states that “exposure is far higher for mobile phone users than for those living near cellular base stations.” However, it points out that “base stations are continuously transmitting signals,” so people who live nearby are getting low levels of exposure 24 hours a day.

Even though I’m not prepared to argue that the tower would be dangerous, it seems to me it would be better not to have one in the middle of a residential neighborhood, especially if there are other nearby suitable locations.

Health issues aside, there are other reasons to object to the erection of a tall fake tree in a residential neighborhood. A 75-foot-tall tower (or maybe 65 feet, depending on interpretation of local ordinances) would be an eyesore, and that’s reason enough to complain.

Of course, it could be argued that a 75-foot-tall fake tree fits in perfectly with the spirit of a city whose name in Spanish means “Tall Tree.” If they do build the tower, maybe the city should be renamed “Palo Falso.”

Like most people, I never leave the house without my keys, my wallet and, of course, my cell phone. But soon it may be possible to leave the keys and wallet behind.

The cell phone — especially smart phones like the iPhone, Google Android phones and the Blackberry, are rapidly evolving into multi-function devices that will do tasks that used to require other objects.

For example, Assa Abloy AB, which the Associated Press calls the world’s largest maker of door locks, is working with a Swedish hotel to enable people to use their mobile phones to open hotel doors. Using a radio technology called Near Field Communication; the phone is able to send out a signal to a radio-equipped door lock to let the guest into the room.

The technology should make it easier for guests to check in (you could check in online before you leave and just walk write to the room, skipping the front desk) and can provide additional security for the hotel because it would be easy to cancel access if necessary. It can also cut down on the use of those little plastic card keys which I have a tendency to lose.

But letting people into a hotel room is just one of many possible uses of a cell phone. Already there are ways to use an iPhone to replace a TV remote for users of Apple TV and the same is true with an Android phone and Google TV.

On 2010 General Motors vehicles, the company’s OnStar service is allowing iPhone and Android owners to use their phones to remotely lock and unlock their cars, start their car remotely, activate the horn and lights to help locate the vehicle and of course, contact an OnStar Advisor, roadside assistance or a GM dealer. You can even use the app to check your tire pressure, number of miles till your next oil change and how many gallons of gas you have left in the tank.

In addition to getting into a car or hotel room, you can also use your phone instead of a house key. Schlage’s LiNK line of home locks include models that you can open or lock via a cell phone or the web.

Cell phones are also now being used as medical devices. Lifescan, which makes blood glucose monitors, how offers an iPhone App that works with a monitor to allow your phone to track your blood sugar and notify your doctor if there is an issue. There are other apps that can check your pulse and one company has introduced a Blackberry application for EKGs.

In addition to leaving your keys at  home, you’ll soon be able to use a cell phone to replace your wallet. Redwood City-based Obopay has technology to enable cell phone users to send and receive money electronically. In addition to its domestic market, the company has operations in Africa and India where a substantial portion of the population is “unbanked” and therefore handicapped in their ability to engage in commerce. Even though there may be relatively few banks in parts of these regions, there are plenty of cell phones which have the capability to allow their users to exchange funds.

Last month Squareup.com introduced a service that allows anyone with an iPhone or Android phone to accept credit card payments. The company has a small plug-in device that attaches to the phone to allow you to swipe cards from wherever you are. The person receiving the funds pays 2.75 of the transaction cost plus a 15 cent service charge.

The service also works if you can’t swipe the card but at a slightly higher (3.5 percent) cost. It takes only a few minutes to set up an account and you can begin charging credit cards right away as you wait for the company to send the scanning device for swiping cards.

If you think about the characteristics of a cell phone, just about anything is possible. You can a unique device that you carry (like an ATM card) and a way to enter a secret code (like an ATM pin number) as well as a screen and a keyboard. Add the fact that cell phones are in constant communications with the Internet and the possibilities are almost endless.

Like most people, I never leave the house without my keys, my wallet and, of course, my cell phone. But soon it may be possible to leave the keys and wallet behind.

The cell phone — especially smart phones like the iPhone, Google Android phones and the Blackberry, are rapidly evolving into multi-function devices that will do tasks that used to require other objects.

For example, Assa Abloy AB, which the Associated Press calls the world’s largest maker of door locks, is working with a Swedish hotel to enable people to use their mobile phones to open hotel doors. Using a radio technology called Near Field Communication; the phone is able to send out a signal to a radio-equipped door lock to let the guest into the room.

The technology should make it easier for guests to check in (you could check in online before you leave and just walk write to the room, skipping the front desk) and can provide additional security for the hotel because it would be easy to cancel access if necessary. It can also cut down on the use of those little plastic card keys which I have a tendency to lose.

But letting people into a hotel room is just one of many possible uses of a cell phone. Already there are ways to use an iPhone to replace a TV remote for users of Apple TV and the same is true with an Android phone and Google TV.

On 2010 General Motors vehicles, the company’s OnStar service is allowing iPhone and Android owners to use their phones to remotely lock and unlock their cars, start their car remotely, activate the horn and lights to help locate the vehicle and of course, contact an OnStar Advisor, roadside assistance or a GM dealer. You can even use the app to check your tire pressure, number of miles till your next oil change and how many gallons of gas you have left in the tank.

In addition to getting into a car or hotel room, you can also use your phone instead of a house key. Schlage’s LiNK line of home locks include models that you can open or lock via a cell phone or the web.

Cell phones are also now being used as medical devices. Lifescan, which makes blood glucose monitors, how offers an iPhone App that works with a monitor to allow your phone to track your blood sugar and notify your doctor if there is an issue. There are other apps that can check your pulse and one company has introduced a Blackberry application for EKGs.

In addition to leaving your keys and home, you’ll soon be able to use a cell phone to replace your wallet. Redwood City-based Obopay has technology to enable cell phone users to send and receive money electronically. In addition to its domestic market, the company has operations in Africa and India where a substantial portion of the population is “unbanked” and therefore handicapped in their ability to engage in commerce. Even though there may be relatively few banks in parts of these regions, there are plenty of cell phones which have the capability to allow their users to exchange funds.

Last month Squareup.com introduced a service that allows anyone with an iPhone or Android phone to accept credit card payments. The company has a small plug-in device that attaches to the phone to allow you to swipe cards from wherever you are. The person receiving the funds pays 2.75 of the transaction cost plus a 15 cent service charge.

The service also works if you can’t swipe the card but at a slightly higher (3.5 percent) cost. It takes only a few minutes to set up an account and you can begin charging credit cards right away as you wait for the company to send the scanning device for swiping cards.

If you think about the characteristics of a cell phone, just about anything is possible. You can a unique device that you carry (like an ATM card) and a way to enter a secret code (like an ATM pin number) as well as a screen and a keyboard. Add the fact that cell phones are in constant communications with the Internet and the possibilities are almost endless.