when I started visiting this site almost 8 years ago this was the kind of content I wanted (and expected) to see more of. tbh it's been a little disappointing how silicon valley tech industry everything has been focused.
Rotary Cellphone
101–110 of 172 posts
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#102European Union recommended emergency number is "112". Because you can morse it with the hook or even by short-circuitin the wires. This is also why the pulse-dialing receiver is operational in most EU countries.
There are so many of them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_emergency_telephone_nu... In Europe many of them are variations of 1XX, but since there are so many and sometimes they change too, it's not trivial to remember which one. The American 911 is more memorable, even in Europe, simply due to it appearing in popular culture so often, I hope that if someone dials that one in Europe it'll also get forwarded to…
112 is the GSM standard, and works in countries all over the world: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/112_(emergency_telephone_numbe...
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#103Earlier quoted context omitted.
There are so many of them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_emergency_telephone_nu... In Europe many of them are variations of 1XX, but since there are so many and sometimes they change too, it's not trivial to remember which one. The American 911 is more memorable, even in Europe, simply due to it appearing in popular culture so often, I hope that if someone dials that one in Europe it'll also get forwarded to…
It's almost as if Europe is not a country. Just like the US, every country in has its own emergency numbers that you should probably know if you're in that country, but for Europe as a whole, 112 is the universal emergency number. And while 911 might be known to many outside the US, as a number that requires actually navigating the dialing pad, it's not all that great. The UK's 999 or Europe's 112 are far better at b…
It is a trade off though. I’m sure “911” is no accident either. Because it is slightly harder to dial, it probably has far less accidental dialings than some other countries emergency numbers.
I bet little kids would constantly pick up a phone and dial “999999999”.... harder to mistakenly / playfully dial “911”
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#104The problem with the "retro" telephone ring sound that so many modern phones have built in is that it just doesn't resonate and echo and slowly decay over time like a real phone ring. It would be cool to code up a physical ring simulator that reproduces that sound properly, and responds to the accelerometer, especially when you drop it or hang up on somebody by slamming it down. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxXsIQ…
Not EXACTLY what you're describing, but check out http://projectmf.org/
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#105Earlier quoted context omitted.
There are so many of them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_emergency_telephone_nu... In Europe many of them are variations of 1XX, but since there are so many and sometimes they change too, it's not trivial to remember which one. The American 911 is more memorable, even in Europe, simply due to it appearing in popular culture so often, I hope that if someone dials that one in Europe it'll also get forwarded to…
It's almost as if Europe is not a country. Just like the US, every country in has its own emergency numbers that you should probably know if you're in that country, but for Europe as a whole, 112 is the universal emergency number. And while 911 might be known to many outside the US, as a number that requires actually navigating the dialing pad, it's not all that great. The UK's 999 or Europe's 112 are far better at b…
911 is faster to dial, but 999 is easier to find in darkness /smoke
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#106Awesome, I will have to share that with my former colleagues from Martelsham.
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#107European Union recommended emergency number is "112". Because you can morse it with the hook or even by short-circuitin the wires. This is also why the pulse-dialing receiver is operational in most EU countries.
For someone not familiar with morse or pulse dialing, how does one do that?
Tangent: many old Western Electric touch tone phones have a switch between "pulse" and "dial" for backwards compatibility.
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#108Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's almost as if Europe is not a country. Just like the US, every country in has its own emergency numbers that you should probably know if you're in that country, but for Europe as a whole, 112 is the universal emergency number. And while 911 might be known to many outside the US, as a number that requires actually navigating the dialing pad, it's not all that great. The UK's 999 or Europe's 112 are far better at b…
It is a trade off though. I’m sure “911” is no accident either. Because it is slightly harder to dial, it probably has far less accidental dialings than some other countries emergency numbers. I bet little kids would constantly pick up a phone and dial “999999999”.... harder to mistakenly / playfully dial “911”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/lifestyle-buzz/here-s-wh...
>Up until 1968, the United States was still using hundreds of seven-digit emergency telephone numbers across the country. In fact, some states, like Nebraska, had more than 180 different ambulance service numbers alone.
>The code 911 was chosen because it best fit the needs of all parties involved,” according to the National Emergency Number Association (NENA). “First, and most important, it met public requirements because it is brief, easily remembered, and can be dialed quickly. Second, because it is a unique number, never having been authorized as an office code, area code or service code, it best met the long range numbering plans and switching configurations of the telephone industry.”
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#109Earlier quoted context omitted.
There are so many of them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_emergency_telephone_nu... In Europe many of them are variations of 1XX, but since there are so many and sometimes they change too, it's not trivial to remember which one. The American 911 is more memorable, even in Europe, simply due to it appearing in popular culture so often, I hope that if someone dials that one in Europe it'll also get forwarded to…
112 is the GSM standard, and works in countries all over the world: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/112_(emergency_telephone_numbe...
It forwards to 911 in the states? Good to know.
Re: Rotary Cellphone
#110Earlier quoted context omitted.
For someone not familiar with morse or pulse dialing, how does one do that?
You click the handset down, like you are hanging up the phone, but just very briefly. So think of the cradle switches - what "hangs up" the phone - as a button, and you just click that button (quickly) for '1' and then you pause and hit it twice in very rapid succession for '2' ... You need to be on a POTS line to do this, of course, but it will work even today. Even if you have no dialing mechanism, you can dial the…
> You click the handset down, like you are hanging up the phone, but just very briefly.
This brings back memories, this is a trick people my age group mastered as teenagers in a 3rd world country. All calls were billed - including local ones, so parents would commonly get lockable cages that would cover the buttons/rotary dial to prevent unauthorised calls in their absence. The cages would leave the receiver accessible even when locked in order to be able to receive calls, so we would use the hook to do pulse tone dialing; dialing a number with many zeroes was always a challenge since it required 10 rapid taps as part of a longer sequence, but I built up muscle memory.
The practice was colloquially named 'tap-dialing' and it was handed down from generation to generation. Sadly it came to an end in the smartphone world.