I guess i know why this is Free on Craigslist

[travlincub321]

Hmmmm.. I wonder why this is free.. I started laughing... So few people have land lines

http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/zip/1470774132.html

 

[autowasherfreak]

I actually miss having a land line. I love my cell, but it would be nice to have a land line again. Now that I'm working again I have been thinking about getting a land line, Vonage, or phone through our cable company.

 

[volvoguy87]

I am 28 and I have a land line.

Mine is through Time Warner Cable. It's inexpensive enough, but the sound quality is not as good as with the traditional phone company. Also, it take a long time for the dial tone to come on when you lift the receiver.

When I called Time Warner to inquire about service, I asked if I could dial out with my rotary dial phones. THEY ACTUALLY HAD TO CALL AN ENGINEER!!!! Yes, it works with rotary dial. Would I do it again? No way! With the traditional phone company, the phone (as long as it's not a cordless) will function during a power failure. A phone through a cable modem will not function when the power is out.

Also, when you call 911 from a land line phone, they know the address from which the call came, which can be handy if you are cut off before you can give your location. I have lived here for about 9 months, and I have dialed 911 a 3 times (2 car crashes in the nearby intersection and a crazy guy firing a gun). I called in the car accidents immediately in case of injuries and to get the mess cleaned up and investigated quickly. The gun, on the other hand, just really pissed me off so I called it in immediately to get him off the street and separated from his gun before he hurt or killed anyone.

Also, my housemate constantly forgets to take his cell phone or its battery is perpetually dead. When I am out, calling the house can sometimes get him on the line.

Gracious good afternoon. Have I reached the party to whom I am speaking?
Dave

 

[rp2813]

I am currently dealing with a family medical crisis and have been very frustrated in recent days by the trademark inferiority of disjointed cell phone transmission quality. Technologically, cell phones are flat out not up to speed, and and can't compete with a land line in this regard. As a result, my increased appreciation for the phenomenally reliable and crystal clear transmission quality of the venerable land line has only served to reinforce my insistence on never being without one.

Also, again dealing with the current medical situation, trying to contact people who only have cell phones can be a losing proposition. They turn them off before bed or set the ringer to silent. A landline is going to ring and get a response when an urgent call has to be made in the middle of the night. EVERYONE here should give that scenario some serious thought.

I would never, ever, have a cell phone as my only form of telecommunication. Even after a natural disaster, a land line is more likely to perform than a cell phone. A moderate earthquake that happened locally a while back proved this when complaints poured in that cell phones didn't work. This was a minor shaker as far as earthquakes go, and the landline service didn't even miss a beat, but the cell towers were overloaded.

Solar flares? Not a problem. No windows in the building? Not a problem. Battery dead? What battery? We don't need no stinking batteries!

There is, in fact, no contest. Landlines RULE!

 

[autowasherfreak]

We are getting a land line starting on the 23rd, another number for me to try and remember, LOL.

 

[goatfarmer]

We still have a land line, and I wouldn't be without my answering machine.

 

[perc-o-prince]

So few people have land lines

Maybe that's so in Nevada, but a land line is still pretty much normal to have here. I suspect that people who are "cell phone only" is more the exception than the rule.

Come to think of it, I don't know anyone I call with any frequency (or infrequency) that has only a cell phone, which is probably why every major retailer has such a varied display of them still!! They won't devote that much space, let alone variety, to something that won't sell!

IMHO,

Chuck

 

[perc-o-prince]

p.s.-

Ours is through Verizon, bundled with Fios cable and internet.

Chuck

 

[penguinsoup]

no cel phone here

I recently got rid of my cel phone. At one time I actually had 2. Glad to be rid of them. When I'm not working (work out of the house), I'm generally out having fun and really don't want to be bothered.

I made this decision after thinking one night how we got along before cel phones. Quite well, actually. Not as many bothers.

I know it is a necessity for some folks to have a cel phone as pay phones are becoming as extinct as Dinosaurs. Perhaps we can get oil out of them? I guess that's one for Al Gore to look into since he "invented" the Internet, rec'd a Nobel Prize, and whatever else he got for his book. (too bad it wasn't the most accurate book in the world, but what do you expect from a politician?)

I know some people have cel phones for safety reasons, and that's cool. It's just those pesky driving texters that really irk me. And "today's generation" who doesn't know what life is like without them or the Internet, I kind of feel sorry for them as what would they do if the technology goes down for a while? Odds are, they'd be lost. (If any of you watched NCIS last night, that was a prime example).

Enough of that rant. Thanks for listening!

Sorry for getting so off-topic.

P

 

[rll70sman]

Dave, it's good to hear I'm not the only youngling on here that still uses old rotary dial phones. I have two old Bell System phones (soon will be three) in my house and love them, just because they're so reliable and nostalgic. There's just something intriguing about "dialing" a phone number and hearing the "ring" of an old phone.

 

[58limited]

I still have a land line and I hardly use my cell phone - I like having peace and quiet when I leave the house. I too have a rotary phone: 1936 American Telephone & Telegraph candlestick with a Western Electric bell box, but my main phone is a newer cordless one from RadioShack.

 

[qsd-dan]

Dave, it's good to hear I'm not the only youngling o

Make that an additional 2 young-lings

 

[redcarpetdrew]

Make that an additional 2 young-lings

Only because someone's cell phone went on 'walkabout'... LOL!

RCD

 

[xraytech]

I am also another youngling here who insists on having a land line. I have a Western Electric rotary phone, a Western Electric rotary wall phone, and an AT&T touch tone trimline for those occasions where you have to press "1" for English or "0" to speak to a customer service representative.
Our land line is Verizon and is bundled with DSL internet, and Direct Tv(cable service is unavailable in our area)

I have a cell phone through AT&T which is for emergency purposes in the car, also handy when flea marketing. cellular service is too unreliabl ein the very rural area where I live so the cell phone service is very dodgey at home so a land line is a necessity

 

[rp2813]

Rotary phones are yet another reason I'm hanging on to my land line. I have four of them connected here and let me tell you, when I'm outside, I have no trouble hearing the phone(s) ring, and the sound of brass gongs will never be mistaken for some sort of made-in-China electronic chirping nonsense.

While I own phones as old as 1931, all sets I have hooked up currently are 1950's vintage WECo 500 models. I never cared for them until I pulled out my seriously early model 500 from 1950 and lifted its heavy beefy (style G1) handset to my shoulder and cradled it, an activity that is much more difficult to do with the older style (F1) handsets. I haved deployed 500's exclusively ever since. The older sets are nice to look at and more of a novelty to use, but when you're on a conference call and writing or typing at the same time, there is no match for the functionality of a G1 handset. And with a 500 model, you will never have anyone ask "Does that phone work?" because we all know the answer to that: "They always work."

I've attached a picture of my prized 500 dated 10/50 (coiled handset cord is my preference but originally it would have had a straight one--and as we all know straight is boring). This phone is 59 years old and will still be ringing loudly and carrying calls long after the toxic e-waste dumps in China are overflowing with junk cell phones.

 

[appnut]

I have both and won't give up my land line.

 

[danemodsandy]

And...

...A land line gives you dial-up access to the Internet on those occasions when the cable company is having a bad hair day. That can be a lifesaver if you do business via Internet, as I do.

 

[alr2903]

Thanks, i had no idea my landline would not work in a power outage, I just "bundled" and am saving money. LOL, P.S. I am putting My cell on the CHARGER NOW. thanks again. alr2903

 

[countryford]

I am 26 and still have a landline. I have a total of 3 rotary phones, One from the 30's, one from the 50's and a pink princess phone. In addition I also have an origianl early 1900's crank wall phone, that still works. It has all it's original parts inside of it, but a transformer has been added, then a dial has been mounted into the wall next to it so you can dial out, without turning the crank.

 

[jasonl]

I have a LL only because I have DSL (you have to have POTS with the package). I bought a cheap telephone just to put beside the bed for 911 or family emergencies. Other than that, I think I have actually talked on that phone maybe once or twice to test it out.

Otherwise, my LG EnV2 (wishing for a Droid) is my daily driver

 

[autowasherfreak]

I want a harvest gold rotary phone to put in the laundry room to match my harvest gold Tags.

 

[kenwashesmonday]

If we ever have a widespread power failure for more than a few hours, non-internet landlines will be the only phones that work.

The battery back-up at the cell phone towers is only good for about 3 hours, and internet phones will not work if there's no power to your modem.

Ken D.

 

[gowest84]

Dial Phones

I bought a great refurb black dial phone on E-bay. I got a red one for some friends of mine when they lived in Honolulu and when the plugged in the Phone it rang and scared the hell out of all of them.

It's fun to have them and I'm not giving my land line up. It sucks without a Cell phone, but I want something I can rely on and I still can rely on the standard land line.

 

[jamiel]

JasonL, you no longer have to have a landline to have DSL (assuming you've got AT&T/BellSouth as your local landline company...you need "dry line" DSL.

 

[bugsyjones]

Haha. 'Younglings'

I'm probably younger than you all.

I insist on having a land line. For some reason, I see it as reliable. Probably because I've NEVER had a land line problem. Cell phones. Now that's a different story. I do have one, but it's a bare bones prepaid job. I use it sparingly. I got it only because I couldn't get service for my Motorola Micro-Tac.

I don't like the idea of cable-powered telephone or so-called "bundles." It must be a separate entity.

I have a modern cordless phone on the land line, but I also bought for $4 at Goodwill, an OLD cordless. It's way old because it has a 3 foot retractable antenna. But it came with the original box, instructions, and all the parts! I haven't had the opportunity to test it to see if it works, but even if it doesn't, it won't be a huge loss.

I purchased an Automatic Electric model 40 rotary telephone for the front room from a gentleman who restores them. It was damn expensive, but I had to have it! It fits in perfectly and there's no question to if the phone rang or not. No asking yourself 'did the phone just ring?' because you can hear it across the house.

~Tim

 

[charbee]

We'll never get a cell phone unless we're finally forced to.

It's a matter of principle for us. Every day we're nearly killed by some idiot talking on their phone or "texting" instead of actually driving their vehicle. Funny, my parents got through life just fine without having to talk on the phone while they drove! There's NOTHING so important that you must talk on the phone while you are supposed to be driving, let along this ridiculous "texting" thing. You are operating a huge metal machine! Probably a good idea to pay attention to what you're doing!

Another reason is that cell phones have contributed to the heinous lack of manners that has become the standard of the day. I sincerely wish I could slap the people who stand in line at the checkout counter at the grocery store and never even *acknowledge* the person checking them out. We *always* try to engage the checker in a pleasant conversation, and generally wind up with a happy transaction. To utterly and totally ignore someone you are *doing business with* is inexcusablu rude and arrogant.

And the people who walk around the store with those "Locutus of Borg" bluetooth-implant things in their ear talking as loud as they possibly can need a good smackin', too!

 

[rp2813]

Power Failures and DSL

Two things. The DSL-only type of service that doesn't include POTS is called "dry loop" in house, but AT&T didn't like the sound of that so they gave it some sort of cute term that the consumer wouldn't balk at. What that product name is I have forgotten, but "dry loop" should work if you ask for that.

Land line switching offices have back-up power systems of various types, usually depending on the predominant types of customers that are served out of them. A switch that serves predominantly residential areas will probably just have battery back-up, but a switch in a more commercial/industrial zone may have an actual jet engine to serve as a back-up power source. I've seen both.

There are also national security concerns around the landline telephone network, and anti-terrorist safeguards are a matter of course. You think the "hot line" in the Oval Office would ever employ a cell phone? Think again. There simply is not and never will be an acceptable substitute for the land line. The modern global consumer has come to accept products with inferior research, development and testing that don't perform as they should (we appliance buffs know this all too well) and cell phones are the worst example. Customers had to put up with crackling and poor transmissions in the early days of the telephone over a century ago. There is no excuse for having to deal with those same types of transmission problems with 21st century cell phone service, and the wireless telcos are laughing all the way to the bank as they reap huge profits on systems that require virtually no network build-out other than the towers, and virtually no maintenance compared to the copper wire land line networks, and apparently they don't have to answer to anyone about the inferior service their wireless systems are providing. They could never get away with such poor service on their land line systems. Between the FCC and the state PUC's, they'd have their feet to the fire if land line service was even half as unreliable as cell service.

 

[tolivac]

" land line" phone systems typically run from batteries all of the time-a powerline operated charger runs the system when under normal conditions-when there is a power failure the batteries can run the system until Deisel or gas turbine("jet engine")generator is started and transferred.The Solar division of Caterpillar builds turbine genrators-the phone companies have used these for backup generators for many years.Deisel gensets can be started more quickly-gas turbines may require 20min to even half hour to start from cold.Many operators of these try to antancipate power failuers(Ie thunderstorm in area or predicted)they will preheat the turbine genset fuel burners on and unit on turning gear.That way its available instantly like a deisel if required-but this requires fuel use.Turbine sets are usually made for power requirement of 4.5MW on up.Usually larger capacity than deisel.Also cell phone site may run from batteries too-and rely on a small deisel,natural gas genset to provide power in a power failure.Usually 48V is a common battery voltage for communication sites.Landline phone companies use diffrent voltages.