"There are countless horrible things happening all over the world and horrible people prospering, but we must never allow them to disturb our equanimity or deflect us from our sacred duty to sabotage and annoy them whenever possible." -Auberon Waugh
Tuesday, February 21, 2023
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Paco Enterprises: bringing you the latest news on developments in communications technology.
We didn't get dial phones until I was about seven, I think. Around 1960. Before that we had a party line where all the houses on the line were connected 24/7, and you called someone else on the line by cranking a handle on the phone which generated a current that rang a bell in all the other phones on the line. Each house had a special 'ring' consisting of a combination of short and long rings. If you heard your 'ring', you answered the phone. If it was someone else's ring, you ignored it. Unless you were one of the gossipy people who would pick up the earpiece and listen in on other people's conversations. If you wanted to make a long-distance call, you called the local operator, Bertha Yates, and she would go through other operators to connect you to the party you wanted to talk to.
The new dial phones severely disabled the local gossips.
The new dial phones severely disabled the local gossips.
Unless you had a party line with multiple homes. We had that for a while, whilst I was a youngling.
But once I visited Salmon, Idaho, in the early 1990s. They were celebrating their new touch tone phone system, very recently installed. They had upgraded from those same crank phones.
Did I mention that Salmon is a very remote community? It is. Check it on your favorite search engine.
R-man: Sounds like Mayberry (Barney: "Sarah, get me Juanita at the diner").
My paternal grandmother was on a party line when I was a little fellow. Occasionally I'd pick up the phone and I'd hear a couple of old ladies talking about their ailments, or somebody else's ailments. I recollect listening to an elderly woman recounting a story to her friend about some kind of operation, and there was a pause, and I blurted out "what happened next?" or some such interrogative, and she told me in no uncertain terms to get off the line.
doable, maybe, I plugged a rotary dial phone in, I could hear the dial tone, but couldn't dial out because it sends out an analog signal and the system was converted to digital some years ago, I didn't leave it plugged in to see if it would receive calls, but it probably would, as would a candlestick phone.
I used to work at a place that restricted outgoing calls, the dial didn't work. If you tapped the hang-up buttons you could dial out. tap tap tap.....tap tap tap....tap.... 331-...
My father had a party line for a while in Stony Hollow (near Sleepy Hollow). I was a 12 year old boy so I didn't use the phone much, but whenever I wanted to some old biddy was talking on it and yelling at me, especially when I started dialing without listening. Once in a while, when someone did that to me, I'd say, "Briiiiinnnggg....briiiiiinnnnggggg...Hello" Now that tickeed some people off.
Ain't technology wonderful? Imagine, no need for an operator to place a call!
ReplyDeleteWe didn't get dial phones until I was about seven, I think. Around 1960. Before that we had a party line where all the houses on the line were connected 24/7, and you called someone else on the line by cranking a handle on the phone which generated a current that rang a bell in all the other phones on the line. Each house had a special 'ring' consisting of a combination of short and long rings. If you heard your 'ring', you answered the phone. If it was someone else's ring, you ignored it. Unless you were one of the gossipy people who would pick up the earpiece and listen in on other people's conversations. If you wanted to make a long-distance call, you called the local operator, Bertha Yates, and she would go through other operators to connect you to the party you wanted to talk to.
ReplyDeleteThe new dial phones severely disabled the local gossips.
The new dial phones severely disabled the local gossips.
ReplyDeleteUnless you had a party line with multiple homes. We had that for a while, whilst I was a youngling.
But once I visited Salmon, Idaho, in the early 1990s. They were celebrating their new touch tone phone system, very recently installed. They had upgraded from those same crank phones.
Did I mention that Salmon is a very remote community? It is. Check it on your favorite search engine.
R-man: Sounds like Mayberry (Barney: "Sarah, get me Juanita at the diner").
ReplyDeleteMy paternal grandmother was on a party line when I was a little fellow. Occasionally I'd pick up the phone and I'd hear a couple of old ladies talking about their ailments, or somebody else's ailments. I recollect listening to an elderly woman recounting a story to her friend about some kind of operation, and there was a pause, and I blurted out "what happened next?" or some such interrogative, and she told me in no uncertain terms to get off the line.
I wish I could rig up a small candlestick mobile phone. I think I saw a story somewhere about a guy doing it.
ReplyDeleteYeah, here's the article.
ReplyDeleteThat's a cool modification, Paco! A bit above my skills, but maybe doable.
ReplyDeletedoable, maybe, I plugged a rotary dial phone in, I could hear the dial tone, but couldn't dial out because it sends out an analog signal and the system was converted to digital some years ago, I didn't leave it plugged in to see if it would receive calls, but it probably would, as would a candlestick phone.
ReplyDeleteI used to work at a place that restricted outgoing calls, the dial didn't work.
ReplyDeleteIf you tapped the hang-up buttons you could dial out.
tap tap tap.....tap tap tap....tap....
331-...
My father had a party line for a while in Stony Hollow (near Sleepy Hollow).
I was a 12 year old boy so I didn't use the phone much, but whenever I wanted to some old biddy was talking on it and yelling at me, especially when I started dialing without listening.
Once in a while, when someone did that to me, I'd say, "Briiiiinnnggg....briiiiiinnnnggggg...Hello"
Now that tickeed some people off.