Things that are common in fiction but not in your real life

[ownedbycats]

Reading books from the era before cell phones were common, it's always fun to see plot points that would've been resolved far more easily had the characters been able to send a text message.

Course, you do see modern books try to write that away by going "oh no! the reception is bad!"

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Reading books from the era before cell phones were common, it's always fun to see plot points that would've been resolved far more easily had the characters been able to send a text message.

Course, you do see modern books try to write that away by going "oh no! the reception is bad!"

Or even worse, they have a character who is not usually forgetful neglect to charge their phone, or leave the phone at home

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

People in books always seem to skip putting on underwear if they're in a hurry.

I'll just say I know that happens in real life.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Reading books from the era before cell phones were common, it's always fun to see plot points that would've been resolved far more easily had the characters been able to send a text message.

Course, you do see modern books try to write that away by going "oh no! the reception is bad!"

Sometimes they bribed a small child to run to the PO and send a telegram (or earlier a telegraph message). Optical telegraphs existed in Europe at time of the Napoleonic war. People even did "man in the middle attack" "wire fraud".

Or in reverse, the storm last night brought the lines down (1851 to today) or today the battery is flat, though the pub MIGHT still have a payphone. There are some left.

Authors are gods. They can do whatever they like as long as they can get the reader to suspend disbelief. Some books are so much fun you enjoy them even though from a logical or practical point of view it's very silly!

[ownedbycats]

If I'm remembering right, there is one public payphone left in my town. (There used to be a second one next to it, but I think vandals destroyed it.)

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

If I'm remembering right, there is one public payphone left in my town. (There used to be a second one next to it, but I think vandals destroyed it.)

There have been no public payphones for years in my country.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

There have been no public payphones for years in my country.

Seems rather inconsiderate of those who don't wish to own smartphones or flip phones. Good thing there aren't any thoughtless car wrecks or accidents, either, eh?

:-)

Hitch

[Apache]

I can't remember the last time I saw a pay phone.
Apache

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by Apache

I can't remember the last time I saw a pay phone.
Apache

I was trying to remember as well. I freely admit I'm biased about the whole thing; when I left corporate America, I was carrying a flip-phone at the time--the newest, latest and greatest (yes, yes, I confess, I had the brick, originally! I was an early adopter, which is bizarre given my resistance to them now....), and stuck with it FAR into the smartphone age. I only relented when my flip died and I didn't really have a choice.

And the problem with everybody and their brother doing EVERYTHING via texting now. Authorizations, medical stuff, refills for medical stuff, appointments...I've nearly given up giving out my "home" number, which is--gasp!--a landline. It's infuriating. They appear not to grasp that some people live in places where cellphones aren't that goddamned reliable. I still get messages sometimes 2 weeks or longer away from when they were left. If one more person says to me, "I texted your number," (again, LANDLINE!), I'll scream. And yes, we tell them in big red letters on forms, etc. "LANDLINE DO NOT TEXT!" It's like talking to a robot particularly designed to annoy you...

Same thing with payphones in remote spots. What, someone could never break down and need a phone? Their smartphone might NOT get crunched in a car crash, or...?

UGH.

Hitch

[Quoth]

Some places in Ireland & UK they are keeping on-street payphones and using a loophole to have them as digital advert signs without planning permission. This seems to be a recent idea and I think the payphones in shopping centres and on street in Limerick City are all gone.

Technically some phone companies can deliver SMS text messages to landline numbers, but I've only seen the option to actually display them on a few more deluxe models of DECT phones.

About 15 years ago the company I was with compared VOIP WiFi with cordless DECT and discovered that DECT had about x4 talk time, about x10 standby and always came with easy to use charging docks anyway. They were aslo cheaper.
So since the modem/routers on the system the company sold (an ISP) had two phone ports with geographic numbers (even if the modem wasn't fed by a landline), they included Dual DECT phones. The second port could be used for fax or analogue modem or any phone you purchased.

Paypal SMS 2FA wasn't being delivered the other day. They have an option where you click "Call my land line". Then when you answer you type in 4 digits shown on web page.

I got a second sim for an old mobile phone and now it's the only one I take out, because how would all the 2FA SMS work if my mobile was lost or stolen? Only Paypal of folk I use has the landline scheme.

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by Hitch

I

If one more person says to me, "I texted your number," (again, LANDLINE!), I'll scream. And yes, we tell them in big red letters on forms, etc. "LANDLINE DO NOT TEXT!" It's like talking to a robot particularly designed to annoy you...


Hitch

I'm pretty sure I've accidentally tried to text a landline and received an error message indicating same.

Out of curiosity, I just tried sending a text to a known landline and got an error message that "xxx-xxx-xxxx is a landline".

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

I'm pretty sure I've accidentally tried to text a landline and received an error message indicating same.

Out of curiosity, I just tried sending a text to a known landline and got an error message that "xxx-xxx-xxxx is a landline".

Yeah, but these appointment confirmation software programs don't check for that, so...you're hosed.

Hitch

[Little.Egret]

https://thesmsworks.co.uk/sending-text-landline

https://www.bt.com/help/landline/all-about-bt-text-
send text messages from your home phone, you will need a text-enabled phone and an enabled telephone line. To view text messages on your text-enabled phone, you'll need Caller Display. If you don't have Caller Display you'll receive text messages as voice messages. If you haven't registered for the service, you will also receive text messages as voice messages.

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Yeah, but these appointment confirmation software programs don't check for that, so...you're hosed.

Hitch

Oh, I didn't realize you were talking about automated systems. That would really be frustrating.
I've had issues where I give a doctor's office more than one phone number (cell, landline, work) and indicate which one is the one to try first but they still call the secondary number and leave a message that I don't get til later, instead of just calling my cell phone first. I'm planning to getting rid of the landline soon though.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

Oh, I didn't realize you were talking about automated systems. That would really be frustrating.
I've had issues where I give a doctor's office more than one phone number (cell, landline, work) and indicate which one is the one to try first but they still call the secondary number and leave a message that I don't get til later, instead of just calling my cell phone first. I'm planning to getting rid of the landline soon though.

I do it every. damn. time. and I'm clear about "don't do..." and they bloody do it anyway. It's infuriating. Why bother to ask for all the lines, if you're not going to pay any damned attention?

Hitch