Apophis
Jaffa Kree
Premium
join:2001-12-27
Holmen, WI
clubs:  | BE-GONE CenturyTel
I hope the VoIP & Broadband industries put CenturyTel out of business.
39.00 just for a local phone connection? What a joke.
7-8 cents a minute long distance, no number portability as of today.....
DEATH TO COME TO CENTURYTEL |
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x30n_
Not Sure What Color Pill To Call It
Premium
join:2000-09-14
wrong turn
clubs:
| I have been without a land line for almost a year now. I did not see the reason to pay for a service that was costing me over $30/mo just have to have low life telemarketer call me on.
The only catch is, if someone asks if that is a cell phone number, you should tell them no. Some idiot wouldn't deliver me a pizza because I was calling on a cell phone. The funny thing was, I was using my credit card to pay for it. Do you think I would really call in a prank delivery call to a different address using my credit card?
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Xanax, take me away! |
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MrTangent
join:2001-12-28
Earth
| The only problem...
Land lines are way more reliable than cellular and VOIP technologies and for that reason I'll never get rid of my land line. VOIP is interesting, but I don't think the technology is there yet. You're still tied to a physical connection (i.e. DSL/cable/DirectWay) so the mobility aspect is negated. Secondly, the ability to make calls to regular phones is still somewhat lacking.
All in all, I think people who don't have a physical land line are asking for trouble in cases of emergency. Solar flares have been known to take out cellular/satellite communications, leaving some users stranded in times of crisis.
They used to say that "ISDN" stood for technology "I Still Don't Need". I think VOIP is the new ISDN, at least currently. With that said, it will be interesting to watch it unfold. It will also be beneficial in forcing the phone companies to lower prices. Which, as Martha "Thug Life 4eva" Stewart would say, "is a good thing."
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"War Is Peace. Freedom Is Slavery. Ignorance Is Strength" |
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ghenjei
join:2000-12-19
Grand Prairie, TX
| Tivo information
about the Tivo comment above....
Stand alone Tivo (Tivo without an integrated satellite receiver) needs a connection to download television listings. Now, if you have Broadband, some Tivos have USB ports, which you can hook up an ethernet adapter, and download listings from the internet. If yours does not, it can be "hacked" to add one.
DirecTivo (integrated with sat. receiver) does not need a land-line connection, as it downloads the information from the satellite. In any case, with Tivo, it is not hard to untether it from the land-line connection. |
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roztaylor
join:2000-10-21
Madison, AL
 ·AT&T Yahoo
|  Home Security System needs landline...?...
I moved to Texas about 18 months ago. I wasn't going to get a landline phone, since I had a cell phone and I thought I would be traveling a lot.
However, I wanted a monitored, home security system. I contacted the service I used with my previous home. They told me that for their monitoring service to work properly, I needed a landline telephone connection. They further said that cell phones were not sufficiently reliable for the service, even if I left a cell phone or "base station" at the house. Now, we are talking about how things were 18 months ago--in the Dallas-Ft Worth Metroplex.
I have to admit that my cell phone has lost connection while speaking to someone while sitting (not wandering around) inside of my home. More so 18 months ago than recently, but I haven't made as many cell phone calls from the house in the last 3 months.
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Choose to make it a good day... don't wait for something good to happen! |
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MacGyver
Bell Sucks
Premium,ExMod 2003-05
join:2001-10-14
Orleans, ON | Likewise, you cannot obtain xDSL in Canada without local telephone service. Also long distance rates are far cheaper on landlines than they are on cellphones. For those two reasons alone, I still have a landline. |
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chd176
join:2003-01-10
Winfield, AL
·CenturyLink
| reply to MrTangent
Re: The only problem...
another thing about dropping copper for cellphone is the number of mins you can use...sure it has gotten a lot better but still for the amount you pay for 1 line of copper you might spend twice as much on a cell phone if most of your local (free on most copper lines) calls are BEFORE 9PM (or 7PM if you opt. to get that with Cingular) you can run into a lot of money...more so if you have other members in your family...and I can't comment on VOIP service as I have never used them...but until cell phone providers realize the importance of unlimited anytime mins I would say not having a landline is for the birds.
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Sotec 1.2 Mhz, 224 MB RAM, DW6000, windows XP home, Direcway SRS, G3C, signal 75 |
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gruggni
Oxygen Gets You High
join:2003-07-28
Corpus Christi, TX
| Land line 4 me
I can't get broadband where I live so I'm stuck with dial-up. So I will keep my land line, plus it's much cheaper then cell phone service. A basic land line runs $15 before taxes. Plus you get a calling card that is linked to your account. Find what fits your needs. I had a cell phone once, hardly used it. Paying $30 a month for a cell phone I barely use was burning a hole in my pocket. I still think holding a high powered transmitter/receiver to your ear and brain isn't healthy.
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When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading. --Henny Youngman |
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DonLibes
Premium,ExMod 2001
join:2003-01-19
| credit card verification not an issue
Credit card verifications do NOT need a land-line. Yes, it's true that the paperwork says you must call from your "home phone" but I've verified several cards this past year from my cell phone. Yes, you'll end up speaking to a human (what a novelty) who asks one or two questions (mother's maiden name, etc) and that's it - verified without a landline. |
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stet
Volitar Prime
join:2002-03-08
Warren, MI
| Tivo
It is possible with Series 2 Tivo's to use a USB ethernet adapter and have the Tivo perform it's daily call through your internet connection instead of using a land based phone line. Instructions for doing so are at »www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/sh···id=61226
note: this link is to another forum that deals specifically with Tivo related issues. If it's inappropriate for me to post this link, mods please remove it.
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We're on a mission from Rod. |
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David
No,there is another.
Premium,VIP
join:2002-05-30
Granite City, IL
clubs:
 ·DIRECTV
 ·magicjack.com
·AT&T Midwest
| Something that some people
don't think of is the E-911 service (when you call)locates you by address almost immediatley. My mother works in a police dept that answers phone calls for a small town. When that call comes in, there is one computer that gets the information faster than an eye blink. She knows where you are at and where you are calling from within seconds. She can then patch that information over to a view screen to the ambulance via Radio Modem and have the exact location saving time which might be needed at most. Pizza places use just about the same thing. The downside to cell phones is the article is correct since there is no address per say attached to the phone I can see why Pizza delivery places might be skiddish, but if you give them a credit card number they can still bomb the credit card for the pizza. The thing that frustrates my mother about the 911 service is the people on cell phones. Bad transmissions, callers that cannot describe where they are at, and some that panic but cannot give you an address. It has gotten better with some regulations and standards by the FCC but I kind of feel (on her behalf) that more can be done, and should be done. Another thing to keep in mind, is if memory serves the FCC requires a Central office, to remain at full power for up to either 72 hours, or a week after a power outage. Cell phones, probably not as much, if the cell tower loses power, well... Not sure what happens there but I would still like a backup plan...
Keep in mind this is just a idea, not a rant, flame or anything of the sort. |
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Bobcat
Premium
join:2001-02-04
Bedminster, NJ
·Verizon Online DSL
| No
No, I'm not getting rid of my POTS phone. There's no way I'd trust my cable company to carry a 911 call (my internet service dies upon any power failure), and 911 calls by cell phone are not reliable, at least where I live.
With the E911 service on my POTS phone, I know the local police will respond even if I hang up without saying anything. My POTS phone costs only $16 per month including taxes. I think my life and the lives of my family are worth $16 per month. |
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Bobcat
Premium
join:2001-02-04
Bedminster, NJ
·Verizon Online DSL
| reply to MacGyver
Re: Home Security System needs landline...?...
said by MacGyver  :
Also long distance rates are far cheaper on landlines than they are on cellphones.
Long distance calling in the US and Canada is included in my Verizon Wireless cell phone plan. As long as I don't exceed my allocated minutes, it doesn't matter if I call across the street or across the country, there's no additional charge.
I make all toll calls on my cell phone, and use the landline only for local calls. |
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Bill Clo
join:2002-01-15
Lewisberry, PA
| reply to MrTangent
Re: The only problem...
As much as I'd like to be able to get rid of my landline, it is MUCH more reliable than my cable connection. I swear, it seems that every time we get a major thunderstorm or storm front through here, my cable Internet goes down. Not the cable tv picture, mind you, that's been pretty reliable, but the Net access goes down.
So I can't count on my Net access/VOIP being up when I may really need it. |
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Bobcat
Premium
join:2001-02-04
Bedminster, NJ
·Verizon Online DSL
| reply to Apophis
Re: BE-GONE CenturyTel
said by Apophis :
39.00 just for a local phone connection? What a joke.
Huh? Local phone service in New Jersey is only $16 per month, including taxes. And there are other plans (non- flat rate) that cost only $12 or $14 per month.
--
"We know where they are."
» Donald Rumsfeld on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, March 30, 2003. |
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ksampling
join:2003-07-23
Cleveland, OH | reply to Bill Clo
Re: The only problem...
i know what you mean my connection goes down but not my cable |
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Omega
Displaced Ohioan
Premium
join:2002-07-30
Cheyenne, WY
clubs:
 ·Bresnan Online
 ·Verizon Wireless B..
·Comcast
·AT&T Midwest
| reply to MrTangent
I agree, I like my landline, and for now I plan on having it for a while.
There is no need to give it up, espcially if you have DSL. One thing I do not see myself having is a long distance service provider. Why pay when your cell phone does it for free?
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"The doctor's X-Rayed my head and found nothing" |
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wentlanc
You Can't Fix Dumb..
join:2003-07-30
Maineville, OH
| reply to chd176
Nextel offers "free incoming" plans that have unlimited incoming calls. You could almost be completely free of land line service, and possibly saving money on minutes, depending on your situation. I have a family, so one cell phone is not enough. I need at least two cell phones. And I can't get cable modem, so ditching the landline for VOIP is pertty much out of the question.
puritan |
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joebear29
join:2003-07-20
Alabaster, AL
| POTS for me
I'll keep my POTS forthe forseeable future for a few reasons:
1) I have DSL, and I will never give Charter a dollar of my money
2) I hate cell phones. For a light phone user, cell phones are more expensive than basic phone service, and don't make sense if you don't use them on the road. Part of the joy of leaving the house is I can't be called. |
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gwion
wild colonial boy
Premium,ExMod 2001-08
join:2000-12-28
Pittsburgh, PA
| My landline is failsafe...
No batteries, no cells, no antennas. It's a lifeline, if nothing else.
And 24/7 fail safe redundant phone service is NO luxury, to me. It's a necessity. The landline infrastructure's simple, and it's been perfected by years of operation. Maybe in 50 years or so, when the alternative services have the same track record. Until then, "no."
Moreover, cell, VOIP, etc., or not, the landline is redundancy to back up all the rest... and I believe adamantly in the "no single point of failure" philosophy for most everything... it's a way of life, for me.
Never. I'll give up this wire when they pry my cold, dead fingers from it. My cell works fine, to bring me the safety and convenience of a phone on the go. But my home phone is absolutely critical basic comm services to me, and I'll never surrender that for a few pennies in savings. Non-negotiable. 
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'I'll fight, but not surrender,' criedThe Wild Colonial Boy. |
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