Lonestar Joins Western Civilization; Gets cell phone - Page 2

dexters · September 14, 2003, 06:40

The problem with human beings in general is that we were driven by fashion, by peer pressure and by our own vanity.

If you approach the cell phone issue from a purely utilitarian point of view, you'll see that it is neccessary to have one when your responsiblities grown to require one, and perhaps contact with a loved one or children require one. Otherwise, you don't use it.

Like all technologies, people use cellphones for the wrong reasons. My aunt for example, has a habit of calling my mom on her cellphone when she is driving, just to chat. My mom complains about this, and thinks my aunt does it just to show off on the road.

It is actually possible to have a cellphone and not be connected to people on the other end 24/7. I've seen sane people like that.

Thue · September 14, 2003, 07:08

Quote:

Originally posted by Dissident
I'm thinking of getting rid of mine.

I predict in a couple of years it will be cool not to have a cell phone.

I don't have a cell phone because it is cool. I have it because it is usefull and makes it easier being social.
So I don't think it is going to go away... ever

.

mrmitchell · September 14, 2003, 10:01

Quote:

Congrats Lonestar! I myself have been thinking about joining the "cellular society".... Is there anything I should be prepared for?

Senility, brain cancer, ear problems, regular beatings for leaving it on in a theatre

, constantly being annoyed by people even when you're away from home, etc.

Ecthy · September 14, 2003, 10:02

I've had one since Christmas

edit: you damned spammers!

Chemical Ollie · September 14, 2003, 10:45

Does it work on your ship?

Wittlich · September 14, 2003, 13:21

Quote:

Originally posted by mrmitchell

Senility, brain cancer, ear problems, regular beatings for leaving it on in a theatre

, constantly being annoyed by people even when you're away from home,...

The only one that has me worried is the last one. I can see that that one would get old quickly.

David Floyd · September 14, 2003, 13:36

I've had a cell phone for years. Can't live without it. In fact, I don't even have a land line - and this means no telemarketer calls! Yay!

Seriously, though, I'm out almost all day every day, because of school, work, friends, whatever, so I wouldn't get calls at home anyway.

Dis · September 14, 2003, 15:24

of course you could live without it. you lived before you had a cell phone right?

C0ckney · September 14, 2003, 16:48

i know what people mean, you wonder how you could live without a mobile, how you ever managed to keep in touch with friends and organise your life etc.. it has its downsides though, you can be contacted at any time by people you sometimes would rather not be..

for example this is the last txt msg i received (translated into english):

sender: hailey wlsh

'tim why haven't you called me? i sent you a msg about my 21st, i really wanted you to come, you haven't called since we left, what is the problem? we need to talk'

H Tower · September 14, 2003, 17:10

Cingular sucks, get rid of it. (I have a cingular phone)

Ecthy · September 14, 2003, 17:57

either those scanning engines are quite good or one of you subscribed me to some spam SMS list

Dis · September 14, 2003, 20:48

I haven't had too many complaints about cingular. Though the coverage was bad in the neighborhood where I live.

At&t isn't much better. I may go back to cingular when my contract is up.

korn469 · September 14, 2003, 22:47

I got my first cell phone through Suncom at the end of April, and i got rid of my land line. I pay around 50 bucks a month for unlimited minutes in my zone with 300 free minutes outside of my zone, which is more than I've used so far. The month of June I spent almost 100 hours on the phone long distance for 50 bucks, so needless to say I think it's quite a good deal. It really has made life more convient for me, though I wish cell phones had better battery life.

Shi Huangdi · September 14, 2003, 23:54

Seriously, cell phones are a wonderful convenience. If you are in a troubled situation and need help or are having car problems, a cell phone is crucial. It's also really convenient if you want to meet friends at a place where you aren't sure where it is, or if you want to go out some place and still remain reachable by friends, or if you out and you need to reach one of your friends.

As far as them being a leash, there is a simple solution. If you don't want to be disturbed, turn it off.

devilmunchkin · September 15, 2003, 00:28

can you use it as sea?

Tingkai · September 15, 2003, 01:04

The question is: Why bother with a land line?

I cancelled my land line years ago. The money I saved pays for my mobile coverage.

Cell phones are great for Friday and Saturday nights. You can call around and find out where things are happening, and then call in friends.

Imran Siddiqui · September 15, 2003, 01:06

Quote:

The question is: Why bother with a land line?

So that people can call me

.

All I have is a land line. I don't need a cell phone. All I'm paying is about $20 a month, and then I use a calling card for 3.5 cents/minute to call my parents, long distance, every once in a while.

Skanky Burns · September 15, 2003, 01:23

My mobile is $10 a month. Including $15 worth of free SMS, free calls another mobile number I choose, and some free calls to others.

If I didn't need a land-line for using DSL, I wouldn't even bother with it.

Dis · September 15, 2003, 04:10

Isn't it LAN line and not land line?

I went without one for about 6 months. I just wasn't getting good cell phone coverage in my neighborhood. I don't live in an affluent neighborhood. I guess the cell phone company doesn't give a **** about us poor folks. Well I'm not really poor, but I live in a poor neighborhood.

Dis · September 15, 2003, 04:15

and cell phones won't work at sea

not that I had a cell phone back then.

But I'm using logical reasoning that there are no cell phone towers in the middle of the ocean

.

It should work when you get within a certain distance of San Diego or other cities in which your cell phone network has coverage. Line of Sight should be good enough distance. Due to the curvature of the earth, line of sight at sea level is about 12 miles.

Now if you had a satellite phone like Iridium (when they were still in business) that would work if you got on a weatherdeck I'm sure.

Now if the navy could sell some of their mast space to cell phone companies so there could be coverage in the ocean- that'd be cool

Lonestar · September 16, 2003, 22:04

Quote:

Originally posted by BeBro
Do you get more girls with such a cell phone? Otherwise I´m not interested

....Oh, but now as I think about it - maybe you get to know more girls, but can´t go into action because you spend most of your time babbling to them via cell phone

Those modern times...

As it happens, the driving force was that a female friend of mine was tired of going through hoops making contact with me.

Lonestar · September 16, 2003, 22:08

Quote:

Originally posted by mrmitchell

, constantly being annoyed by people even when you're away from home, etc.

Yeah, now the Navy can find me wherever I am. But since every single person in my Division has a Cell phone/or point of Contact, I was getting to be the odd man out.

Oerdin · September 16, 2003, 22:20

I find myslef turning my cell phone off more and more just because I don't want to always be reachable by people.

devilmunchkin · September 16, 2003, 23:49

i HAVE a cell phone..however, i have no service for it. i have games on it though

Jon Miller · September 16, 2003, 23:56

I got one in august

Jon Miller

MrFun · September 17, 2003, 00:11

"Can you hear me now?"

"Good."

Oerdin · September 17, 2003, 02:15

Don't anyone buy T0Mobile service. I have it and it seems like I never get a single when I need it.

Brundlefly · September 17, 2003, 10:23

For those who got rid of their land line in favor of a cell phone: Have you saved money? On my landline I pay about $50/month a small amount of long distance calls. Most of this amount = basic service fees. If I could save money with a cell, I would buy one.

Does anyone have wireless internet access with their cell phone? Are you pleased with it?

korn469 · September 17, 2003, 11:37

Feephi,

I have saved money with my cell phone because 90% (on average, sometimes it was closer to 99.9%) of my calls were long distance. With verizon I paid 40 dollars for basic local service, caller id, call waiting, and voice mail, with no long distance (which ran about 25 bucks a month with the AT&T unlimited plan). That was a year and a half ago however. I now pay 50 bucks a month for unlimited long distance, unlimited minutes in my zone (which I'm in 95-99% of the time), caller id, call waiting, and voice mail.

I know verizon now has an unlimited long distance package now, but I'm not sure how much it costs.

I also lived in a sprint local area for a short while and just basic phone service, with cID, cw, & vm cost like 60 bucks a month. So I was certainly saving money when compared to them.