OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


A couple days later, someone called me in the morning in Northern New
Jersey and reached me fine. But at 3:30 PM, when I was on the
southern end of the NJ Turnpike, or the Delaare or Md Turnpike, he
called again and even though I was wearing earbuds, I didn't hear it
ring. How is that possible? Even though I read that watching a movie
on the NJ turnpike didn't work so well, surely phone call coverage is
complete??


***(Finally learned that her mother had left the tickets with a security
guard.. If this had been something with a box office, I would have
expected her to leave them at the box office, but it didn't occur to me
that one could do this with security guards. Especially with all
those entrances, but there was really only one entrance for "The
Theatre". I think Eva was the one in charge, of about 10^^ or more, at
least she was the one who got to walk around, and she actually had them
in her hand when the first guard I asked pointed her out. That is,
ours were probably the only tickets she was holding. ^^They even
did metal checking to get in.) We were supposed to get them the
night before, and should have gotten them the night before that, to
avoid all this.

Even though I read that watching a movie
| on the NJ turnpike didn't work so well, surely phone call coverage is
| complete??
|

It depends on where towers are, and the US
is a big country. I have relatives in NH/VT who
can't use their cellphones from home. Parts of
NJ are rural.
In cases I've tried to use my Tracphone in bad
spots in VT, which can use any of 3 networks,
I think, and it also gets no signal. The phone
company maps show lots of gaps in coverage, yet
I know they're overstating what they do cover
because their maps show coverage in areas
where I know there is none. So I'm guessing that
they fudge it by doing something like marking an
area covered if there's some coverage with, say,
20 miles.

I think that people living on their phones is mainly
an urban phenomenon.

Not all that well - even in urban areas! And considering some
versions of the i phone the metal frame around the edge IS
the antenna, you have to hold it just so in order to avoid accidentally
dropping calls.

On 6/4/2015 8:56 AM, Mayayana wrote:
Even though I read that watching a movie
| on the NJ turnpike didn't work so well, surely phone call coverage is
| complete??
|

It depends on where towers are, and the US
is a big country. I have relatives in NH/VT who
can't use their cellphones from home. Parts of
NJ are rural.
In cases I've tried to use my Tracphone in bad
spots in VT, which can use any of 3 networks,
I think, and it also gets no signal. The phone
company maps show lots of gaps in coverage, yet
I know they're overstating what they do cover
because their maps show coverage in areas
where I know there is none. So I'm guessing that
they fudge it by doing something like marking an
area covered if there's some coverage with, say,
20 miles.

I think that people living on their phones is mainly
an urban phenomenon.



My cell phone, also a Tracfone, won't connect from where I'm sitting in
northern DE even though there is a cell phone tower only a mile away.
Problem is hill between me and the tower. If I walk outside, less than
50 ft from the house, the phone works. Same with TV and radio signals.

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:19:43 AM UTC-5, wrote:
Not all that well - even in urban areas! And considering some
versions of the i phone the metal frame around the edge IS
the antenna, you have to hold it just so in order to avoid accidentally
dropping calls.

Anecdotal: some cheap LG phones have better antennas than iPhone and Samsung smartass cells. *L*

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:03:22 AM UTC-4, micky wrote:
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?



M mother no
mother M no
M daughter yes
daughter M, mother yes

The only part there that would raise any question
would appear to be the daughter being able to reach
the mother, while you can't. Why the daughter would
be trying to reach the daughter who it sounds like is
standing right next to her, IDK. But I would think the
most logical explanation is that connections, especially
inside buildings, are highly variable. If the phones
moved even a few feet during the trial, which it sounds
like they could, then reception can change and the phone
may no longer be able to contact a cell site.

A couple days later, someone called me in the morning in Northern New
Jersey and reached me fine. But at 3:30 PM, when I was on the
southern end of the NJ Turnpike, or the Delaare or Md Turnpike, he
called again and even though I was wearing earbuds, I didn't hear it
ring. How is that possible? Even though I read that watching a movie
on the NJ turnpike didn't work so well, surely phone call coverage is
complete??


It's not that unusual. And it depends very much on the carrier.
In NJ, Verizon has better coverage than Sprint or ATT, for example.
The major highways do have excellent coverage, but it's not perfect
and the southern NJ part of the turnpike is in less populated areas
too.

On Thu, 4 Jun 2015 06:25:13 -0700 (PDT), trader_4
wrote:

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:03:22 AM UTC-4, micky wrote:
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?



M mother no
mother M no
M daughter yes
daughter M, mother yes

The only part there that would raise any question
would appear to be the daughter being able to reach
the mother, while you can't. Why the daughter would
be trying to reach the daughter who it sounds like is
standing right next to her, IDK.

No, the daughter was on the stage, waiting I think for the curtain to
open. The mother was in the audience. (OT The college graduating
class is about 1000, so big it had to be split into morning and
afternoon groups. Of the 500 people graduating that morning, only 40
got to sit on the stage! Did I mention she was Phi Beta Kappa, summa
cum laude? and she has a job and an apartment.)


But I would think the
most logical explanation is that connections, especially
inside buildings, are highly variable. If the phones
moved even a few feet during the trial, which it sounds
like they could, then reception can change and the phone
may no longer be able to contact a cell site.

But it's not like the phones are talking directly to each other. All
three connect to their cell company's cell tower, and from there (I
think) to the regular phone system, and from there to the cell company
of the recipient and then to a tower to each cell phone.

If my phone can reach my cell company, and the mother's phone can reach
hers when we place calls, or receive them from the daughter, why would
it matter from whom we are receiving the call. It made it to the cell
company or there would be nothing on voice mail. The mother probably
never moved from her chair, and I barely moved while looking for her.

She called me 5 times (or maybe 4) and I called her 3, I think, and we
got none of them, only voice mail. The next time I get voice mail for
anyone, even if there is no one in the role of daughter, should I call a
third party who might be anywhere and have him call my 2nd party, on the
theory that whether the phone rings is dependent on who is calling?
Should everyone do that?


A couple days later, someone called me in the morning in Northern New
Jersey and reached me fine. But at 3:30 PM, when I was on the
southern end of the NJ Turnpike, or the Delaare or Md Turnpike, he
called again and even though I was wearing earbuds, I didn't hear it
ring. How is that possible? Even though I read that watching a movie
on the NJ turnpike didn't work so well, surely phone call coverage is
complete??


It's not that unusual. And it depends very much on the carrier.
In NJ, Verizon has better coverage than Sprint or ATT, for example.
The major highways do have excellent coverage, but it's not perfect
and the southern NJ part of the turnpike is in less populated areas
too.

With all the big shots driving on that road, from NY to DC, it surprises
me that there would be an empty space. I have ATT. OTOH, maybe they
like it because if they don't want to answer the phone they can claim
they were in a dead spot.

Missing this one call would not have been noteworthy were it not for the
preceding potential fiasco on graduation morning.

About 6 inches I reckon.

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:55:13 AM UTC-5, micky wrote:

But it's not like the phones are talking directly to each other. All
three connect to their cell company's cell tower, and from there (I
think) to the regular phone system, and from there to the cell company
of the recipient and then to a tower to each cell phone.

I think the only time "regular phone system" comes into play...is when you place a landline call to a cell. Otherwise, tower to computer system to tower...but don't quote me!

"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

On Thu, 4 Jun 2015 07:10:26 -0700 (PDT), bob_villa
wrote:

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:55:13 AM UTC-5, micky wrote:

But it's not like the phones are talking directly to each other. All
three connect to their cell company's cell tower, and from there (I
think) to the regular phone system, and from there to the cell company
of the recipient and then to a tower to each cell phone.

I think the only time "regular phone system" comes into play...is when you place a landline call to a cell. Otherwise, tower to computer system to tower...but don't quote me!

That would make sense, but then what would all the switchboard operators
do?

Also, and you didn't say otherwise, it doesn't change the basic
question. If I can call in and out and the mother can call in and out,
why can't we call each other?

(I'm quoting you anyhow, so there.)

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 9:33:02 AM UTC-5, micky wrote:

That would make sense, but then what would all the switchboard operators
do?

....and how are we to take you seriously on *any* of your questions?

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 9:28:18 AM UTC-5, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then..

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

A text can often get through when a voice call can't. Even though the cell system has gone digital, a text is just a tiny squirt of data whereas a voice call uses quite a bit more. The next time the OP can't get a voice call to go through, perhaps he should try a text. 8-)

[8~{} Uncle Cell Monster

wrote:
Not all that well - even in urban areas! And considering some
versions of the i phone the metal frame around the edge IS
the antenna, you have to hold it just so in order to avoid accidentally
dropping calls.

Also when signal is marginal moving around few feet this or that way
makes difference. When I m out at our cabin I can call home at one spot
in the living room. That is sweet spot.

On 06/04/2015 08:25 AM, trader_4 wrote:

[snip]

It's not that unusual. And it depends very much on the carrier.
In NJ, Verizon has better coverage than Sprint or ATT, for example.
The major highways do have excellent coverage, but it's not perfect
and the southern NJ part of the turnpike is in less populated areas
too.

Here, AT&T has poor coverage. At home I have to stay in certain places
along the south side of my yard (closest to a business area and major
highway). Verizon is the best here.

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"There is nothing in the U.S. Constitution that sanctifies the
separation of church and state." [Pat Robertson]

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 12:19:58 PM UTC-5, Mark Lloyd wrote:

Here, AT&T has poor coverage. At home I have to stay in certain places
along the south side of my yard (closest to a business area and major
highway). Verizon is the best here.

....according to Consumer Report on customer service/satisfaction, T-Mobile for the big guys...and with a higher score, US Cellular for the small guys.

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 10:32:58 -0400, micky
wrote:

If I can call in and out and the mother can call in and out,
why can't we call each other?

Venues like Madison Square Garden can go through periods of hardly
anyone using a cell phone followed by periods with hundreds or even
thousands of calls. Cell sites and interconnecting system can and do
get overloaded. All sorts of strange things can happen including
calls just being dumped or sent to voicemail for no reason apparent to
the user. I can imagine 90% of those graduating students texting,
calling relatives, and calling each other before during and after the
ceremony.

Pat

On 6/4/2015 1:19 PM, Mark Lloyd wrote:


Here, AT&T has poor coverage. At home I have to stay in certain places
along the south side of my yard (closest to a business area and major
highway). Verizon is the best here.


Opposite here. ATT can be used anywhere in the house or in myh
neighborhood. Verizon only worked at the end of the driveway. I found
that to be inconvenient at 10 PM when it is 4 degrees so I stuck with
ATT. Seems like they call have bad spots at some point.

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 13:53:50 -0400, Pat wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 10:32:58 -0400, micky
wrote:

If I can call in and out and the mother can call in and out,
why can't we call each other?

Venues like Madison Square Garden can go through periods of hardly
anyone using a cell phone followed by periods with hundreds or even
thousands of calls. Cell sites and interconnecting system can and do
get overloaded. All sorts of strange things can happen including
calls just being dumped or sent to voicemail for no reason apparent to
the user. I can imagine 90% of those graduating students texting,
calling relatives, and calling each other before during and after the
ceremony.

Do you think maybe when circuits are busy, the cell company gives
priority to outgoing calls and makes no effort to ring the 2nd party,
just offers to take a voicemail? That would cut in half the number of
connections that are made.

Pat

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.

"micky" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who
had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by
then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on
network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries
to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage,
in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage,
they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their
precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.


check out Visual Voice Mail, from your carrier.

I have my unanswered cell phone calls roll over to my landline phone, and
the landline phone has free visual voice mail.

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 20:40:27 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.

Don't know Android - I'm not a big fan. Love my BlackBerry Q10 - loved
myBB Curve before that, and the 2 others before that. Before the
"smart phones" I had several Nokias that worked well.and a Motorola
that wasn't worth crap. They've all been on the Rogers (AT&T)
network.

You'd be surprized how many cell phones you see in the bush in Africa
- where you could never get a land line.

On Thu, 4 Jun 2015 17:48:04 -0700, "taxed and spent"
wrote:


"micky" wrote in message
.. .
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who
had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by
then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on
network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries
to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage,
in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage,
they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their
precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.


check out Visual Voice Mail, from your carrier.

I have my unanswered cell phone calls roll over to my landline phone, and
the landline phone has free visual voice mail.

I do the same, but I have my own answering machine on the land line.

Mayayana wrote:
Even though I read that watching a movie
| on the NJ turnpike didn't work so well, surely phone call coverage is
| complete??
|

It depends on where towers are, and the US
is a big country. I have relatives in NH/VT who
can't use their cellphones from home. Parts of
NJ are rural.
In cases I've tried to use my Tracphone in bad
spots in VT, which can use any of 3 networks,
I think, and it also gets no signal. The phone
company maps show lots of gaps in coverage, yet
I know they're overstating what they do cover
because their maps show coverage in areas
where I know there is none. So I'm guessing that
they fudge it by doing something like marking an
area covered if there's some coverage with, say,
20 miles.

I think that people living on their phones is mainly
an urban phenomenon.


You might be surprised. Farmers use theirs quite a bit.
They can order supplies, check the weather and markets etc.

wrote in message
...
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 20:40:27 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside
Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who
had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by
then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on
network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries
to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage,
in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage,
they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their
precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.

Don't know Android - I'm not a big fan. Love my BlackBerry Q10 - loved
myBB Curve before that, and the 2 others before that. Before the
"smart phones" I had several Nokias that worked well.and a Motorola
that wasn't worth crap. They've all been on the Rogers (AT&T)
network.

You'd be surprized how many cell phones you see in the bush in Africa
- where you could never get a land line.

in low density areas, cellular is the cheaper infrastructure alternative.

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 21:56:16 -0400, wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 20:40:27 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.

Don't know Android - I'm not a big fan. Love my BlackBerry Q10 - loved
myBB Curve before that, and the 2 others before that. Before the
"smart phones" I had several Nokias that worked well.and a Motorola
that wasn't worth crap. They've all been on the Rogers (AT&T)
network.

You'd be surprized how many cell phones you see in the bush in Africa
- where you could never get a land line.

The chief criterion was a phone with an FM radio in it. If that was
android, so be it. It was some Huawei model.

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 21:20:19 -0500, Dean Hoffman
wrote:

Mayayana wrote:
Even though I read that watching a movie
| on the NJ turnpike didn't work so well, surely phone call coverage is
| complete??
|

It depends on where towers are, and the US
is a big country. I have relatives in NH/VT who
can't use their cellphones from home. Parts of
NJ are rural.
In cases I've tried to use my Tracphone in bad
spots in VT, which can use any of 3 networks,
I think, and it also gets no signal. The phone
company maps show lots of gaps in coverage, yet
I know they're overstating what they do cover
because their maps show coverage in areas
where I know there is none. So I'm guessing that
they fudge it by doing something like marking an
area covered if there's some coverage with, say,
20 miles.

I think that people living on their phones is mainly
an urban phenomenon.


You might be surprised. Farmers use theirs quite a bit.
They can order supplies, check the weather and markets etc.

But walking into light poles is an urban phenomenon. Farmers walk into
trees.

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:56:14 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 20:40:27 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.

Don't know Android - I'm not a big fan. Love my BlackBerry Q10 - loved
myBB Curve before that, and the 2 others before that. Before the
"smart phones" I had several Nokias that worked well.and a Motorola
that wasn't worth crap. They've all been on the Rogers (AT&T)
network.

You'd be surprized how many cell phones you see in the bush in Africa
- where you could never get a land line.

Heck, it's in the developing countries that have no copper phone line infrastructure where wireless technology has really taken off. Most people don't understand how long it has taken to build up the telephone and cable systems in North America. My family's farm had a party line 50 years ago. I imagine there is DSL and possibly a cable TV system with Internet access in that area now. It's only taken 30 years for mobile phone technology to become available worldwide for all people regardless of their economic standing. ^_^

[8~{} Uncle Phone Monster

On Thu, 4 Jun 2015 22:04:50 -0700 (PDT), Uncle Monster
wrote:

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:56:14 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 20:40:27 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.

Don't know Android - I'm not a big fan. Love my BlackBerry Q10 - loved
myBB Curve before that, and the 2 others before that. Before the
"smart phones" I had several Nokias that worked well.and a Motorola
that wasn't worth crap. They've all been on the Rogers (AT&T)
network.

You'd be surprized how many cell phones you see in the bush in Africa
- where you could never get a land line.

Heck, it's in the developing countries that have no copper phone line infrastructure where wireless technology has really taken off. Most

This was Alexander Graham Bell's original plan. To a group of
scientists gathered in Philadelphia, he said "My device is pretty good,
but putting all those wires down will take a lot of time, effort,
copper, and money. I propose we wait 120 years and by then I'm sure
we'll be able to do this wirelessly. We'll save all that time, money,
and copper that installation requires, plus all the time housewives
won't be chatting about nothing all afternoon. A net win for everyone."
_History of A. Bell and the Telephone_ Richard Goodwin. Summit Press,
2012.

people don't understand how long it has taken to build up the telephone and cable systems in North America. My family's farm had a party line 50 years ago. I imagine there is DSL and possibly a cable TV system with Internet access in that area now. It's only taken 30 years for mobile phone technology to become available worldwide for all people regardless of their economic standing. ^_^

[8~{} Uncle Phone Monster

On 06/04/2015 08:03 AM, micky wrote:
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?


Just well enough so you'll pay your monthly bill.

Remember, it's not about you the customer, it's about the stockholder. Shut up and pay your damn bill. ;-)

On 06/04/2015 11:04 PM, Uncle Monster wrote:
My family's farm had a party line 50 years ago. I imagine there is DSL and possibly a cable TV system with Internet access in that area now.

I don't have a party line but I don't have DSL or cable either.
Fortunately Verizon wireless works or I'd still be on dialup. Probably
the only reason I have electricity is the REA.

In rbowman writes:

I don't have a party line but I don't have DSL or cable either.
Fortunately Verizon wireless works or I'd still be on dialup. Probably
the only reason I have electricity is the REA.

I've got to wonder about the relative costs and options.

Yes, the REA brought electricity that last 5 miles down
dirt roads to umptity umptity rural buildings, but..

... but what would have been the comparative cost
of simply installing local standardized and
modular 2 and 5 kw generators, with simplified
"ganging" capability so you could hook up a
dozen of them together?




--
__________________________________________________ ___
Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key

[to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded]

"danny burstein" wrote in message
...
In rbowman writes:

I don't have a party line but I don't have DSL or cable either.
Fortunately Verizon wireless works or I'd still be on dialup. Probably
the only reason I have electricity is the REA.

I've got to wonder about the relative costs and options.

Yes, the REA brought electricity that last 5 miles down
dirt roads to umptity umptity rural buildings, but..

.. but what would have been the comparative cost
of simply installing local standardized and
modular 2 and 5 kw generators, with simplified
"ganging" capability so you could hook up a
dozen of them together?


Back in the 30s and 40s? And how many times would they have had to be
replaced in all that time?

On Fri, 05 Jun 2015 07:44:02 -0600, rbowman
wrote:
I don't have a party line but I don't have DSL or cable
either. Fortunately Verizon wireless works or I'd still
be on dialup. Probably the only reason I have
electricity is the REA.

I've always wanted to live off the grid, use solar, wind, and
geothermal power and heat and sell the extra back to the power grid.
An earth banked or underground home would be the icing on the cake.
Not sure about how to do phone service off the grid, though.

--
rebel

On Friday, June 5, 2015 at 1:28:41 AM UTC-5, micky wrote:
On Thu, 4 Jun 2015 22:04:50 -0700 (PDT), Uncle Monster
wrote:

On Thursday, June 4, 2015 at 8:56:14 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 20:40:27 -0400, micky
wrote:

On Thu, 04 Jun 2015 15:34:03 -0700, sms
wrote:

On 6/4/2015 7:28 AM, taxed and spent wrote:
"micky" wrote in message
...
OT for AHR, not for other ng.

How well do cell phones really work?

My niece graduated NYU a couple weeks ago, and standing outside Madison
Square Garden, using a cell phone, I could not reach her mother (who had
the tickets***), only her voice mail. She was probably inside by then.

But I could reach my niece, who was also inside by then.

Her mother could not reach me, although I later found 4 messages from
her from that time period on my voice mail. But she could reach her
daughter at the same time.

Her daughter could reach both of us.

How is this possible?


In addition to the other reply, I have found that much depends on network
usage at any given time. You could be crowded out when everyone tries to
use a limited resource at the same time.

This is one reason carriers are in the process of adding WIFI coverage, in
addition to regular cell coverage. If you are within WIFI coverage, they
can route you through the wired system without having to use their precious
cell bandwidth (or even if you are nowhere near cell coverage).

In NYC AT&T has a lot of issues. Verizon does not.

That could be a big part of it.

Is there an app t hat lets one view the group of voicemails as a list of
separate ones, and maybe even lets one call in and retrieve them out of
order? For android.

Don't know Android - I'm not a big fan. Love my BlackBerry Q10 - loved
myBB Curve before that, and the 2 others before that. Before the
"smart phones" I had several Nokias that worked well.and a Motorola
that wasn't worth crap. They've all been on the Rogers (AT&T)
network.

You'd be surprized how many cell phones you see in the bush in Africa
- where you could never get a land line.

Heck, it's in the developing countries that have no copper phone line infrastructure where wireless technology has really taken off. Most

This was Alexander Graham Bell's original plan. To a group of
scientists gathered in Philadelphia, he said "My device is pretty good,
but putting all those wires down will take a lot of time, effort,
copper, and money. I propose we wait 120 years and by then I'm sure
we'll be able to do this wirelessly. We'll save all that time, money,
and copper that installation requires, plus all the time housewives
won't be chatting about nothing all afternoon. A net win for everyone."
_History of A. Bell and the Telephone_ Richard Goodwin. Summit Press,
2012.

It's amazing how close their vision of the future turned out for some early inventors and writers. I remember reading a SiFi story written by one of the great writers of the genre where every man, woman and child had a small handheld device that connected to a massive central computer which they would consult whenever they wanted some information. This made it unnecessary for anyone to retain information or remember how to do anything. I wish I could remember the name of the author. Perhaps I'll use the small device on the table in front of me to consult a massive system of interconnected computers to find out the name of the author? ^_^

[8~{} Uncle Future Monster

On 06/05/2015 01:18 PM, rebel wrote:
On Fri, 05 Jun 2015 07:44:02 -0600, rbowman wrote:
I don't have a party line but I don't have DSL or cable
either. Fortunately Verizon wireless works or I'd still
be on dialup. Probably the only reason I have
electricity is the REA.

I've always wanted to live off the grid, use solar, wind, and geothermal power and heat and sell the extra back to the power grid.

The term off-grid refers to not being connected to a grid. How would you sell your extra power to the grid if not connected to it?

On 2015-06-05, FecesBook wrote:

On 06/05/2015 01:18 PM, rebel wrote:

I've always wanted to live off the grid, use solar, wind, and
geothermal power and heat and sell the extra back to the power
grid.


The term off-grid refers to not being connected to a grid. How
would you sell your extra power to the grid if not connected to it?

alt.home.repair is not noted for entertaining the sharpest adzes in
the tool box.

nb

On Friday, June 5, 2015 at 3:20:12 PM UTC-5, FecesBook wrote:
On 06/05/2015 01:18 PM, rebel wrote:
On Fri, 05 Jun 2015 07:44:02 -0600, rbowman wrote:
I don't have a party line but I don't have DSL or cable
either. Fortunately Verizon wireless works or I'd still
be on dialup. Probably the only reason I have
electricity is the REA.

I've always wanted to live off the grid, use solar, wind, and geothermal power and heat and sell the extra back to the power grid.

The term off-grid refers to not being connected to a grid. How would you sell your extra power to the grid if not connected to it?

He wouldn't *be* living off-grid, if he was *only* putting power into it...but then, the money he got *would* be living off the grid? *L*

On Fri, 05 Jun 2015 16:20:08 -0400, FecesBook wrote:
I've always wanted to live off the grid, use solar,
wind, and geothermal power and heat and sell the
extra back to the power grid.


The term off-grid refers to not being connected to a
grid. How would you sell your extra power to the grid
if not connected to it?

I'm not exactly sure how it's all connected, but I believe the house
and other buildings would be connected to the off grid power sources
via storage batteries. I think excess power can be stored in
batteries not connected to the buildings. The buildings would be off
the grid, but extra power could be sold to the power company.

If there is an idea then the only thing left is to put intelligent
minds to work who can make it happen.

--
rebel