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The_Librarian
20-04-2012, 06:11 PM
Who remember rotary dial phones (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotary_dial)?
The_Librarian
20-04-2012, 06:12 PM
And the old farm lines where you have to call the operator first before getting patched through to the number you wanted? :D
FNfal
20-04-2012, 06:22 PM
And the old farm lines where you have to call the operator first before getting patched through to the number you wanted? :D
I remember those if you kicked them hard it sounded like money going in the coin phones but you had to close the mouth piece or the operator knew you were kicking it :D
kilobits
20-04-2012, 06:27 PM
OOOh yes... I rember.

Dial number round circle to little stopper...
click
click
click
click all the way back round...
Dial next number round circle to little stopper...
click
click
click
click all the way back round...
Dial next number round circle to little stopper...
click
click
click
click all the way back round...
Dial next number round circle to little stopper...
click
click
click
click all the way back round...
Dial next number round circle to little stopper...
click
click
click
click all the way back round...
Dial next number round circle to little stopper...
click
click
click
click all the way back round...
Dial next number round circle to little stopper...

Damn... engaged.

Wait, and repeat
Dom1n8tr1x
20-04-2012, 06:30 PM
Yes I remember them, we had a nice red one.
wheunis
20-04-2012, 06:31 PM
Those things made you seriously hate people with 9's and 0's in their number...

"How badly do I wanna speek to THIS JACKASS?!?! Naw, I will wait until I get to run him over with my horse!"
kilobits
20-04-2012, 06:33 PM
Yes I remember them, we had a nice red one.

Ours was BRIGHT green !

And then when the superduper new push-button phones 1st made their appearance... the push buttons were still arranged in a circle... just as the old rotary dials! Must not confuse people too much... my gran would still try to dial them out of habit and end up pushing a whole series before getting one of us to do it!
MickeyD
20-04-2012, 06:37 PM
Yeah, but then you only dialled 6 digits for a local number... National dialling was only if you phoned another town/city!

Farmline was 4 rings... 2 long 2 short, 1 long 3 short, etc. And all the ou tannies listened to every call on their route!!
bdt
20-04-2012, 08:49 PM
I remember 'hacking' :erm: ours to make a call when the evil parental had locked the phone. If you got your speed and timing juuuusst right you could dial by tapping the numbers out on the cut-out switch :p
AfricanTech
20-04-2012, 09:28 PM
I remember 'hacking' :erm: ours to make a call when the evil parental had locked the phone. If you got your speed and timing juuuusst right you could dial by tapping the numbers out on the cut-out switch :p

LOL - when we got the 'new' press button one I figured out how to open it up and "disconnect" the lock at the IC Board - so I never got locked out
wheunis
21-04-2012, 09:10 AM
I remember 'hacking' :erm: ours to make a call when the evil parental had locked the phone. If you got your speed and timing juuuusst right you could dial by tapping the numbers out on the cut-out switch :p

Heh. I remember doing this!
Damn those days were akward. No, i mean the one's where you get questioned about the bill...
kilobits
21-04-2012, 10:57 AM
Do you also remember the old telephone answering machines... they had 2 cassettes, one for the recorded message and one for the messages people left. People used to have to wait for the beeeeep to leave a short a 10 - 15 second message...

Beeeeeep.

http://i0.simplest-image-hosting.net/picture/telanswer.jpg

No Telkom message service then or call catcher or anything.
kilobits
21-04-2012, 01:24 PM
http://i0.simplest-image-hosting.net/picture/oldphones.jpg
Celine
21-04-2012, 01:28 PM
nommer asseblief.
kilobits
21-04-2012, 01:50 PM
nommer asseblief.

http://i0.simplest-image-hosting.net/picture/nommer-asseblief.jpg

Theme tune link here... (http://vintagemedia.co.za/sites/default/files/Nommer_Asseblief_theme_song.mp3)
D3nz
21-04-2012, 02:39 PM
I remember 'hacking' :erm: ours to make a call when the evil parental had locked the phone. If you got your speed and timing juuuusst right you could dial by tapping the numbers out on the cut-out switch :p
Lol ...I was a pro at that:D
MickeyD
21-04-2012, 02:49 PM
Interest page: http://www.bobsoldphones.net/Pages/Telephone%20Exchange/TelephoneExchange.htm

And this is where your calls were patched through!!

http://www.bobsoldphones.net/Pages/Telephone%20Exchange/DSC00047.JPG
Elimentals
21-04-2012, 03:22 PM
Grew up on a farm where our "Phone" was 3 short rings followed by 2 long ones.

Yep we shared a line, so you had to count the rings to know if its for you, also when picking up you had to turn the crank to tell the women who you wanted to talk to. Small town so didnt even ask for numbers, normally just asked for people by names. Joke is the Operator normally knew if they where home or not.

also remember getting into trouble a couple of times for answering or listening in when the phone rang and it was not for us, some of them was very innocent as I picked up and could hear someone else talking then instead of putting down and wait I just sat there listening to wait for them to finish.

Got upgraded to the circle dial phones in 1982, took some time to get over counting the rings before answering.