Talk:Pager
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- However, this use of the Internet to carry text messaging traffic is subject to unpredictable delays due to router and switch traffic.
Routers and switches cause traffic in magnitude of hundreds of milisecond, even if when sending over the globe. I do not think that such delays are of concern. I suggest removing this. --Alvin-cs ✉ 13:47, 25 February 2006 (UTC)
Agreed. I am about to do some cleaning up of the article and will remove this. DrDeke 16:56, 1 March 2006 (UTC)
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[edit] Traffic with SMS text messages
It may not be the traffic on routers / switches, the delays on which appear to be underestimated, it can certainly take a lot longer to recieve an SMS text message versus a Page, also, since paging technology is older, the base stations are more prevalent, with pagers able to use both the mobile cellular networks, and the pager networks which are still developed for emergency services / police use.
- I haven't had a delayed SMS text message in many years (I can tell because I get a service message from the network saying when a message is delivered to a recipient's phone). SMSing nowadays is pretty much instant, at least in countries that keep their base stations up to date. Also, emergency services now often use their own cell phone base station system using frequencies and routers separate from the civilian ones, and they can also use civilian networks with special priority given to their messages and calls.
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- I work at a mobile telephone company, and trust me when I say that pages are always instant, whereas SMS messages can take some time to arrive on a mobile phone. Even if the message is sent from an application linked directly to the SMSC, it can still take some time before the message arrives on the mobile. I agree with you that in most cases it comes in directly, but there are times where it can take 1 or 2 minutes. Ajunne
[edit] Skytel
Does anyone know anything about how Skytel works? They claim to have full-time US nationwide coverage for one-way pagers, as opposed to "follow-me" service where you have to call the network to tell it where you are at any moment. If they're claiming what it sounds like, that means they broadcast every page to the whole country. I guess that's not inconceivable, but I'd like to know details. Phr (talk) 10:33, 28 May 2006 (UTC)
I believe you are correct; that messages sent to subscribers of a nationwide one-way paging service are broadcast on every paging tower operated by that specific paging service on that specific coverage plan in the country. I don't see any other way in which it could work. Skytel tends to use 6400bps FLEX on their paging channels, and I suspect that as of 2006, pager traffic has declined to levels where it is quite feasible to offer nationwide one-way paging at the (relatively) low rates that Skytel offers.
This is my speculation based on some evidence; I do not know for a fact that this is how the system works, but I am fairly confident that it is.
--DrDeke 05:16, 1 June 2006 (UTC)
Skytel used to do one-way paging service by starting with the page in your primary service area and then sending it to all areas. They were an early adatper of FLEX so that the pager would register when it entered an an area (abbreviated two-way) to lower channel congestion. They also used two-way to guarantee reception of pages.
--kah13 2340 hrs, 29 June 2006 (PDT)
I don't think that FLEX pagers could transmit any information at all, not even "1.5-way" or registration messages. I thought that ReFLEX was needed for that. I'll have to look into it to confirm, but I am pretty sure this is the case.
--DrDeke 18:14, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
I've used Skytel for over a decade. Normally, pages are sent to your 'home' region. If you activate 'NationwideNow', for example if you are traveling, pages are sent throughout the country, but there's a surcharge per page. They offer a similar international service. AFAIK Skytel used to use a satellite system for paging, which provided blanket nationwide coverage. Now they rely on terrestrial transmitters, which they say are in towns of 50,000 or more. 66.93.7.200 18:41, 7 August 2007 (UTC)
Skytel's 1Way paging network as mentioned above can have a "home" region or can always have nationwide service depending on your request at the time you sign up. Activating NationwideNow is done at 1800skyuser via telephone keypad input or speaking to a customer service rep. Skytel's 2Way network automatically looks for what region the user is located within and delivers their messages there. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.86.127.108 (talk) 13:37, 28 October 2007 (UTC)
[edit] FM Radio Paging
Pagers typically receive signals using the SCA subcarrier of FM broadcast stations in the 88-108 mhz band... This statement is flatly untrue in the US. Also, most of the rest of the paragraph is somewhere between a little wrong and very wrong. Hospitals often run their own paging plants, but their reason for using pagers is actually more a function of business process than an issue over cell coverage. --kah13 2331 hrs, 29 June 2006 (PDT)
Yeah, that paragraph was pretty bad. I fixed it up some and will continue to look over the entire "Pager" article, as there are other parts that could probably use some fixing up.
--DrDeke 18:14, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Cleanup?
On 17 November 2006, the user Sin-man tagged this article as being in need of clean-up. If you (Sin-man) see this, could you please let us know what you believe needs to be cleaned up in the article? Otherwise, I am unsure as to how we will know when the tag should be removed. Thanks.
DrDeke 17:05, 27 November 2006 (UTC)
Suggest a disambiguation page to separate 'pager' the communications device, from 'pager', a type of small software program for viewing plain-text files in UNIX. 209.191.144.12 14:01, 28 November 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Needs History section
This entry needs more history of the pager. When was the first service? How much did it cost? What was the first pager like? Why was it invented? --24.249.108.133 00:26, 14 June 2007 (UTC)
[edit] June 2007 Pager Article Clean-up and Reformat Discussion
After some consideration, I would like to propose a series of edits to clean-up the jumble of text and reformat the article to create an ordered readability. What I plan to do (hopefully with the support of major editors of this article) is to rewrite a new introduction, create addition sections, shuffle existing text, add additional content, and delete whatever is leftover.
- As stated earlier, the article is in need of additional sections. Outright, I will add “Function and Operation” section explaining how, at the consumer level, numeric, alphanumeric, and two-way pagers worked.
- A “Technical Information” will be added to explain the FLEX and POCSAG protocols.
- I have briefly browsed through the article to be merged “Radio Paging” for the most part think that it should be merged into a new section, “History”, within this article.
- One section I would like to see but question if would Wikipedia’s guidelines would tolerate is “pager codes”. Performing Google searches for “Pager codes”, verified the existence of an informal numeric code language for numeric pagers.
While I do plan to implement these edits on Thursday, June 21st, I would delay any such action to consider any comments and suggestions by other editors.--Kevin586 19:15, 18 June 2007 (UTC)
[edit] tone-only
This article seems to completely overlook tone-only paging, which was all that was available for many years. Tone-only pagers were still in common use as late as the mid 90's, they were useful for things like voicemail notification or notification to call dispatch.
[edit] Drug dealers
I'm surprised there's nothing in the article about drug dealers, who used to be one of the niches for pagers. Back in the early-to-mid 1990s, it was commonly assumed that if you had a pager you were either a doctor or a drug dealer. -- LGagnon 19:41, 5 June 2008 (UTC)
