An artifact for birdwatchers.
Editor’s note: This article is from “Love Fan” (ID: ifanr), author cold thinking .
The 90s is the era of Hong Kong movies. For the Z-generation users who have not really used the pager, their impression of the pager may be mostly from Hong Kong movies. This early “human” device that connects people is called pager on the mainland, calling in Taiwan. Machine, in Hong Kong, it is called pager, BP machine, BB machine.
In China in the 1990s, “I have something to call you!” is a phrase that is often said. At that time, the most popular slogan was Motorola’s “Motorola pager, transmitting information anytime, anywhere.”
And around the world, its existence has even produced a unique “black language” language like today’s “extension” and “fire”. In the United States in the 1990s, teenagers used 90*401773 as the expression of the word “go home.”
Of course, with the development of smart phones, pagers are slowly being eliminated by the public. China’s pagers were 25 million users in 2002, and by the end of September 2005 there were only 1.097 million. The number of users in the early 2000s was avalanche-down, but it did not disappear directly in history. The stage, but become a practical tool in a specific field.
UK Guardian wrote in a 2017 article “We are among us Some people are still using pagers.”
The reason why the pager has not been completely abandoned is that it is very reliable. The pager does not use the mobile network like a mobile phone, so if there are some emergency situations that cause the mobile phone network to crash, the pager can still work.
Imagine that the editor of Ai Faner participated in the event at the exhibition of tens of thousands of people, and the network on the scene almost collapsed completely. At this time, if the editor brings a pager, the message can still be delivered on time and still take the lead. The pager can keep you in touch with the outside world at least until the carrier’s support car arrives.
In addition, the longer battery life of the pager battery is also a highlight that has to be mentioned. Of course, in the eyes of those who are still using pagers, the advantage of pagers is not in technology but in social behavior. Emergency responder Liam Lehane said that the pager is really good for publishing information because you don’t think it is anything that is not important.
When people receive pager information, people tend to notice it. Because it’s not just an ordinary phone or text message.
Pagers not only capture people’s attention, but also avoid the hustle and bustle of friends who gather together. After all, when you frequently play mobile phones while friends are gathering, friends will think about him.This is no longer a common topic, and everyone will feel that your attitude does not respect the friends of the same seat. But if the message you reply to is pager information, you will spontaneously think that this is important information that you have to deal with.
Infrastructure companies like EDF Energy also use pagers to alert employees when problems arise. While the pager is being used, the pager is also updated. Some pagers are now equipped with a GPS tracker, which is also very important for the lifeboat crew.
Paging services are also very popular among birdwatchers. Some websites provide the fastest and most timely bird news service SwiftAlert The service is to deliver the message through the pager. SwiftAlert also receives messages via a Wi-Fi and mobile phone network that connects to your smartphone. Even where there is no pager signal, SwiftAlert users can get the latest and most comprehensive bird news coverage on the pager.
▲ Image from: rarebirdalert
The League of Arab States will also use the pager to synchronize information while sending text messages and emails. “Multiple safety belts” ensure that important information can be delivered to the user.
Of course, the most used pager is still the medical system. In the United States, approximately 90% of hospitals are still using pagers for communication and overpaid 45% to maintain traditional pager services. For hospitals, pagers have low maintenance costs, long battery life, and wide coverage, all of which can be used even during disasters or power outages.
The pager that has not yet withdrawn from the stage of history is slowly moving towards the end.
Many people criticize pagersThe existence is not convenient for medical staff, they need to bring more equipment, and the pager can not transmit information immediately. This is also a drawback.
From a convenient communication tool to the “Ancient Artifact” far from the main stage, the pager vitality that has not completely withdrawn from the historical stage is stronger than we think.