Chris Croughton wrote:
> Most people in the UK that I know use "land line" (or "landline").
That
> seems to be a recent (last few years) take-up of the term by ordinary
> people, it was in common military and technical usage a decade or so
ago
> but at that time it seemed to be regarded as 'jargon'.
Exactly. "Land line/landline" is what I told my learner, but is sounds
a lot like "Charlie Whiskey Foxtrot, do we need to get a land line into
the Waco compound, over?"
> Many people in the UK don't differentiate the type of numbers when
they
> say them, that may be because they are distinctive: numbers starting
01
> or 02 are landlines, ones starting 07 are either mobile or 'personal'
> numbers, 08 are "diferently charged" numbers (0800 and 0888 free,
others
> are at 'national' rates), 09 are 'pay a lot' numbers.
Here in Greece, all cells start with 69, while, at least in Athens, we
have a 210 prefix for the ring-rings. I have yet to call a 1-900 number
here, but 1-800s are 08s." Despite such clear-cut conventions, the
Greek mind feels a distinct need to differentiate between those
"stationary" and "mobile" numbers. In point of fact, the radio informed
me yesterday that there are now more cell phones than people in Greece.
Is the same true in the UK and US?
> "Call me on my mobile" (but not 'at') is common UK usage, the
> alternatives being "landline" or sometimes "house phone" or "home
phone"
> or "call me at home". "... on/at my stationary" would not be good
> English (although 'mobile' has made the transition to a noun easily,
> 'stationary' and 'regular' haven't).
Every time I think "Mobil," I think gas and an oil-check. Every time I
think "Mobile," Alabama springs to mind. Hard-wired differences, even
for language teachers who are forced by the nature of theri jobs to
dabble more than a little bit in UK/US distinctions.
> An increasing number of people now use 'voice mode' to refer to
> communications where one speaks rather than email, and will also use
> 'talking' to refer to email/usenet/irc/etc., so I often hear "I was
> talking to Fred on IRC" or "do you want to talk voice-mode or on
email?"
By the time I get back to the comforts of civilization, I'll be more
out of touch than Major Tom.
I humbly thank thee...
(And I most definitely am...well, well, well.)
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