17 December 2019

Party Online Was So Different Then

Let's jump back to a time that most young folks today could scarcely conceive. A time before phones were portable and omnipresent.

Once upon a time, we didn't even have exclusive phones. You shared a "Party Line" with your neighbors. But, you may wonder, how did you know if the phone was ringing for your house or another? You each had a different ring pattern. 

Of course, this means that you couldn't use the phone if your neighbor was on the line. On the other hand, if you were bored it was easy to listen in on private conversations. In later decades, Party Lines became separate numbers that multiple parties could connect to simultaneously, allowing teen telephone parties. I think those are long gone now, too.

Today, let's jump back to 1946 to learn more via an Un-Comic from the Bell Telephone System teaching about the party lines -


I know it's a short one, but that's all for today. The system is up and running, and proper software is installed; now i need to pull the drive from the old system so i can transfer data. In theory, we're back on track. 

Stay tuned to see how theory and practical application collide...

page art from Bobby Gets Hep (1946)


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