10-digit pphone dialing .....

Crazy Horse · Jun 23, 2008

I see where the area code must be included in phoning people starting this September 8 EVEN WITHIN THE SAME AREA CODE, so that means dialing 10 digits when phoning the guy across the street or down the road. Is this just in Canada or is it the same across North America? I can't imagine just a few states, provinces, or areas doing it and not everyone.

Bill from MA · Jun 23, 2008

It's true in MA also, or at least in the Boston area. After having to change your area code twice in less than 10 years people had enough of that and they now just mix them all in.

It's so automatic now I don't even think about it.

Bill

rustyfarmall · Jun 23, 2008

Been that way here for several years now.

Stony Jim · Jun 23, 2008

It's been that way in Maryland for a long time. Used to be 1 area code for the whole state. Then we got more people and businesses and cell phones and they had to add more area codes. Think the cell phones are more to blame than anything.

Anonymous-0 · Jun 23, 2008

They did that in N. IL last year for the 815 area code and you had to dial 815 for anyone since they added a new area code in the area. Now I live in N. MN and we don't have the same rules...'course there's a lot less people.

onefarmer · Jun 23, 2008

Depends on where you are. If there is a area code overlay where there is two or more area codes for the same area then 10 digit dialing is nessasary. There are areas where they decided to have it anyway. Where I'm at (989), they expanded the local dialing for me into some of the next areacode (517) so if the call is local but in that other code then 10digit is needed.

Anonymous-0 · Jun 23, 2008

MA started doing it in '92 or '93. Connecticut followed a couple years later.

IIRC Cell phones have always wanted all 10 digits.

There was a time you didn't have to dial the exchange code (the three digits before the seven). I can remember only needing to dial five digits on the last exchange in the state to modernize...local calls just needed last digit from the 3 for the exchange, then the four digits.

Things change. You won't even notice in a year.

NCWayne · Jun 23, 2008

Been that way in NC for several years now. We were told is that betweem there being so many people there for new numbers and there being so many cell phones again creating new numbers, that there was no other way. They eventually had to creat a second area code that overlaps the origional one so there is the possibility of two people having the same number and different area code within the same area. Basically, don't fret about it, it won't be long it'll become second nature to add the area code when calling and giving out your number. Just think the 7 digit number has lasted, at least around here, for the past 30+ years. In the years before that it went from party lines and talking to an operator and having it connected to dialing just a couple of letters and digits and eventually became a "huge" 7 digit number with an area code when needed. Personally I think it's not a bad trade off for the convenience of cell phones but I sure wish we could get rid of some of the "extra" people around here....

Anonymous-0 · Jun 23, 2008

Cell phones make it worse, but it started before they were universal like they are today.

Fax machines in particular were the first number vampires...suddenly most any business of any size needed another line to send and receive faxes on without interfering with their voice line(s). Direct dial pagers, where everyone had it's own phone number instead of going through an operator or punching codes were another.

Brian Jasper co. Ia · Jun 23, 2008

Hmm, I wonder how Grand River Mutual (Independent phone exchange in southern Iowa & northern Mo) will get along with having to dial area codes for all calls. They were one of the last phone co's in the U.S. to go to direct dial and to do away with party lines. I remember in the early 80's you had to listen before dialing to make sure the line was open.

farmer boy · Jun 23, 2008

It's been that way in the 519 area of ontario for about a year. Not too sure about the other areas of Ontario though. Maybe someone else will know

Jim in Ma. · Jun 23, 2008

Yep - Ma. does that. In thinking about it, I can remember when you could just tell the operator who you wanted to talk to.

71ford100 · Jun 23, 2008

Garsh that would make it difficult here considering the whole state has the same area code.

Eric SEI · Jun 23, 2008

The portion of SE Indiana served by Cincinnati Bell is on 10 digit dialing, but Cincinnati Bell customers in OH and KY are still on 7 digit dialing.

Mark - IN. · Jun 23, 2008

Some areas already require 10 digit dialing in Illinois, for instance the 815 area code. Yet, other areas in Illinois such as the 630 area code don't require 10 digit dialing, but allows it. My home in Indiana within the 574 area code blocks 10 digit dialing within the same central office switch, but allows it to other NXX's (local exchanges) outside of my local CO switch. Go figure.

I won't name the company, but worked on their switch which has tie lines to their parent company's own toll switch in Detroit, and all outbound calls for all states are out of Detroit, even if its to call the pizza guy across the street in whatever other state. I offered to change that for at least local calls, but they said was how their parent company tracks outbound billing. And as bad as that was, I worked on a customer switch that's setup similar, except their home office is in Singapore or Hong Kong, I forget which. Now, explain the international charges to the boss for calling the...oriental food delivery guy down the street on that one, of their own doing.

Mark

KEB1 · Jun 23, 2008

Denver's had 10 digit dialing since some time before I started coming out hear five or six years ago. There are two overlapping area codes. Only advantage is that anywhere in either of the two area codes is a local call.

When the phone company runs out of numbers in a particular area code, there are two choices...either divide the existing area code in half, which means that half the subscribers get a new area code and have to go through the pain of changing their phone number, or create overlapping area codes, which means you get 10 digit dialing.

I must be getting old. I can remember 5 digit dialing within a single exchange when I was kid. I also remember counting long & short rings on the party line to see who it was for.

Keith

MarkB_MI · Jun 24, 2008

This started in the US in the early '90's. What happened is that they ran out of area codes. Prior to then, an area code was distinguishable from a local prefix because they always had either "1" or "0" as the middle digit. (e.g. 303 for Denver or 313 for Detroit.) As the demand for phone numbers when ballistic, AT&T found out they were running out of area code numbers. The easiest solution was to make area codes out of prefixes. So Detroit was split from 313 to 313/248, then 313/248/586 and 313/248/734. So if you lived inside an area code that didn't have 0 or 1 as the middle digit, you had to dial the full number in order for the phone switches to figure out if you were making a call inside the area or outside.

An interesting sidebar is that there's really never been a shortage of phone numbers. The real problem is an inefficient allocation of numbers. For many years, phone numbers were doled out in blocks of 10,000, even to small phone companies who would never have even a thousand customers. I think they finally changed that idiocy a few years back; otherwise we'd be dialing 12 or 13 digits by now.

1936 · Jun 24, 2008

Thanks cell phones, fax's for the high useage of phone numbers. Each cell phone dealer has a very high bank of numbers to be sold. So is life.

10-digit pphone dialing .....

Crazy Horse

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Bill from MA

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rustyfarmall

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Stony Jim

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Anonymous-0

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onefarmer

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Anonymous-0

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NCWayne

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Anonymous-0

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Brian Jasper co. Ia

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farmer boy

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Jim in Ma.

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71ford100

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Eric SEI

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Mark - IN.

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KEB1

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MarkB_MI

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1936

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