Editing 2053: Incoming Calls
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | This comic shows a graph | + | {{incomplete|Anything missing? Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} |
+ | This comic shows a graph of incoming phone calls over time to [[Randall]] since he was younger than six years. The graph doesn't show the absolute numbers but the proportion of callers. Because it's safe to assume that calls from his family didn't decrease over the years, other calls just increased over time and this graph can be misunderstood because the number of calls in the recent years are probably much higher than in 1990. Randall married in 2011, so family may have increased since then due to in-laws. This leads to Randall's second header line when he states that he "finally stopped picking up for unknown numbers", which is still roughly the same fraction but the amount is much more today. | ||
− | + | Not covered are major modern ways to communicate like {{w|SMS}}, talking on {{w|Facebook}}, or the famous {{w|WhatsApp}}. Nonetheless Randall is also known to use the old fashioned {{w|ICQ}}. But, all these other electronic connections are behind the revelation done by Randall about his phone talks as he did in this comic. | |
− | + | Wrong numbers used to be a small but significant portion of the phone calls that Randall received, and remained fairly steady until the late 1990s, when they began a gradual and accelerating decline, eventually tapering off to nearly none in 2015. This is likely due to the rise of cellphones and programmable land-line phones, which contain their own address books and only require the caller to enter the number once, greatly reducing the chances of accidentally entering a wrong number in general and eliminating the possibility entirely for anyone with whom you have taken the time to save their number. | |
− | + | Appointment reminders and miscellaneous similar calls have steadily increased with time, likely due to a combination of Randall's increasing responsibilities as he ages, and thus the number of appointments and legitimate businesses who need to contact him, and the increased use by businesses of automated reminder systems. | |
− | + | The proportion of friends who call Randall rapidly increased in the 1990s and began to overtake family, probably because he has gained friends over time and because as they grew up they were more likely to own their own phone, and starting in the 2000s, their own cellphones, and at that time the Internet wasn't a primary method of communication, especially when away from home, so phone calls were the main way to connect with friends when apart. Over time, Randall's friends and family have been less likely to make phone calls to him, likely due to the use of text messages and the rise of the Internet and smartphones capable of running Internet-based messaging apps. This is further confirmed by the addition of an entry for "that one friend who hates texting" which has grown to encompass pretty much the entire "Friends" category, because presumably all his friends EXCEPT that "one friend" do all their communicating with Randall by methods other than actual phone calls, such as text messages, etc. The alternative idea that he no longer has friends except that "one friend" is sad and can be dismissed outright. | |
− | + | Additionally, although there was a large percentage of phone calls from legal {{w|Telemarketing|telemarketers}} in the 1990s, this percentage has significantly dropped, most likely due to the creation of the {{w|National Do Not Call Registry}}, which allows individuals and families in the United States to register phone numbers that are exempt from telemarketers. Instead, there has been a rise in phone calls from {{w|Phone fraud|scammers}} and political advertisements. Even if a phone number is registered on the National Do Not Call Registry, they may still receive phone calls from political organizations. It is implied that the latter two groups have caused Randall to stop answering phone calls from unknown numbers. | |
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− | Additionally, although there was a large percentage of phone calls from legal {{w|Telemarketing|telemarketers}} in the 1990s, this percentage has significantly dropped, | ||
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The title text refers to a common scamming tactic in which a {{w|Robocall|robocaller}}, typically one named "Emily," will claim to be having trouble with their headset and say "Can you hear me now?" The trick is either to keep you on the line while taking a second or two to connect you to a real person to get scammed, or to get a recording of you saying "yes" for potential fraudulent use (or both). | The title text refers to a common scamming tactic in which a {{w|Robocall|robocaller}}, typically one named "Emily," will claim to be having trouble with their headset and say "Can you hear me now?" The trick is either to keep you on the line while taking a second or two to connect you to a real person to get scammed, or to get a recording of you saying "yes" for potential fraudulent use (or both). | ||
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:or: why I finally stopped picking up for unknown numbers | :or: why I finally stopped picking up for unknown numbers | ||
− | :[The x-axis is labeled with years beginning at 1990 in five | + | :[The x-axis is labeled with years beginning at 1990 in five year segments up to NOW (2018). The y-axis shows a relative distribution of callers.] |
:[The calls are (from top to down):] | :[The calls are (from top to down):] | ||
:Appointment reminders, misc. (small growing all over time) | :Appointment reminders, misc. (small growing all over time) | ||
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[[Category:Line graphs]] | [[Category:Line graphs]] | ||
[[Category:Timelines]] | [[Category:Timelines]] | ||
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