Block Cell Phones In Theaters?

On 18 Dec 2005 20:51:24 -0800, "John S." > wrote:

>> If they're jamming, they are playing with fire. The FCC _will_ go after them
>> and the fines _start_ at $10,000.
>>
>
>Since it is fairly common practice I have to think there is an
>exception for hospitals.

IT IS NOT A COMMON PRACTICE. Just because you say it is so does not
make it true.

In article . com>,
"John S." > wrote:
>
> The technology is already available and in use. Cell signals can and
> are electronically blocked - you can buy the device on the net. Why do
> you think cell signals disappear the moment you walk in the hospital
> front door.

They do? I was just in a hospital a few hours ago visiting a friend and
my cell phone showed a full signal before I switched it off. When I was
rushed to the ER of a different hospital, I was literally on my cell
phone telling my friends and loved ones where I was as I was treated.
The ER staff just told me to not talk too loudly, but other than that,
they said nothing about my cell phone.

In fact, I know the CIO of a large health system that operates several
hospitals in a major urban area and he told me that he plans to get rid
of that cell phone ban in his hospitals because a lot of patients want
to use them to stay in touch with family members.

> Actually I think it is unfortunately necessary since some people are
> rude enough to not turn their cell phones and blackberries off during a
> movie.

I agree. Hell, theaters should be made of the same material the building
where I work is made of. In my office, my cell phone is a paperweight
and I have service through a provider that scores high marks with
customers.

In article >,
Arif Khokar > wrote:

> John S. wrote:
>
> > The technology is already available and in use. Cell signals can and
> > are electronically blocked - you can buy the device on the net. Why do
> > you think cell signals disappear the moment you walk in the hospital
> > front door.
> >
> > Actually I think it is unfortunately necessary since some people are
> > rude enough to not turn their cell phones and blackberries off during a
> > movie.
>
> Cell phone signals can also interfere with machinery that the hospital
> uses to monitor as well as administer medication and/or ventilation to
> patients.

That's a load of bull. When I was in the hospital, I used my cell phone
a lot. Being the nice guy I am, I talked the hospital staff into
dropping their silly requirement for me. I had my own room, so its not
like I was bothering me. Even when I was in the ER, I had no problem
using my cell phone while I was hooked up to any manner of monitoring
equipment and I am still here to tell you about it.

In article >,
Scott en Aztl?n > wrote:
>
> If you think you can avoid the ads by waiting until the movie comes
> out on DVD, think again.
>
> Some discs - 2 Fast, 2 Furious is one example - show advertisements
> the moment you pop the disc into the player... AND LOCK OUT ALL THE
> CONTROL BUTTONS SO THAT YOU CANNOT SKIP PAST THE CRAP. Of course, one
> could argue that the entire 2 Fast, 2 Furious disc is crap, but that's
> beside the point. The arrogance of Hollywood knows no bounds.
>
> Makes me glad that programs like DVDShrink exist. For those who don't
> know, DVDShrink is a program that will allow you to decrypt and
> re-author DVDs and REMOVE obnoxious "features" such as advertisements,
> button lockouts, and region codes.

That's really sickening, but I take a simpler approach to avoid watching
those ads on DVDs. I simply change the channel and watch the news for a
few minutes after I hit "play" or I leave the room to prepare a snack or
do something else for a few minutes.

On Sun, 18 Dec 2005 21:02:09 -0800, Scott en Aztlán
> wrote:

>If you think you can avoid the ads by waiting until the movie comes
>out on DVD, think again.
>
>Some discs - 2 Fast, 2 Furious is one example - show advertisements
>the moment you pop the disc into the player... AND LOCK OUT ALL THE
>CONTROL BUTTONS SO THAT YOU CANNOT SKIP PAST THE CRAP. Of course, one
>could argue that the entire 2 Fast, 2 Furious disc is crap, but that's
>beside the point. The arrogance of Hollywood knows no bounds.

You do know that if you insert the disk, and immediately hit stop on
either the player or the remote, and keep doing so until the load
operation is complete, it will then allow you to hit the menu key and
you will have effectively missed the bull****. Of course it is still
a major ****ing annoyance.

On Mon, 19 Dec 2005 07:38:52 -0800, Scott en Aztlán
> wrote:

>On Mon, 19 Dec 2005 05:32:50 -0500, necromancer
> wrote:
>
>>Couple that with alot of interference from the equipment they use in
>>hospitals...
>
>Actually, most of the wireless equipment used in hospitals operates in
>the protected WMTS (Wireless Medical Telemetry Service) band, 608 -
>614MHz. They operate in this band precisely because it is protected
>from things such as nearby TV stations, pager towers, cell towers, and
>other forms of interference.
>
>It's virtually guaranteed that none of it is going to interfere with
>your cellular phone (and vice-versa).

I beg to disagree. Hospitals also use a lot of wireless network
equipment. A large amount of ancillary equipment uses this in
addition to the traditional PC. I believe you are talking about
durable medical equipment that does not support communication on a
typical TCP/IP network, of which I have little or no knowledge. The
aforementioned part I do know of is very typical today, and I would
bet that pretty much all medical equipment will be network capable in
the next few years.

On Mon, 19 Dec 2005 12:22:55 -0500, "Daniel J. Stern"
> wrote:

wrote:
>
>> These things may be available, but they are absolutely illegal to use
>> within the USA.
>
>Who cares? This is Bush and Cheney's America, where the Constitution is
>"just a goddamn piece of paper", spying on Americans is legal by fiat, and
>torture is OK as long as it's only perpetrated on people we know are bad
>guys.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And clinton managed to replace a large percentage
of reputable judges with far left judges who are making more and more
wacky decisions. Previous liberals have appointed judges who have
shaped law in this country, rather than interpret it. So enough of
the whining about Bush.

>If Biff and
>Muffy and their little offspring Chipper can't receive or make celphone
>calls during dinner or the movie, that's just too damn bad for Biff, Muffy
>and Chipper.

On that I agree, so why not legalize the use of such devices in
certain types of businesses, like theaters.

On 19 Dec 2005 10:01:28 -0800, "N8N" > wrote:

>Both the left and the right are nothing but propaganda machines these
>days, the right is just better at it.
>
>nate

That might be the first time someone said something fair and balanced
about this subject. BIG GRIN

Anyhow, we all know that the left has a lock on the media, just some
won't admit it. However, I agree with you that the left side of the
media has not communicated in such a way as to gain favor, while the
right side definitely has. So that concerns me because I want the
right to gain market share for balance, yet I would hope that the left
would learn how to communicate whatever message they do have as well
as the right has done. Otherwise, if your postulation is correct,
once the right gains control over half the media in this country, they
will effectively control the country. Further, since the likelihood
is that they will shortly control as much as 60 to 70%, there would be
only one voice, and that I am opposed to even when I agree with the
voice.

On Mon, 19 Dec 2005 14:05:58 -0500, "JohnH" >
wrote:

>> Interesting.
>>
>> If they're jamming, they are playing with fire. The FCC _will_ go
>> after them and the fines _start_ at $10,000.
>
>I can't imagine why a hospital would *not* want a common form of
>communications used by physicians to work either.

They do, and even supply hospital employed physicians with phones.

In article >,
Dave Head > wrote:
>One group wants to do this - theater owners.
>
>http://upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?St...7-074635-6362r
>
>The FCC almost certainly will never allow this.

Active jamming? You bet they won't.

>Of course, the theaters could do it without FCC permission, passively, by
>covering theater walls with wire mesh (underneath a suitable decorative facade,
>of course) so that _no_ radio or TV signals penetrate. Of course, if the place
>catches fire, the police and fire 2-way radios won't work to any outside radios
>either.

Actually, selective coatings are available as well, so you could block
out much of the cellular bands without impacting the public safety
bands. Expensive, though. It would be cheaper simply to replace a
few of their employees with bouncer types, so they could actually
credibly enforce the no-cell rule.
--
There's no such thing as a free lunch, but certain accounting practices can
result in a fully-depreciated one.