# Alright, enough with the goddamn cell phone rings! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 15, 2001, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445 "2001-08-15T21:11:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Syzygy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Syzygy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syzygy)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2001, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/1 "2001-08-15T21:11:11Z")
If I hear that fucking radio commercial **one more time** , I’m gonna grab the radio and explore the benefits of **severe percussive maintenance**. You know the one I mean, advertising the new Nokias with the downloadable rings, and then it plays this stupid ring based on some lame Top 40 song. It doesn’t even sound like the song, god dammit! But that sound effect cuts through my eardrums every time. Why do you need to have a ring that sounds like a Britney Spears song? It’s bad enough when I can’t enjoy a meal at my favorite restaurant because some idiot is testing his ringer at the next table, browsing through 8,000 different ringtones, and **those** are set from the factory! Why is that necessary? “Hey, cool, check out my phone! It has all the same ring tones as yours! Listen!” Ugh. I wish I had a device that could make a cell phone **explode** and spray the owner with hot melted plastic. And isn’t it wonderful to hear “Survivor” in the middle of a movie? And then have the inconsiderate asshole **answer and start talking** to the person that just called him? \ \ \ But now I’m getting to cell phone etiquette, and that’s for another thread. :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: ---
**Author:** ![magdalene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df788c/32.png) [@magdalene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magdalene)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2001, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/2 "2001-08-15T21:15:44Z")
Sing it, brother. ---
**Author:** ![Reverend](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac8455/32.png) [@Reverend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reverend)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2001, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/3 "2001-08-15T21:20:05Z")
[http://www.phonebashing.com/](http://www.phonebashing.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2001, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/4 "2001-08-15T21:55:14Z")
On the other hand, I have the Imperial March from Star Wars on mine. I don’t scroll through the different settings unless I’m home, and bored stiff. And I have the decency to turn it off at the movies. ---
**Author:** ![FallenAngel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@FallenAngel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FallenAngel)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2001, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/5 "2001-08-15T23:11:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Superdude \* > \*\*On the other hand, I have the Imperial March from Star Wars on mine. I don’t scroll through the different settings unless I’m home, and bored stiff. And I have the decency to turn it off at the movies. \*\* I’m with you. Those of us with cell phones owe it to the general public not to be complete morons regarding their use. Mine is on at all times, but I just want to skull bash the assholes in bars and restaurants who feel the need to cycle through their ring options. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/6 "2001-08-16T00:03:53Z")
When I look at cell phones, I always ask the guy, “Can I set this thing to just… you know… ring?” He always gives me a funny look, as if to say: “What’s a ‘ring’, man?” I only leave my cell phone on (when I have it on me at all) if I’m expecting a call. Since I’m never expecting a call… well… it’s never on. ---
**Author:** ![Medea\_s\_Child](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Medea\_s\_Child](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Medea_s_Child)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/7 "2001-08-16T01:08:15Z")
Mine is set to a “cutsie” ring (no top 40s, just some bagpipe theme.) There is a reason for this. I’m not all the used to owning a cell phone and if it was just a phone ringing I’d look around for half an hour before I connected the annoyance with something _I_ had to deal with. I hate bagepipes. They make my skin crawl at the best of times. I hear the little tune, think “geez thats obnoxious…Oh…that’s my obnoxious thing Kill!Kill!Kill!” and shut it up however nessesary. If appropriate I answer it. If not, I silence it. (One of these days I’m going to miss the button and end up sledgehammering the thing.) Most of the time I keep it off or on silent mode, just in case. It gets free long distance and let my family know where I am. This is good. Beyond that I keep it turned off and call people back. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/8 "2001-08-16T01:21:13Z")
I love you, Medea’s Child. What a GREAT cell strategy. I just set mine to the most uncommon ring I could find, so that I can differentiate it from all the others when it goes off. But of course, when I’m in public, I can always tell if it’s mine that going off, because my pants are vibrating (always a good thing). I HATE it when people set theirs to Fur Elise, or whatever, because they then feel the need to LISTEN to it all the way through. ---
**Author:** ![Geobabe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/geobabe/32/3908_2.png) [@Geobabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geobabe)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/9 "2001-08-16T01:50:42Z")
One of my coworkers has her phone set to some idiotic tune, and leaves her phone in her locker when she’s out and about, so the rest of us have to listen to the fucking thing going off several times a night. I love this woman, but that phone has got to go. My cell phone sounds like…a phone. I listened to the other ring options when I first got it, and I thought, almost all of those would send me screaming into the night. Really obnoxious. ---
**Author:** ![Medea\_s\_Child](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Medea\_s\_Child](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Medea_s_Child)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/10 "2001-08-16T01:52:27Z")
Oh! Fur elise… hehehe… I was a a kiddie talent show this last weekend. A decently talented pianist was dong a great job on Fur Elise when some one’s cell phone went off. The tune is much better on piano. ---
**Author:** ![Diane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2acd7d/32.png) [@Diane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diane)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/11 "2001-08-16T01:58:57Z")
I just set mine on vibrate whenever I am out in public. [Homer] Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. . . . viiiiiiiiiii-brate [/Homer] ---
**Author:** ![Gunslinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gunslinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gunslinger)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/12 "2001-08-16T02:29:59Z")
My old phone had a really nifty, unique ring: _CQ_ in Morse code. But I got a new, better one, and now I’m stuck with the damned classical music just like everybody else. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Stewart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@Dave\_Stewart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Stewart)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/13 "2001-08-16T04:49:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Superdude \* > \*\*On the other hand, I have the Imperial March from Star Wars on mine. I don’t scroll through the different settings unless I’m home, and bored stiff. And I have the decency to turn it off at the movies. \*\* Good tune. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/14 "2001-08-16T04:53:08Z")
They should design cell phones to come with special “proximity sensors” so that they automatically shut off when given a special signal. Then movie theatres just broadcast this signal at the same time as their movies. ---
**Author:** ![Syzygy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Syzygy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syzygy)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/15 "2001-08-16T13:51:52Z")
I believe, **SPOOFE** , that this has been done in Europe. There’s no “proximity sensor”, they just jam any signals, so the phones are on, but they can’t receive any calls. It’s a step in the right direction. And for the rest of you, I am in no way bashing cell phones. I am bashing the inconsiderate bastards who forget how to behave in public as soon as they purchase one. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/16 "2001-08-16T14:12:57Z")
I have the Raiders of the Lost Ark theme as my ring tone, and like **Superdude** , I’ll set it to vibrate only, if I am in a theater, restaurant or other place where people expect a degree of quiet. And I refuse to use the phone while driving. I hate people who do it, and I refuse to become something I hate. ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/17 "2001-08-16T14:52:27Z")
I _hate_ the little tunes. I want all cell phones to just ring. Quietly. If you can’t tell that it’s your phone just from the proximity, then the voicemail can pick it up, and you can call the person back. ---
**Author:** ![Sunshine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Sunshine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunshine)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/18 "2001-08-16T15:01:57Z")
Mr. Sunshine is completely disgusted by the fact that they are now using the ring sound as a selling point. I can’t say I disagree. My phone rings with “Swanee River” but I sure wish I had the Imperial March. That’s way cooler. Or Indiana Jones. “Swanee River” sucks now. Oh, and my phone has “manner mode” that you just press the button and it automatically switches to vibrate for movies and stuff. Very convenient. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/19 "2001-08-16T15:07:33Z")
Hey, I _like_ my musical ringer (it plays “Timing” by Black Biscuits. Oddly, that was one of the four preprogrammed tunes). But I agree that there are few things more annoying than two fuckwits comparing phone rings at maximum volume on the morning train. Basically, I treat my cell phone like my penis: I don’t play with it in public, and I always set it to vibrate. –sublight. ---
**Author:** ![BoBettie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@BoBettie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BoBettie)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2001, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445/20 "2001-08-16T15:19:18Z")
I want mine to play “Why Don’t We Get Drunk and Screw” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alright-enough-with-the-goddamn-cell-phone-rings/76445.md?page=2)