# Where are the white pages now? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 28, 2017, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986 "2017-11-28T21:54:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2017, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/1 "2017-11-28T21:54:39Z")
How do you all look up numbers now? There are too many people who want to sell you public info on google. What happened to free listings? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2017, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/2 "2017-11-28T22:15:26Z")
[https://www.anywho.com/whitepages](https://www.anywho.com/whitepages) is clean ---
**Author:** ![steatopygia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steatopygia/32/3132_2.png) [@steatopygia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steatopygia)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2017, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/3 "2017-11-28T23:58:55Z")
I actually still get a yearly hard copy phone book delivered in my rural area. Combo white and yellow pages. I don’t actually use it. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/4 "2017-11-29T02:31:13Z")
> [@steatopygia](#): > > I actually still get a yearly hard copy phone book delivered in my rural area. Combo white and yellow pages. I don’t actually use it. I get it too. At work when they bring it and say ‘where do you want this’ I point at the garbage. They usually give me a confused look so I grab it from them and lob it in. I usually, depending on my mood, refuse to sign for it as well. I have no interest in it. At home, they drop it next to the mailbox. It works out nicely since it usually lands in the road, which is exactly where I leave it. Being fall, the city picks it up as they do their leaf collection. Again, I have no interest in it. ---
**Author:** ![ZurBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/71e660/32.png) [@ZurBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZurBob)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/5 "2017-11-29T03:07:40Z")
> [@steatopygia](#): > > I actually still get a yearly hard copy phone book delivered in my rural area. Combo white and yellow pages. I don’t actually use it. We’re semi-rural. Get a phone book a time or two a year here too… We keep it on the kitchen bookshelf. Much easier to refer to for a quick local call than messing with the 'puter or screwing with the “smart” phones. Totally free. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/6 "2017-11-29T12:56:40Z")
If I want the number for a business or government agency the Google knows all and charges nothing for their nearly 100% reliable service. My phone remembers it forever after. I haven’t called a live person whose name I know and whose number I don’t in probably 25 years. I have a hard time imagining a scenario where I’d already know one fact but not the other. In Olden Dayes you/I might have met somebody then lost their biz card or the paper we wrote their number on but still remember their name. In Moderne Tymes I (but maybe not you) type the name and number into my phone together as soon as I get them. Since the phone forgets nothing ever there’s nothing to look up. For many years I carried last year’s mini yellow/white combo book in my car so I could find something unplanned while out and about. I stopped doing that around 2013 when I realized it had been 5 years since I’d used the book instead of my device. So what do you (anyone) use a white pages for in 2017? Besides kindling? ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/7 "2017-11-29T13:21:18Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > So what do you use a white pages for in 2017? I have a friend named John Smith who moved far away 10 years ago. His parents still live in my city, but I haven’t seen them for 10 years.We had casual contacts when John was still living here. John’s father was hospitalized for a serious heart attack, and then sent home to recover slowly. I wanted to call him at home and offer best wishes, offer help etc. I know his name, but not his phone number. I used the white pages. (actually, since the white pages are no longer being published by the phone company, I used a 5 year old copy of the white pages, which I had saved because I thought it might come in handy one day. It would have been nice to have a more recent version.) ---
**Author:** ![mmmiiikkkeee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/edb3f5/32.png) [@mmmiiikkkeee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mmmiiikkkeee)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/8 "2017-11-29T16:28:43Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > So what do you (anyone) use a white pages for in 2017? Besides kindling? I’ve actually found online business address and phone number searches to be surprising unreliable in terms of being up to date. I’ll often search for a new type of business I’ve never dealt with before (therefore I don’t know the usual company names or if the addresses that show up are correct), and the town I work in has a lot of new construction and businesses moving from old locations to new ones. For me, at least half the info I look up is out of date by several years. Yes it takes 0.000001 seconds for 25 different listing pages to pop up on my screen, but they all show the same disconnected number or now vacant building address (after I spend 5 minutes cross referencing the sites and calling). I’d prefer one correct info source that takes 30 seconds to physically flip through over an infinite number of incorrect ad-filled websites that show up instantly but actually take longer to comb through. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/9 "2017-11-29T16:52:52Z")
> [@mmmiiikkkeee](#): > > I’ve actually found online business address and phone number searches to be surprising unreliable in terms of being up to date. I’ll often search for a new type of business I’ve never dealt with before (therefore I don’t know the usual company names or if the addresses that show up are correct), and the town I work in has a lot of new construction and businesses moving from old locations to new ones. For me, at least half the info I look up is out of date by several years. Yes it takes 0.000001 seconds for 25 different listing pages to pop up on my screen, but they all show the same disconnected number or now vacant building address (after I spend 5 minutes cross referencing the sites and calling). I’d prefer one correct info source that takes 30 seconds to physically flip through over an infinite number of incorrect ad-filled websites that show up instantly but actually take longer to comb through. If there’s lots of new construction and businesses moving around, why would a 6 month (on average) White/Yellow Pages be more likely to have the correct phone number than Google, which typically grabs their phone number and address from Facebook or their website, so it’s user updated and in the business’ best interest to keep correct. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/10 "2017-11-29T17:31:16Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > [https://www.anywho.com/whitepages](https://www.anywho.com/whitepages) is clean Thanks. Good site. Anyone know what it means when you get a message that you didn’t dial correctly and you did it every which way? “Area code and number…” ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/11 "2017-11-29T17:38:57Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > If I want the number for a business or government agency the Google knows all and charges nothing for their nearly 100% reliable service. My phone remembers it forever after. > > I haven’t called a live person whose name I know and whose number I don’t in probably 25 years. I have a hard time imagining a scenario where I’d already know one fact but not the other. > > In Olden Dayes you/I might have met somebody then lost their biz card or the paper we wrote their number on but still remember their name. In Moderne Tymes I (but maybe not you) type the name and number into my phone together as soon as I get them. Since the phone forgets nothing ever there’s nothing to look up. > > For many years I carried last year’s mini yellow/white combo book in my car so I could find something unplanned while out and about. I stopped doing that around 2013 when I realized it had been 5 years since I’d used the book instead of my device. > > So what do you (anyone) use a white pages for in 2017? Besides kindling? Google has phone numbers? Are you leaving out a step? Most hits want money first. The OP is where are the free ones at. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/12 "2017-11-29T17:45:22Z")
> [@mmmiiikkkeee](#): > > I’ve actually found online business address and phone number searches to be surprising unreliable in terms of being up to date. I’ll often search for a new type of business I’ve never dealt with before (therefore I don’t know the usual company names or if the addresses that show up are correct), and the town I work in has a lot of new construction and businesses moving from old locations to new ones. For me, at least half the info I look up is out of date by several years. Yes it takes 0.000001 seconds for 25 different listing pages to pop up on my screen, but they all show the same disconnected number or now vacant building address (after I spend 5 minutes cross referencing the sites and calling). I’d prefer one correct info source that takes 30 seconds to physically flip through over an infinite number of incorrect ad-filled websites that show up instantly but actually take longer to comb through. For sure the weakest part of any online search is that obsolete data doesn’t reliably get purged. The second weakest part is the vast number of results that aren’t the info you want, but are other sites purporting to have that info. All the fake “[yellow-whatever.com](http://yellow-whatever.com)” places are like that. Which frustrates me too. Note however the OP was concerning white pages. Which assumes you’ve already got the name of what you hope is an active business of the kind you seek. Ultimately you’ll still need to call them to see if they A) exist, B) are open, and C) can do whatever you want. My preference for online over paper YP/WP isn’t doctrinal. It’s just what my behavior has morphed into over time with no particular goal in mind. The OP’s question was “what tools do you use?” I answered him. Along with asking him what his specific use case was. Different use cases might fit different tools better. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/13 "2017-11-29T20:41:29Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > For sure the weakest part of any online search is that obsolete data doesn’t reliably get purged. > > The second weakest part is the vast number of results that aren’t the info you want, but are other sites purporting to have that info. All the fake “[yellow-whatever.com](http://yellow-whatever.com)” places are like that. Which frustrates me too. > > Note however the OP was concerning white pages. Which assumes you’ve already got the name of what you hope is an active business of the kind you seek. Ultimately you’ll still need to call them to see if they A) exist, B) are open, and C) can do whatever you want. > > My preference for online over paper YP/WP isn’t doctrinal. It’s just what my behavior has morphed into over time with no particular goal in mind. > > The OP’s question was “what tools do you use?” I answered him. Along with asking him what his specific use case was. Different use cases might fit different tools better. White pages is for individuals, not businesses. And you said Google is a tool. But only for searching for the tool you need. ---
**Author:** ![dstarfire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dstarfire/32/5762_2.png) [@dstarfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dstarfire)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/14 "2017-12-01T21:13:59Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I get it too. At work when they bring it and say ‘where do you want this’ I point at the garbage. They usually give me a confused look so I grab it from them and lob it in. I usually, depending on my mood, refuse to sign for it as well. I have no interest in it. At home, they drop it next to the mailbox. It works out nicely since it usually lands in the road, which is exactly where I leave it. Being fall, the city picks it up as they do their leaf collection. Again, I have no interest in it. That’s a bit of a jerk response. Don’t you know that paper is supposed to be recycled, to save the trees? ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/15 "2017-12-01T21:49:28Z")
> [@dstarfire](#): > > That’s a bit of a jerk response. > > Don’t you know that paper is supposed to be recycled, to save the trees? “The new phone book’s here! the new phone book’s here! …” ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/16 "2017-12-01T23:08:17Z")
actually verizon/frontier put its phone book online … but when you get a hard copy its just the yellow you have to write in and request the white pages to be sent separately it was supposed to cut down on sales calls and the like … doesn’t work … ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/17 "2017-12-01T23:31:35Z")
They’re sitting on the counter below the wall phone in the kitchen. Seriously. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/18 "2017-12-01T23:41:12Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > If I want the number for a business or government agency the Google knows all and charges nothing for their nearly 100% reliable service. My phone remembers it forever after. > > I haven’t called a live person whose name I know and whose number I don’t in probably 25 years. I have a hard time imagining a scenario where I’d already know one fact but not the other. > > In Olden Dayes you/I might have met somebody then lost their biz card or the paper we wrote their number on but still remember their name. In Moderne Tymes I (but maybe not you) type the name and number into my phone together as soon as I get them. Since the phone forgets nothing ever there’s nothing to look up. > > For many years I carried last year’s mini yellow/white combo book in my car so I could find something unplanned while out and about. I stopped doing that around 2013 when I realized it had been 5 years since I’d used the book instead of my device. > > So what do you (anyone) use a white pages for in 2017? Besides kindling? You said you’d have a hard time imagining a scenario where one would already know a person’s name but not his number. That seems easy to imagine, in fact one is occurring in my life right now. My son invited some of his second grade classmates to his birthday party. I know their parents’ names from casual conversation and I’d like to ask them if their child is coming. But I don’t know their numbers. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2017, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/19 "2017-12-02T00:09:26Z")
Well there we go. Friend of a friend. Thank you. :smack: That’s a natural way to know a name but not a number. Folks with kids will have that more than some other people, but it’s the two-step connection that creates the need. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2017, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986/20 "2017-12-02T05:25:25Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > So what do you (anyone) use a white pages for in 2017? Besides kindling? I’d someday like to try the experiment they did on “MythBusters”, where they interleafed two phone books together, taped them shut. The friction between all the hundreds of pages resting together took a couple of tanks to pull apart. It was a way cool experiment. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-are-the-white-pages-now/802986.md?page=2)