100% (OK...not that many) of band directors

[bloke]

who chew out kids for not paying attention to instructions or details will call me back on my cell phone when - in the text: even at the very end and plus at the middle - I asked them to call me back on my landline, and give them two links to touch the landline number which will automatically dial it... I even put the word landline in bold letters both times.

Then they text me back indignantly and say that they tried to call me and I didn't answer when they tried to call my cell phone which I have always will have completely turned off to sound, and I'm not even carrying it.

This is a textbook (pun intended) example of people who do coursework towards degrees in order to qualify themselves for jobs, but score less than 100% on every single course they take. I would not want to try to play 99% of a tuba, and I certainly wouldn't want to board 99% of an airliner.
Even wearing 99% of a suit of clothing is worrisome.

Not only did that band director's 99% execution of the simple required task define an epic failure (de facto - 0% accomplished) on their part, but it pissed them off as well (having convinced themselves that I wasn't being attentive and failing to answer the phone, after I asked them to call).

Of course were I to point out what bozos and failures they are, they would never use us again, even though using any of the other places would define not getting their stuff back by their deadlines, and not playing when they finally received it back.

This is why we have no employees.

[MikeMason]

The platinum rule: ‘’do unto others as they prefer to be done unto’’. If you have enough or too many customers, feel free to ignore.

[YorkNumber3.0]

You know that stuff that rolls down hill? In their world, you’re down the hill a piece from them.

[Mary Ann]

Why do they have your cell phone number in the first place?

Yeah people do what they want no matter what we want them to do.

[bort2.0]

What the hell is a landline?

[Jperry1466]

This is a textbook (pun intended) example of people who do coursework towards degrees in order to qualify themselves for jobs, but score less than 100% on every single course they take. I would not want to try to play 99% of a tuba, and I certainly wouldn't want to board 99% of an airliner.
Even wearing 99% of a suit of clothing is worrisome.

Not only did that band director's 99% execution of the simple required task define an epic failure (de facto - 0% accomplished) on their part, but it pissed them off as well (having convinced themselves that I wasn't being attentive and failing to answer the phone, after I asked them to call).

You can see examples of this every day on F@ce6ook. Someone will list something for sale and clearly state a price or location, there will immediately be comments like "What is the price?" and "Where is this located?". I always told my students that playing their pieces 99% correct at contest would get them a mediocre score, because if every kid missed only one note, that would still be 70 mistakes. I also pointed out that they wouldn't want their brain surgeon to get the operation 99% right.

[bloke]

What the hell is a landline?

You compu-ployees become too dependent on stuff that didn't exist throughout even the first 2/3rds of your own lives, and - when there's some major widespread f, ya'll are sol.

Since we were given a "new/better" modem from the whosit company, our wifi calling has been B+ to C-, and (since we do mostly real things in the real world - ie. the FORMER world) we haven't had time to screw with this issue...thus, the landline.

[bloke]

...and it's REALLY NOT 100% of them.

Some of them ACTUALLY DO listen to sentences #2 and #3 and READ the sentences, RATHER THAN noticing two or three words.

I have to remind Mrs. bloke:

EVERY WORD in EVERY SENTENCE that I say to you MODIFIES the MEANING of that sentence in an IMPORTANT way.

[bloke]

Often heard when working at Disney 25+ years ago…

“When is the 3 o’clock parade?”

[Colby Fahrenbacher]

Why do they even have your cell phone number?

[Colby Fahrenbacher]

Did a little poking around online, and I think cordless phones these days may have a solution to your problem, albeit it may not be perfect. Modern Cordless Phones with Bluetooth allow you to pair your cell phone with the cordless phone network around the house. This would mean that any call to your cell phone number while your cell phone is within bluetooth range (about 10 meters) would also ring the cordless phones. After an initial set-up, you could leave your cell phone at whatever place in the house gets best reception and answer at any cordless phone. From what I understand, the scenarios would play out like this:

1) Band director follows instructions and calls landline number. All cordless phones ring, but not your cell phone.
2) Band director does not follows instructions and calls cell phone number. All cordless and cell phones right.

If your mobile phone moves out of range or into a dead spot, you'll miss calls like always and the cordless phones won't ring.

I'm less sure about how outgoing calls are handled. For example, if your phone is paired and within range of the cordless, will an outgoing call register your mobile or your landline number? I think it is supposed to be your landline number, since the advertising talks about improved call quality, presumably because it is using the landline network instead of the cellular network for calls. Couldn't find anything specific about that though.

I'm also not sure if the hardware for the Bluetooth connection is in all cordless devices or only the main dock. That could significantly shorten your range if it is just the main dock.

[Three Valves]

Or, they could call the landline number.

[Colby Fahrenbacher]

Or, they could call the landline number.

They could, but I was trying to offer a solution in a way that Bloke could actually control. As is apparent in his post, despite him giving clear instructions to call his landline, people still don't. We can only control other people so much.

Also, the tech is relatively simple and easy to set up, so I thought it was neat to learn about. It's too bad that cell phones aren't set-up to naturally interface with DECT 6.0, which would let them be used as a cordless phone natively, and eliminate the need for Bluetooth at all. I'm guessing that cell phone companies intentionally moved away from DECT and the cordless system to take advantage of the cellular network instead.

[bloke]

Why do they even have your cell phone number?

They have mine, because I have theirs, and (the strongest reason) most people prefer texting to emails.
I text back-and-forth with band directors on days such as today, when we dropped off repaired instruments at five schools, and each of those directors (or even pairs of directors) need to know (within ten minutes or so) when we will be arriving, because they are doing pre-summer-band-camp things (way off inside buildings - such as classrooms, that aren't anywhere near their band halls, etc...texting me stuff like the picture of the door to go in to find them on their vast campuses) and also they come-and-go (lunch, errands, etc.)

Finally, my phone sits on my nightstand (not in my pocket) when I'm at my home/shop. Otherwise, it would get filthy or (reasonably good chance) even damaged.

summary:
The mobile phone is ONLY used when (including gigs - 100% of which are de facto out-of-town, and picking up supplies - which are minimally hour-long round-trips) I am mobile.

sound/vibration:
BOTH are turned off on my phone because I'm a musician, and even the "vibrate" mode would send eyes towards me - were someone to call, text, or message during a rehearsal or performance.

Hey bloke, why don't you leave your phone backstage?
...because most gigs are located in cities/counties where - according to statistics and coded maps - a whole bunch of people steal a whole bunch of stuff...the same reason why I only drive manual-transmission cars into those war zones.

stage manager/operations manager/executive director:
Please do not bring personal items on stage.

me:
The hell I won't.

[Colby Fahrenbacher]

Why do they even have your cell phone number?

They have mine, because I have theirs, and (the strongest reason) most people prefer texting to emails.
I text back-and-forth with band directors on days such as today, when we dropped off repaired instruments at five schools, and each of those directors (or even pairs of directors) need to know (within ten minutes or so) when we will be arriving, because they are doing pre-summer-band-camp things (way off inside buildings - such as classrooms, that aren't anywhere near their band halls, etc...texting me stuff like the picture of the door to go in to find them on their vast campuses) and also they come-and-go (lunch, errands, etc.)

Finally, my phone sits on my nightstand (not in my pocket) when I'm at my home/shop. Otherwise, it would get filthy or (reasonably good chance) even damaged.

summary:
The mobile phone is ONLY used when (including gigs - 100% of which are de facto out-of-town, and pick-up supplies - which are minimally hour-long round-trips) I am mobile.

Makes sense. All the more reason I think my post about Cordless Phones with Bluetooth could make this a non-issue for you.

[bloke]

Our cordless system (land-line) in the house is old (but works fine)...

...but I SHOULD ABSOLUTELY LOOK INTO your suggestion !!!

thank-you

yeah...
It's easy to get the land-line to forward to the cell phone, but - when I google the opposite - it's almost like the "band directors"...
The results google offers are only for forwarding land-lines to cell phones...

...thus the blue tooth thing.

[Jperry1466]

You're right about the texting. So many people will never answer their phone, but will text back and forth for two hours, when a 3-4 minute phone call will do everything.

[2nd tenor]

Perhaps it’s me being difficult but in my experience of educationalists they often live in a world were everyone around them either just does as they say or should just do as they say. To be fair that’s sort of how youth needs to be guided along but that one mindset for all situations does have limitations …. How you get over to to some folk that they need to stop being directive or commanding in a situation and instead be collaborative, sometimes even guided themselves, I don’t know. It’s particularly difficult when they seem incapable of change.

Whatever, they are who they are and if dealing with particular customers is harder then they should end up with larger bills (to reflect the hassle and additional work caused).

[bloke]

The real point that I was trying to make is that people are now sheltering themselves from real verbal communication - and insisting on written communication (texting), but fail to read the written communication for important details, so what the heck...

Another consequence of this is that people don't really say what they mean in written communication, because it's a permanent record of what they said, and they don't particularly like that.

Verbal phone calls are useful, and people need to return to them and embrace them when they are best.

[Rick Denney]

Did a little poking around online, and I think cordless phones these days may have a solution to your problem, albeit it may not be perfect. Modern Cordless Phones with Bluetooth allow you to pair your cell phone with the cordless phone network around the house. This would mean that any call to your cell phone number while your cell phone is within bluetooth range (about 10 meters) would also ring the cordless phones. After an initial set-up, you could leave your cell phone at whatever place in the house gets best reception and answer at any cordless phone. From what I understand, the scenarios would play out like this:

1) Band director follows instructions and calls landline number. All cordless phones ring, but not your cell phone.
2) Band director does not follows instructions and calls cell phone number. All cordless and cell phones right.

If your mobile phone moves out of range or into a dead spot, you'll miss calls like always and the cordless phones won't ring.

I'm less sure about how outgoing calls are handled. For example, if your phone is paired and within range of the cordless, will an outgoing call register your mobile or your landline number? I think it is supposed to be your landline number, since the advertising talks about improved call quality, presumably because it is using the landline network instead of the cellular network for calls. Couldn't find anything specific about that though.

I'm also not sure if the hardware for the Bluetooth connection is in all cordless devices or only the main dock. That could significantly shorten your range if it is just the main dock.

Doesn’t work if the phone is turned off.

Rick “read that somewhere:)” Denney