Phone Use

The summer after seventh grade, Danny Fleming and I spent an uninterrupted seven hours on the phone together -- our personal record. He had three-way calling, so we got some other people into the mix, but Danny and I were the constant. We watched the entire "Heathers" movie over the course of that phone call, and he might have read me a whole book of fart jokes too. Those were the days! But the epic teenage telephone call may be a thing of the past. A new report by the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project has found that as the frequency of teenage texting continues to increase, teen use of the phone is on a significant downslide.

SACRAMENTO - Legislation that opponents fear will strip the state Public Utilities Commission of its power to regulate Internet phone services in California put the commission on the spot, and it punted. For the second consecutive meeting, the commission Thursday postponed taking a stance on the proposal that would prohibit the PUC and other state agencies from regulating phone service using Internet connections. The commission, meeting in Fresno, had been expected to oppose a Senate bill written by state Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima)

Re "Cell Phones, 'Crime Fighters of the '90s,' Are Striking Out," Nov. 16: Marcia Spielholz should have been dialing 357 (as in magnum) instead of 911. This woman should be the poster child for the anti-gun control movement. It's sad that our current government seeks to shove down our throats gun control laws, even though the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution forbids it! If ever there was a case for every person being armed, this is it. STEVEN SUTCLIFFE Los Angeles Many people do not realize that if their cellular phone signal is weak when traveling outside their coverage area they can switch to another carrier by punching a few buttons.

Epic telephone calls by teenagers and preteens may be a thing of the past. A new report by the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project has found that as the frequency of youth texting continues to increase, their use of the phone is on a significant slide. In interviews with 799 children ages 12 to 17, researchers found that 63% say they exchange text messages with friends every day, while only 29% say they talk daily with friends on a cellphone. As for the land line, it appears to be disappearing from the teenage communication repertoire entirely: Only 14% say they talk to friends on land lines every day, and nearly 31% said they never talk to friends on a land line.

Re "Cell Phones Get Too-Busy Signal," April 28: I have news for public cell phone user Joe Smulan, quoted as saying, "My cell phone is my office. . . . When it goes off (in a public place), this is what you (bystanders) get." Dear Sir: There is a name for people whose lives are interrupted by the ringing of and the conversations that take place on other people's business phones. We are called "employees." As such, we are entitled to compensation for our involvement in your affairs.

Concerned that an accused murderer would use the long weekend to seek retribution against witnesses, a Ventura County judge on Friday temporarily prohibited the man from writing letters or making phone calls from the County Jail. Prosecutors charge that Spencer Rawlin Brasure of Hawthorne has been sending letters to friends asking them to kill witnesses expected to testify against him in a capital murder case. At the prosecutors' urging, Municipal Judge Roland M.

Reacting to a complaint that the number of cellular phones used by county workers has tripled in the last four years, Ventura County's top administrator on Tuesday pledged to review the county government's phone bills and policies. "I will work with the auditor-controller to ensure that there is appropriate accounting and payback for personal calls," county chief administrator Lin Koester told the County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.

Telephone hot lines have been set up in seven languages to assist undocumented residents who have questions about the new immigration laws, the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles announced. Each of the lines offers information on amnesty, agricultural worker programs, employer sanctions and other general topics. Callers with specific questions can leave their names on the recording machines and legal aid workers will respond, officials said. The lines will operate around the clock.

The Los Angeles City Council is trying to force the owner of two phone booths in North Hills that are used by drug dealers to remove them or restrict their use. On a motion from council President Alex Padilla, the council unanimously voted to seek public nuisance abatement proceedings against the company. Residents have complained that phone booths near Parthenia Street and Cedros Avenue were used by drug sellers to conduct business.

A Henderson woman became the first Nevada resident indicted on charges of causing a fatal crash while driving and talking on a cell phone, prosecutors said. Karen Morris, 34, was charged with causing a March 25 crash that killed Leona Greif, 61, and Marcia Nathans, 65, at a Las Vegas Beltway crossroads. A third person in Greif's car remains hospitalized. Nevada Highway Patrol crash investigators determined Morris was driving 64 mph in a 45 mph zone.

The summer after seventh grade, Danny Fleming and I spent an uninterrupted seven hours on the phone together -- our personal record. He had three-way calling, so we got some other people into the mix, but Danny and I were the constant. We watched the entire "Heathers" movie over the course of that phone call, and he might have read me a whole book of fart jokes too. Those were the days! But the epic teenage telephone call may be a thing of the past. A new report by the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project has found that as the frequency of teenage texting continues to increase, teen use of the phone is on a significant downslide.

Xavier Jones ran across the middle of the basketball court, ready to receive a pass from a La Verne Lutheran High School teammate. He first stumbled, then stopped, and finally keeled over motionless on the hardwood. His heart had stopped beating. After Jones crashed to the floor, head coach Eric Cooper Sr. and assistant coach John Osorno sprinted to his side and administered CPR to the 17-year-old high school senior. The quick-thinking coaches ? with the help of an iPhone ?

James C. Marsters, a Pasadena orthodontist who with two other deaf men co-developed a teletypewriter in the 1960s that opened up phone use -- and the wider world -- to the deaf, has died. He was 85. Marsters, who was the last survivor of the trio of innovators, died July 28 at his home in Oakland after a short illness, said his daughter, Jean. With a physicist and an engineer-businessman, Marsters helped create a modem in 1964 that linked a teletypewriter to traditional phone lines and converted audio tones into typed messages.

Qualcomm Inc. raised its forecast for fiscal second-quarter earnings and revenue Tuesday, citing stronger-than-expected demand for products based on its CDMA mobile phone technology. Wireless chip and technology license supplier Qualcomm forecast quarterly earnings per share of 48 cents to 49 cents, excluding its investment arm and other items, compared with its previous estimate of 42 cents to 44 cents a share.

As phone and cable companies race to be the be-all and end-all connection to the home, AT&T Inc. is betting that its new broadband network will be fast enough to win over customers. The nation's largest phone company said it would begin "changing the way people watch TV" this month by starting to pump programs over the network, which combines fiber optic cable with existing copper lines.

Internet telephone service edged closer toward the wireless world Tuesday as Skype Technologies and Boingo Wireless Inc. unveiled calling plans that use Boingo's 18,000 hot spots in 37 nations around the world. For $8 a month, customers can use their laptops at airports, coffee shops and other Boingo wireless fidelity, or Wi-Fi, public zones to make calls. And by the end of the year, handset makers such as LG Electronics Inc. and Samsung Electronics Inc.

Amid fierce opposition from mobile phone carriers, state lawmakers on Monday quashed a measure that would have made it illegal to drive while using a handheld cellular phone. The cell phone driving bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), fell one vote short of the 10 votes needed to move it out of the Assembly Transportation Committee. Four members voted against the measure and six members did not cast a vote, Simitian said.

Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley) was accused by his election opponent on Tuesday of abusing his congressional telephone privileges during "a phone calling spree" between December, 1987, and March, 1992. Anita Perez Ferguson of Oxnard, a Democrat running against Gallegly for a House seat representing most of Ventura County, said in a statement that "Gallegly's abusive use of his cellular phone makes his five bounced checks in the House banking scandal look like small potatoes."

Drivers beware: Californians would face a $20 to $50 fine every time they zipped down the road while holding cell phones to their ears under a bill that passed the Assembly on Thursday. If it clears the Senate and is signed by Gov. Gray Davis, the bill will make California the second state after New York to prohibit drivers from using hand-held cell phones.

The Los Angeles City Council is trying to force the owner of two phone booths in North Hills that are used by drug dealers to remove them or restrict their use. On a motion from council President Alex Padilla, the council unanimously voted to seek public nuisance abatement proceedings against the company. Residents have complained that phone booths near Parthenia Street and Cedros Avenue were used by drug sellers to conduct business.