Teletext to close mid-December

[mattx]

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo !!!! :(:(

 

BBC - Teletext to close mid-December

[Edu-IT]

I can't remember the last time i used Teletext.

[synaesthesia]

I used to use it now and then for results of varying sports and occasionally the weather.

However you have to question it's use in the modern world. Mobile phones with internet access, people have PC's in their bathrooms and the average 4 year old can tell you the latest news courtesy of his 3G dongled minibook within 30 seconds of you asking. This is the age of quick information; something Teletext hasn't been for a long time.

[RabbieBurns]

my 98 grandfather whos is deaf and almost blind uses it all the time to read the news and get the sports results. He is not able to use modern technology like a 4 year old can.

[mattx]

my 98 grandfather whos is deaf and almost blind uses it all the time to read the news and get the sports results. He is not able to use modern technology like a 4 year old can.

 

A very good point - and I still watch the older generation struggle with chip and pin in shops and the post office.

[rad]

It is the internet of our youth! I will miss it :-(

[tmcd35]

It is the internet of our youth! I will miss it :-(

 

That actually reminded me of something. Never used it myself, but didn't they try streaming computer data over a spare teletext page? A bit like a one-way modem. Can't remember what you needed or had to do to recieve it - or what was broadcast though.

[localzuk]

my 98 grandfather whos is deaf and almost blind uses it all the time to read the news and get the sports results. He is not able to use modern technology like a 4 year old can.

 

There are other options - A Braille display, or a Braille printer hooked up to a computer, for example. There are usually grants etc... available to help pay for such things also.

 

Or, if he can still see the teletext pages, a normal computer screen with high contrast mode enabled, and a RSS reader or similar. There are plenty of options that would be simple to use and designed just for this situation. I'd suggest contacting the RNID and seeing what they suggest.

[Gatt]

Ah Teletext... the endles fun of getting ahlf way down page 1/12 only for it to flick to page 2 and you had to wait for it to go thru all 12 again.. (Or it loaded at page 3/12 and had to wait..)

 

Then there was tje Bamboozle quiz... the "Advent Calendar"

 

RIP

[AyatollahPies]

Been a part of my daily routine for at least the past 15 years.

 

I had a private toast to mark the passing last night. (Then realised I'd already missed the turn off, of most of the pages I read)

 

If they take away my daily dose of TalkSport I'll be finished!

[tmcd35]

Then there was tje Bamboozle quiz... the "Advent Calendar"

+1 rep for that

[tech_guy]

A very good point - and I still watch the older generation struggle with chip and pin in shops and the post office.

 

 

Scariest thing I saw a few months back was some old boy telling the cashier the pin number for his card in a supermarket because he couldn't see the text on the screen as it was so small for him. I'll miss teletext from a nostalgia viewpoint - reminds me of the BBSs I used to frequent!

[ICT_GUY]

I remember one lad making £1million by copying football results from teletext onto a website.

 

[Gatt]

As stated in the OP's link - the "888" service will remain as well as a few other's

[K.C.Leblanc]

I love the now and next function.

[Gatt]

mb21 - Teletext Then and Now - Gallery

[maniac]

I remember when my parents got their first TV with Teletext - what a novalty that was in 1988. I was only thinking the other day I wonder how much longer the service would be with us - had no idea it would depart so soon thou.

[tmcd35]

Yep, Telesoftware.

 

Some examples here:

 

mb21 - ether.net - Teletext Then and Now - Telesoftware

 

 

Okay - now I'm reminising - here's another one for you. Looked around that site and couldn't find details.

 

You used to be able to go to a page on Ch4 (I think, or was it sky?) and it would gove you a telephone number to ring. The telephone would direct you to a personal teletext page. You'd then control the teletext with the phone instead of the remote.

 

I think I used it (quite a lot in the day ) to play games and I think there was banking and pizza ordering as well.

 

I'll miss teletext from a nostalgia viewpoint - reminds me of the BBSs I used to frequent!

 

Prestel?

[sparkeh]

Meh, I've always hated Teletext, the endless *endless* pages of holidays that my Dad always insisted on wading through whilst I wanted to watch Thundercats or something.

[tech_guy]

 

 

Prestel?

 

Yes, and others.

[capncrunch]

No more teletext!?! how will i get the football results! good'ol page 316 told me everything i needed to know

[synaesthesia]

my 98 grandfather whos is deaf and almost blind uses it all the time to read the news and get the sports results. He is not able to use modern technology like a 4 year old can.

 

Never actually thought of it like that. Bet he's not a fan of the new fangled digital thingies either :\

[HarryMonkey]

A bit like deleting the phone number of an old girlfriend - a bit sad when it happens but you won't notice any difference for its absence.

[SteveBentley]

No more teletext!?! how will i get the football results! good'ol page 316 told me everything i needed to know

 

This is Teletext with a capital T, which provides services on ITV and C4, that has decided it can't continue providing its news and info services.

 

Ceefax on the BBC, which is where p316 is, will continue until digital switch over in your area.

[mattx]

Lots of memories......

Edited December 16, 2009 by mattx