(D&C 38:30)
Telephone / Pager / Internet Planning
In today's technologically advanced times, it is quite common to find that both parents have their own cell phones and possibly the older kids as well. Cell phones are quite convenient and in most markets today, 'Family Plans' are available that let each member of the family 'talk' to each other as part of the base package price. Given most 'normal' events in a family's life, cell phones are an EXCELLENT choice for being able to 'stay in touch' with each other. In fact, with the drop in pricing over the years, cell phones have overtaken the usefulness of pagers. Many families have even totally eliminated the normal 'line-based' telephones and use cell phones and their internet connection as their sole means of communication with the 'outside' world.
Cell phones work fine for most everyday communications, and the internet provides a good way to 'leave notes' or act as a 'communication point' if you don't have a friend or a relative in different location that you use for that purpose; however, as has been experienced by many in times of disaster, YOU CANNOT COUNT ON CELL PHONES IN AN EMERGENCY! Too many people trying to use the service at the same time can quickly 'shut down' an area and cause a communication 'black-out' when you need it the most. At best in a real emergency, you might be able to still communicate with your cell phone (or PDA) using 'text messaging' (see this Senate Report for more info). A Satellite Phone could be a good alternate but not too many people have one due to the high costs involved, plus the fact that you can't really 'hook one on your belt'. . .
Pagers, as mentioned earlier, have been superseded mainly by cell phones, but they still could come in handy in some instances. This would be according to your particular uses and implementation.
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