cedd Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 We all have our own ways of asking for mobile phones to be turned off. Some announce over the PA, some stick signs everywhere. Yesterday I was approving a bluetooth system for use at work (an airport) to inform passengers by bluetooth when their pre-booked taxi is ready and where to go. Not our kit, just radio equipment on our site, so approved by us and various paperwork to allow us to turn it off if it causes interference. But, I wondered if this idea and technology could be transfered to our industry? After all, the phones that are on are the ones that need to be turned off and lots of people leave bluetooth on all the time nowadays. My laptop has a bluetooth dongle for my "send your photos to the big screen" software, but it is capable of transmitting. If I was to change the bluetooth name of the laptop to"Turn phone off" and send a small .jpg image containing the words "please turn off" to every bluetooth phone I could find, might that do the trick? Clearly I would announce as well, but some people still think they can switch on to silent and all will be fine. And before anybody gets clever, the "send photos to the big screen" is only used in gigs, where I don't ask for phones to be turned off. This is for theatre work where clearly I want them all off. Anybody tried it? Good idea? Will it work? C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niax Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 It's a great idea, however most phones require the devices connecting to it to be OKed by the user before allowing them to send data and some even require the 2 devices to authenticate against each other using a passcode before data can be transfered. Nicholas Hollett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundiesam Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 shame you can make a bit of software that you can download onto someone fone to switch it off ove bluetoothsam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djw1981 Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 Hmmm think of how much chaos it would cause in the wrong hands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niall Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 It's not a bad idea, and the idea of bluetooth advertising (which this is essentially) is done already. Places like Cinemas (cineworld is an example) have a broadcast bluetooth message at the entrance that sends you some info on upcoming releases and offers when you enter the building. I don't know any more details, but maybe you could contact them to find out what they use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundiesam Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 it would cause chaos but can u imagine how much fun you could potential have with it and can u imagine how many problems it would solvesam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundo26 Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 There is a device that is used at exhibitions etc. to broadcast messages via bluetooth, I saw it at a recent show I did where they were giving information all day over this system, I'll try to dig out the information. I remember the kit cost about £1000 to buy but this company hired it out as well. If I can find the info I'll post it here> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boatman Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 it would cause chaos but can u imagine how much fun you could potential have with it and can u imagine how many problems it would solvesam I can see it now. To paraphrase a weel kent TV series from the '60s: "Your mission Jim, should you choose to accept it, is to turn off this phone." Followed, after an appropriate interval, by: "This phone will self-destruct in ten seconds." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mervaka Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 so what happens when you dont have bluetooth turned on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomLyall Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 so what happens when you dont have bluetooth turned on? You get a phone that's more secure, and you won't get hassled by adverts and messages to turn your phone off. :unsure: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cedd Posted January 15, 2008 Author Share Posted January 15, 2008 Granted it won't be turned on for every phone, but if it gets to one or two of them it's a start. As for pin codes to transfer data, yes it does need to be entered, but most phones say something along the lines of "exchange data with.............." which would be the place where the PC bluetooth name "turn phone off" would sit. So the message gets through. Some phones also make a bleep when receiving bluetooth which would create embarrasment factor for whoever forgot to turn their phone off once the theatre is quiet. Perhaps remote phone switch off is a little too much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 As an aside, I keep the Bluetooth on my phone turned off unless I have a specific need to transfer something. Along with the Bluetooth ads somebody has mentioned, there are also some scams out there (such as telling your phone to dial a premium rate number that the scammer happens to make money from) so it's not wortth the risk of leaving it on. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob_Beech Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 And then you yourself get the limelight when it rings halfway through act II. I think it could potentially work but Niax highlights the main problems here, you are already narrowing down the number of people that this message will get to. It is something that really annoys me, there are times for phone calls and times for you not to have them. However, from a business point of view I think a completely silent mode (ie non ringing none beeping non vibrating) is perfectly acceptable as it allows the user to attend to missed calls, voicemail, text messages etc straight away in the interval or after the show, as all too often, if a phone is switched off, it may be several hours before you get notification of a text message or voicemail message after switching back on. This of course is not the case where the phone itself could cause interference with anything that's happening. A better system (currently we're not able to implement this and wont be for some time) would be to transmit a signal probably via bluetooth which automatically puts the phone into silent mode. A similar signal could be transmitted at the end of the performance to put it back again. But, this system would not be possible with current technology. Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boswell Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 Some phones also make a bleep when receiving bluetooth which would create embarrasment factor for whoever forgot to turn their phone off once the theatre is quiet. I would send the message every 15 secs during the show, anyone with the phone turned on would soon get the message!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djw1981 Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 Hmmm - running my phone with the bluetooth permanently on kills the battery - but them I'm the kind of person to have it on vibrate only mode mostly anyway. Do many venues still have issues with carrier tone? Or is it just the ringing of phones which is the problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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