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But they said "didn't recognize the number", not "missed all calls and texts". I'm from Europe so I don't know how prevalent robocalls are; this story really so

But they said "didn't recognize the number", not "missed all calls and texts". I'm from Europe so I don't know how prevalent robocalls are; this story really sounds crazy to me. Sure, everybody has different life circumstances, etc. Maybe this guy was somewhat of a maverick. He said he didn't feel that lost and tried to get back on their own. But I still can't fathom how it never crossed his mind that someone might be looking for them, unless, as initially said, you get a dozen robocalls every day and this amount of calls and texts wasn't out of the ordinary to him.

cyxxon 5y ago
You got a point there. I could still imagine them checking the phone as it first rings with an unknown number, turning off the ringer because they didn't want to be bothered by it, and then ignoring it due to the ringer being off now, maybe?
joe-collins 5y ago
On the worst days, I've gotten half a dozen group texts, just spraying across <mynum-2>, <mynum-1>, <mynum>, <mynum+1>, etc. In the last... I don't know how many years, I can only recall a single human-based phone call from someone not already on my contacts list (my apartment manager had a repair company contact me directly to schedule service).
kitd 5y ago
I'm from Europe too but it sounds reasonable to me. I think the key thing is whether he thought himself in need of rescue or not. The article doesn't say whether he was eg. a city-dweller inexperienced in the outdoors, but if he was, it might never occur to him that he was sufficiently lost to need outside rescue. As he said, he just "bounced around" between the trails until he found his way back. So he might have considered all the phone calls merely a distraction.
x0x0 5y ago
Robocalls: I get an average of 2 a day on my cellphone. I haven't answered any number not in my contacts for years. A relatives' landline is easily 4+ a day. I dunno why this can't be solved; 99% likely venality. I've solved it by telling my phone not to even ring if the number isn't in my contacts and periodically deleting all my voicemails unheard. Everyone I want to talk to knows to text.
- TeMPOraL 5y ago
  > I dunno why this can't be solved Phone companies make money from spam calls, so they have zero incentive to solve this. In more general terms: marketing is a cancer, ruining every communications medium.
- wink 5y ago
  That is wild. I have had my German mobile phone number for 20 years and I've not gotten any spam calls in the recent past, as far as I can remember. We do have a governmental agency (Bundesnetzagentur) where you can file complaints for spam calls and it seems to work.
deleted 5y ago
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inopinatus 5y ago
None of the details here are corroborated. Don't rely on a government statement that ascribes specific thoughts, actions, and motivations to an individual.

cyxxon 5y ago

You got a point there. I could still imagine them checking the phone as it first rings with an unknown number, turning off the ringer because they didn't want to be bothered by it, and then ignoring it due to the ringer being off now, maybe?

joe-collins 5y ago

On the worst days, I've gotten half a dozen group texts, just spraying across <mynum-2>, <mynum-1>, <mynum>, <mynum+1>, etc. In the last... I don't know how many years, I can only recall a single human-based phone call from someone not already on my contacts list (my apartment manager had a repair company contact me directly to schedule service).

kitd 5y ago

I'm from Europe too but it sounds reasonable to me. I think the key thing is whether he thought himself in need of rescue or not. The article doesn't say whether he was eg. a city-dweller inexperienced in the outdoors, but if he was, it might never occur to him that he was sufficiently lost to need outside rescue. As he said, he just "bounced around" between the trails until he found his way back. So he might have considered all the phone calls merely a distraction.

x0x0 5y ago

Robocalls: I get an average of 2 a day on my cellphone. I haven't answered any number not in my contacts for years. A relatives' landline is easily 4+ a day. I dunno why this can't be solved; 99% likely venality. I've solved it by telling my phone not to even ring if the number isn't in my contacts and periodically deleting all my voicemails unheard. Everyone I want to talk to knows to text.

TeMPOraL 5y ago
> I dunno why this can't be solved Phone companies make money from spam calls, so they have zero incentive to solve this. In more general terms: marketing is a cancer, ruining every communications medium.
wink 5y ago
That is wild. I have had my German mobile phone number for 20 years and I've not gotten any spam calls in the recent past, as far as I can remember. We do have a governmental agency (Bundesnetzagentur) where you can file complaints for spam calls and it seems to work.

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

inopinatus 5y ago

None of the details here are corroborated. Don't rely on a government statement that ascribes specific thoughts, actions, and motivations to an individual.