More Awesome Than You!

I don't know about other countries, but in the US almost everyone I know simply can't live without a telephone answering machine or answering service to screen their calls. In one to four rings, the machine gets the call. Seems Simmies are stuck back in the sixties .... Want them updated? Here's your chance to let the Powers That Be know how you feel.   ;D

Where I live we just have caller ID built into the phone, or like me, only use a cellphone, so I think it only fair that our sims should have the same possibility.

No, I don't want to hear the machine "talking" all the time. I just want to set the ringer off!...:).

I'd like an option to 'reject' calls.  So if somebody who I actually want to build a relationship with calls (and using caller ID on my dma teleport object - best object ever - I can tell who they are), I can answer, but if it's Marsha Bruenig the brat or some other stalker who they met for 2 seconds on a community lot, REJECT and stop the phone from ringing out.

I don't think I'd use an answering machine for my Sims actually. I always play with the ringer off and only get them to use the phone when absolute necessary: Exactly like my real life. I seem to have missed that particular girly gene and if I struggle to listen to my own messages - which all my friends and family can surely attest to - I'm sure I'd struggle to listen to Sims messages too.

The Phone Hack's incoming call criteria was also a little smarter: With the Phone Hack, incoming calls are intelligently selected based on who actually would have a reason to call you, and the line for "stalk total stranger" was raised dramatically. Also, nobody will call for somebody who they know will be asleep, not home, or will call when they themselves are not home. It will eventually be restored and stuff. Yeah.

Callers also seem to keep a "timetable", that is they usually call a set time of the day, assuming of course the sim they're calling is available. Sometimes, however, they call about an hour before the sim arrives at home after classes. Said sim has a cell phone btw. Anyway, with this "timetable" structure I usually know who's calling. Answer machines with built-in caller id would be much appreciated nevertheless!

I was spoiled by having your phone hack. (What a rude shock it has been to be without it.)

BUT, it's going to be a bit more complex, now, because total strangers call if they have a mutual friend in common with you. It's the whole "contact" thing. Presumably, playing contacts will be important.

[Hmmmm, I hope this contact thing doesn't lead to another "too many itineratons" problem for popularity sims (or moved in townies, who seem to keep their gazillion friendships) ... I did experience what seemed to be an endless loop of rapid fire calls from strangers to my sim (probably contacts) who were tenacious enough to call back almost immediately if the first call didn't get answered by the sims they were calling. I lost count how many people in a row called for the same sim, who could not come to the phone. The game seemed to be generating new contact calls when the previous one didn't result in a date or outing.]

Caller ID comes with the DMA teleport thing, and the information it gives would be all that was needed to screen calls (presuming you could have the ringer off, but still receive calls AND that it also listed someone as a contact) -- if the info could be on a list you could look at whenever, rather than just a momentary blip on the screen that you have to pay attention to right now or miss. A list of calls you could read would be much better than hearing them played back. If the caller ID can generate the info, then the ability to generate a list of who called is somewhere within the game.

Something is needed, that will be workable. I don't want to lose the possibility of playing contacts entirely, but I also do not want to be a slave to the stupid phone -- especially if it's caught in an endless loop until I go on an outing, which will only generate more contact calls. Yuk.

Actually, what I've frequently wanted was an answering machine for Sims I'm calling.  There's no way to know the work hours of a townie, and I have enough Sims now that I don't always remember their schedules, so what I want is for them to call my Sim back when they get home.  Of course, that requires that all incoming calls be useful so I'll bother answering, i.e. Pescado's PhoneHack.

 - Gus

Yes .. my Sims need to exit the stone age and purchase an answering machine.  Or how about a message pad for those stupid "Is Johnny home?" calls.

What I hate is the several children calling for my adult townie move in, all of whom say suggestively, "maybe we can get together later" like they are something other than children. Creepy....