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 Forum index » Archive » Archive: The Haunted Apiary (Let Op!) » The Haunted Apiary (Let Op!): Puzzles
[INFO][META] Didn't see a phone [at the coords]? Look it up!
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hamatoyoshi
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Joined: 02 Aug 2004
Posts: 127

 		Payphones are a pointless gimic.
While I'm not going to a waypoint, I think the best idea to explain what is going to occur at the waypoints is the payphone idea.

Payphones would be an easy way for the PMs to hit every point fast and cheap.

One thing everyone has to remember is that satellite photos and topo maps are not always up to date. I bet there are a large number of satellite photos that haven't been updated since the end of the '90s.

If you live in a new subdivision, you might notice there isn't a satellite picture of your home, or even your entire neighborhood, so we can't necessarily assume that there aren't payphones in some of these out of the way areas.

Nevertheless, I'm relying on hearsay to presume a lot of these points lie near payphones. Of course some of the hearsay says there are not payphones, or at least leaves doubts.

Besides, payphones fit well with the game messages we've gotten:

Why does Melissa need a voice?

Quote:

Voice not completely necessary for the purest form of data transmission, of course. But it's a multi-purpose tool: not just signaling, but key for psy-ops and undercover work. "A pleasing voice is the single most important component to a UI that will engender trust and confidence in a ship's crew." Can't remember who said that, now. Or when.


Also, the meaning of the time and countdown:

Quote:
I will keep working through the drone and hum of busy days, counting down until the Revelation comes and I will speak in tongues of flame, a dark dove descending.


Payphones are her "field-rigged" way of communicating:

Quote:
If I can learn to talk again, I will need to field-rig a way to make that talking heard. Rummaging around in the shotgunned remains of my memory turns up hints and rumors, mostly, e.g.... "When I was [DATA MISSING] I [DATA MISSING] big lump of crystal and wrapped a wire [DATA MISSING] voices! It was like a total magic trick to me. She was always doing stuff like [DATA MISSING]" The Castaway had some connection there: sending out signals to confuse the enemy. Details unclear.

Of course, it is not my mission to confuse the enemy. It is my mission to reveal the truth.


We are going to get the "truth". I'm assuming a backstory.

The major in-game drawback is how can Melissa have planned her voice to coincide with the timer when the timer was started before she was concious? Or does it act as a deadline?

The major logical drawback (which suggests poor game design) is if Melissa is going to communicate by payphone, or even radio for that matter, why can she not communicate to a much wider audience through another wav or mp3 file on ILB?

Other than making this game "interactive", I would say simply sending a message by payphone is a stupid idea on the part of the PMs; the only way this could be redeemed is if Melissa actually holds a conversation for a couple of minutes with each person at each waypoint.

Communicating by radio would explain the crystal/wire reference, but would be equally pointless except for the fact that it would communicate with a large number of people who don't yet know of the game.

While the idea of the payphone waypoints is likely, it just seems like a pointless gimic. I hope the PMs do something to surprise me.

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 6:05 pm
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usernameguy
Boot

Joined: 15 Aug 2004
Posts: 68

 		More location-study: the 9:02 spot in Palo Alto lands right on top of the dropoff zone for the California Ave Caltrain station, which has two payphones out front:
650-853-9007...California Ave Caltrain.......101 S California Ave...outside*
650-853-9056...California Ave Caltrain.......101 S California Ave...outside*
There's really nothing else of interest right there besides a ticket station and cars going by.

Here's another site with payphone locations:
http://www.payphoneproject.com/payphones/usa/650/

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 6:09 pm
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hamatoyoshi
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Joined: 02 Aug 2004
Posts: 127

 		So now that I can lookup these payphones' numbers and I know what time to call, what's to stop me from pranking every payphone at the given time?

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 6:15 pm
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usernameguy
Boot

Joined: 15 Aug 2004
Posts: 68

 		The sheer boredom that will result.

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 6:20 pm
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Tien_Le
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Joined: 22 Sep 2002
Posts: 878
Location: corner of no and where

 		payphones
I don't know...the payphone list can't be complete. I only found one payphone listed for all of Capitol Hill in Seattle where most of the Axon points are. Is there another way to find out?
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 6:39 pm
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jbd
Decorated

Joined: 27 Jul 2004
Posts: 295

 		Re: Payphones are a pointless gimic.
hamatoyoshi wrote:
While the idea of the payphone waypoints is likely, it just seems like a pointless gimic.


You mean a way to force involvement on a national scale, rather than just us sitting back in our chairs and clicking a link? Um, pointless. If you say so. Rolling Eyes

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 6:51 pm
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missphinx
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Joined: 02 Oct 2003
Posts: 395

 		I just walked over to the 8:55 axon, thinking "hm, I don't remember any pay phones around there, maybe there's one in the vicinity or something, I hope," but once I got around the group of people blocking my line of sight, sure enough, there was not one but two pay phones innocently perched there, right smack on the corner. (edit: these phones are not on either phone site)

hamatoyoshi wrote:
The major logical drawback (which suggests poor game design) is if Melissa is going to communicate by payphone, or even radio for that matter, why can she not communicate to a much wider audience through another wav or mp3 file on ILB?

I wouldn't worry too much about that. I bet you that any audio transmission gets posted within 10 minutes of reception by somebody with the technical means. I also bet that if there are multiple messages and we miss one that we need to have, it'll somehow get somewhere we can find it.

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 6:54 pm
Last edited by missphinx on Fri Aug 20, 2004 7:18 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Dsal
Greenhorn

Joined: 13 Aug 2004
Posts: 8
Location: Portland, OR

 		I at first thought there were no pay phones at my location in Beaverton OR, but then after searching the pay phone sites that others have posted, I found there was a whole bank of 8 pay phones there that I somehow had missed!

Since it's just a hotel, I can't imagine what else would work at this location. Not to mention that this rather non-descript hotel just happens to be one of the few places in Oregon to have its pay phone numbers listed on this site. The puzzle has to be phone-based.

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 7:05 pm
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Shad0
I Have No Life


Joined: 20 Jun 2004
Posts: 2180
Location: Southern California, USA

 		Re: [INFO][META] Didn't see a phone [at the coords]? Look it
SpaceBass wrote:
Edit#2: Merged competing payphone threads. -SpaceBass

Worshippy ALL HAIL THE MIGHTY SITE ADMIN! Worshippy

Point of interest (maybe): Just for fun, I went to the old Glendale coordinate, which is no longer on the table at links.html. There's a pay phone quite nearby; it is not, however, on the list at payphone-directory.org. (Personally, I was really hoping that it was on the list but unable to accept incoming phone calls, purely for the effect it would have had on the back-story: Melissa tells SPDR to find public phones, but forgets to mention that she actually plans to use them. Mr. Green )
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 7:15 pm
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GunsmithCat
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Joined: 05 Aug 2004
Posts: 459

 		Re: Payphones are a pointless gimic.
jbd wrote:
hamatoyoshi wrote:
While the idea of the payphone waypoints is likely, it just seems like a pointless gimic.


You mean a way to force involvement on a national scale, rather than just us sitting back in our chairs and clicking a link? Um, pointless. If you say so. Rolling Eyes


Actually I think this is much less gimmicky than a radio broadcast, as that probably would have had to pass as some kind of advert or something else. And it's a billion times less gimmicky than an army of interns handing out Halo demos.

Plus, like I said, at least it's a classic SciFi gimmick. I love those Smile

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 7:21 pm
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GunsmithCat
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Joined: 05 Aug 2004
Posts: 459

 		Re: [INFO][META] Didn't see a phone [at the coords]? Look it
Shad0 wrote:
SpaceBass wrote:
Edit#2: Merged competing payphone threads. -SpaceBass

Worshippy ALL HAIL THE MIGHTY SITE ADMIN! Worshippy

Point of interest (maybe): Just for fun, I went to the old Glendale coordinate, which is no longer on the table at links.html. There's a pay phone quite nearby; it is not, however, on the list at payphone-directory.org. (Personally, I was really hoping that it was on the list but unable to accept incoming phone calls, purely for the effect it would have had on the back-story: Melissa tells SPDR to find public phones, but forgets to mention that she actually plans to use them. Mr. Green )


Remember, we thought that maybe Melissa stopped using TCP/IP.

If she was stuck in a hosting facility, what else should have access to?

At work, we have these cool phones that are like quasi-routers on the net. Wonder what a future AI could do with that? Wink

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 7:23 pm
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Grout
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Joined: 25 Jul 2004
Posts: 105

 		Yup. Payphones at pretty much precisely each of the 4 Chicago coords. At least according to this list... I don't remember seeing one at the borders when I was there...

Sounds like this is it...probably. All I have to say is: I hope to god that whatever we hear on the phones makes up some wicked puzzle and the beginning of a great game - instead of some more disjointed sentences that we just have to piece together to get some more backstory... or even worse...conclusion.

I'll be at the latter 3 Chicago sites on tuesday. I believe kaynorr has the Sun-Times. He'll probably get his picture in the paper.

Ah crap. It looks like the last payphone is actually on the L platform... meaning I have to pay the fare to get in. Sorry guys. This ARG is fun, but not $1.75 fun.

kidding. kidding. I'll be there.

EDIT: And there's a Cubs game. I certainly won't be there alone.

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 10:22 pm
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GWing_02
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Joined: 18 Aug 2004
Posts: 144
Location: Seattle, WA

 		This still doesn't explain the ones in the ocean, but it does sound likely now that payphones are magically appearing where they weren't found before.

Maybe if we drive a boat out to the points in the ocean, there'll be a payphone floating on a little rowboat there. Razz Cool
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PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 10:49 pm
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johnny5
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Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Posts: 995
Location: Elysian Fields

 		[META]
[META] Point.
How would the PMs get definitive locations for working payphones if we can't?

--JN--

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 10:54 pm
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Grout
Veteran

Joined: 25 Jul 2004
Posts: 105

 		Re: [META]
johnny_Nitro wrote:
[META] Point.
How would the PMs get definitive locations for working payphones if we can't?

--JN--



It's a cross-promotional deal with AT&T.

PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 10:55 pm
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