Stop with the phone books!!!

[6miths]

Yes recycling for mine but we don't get a phone book anymore and I think that even the YellowPages equivalent may have stopped coming.

 

[mountainsoft]

We were able to opt out of our phone book deliveries. I can't remember if they sent something to me, or if I had to contact them, but they had a web site that I could choose which books I wanted (none).

 

[NYEXPAT]

What do ya'll use for booster seats?

 

[Walt34]

We still use it once or twice a year but probably wouldn't notice if they stopped coming.

 

[template]

Yep still get one. Keep the new and throw the old one away. Don't use them much but handy whey I do.

Same here.

 

[Meadbh]

At my condo complex we decided to reduce the waste by arranging for only a small number of phone books to be delivered. They are available in the lobby for any resident who wants one. At the end of the year, most of them are still there.

 

[COcheesehead]

Oops - what about the option that we don't get a phone book?

We don't have a landline, so we don't get a phone book. Maybe that's the trick - drop your landline?

The books aren't associated with the phone company. They come from third parties. So having a landline doesn't matter.

 

[Live And Learn]

The only part of the phone books I keep are the ads that are on magnets. I cut the magnets up and use them for crafts with the kids. The rest goes into the recycle bin.

 

[Live And Learn]

I would expect a poll on the internet on this subject to be skewed towards "no more phone books". My mom, who does not use a computer would be lost without a phone book and has no way to vote here

 

[CaliKid]

As a business owner I stopped all yellow page advertising several years ago. I am surprised this poll, of internet users, isn't more skewed in favor of getting rid of them.

 

[Midpack]

As a business owner I stopped all yellow page advertising several years ago. I am surprised this poll, of internet users, isn't more skewed in favor of getting rid of them.

Me too. But there are some proudly change resistant folks in our (mostly Boomers here) generation. I see it everyday in my personal life too...

I don't get them anymore but the most recent one I retain says on the cover that you can opt out of receiving them by calling a number. Check yours and opt out.

Mine was from Frontier Comm (we've never been a customer?), but there is an online opt out on the cover. It's very hard to see, but it is there. So I looked online, and of course you have to provide an email address and a working phone number (mobile only for us) to "opt out." And obviously I'd have to provide an address, but they may not have that now as they're not mailed/addressed. Out of the frying pan, into the fire?

 

[ERD50]

If these are from an advertising company, and they make a profit, they will continue. Here's a 2014 article:

The infuriating reason you still get a phonebook delivered every year

And even though phonebook ad revenues are shrinking — and shifting to digital directories — a handful of companies (mainly Dex Media, AT&T, Hibu, and Verizon) still make a healthy profit off yellow pages distributed in the US. ...

Why you might still get the white pages
The white pages — which contain residential listings — are a very different story. They cost money to print and distribute, and provide essentially no revenue. For years, states have required landline providers to distribute white pages as a public service.

Gradually, though, that's changing. In 2010, Verizon submitted a request to regulators in several states to allow it to create an opt-in system for white pages, and in New York, Florida, and Pennsylvania, they got permission.

Since then, at least 12 more states — Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin — have given various companies permission, though white pages are still being distributed in some areas of them. ...

And you could give this a try:

Now, if you don't use the phonebook, manufacturers have created a system that lets you opt out online. However, critics say that it's not reliable — and that if you opt out, there's a pretty good chance you'll get a phonebook anyway.

I actually did throw the current one in the car. Though I am a 'techy' in many ways, I preferred to have a 'dumb' phone (until recently, and I kind of miss my dumb phone), so having a source of numbers was helpful w/o needing to make a 411 call. And maybe I just need the address, or the address of a competitor when I find out the place I went to is out of stock or something.

-ERD50

 

[CaliKid]

The article was interesting. It mentioned the opt-out but that's utter nonsense. I have watched people delivering the books. They aren't looking at a list. They just throw them at the foot of every driveway at home and here at the office they put a big stack by every office door AND another stack in the lobby. A total waste. However, I found this line of the article funny, "The yellow pages are an advertisement disguised as a directory." I don't think it's disguised. I think most people know it's paid advertisement!? Oh well....

 

[Bestwifeever]

Oh, come on, there's lots of uses for these! We always keep one in the outhouse. And I hear they make good dryer sheets.

 

[Nemo2]

Oh, come on, there's lots of uses for these! We always keep one in the outhouse. And I hear they make good dryer sheets.

 

[karen1972]

My parents still rely on theirs. They don't have smart phones and the internet options are pretty slim... you can get on, but you want to smack yourself before the page loads. it's not dial-up but should be advertised as such. They are in a low area so even cell service doesn't work in the house, ie stand on the porch, sometimes lean way out and you might pick up 1 bar. I assume more rural areas still offer it as still a necessity.

 

[kcowan]

Our Mom used a 2-year old book no problem. She was not looking for the new guys.

We keep an old one around and it only wins if we cannot find something newer on Angies List..

 

[ownyourfuture]

Like them for the yellow pages and the government listings. Haven't used the white pages in a long time.

Same for me.

 

[Midpack]

Looks like the poll is hovering around 4 out of 5 could do without, not bad for a (mostly) bunch of old timers.

 

[ugeauxgirl]

My dad locked his keys in his car the day after Christmas, and the internet was on the blink- we were glad we had a phone book to call the locksmith. DH was pleasantly surprised that we had one- AND that I knew where it was! It had been a while since we used it though. Could probably do without.

 

[EastWest Gal]

My dad locked his keys in his car the day after Christmas, and the internet was on the blink- we were glad we had a phone book to call the locksmith. DH was pleasantly surprised that we had one- AND that I knew where it was! It had been a while since we used it though. Could probably do without.

I did that a couple of years ago. Pulled out my AAA card and called the number on the back. 10 minutes later a locksmith shows up and unlocks my car. Way easier than using a phone book.

 

[BeachOrCity]

Many people dont realize this but most small businesses dont list on bigyellow.com or yp.com which costs extra but they do pay for the actual yellow pages. So the books are good when you need to find a business.

 

[Paracelsus]

I do keep a copy around in case of a power outage taking out my internet accessibility. I don't do cell phones.