Communicating with home while on the road

Flying Fever · July 12th, 2001, 19:28

For those of you that are away from home 3,4,5 nights a week or longer. How do you communciate with your family. I guess the obvious thing would be just pick up the phone and call. I'm thinking emailing would work good. But have to drag a laptop around.

Was just curious.

Bobby

Chris Bena · July 12th, 2001, 19:35

I picked up a prepaid calling card from Costco (like Sam's Club on the West coast). It's got 480 minutes for $19.99! That's cheap!! Much better than paying the hotel long distance rates, cell phone, or some other "standard" calling card. E-mail is good, but there's no real-time connection unless you both agree to do some sort of instant messanging. But it's a drag, I'd much rather use the phone!!

Kristie · July 12th, 2001, 20:12

Doug and I use any resource we can get... when we first started out, we used the internet and travel calling cards (only for the frequent travelers like agents, pilots etc).

now we use internet, cell phone and phone. doug takes his laptop everywhere he goes and i could always reach him through that, but we like to talk voice to voice and with our cellphones, it's much cheaper than long distance.. just find yourself a good calling plan and go that route!

Kristie

Flying Fever · July 13th, 2001, 18:50

Thanks Cris and Kristie for the info. I got a cell phone, need to look into more coverage and longer air time.

Bobby

**DONOTDELETE** · July 24th, 2001, 20:01

Check out www.onesuite.com . It's pre-paid like a calling card but you can "recharge" it and keep the same pin#. It's also only $.03/min. the circuits can get busy at peak hours but the convenience and price are worth it.one suite

zsolez · August 11th, 2001, 19:03

Did you guys give a try to internet communication programs? I am not talking about I-phone and the fancy very complicated ones.

If both of you have a computer around and both has sound card in it then you can talk via the internet with a very simple proggy.

I use it for gaming mainly and I frequently talk to my teammates in Canada or wherever on the world for freeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

Someone has mentioned that getting on-line from most hotels is for free through access numbers. It also work just fine on a 56k modem. No need for high speed. If you have a good sound card with dupplex capability than you can listen and talk at the same time. It is almost as good as phone. Quality depends on your sound card and headsets only.

Check this program out:
www.rogerwilco.com

It is free and very easy to install.
Both computers have to install it. you also hhave to configure your mike and test it. It is a 5 min hassle and if you have an ATP you really should be able to do it without any special computer experience. Ok with a CFI you can do it tooo [img]images/icons/laugh.gif[/img] jkjkjkjk

How it works:
You get on-line and start up your RW (RogerWilco) and host a session... you will see your IP address through which you host... you know the 201.23.543.123 kind of thing. Then call or instant messagge your honey and tell her the IP address. She will search for the session with that IP. Then once she found it she will click on it and there you go. Voila!!! That is all. You can even put a password on so nobody else can enter the session.

I hope I helped to save you guys some bucks or two with this.

If this wasn't clear or you have trouble with it setting up then you can ask me. you want to make sure though that your sound related stuff is installed correctly because it can mess RW up.

Krisz

**DONOTDELETE** · August 30th, 2001, 10:40

Usually cell phone companies offer special offers to airline pilots. I know that Sprint offers a program to us that's 24% off the rates advertised on their website.

seagull · September 7th, 2001, 20:43

Telephone works well domestic. Domestic I use a cell phone for free calls. International I use the costco MCI prepaid card (can be recharged) and supplement that with email.

MQAAord · June 1st, 2003, 20:57

When using a laptop at a hotel, be sure to check the hotel's phone charges. Some hotels don't charge for local call, or 1-800 calls, other hotels do! The bill can add up BIG if you log on for an hour and are incurring hotel phone charges. Also some hotels don't charge for local calls for the first 30 minutes, then they start charging, so you have to hang up and call back. Always read the fine print on the little card next to the phone, and call the front desk to verify phone charges for crew members, some airlines do negotiate free local and 1-800 calls for their crews as part of the airline's contract with that hotel.

Same goes for calling cards, some hotels charge either per minute or a small fee of $.50 to $1.75 for 'free' 1-800 calls.

fr8dog · June 2nd, 2003, 02:18

If u are on the road all the time, a cell phone is definitly your best bet (more air time...).
Here's a tip if u have a laptop and a cell phone :
Most major carrier have wireless web on their plan. Get the unlimited WB and go get the USB cable and software to connect your PC. www.futuredial.com if I remember correctly. And available at Radiosha.
It utilize your wireless feature on the cell phone (not the minutes) and is about twice as fast as modems (115k). Make sure u look into it, especially that your plan is appropriate...

I love it...

Mr_Creepy · June 2nd, 2003, 12:32

paltalk comes in handy.

so do personal 800 #'s.

try www.call-home-cheap.com

they cater to aviation people.

Kristie · June 3rd, 2003, 23:45

Great work guys!!!!

thanks for the info!!

Snow · June 4th, 2003, 18:05

[ QUOTE ]
Most major carrier have wireless web on their plan

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah but how much is it there? I setup a laptop that way and it was about $1.50 a min! Talk about expensive net axcess, only get 9600baud too .. eek

jtrain609 · June 4th, 2003, 18:25

If I plugged a laptop into my Sprint PCS phone I think I'd get some pretty decent reception, and I'll be I could get a 28.8 connection over it in most places. If you are just sending e-mail or using AIM, possibly checking into message forums like Doug does on the road then it's no biggie, you don't need broadband.

Cheers

John Herreshoff

fr8dog · June 5th, 2003, 16:27

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Most major carrier have wireless web on their plan

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah but how much is it there? I setup a laptop that way and it was about $1.50 a min! Talk about expensive net axcess, only get 9600baud too .. eek

[/ QUOTE ]

I got a Sprint pcs plan, cord (USB) cost me 20$, it's unlimited web...so no worry about minutes...it doesn't use your airtime.
I get 156k...

Wife2TheCaptain · December 11th, 2003, 23:17

My husband has a cell phone with nationwide coverage and he has a calling card. We also recently signed up for $30 unlimited long distance for home from AT&T so I can call him at hotels etc.

mtsu_av8er · December 13th, 2003, 11:34

[ QUOTE ]

I got a Sprint pcs plan, cord (USB) cost me 20$, it's unlimited web...so no worry about minutes...it doesn't use your airtime.
I get 156k...

[/ QUOTE ]

That would be unlimited web with a Vision plan, right?

Mr_Creepy · December 13th, 2003, 11:45

NEXTEL is expensive but what a great tool!

sbe · December 15th, 2003, 11:26

mtsu - yep that is the Vision service. I've got it on my phone, $10 extra/mo but unlimited access. It has its limitations - I can get into both my Yahoo and AOL emails to read them, which is nice on the road even if replying is a pain if not practically impossible. Also good for wx and catching a bit of news/sports scores while sitting around waiting for plane, meeting, etc.

Nextel is a cool deal, working in the engineering & construction industry, most of our guys in the office have their phones. A lot of them are regularly 'in the field' so they are a great handy tool considering they previously carried a cell AND a motorola talkabout or some other form of walkie talkie. However, they are constantly going off in the office and I will say they are a bit of an annoyance with the 'eeep' going off all the time in the halls...

Tazman282 · December 15th, 2003, 20:20

I personally have the sprint plan that incorporates free PCS to PCS which is great if the whole family has sprint phones. Then no matter where you are in the nation you can make a call that doesn't go against your plan min. However unless they have the free PCS to PCS it charges them if during the peak hours.

July 12th, 2001, 19:28	#1
Flying Fever Newbie Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: NC Posts: 2	Communicating with home while on the road For those of you that are away from home 3,4,5 nights a week or longer. How do you communciate with your family. I guess the obvious thing would be just pick up the phone and call. I'm thinking emailing would work good. But have to drag a laptop around. Was just curious. Bobby

July 12th, 2001, 19:35	#2
Chris Bena Newbie Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Salt Lake City Posts: 2	Re: Communicating with home while on the road I picked up a prepaid calling card from Costco (like Sam's Club on the West coast). It's got 480 minutes for $19.99! That's cheap!! Much better than paying the hotel long distance rates, cell phone, or some other "standard" calling card. E-mail is good, but there's no real-time connection unless you both agree to do some sort of instant messanging. But it's a drag, I'd much rather use the phone!!

July 12th, 2001, 20:12	#3
Kristie Big Chief's Woman Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Scottsdale, Arizona Posts: 17,684 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Communicating with home while on the road Doug and I use any resource we can get... when we first started out, we used the internet and travel calling cards (only for the frequent travelers like agents, pilots etc). now we use internet, cell phone and phone. doug takes his laptop everywhere he goes and i could always reach him through that, but we like to talk voice to voice and with our cellphones, it's much cheaper than long distance.. just find yourself a good calling plan and go that route! Kristie

July 13th, 2001, 18:50	#4
Flying Fever Newbie Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: NC Posts: 2	Re: Communicating with home while on the road Thanks Cris and Kristie for the info. I got a cell phone, need to look into more coverage and longer air time. Bobby

July 24th, 2001, 20:01	#5
DONOTDELETE Senior Member Join Date: Dec 1969 Posts: 883	Re: Communicating with home while on the road Check out www.onesuite.com . It's pre-paid like a calling card but you can "recharge" it and keep the same pin#. It's also only $.03/min. the circuits can get busy at peak hours but the convenience and price are worth it.one suite

August 11th, 2001, 19:03	#6
zsolez Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2000 Posts: 79	Re: Communicating with home while on the road Did you guys give a try to internet communication programs? I am not talking about I-phone and the fancy very complicated ones. If both of you have a computer around and both has sound card in it then you can talk via the internet with a very simple proggy. I use it for gaming mainly and I frequently talk to my teammates in Canada or wherever on the world for freeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!! Someone has mentioned that getting on-line from most hotels is for free through access numbers. It also work just fine on a 56k modem. No need for high speed. If you have a good sound card with dupplex capability than you can listen and talk at the same time. It is almost as good as phone. Quality depends on your sound card and headsets only. Check this program out: www.rogerwilco.com It is free and very easy to install. Both computers have to install it. you also hhave to configure your mike and test it. It is a 5 min hassle and if you have an ATP you really should be able to do it without any special computer experience. Ok with a CFI you can do it tooo [img]images/icons/laugh.gif[/img] jkjkjkjk How it works: You get on-line and start up your RW (RogerWilco) and host a session... you will see your IP address through which you host... you know the 201.23.543.123 kind of thing. Then call or instant messagge your honey and tell her the IP address. She will search for the session with that IP. Then once she found it she will click on it and there you go. Voila!!! That is all. You can even put a password on so nobody else can enter the session. I hope I helped to save you guys some bucks or two with this. If this wasn't clear or you have trouble with it setting up then you can ask me. you want to make sure though that your sound related stuff is installed correctly because it can mess RW up. Krisz

August 30th, 2001, 10:40	#7
DONOTDELETE Senior Member Join Date: Dec 1969 Posts: 883	Re: Communicating with home while on the road Usually cell phone companies offer special offers to airline pilots. I know that Sprint offers a program to us that's 24% off the rates advertised on their website.

September 7th, 2001, 20:43	#8
seagull Old Skool Join Date: Sep 2001 Posts: 2,043	Re: Communicating with home while on the road Telephone works well domestic. Domestic I use a cell phone for free calls. International I use the costco MCI prepaid card (can be recharged) and supplement that with email.

June 1st, 2003, 20:57	#9
MQAAord Moderator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: The Looney Bin Posts: 8,804	Re: Communicating with home while on the road When using a laptop at a hotel, be sure to check the hotel's phone charges. Some hotels don't charge for local call, or 1-800 calls, other hotels do! The bill can add up BIG if you log on for an hour and are incurring hotel phone charges. Also some hotels don't charge for local calls for the first 30 minutes, then they start charging, so you have to hang up and call back. Always read the fine print on the little card next to the phone, and call the front desk to verify phone charges for crew members, some airlines do negotiate free local and 1-800 calls for their crews as part of the airline's contract with that hotel. Same goes for calling cards, some hotels charge either per minute or a small fee of $.50 to $1.75 for 'free' 1-800 calls.

June 2nd, 2003, 02:18	#10
fr8dog Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: CA Posts: 85	Re: Communicating with home while on the road If u are on the road all the time, a cell phone is definitly your best bet (more air time...). Here's a tip if u have a laptop and a cell phone : Most major carrier have wireless web on their plan. Get the unlimited WB and go get the USB cable and software to connect your PC. www.futuredial.com if I remember correctly. And available at Radiosha. It utilize your wireless feature on the cell phone (not the minutes) and is about twice as fast as modems (115k). Make sure u look into it, especially that your plan is appropriate... I love it...

June 2nd, 2003, 12:32	#11
Mr_Creepy Old Skool Join Date: May 2003 Location: In the O-zone Posts: 5,807	Re: Communicating with home while on the road paltalk comes in handy. so do personal 800 #'s. try www.call-home-cheap.com they cater to aviation people.

June 3rd, 2003, 23:45	#12
Kristie Big Chief's Woman Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Scottsdale, Arizona Posts: 17,684 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Communicating with home while on the road Great work guys!!!! thanks for the info!!

June 4th, 2003, 18:05	#13
Snow Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 869	Re: Communicating with home while on the road [ QUOTE ] Most major carrier have wireless web on their plan [/ QUOTE ] Yeah but how much is it there? I setup a laptop that way and it was about $1.50 a min! Talk about expensive net axcess, only get 9600baud too .. eek

June 4th, 2003, 18:25	#14
jtrain609 Old Skool Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Park City, UT Posts: 12,095	Re: Communicating with home while on the road If I plugged a laptop into my Sprint PCS phone I think I'd get some pretty decent reception, and I'll be I could get a 28.8 connection over it in most places. If you are just sending e-mail or using AIM, possibly checking into message forums like Doug does on the road then it's no biggie, you don't need broadband. Cheers John Herreshoff

June 5th, 2003, 16:27	#15
fr8dog Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: CA Posts: 85	Re: Communicating with home while on the road [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Most major carrier have wireless web on their plan [/ QUOTE ] Yeah but how much is it there? I setup a laptop that way and it was about $1.50 a min! Talk about expensive net axcess, only get 9600baud too .. eek [/ QUOTE ] I got a Sprint pcs plan, cord (USB) cost me 20$, it's unlimited web...so no worry about minutes...it doesn't use your airtime. I get 156k...

December 11th, 2003, 23:17	#16
Wife2TheCaptain Newbie Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Idaho Posts: 6	Re: Communicating with home while on the road My husband has a cell phone with nationwide coverage and he has a calling card. We also recently signed up for $30 unlimited long distance for home from AT&T so I can call him at hotels etc.

December 13th, 2003, 11:34	#17
mtsu_av8er Old Skool Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Utopia Posts: 12,403	Re: Communicating with home while on the road [ QUOTE ] I got a Sprint pcs plan, cord (USB) cost me 20$, it's unlimited web...so no worry about minutes...it doesn't use your airtime. I get 156k... [/ QUOTE ] That would be unlimited web with a Vision plan, right?

December 13th, 2003, 11:45	#18
Mr_Creepy Old Skool Join Date: May 2003 Location: In the O-zone Posts: 5,807	Re: Communicating with home while on the road NEXTEL is expensive but what a great tool!

December 15th, 2003, 11:26	#19
sbe Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: KC Posts: 540	Re: Communicating with home while on the road mtsu - yep that is the Vision service. I've got it on my phone, $10 extra/mo but unlimited access. It has its limitations - I can get into both my Yahoo and AOL emails to read them, which is nice on the road even if replying is a pain if not practically impossible. Also good for wx and catching a bit of news/sports scores while sitting around waiting for plane, meeting, etc. Nextel is a cool deal, working in the engineering & construction industry, most of our guys in the office have their phones. A lot of them are regularly 'in the field' so they are a great handy tool considering they previously carried a cell AND a motorola talkabout or some other form of walkie talkie. However, they are constantly going off in the office and I will say they are a bit of an annoyance with the 'eeep' going off all the time in the halls...

December 15th, 2003, 20:20	#20
Tazman282 Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 101	Re: Communicating with home while on the road I personally have the sprint plan that incorporates free PCS to PCS which is great if the whole family has sprint phones. Then no matter where you are in the nation you can make a call that doesn't go against your plan min. However unless they have the free PCS to PCS it charges them if during the peak hours.

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