Grand scheme?
Yeah, of course in the "grand scheme of things" it doesn't matter. But then the vast majority of topics on b3ta QOTW don't matter in the grand scheme of things, do they? We're here to have a bit of a rant and a moan about the things that we find common and crass - and that's what I'm doing.

Also, as has been pointed out: you don't seem to get it. All numbers are simply "020". And it is indeed possible to dial local numbers within the same area. If my land line is (020) 7222 1234, and I want to dial another land line: (020) 8222 1234 - then I only have to dial the local number: 8222 1234. You don't have to dial the area code, because you're already in it.

This works the same for any area code in the UK. If you're dialling another land line from within the same area code, you don't have to dial the code first. It's just embarrassing to see all the London people who insist on dialling the full code - even when calling other London landlines - simply because they can't be bothered to take an interest in the world around them and how it works.
(EuroSong I love horse meat: best of all the animals, Sun 19 Oct 2008, 9:49, 2 replies)

It seems to me
You have a bee in your bonnet about what is frankly one of the most pointless things in the world. Having a lack of knowledge of the telephone system (which to be honest is a very dull topic) does not make someone thick. And not knowing the difference between 0207 and 0208 is not crass.
( jim_bob can herd cats., Sun 19 Oct 2008, 12:55, closed)

It is because it highlights a dimwitted unthinking attitude
that is the root cause of most of the world's problems.
( cupboardy, Sun 19 Oct 2008, 18:02, closed)

Yep - precisely
You hit the nail on the head there.
It's not about the telephone numbering system per se: I agree that it's not a particularly exciting topic - nor is it important, in the big picture.

It's about people who are so thick that they don't bother to engage their brains. The "0207" problem is just a symptom of it, and every time I hear a moronic office worker blurting out a number like that, it grates on me because it just reminds me of how unthinking people are.
(EuroSong I love horse meat: best of all the animals, Mon 20 Oct 2008, 8:36, closed)

All this time I've wasted...
I didn't realise that the folks who live out in the sticks get so touchy about having an 8 rather than a 7 in their phone number. Some fun (not much, though) to be had at their expense, methinks.

On the other hand, I live in London, my number begins 020 7 (if you must), and I couldn't care less about the convention. I always dial the full code and I shall continue to do so. I doubt that I would do anything useful with the second saved by omitting the area code.

Besides, I have to fill my days somehow and if wasting seconds helps (as does B3ta), rather than being a physicist who takes a very great deal of interest in the world around me and trying to figure out how it works, then so must it be.
(Dr. Scambolic, Sun 19 Oct 2008, 16:14, closed)