Fighting Telemarketing With Automated Conversations
The Telecrapper 2000 is one of the most wonderful inventions I've ever heard of.
The phone-spam industry uses computer technology to maximize the use of their employees' time. Even if they can't call you because of a no-call list, or can't get through because of a spam zapper device, they still make just as many calls. Dialing someone who doesn't answer costs them nothing, because their computers dial numbers until someone picks up, and only then do they assign your call to a telemarketer. By hooking up your computer to carry on an automated conversation with the telemarketer, the Telecrapper 2000 lets us do something similar to them, reducing the profitability of the entire phone-spam industry. Here's a link to a Flash animation of a Telecrapper call. I laughed till I nearly cried.
"Is Mrs. _____ there?" "My hip hurts."
The phone-spam industry uses computer technology to maximize the use of their employees' time. Even if they can't call you because of a no-call list, or can't get through because of a spam zapper device, they still make just as many calls. Dialing someone who doesn't answer costs them nothing, because their computers dial numbers until someone picks up, and only then do they assign your call to a telemarketer. By hooking up your computer to carry on an automated conversation with the telemarketer, the Telecrapper 2000 lets us do something similar to them, reducing the profitability of the entire phone-spam industry. Here's a link to a Flash animation of a Telecrapper call. I laughed till I nearly cried.
"Is Mrs. _____ there?" "My hip hurts."