On Tue, 17 Jun 2014 18:19:53 +0000 (UTC), Ray Abbitt
> wrote:

> In article >,
> sf > wrote:
> >On Sat, 14 Jun 2014 20:52:44 -0700, "Julie Bove"
> > wrote:
> >
> >> If you have a landline phone and move to another state, you sure can't keep
> >> your number
> >
> >NOBODY has ever said you could. The subject was CELL phones which
> >moved onto being able to take a CELL phone number with you when you
> >change providers or states and then you decided to talk about land
> >lines. What happens with land lines was not and still is not the
> >issue.
> >
> Actually it doesn't matter whether its a landline or a cell phone
> anymore. Do a search on number portability. (I can't remember when it
> first became law, but seems like it was 10 or more years ago.) I can
> change from traditional landline to cell or voip and keep my same number
> AND area code--no matter where I live. My current cell phone is 415 (San
> Francisco region) area code but I live in the 541 (southern Oregon) area
> code. If I call it from a traditional landline phone in the local 541
> area code it is considered a local call. If somebody in the local to 415
> area code calls it from a traditional landline phone it will be long
> distance. But since (almost) nobody has traditional phone service
> without nationwide calling, who cares? I had the option of changing my
> cell number area code when I moved here, but in this area of Oregon
> landline phones have to dial the area code anyway, so I saw no advantage
> to changing it.
>
I tried to port my landline number over to a cell phone when we went
wireless and decided each of us would have our own phone instead of
sharing one phone. It had been my home number for 30 years and we
never changed carriers on purpose, but it was a football after the
MaBell breakup. First one carrier, then another. I waited two weeks
for Verizon to figure out who owned the number so I could take it to a
cell phone - but they didn't figure it out and I didn't want to wait
any longer. It only mattered to people who had the number memorized
and dialed that way. Now everyone has the new number in their
contacts list and it doesn't matter anymore.

DD's phone has a Santa Barbara area code from her college days. She's
been back home for over 10 years, but has never bothered changing it.
All of her friends use cell phones and/or VOIP, so nobody cares what
area code they are calling. Changing just the area code would be just
as big of a PITA as an entirely new number because they select names
from a contact list, they don't key the number in. Heck, I don't
bother keying in my husband's number either - I just select it from
the list if I want to call him.

--
I take life with a grain of salt, a slice of lemon and a shot of tequila