Save proper Teletext!
Author
Discussion

Codefaster

Original Poster:

281 posts

224 months

Thursday 28th August 2008
quotequote all
I grew up on Teletext (remember Buzz on C4? and The Man With a Long Chin? The dodgy "reveal" based advent calendars?) but I'm sure it's on the way out due to not being sufficiently new-fangled.

On a modern TV with the page-memory feature you can navigate through Teletext like lightning and very quickly reach the info you need. It's a cracking service.

Having tried "digital" teletext on Freeview/Sky, it provides sluggish response, poor use of screen space and a general move from user friendliness towards style and visuals. A bit like modern mobile phone GUIs. Also a bit like when Vauxhall decided that indicators should work differently and be almost impossible to turn off smile

Does anyone else share my feelings here?


_Dan_

2,392 posts

310 months

Thursday 28th August 2008
quotequote all
While I agree with you, I used to look after the Ceefax system when I worked at the beeb, and believe me, it's an absolute ballache!!

Handy for checking the news, footie news and tv guide though!

Maybe http://www.ceefax.tv/ will carry on going

Edited by _Dan_ on Thursday 28th August 23:26

DrTre

12,957 posts

263 months

Friday 29th August 2008
quotequote all
ah....the poor mans internet....

<wibbly lines>
First the kids pages then as I got older it was onto the music ones. I used to while away hours looking at Planet Sound on C4 and Blue Suede News....
The Beeb had a good music section too.
And typing in random number combinations used to bring up random pages of information on such diverse subjects as stock markets, recipes, chess, weather, travel, programmes for the deaf.
Great times.

Of course, the Internets killer app, porn, was a bit shonky on Teletext...but good enough for a 14yo DrTre to get his rocks off to...