Mobile number nag

[Tunnelcat]

I don't own a cell phone. I don't text. How the hell can I stop both Google and Yahoo from constantly nagging me for a mobile number every time I try to log into my email? I don't have a mobile number you morons! I'm a cell phone luddite, OK.

[fliptw]

its called two-factor authentication, it helps prevent people from stealing your account.

Google at least, has a voice option, and you can use an app from your ipad.

[Krom]

Google has a voice call option that works for land lines. However it is somewhat inconvenient because if you use it and then you attempt to log in to your gmail account from some other computer somewhere else, you won't be able to get the codes because you won't be able to answer your phone. This is why it is only practical when you use a cell phone.

[Tunnelcat]

Well, I do have a android tablet, which would work for Google. But I don't know about Yahoo. I'll have to check. Still, requiring a cell number is stupid. Why not let a person use another email address? Not everyone in this country has a cell phone. I still have a landline. The reason I don't have a cell is that it's too expensive. Besides, I really have no use for one.

[sigma]

Wait, how are you able to contact emergency services or with your family, if the need arises for this? For example, I have several times found himself in situations where the mobile phone and mobile internet is much simpler to solve the problems.
If you are bored of the query window of your mobile phone numbers, just create another account and buy on the street a stolen SIM card. What's the problem then?

[Tunnelcat]

I have a phone sigma. It's on an old-fashioned land line. Remember those things that phones used to be connected to called copper wires? I'm sure Russians are quite familiar with them. I just can't carry the phone around with me or receive texts and Google wants a cell number for texts. And a land line links the caller ID with my address. Much better for emergency services to find me, at home at least.

[sigma]

copper wires? I'm sure Russians are quite familiar with them.

To be honest, I do not really understand what kind of phone you mean. My first mobile phone was Motorola (Russian slang for "brick").
Looks like this.



Sometimes my boss gave me an Iridium satellite phone, for I was constantly in touch even in my holiday in another country... But that was long ago, and now I can not remember any mobile phone that you mean. You can give a picture? I'm just curious, what is it can be.

[woodchip]

TC, just get a Obama phone. Problem solved

[sigma]

copper wires? I'm sure Russians are quite familiar with them.

I think I understand what you mean. In fact, it would be much easier if you could write in Russian language But nothing. Of course, I am familiar with the methods of deception telephone machines and ATMs

[Spidey]

Lol, maybe they actually don’t have a hard wired phone system in Russia.

[Tunnelcat]

Sorry sigma, I not good at Russian. But a picture's worth a thousand words. I've currently got one of these phones sigma. I just don't have a mobile phone. I don't travel or socialize with people anymore, so why own one?



I even still own of these Bell system rotary wall phones from the 1970's stored in my basement. Still works too if I plug it in. Holy crap! Someone on Ebay wants $109 for this thing. It must now be so old now it's a collectable.

TC, just get a Obama phone. Problem solved

Hey woody, that gold wall phone is built like the proverbial brick sh*thouse. They don't build them that good anymore in the post regulatory phone company age.

[sigma]

Nice things! I do not know why you do not want to travel, but at least you reminded me of one of entertainment when it is not necessary to travel

[Sirius]

GMail doesn't give you some way to switch the "reminders" off? Not that it'd really surprise me if it didn't - but as a courtesy to the customer... you can't always assume they want the feature you're offering.

[snoopy]

TC, do you have one of these?

[sdfgeoff]

I don't like it on principle. "Give us more personal information so we can protect your ... personal information???"
Everywhere wants my mobile number, supermarket chains, email services, [eugh]facebook[/eugh], the list goes on. The only place I've ever given it to other than people I know is the bank. They're the only business-people I want to be able to contact me at any time.

Gmail eventually stopped bugging me for my cellphone number, after clicking 'skip' for a couple months.

[Top Gun]

I just direct my Gmail accounts through Thunderbird. Saves me having to deal with any nonsense the web interface may pull.

[Jeff250]

I just direct my Gmail accounts through Thunderbird. Saves me having to deal with any nonsense the web interface may pull.

Same. Gmail + IMAP for the win.

[snoopy]

I just direct my Gmail accounts through Thunderbird. Saves me having to deal with any nonsense the web interface may pull.

Same. Gmail + IMAP for the win.

Did you guys do the device matching thing? I have the same set up (POP, in the theory that it'll maybe protect me from subpoenas (but, I don't think it really does))

[Jeff250]

Device matching thing?

[Sirius]

From what I understand, the POP thing doesn't actually delete things out of Gmail... it was the recommended option for transferring e-mail from one Gmail account to another, and that's what the help text was saying about it. Not exactly standard behavior, but Gmail does have an ideology of not having to delete e-mails, so... yeah

Though they might also have been tired of handling tech support for people who couldn't figure out why they couldn't get e-mail on their phone when they had their desktop client using POP...

[snoopy]

Device matching thing?

Once/If you enable two-factor passwords, you can have Google generate a device/program-particular password - so your two factors are the password and the mac (or whatever they use) rather than forcing you to use the text system all of the time.

Sirius: Yeah, the PoP method seems to shift the E-mails out of the Inbox" but I think they persist online in "all mail" - so I believe you're correct that they don't completely go away online.

[Tunnelcat]

I just direct my Gmail accounts through Thunderbird. Saves me having to deal with any nonsense the web interface may pull.

How does that work TG? I see that's from Mozilla. I'm using Firefox right now.

Gmail eventually stopped bugging me for my cellphone number, after clicking 'skip' for a couple months.

They quit for awhile, then they seem to start in nagging again.

[Top Gun]

Outlook or any other dedicated e-mail client could presumably do the same thing. You'd just need to set up a new IMAP account; GMail's help pages should have the server info you'd need to fill in. At least in Thunderbird, you can choose to dump multiple accounts into a single inbox, or else keep them separated into different folder trees; I went with the latter, just to prevent confusion.

[Tunnelcat]

Sounds great, I'll try setting up Thunderbird.