In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
but I get
"Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"

Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.

Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?

Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.

(I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
other wifi places.)

On this Sun, 07 Jan 2024 07:53:24 -0500, micky wrote:

> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
> blocking me.

I think messaging is fire & forget so I don't think your phone would know
that the message wasn't received on the other end.

micky wrote:
> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
> but I get
> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>
> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>
> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>
> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>
> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
> other wifi places.)

Don't blame your sister.
That block comes from your phone company; too many texts sent in too
short a time.
Who do you use? ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile, Google Fi?

In a while they'll raise the block.

Ed

Am 07.01.24 um 13:53 schrieb micky:
> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
> but I get
> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>
> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>
> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>
> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>
> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
> other wifi places.)

Holy shit: Without a SIM you can't text. Without a SIM you have no
access to most messengers because they identify you via the phone
number. The only option is e-mail.

--
"Gutta cavat lapidem." (Ovid)

micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:

> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
> but I get
> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>
> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>
> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>
> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>
> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
> other wifi places.)

Which cell carrier are you using? Might've you bought a SIM to use just
while in Guatamala? What is its quota? Unclear if you are still in
Guatamala, or that was irrelevant to this thread, but just stating your
temporary absense here, and you're back in your own country with your
regular unidentified carrier.

Remember when sending long MMS messages that they'll get sliced up into
multiple smaller (160-byte) SMS messages, so what you're sending could
be several times the count you think you're sending. "long" doesn't say
if the messages were all text, you had a lot of attachments (e.g., pics)
that bloated the size of the message mandating slicing into multiple SMS
messages.

The only way I could see you getting that message is not by something
your sister does on her phone, but something she did in her account with
her carrier. She might've added you to a blocking list on her phone,
but perhaps that got uploaded to her carrier to block there. If she
won't accept texts, and won't accept calls, send her an e-mail. Maybe
some other communication venue can reach her instead of getting blocked.
Have you tried to send a short message, so it is just 1 SMS message
(under 160 bytes)? Wait a day (24 hours) after the last blocked report
to see if you got locked out by whomever is currently your carrier for
exceeding their quota, or if you're getting blocked by her carrier.

Are you sure you did not add her to /your/ blocking list? Could be a
local block list on your phone for whatever SMS app you use, or added to
a block list up on your carrier in your account.

https://www.wikihow.com/Message-Blocking-Is-Active

Ed Cryer <ed@somewhere.in.the.uk> wrote:
> micky wrote:
> > In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
> > me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
> > but I get
> > "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
> >
> > Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
> >
> > Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
> > blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
> >
> > Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
> > free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
> >
> > (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
> > other wifi places.)
>
> Don't blame your sister.
> That block comes from your phone company; too many texts sent in too
> short a time.
> Who do you use? ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile, Google Fi?
>
> In a while they'll raise the block.

It's confusing. He says:

> > (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
> > other wifi places.)

So it seems that he's not using a mobile provider. But he also says:

> > Trying to text my sister in law, long text,

Which in US-parlance normally means SMS messages. But is he sending
SMS messages over *Wi-Fi*? Yes, he could do that with Wi-Fi calling, but
earlier he said that Wi-Fi calling did not work.

Bottom line: Only micky know what the heck he's doing.

Am 07.01.24 um 16:55 schrieb VanguardLH:
> micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>
>> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
>> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
>> but I get
>> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>>
>> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>>
>> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
>> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>>
>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>
>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>> other wifi places.)
>
> Which cell carrier are you using?

None. Just above.

--
"Gutta cavat lapidem." (Ovid)

On 1/7/24 7:46 AM, Jörg Lorenz wrote:
> Am 07.01.24 um 13:53 schrieb micky:
>> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
>> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
>> but I get
>> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>>
>> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>>
>> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
>> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>>
>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>
>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>> other wifi places.)
>
> Holy shit: Without a SIM you can't text. Without a SIM you have no
> access to most messengers because they identify you via the phone
> number. The only option is e-mail.

Google chat. It was nicer as 'Hangouts' but still works.

--
Cheers, Bev
"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute
conversation with the average voter." - Churchill

The Real Bev <bashley101@gmail.com> wrote:
> On 1/7/24 7:46 AM, Jörg Lorenz wrote:
> > Am 07.01.24 um 13:53 schrieb micky:
[...]
> >> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
> >> other wifi places.)
> >
> > Holy shit: Without a SIM you can't text. Without a SIM you have no
> > access to most messengers because they identify you via the phone
> > number. The only option is e-mail.
>
> Google chat. It was nicer as 'Hangouts' but still works.

Note that Jörg said "most messengers". But for example WhatsApp works
fine without a SIM, because while WhatsApp indeed identifies you via
'your' phone number, it doesn't have to be the phone number of the
device your using. So for example a tablet which can not even have a
SIM, can use WhatsApp just fine with some phone number which (sort of)
belongs to you.

Case in point: When we're in Australia, my phone has my Australian SIM
with its Australian phone number, but WhatsApp, which uses my Dutch
phone number to identify me, works just fine.

So the phone number is just for identication, there is no actual
'cellular' (or other) connection to that number, hence no SIM is needed.

On Sun, 7 Jan 2024 06:48:41 -0700, Charlie wrote:
> I think messaging is fire & forget so I don't think your phone would know
> that the message wasn't received on the other end.

I have unknowingly sent messages to landlines, and I find out that
I've done it because I get back a message that my text couldn't be
delivered. It's been a while since I've seen the message, so I can't
tell you the wording, but it was clear enough that I knew I had sent
to a number that couldn't receive texts -- as opposed to a number
that had blocked me, where I assume I would get nothing back.

--
Stan Brown, Tehachapi, California, USA https://BrownMath.com/
Shikata ga nai...

In comp.mobile.android, on Sun, 7 Jan 2024 13:40:00 -0800, Stan Brown
<the_stan_brown@fastmail.fm> wrote:

>On Sun, 7 Jan 2024 06:48:41 -0700, Charlie wrote:
>> I think messaging is fire & forget so I don't think your phone would know
>> that the message wasn't received on the other end.
>
>I have unknowingly sent messages to landlines, and I find out that
>I've done it because I get back a message that my text couldn't be
>delivered. It's been a while since I've seen the message, so I can't
>tell you the wording, but it was clear enough that I knew I had sent
>to a number that couldn't receive texts -- as opposed to a number
>that had blocked me, where I assume I would get nothing back.

i didn't think of that but it's a cell. That's all she has.

I'm suspicious because once my brother told me my sil wanted me to
stop bothering her, after I sent her one important fairly long text and
one short one. She's a pain. Now my brother has covid, and bouts
of dementia and sleeps all but 2 hours of the day even before the covid,
and she wants the t wo of them to go to Mexico City, away from his
doctors.

I sent her an email but I suspected she doesn't read them and then her
son told me she doesnt', and he doens't read all of his either Even
from people you know, I asked. No answer.

In comp.mobile.android, on Sun, 7 Jan 2024 15:37:46 +0000, Ed Cryer
<ed@somewhere.in.the.uk> wrote:

>micky wrote:
>> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
>> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
>> but I get
>> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>>
>> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>>
>> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
>> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>>
>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>
>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>> other wifi places.)
>
>Don't blame your sister.
>That block comes from your phone company; too many texts sent in too
>short a time.
>Who do you use? ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile, Google Fi?

Mint Mobile, but I haven't sent more than 3 texts a months in the last 6
months.
>
>In a while they'll raise the block.
>
>Ed

In comp.mobile.android, on 7 Jan 2024 16:01:18 GMT, Frank Slootweg
<this@ddress.is.invalid> wrote:

>Ed Cryer <ed@somewhere.in.the.uk> wrote:
>> micky wrote:
>> > In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
>> > me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
>> > but I get
>> > "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>> >
>> > Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>> >
>> > Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
>> > blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>> >
>> > Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>> > free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>> >
>> > (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>> > other wifi places.)
>>
>> Don't blame your sister.
>> That block comes from your phone company; too many texts sent in too
>> short a time.
>> Who do you use? ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile, Google Fi?
>>
>> In a while they'll raise the block.
>
> It's confusing. He says:
>
>> > (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>> > other wifi places.)
>
> So it seems that he's not using a mobile provider. But he also says:
>
>> > Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
>
> Which in US-parlance normally means SMS messages. But is he sending
>SMS messages over *Wi-Fi*? Yes, he could do that with Wi-Fi calling, but
>earlier he said that Wi-Fi calling did not work.

That might be the problem. I turned on wifi calling but it still didn't
let me make phone calls. So I guess it didn't let me make texts.

I should have used whatspapp, which does let me make calls, but instead
of giving access to my whole contact list, I have to set up each one
again individually, afaict.

At least it's not my sil.
>
> Bottom line: Only micky know what the heck he's doing.

In comp.mobile.android, on Sun, 7 Jan 2024 09:55:47 -0600, VanguardLH
<V@nguard.LH> wrote:

>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>
>> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
>> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
>> but I get
>> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>>
>> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>>
>> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
>> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>>
>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>
>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>> other wifi places.)
>
>Which cell carrier are you using?

When this happened, I hd no sim. The hotel probably uses Claro /
Guatemala.

> Might've you bought a SIM to use just
>while in Guatamala?

Yes, but the line above in parens points out I had't don't that yet.

> What is its quota? Unclear if you are still in
>Guatamala, or that was irrelevant to this thread, but just stating your
>temporary absense here, and you're back in your own country with your
>regular unidentified carrier.

19 more days in guat. Sometimes I think it's too much, other times, too
little.
>Remember when sending long MMS messages that they'll get sliced up into
>multiple smaller (160-byte) SMS messages, so what you're sending could
>be several times the count you think you're sending. "long" doesn't say
>if the messages were all text, you had a lot of attachments (e.g., pics)
>that bloated the size of the message mandating slicing into multiple SMS
>messages.
>
>The only way I could see you getting that message is not by something
>your sister does on her phone, but something she did in her account with
>her carrier. She might've added you to a blocking list on her phone,
>but perhaps that got uploaded to her carrier to block there. If she
>won't accept texts, and won't accept calls, send her an e-mail. Maybe
>some other communication venue can reach her instead of getting blocked.
>
>Have you tried to send a short message, so it is just 1 SMS message
>(under 160 bytes)? Wait a day (24 hours) after the last blocked report
>to see if you got locked out by whomever is currently your carrier for
>exceeding their quota, or if you're getting blocked by her carrier.
>
>Are you sure you did not add her to /your/ blocking list? Could be a
>local block list on your phone for whatever SMS app you use, or added to
>a block list up on your carrier in your account.
>
>https://www.wikihow.com/Message-Blocking-Is-Active

micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:

>> micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>>
>>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>>> other wifi places.)
>
> When this happened, I hd no sim. The hotel probably uses Claro /
> Guatemala.

You are using the hotel's wifi to send texts. Despite getting an
Internet connection via wifi, just whose call service are you using to
make VOIP calls? A wifi connection is just networking. You need to be
using *something* to do VOIP over that Internet connection. Whose VOIP
service are you using over the Internet access you obtain via wi-fi?

In comp.mobile.android, on Mon, 8 Jan 2024 06:19:20 -0600, VanguardLH
<V@nguard.LH> wrote:

>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>
>>> micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>>>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>>>
>>>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>>>> other wifi places.)
>>
>> When this happened, I hd no sim. The hotel probably uses Claro /
>> Guatemala.
>
>You are using the hotel's wifi to send texts. Despite getting an
>Internet connection via wifi, just whose call service are you using to
>make VOIP calls? A wifi connection is just networking. You need to be
>using *something* to do VOIP over that Internet connection. Whose VOIP
>service are you using over the Internet access you obtain via wi-fi?

Quien sabe? I'm not there anymore so I'll never know.

Unless you mean what part of the phone. The regular text app on the
Xiaomi Redmi phone.

micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:

> In comp.mobile.android, on Mon, 8 Jan 2024 06:19:20 -0600, VanguardLH
> <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
>
>>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>
>>>> micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>>>>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>>>>
>>>>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>>>>> other wifi places.)
>>>
>>> When this happened, I hd no sim. The hotel probably uses Claro /
>>> Guatemala.
>>
>>You are using the hotel's wifi to send texts. Despite getting an
>>Internet connection via wifi, just whose call service are you using to
>>make VOIP calls? A wifi connection is just networking. You need to be
>>using *something* to do VOIP over that Internet connection. Whose VOIP
>>service are you using over the Internet access you obtain via wi-fi?
>
> Quien sabe? I'm not there anymore so I'll never know.
>
> Unless you mean what part of the phone. The regular text app on the
> Xiaomi Redmi phone.

SMS (texting) requires a cellular carrier service. Apparently you
didn't have cellular when you were in Guatamala, or didn't want to
consume its quota (assuming whomever is your cellular provider doesn't
have unlimited quotas, or limits on roaming, or you got a SIM card local
to the vacation area). You wanted to use wifi, but wifi is just a
networking solution, just like using Ethernet. You got to a network,
but then you need to connect to somewhere, like using a web browser to
visit web sites, or to a VOIP provider to connect via Internet whether
that be via wifi or Ethernet or cellular data. Walking outside your
house to be outdoors does not automatically also put in into and turn on
a car.

Calls, SMS (texting), and data all require you connect to a cellular
carrier. VOIP (Voice Over IP), if you have an app to do it, still
requires you connect to a VOIP provider over the Internet (e.g., I use
Google Voice service and their app on my phone). Perhaps whomever is
your cellular provider also has VOIP service. Even when you use
Whatsapp, that is not direct from phone to phone, but uses the Whatsapp
server to make VOIP calls.

In comp.mobile.android, on Fri, 12 Jan 2024 09:11:15 -0600, VanguardLH
<V@nguard.LH> wrote:

>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>
>> In comp.mobile.android, on Mon, 8 Jan 2024 06:19:20 -0600, VanguardLH
>> <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
>>
>>>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>>> micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>>>>>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>>>>>> other wifi places.)
>>>>
>>>> When this happened, I hd no sim. The hotel probably uses Claro /
>>>> Guatemala.
>>>
>>>You are using the hotel's wifi to send texts. Despite getting an
>>>Internet connection via wifi, just whose call service are you using to
>>>make VOIP calls? A wifi connection is just networking. You need to be
>>>using *something* to do VOIP over that Internet connection. Whose VOIP
>>>service are you using over the Internet access you obtain via wi-fi?
>>
>> Quien sabe? I'm not there anymore so I'll never know.
>>
>> Unless you mean what part of the phone. The regular text app on the
>> Xiaomi Redmi phone.
>
>SMS (texting) requires a cellular carrier service. Apparently you
>didn't have cellular when you were in Guatamala, or didn't want to

I didnt' have it yet. People on tripadvisor said it would be easy but
it took me parts of 3 days to get it. I went to about 8 places to try
to get set up. They said any tienda, but I think that's only for
recharging. For the sim I had to go to a Tigo store, in the mall. It
was only $1.30, but then I had to go somewhere else for minutes.

Phone calling was enabled by the time I checked, under an hour. But
data didn't work until the next morning, about 18 hours (though I
didn't chekc in the middle of the night) I don't know if it started
working automatically but slowly, or if my chatting the previous night
with Tigo made a difference.

>consume its quota (assuming whomever is your cellular provider doesn't
>have unlimited quotas, or limits on roaming, or you got a SIM card local
>to the vacation area). You wanted to use wifi, but wifi is just a
>networking solution, just like using Ethernet. You got to a network,
>but then you need to connect to somewhere, like using a web browser to
>visit web sites, or to a VOIP provider to connect via Internet whether
>that be via wifi or Ethernet or cellular data. Walking outside your
>house to be outdoors does not automatically also put in into and turn on
>a car.
>
>Calls, SMS (texting), and data all require you connect to a cellular
>carrier. VOIP (Voice Over IP), if you have an app to do it, still
>requires you connect to a VOIP provider over the Internet (e.g., I use
>Google Voice service and their app on my phone). Perhaps whomever is
>your cellular provider also has VOIP service. Even when you use
>Whatsapp, that is not direct from phone to phone, but uses the Whatsapp
>server to make VOIP calls.

micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:

> In comp.mobile.android, on Fri, 12 Jan 2024 09:11:15 -0600, VanguardLH
> <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
>
>>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>
>>> In comp.mobile.android, on Mon, 8 Jan 2024 06:19:20 -0600, VanguardLH
>>> <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
>>>
>>>>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>> micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>>>>>>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>>>>>>> other wifi places.)
>>>>>
>>>>> When this happened, I hd no sim. The hotel probably uses Claro /
>>>>> Guatemala.
>>>>
>>>>You are using the hotel's wifi to send texts. Despite getting an
>>>>Internet connection via wifi, just whose call service are you using to
>>>>make VOIP calls? A wifi connection is just networking. You need to be
>>>>using *something* to do VOIP over that Internet connection. Whose VOIP
>>>>service are you using over the Internet access you obtain via wi-fi?
>>>
>>> Quien sabe? I'm not there anymore so I'll never know.
>>>
>>> Unless you mean what part of the phone. The regular text app on the
>>> Xiaomi Redmi phone.
>>
>>SMS (texting) requires a cellular carrier service. Apparently you
>>didn't have cellular when you were in Guatamala, or didn't want to
>
> I didnt' have it yet. People on tripadvisor said it would be easy but
> it took me parts of 3 days to get it. I went to about 8 places to try
> to get set up. They said any tienda, but I think that's only for
> recharging. For the sim I had to go to a Tigo store, in the mall. It
> was only $1.30, but then I had to go somewhere else for minutes.
>
> Phone calling was enabled by the time I checked, under an hour. But
> data didn't work until the next morning, about 18 hours (though I
> didn't chekc in the middle of the night) I don't know if it started
> working automatically but slowly, or if my chatting the previous night
> with Tigo made a difference.
>
>>consume its quota (assuming whomever is your cellular provider doesn't
>>have unlimited quotas, or limits on roaming, or you got a SIM card local
>>to the vacation area). You wanted to use wifi, but wifi is just a
>>networking solution, just like using Ethernet. You got to a network,
>>but then you need to connect to somewhere, like using a web browser to
>>visit web sites, or to a VOIP provider to connect via Internet whether
>>that be via wifi or Ethernet or cellular data. Walking outside your
>>house to be outdoors does not automatically also put in into and turn on
>>a car.
>>
>>Calls, SMS (texting), and data all require you connect to a cellular
>>carrier. VOIP (Voice Over IP), if you have an app to do it, still
>>requires you connect to a VOIP provider over the Internet (e.g., I use
>>Google Voice service and their app on my phone). Perhaps whomever is
>>your cellular provider also has VOIP service. Even when you use
>>Whatsapp, that is not direct from phone to phone, but uses the Whatsapp
>>server to make VOIP calls.

The wifi access at the hotel or elsewhere gives you Internet access, so
you can use Google Maps, web browser, etc (the smart stuff on the
phone). For calling, why not buy a cheap dumb phone sold for use in
that area?

In comp.mobile.android, on Sat, 13 Jan 2024 23:47:23 -0600, VanguardLH
<V@nguard.LH> wrote:

>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>
>> In comp.mobile.android, on Fri, 12 Jan 2024 09:11:15 -0600, VanguardLH
>> <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
>>
>>>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> In comp.mobile.android, on Mon, 8 Jan 2024 06:19:20 -0600, VanguardLH
>>>> <V@nguard.LH> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>> micky <NONONOmisc07@fmguy.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>>>>>>>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>>>>>>>> other wifi places.)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> When this happened, I hd no sim. The hotel probably uses Claro /
>>>>>> Guatemala.
>>>>>
>>>>>You are using the hotel's wifi to send texts. Despite getting an
>>>>>Internet connection via wifi, just whose call service are you using to
>>>>>make VOIP calls? A wifi connection is just networking. You need to be
>>>>>using *something* to do VOIP over that Internet connection. Whose VOIP
>>>>>service are you using over the Internet access you obtain via wi-fi?
>>>>
>>>> Quien sabe? I'm not there anymore so I'll never know.
>>>>
>>>> Unless you mean what part of the phone. The regular text app on the
>>>> Xiaomi Redmi phone.
>>>
>>>SMS (texting) requires a cellular carrier service. Apparently you
>>>didn't have cellular when you were in Guatamala, or didn't want to
>>
>> I didnt' have it yet. People on tripadvisor said it would be easy but
>> it took me parts of 3 days to get it. I went to about 8 places to try
>> to get set up. They said any tienda, but I think that's only for
>> recharging. For the sim I had to go to a Tigo store, in the mall. It
>> was only $1.30, but then I had to go somewhere else for minutes.
>>
>> Phone calling was enabled by the time I checked, under an hour. But
>> data didn't work until the next morning, about 18 hours (though I
>> didn't chekc in the middle of the night) I don't know if it started
>> working automatically but slowly, or if my chatting the previous night
>> with Tigo made a difference.
>>
>>>consume its quota (assuming whomever is your cellular provider doesn't
>>>have unlimited quotas, or limits on roaming, or you got a SIM card local
>>>to the vacation area). You wanted to use wifi, but wifi is just a
>>>networking solution, just like using Ethernet. You got to a network,
>>>but then you need to connect to somewhere, like using a web browser to
>>>visit web sites, or to a VOIP provider to connect via Internet whether
>>>that be via wifi or Ethernet or cellular data. Walking outside your
>>>house to be outdoors does not automatically also put in into and turn on
>>>a car.
>>>
>>>Calls, SMS (texting), and data all require you connect to a cellular
>>>carrier. VOIP (Voice Over IP), if you have an app to do it, still
>>>requires you connect to a VOIP provider over the Internet (e.g., I use
>>>Google Voice service and their app on my phone). Perhaps whomever is
>>>your cellular provider also has VOIP service. Even when you use
>>>Whatsapp, that is not direct from phone to phone, but uses the Whatsapp
>>>server to make VOIP calls.
>
>The wifi access at the hotel or elsewhere gives you Internet access, so
>you can use Google Maps, web browser, etc (the smart stuff on the
>phone). For calling, why not buy a cheap dumb phone sold for use in
>that area?

Because I want Google Maps (including more than GPS), web browser, etc.
even when I'm not at a hotel. I want it when I'm in the car between
cities. And now that I have my Tigo sim and some minutes, I have all
that. If I'd wanted Claro, the other big company, I think it would have
been easier to set up, but people seemed to agree that Tigo was the same
for cities but better for rural areas.

In comp.mobile.android, on Sun, 7 Jan 2024 15:37:46 +0000, Ed Cryer
<ed@somewhere.in.the.uk> wrote:

>micky wrote:
>> In guatemala, not enough access to answer posts that were in reply to
>> me, but new problem arises. Trying to text my sister in law, long text,
>> but I get
>> "Free Msg: Unable to send message. Message blocking is active"
>>
>> Same message 4 times in a row from just one long text of mine.
>>
>> Do you think this is the internet, or is it my sister-in-law actually
>> blocking me. Is this the terminology if it were my sil?
>>
>> Staying in a 40-dollar hotel in the redlight district, but their
>> free-included internet has worked fine. No problems until now.
>>
>> (I still don't have a sim so I have to do everything from the hotel or
>> other wifi places.)
>
>Don't blame your sister.
>That block comes from your phone company; too many texts sent in too
>short a time.
>Who do you use? ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile, Google Fi?
>
>In a while they'll raise the block.
>
>Ed

After reading all the very helpful replies, it was clear that it didn't
get sent because I had no sim and was using the hotel's internet. (I
didn't understand things then. Should have used whatsapp.)

Anyhow, I got 5 identical error messages, but there were no times
listed. No days either. (I don't know if the error message came every 5
minutes or every 12 hours.)

My question now is, when I got a sim a day or two later and had normal
complete Guatemalan cellphone service, do you think the text finally got
sent????? Or did it just die in the phone since the phone tried 5
times and never succeeded? Does it keep trying forever, or stop after 5
tries?

FWIW, it's important because my 83-yo brother tells me that my sil
doesn't want me to stay overnight anymore at their apartment in Florida
(and I live in maryland), and I'm trying to decide if I need to
apologize for this text or not, if she got it or not. It wasn't
terible** but nothing I've said has been terrible and I see that I've
been getting on her nerves and she's not as forgiving as her pleasant
demmeanor made me think. And since he was sick and slept all the time
for days on my last trip around New Years, I want to see him again 11
days from now.

**FTR, I had written "The second thing, With David having covid and
having those seizures, is this a good time to go to Mexico. Can David
even walk down all those halls and will he want to go. It seems good to
stay close to his doctors in florida. My 2 cents. Love Micky"