Pager vs Scanner

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dpslusser

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A pager is also some sort of a scanner, no? A scanner goes off when an alert tone goes off right? Thats what you always here when there is an emergency (Fire, EMS, etc.) And scanners preprogrammed, since I never noticed any type of buttons on them to punch freqs in, how do they work?
 

Don_Burke

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dpslusser said:
A pager is also some sort of a scanner, no? A scanner goes off when an alert tone goes off right? Thats what you always here when there is an emergency (Fire, EMS, etc.) And scanners preprogrammed, since I never noticed any type of buttons on them to punch freqs in, how do they work?
Usually they are single channel recievers looking for an activation signal, which may be tones or some sort of data stream.

Since they do not scan, I do not think the term "scanner" would fit.
 

DickH

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dpslusser said:
A pager is also some sort of a scanner, no? A scanner goes off when an alert tone goes off right? Thats what you always here when there is an emergency (Fire, EMS, etc.) And scanners preprogrammed, since I never noticed any type of buttons on them to punch freqs in, how do they work?

A pager is also some sort of a scanner, no?
NO. A pager is usually a single channel, tone activated receiver. It may or may not have an alpha-numeric display or have a voice output.

A scanner goes off when an alert tone goes off right?
NO, but some scanners have the "tone out" feature.
 

BoxAlarm187

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There are some pagers that will receive up to two seperate frequencies, and even have a priority setting that will check Channel 1 every few seconds if you put it on Channel 2, but it doesn't "scan" in the same manner that you'd expect a scanner to.

There are a handful of scanners that have the fire tone-out feature (for two-tone sequential paging), but a majority of them don't.

I don't know of any scanner that I've seen without a way to input freqencies, almost always through a numeric keypad. Scanners ARE programmable (albiet, some easier than others), not just pre-programmed. Perhaps you're thinking of something other than a traditional scanner?
 

compuruss

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Ddpslusser, a voice pager (such as a Motorola Minitor III, IV, or V) requires a programming kit and a computer to program in its frequency and the tones which will cause it to alert. This is not typically done by the end user (a firefighter or EMT), but usually by the radio shop which supplied the pagers. It is important to note that each pager has a frequency "band split" of a few megahertz in which it can be programmed. Older Minitors (the I and II) have their frequency determined by a crystal installed in the pager and their tones determined by reeds installed in the pager.
 

poltergeisty

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A scanner hears audio a pager doesn't.....

Although a scanner can be programed for pager fire tones. Not the Pocsag, Flex of normal pagers a doctor would have. That's another topic :cool:

A regular pager can receive alerts through a service though. Like IPN..http://www.incidentpage.net/

Now create a mash up of SMTP and a CAPCODE and you have a pager for a cell. :lol:
 
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