Remove the majority of headsets, replace them with PDAs

[Frank_Stein]

So, I was thinking about how PDA's are sorta like the game's equivalent to smartphones, and it got me wondering. If everyone is carrying around a PDA, why does everyone also need a headset?

So the idea is to just have your PDA function as your radio. Same as before, typing a ";" or a ":h" before talking will transmit what you say over the respective channels. Headsets will still be around, but maybe just Heads and Security would spawn with them. A big box of them could be available in customs or mechanics.

I think this would be good for consolidating equipment, freeing up the ear slot for things like ear plugs or entirely new ear based items like headphones for tape cassettes, and it would make PDA bombing more effective since the victims couldn't immediately tell everyone to turn them off messaging without also missing out on radio communication unless they grab the oft ignored station bounced radios.

[Grek]

This would make PDA bombing even more obnoxious. And make ear slots useless.

[Musketman12]

This would make PDA bombing even more obnoxious. And make ear slots useless.

Yeah, it's fine how it is now.

[Admiral jimbob]

we tried this a couple of years ago. very briefly

[Noah Buttes]

we tried this a couple of years ago. very briefly

Very, very briefly.

[Superlagg]

Headsets could be more or less a wireless earpiece thing where it interfaces with the PDA so you can hear and speak into it without the PDA needing to be in your hand. Course, that's just like how headsets work already. Maybe let the headset plug into the station-bounced radios if you lose your PDA.

So! More in line with your smartphone PDA idea, what about giving the PDA the ability to call other crewmembers in addition to sending text messages? You'd ring someone, and as long as they dont hang up, you can talk to them with a fancy radio prefix. And conference calls, and cant-come-to-the-phone-leave-a-message-after-the-honk recordings, and obnoxious ringtones too.

[atomic1fire]

Headsets could be more or less a wireless earpiece thing where it interfaces with the PDA so you can hear and speak into it without the PDA needing to be in your hand. Course, that's just like how headsets work already. Maybe let the headset plug into the station-bounced radios if you lose your PDA.

So! More in line with your smartphone PDA idea, what about giving the PDA the ability to call other crewmembers in addition to sending text messages? You'd ring someone, and as long as they dont hang up, you can talk to them with a fancy radio prefix. And conference calls, and cant-come-to-the-phone-leave-a-message-after-the-honk recordings, and obnoxious ringtones too.

Might even prove useful for telesci expeditions and traitor activity, unless mechanics can snoop the contents of group calls.

[Noah Buttes]

Headsets could be more or less a wireless earpiece thing where it interfaces with the PDA so you can hear and speak into it without the PDA needing to be in your hand. Course, that's just like how headsets work already. Maybe let the headset plug into the station-bounced radios if you lose your PDA.

So! More in line with your smartphone PDA idea, what about giving the PDA the ability to call other crewmembers in addition to sending text messages? You'd ring someone, and as long as they dont hang up, you can talk to them with a fancy radio prefix. And conference calls, and cant-come-to-the-phone-leave-a-message-after-the-honk recordings, and obnoxious ringtones too.

Might even prove useful for telesci expeditions and traitor activity, unless mechanics can snoop the contents of group calls.

They can already snoop on normal pda messages, so I don't see why they wouldn't be able to spy on group calls.

[Frank_Stein]

Headsets could be more or less a wireless earpiece thing where it interfaces with the PDA so you can hear and speak into it without the PDA needing to be in your hand. Course, that's just like how headsets work already. Maybe let the headset plug into the station-bounced radios if you lose your PDA.

So! More in line with your smartphone PDA idea, what about giving the PDA the ability to call other crewmembers in addition to sending text messages? You'd ring someone, and as long as they dont hang up, you can talk to them with a fancy radio prefix. And conference calls, and cant-come-to-the-phone-leave-a-message-after-the-honk recordings, and obnoxious ringtones too.

This is also a good idea, if not only for the idea you might get a call from someone you know and then have a spooky voicechanger guy talking to you on the other line. Also making PDA's attachable components for phone bombs. 

A distinct chat color/font for calls would be nice

---

This would make PDA bombing even more obnoxious. And make ear slots useless.

"New PDA, who dis?"

[poland spring]

Keep both but do the Bluetooth headset thing

This way people actually care about PDAs

[amaranthineApocalypse]

Keep both but do the Bluetooth headset thing

This way people actually care about PDAs

Any player worth their salt will ALREADY care about thier PDA

[poland spring]

Keep both but do the Bluetooth headset thing

This way people actually care about PDAs

Any player worth their salt will ALREADY care about thier PDA

Then this change should make everyone salty

[Nnystyxx]

The more actual function you add to send/receive, the more it'll suck to turn it off (usually it's no big deal) in case of PDA bomb
Which means even the POTENTIAL of a PDA bomb means you have to preemptively gimp yourself and make the feature irrelevant or else you might have your PDA and ID erased
and if the HoP is gone have FUCKING FUN ever getting a new ID

but I do love these ideas, calling, ringtones, et cetera, but i really think that if this is implemented, PDA bombs shouldn't erase the id
because you can be crippled ALL ROUND if nobody is willing to give you a new id/no high-enough access people will help you

[Roomba]

This might be more of a player culture issue than anything else, but if headsets were tied to PDAs then anyone buying 5/6 detomatixes off the bat would pretty much end the round five minutes in because replacing a whole station's worth of PDAs/headsets and and IDs that were caught in the blasts would be tedious as heck and it's not very much fun going a round being unable to communicate with anyone not in your field of view, considering how large the station is. It really would be easier to just call the shuttle if something like that happened.

[Nnystyxx]

I think the people with most access to headsets/IDs/etc. are the actual heads, including the HoP who is almost actively encouraged to fuck off and not do his job, thus nobody gets new IDs
Headsets might be in their respective areas I forget, adding them to manufacturers would be nice

Actually you know what'd be nice, some kind of printable "access slip" from each department that allows a perso--
I'm gonna shut up and make this a separate thread