telephone

telephone definition - computer

Meaning "sound over distance," it is the end user terminal in a telephone network. It may refer to a desktop unit, portable wireless unit or cellphone.

In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell's words, "Mr. Watson. Come here! I want you!" ushered in the age of telephony. See POTS, PSTN and telephony.


_NNPHONE.GIF


A Century Ago

At the turn of the 20th century, people were "communicating over the wire" with instruments such as this Blake wall phone. (Image courtesy of Nortel Networks.)






Computer Desktop Encyclopedia THIS DEFINITION IS FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY
All other reproduction is strictly prohibited without permission from the publisher.
Copyright © 1981-2009 by Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.
Related Discussions (2)
TopicRepliesLatest Post
TELEPHONE FRAUD45 years ago
Etymology of Telephone76 years ago

Browse Forums