With a sudden buzz and a song of recognition, ringtones seem to be a way that students choose to reflect their individual personalities.
In classrooms, it is common to hear a familiar interruption generated by cell phones. Custom ringtones or text notifications are ways that people can recognize each caller by either a personalized song or alert. Professors and students alike usually make a remark about it when it happens.
“Girls [especially] try to get attention with the ringtones that they have,” said alumnus Ben Shaw.
Personal alerts do make it easier to prioritize calls. Though the typical college assumption is that everyone is a student and that should be top priority, that is rarely the case, especially at a commuter school such as this. Non-traditional students may have children, which is by far their top priority. That being said, if custom ringtones are used, parents know immediately who is calling and if there is an emergency at home that needs their attention.
Perhaps some individuals may feel like they are reaching a status quo based on how many times they answer their phone in class. Communication professor David Scott will actually kick his student out of class that day if they are caught texting, and if the student answers a phone call, they have to leave for the rest of the day with no attendance points.
Ringback tones are also a way of expressing a person’s life through a cell phone. Though ringback tones were designed to entertain the caller, a lot of the time, somebody can tell how a status of an individual’s relationship is by the type of ringback tone they have. The average cost to have one for two years is about $3 and shows up on each monthly bill.
In a society that is dominantly media-based, matters of importance lie within cell phones. It seems that nearly every first class of the semester involves a phone policy in one form or another with each professor. It is up to students to show their professors what really matters to them with their willingness to put away their phones.
Word on the Street
Andrew Chamberlain
Year: Freshman
Major: Computer Science
Hometown: Lehi, Utah
Q: How do you feel about personalized ringtones?
A: “It’s one of those things where if you don’t want to talk to a person, you’d put a
specific ringtone and you don’t have to answer. In that sense, it’s good.”
Q: Do you have any personalized ringtones?
A: “I have ‘Tears Don’t Fall’ by Bullet for my Valentine as my general ringtone and ‘The
Kill’ by 30 Seconds to Mars for my text ringtone.”
Q: How do you feel about callback tones?
A: “It’s amusing because you’re just listening to the song, waiting for it to end cause
you want to talk to the person.”
Shelby Maxfield
Year: Junior
Major: Business Management
Hometown: Heber, Utah
Q: How do you feel about personalized ringtones?
A: “It’s nice, ‘cause once you hear it, you know who is calling.”
Q: Do you have a personalized ringtone?
A: “I have Toy Story’s ‘You’ve Got a Friend in Me’ for my best friend.“
Q: How do you feel about callback tones?
A: “Instead of just ringing, you can listen to something.”
Tyler Willis
Year: Senior
Major: Public Relations/History
Hometown: Heber, Utah
Q: Do you have any personalized ringtones?
A: “No. I’m not that tech-savvy. It’s just not my thing.”
Q: If you were to get personalized ringtones, would you pick something that reflects
that specific caller or your own style?
A: “I’d get something that I’d want to hear. I have to listen to it, not them.”
Q: How do you feel about callback tones?
A: “I’m usually annoyed. It depends on the song and how many times I have to call
them.”
