Numeric - These pagers provide the ability to send a numeric message, such as a phone number, along with the page alert.

Incoming numeric messages will be checked against the Pilot address book.

To reach someone, a caller had to dial a number and tap in a numeric message.

For a numeric message, press 1.

In the mid-1990s, some paging companies began offering a service, which allowed a customer to call their pager-number, and have numeric messages read back to them.

Strangely, there was almost nothing to it, just a numeric message, a set of numbers.

Including 911 in the numeric message means that Maura should call right away; 811 is less important, and 711 is "call whenever," Maura said.

And if a child has a pager, parents might need to keep an eye out for suspicious incoming numbers or numeric messages like 1-2-3, a code for "I love you."

Or a user can choose Melody ID, which sounds an alert for calls by using melodies generated by the caller's numeric message.

For each 10 seconds of one cellular conversation, the paging network can carry more than 100 numeric messages.