Balki

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Many types of ghost media (telegrams, telex, etc.) that have been seemingly made obsolete by the advent of broadband still actually soldier on. An excerpt from a piece about so-called dead media at Ars Technica:

“Few people send out messages via Morse code any more. But the basic telegram concept—a missive spoken to an operator, then transmitted across wires or wireless, then hand-delivered to a recipient—is alive and well.

In fact, as in the nineteenth century, Telegrams Canada will write your telegram for you—or at least suggest gram language for appropriate occasions. The ‘Get Well’ suggestions include ‘The office/this place is just not the same without you,’ and ‘Your many friends here are hoping for your quick recovery.’

The service isn’t cheap. A same business day telegram costs CAN$19.95 plus 99¢ per word. ‘Quebec usually next business day,’ the company advises. ‘Rural routes and post office boxes may take longer.'” (Thanks Browser.)

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Balki receives a vital telegram:

Stephen Colbert euolgizes the Western Union telegram:

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