Old School: Pager Code

Texting Before Text Messages Was A Thing

Messaging was very limited  Originally, messaging to digital devices had very limited functionality in the 1980s and 90s, as it was limited to just numbers (no letters). The idea was that you would message someone with your return phone number so they could call you back.  But, why require a return call when you could just say what you needed within the message itself? The Problem of Numeric Paging As a result of the numeric limitation, there were several types of pager codes in the 1990s before cellphones became common with inexpensive data/text plans. While some systems relied on users memorizing short phrases (known as Beeper Codes), the most versatile and comprehensive system was developed to handle any word: the Numeric Pager Look Alike Cipher. [For a full list of short-hand phrases, see our Beeper Codes Dictionary.] Numeric Look Alike Cipher The Look Alike Cipher is a formal letter-to-number substitution method. This system works by replacing letters with numbers that visually resemble them, similar to how you would create words using upside-down numbers on a calculator. However, unlike the simple upside-down calculator trick, the Look Alike Cipher can be read right-side up, making it instantly usable for encoding any word or message. This method was typed as a single number string and could be sent without forethought, making it the superior system for complex, on-the-fly communication. Using the Cipher  With the Look Alike Cipher, letters are simulated with number replacement, by one number, or two or three numbers in combination. This allowed messages to be read right-side up, from left to right. The full substitution cipher is provided in the table to the right, but here are a few examples of how messages would appear: HELLO becomes 43770 WISH YOU WERE HERE becomes 111154 4011 1113123 43123 (Note: Spaces were often encoded as a hyphen or a star, or simply left as a gap in later usage.) FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS AGO becomes 401112 560123 8170 5311317 438125 860 Usage in the Texting Era The Look Alike Cipher remained a useful system even after texting and cellphones became common. Most early texting-capable cellphones didn't have a full alphabet keyboard, making the official SMS system tedious. Typing out words using this simple number substitution was often faster and easier. The use of pager codes began to decline when predictive text ('type-ahead') and eventually smartphones became common, eliminating the need for such clever workarounds. Today, the cipher remains a fun blast of retro communication for enthusiasts. Ready to Try It? You can instantly translate your own messages and see the cipher in action with this dedicated tool: Numeric Pager Code Encoder Tool	Letter	#
	A	8
	B	8
	C	6
	D	0
	E	3
	F	4
	G	6
	H	4
	I	1
	J	7
	K	15
	L	7
	M	177
	N	17
	O	0
	P	9
	Q	0
	R	12
	S	5
	T	7
	U	11
	V	11
	W	111
	X	25
	Y	4
	Z	2
	Space or Separator	- or *