How it works

You hold. It rings. You answer.

You open a tab. You get on with your day. When the phone rings, you answer it. The score is how long you lasted.

One call, start to finish

1. Hold. A clock counts up. You do nothing, in another window, for as long as you like.
2. Ring. Every 1 to 5 minutes, at a time only the server knows, the page changes colour, a bell sounds and a notification goes out if you allowed them. You have 60 seconds to pick up, falling to 45 and then 30 as your hold gets longer.
3. Answer. You get one small task: press a number, dial an extension, count lamps, answer the operator, follow an arrow or spot the odd shape. You have 8 seconds, falling to 6.
4. Back to hold. That's the entire reward.

What ends a run

Missing a call. Hanging up. Or reaching 24 hours, which is as long as anyone can hold. Your score is kept either way, and it's measured by the server's clock, not your computer's.

What doesn't end a run

A dropped connection usually doesn't. A blip of under 15 seconds costs nothing. A longer drop stops your clock, up to twice per run, and the time you were away doesn't count. If our server has a problem, your clock stands still and the call rings again in full.

Keeping the line alive

Browsers put hidden tabs to sleep to save power, which is the real opponent here. Allow notifications, leave the hold music on, pin the tab, and on a laptop stay plugged in with the screen on. Every run starts with a test call, before the clock starts, so you find out if something's blocking the ring while it can't cost you anything.

Phones

You can play on a phone, with the page open in front of you. Phones can't promise to keep a hidden page awake, so they have their own board.

Extended Line

Extended Line gives you up to ten times as long for each call and lets you play with one button: the highlight moves through the answers by itself, and you press when it reaches yours. That works with an accessibility switch too. You don't need to tell us why you want it. It has its own board.