Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa00547; 28 Mar 94 13:22 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06313; Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:13:28 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06304; Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:13:27 CST Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:13:27 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9403281513.AA06304@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #151 TELECOM Digest Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:13:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 151 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Data Communications in Mobile Environment (Lee Chang-Geun) Radio Contest Overloads 911, Business Lines (Ottawa Citizen via D. Sellers) Re: Bell South ISDN Announcement (Juergen Ziegler) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (jdl@wam.umd.edu) Re: Pager Scam Resurfaces (Dave Lakerson) Re: Pager Scam Resurfaces (David Hough) Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links (Terry Gilson) Re: Competition and Technology (zta@delphi.com) Re: Country Code For San Marino (Anton Sherwood) Re: Country code for San Marino (Richard Barry) Re: Los Angeles Phone Fire Update (Marty Brenneis) Re: Los Angeles Phone Fire Update (Paul Robinson) Re: Area Code 215 Changed to 610, Why? (Carl Moore) Re: International Free Numbers (Anton Sherwood) Re: Murata Business System Email, Fax or Voice Address Wanted (PPI Yvonne) Re: The Day 905 Went Solo (Ed Leslie) Re: Extension Cord For Cell Phone (Dave Held) Re: Area Code 562 (David H. Close) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: cglee@archi.snu.ac.kr (Lee Chang-Geun) Subject: Data Communications in Mobile Environment Organization: SNU,KOREA Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 10:26:07 GMT I am interested in PCS, PCN, Wireless Communications, and cellular systems. We (our study group) want to study these topics more systematically. We have tried to find some appropriate text on the PCS, Wireless and cellular systems. We could obtain some articles and papers on specific research area (eg. Mobile IP protocols, base station networking, channel allocations, and location strategies). We want to study these topics step by step, from erectronical aspects to mobile network architecture, protocols for mobility supports, and application aspects. We want a good text book summarizing researches on these topics. I am sure you can give me a clue. I am especially interested in data communication in mobile environments. I heard briefly about CDPD (low speed data communication on cellular phone systems). But I am studying multimedia communication over mobile environment. So I am walking through the same way that many researchers (who consider internetworking High Speed Backbone (like ATM) and Cellular System) are walking. Some (like Goodman) think about data loss and recovery caused by hand-off problems. But I have no quantative data about data loss during cell hand-off. And I will be happy if I can get some information about this research. I also want your help about this. Thank you. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 27 Mar 94 16:48:45 EST From: sellers@on.bell.ca (Dave Sellers) Subject: Radio Contest Overloads 911 Lines, Business Calls As reported in the {Ottawa Citizen} March 27, 1994, radio and television. Canada's national capital was put on hold Friday night when a local radio station (CHEZ 106) gave away tickets to a Pink Floyd concert to the first 53 callers. The problem started when the radio station offered pairs of tickets to the Pink Floyd concert to the first 53 callers, it was swamped with calls -- more than 306,000 in about an hour. The calls overloaded Bell Canada's switching equipment even thou the radio station was using special "contest lines". The switches responded by making callers wait up to a minute for dial tone. CHEZ's general manager, Chuck Azzarello, said the station was suprised by the response to its contest -- and the outcome. "The station at no time set out intentionally to cause something like this to happen. It's unfortunate that it did and, as concerned corporate citizens and individuals, we are concerned that this sort of thing could occur." said Azzarello Saturday night. Phone service was affected whereever the radio station had listeners -- as far south as Cornwall and Smith Falls and as far north as Pembrook. Many business were affected, like Pizza Pizza which Friday night is their busiest. Pizza Pizza estimates they lost $12,000 because people could not get through to place their order. The phone problems also hampered other services such as 911. Many people called to complain about their problems with the phones. About 280 calls were made to 911 between 5 to 9PM compared to about 125 on a normal Friday night. Tony Yantha of the Ottawa Police said "I normally have three clerks working on 911. Last night I had five and still wasn't enough." Sandra Cruikshanks of Bell Canada said that the phone service was back to normal by 9:30PM (started at about 6:20PM). The station's contest number designed by Bell, is designed to allow large number of callers to hear a busy signal if the line isn't available, without affecting other lines. She said that the sheer number of calls to the radio station during the ticket give away "is just unheard of". But she said the phone system responded exactly the way it should have. "It worked perfectly well." ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 17:16:00 +0100 From: juergen@aldebaran.sub.de (Juergen Ziegler) Subject: Re: Bell South ISDN Announcement Organization: Aldebaran Marine Reserach & Broadcast In article is written: > 3/21/94 Release from Bellsouth: > BELLSOUTH ANNOUNCES LARGEST GEOGRAPHIC DEPLOYMENT OF ISDN IN THE NATION > "Previously, you had to be served directly by a central office switch > equipped with ISDN capability. Under this new alternate serving > arrangement, ISDN capabilities can be routed from a nearby ISDN-capable > switch to your home or office -- at no additional charge. This arrangement > is a cost-effective and expeditious method of deploying ISDN region wide," > Carter said. I don't doubt that Germany is years behind the USA in regard to a modern and efficient telecommunications infrastructure, but this "new alternate" method of providing ISDN lines is commonplace in Germany ever since. Most German ISDN subscribers are not served by their local switch, but through a remote switch. As a result of this method general availability of ISDN in Germany (excluding from East Germany) could (will) be reached within five years since 1989. In my hometown ISDN is available since January 1991. And this remote access arrangement is offered at no extra charge, if the ISDN line will be served by the designated remote switch. If there was no designated ISDN switch, then a remote access charge was imposed. Since most local access areas have now ISDN, general availability will be reached within this year. Juergen Ziegler * Obervogt-Haefelinstr. 48 * 77815 Buehl (Baden) * Germany juergen@jojo.sub.de ****** Fax: +49-7223-900646 ***** Voice Mail: 900686 ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 23:35:45 -0500 From: Jonathan Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? In TELECOM Digest Volume 14, Issue 149, Message 13 of 16, the Editor wrote: > Here in the USA, you have to be very careful about getting involved. > It is best not to, since if you do, you are often treated like a > criminal and the (true) criminal like the victim. It goes against my > grain to say it, but you are better off not getting involved unless > the crime is against you personally. What would happen to you if you simply called the police? I guess that if you shot at the perpetrator then you could easily get into serious trouble; but if you merely called the police then you won't get into legal trouble. If you did it anonymously then the perp won't get back at you either. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Sometimes when you call 911 the dispatcher puts you through a alot of questions ("how do you know that is what he is doing?"; "are you the owner of the property?", etc.) and they never do respond or they tell you the police have already responded and consider the report unfounded. PAT] ------------------------------ From: cyknight@aol.com Date: Sun, 27 Mar 94 17:24:43 EST Subject: Re: Pager Scam Resurfaces Let me relate a story to you about this pager scam. My company is located in Pennsylvania. Our VP religiously carries his pager, giving all our customers his pager number to call "anytime day or night". Last year he was in New York visiting a client. Two hours after the meeting he got a page which began with 212 (I won't put in the rest of the number since its not really necessary.) He was back in Pennsylvania at home when he got the page. He called the number and got through to a 'porn line'. At the time he had Sprint for his home service. Two months later he got a charge on his Sprint bill for $25 for the one minute call to the number. He got into quite a fight with Sprint about it. Sprint was going to make him pay for the call. As the Director of Telecom for our company I was asked to check into the situation. (We had Sprint in most of our 60 locations at the time and the VP thought I could have our account team look into it.) Our account team said there was nothing they could do about it either. Around this time we were putting out an RFP for long distance service with all three carriers since our committment with Sprint was almost over. While meeting with representatives from MCI and AT&T I related the story. Both reps told me there had been several occurances of the 'pager scam' taking place and that authorities in New York were investigating. The MCI rep gave me the name of the person to report our problem to in New York. She also gave me a copy of a newspaper article about it as well. I gave the information to Sprint who advised me they knew nothing about it. They still wanted our VP to pay for the call. He did and subsequently cancelled his service with Sprint. Our company chose not to renew with Sprint as well ... I won't say who we went with ... but when they said 'let us show you' they did! David Lakerson Harrisburg PA Cyknight@aol.com ------------------------------ From: dave@llondel.demon.co.uk (David Hough) Subject: Re: Pager Scam Resurfaces Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 22:26:39 GMT In article Stephen Goodman <0003945654@ mcimail.com> writes: > Be aware that the pager scam using area code > 212/540-XXXX > has resurfaced. > If you receive a page to call this number, DON'T return the call. The > 212/540 is translated to a 900 number and you/we can be billed $50.00 > or more per call. I have never understood how/why the US authorities allow such diverts, because the only purpose I can see for hiding a 900 number in this way is to con people into ringing it and getting charged. Is there any other valid reason for wanting to hide a 900 number behind an otherwise 'normal' number? Dave G4WRW @ GB7WRW.#41.GBR.EU AX25 dave@llondel.demon.co.uk Internet g4wrw@g4wrw.ampr.org Amprnet [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Authorities are not allowing a 900 service to 'hide' or be 'diverted' simply because any area code + 976 (or in the case of New York '540') is an equally valid premium charge number. There is no diversion taking place. The differences in numbers is due to billing requirements. 900 is typically national in scope and is handled by long distance carriers while 976/540 is local in scope; limited to a specific area or LATA and handled by a local telco. Some local telcos also offer their own 900 service, however no long distance carriers offer 976. There is nothing 'normal' about 976 (in more than one sense of the word where some of the programs presented are concerned, but we won't get into that can of worms - grin!), but I suppose you'd need to be in the USA and familiar with the USA phone numbering system to know that. Consider then that we basically have two premium type numbers here: 900 and 976, each with different ranges or geographic service areas. Nothing is being hidden or diverted. Generally our domestic long distance carriers here will not connect to 976 and generally one local telco will not connect with another local telco's 976 numbers. PAT] ------------------------------ From: tgilson@DELPHI.COM (Terry Gilson) Subject: Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links Date: 28 Mar 1994 03:43:44 GMT Organization: Delphi Internet Services Corporation > These products are for direct links between RJ11 jack and the cellular > phone. Perhaps other/better products are available? NEC makes an interface which provides dial-tone and RJ-11 jack for the P110, P120, P180 and P300. It's called the INT4000. Motorola also makes something that I think is called the "PC Data Link" which provides dial-tone and RJ-11 jack for all the "Flip" phones. I have tested both of these units and they work very well. Each is battery powered and can be used just about anywhere there is a cellular signal. I think all of these units can trace their roots (through some kind of licensing fee) to a company called Telular, which has successfully defended it's patent on the dial-tone technology against quite a few companies. Terry Gilson tgilson@eis.calstate.edu DCN Cellular 805-379-3333 71220.2040@compuserve.com Westlake Village, CA tgilson@delphi.com ------------------------------ From: zta@DELPHI.COM Subject: Re: Competition and Technology Date: Sat, 26 Mar 94 10:37:56 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) One of the surveys from the {Economist} magazine a few years ago said the reason that cost may not decline is that the telcom industry is one of the largest provider of taxes. Few governments will kill their favorite cash cow. ------------------------------ From: dasher@netcom.com (Anton Sherwood) Subject: Re: Country Code For San Marino Organization: Bureau of Making Sure You Eat Your Vegetables Date: Sat, 26 Mar 1994 08:16:40 GMT In article , Clive D.W. Feather wrote: > I have a note in my files that San Marino has been allocated the > country code 295 but is not yet using it. HOwever, I recently saw a > posting, here I believe, that it has been allocated 378. 29x is typical for Atlantic islands. But with German reunification, 37 came free; I've seen 37x codes for two of the Baltic states. It would seem that the assigners-of-codes, seeing that 295 though assigned was not being used, took the opportunity to give San Marino a European code. Disclaimer: The above is likely to refer to anecdotal evidence. Anton Sherwood *\\* +1 415 267 0685 *\\* DASher@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: Richard Barry Subject: Re: Country Code For San Marino Date: 28 Mar 1994 06:39:02 -0000 Organization: Ireland On-Line Bob Smeets writes: > The Dutch telephone authorities mention +39 549 for access to San Marino. The ITU has issued a batch of new country codes which includes a new code for San Marino (+378 effective 26.10.93). Other countries that will be getting their own country code include Andorra (Autumn 1994) and Monaco (in 1995) when France Telecom introduces its 2-digit new area code plan. The 370 to 379 range of country code numbering space was created when the former DDR (used to be 37) telecom network was integrated into the Deutsche Telekom system. Prior to that there was no unallocated country code numbering space in the European range (3 and 4). The former Yugoslavia (code 38) is also being divided into three-digit ranges; eg. Slovenia is now +386. Following the break-up of Eastern Europe, there has been heavy demand for new country codes as countries like Lithuania and Latvia wanted to disconnect themselves from the Russian network. Richard Barry Ballsbridge IRL-Dublin 4 rbarry@iol.ie ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 18:58:11 -0800 From: droid@kerner.com (Marty the Droid) Subject: Re: Los Angeles Phone Fire Update Organization: Sparkology With 'telecommuting' being the wave of the future, how about the telcos set up workstations at all of the switch locations. Then the DA, TSPS, 611, customer service, and other droids could work from the location closest to their home. It seems that the telco office worker type jobs can be done with an isdn line, i.e. a voice path and a data link. Perhaps they could decentralize all of the telco droid type work and be more efficiant. I would think that they could even have personnel work from home. There really is no real technical reason now for these people all being in a specific location. It could even make the network more resiliant since it couldn't be compleatly downed by a disaster. Marty 'The Droid' Brenneis droid@well.com (415)258-2105 ~~~ KAE7616 - 462.700 - 162.2 ~~~ KC6YYP ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 23:52:45 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA Cliff Sharp , whatever address that is, writes to TELECOM Digest as follows: > In article mac@rci.ripco.com > (Mark A. Cnota) writes: >> [PAT said:] >>> According to Mr. Eibel, a vice-president of Illinois Bell >>> at the time, staffing a phone office *with even just one >>> clerk* at all times to prevent situations like this was not >>> cost effective. >> I agree with Jim Eibel. He's one of the better executives >> IBT has had in the past ten years, in my opinion. > Let's see ... ten dollars per hour, figure twenty with > benefits etc. 365.24 days per year. That's $175,315.20 > per year. Say 200 thou with holiday pay, overtime, etc. > Figuring the cost of Hinsdale at $100,000,000, that means > Eibel must have planned a useful life of the equipment there > at something over 600 years. Mr. Sharp, you are much too kind. A clerk sitting in an office like that can probably be paid what the night operator at a gas station makes, probably minimum wage, which is about 1/2 of what you stated, at most perhaps $5 an hour and considerably less ten years ago. Average overhead is probably 100% of what they are paid, so figure it means that the phone company should have budgeted about $8 an hour around the clock, or something less than $1200 a week for continuous coverage. That is about $60,000 a year. Based on that number, it means that if nothing happened for 20 years, the company would have wasted about 1 1/2% of the facility cost for onsite protection. Want to bet its insurance costs more than this? I'll bet there are a lot of things that are unimportant that IBT spends more than $60,000 a year on, that are far less critical than a major statewide switching facility. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: You are headed in the right direction on this but your calculations are off. First of all, you have three shifts per day, not just one. Therefore you need three people for week- ends. I assume you would need one person for overnight coverage during the week and on holidays (no, Mr. Eibel, Mother's Day is not a holiday but to paraphrase President Roosevelt, it is a day which will live in infamy at Illinois Bell for many years to come). So figure four times your numbers shown above. Second though, you don't really want people who are willing to work for minimum wage. Either they are very young and not yet completely mature/responsible enough to do the job right or if they are old enough/mature enough, etc then they've got other problems or excess baggage to deal with. I'd go with Cliff Sharp's figures; those folks should be paid very nicely, expected to stay awake, and trained to deal with anything which should go wrong. Even using then the higher figures, telco still gets quite a good deal, don't they? PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 05:21:24 EST From: Carl Moore Subject: Re: Area Code 215 Changed to 610, Why? > The other day I managed to dial a non-existing number in the USA. > Area code was 215 and number 385 xxxx. The error message said I > called area code 610 and number 385 xxxx and, of course, that the > number did not exist. If the 385 is correct, then (depending on my memory) that is Douglass- ville, along U.S. route 422 between Pottstown and Reading, and it is indeed going into area code 610, with 215 remaining useable until Jan. 7, 1995. But I called directory assistance within the past seven days for 610 (I had to leave my car at a shop in Wind Gap, which uses 863 prefix at Pen Argyl), and the DA operator passed me along to the automated response, which included the area code BUT used area code 215! Like 385, 863 is going into 610. KYW news-radio ran an item asking that people who have trouble with the use of 610 please call repair service. ------------------------------ From: dasher@netcom.com (Anton Sherwood) Subject: Re: International Free Numbers Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 08:22:43 GMT What do you do when you want to call Britain from America (or vice versa) and all you have is an 800 number? I'd happily pay the toll, but last time I tried it the call was simply refused. Anton Sherwood *\\* +1 415 267 0685 *\\* DASher@netcom.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: '800' is simply a shorthand way of saying (quote) "... if you are in the USA (or a given section thereof) and wish to call us with charges reversed, we will automatically pay for the call." 800-anything is *not* to be taken to be a 'real' phone number in the same sense as some other area code and seven digit number. What you do when 'all you have is an 800 number' is you ring up the directory enquiry for the place in particular and get the real number for the company. Then you call *that* number, and 'happily pay the toll'. Ah, but I hear your next question even as the words begin to form on your lips: what if the company does not give an address, or at least a city and state where you can begin to search for the number? What is all they have given you is an advertisement in the papers with an 800 number? Then you accept them for the ignorant fools they are; if they would waste a lot of money on a large advertisement (for example in the British newspapers) and not even accurately or completely tell you how to reach them, then they are unworthy of your patronage. You'd trust them to build a computer for you, or a scientific instrument? You know, we see the same thing here in reverse in the USA: if we read the London newspapers or a trade journal or whatever from Europe we now and then see only the toll-free numbers a person in the UK might call for information with no recourse for the Americans. In practice though, USA companies are the worst about this. So many Americans seem to feel the sun and moon revolve around the USA. We see some of that attitude from Europe, but not nearly in the quantity it goes from this side back to you. So for those non-telephone-number/no address firms in the USA which advertise abroad, you've got to simply let *them* eventually wonder why their international advertising never seems to do them much good; that is, if they ever do wonder about it. PAT] ------------------------------ From: ppiyvonne@aol.com (PPI Yvonne) Subject: Re: Murata Business System Email, Fax or Voice Address Wanted Date: 28 Mar 1994 07:02:02 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , LCHESALI@iki3.bitnet writes: > Please help me to find Murata Business System Inc. adresses Lev, I'm not sure how updated this information is but I have a listed number in Texas of: 214-403 3300 Good luck, Yvonne ------------------------------ From: edleslie@apogee.ccs.yorku.ca (Ed Leslie) Subject: Re: The Day 905 Went Solo Organization: York University Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 00:46:30 -0500 djcl@io.org wrote: > Friday (25 Mar) was the last official day of Bell Canada's permissive > dialing period for the 416/905 area code split in the Toronto region. > This means that calls to 905 points will no longer be processed using [stuff deleted] > Ten digit local calling can be used within an area code (optionally). > That is, someone in 416 can dial elsewhere in 416 (Toronto) as 416 + > seven digits, as well as just the seven digits. True, and thankfully so for cell phone users. I asked Bell Mobility what would happen if I were in Mississauga, and tried to call a Toronto exchange using seven-digit dialing, ans was told that the call would not go through. I then asked just how someone driving on a road near the Metro Toronto boundary would know whether their call would be processed by a cell within or outside of Toronto, and was told that there would be no way to predict, and that if a cell on the 'wrong' side was used, the call would not go *and the user would just have to try again, or try the other dialing style*. Note that in theory, you could go at this for quite some time before getting through. Also consider the hassle of keeping two sets of speed dial numbers, one for when you are in, the other for when you are outside of Metro :-( Anyhow, from my tests so far, ten-digit dialing *always* works, so I've updated my memory dialer numbers to all be ten-digit numbers. The original note also referred to the use of 416-210 for messaging. I just ordered a PrimeLine number, and it will be a 416-410 number. What's PrimeLine you say -- fodder for another note another day, except to say that it is a new offering of a phone number not tied to any physical phone *line*, and which you can use to allow others to use a single number to reach you anywhere in the world that touchtone is available. Ed [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: PrimeLine is essentially the equivilent of AT&T's 'Easy Reach 700' service. PAT] ------------------------------ From: daveheld@DELPHI.COM Subject: Re: Extension Cord For Cell Phone Date: Sun, 27 Mar 94 23:21:49 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) writes: > Can anybody tell me where I can purchase an extension cord for my > cellular phone? I tried my local Radio Shack but they don't carry > this. It appears to be an 8 wire connection. The connection is very likely to be an 8-wire modular connector, called RJ-45. These connectors are commonly used for PBX extensions, intercom stations, etc., and are widely available. You can find an extension cord at a local electronics store (perhaps you will need to go a tad more sophisticated than Radio Shack). I _still_ think you're crazy. Nearly any cellular connection will cost more than nearly any equivalent wired connection. Please check this out carefully. ------------------------------ From: dhclose@alumni.caltech.edu (David H. Close) Subject: Re: Area Code 562 Date: 27 Mar 1994 03:34:00 GMT Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: You know, this is getting to where it > isn't even funny any more. Thirty years ago I knew every area code and > where it was located. Now I can't remember half of them ... and wait until > next year when all those strange ones start popping up everywhere. PAT] But is the problem one of multiplying codes or an aging moderator? Creeping Alzheimer's? Dave Close, Compata, Costa Mesa "Always" and "never" are two words you dhclose@alumni.caltech.edu should always remember never to use. dave@compata.attmail.com Wendell Johnson [TELECOM Digest Editor's Ice Cold Note: Thank you for participating in our little Digest. I really appreciated your comments as another week gets underway. I'll always remember to never forget your gracious commentary. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #151 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa01103; 28 Mar 94 14:07 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07213; Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:49:05 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07204; Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:49:04 CST Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:49:04 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9403281549.AA07204@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #152 TELECOM Digest Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:49:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 152 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program (Paul Robinson) Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Sean Slattery) Re: Hunt Groups/Ring-No-Answer-Call-Forwarding (puma@netcom.com) Re: Ripped By InfoAccess (Paul Robinson) Faculty Position in Telecom (Jane Fraser) Ruling on Dark Fiber (Robert P. Vietzke) Re: Who Paid For My 550? (Paul Robinson) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 23:38:53 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA Steve Lindsay , writes to TELECOM Digest as follows: > Does anyone know of a little DOS or Windows shareware program > that will act like the one of those caller ID boxes? > Or is there some AT commands I can type in to my communication > program to extract the phone number that is calling me? I > don't want my modem to answer; just tell me what number is > dialing me. As I have mentioned to people, many times, you *cannot* get caller ID information on a computer modem (or any other device) unless *all* of the following is true: 1. You must be on a telephone switch that support it. 2. Your local telephone company must offer it. 3. You must have subscribed to caller-id service. 4. The caller must be on a telephone switch that supports it. 5. The caller must not use *67 or otherwise be blocked. 6. All connections between you and the caller must support caller-id and retain the information, and the intervening long distance carriers must provide it. 7. Your modem or (receiving telephone) has to have the circuity to accept the special 1200 baud signal which is *not* the same as regular 1200 baud data. 8. Your modem must have the caller-id code enabled. Only if all eight conditions are true will you receive the information. If all but step five is not true, you get "P" or "PRIVATE". If step four or six is not true, and all others are, you get "O" or "OUT OF AREA". Then you have to enable the code. And the modem package will clearly indicate if you have Caller-ID capability. Six months ago I purchased a Practical Peripherals 14400FX internal for about $200. This modem advertises that it supports Caller-ID, which you do by using %CCID=0 for no Caller-ID, or =1 or =2 to get the Caller-ID information either in ascii or in hex, sent to the screen either before or after the second "RING" message. I'll probably write an article on Caller-ID and some games you can play with it someday. Because I am unable to disable one of the serial ports on my computer's everything card (IDE/Floppy Disk/Game/Serial port), I had to go out and purchase an external modem. The least expensive external 14400 is a very nice Intel PCFM7600 in a metal case, and only $159. I still have the internal modem which I'll probably put into another computer once I have time to do so. This modem *does not* support Caller-ID. If it did, it would advertise it. Nice modem; feels professional and looks it. But there is no way I could get Caller-ID information out of it since the capability isn't there. Not important to me because I don't need it, but for you to get it, it has to be there before your modem can provide it. If it does, it will prominently advertise it on the package and in the instruction manual. If your modem does support it and you have it, you will get the information in the data stream same as the "RING" and "NO CARRIER" information. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 09:17 EST From: Sean Slattery Subject: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? In article , howard@hal.com (Howard Gayle) writes: > A friend suggested to me that, sometime in the future, almost > everyone will carry around a cellular phone almost all the time. She > thinks this will significantly reduce the amount of crime, because it > will be very easy to report a crime or other suspicious behavior that > one observes. I'm skeptical, but it seems like an interesting topic > for discussion. I seriously doubt that crime will be reduced. A lot of people in society today avoid "getting involved". Why would the sudden availabil- ity of communications change them? > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Here in the USA, you have to be very > careful about getting involved. It is best not to, since if you do, > you are often treated like a criminal and the (true) criminal like the > victim. It goes against my grain to say it, but you are better off not > getting involved unless the crime is against you personally. PAT] Sorry Pat, this is the kind of crap that keeps things the way they are. If you are not willing to get involved you have no right to complain about how screwed up things are. We will not have an end to crime until the criminals view each and every one of us with the same fear and respect that they view a uniformed police officer. I am not advocating that people act foolishly, use your head. Usually the most effective thing that one can do to help is to contact the authorities. But DO IT !! Here in Mass. the state police have commented that due to the increase in popularity of cellular car phones they now know about each and every accident and breakdown, sometimes within SECONDS of its occurring. They also get a lot of DWI reports with detailed descriptions of car and plate numbers and often actually find the car in question and make an arrest. Of course, Boston was also where the Stewart case occurred. And no one can deny that portable cell phones have been a boon to the drug trade. Back to the original question, will the proliferation of cell phones reduce crime? The answer is: no, but your use of one might. Sean Slattery Network Administrator Airflow Research. ------------------------------ From: puma@netcom.com (puma) Subject: Re: Hunt Groups/Ring-No-Answer-Call-Forwarding Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 14:45:35 GMT In article , Scott M. Pfeffer wrote: > The basic idea is to provide 32 dialup modem lines with a backup > configuration in case a modem goes bad or the rack containing half the > modems goes bad. > If the line chosen by the switch is one of the first sixteen, but > there is no answer after two rings, find a line in the second sixteen > and ring it instead. We have about 60 lines with a mix of 1200/2400/9600 modems. We're using "forward on busy/noanswer" from each line to the next. We're also on Centrex and a university, so when I tell folks that I make sure they understand they need to check with their telco, as some places charge per call or even per minute for calls forwarded in this fashion, or have problems with forwarding multiple calls from a single dialed number. After the third ring, calls will go to the next line. Even with a number of consecutive lines out, eventually you will get one that works if you wait long enough. The only time it won't forward is if all the lines further down are already in use, then it will sit on the one line and ring. If you're concerned about a rack of modems going down, you could alternate lines between the two racks. Keep in mind though, that as lines fill up in the rack that works, it will still have to skip individually over all the non-working ones between. If you have a LOT of people trying to call in, some will be skipped over immediately because other folks are already ringing on those lines. Distributed calling, if you have that available, might help SOME callers avoid lines that are down, but other WILL get those line, and once there will stick there -- they need to replace the call -- the CF on busy/noanswer will eventually get them to a working modem. Usually you are concerned with just one modem or line not working at a time, and this seems the best solution for us. puma@netcom.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 23:15:03 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Re: Ripped By InfoAccess Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA jabussey@ualr.edu, writes in TELECOM Digest: > Has anyone had any DEALINGS with InfoAccess? For some reason 4 > EXPENSIVE calls to this service was added to my phone. Although NO > calls to it were made from our phones! There are only two people in > my house, me and my wife and neither of use dialed this number. Jabussey doesn't say whether this is a company that charges an arm and a leg for long distance calls either as local or as an "operator assisted" provider, or whether it's a 900 number. You have several options depending on what the call is. If it's a long distance call or operator assisted call, you have these choices: if you cannot afford the charges, then you can (1) complain to the phone company and ask for proof of connection; (2) and complain that the charge is fraudulent and you want proof; (3) Pay the bill minus the disputed amount and inform them of such; (4) file a claim of mail fraud with the postal inspectors claiming that the phone company or the biller has intentionally sent you a charge for a call you did not make. If you can afford to pay the disputed charges, you have these choices: If you can pay for the call, pay your bill to the public utilities commission for your state, filing a grievance saying the call is fraudulent and should be zero. Or pay them and sue the telephone company in small claims court for refund of the disputed charge. Here's a fairly good idea: take item (3) above and send the payment minus the disputed amount to the state Public Utilities Commission dictating the circumstances. The PUC *will* send your check back since it's not for the full amount of the bill, and the phone company will hear about it, but in this case someone at the phone company *will* look into the matter. This may be the best choice for you under the circumstances. Another option if you can't afford to pay the bill (or if you take option #1 of reducing the bill by the disputed amount and get a disconnection notice) is to sue the telephone company and perhaps the long distance carrier and subpoena their records, as well as the carrier's records, to have them show proof of their claim that you dialed the number in question. Another option is to get ahold of your local newspaper or TV station ombudsman who handles problems between sellers and customers. The reason for making this distinction is that -- if I'm not mistaken -- under new federal laws, your phone service *cannot* be disconnected for nonpayment of calls to 900 numbers, but the tariffifs state that you *can* be disconnected for nonpayment of a long distance carrier (since often the local telephone company purchases those bills from the carrier at a factor's discount then bills them to you at the full rate.) You might simply refuse to pay for the 900 number and the phone company will most likely block access to 900 numbers in the future. But you might want to find out if there is a leakage on your phone line, e.g. that your line can be accessed somewhere else, or if the phone company computer is wrong or is billing you for someone else's calls, or what. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 09:22:23 EST From: fraser@ccl2.eng.ohio-state.edu Subject: Faculty Position in Telecom University of Missouri - Kansas City Computer Science Telecommunications Program As the Information Age unfolds, the science and technology of communications has become critically important. The Computer Science Telecommunications Program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City is focused on Computer Networking, Telecommunications and Software Engineering in the context of communications. Motivated research scientists in these disciplines who wish to join a distinguished faculty in a stimulating work environment should apply. The Computer Science Telecommunications Program is organized to support basic and applied research, prototyping and product development, with unusual opportunities for professional advancement. Degrees are offered at all levels. We are looking for applicants whose research productivity is established in one of the fields named above. Nine-month regular tenure track appointments are available at competitive salaries. Non-teaching, non-tenure track research positions are offered in the Center for Telecomputing Research where the focus is on multimedia networking with applications in distance learning and collaboration. Visiting appointments are available as well. In addition to the usual research funding opportunities, support for research is encouraged through industry collaborations. Send resume and names of three references to: Andrea Duncan, Computer Science Telecommunications Program, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 5100 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, MO 64110. Applications will be reviewed until position is filled. UMKC is an Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Employer. ------------------------------ From: Vietz@RM42.ucc.uconn.edu (Robert P. Vietzke) Subject: Ruling on Dark Fiber Organization: University of Connecticut Date: Sun, 27 Mar 1994 23:20:42 GMT Some time ago I read an article about the Dark Fiber Wars which stated that the FCC had ruled fiber was subject to equal access rules. The deal was one RBOC had provided dark fiber to a customer and then said no to another because they thought they might lose money on the deal. Supposedly the FCC ruled that if you provide it to one you must provide it to all. If anyone could point me towards the ruling and where I might find it or the details of the case I would be -greatly- appreciative. This would assist my research immeasurably. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I would also direct your attention to the Telecom Archives and the collection of essays by George Gilder there. One such essay deals with the dark fiber matter. The Telecom Archives is accessible using anonymous ftp lcs.mit.edu. When logged in, then 'cd telecom-archives'. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 00:16:59 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Re: Who Paid For My 550? Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA Jim Cluett , writes in TELECOM Digest, as follows: > Can anyone explain the economics of the $50 Motorola 550? The > 550 is selling locally at a discount department store for $50. > Motorola can't build 'em for that. Probably not. But don't bet with the falling price of circuitry and components that the actual cost is all that high. > The department store is acting as an agent for both an A and > a B carrier ... Unusual. I've never seen it here in the Washington, DC area; the seller either sells for the A carrier (Cellular One) or for the telephone company B carrier (Bell Atlantic). I've never seen one handle both. > but I don't think they can recover enough from a year's contract to > make up the difference. Oh don't bet on it. Here, the cellular companies make a good sized kickback to the seller to get the customer to sign up with them. The customer must keep the service for a year or they have to pay the cellular company back the rebate, which is quoted at around $165. So figure that the cellular company gives up about 3/4 of the monthly charge for the first year to the seller as commission for the sale on the assumption that the customer will keep the service longer than one year. The carrier also figures they'll make up a lot of the commission on the airtime. When you purchase life insurance, if you were to check into it, you would discover that the insurance company pays the agent *MORE* than your first year's premiums as commission. Because most people don't change their insurance carriers over time. > Who's subsidizing this? It's probably me, but I don't quite see how. Yeah, you are. On the installment plan. Well, figure you keep a cellular phone for two years. Let's say you make a total of $10 in charges in the two years beyond your allocation. Let's say the rate for service is $29 a month and they charge you $25 to activate your phone. Monthly Charges $29 x 24 = $ 696 Installation charge 25 Air Time 12 Gross 731 Commission to seller -165 Net $568 These figures are low to show that where the rates are even higher, the cellular companies can make a nice piece of change. Don't forget the kickbacks the "A" carrier could get by forcing your service to, say, MCI or Sprint since -- if I'm not mistaken -- they are not required to offer equal access the way the B landline carrier is required. Or not even forcing your service to them, but simply having the long distance carrier connect direct to their switch and keeping 1c/minute of the 2c/minute or more charge the carrier normally would pay the local telephone company for access to its facilities. So this means, for subsidizing your phone to the tune of $165, they can make $568 in two years from someone who only uses 50c worth of airtime a month! Can you imagine what they make from people who spend upwards of $20-100 a month on cellular calls? King Camp Gillette learned this strategy more than 100 years ago: Give away the razors and charge for the blades! Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Normally the agents are on the A or B side but not both; that is in their contract with the carriers. The exception is the very large agents such as Radio Shack and quite a few large discount chain stores, etc. Their volume of business is such that *they* tell the carriers what they will do and won't do. For example, Radio Shack is on the A side in some parts of the country and the B side in others. In a few places, they work both sides of the cellular scene at the same time. Tandy has the kind of money and influ- ence with the carriers that they can get away with it. Its the same kind of thing where Pepsi and Coca-Cola are concerned. You never see them both in the same vending machine; you never see them both in the same restaurant as fountain drinks. You never see either one dispensed in the paper cups bearing the logo of the other. They are both very strict with their dealers and distributors on this point. Oh really? Try going to your local 7-Eleven: one fountain dispenser handles both and the logos on the paper cups say both. That's because Southland, like Tandy is large enough to say do it our way or it won't get done. Pepsi and Coca-Cola make Southland the exception to their vending machine rules; the cellular carriers are equally respectful of Tandy and certain other major dealers/distributors. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #152 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa12248; 29 Mar 94 13:20 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA04948; Tue, 29 Mar 94 08:51:07 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA04939; Tue, 29 Mar 94 08:51:06 CST Date: Tue, 29 Mar 94 08:51:06 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9403291451.AA04939@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #153 TELECOM Digest Tue, 29 Mar 94 08:51:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 153 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Caller-ID Will be Available Nationwide (FCC News via Steve L. Rhoades) Competition in Calls From China (Laurence Chiu) Receive Junkmail and Get Paid Cash Scam (Brock Meeks via Graham Toal) Observations About Area Code Splits (Linc Madison) Warning: Private Payphone "Fraud" (Clive D.W. Feather) Average Call Duration (Bob Schwartz) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: srhoades@netcom.com (Steve L. Rhoades) Subject: Caller-ID Will be Available Nationwide Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 19:24:12 PST The following news release is from fcc.gov under /pub/Common_Carriers/ nrcc4002.txt (lots of other neat stuff here too!) Report No. DC-2571 ACTION IN DOCKET CASE March 8, 1994 CALLER ID TO BE AVAILABLE NATIONWIDE; FCC ADOPTS FEDERAL POLICIES FOR REGULATION (CC DOCKET 91-281) The Commission has adopted a federal model, effective April 12, 1995, for interstate delivery of calling party number based services. These services include caller ID, which is available today in many states, as well as services that will permit businesses to serve customers more efficiently and will permit increased security of computer networks. The rules adopted today enable these services to become available to consumers and businesses nationwide and require free, automatic, per call blocking to protect privacy interests. They also require carriers to educate consumers about these services. The Commission also adopted rules to address privacy concerns raised by the reuse or sale of information generated by automatic number identification (ANI). Specifically, the Commission found that a federal model for interstate delivery of calling party number is in the public interest, that calling party privacy must be protected, and that certain state regulation of interstate caller ID must be preempted. The availability of calling party number based service, including caller ID, requires end to end interconnection of Signalling System 7 (SS7) networks between carriers, so that the calling party's number can be transmitted from the calling party to the called party. Interstate delivery of calling party based services is thus not feasible until interstate SS7 interconnection and calling party number delivery between local exchange carriers and interexchange carriers becomes widespread. The Commission noted that a consistent, nationwide interstate policy will contribute to economic growth as businesses employ the new technology for a number of uses. These uses may include pay- per-view television, order/entry verification, voice messaging storage, customized customer service, business fraud reduction, call routing, emergency dispatch, health care services, telephone banking, home shopping, dealer locator, and selective call message forwarding. While the technology for nationwide caller ID service is being deployed and used on an intrastate basis, several regulatory and legal issues have delayed its introduction nationwide. Today's action supports the efforts of carriers, standards setting bodies, states, equipment manufacturers and others to provide caller ID in an efficient manner. In the federal model the Commission recognizes the value and benefits to the public of this service and promotes the transmission of the calling party number from the originating carrier to the terminating carrier. The Commission has balanced the reasonable privacy expectations of both the calling and called parties and removed obstacles to the development of calling party based services posed by uncertainty and non-uniform state policies. In today's action the Commission found that: -- Common carriers using Common Channel SS7 and subscribing to or offering any service based on SS7 functionality must transmit the calling party number parameter (CPN) and its associated privacy indicator on any interstate call to connecting carriers; (The CPN is the subscriber line number or the directory number contained in the calling party number parameter of the call set-up message associated with an interstate call using SS7. The calling party number parameter includes an associated privacy indicator.) In other words, local exchange carriers (LECs) must transmit both the calling party number and its associated privacy indicator to interexchange carriers (IXCs) and vice versa; -- Carriers offering CPN delivery services must provide, at no charge to the caller, an automatic per call blocking mechanism for interstate callers. Terminating carriers providing calling party based services, including caller ID, must honor the privacy indicator; -- The costs of interstate transmission of CPN are so small that the CPN should be transmitted among carriers without additional charge; and -- Carriers participating in the offering of any service that delivers CPN on interstate calls must inform telephone subscribers that the subscriber's number may be revealed to called parties and describe what steps subscribers can take to avoid revealing their numbers. In the Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in this proceeding, the Commission is seeking comment on whether more detailed customer education rules should be adopted and whether the policies adopted for interstate calling party number-based services like caller ID should be extended to other services that might identify the calling party. The Commission also adopted rules to limit the use of information generated by ANI to call set-up, routing, screening, billing and collection and other services by end users, with exceptions for most law enforcement and emergency uses and for marketing by the ANI recipient only. The reuse or sale of ANI would be prohibited absent affirmative subscriber consent, and carriers would be required to educate callers regarding ANI services. (ANI based services were developed in the pre-SS7 signalling environment as the billing telephone number of the calling party. Because this technology predates SS7 technology, ANI is not blockable in the same way as the calling party number in an SS7 network.) In considering whether to extend its existing rules governing disclosure of customer proprietary network information (CPNI) to cover residential and single line business customers as protection of their privacy interests, the Commission said it would seek comments through a separate public notice to be considered in the context of the Computer III Remand Proceeding. Action by the Commission March 8, 1994, by Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FCC 94-59). Chairman Hundt, Commissioners Quello and Barrett, with Commissioner Barrett issuing a separate statement. - FCC - News Media contact: Rosemary Kimball at (202) 632-5050. Common Carrier Bureau contacts: Olga Madruga-Forti at (202) 634-1816 and Suzanne Hutchings at (202) 634-1802. -------------- Steve L. Rhoades Voice: (818) 794-6004 1000 Video Road Internet: srhoades@netcom.com Mt. Wilson, Calif 91023 Finger me for PGP public key. ------------------------------ From: lchiu@crl.com (Laurence Chiu) Subject: Competition in Calls From China Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 12:39:02 -0900 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access I just got told by my wife that AT&T was offering discounts for USA Direct Calls from China (if placed collect). The rate would be $1.70/minute which reflects a 20% discount. Apparently these are significantly cheaper than local calling rates. If the call is billed to a calling card there is a $3.50 surcharge but an additional 5% discount. The USA Direct caller calls 10810 (from memory) and reaches a Mandarin speaking operator in the US. As an aside when I tried to get information on this plan by calling my normal AT&T customer service number, I was put on hold for ten minutes and I eventually hung up. I asked my wife to call the number in the ad she had seen and reached a Mandarin speaking representative immediately. Of course not being telecom literate, I had to relay questions to her! Since I can call China for $0.59/minute in weekends on AT&T and $0.49 via MCI (to one specific number) if I use their International Friends and Family rate, it makes sense for our friends/relatives to call us collect, we eat a minute charge and then call them back. In fact I am sure there are ways to avoid even the 1st minute charge but I will leave that as an exercise for the reader :-) Laurence Chiu Walnut Creek, California Tel: 510-215-3730 (work) Internet: lchiu@crl.com ------------------------------ From: gtoal@an-teallach.com (Graham Toal) Subject: Receive Junkmail and Get Paid Cash Scam Revealed X-Organisation: An Teallach Limited Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 20:12:23 GMT This scam was discussed here before. Here is the latest update. Date: Tue, 8 Mar 1994 15:16:48 -0800 From: "Brock N. Meeks" CyberWire Dispatch//Copyright (c) 1994// Jacking in from the P.T. Barnum Port: Washington, DC -- Thwart the proliferation of electronic junk mail and make yourself some cash as the same time. Ask Me How! Interested? There's more. You get a free Internet account, accessible through a toll free number. All you have to do is let poor capitalist slubs pour junk mail into your free account and you get an average of 6.5 cents for every message that you receive. You don't even have to read the stuff. Remember, there's "absolutely no charge, periodic charge, hourly charge or phone charge." And for all your effort, you'll likely get an annual check of $500 "and likely more," according to a company called Electric Postal Service (EPS). Such are the claims made by the mysterious EPS during a February Internet E-mail blitzkrieg. All EPS said it required was that you "send E-mail to our internet address at eps@world.std.com." And be sure to include you name and address, EPS said. Or there was an 800 number to call. The EPS offer intrigued thousands of Internet users, who rushed to forward their electronic application and sat back to waiting to collect their piece of the Internet pie. Fat Chance. The EPS information never arrived. A month-long Dispatch investigation has revealed that EPS is nothing more than a shell company for a direct mailing scam run out of Canton, Ohio. Bait and Switch =============== After weeks of waiting, no information, electronic or otherwise, has ever appeared from EPS. Instead, those requesting information were sent a curious mailing from an outfit called "Suarez Corporation Industries" headed by one Benjamin Suarez. The Suarez information arrived in an envelope annotated "Important: The information you requested." Inside an "approved letter of requisition" tells how you can receive a new book called "Seven Steps to Freedom II -- How to Escape the American Rat Race." The book supposedly tells you how to birth a corporate creature called a "Net Profit Generation System" (NPGS). Such a deal! An NPGS can produce $30,000 to "over one million dollars a year" in income, Suarez says. The catch? The book and associated software only costs you $159. But that's a steal, Suarez says, because if you buy the book and software separately, they cost you almost $200. But hurry, the offer expires within ten days, because Suarez doesn't want "an order to be wasted on the curiosity seeker." Small problem: The supposed authorization letter contains no date, no authorization code, no bar code. Nothing to determine when it was received or when the supposed 10 day expiration clocks starts to tick. Oh... and the "Seven Steps" book ("not sold in stores") doesn't show up in the Dialog "Books in Print" database. Suarez claims in his letter to be one of the richest people in the nation, "one of the truly rich" unlike those that are "only paper rich" because they count stock. Published reports put Suarez Corp. Industries (SCI) worth at only $100 million, with some 630 envelope stuffing employees. What Suarez is, however, is a slick direct mail baron. The letterhead from SCI lists a host of "divisions" all of which operate out of SCI's headquarters in North Canton. One of those divisions is "CompuClub Software and Computer Services." Dispatch called SCI's main number to ask if EPS was, in reality, one of the infamous Suarez, Net Profit Generation System companies. After a few rounds of questioning, a Suarez operator admitted that EPS was, indeed, an NPGS, "a subsidiary of CompuClub." She wouldn't answer any further questions about EPS. Calls to CompuClub weren't returned. What's the real story on Benjamin Suarez? Let's flip this latest Internet scam on its back and gut that soft white underbelly. (Gloves, please ...) The Rap Sheet Two-Step ====================== Suarez, it appears, is attempting to pull off some kind of Internet P.T. Barnum routine. He's infamous for his questionable direct marketing scams. And he has a mean streak. His record speaks for itself. In February, Suarez agreed to quit all operations in the state of Washington, agreeing to pay more than $70,000 in refunds to some 4,500 consumers there who bought jewelry, cutlery and other products from his companies since 1992. The Washington State attorney general's office brought suit against Suarez, alleging his company violated the state's prizes and promotions laws by selling fake diamonds under the company name Lindenwold Fine Jewelers (also a Suarez "division"). One tactic that apparently pissed off the attorney general was an offer that gave a "free gift" of a cubic zirconia to customers along with an offer for a "discount" on the cost of getting it mounted. That arrangement violates Washington law: If a recipient must spend money to use an award, you can't use the term "free prize." Blaaaahhh!!!! Thank you for playing, Mr. Suarez. The suit so enraged Suarez that he began running negative campaign ads slamming the attorney general who was, at the time, running for the governor's office. Suarez even offered to pay the attorney general's opponents up to $50,000 to front his own hit-squad negative campaign ads. They declined. In a second case in Washington, Suarez offered the same rhinestones, claiming they were worth more than $100. Natch, said former Attorney General Ken Eikenberry, the real value of those stones were about $2.65 a pop. Eikenberry called the promotion, a "blatant deception." In that suit, Suarez settled out of court by paying $15,000. According to court records and published reports, other charges brought against Suarez by the state of Washington in 1992 include: (1) Making false promises of saving. (2) Making deceptive price represen- tations. (3) Conducting charitable solicitations without registering with the secretary of state. (4) Failing to state the odds of winning a sweepstakes. (5) Distributing a simulated check that doesn't have the phrase: "This is not a check" plastered on its front. For all those charges, Suarez is no prohibited from doing business in the State. Seems he's moved his operation to the Internet. The attorney general's office says Suarez is also involved in lawsuits in Indiana and Ohio, but could give no details. Suarez, in previously published interviews with the {Seattle Post- Intelligencier}, defended his company, saying he offers a money- back guarantee and has a return rate of less than two percent. Life On the Laugh Track ======================= For Suarez, adversity and conflict are his Rice Krispies and whole milk. A newspaper database search finds: * The Idaho attorney general making Suarez change its jewelry-marketing pitch. * FDA challenged a Suarez company claim of certain "health benefits" he advertised that arose from a 2,000-year-old secret recipe for Himalayan bread. Suarez successfully defended his right to advertise the alleged health benefits. * The U.S. Post Office files suit against Suarez in 1986, stemming from certain marketing tactics for his book on how to recover money from the government. All in the Family ================= For the Suarez boys, blood is thicker than lawsuits. In 1990, a company called Consumer Direct, run by Richard and Luann Suarez, was hammered by the Federal Trade Commission for making false claims about a product called the "Gut Buster," an exercising device. The company was also sued by government agencies over marketing tactics for a line of diet plans and pills. Seems only five minutes a day with the ol' Gut Buster had you buffed and ready for Muscle Beach. But the FTC didn't buy off on the hypefest. Instead, the FTC insisted that there was no "competent and reliable evidence" to prove such claims. You'd think with all these hard knocks, these guys would learn. What's the motivation? Do the math. Some 2.4 million Gut Busters were sold, according to FTC files, for total revenues of $55 million. (Minus a couple of slap-on-the-wrist fines. Question: Who's going to box their ears for scamming the Net??) Suarez headquarters were swamped with hundreds of reports of injuries to Gut Buster users when the springs on the damn thing broke. "Approxi- mately 1,000 people have reported injuries caused when the Gut Buster spring broke and snapped back to hit them as they exercised," the FTC testimony reads. Search and Verify ================= All this will come as no surprise to Benjamin "Gary Hart" Suarez. In his rogue mailing, it clearly states: "These facts are all verifiable by you, if you wish to investigate." Thanks for the tip, Ben. It's been real. Meeks out ... ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 18:43:33 -0800 From: LincMad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) Subject: Observations About Area Code Splits I was looking at David Esan's 1/15/94 NPA-NXX list and noticed quite a number of surprising numbers. There were a couple of instances where I hope the answer is that a previously-effected split is not yet reflected in the number of exchanges shown for the old area code. For example, 212 shows 639 exchanges, and 168 for 917. I hope that the total for 212 still includes the prefixes now in 917 and/or the Bronx prefixes now in 718. Colorado's 303 is also one I hope is wrong: it shows 601 prefixes against 184 in 719. Atlanta's recent split apparently isn't yet (fully?) reflected: 404 shows 590 and 706 shows 308. Even if my suspicion about the number for 303 is correct, it still shows that the split was very poorly designed: at best, the split is 417/184, worse than a 2:1 margin. Clearly, a much larger portion of the state should have been moved into 719. The split in Dallas also should have been done more tightly -- 214 now has 585 exchanges against 291 in 903, again more than 2:1. Clearly, areas not local to Dallas should not have been left in 214. The split in Houston would have been difficult to tighten, but it was also a worse than 2:1 split. As for the 917 split in New York City, I recently read an article from someone who has a cellphone that has remained in 212, and his carrier stated that it has no plans to switch it to 917. I thought that the point of 917 was that *ALL* cellular and pager numbers in New York City would be moved to 917; deviation from that plan would seem quite unwise. The splits in areas like Detroit were performed much more judiciously: 313 will have 364 prefixes to 356 in 810. If I'm correct about Atlanta, its split is 282/308, which is quite good, although it would indicate that Atlanta was not nearly as ready for a split as other areas. Perhaps the source material on Atlanta has deleted some but not all of the old exchanges from 404. There are also some historical splits that look quite silly. For example, in Ontario, 705 and 807 between them have only 381 exchanges. In Massachusetts, 413 has fewer than one third the number of exchanges of either 617 or 508, and is one of the least populated NPAs. In New York, 607 and 315 between them have only 448 exchanges. Some splits that don't make sense from a telephony viewpoint have clear political and economic roots: Marin County logically belongs in 707, but has remained in the overpopulated 415. Upper Peninsula Michigan doesn't warrant its own area code, but the geographic logic is clear. Although I can't exactly lay claim to a crystal ball, I'll post in a separate article some predictions about area codes that will split soon and others that will probably *never* split in my lifetime. Linc Madison * Oakland, California * LincMad@Netcom.com ------------------------------ Subject: Warning: Private Payphone "Fraud" Date: Tue, 29 Mar 1994 02:29:32 BST From: Clive D.W. Feather The following appeared in uk.telecom recently: From: alon@ibmpcug.co.uk (Alon Risdon) Date: Sun, 13 Mar 1994 13:21:48 GMT SECTION: Business & City Page DATE: 12-03 HEAD: One penny worth 20 in phones BY: MARY FAGAN, Industrial Correspondent of The Independent Newspaper in London THOUSANDS of owners of private payphones are facing financial loss because the phones mistake some one penny coins for a 20p piece. More recent penny coins are copper-plated steel rather than bronze and, according to BT, have a different density that allows them to be mistaken for 20p. Although the plated coins have been in circulation since late 1992, the problem of people using them for cheap telephone calls has only recently come to light. BT said: "It is fraud, but it is not a problem for BT. The people who are losing out are those with private payphones." The company estimates that there are up to 70,000 private payphones, many in pubs and shops. Some large families also use them to avoid running up huge bills. BT charges the owners for the use of the line, but does not get any of the coins inserted by those who make the calls. BT said that it had been aware of the problem for some time and was adjusting payphones free of charge by changing the software. The spokesman said the adjustment itself was no problem, but that the company did not necessarily know all those who operated private payphones. BT said that one reason the problem affected private rather than public payphones was that they were often cheaper and less sophisticated or robust. It added that the Royal Mint was careful to warn in advance of changes to coins that could affect public telephones and other coin-operated equipment. University unions, which often obtain revenues from campus services including payphones, are likely to be among the main victims. The union at Surrey has asked the National Westminster bank on the campus to be wary of students asking for large quantities of pennies or asking cashiers to sort out new ones from old. Clive D.W. Feather | Santa Cruz Operation clive@sco.com | Croxley Centre Phone: +44 923 816 344 | Hatters Lane, Watford Fax: +44 923 210 352 | WD1 8YN, United Kingdom [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The problem of one coin successfully imitating another happens from time to time in automatic coin collection devices. Back in the early 1970's there was quite a problem here with people cheating the Chicago Transit Authority subway turnstiles. It seems CTA tokens were almost identical in size, shape and weight to the Brazillian centavo coin, a virtually worthless thing by our stand- ards here. It took a hundred or more of the darn things to equal just a few cents in United States money. When it was discovered these foreign coins were accepted by the subway turnstiles suddenly there was a big rush to purchase them from coin dealers and such here. Of course the excuse the buyers gave was they used them in 'costume jewelry' and such. The CTA started putting heat on the coin dealers to quit selling them, but there was nothing legally they could do to force the dealers to stop (other than use old-fashioned Chicago style political pressure by city hall) the sales, and eventually the Transit Authority had to change the size of their tokens and rework the turnstiles to accept the new tokens instead of the old ones. CTA lost a couple million dollars before they got it under control. PAT] ------------------------------ Subject: Average Call Duration From: bob@bci.nbn.com (Bob Schwartz) Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 14:56:45 PST Organization: Bill Correctors, Inc., Marin County, California Does anyone have, or know where I can find, information on averege hold time which to me means average call duration (length of call) (number of properly billable minutes? Are they listed by industry group? My long distance bill shows a rate with a series of discounts. The discounts equal 30.33% which would put their Intrastate rate at about .09 for day calls! Problem is that I don't see this rate echoed by their competitors. It's too good to be true (sort of). The average call duration however is about 3.03 minutes. I thought the national average hold time to be more like 2.6 minutes. If they inflate the call duration there goes the benefit of my discounts! Oh yes, another important detail, this is a switched service. Also, thought I'd check another premise; does anyone in California see Intrastate rates for switched traffic at or about .09? Thanks, Bob Schwartz bob@bci.nbn.com Bill Correctors, Inc. +1 415 488 9000 Marin County, California [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Intrastate rates are peculiar things, aren't they? Very odd in how they are calculated, a very much left to the whims of the state PUCs, which frequently are nothing more than tools of the local Bell company. If you can figure this out Bob, an article here in the Digest would be welcome. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #153 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa12871; 29 Mar 94 14:09 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07367; Tue, 29 Mar 94 10:06:02 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07358; Tue, 29 Mar 94 10:06:00 CST Date: Tue, 29 Mar 94 10:06:00 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9403291606.AA07358@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #154 TELECOM Digest Tue, 29 Mar 94 10:06:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 154 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Africa Telecom - Lunchbag Discussion (Barry Laina Raveendran Greene) Newton PCMCIA Fax Modem to Cellular (Michael Eskin) Question About IS-54 Standard (Sathyadev Uppala) Predictions About Future A/C Splits (Linc Madison) Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program (Ralph Becker) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Andrew C. Green) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Jeff Hibbard) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Dave Ptasnik) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Andrew Robson) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Danny Burstein) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Rhett Salisbury) LEAGUE @ AT&T Press Release (Tom J. Tilkey) About the Chicago Post Office (Paul Robinson) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Barry Laina Raveendran Greene Subject: Africa Telecom - Lunchbag Discussion Date: Tue, 29 Mar 94 03:44:26 -0500 Organization: Baha'i Computer and Communications Association "EMERGING COMMUNICATION MARKETS IN AFRICA" The event will also present some issues to be discussed at the Africa Telecom'94 Forum (April 25-29 in Cairo). It is open to the public but space is limited. RSVPs are required (for security passes to the World Bank) by the 12 April 1994. GTS members who RSVP by 11th April 1994 will receive priority. For RSVP call 833-3322 to leave a message. SPEAKERS: JOHN RICHTER, Regional Director for Africa, US Trade & Developmental Agency NOAH SAMARA, CEO, Afrispace HAMADOUN TOURE, Regional Director for Africa, INTELSAT WHEN?- WEDNESDAY, 13 APRIL 1994, 12 noon-2 p.m. WHERE?- 1717 H Street (World Bank Building) Room T-7070 Washington D.C. The Global Telecommunications Society, (GTS), is a non-profit, non-partisan organization. The Society is dedicated to promoting understanding of the issues involving international telecommunications. The Society seeks to establish chapter organizations in countries and cities throughout the world because of the growing need to bring together professionals and specialists who are focused on the accelerating field of international telecommunications. GTS brings its members together through electronic mail and also builds human links through friendships and professional cooperation and respect that overcome differences in various disciplines, cultures and geography. If interested to join the Global Telecommunications Society, call 202-833-3322 to leave a message. ------------------------------ From: eskin@brooktree.com (Michael Eskin) Subject: Newton PCMCIA Fax Modem to Cellular Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 20:39:42 GMT Organization: Brooktree Corporation I am looking for recommendations for equipment and experiences in sending data and fax from a Newton MessagePad 110 with the internal Apple PCMCIA Fax Modem using an external interface to a Mitsubishi 4000 pocket cellular phone. Can it work? I am pretty much limited to 2400 baud data by the speed of the Newton so a basic data connection is all that is needed. I've heard reports that this should work, others that it shouldn't. I am looking for some real data. Michael Eskin Brooktree Corporation eskin@brooktree.com 9868 Scranton Road AOL: BTRE MichE San Diego, CA 92121 AppleLink: D4729 CIS: 76376,541 ------------------------------ From: sathya@uw-isdl.ee.washington.edu (Sathyadev Uppala) Subject: Question About IS-54 Standard Date: 28 Mar 1994 17:31:07 GMT Organization: Electrical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle Does anybody out there have a copy of EIA/TIA/IS-54B TDMA standard proposed for cellular telephony? Any information like ftp sites for the document, or address of the organisation from where I can get it will also be appreciated. sathya ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 18:43:38 -0800 From: LincMad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) Subject: Predictions About Future A/C Splits I looked through David Esan's posting of the 1/15/94 NPA-NXX list and came up with a few predictions of area codes that will split in the next couple of years and others that will likely never split in my lifetime. DON'T WORRY: YOUR AREA CODE WON'T BE CHANGING SOON The following area codes could all at least TRIPLE the number of exchanges in use without requiring a split. Any split is thus quite a long ways off. 807 - Thunder Bay, Ontario 906 - Upper Peninsula, Michigan 302 - Delaware 413 - Western Massachusetts 401 - Rhode Island 607 - Binghamton, New York 307 - Wyoming 802 - Vermont 719 - Colorado Springs, Colorado 506 - New Brunswick 707 - Napa/Eureka, California 417 - Springfield, Missouri 308 - Grand Island/North Platte, Nebraska 901 - Memphis, Tennessee 603 - New Hampshire 509 - Spokane, Washington 608 - Madison, Wisconsin Others that could more than DOUBLE the number of exchanges include: 806 TX, 709=NF, 309 IL, 315 NY, 814 PA, 705 ON, 902=NS+PE, 518 NY, 507 MN, 812 IN, 712 IA, 808=HI, 606 KY, 202=DC, 218 MN, 918 OK, 613 ON, 609 NJ, 208=ID, 819 PQ, 815 IL, 715 WI, 915 TX, 805 CA, 702=NV, 618 IL, 505=NM, 319 IA, 517 MI, 419 OH, 304=WV, 318 LA, 207=ME, 204=MB, 912 GA, 519 ON, 605=SD, 701=ND, 418 PQ, 801=UT, 502 KY, 217 IL. I've left out a few that are recent products of splits or are otherwise experiencing considerable growth. An '=' means "entire state/province." All of the above should be good for at least 35 to 40 years at currently projected rates of growth. HOLD OFF PRINTING STATIONERY, YOU'RE NEXT IN LINE Splits have already been announced for 205=AL, 602=AZ, 206 WA, 708 IL, 713 TX, and 213/310/818 CA. 703 - Virginia suburbs of D.C. and down along WV border 403 - Alberta/Northwest Territories/Yukon Territory Might well be the first three-way split (two in AB, one for NT/YT) 604 - British Columbia 216 - Cleveland/Akron Canton Youngstown, Ohio 803 - South Carolina 303 - Denver, Colorado (previous split was ineffective?) 615 - Nashville/Knoxville Chattanooga, Tennessee 503 - Oregon 813 - Tampa, Florida 214 - Dallas, Texas (again) A little bit farther down the list we have: 612 MN, 305 FL, 501=AR, 203=CT, 904 FL, 619 CA (again), 405 OK, 817 TX, 804 VA, 310 CA (just created and filling up rapidly), 717 PA, 312 IL, 414 WI, 514 PQ, and 718 NY. Most of these are at least 3 to 15 years off, though. The splits in 703 and 214 in particular may put to the test the sanctity of the "you must dial 1 for all toll calls, and you must be able to dial all local calls without a 1" arrangement, because of the considerable likelihood that the new area code assigned will duplicate an existing prefix in the affected area or an immediately adjacent area. If so, the preservation of 10-digit "metro dialing" will require moving 10,000 customers at a chunk, and considerably more complicated advance planning (adding lead time for the prefix change to the normal lead time for the area code split and later trying to route calls to the old number to the correct recording for wrong NPA or wrong prefix). Linc Madison * Oakland, California * LincMad@Netcom.com ------------------------------ From: rbecker@xap.xyplex.com (Ralph Becker) Subject: Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program Date: Tue, 29 Mar 1994 09:00:23 ET Organization: Xyplex Customer Support In article Paul Robinson writes: > Steve Lindsay , writes to TELECOM Digest > as follows: >> Does anyone know of a little DOS or Windows shareware program >> that will act like the one of those caller ID boxes? >> Or is there some AT commands I can type in to my communication >> program to extract the phone number that is calling me? I >> don't want my modem to answer; just tell me what number is >> dialing me. > As I have mentioned to people, many times, you *cannot* get caller ID > information on a computer modem (or any other device) unless *all* of the > following is true: > 1. You must be on a telephone switch that support it. > 2. Your local telephone company must offer it. > 3. You must have subscribed to caller-id service. > 4. The caller must be on a telephone switch that supports it. > 5. The caller must not use *67 or otherwise be blocked. > 6. All connections between you and the caller must support caller-id > and retain the information, and the intervening long distance > carriers must provide it. > 7. Your modem or (receiving telephone) has to have the circuity to accept > the special 1200 baud signal which is *not* the same as regular 1200 > baud data. > 8. Your modem must have the caller-id code enabled. This article about the requirements to get caller ID was interesting and informative, but does not address the question being asked (I believe). I am in the same situation as the original author. I have Caller-ID service at my home, and I have a stand-alone Caller-ID box that usually displays the numbers of callers in my local area codes (508 & 617; BTW, I've never seen one from outside those areas ... yet). However, I have a Practical Peripheral PM14400FXMT modem, and it supports Caller ID, and I, too, would like a Windows utility that basically acts like my stand-alone Caller-ID box. I want the utility to display incoming caller information in real time, and also have to ability to log this data to a file if I want. I should be able to scroll thru some number of recent calls, etc, etc. The question is: does such a utility exist? Ralph Becker Xyplex Customer Support [Tech. Support hotline 800-435-7997] rbecker@sup.xyplex.com or 71174.1262@compuserve.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 11:27:51 CST From: Andrew C. Green Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Peter M. Weiss writes: > I wonder if a parallel answer can be extrapolated based upon CB radio > and/or cell phones on the highways? I think results will differ; most reporting from the highways tends to involve mechanical difficulties and medical emergencies (e.g. crashes), though of course drunk drivers are also called in. I do a good amount of highway travel, and have equipped my car with both a CB radio and cellular phone. On various occasions I have used both, to different ends: the CB is useful for line-of-sight conversa- tion with both truckers and State Police, though the latter don't always monitor either Channel 19 (the truckers' channel) or Channel 9 (the emergency channel), at which point my cellular phone will call in the cavalry. I've heard more than a few frustrated truckers trying to contact the police over the CB about breakdowns or accidents, but receiving silence in return. For no-holds-barred emergencies, I can either try calling a 10-33 on the CB (Channel 9 is usually deserted within the short range of my antenna but Channel 19 will always get a response), or I can dial *999 for a more certain response, if not a more prompt one. Andrew C. Green Datalogics, Inc. Internet: acg@dlogics.com 441 W. Huron Chicago, IL 60610-3498 FAX: (312) 266-4473 ------------------------------ From: jeff@bradley.bradley.edu (Jeff Hibbard) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: 28 Mar 1994 11:42:46 -0600 Organization: Bradley University > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Sometimes when you call 911 the dispatcher > puts you through a alot of questions ("how do you know that is what he > is doing?"; "are you the owner of the property?", etc.) and they never > do respond or they tell you the police have already responded and consider > the report unfounded. PAT] This must be a regional difference. I've called 911 (or its seven-digit equivalent from my cellular phone) several times from various cities here in downstate Illionis, and I've always been surprised by the complete lack of interest in who I am and how I'm involved. They just politely take the report and either say that they'll send someone out, or say that they've already heard about it and an officer is on the way. ------------------------------ From: davep@u.washington.edu (Dave Ptasnik) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: 28 Mar 1994 19:10:56 GMT Organization: University of Washington howard@hal.com (Howard Gayle) writes: >> A friend suggested to me that, sometime in the future, almost everyone >> will carry around a cellular phone almost all the time. She thinks >> this will significantly reduce the amount of crime, because it will be >> very easy to report a crime or other suspicious behavior that one jim@isnpo1.pwss.gov.ab.ca@math.fu-berlin.de(James, Slupsky) writes: > I seriously doubt that crime will be reduced. A lot of people in society > today avoid "getting involved". Why would the sudden availability of > communications change them? > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Here in the USA, you have to be very careful > about getting involved. It is best not to, since if you do, you are often > treated like a criminal and the (true) criminal like the victim. It goes Wandering a little far afield from hard telecom issues -- One SF author has postulated a world where anyone who wants to can wear "glasses" that include cameras and microphones that digitally transmit everything that the wearer sees to some big storage system. Then if they see a crime, they can immediately report it to the police, and the police have an easy time of getting convictions. Most of the wearers are retirees who end up "spying" on kids. Greatly reduced the amount of violence against the old folks, even in rough parts of town, and greatly cut down on graffiti, greatly cut down on personal freedom. Even making obscene gestures to the watchers was a harshly punished crime. To misquote Heinline, an observed society is a polite society. All of the above is nothing more than the personal opinion of - Dave Ptasnik davep@u.washington.edu ------------------------------ From: uswnvg!arobson@uunet.UU.NET (Andrew Robson) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 15:43:30 -0800 (PST) The Half Moon Bay Review (a local paper in CA) carried an article on the front page about a bank robbery foiled by a cell phone. When the getaway car roared away, a local citizen was offended by the reckless driving. He didn't know about the robbery, he just wanted safe driving on the local streets. He followed long enough to call the licence, a description of the car, and its direction to 911. There are only three roads out of town, with no turn off for several miles. The robber was arrested a couple of minutes later. It may not help much overall, but cellular will help catch some of the bad guys. Andy ------------------------------ From: dannyb@panix.com (danny burstein) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: 29 Mar 1994 03:02:26 -0500 (Stories and scenarios of people witnessing crimes, then using cellular phones to call for help, police arriving and making the world safe for democracy, deleted). A similar thread made its way onto some radio oriented groups umptity months ago, and the consensus was that yes, as the cost of individual telcom equipment went down we'd see lots more people with them. Also suggested was that there'd be rentals of 'emergency only' phone/radios by the same folk who brought you the 'I've fallen, and I can't get up' stuff. HOWEVER, an equally plausable scenario was raised. Namely that Mrs. Fletcher, when she witnesses a crime (or is about to be a victim), doesn't pick up her communicator, but instead, pulls out her revolver and wastes the bad guy. An interesting concept ... dannyb@panix.com (or dburstein@mcimail.com) ------------------------------ From: rs2510@dice.nwscc.sea06.navy.mil (Rhett Salisbury) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: 29 Mar 1994 07:11:18 -0600 Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway >> A friend suggested to me that, sometime in the future, almost >> everyone will carry around a cellular phone almost all the time. She >> thinks this will significantly reduce the amount of crime, because it >> will be very easy to report a crime or other suspicious behavior that >> one observes. I'm skeptical, but it seems like an interesting topic >> for discussion. >> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Here in the USA, you have to be very >> careful about getting involved. It is best not to, since if you do, >> you are often treated like a criminal and the (true) criminal like the >> victim. It goes against my grain to say it, but you are better off not >> getting involved unless the crime is against you personally. PAT] > Sorry Pat, this is the kind of crap that keeps things the way they > are. If you are not willing to get involved you have no right to > complain about how screwed up things are. We will not have an end to -- good stuff deleted -- > Back to the original question, will the proliferation of cell phones > reduce crime? The answer is: no, but your use of one might. In total agreement with Sean Slattery -- Pat should excercise a certain measure of responsible judgment. When someone flippantly tells an international community that not only we live in a extremely dangerous country, but also that it is dangerous to become 'involved', someone will be injured due to your inaction. If you have had instances when you have been put in danger or harassed because of your involvement you should document it and report that. The 911 operator should be fired and charged with something. If you are just ranting and raving about a urban legend, remember that excuses are like b--- holes, everyone has one and they all stink. Rhett Salisbury aka RS2510 (812)854-4709 dice.nwscc.sea06.navy.mil (130.163.1.200) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: But it is true. Ask German citizens who come to visit the USA in Florida whether or not the USA is a violent country. Check the crime statistics in the USA versus around the world. We have the highest rate of crime in the world. Sorry if you don't like hearing it told to people outside the USA, but that's the way it is. Ask the residents of Milwaukee who called the police to report Jeff Dahmer (serial killer two years ago) only to have the police brush them aside if it pays to get involved. Ask anyone who has called the Chicago Transit Authority to report the constant and blatant thievery by subway collection agents who pocket fares without registering them if it pays to get involved -- or if in fact, if you are an employee of the CTA and you report your fellow employees if it isn't *you* that gets punished instead. Ask at the US Department of Justice what happens if you are an employee who complains about all the *stolen and pirated software* your agency is using. Ask a social worker for the Chicago Board of Education what happens when you report that the principal of the school where you are assigned is a pedophile -- because the children have confided in you what happened. You'll lose your job! Ditto the few honest people who work for the CTA. I see it happen over and over again. And if you witness a crime and report it, you'll spend the next six months or a year in court getting harassed by the defendant and his attorney. My advice is don't get involved unless you like being a martyr. Criminals are given so many rights, *you* will be made to be the villian instead. PAT] ------------------------------ From: ttilkey@attmail.com (Tom J Tilkey) Date: 29 Mar 94 12:59:16 GMT Subject: LEAGUE @ AT&T Press Release News Release For further Information: Tom Tilkey 201-644-7904 (office) 201-993-8581 (home) Charles Turner 508-960-2695 (office) BOSTON - - LEAGUE (Lesbian, Bisexual and Gay United Employees at AT&T) will hold its third national conference here from May 18 to 21, at the Swissotel. More than 350 AT&T employees are expected to attend the three day professional development conference which focuses on workplace issues for bisexual, lesbian and gay employees. Theme for the conference is "United in Diversity". Conference guest speakers include the Honorable Barney Frank, member of Congress from Massachusetts; Rabbi David Horowitz; Reese Smith and Cynthia Balogna, Levi Strauss Co.; and Ken Sheppard of the Liberty Consulting firm. Award winning author Brian McNaught will present a session on internal homophobia. In addition, two senior level AT&T executives, Jerre Stead and Pat Russo, will discuss the corporation's Diversity Strategy Plan. They will update participants on efforts to create productive and inclusive work environments where everyone can contribute to the success of the business. Workshop topics include domestic partner benefits; managing careers; race, class and gender issues in the gay community; lesbian invisibility; and countering hate groups. LEAGUE is an educational and support group that addresses workplace environment issues affecting employees or their families, friends or colleagues who are lesbian, gay or bisexual. The organization has more than 2,000 active members in 26 chapters nationwide. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 1994 06:49:33 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: About the Chicago Post Office Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA Thought you might find this interesting: Unofficial Summary of the Rush Limbaugh Show for Wednesday, March 23, 1994 BRIEF SUMMARY OF TOPICS: Chicago postal workers burning and abandoning mail instead of delivering it; o Investigators for the U.S. Post Office in Chicago have found that stacks of mail were thrown under bridges, stashed in garbage cans, burned, etc. - the postal workers involved evidently were lazy and didn't want to do all their job. Chicago residents are livid at this, so when Postmaster Marvin Runyon went out there to take a look for himself, 300 of them bombarded Runyon at a recent town meeting. Tens of thousands pieces of mail dating back to 1979 were found burning recently, and last month 40,000 undelivered pieces of mail were discovered in a postal worker's truck; that postal worker was suspended, but not fired. In January, test letters that were sent to Chicago addresses were discovered in a dead letter office in Minneapolis. Runyon has promised to "fix this," although it might take up to five years. Rush asks, though, if it is any wonder that the Chicago Post Office is in such bad shape, given that Chicago is Dan Rostenkowski's home district; Rostenkowski, of course, is implicated in the House Post Office scandal. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #154 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa23780; 30 Mar 94 15:46 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07378; Wed, 30 Mar 94 12:22:05 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07367; Wed, 30 Mar 94 12:22:02 CST Date: Wed, 30 Mar 94 12:22:02 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9403301822.AA07367@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #155 TELECOM Digest Wed, 30 Mar 94 12:22:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 155 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Newton PCMCIA Fax Modem to Cellular (Gregory Youngblood) Switch Problems (From OPERS-L) (Paul Robinson) Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? (John R. Grout) History: Vail, Monopoly, AT&T (James H. Haynes) Re: Pacific Bell Voice Mail Types (Todd Inch) Re: Observations About Area Code Splits (Bob Goudreau) Re: Observations About Area Code Splits (Dave Niebuhr) Re: Observations About Area Code Splits (Danny Padwa) Re: AT&T Cellular Privacy System (Steven King) Re: Voice and Data Through PBX (David Hough) Re: Voice and Data Through PBX (James Slupsky) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: Newton PCMCIA Fax Modem to Cellular From: zeta@tcscs.com (Gregory Youngblood) Date: Tue, 29 Mar 94 21:15:48 PST Organization: TCS Computer Systems eskin@brooktree.com (Michael Eskin) writes: > I am looking for recommendations for equipment and experiences in > sending data and fax from a Newton MessagePad 110 with the internal > Apple PCMCIA Fax Modem using an external interface to a Mitsubishi > 4000 pocket cellular phone. > Can it work? I am pretty much limited to 2400 baud data by the speed of > the Newton so a basic data connection is all that is needed. > I've heard reports that this should work, others that it shouldn't. I am > looking for some real data. Assuming that you can plug the PCMCIA Fax Modem into a phone line and it works, and you have the RJ11 interface for the Mitsubishi 4000, and you realize you'll have to disable dial tone detection and dial the number on the mitsubishi and press send yourself (unless you've got an interface that provides dial tone and/or can automatically dial the numbers) it should work. 2400 is no problem. I know I can send a fax at 4800 on cellular without the best conditions, and that's going thruogh ADPCM connections from the cell site to the switch (I run the cell sites and soon will have a local switch to run too). I also know 2400 is no problem data wise. Just today I did a UUCP poll via cellular at 2400/v.42 bis, as well as a few 1200 data calls as well. If your going to do 2400, then it would be a very good idea to have some form of error correction, otherwise your more prone to see lots of garbage..unless your in a great area. Faxes, I believe, have a built in form of error correction, though I don't know anything about it. Greg The Complete Solution BBS Allfiles List: Anonymous UUCP Calls Accepted 707-459-4547 (24hrs, v.32) ~/tcsbbs.lst Login: nuucp Password: nuucp Telemate Distribution Site zeta@tcscs.com Cellular Telephony Groups ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Mar 1994 11:49:01 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Switch Problems (From OPERS-L) The following was posted on the OPERS-L list on bitnet (Mainframe Operations). Perhaps someone on TELECOM Digest can help Mr. Osterlin with his problem. Please reply directly to him: Date: Fri, 25 Mar 1994 11:57:09 -0600 (CST) From: Bob Oesterlin Subject: Digital Telephone Switches and Modems Early last month, our local phone company (US West) replaced our "aging" analog telephone switch with a new digital one, which was designed to bring us "into the information age". Well, no sooner was the switch installed, people started having problems connecting to our dial-in service for home terminal support. The current system consists of a front-end box (made by Traqnet) and a Cisco terminal server. The problems seemed to be widespread but intermittent: - Dropped connections - Can't connect at 14.4 KB (drops back to 1200!) - Can't connect at all After some lengthy (and still ongoing) investigation, the problem turned out to be that the time bases of three digital switches involved are not in sync! The three are: - The Rochester switch (run by US West) - The IBM Rochester Local ROLM switch (local PBX) - The NPN Switch (which connects IBM to the corp network run by Advantis, Inc) Comments from our local communications rep: "I have been told that there are three national master clocks. Each phone company must sync their digital switch with one of these master clocks." "U.S. West's switch is sync'd with a master, I don't know which." "NPN's switch is sync'd with a master too, this may be the same master that U.S. West is sync'ing to but, this is not important yet." "Our ROLM switch is sync'd with NPN and cannot be changed." BTW, the problem "seems" to be getting worse as time passes. It would seem to me that this could become a widespread problem as more DSS's are used. Is someone causes a master clock to become out of step, then you could (potentially) disrupt communications over wide areas. Bob Oesterlin, IBM AS/400 Division, Dept 54T, Rochester MN 55901 oester@vnet.ibm.com (IBM IPNET: oester@rchland.ibm.com) (507)-253-4528 ------------------------------ From: j-grout@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (John R. Grout) Subject: Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? Date: 30 Mar 1994 17:19:23 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana Reply-To: j-grout@uiuc.edu Does the FCC permit _local_ call charges for calls to 950 exchanges or to 800 LD numbers? If so, which states/telcos do in fact allow/make such charges (at telco-operated payphones, or on lines for which telco makes a charge for each local call)? I remember having to pay for such a call at a C & P-operated payphone in Maryland ... so that might be one such state/telco combination. John R. Grout | INTERNET: j-grout@uiuc.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Generally it is only the rip-off private payphones (COCOTS) which have charges for 950 and 800. They are not supposed to either, but they get away with it. I am surprised it was at a C&P phone. Maybe there was a programming error. PAT] ------------------------------ From: haynes@cats.ucsc.edu (James H. Haynes) Subject: History: Vail, Monopoly, AT&T Date: 30 Mar 1994 06:51:05 GMT Organization: University of California, Santa Cruz There's some interesting stuff in the new book, "The Story of Telecommunications" by George P. Oslin. Oslin is the 93-year-old former PR man for Western Union. A lot of the following is quoted from the book, slightly altered. Theodore N. Vail was related to Alfred Vail, one of Morse's partners and one of the most important inventors in early telegraphy. Theodore was a telegraph operator, got a job as a mail clerk on trains, and improved mail handling so much that he was called to Washington in 1873 to improve the railway mail. In 1876 he was appointed General Superintendent of Railway Mails. He quit to join the Bell Telephone Company in 1878. He was given charge of the territory within a 33-mile radius of New York. An experimental office was used at the Holmes Burglar Alarm Company at 194 Broadway [note that Western Union headquarters, and later AT&T headquarters was at 195 Broadway]. AT&T was incorporated in 1885 as a long-distance subsidiary of American Bell, with Vail as president. He resigned as president in 1887 because he was dissatisfied with the American Bell president and directors declaring a dividend payment instead of plowing the profits back into the company. In 1907 AT&T was was in dangerous financial condition. The bankers asked Vail to return as president. At first he refused, saying that at sixty-two he was too old, but he had just sold a South American transit development for $3 million, his wife and son had died, and he needed to keep busy, so he accepted. At the time Western Union had a near monopoly on the telegraph business. It was owned by Jay Gould and run by his man Thomas Eckert; they ran the business for their own profit and left it in seedy condition. Vail in contrast stressed service, cultivated public relations, was popular with the press for keeping the public informed. In 1909 AT&T was rich enough and WU was poor enough that AT&T bought control of WU and made Vail the president. Goes on to tell how Vail made over WU with redecorating offices and raising salaries. AT&T moved its headquarters into the WU building at 195 Broadway after a $1.3 million improvement. In 1913 the Justice Department complained about the communications monopoly and AT&T agreed to divest WU. Newcomb Carlton because president of WU and continued Vail's policies there. Vail resigned from AT&T because of ill health in 1919 and died the following year. haynes@cats.ucsc.edu haynes@cats.bitnet [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Thanks for that great bit of history. Most all readers of this Digest know that WUTCO and AT&T had a very long history together over the years, but little tidbits such as yours today are news to many folks. I also strongly recommend reading the book by Oslin; you'll learn much about how things came to be as they are. Without question, Ted Vail was the man who made AT&T what it is today, or at least what it was for more than half a century. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Todd Inch Subject: Re: Pacific Bell Voice Mail Types Date: Wed, 30 Mar 1994 09:48:43 PST wjhalv1@pacbell.com writes: >> Also, do Telco's provide voicemail to customers with their own PABX? > Possible but unwieldy. The PABX would have to have additional trunks > back to the CO where the Telco's VM box is. >> If so, how are the calls routed to the Voicemail equipment? I take it >> the Telco will have a centralized VoiceMail node, and will route (divert) We have third party off-site voicemail (where each mailbox has it's own real phone number but you can also select a different mailbox once you're connected to the system) and use it in conjunction with our PBX. We use Centranet (GTE's brand name for "Centrex") to allow incoming PBX calls to to be transferred to another number through the telco (flash, dial number, hang up) without tying up our PBX phone lines. We use this for forwarding to voicemail, to cell phones, and to our recently split-off sister company. Centranet also allows us to forward our main number to the main voice mailbox after hours and after the fourth ring. Since we have an 800 number which rings in on our main number, this works well for me to get my own voice mail from out of the area after hours. During business hours, I tell whoever answers in our office to please transfer me to my voicemail after reading me any paper messages first. It really helps that we have system-wide speed dial numbers programmed for each person's voicemail and the speed dial includes the required "flash". The only "kludge" is the PBX requires you to wait until it has dialed the whole number before you hang up. Fortunately the LCD display shows the number as it is being dialed so you simply hang up when you see all seven digits in the display. Interestingly, when I call and voice mail answers, I never hear any ringback tone -- I dial the number and almost immediately hear the voice mail message. I am looking into possibly getting our own in-house voicemail, however, because (1) I think it would be cheaper than the service, and (2) it would allow the message waiting lamps on the phone to light up, and (3) an auto- attendant would allow fax/modem calls via our existing 800 number and "inside" callers could bypass the receptionist person with a backdoor number. It's kinda silly -- we now get paper slips that say "check your voicemail." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Mar 1994 12:11:50 -0500 From: goudreau@dg-rtp.dg.com (Bob Goudreau) Subject: Re: Observations About Area Code Splits LincMad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) writes: > There are also some historical splits that look quite silly... > In Massachusetts, 413 has fewer than one third the number of exchanges > of either 617 or 508, and is one of the least populated NPAs. Yes, but 413 and 617 were never split from one another at all; they were both there from the start of the area code system. In fact, I remember an article in the Digest several years ago describing how 413 reportedly arrived a bit earlier than *that*, because a small region in western MA was used by AT&T to prototype area codes, and 413 was the code they tested it with. Supposedly, that's how come such a small and underpopulated region got one of the "best" area codes (by using only 8 pulls, 413 is tied for sixth place for fewest-pulses-to- dial), while Boston and the rest of MA ended up with 617. That historical anomaly also explains why the original MA area code boundary was drawn so far west, leaving 617 with two-thirds of the land area and 80+% of the people in the state. If things had been set up more rationally, 413 probably should have extended at least as far east as Worcester, and the need to split 617 (out of which 508 was born in the late 1980s) could have been deferred for many years. Bob Goudreau Data General Corporation goudreau@dg-rtp.dg.com 62 Alexander Drive +1 919 248 6231 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Mar 94 12:46:15 EST From: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (Dave Niebuhr) Subject: Re: Observations About Area Code Splits In TELECOM Digest Volume 14 : Issue 153 LincMad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) wrote: > I was looking at David Esan's 1/15/94 NPA-NXX list and noticed quite a > number of surprising numbers. There were a couple of instances where > I hope the answer is that a previously-effected split is not yet > reflected in the number of exchanges shown for the old area code. For > example, 212 shows 639 exchanges, and 168 for 917. I hope that the Area code 917 is not a "true areacode" in the sense that it is restricted to pagers, cell phones, and similar services, etc. NYTel could have left the exchanges in 212/718 available and/or in use after the overlay took affect. What probably happened, and maybe someone from NYTel/NYNEX who is more familiar with this could answer, is that since there were available exchanges after the overlay, more connections could be made for voice and data lines. Or, Bellcore might not have deleted them from their V&H tapes. I just can't see a company sitting around doing nothing with valuable equipment. Dave Niebuhr Internet: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (preferred) niebuhr@bnl.gov / Bitnet: niebuhr@bnl Senior Technical Specialist, Scientific Computing Facility Brookhaven National Laboratory Upton, NY 11973 (516)-282-3093 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Mar 1994 08:45:46 EST From: padwad@psd.gs.com (Danny Padwa) Subject: Re: Observations About Area Code Splits Not sure about cellulars, but the 212-vs-917 split is still proceding in terms of pagers. While "new" numbers have been allocated out of 917 for well over a year (at least I have one much older than a year), we are still just entering the "permissive" period for the switchover for some of our older pagers. I expect (not sure) that the above mentioned cellular provider will soon be getting a surprise from NYTel (oops ... NYNEX). Danny ------------------------------ From: king@wildebeest.cig.mot.com (Steven King, Software Archaeologist) Subject: Re: AT&T Cellular Privacy System Date: 30 Mar 1994 16:49:16 GMT Organization: Motorola Cellular Infrastructure Group Reply-To: king@wildebeest.cig.mot.com I asked some questions regarding the AT&T Cellular Privacy System. Mr. Arneke kindly responded and indicated that I could post his response to the Digest. Thanks for the info, guys! From: darneke@attmail.com (David R Arneke) Date: 28 Mar 94 09:45:44 GMT Subject: Re: AT&T Cellular Privacy System Here is a more complete answer to your message of last week regarding the AT&T Cellular Privacy System. This comes from our cellular privacy product manager, Ben Bratcher (214 280-9410). 1. Is the scrambling technology simple inversion? No. The scrambling algorithm uses split-band frequency inversion, translation of the upper band's frequencies, frequency dispersion of both bands, time compression of both bands and independent time displacement of the individual bands. The combinations are determined by a key generator driven by a common key that is negotiated for each privacy activation by using a public key technique. This is the strongest scrambling algorithm available for handheld, transportable and mobile cellular subscriber equipment. 2. Is the signaling channel scrambled? How about the blank-and-burst signal sent on the voice channel to change power level or to do a handoff? Neither the signalling channel nor the inband signalling are scrambled. The Advanced Cellular Privacy System scrambles only the user's audio. However, the system is designed to maintain all functions of the cellular telephone system without degradation. 3. Is the SAT tone affected? No. The common channel interface of the cellular network is not affected by the cellular privacy system. 4. How does the mobile recognize that it's in a scrambler-capable system? How does the base site recognize that a mobile has a scrambler attached? Does the mobile scrambling unit recognize when the mobile is roaming into an incompatible system and turn itself off? The mobile system when activated sends a signal to the switch that includes its part of the public key. If the switch is scrambler- capable and the user's electronic serial number (ESN) relates to a privacy class of service mark, the switch will respond with its part of the public key and privacy is established. If there is no response from the switch, the mobile system will return a fast busy, alerting the user that privacy is not available and preventing communication until the user releases the privacy request, indicating that clear-only operation is acceptable. The Mobile Switching Equipment (MSE) will first recognize that a user has a privacy class of service from the relation of the ESN and the home or visitor location register. This causes the MSE to route the call to the MSE-based scrambler equipment. The MTSO Privacy Unit (MSE-based scrambler equipment) then recognizes the initial signal from the mobile subscriber and returns the confirmation. If a user is roaming in a non-privacy capable system and tried to initiate privacy, the mobile unit will not enter the privacy mode and will alert the user. If the mobile unit is operating in the privacy mode and enters a non-privacy capable sysyem, the mobile unit also will alert the user. Every three seconds the mobile scrambler and the switch scrambler exchange information. After five failures (allowing time for tunnels and fades), the mobile scrambler will return a fast busy call and block communication. The user can then choose to return to clear mode. 5. Is the MTSO scrambler unit part of the base site or the switch? If it's part of the base site, can a scrambled call be handed off into a cell with no scrambler unit attached? The MTSO scrambler unit is attached to the MSE and therefore is always available to cell sites associated with the MSE. Through networking, a MSE unit can continue privacy service as the mobile transits between MTSOs. 6. If there are no MTSO scrambler units available, does the subscriber get any indication that the call is being sent in teh clear rather than scrambled? Yes, as described above. 7. What is Ameritech charging for the service? Confirm this number with Ameritech, but I believe it's $14 per month. Thanks again for writing. Feel free to pass this on to Telecom Digest or anyone else who might be interested. David Arneke Media Relations Manager AT&T Secure Communications Systems david.arneke@att.com (!darneke on AT&T Mail) =================== Steven King -- Motorola Cellular Infrastructure Group ------------------------------ From: dave@llondel.demon.co.uk (David Hough) Subject: Re: Voice and Data Through PBX Date: Wed, 30 Mar 1994 09:03:52 +0000 In article Thomas Humphreys writes: > I have asked the question "Would you recommend running both voice and > data (LAN) traffic through a PBX?" of 11 individuals. 4 said yes, 7 > said no. > I am interested in what the readers of this newsgroup think about this > issue. I have to admit to some bias, because the company I work for is developing a PABX which will do just this, as well as other features. Basically, the intention is that the PABX is connected to the LAN and can accept instructions from a PC on the LAN to dial numbers, answer calls etc. This allows you to use Windoze to pop up a phone directory and click on a number to dial. The PC tells the PABX, the PABX dials the number and kicks your keyphone into life in handsfree mode. When the other end answers you can either pick up the phone handset or talk handsfree. It doesn't take much of a leap from this to be able to select a file and a destination and have the PC request the PABX to set up an external data connection to the destination and transfer the file. Even dial-on-demand routeing of individual network packets is possible. Other options include the facility for a remote user using ISDN to dial in and appear as an ethernet address on your LAN (CLI can help with security here), which is ideal for the sales force who might not have to visit the office quite so much. No we can't do all of that yet, but it is coming! It is about time the telephone was properly integrated with everything else. After all, digitized speech is only another 64kb data stream -- it has to be switched the same as all other data streams. Dave G4WRW @ GB7WRW.#41.GBR.EU AX25 dave@llondel.demon.co.uk Internet g4wrw@g4wrw.ampr.org Amprnet ------------------------------ From: jim@isnpo1.pwss.gov.ab.ca (James Slupsky) Subject: Re: Voice and Data Through PBX Organization: Alberta PWSS Telecom Date: Tue, 29 Mar 1994 21:12:57 GMT In article , Thomas Humphreys writes: > I have asked the question "Would you recommend running both voice and > data (LAN) traffic through a PBX?" of 11 individuals. 4 said yes, 7 > said no. > I am interested in what the readers of this newsgroup think about this > issue. In my opinion, there are much better products available for switching LAN traffic than a PBX. For voice, a PBX works great; for switched data, a PBX also works great (although in some cases, a packet network would be better). But for LAN data, existing LAN networking hardware/software costs less and is more mature. If you desire to connect two lans, then ISDN links through a PBX may also be an option. Regards, James Slupsky jslupsky@pwss.gov.ab.ca ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #155 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa10878; 1 Apr 94 13:38 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA20188; Fri, 1 Apr 94 09:22:10 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA20179; Fri, 1 Apr 94 09:22:08 CST Date: Fri, 1 Apr 94 09:22:08 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404011522.AA20179@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #156 TELECOM Digest Fri, 1 Apr 94 09:22:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 156 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson ISDN in Texas? Your Input is Requested, Please (bkravitz@vtel.com) Canada Direct to European Customers - Why Not Possible? (Francois Dufresne) Anyone Attending the APCC Show? (safer@delphi.com) RS-423/RS-422/RS-232 on a DB-25 Connector (Robert Inch Jr) UC Berkeley Short Courses on SONET/ATM and Wireless Networking (H. Stern) Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! (David S. Greenberg) Where Can I Find A Copy of Mosaic? (Ellis Claggett) Telemarketing Systems - Need Help/Suggestions (unique7@aol.com) Address of 'Planet Connect' Needed (Christian Ekhart) Wireless Standards: GSM, UPT, UMTS, and FPLMTS (Kimberly Kirlin) Privacy on Rolm Switch (Chris Michael) Hacking != Fraud (was Re: Cellular Phone Hacking) (Nick Sayer) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 09:01:58 CST From: bkravitz@vtel.com Subject: ISDN in Texas? Your Input is Requested, Please PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION OF TEXAS REQUESTS COMMENTS ON INTEGRATED SERVICES DIGITAL NETWORK (ISDN) The Public Utility Commission of Texas (the Commission) has established a project (Project No. 12756) to examine Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) issues. The Commission seeks comments from interested parties in response to the following questions. If your answers would differ depending upon time-frame considerations, please provide answers for each time-frame. Parties are requested to organize their comments to address the specific questions asked in the order asked and are encouraged to include an executive summary emphasizing the main points of their comments to each question. Comments (13 paper copies) should contain a reference to Project No. 12756 and should be submitted to John M. Renfrow, Secretary of the Commission, Public Utility Commission of Texas, 7800 Shoal Creek Boulevard, Austin, Texas 78757, no later than April 30, 1994. Informal comments may be sent to Ms. Pam Whittington at the Commission via e-mail addressed to: pam.tel@email.puc.texas.gov Or you may call her at (512) 458-0100. 1. To which local exchange carriers (LECs) should a rule on ISDN apply? Why? 2. Should ISDN-based services be considered to be a replacement of or successor for "plain old telephone service"? Why? 3. Should all Texas customers and customer classes have access to ISDN? Why? If not, why not? What policies should be adopted by the Commission regarding customer access to ISDN? Why? 4. What are the policies which the Commission should adopt regarding the determination of costs and the pricing of ISDN and ISDN-based services? Explain why. Provide detailed cost information for each position if available. 5. Should the manner in which ISDN is deployed affect the price? How? 6. Should the Commission grant regulatory incentives, penalties, or flexibility in exchange for a LEC's provision of ISDN? Why? If yes, describe the incentives, penalties, or flexibility. 7. Does the Commission have jurisdiction to compel the provision of ISDN? Why? Explain the legal basis for your position. 8. Should the LECs be required to provide ISDN services in a manner that is conducive to competition in the provision of ISDN? Why? If so, how? 9. What policies should the Commission adopt regarding the deployment of ISDN? Should the Commission directly mandate deployment, require deployment to be driven by customer demand, or require deployment in some other manner? Why? Describe in detail how. 10. Describe in detail how these policies regarding deployment should be implemented and enforced. 11. If customer driven demand deployment was ordered by the Commission, should the trigger for deployment be thirty customer requests for ISDN per central office? Why? If not, why not, and provide evidence to support your position. If thirty requests is not the appropriate number, explain what is. 12. Should LEC compliance with deployment requirements be monitored on a periodic basis by the Commission? If so, explain in detail how and why. 13. What are the appropriate time frames for completion of deployment of ISDN in a LEC's service territory and in the entire state respectively? Why? 14. What are the technological options of the LECs with respect to the system upgrades necessary to deploy ISDN within their service areas? Explain in detail how the costs should be determined and reported to the Commission. 15. Are there any other policies, aspects, technical characteristics, costs, or obstacles (e.g. switch architecture, software, or SS7) regarding deployment that the Commission should consider? If yes, list and describe each and explain why. Provide detailed cost information for each item if available. 16. What policies regarding ISDN standards should be adopted by the Commission? Why? 17. To what standards (e.g. National ISDN, ITU-T standards, etc.) should the Commission require ISDN be deployed and provided? Why? 18. What specific service capabilities (e.g. bearer services, teleservices, supplementary services, etc.) should be required to be provided to customers? Why? 19. How should the policies regarding ISDN be implemented by the Commission? Why? If tariff filings were required, what should they contain? Why? 20. What end-user applications (e.g. telemedicine, distance learning, telecommuting, and video conferencing) using ISDN are available? Will these applications be available using technology other than ISDN? Should the Commission consider this in its rulemaking? Why? 21. Does Texas need ISDN to compete with other states? Why? 22. Would the widespread availability of ISDN have a beneficial impact (e.g., through telecommuting, video conferencing, etc.) on Texas' compliance with the Clean Air Act? Explain how. 23. Are there any other aspects or characteristics of providing ISDN that should be considered by the Commission? If yes, describe each and explain why. Parties interested in providing additional comments are welcome to do so. The Commission also welcomes data and documentation supporting the parties' comments. General Counsel and staff will review the comments and use them in preparing a recommendation to the Commission. Comments (13 paper copies) should contain a reference to Project No. 12756 and should be submitted to John M. Renfrow, Secretary of the Commission, Public Utility Commission of Texas, 7800 Shoal Creek Boulevard, Austin, Texas 78757, by April 30, 1994. Informal comments may be sent to Ms. Pam Whittington at the Commission via e-mail addressed to: pam.tel@email.puc.texas.gov Or you may call her at (512) 458-0100. ------------------------------ From: Francois.Dufresne@isa.unil.ch (Francois Dufresne) Subject: Canada Direct to European Customers - Why Not Possible? Date: 31 Mar 1994 13:42:47 GMT Organization: Cypherpunks Hi there! Does anyone know why Teleglobe Canada can not offer the service Canada Direct to European customers? Are there legal reasons? Agreements with other countries? Is it because it belongs to Bell Canada? I would be very interested to have access to this service since their rates are much better than those of the Swiss PTT. Thanks in advance. Francois Dufresne Ecole des HEC, University of Lausanne, Switzerland e-mail: Francois.Dufresne@isa.unil.ch tel.: 41.21/692.4022 apres/after: 1994.04.05 : 41.21/692.33.74 fax : 41.21/692.4193 41.21/692.33.05 ------------------------------ From: safer@delphi.com Subject: Anyone Attending the APCC Show? Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 23:05:56 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) Is anyone out there going to the APCC show in Vegas? ------------------------------ From: transpak@netcom.com (Robert Inch Jr) Subject: RS-423/RS-422/RS-232 on a DB-25 Connector Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 04:32:22 GMT Here at work, we have a sparc 1, and an hp laserjet 4. The sparc manual says it uses rs-423 to talk to printers on the serial line, and the hp has rs-232 and rs-422, both using db-25 connectors (the sparc and the printer). When I print I get 22 error message which means protocol confusion. So, I think it is true that rs-423 and rs-422 could not talk since rs-422 uses balanced send and receive lines or whatever (send and send-inverse), but rs-423 I think uses equivelant or one to one matchable lines. So, my questions is what is the pin layout for rs-423 over a db-25 coming out of a sparc, and can I connect it to the printer as if it were rs-232? ------------------------------ From: southbay@garnet.berkeley.edu Subject: UC Berkeley Short Courses on SONET/ATM and Wireless Networking Date: 31 Mar 1994 01:52:53 GMT Organization: University of California, Berkeley U.C. Berkeley Continuing Education in Engineering Announces 3 Short Courses on Communications Technology SONET/ATM-BASED BROADBAND NETWORKS: Systems, Architectures and Designs (April 18-19, 1994) It is widely accepted that future broadband networks will be based on the SONET (Synchronous Optical Network) standards and the ATM (Asynchronous transfer Mode) technique. This course is an in-depth examination of the fundamental concepts and the implementation issues for development of future high-speed networks. Topics include: Broadband ISDN Transfer Protocol, high speed computer/network interface (HiPPI), ATM switch architectures, ATM network congestion/flow control, VLSI designs in SONET/ATM networks. Lecturer: H. Jonathan Chao, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Brooklyn Polytechnic University. Dr. Chao holds more than a dozen patents and has authored over 40 technical publications in the areas of ATM switches, high-speed computer communications, and congestion/flow control in ATM networks. GIGABIT/SEC DATA AND COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS: Internetworking, Signaling and Network Management (April 20-21, 1994) This short course aims to provide a general understanding of the key issues needed to design and implement gigabit local and wide area networks. The topics are designed to compliment those covered in the SONET/ATM-Based Broadband Networks course (above). Topics include: technology drivers, data protocols, signaling, network management, internetworking and applications. Specific issues addressed include TCP/IP on ATM networks, design of high performance network interfaces, internetworking ATM networks with other network types, and techniques for transporting video over gigabit networks. Lecturer: William E. Stephens, Ph.D., Director, High-Speed Switching and Storage Technology Group, Applied Research, Bellcore. Dr. Stephens has over 40 publications and one patent in the field of optical communications. He has served on several technical program committees, including IEEE GLOBECOM and the IEEE Electronic Components Technology Conference, and has served as Guest Editor for the IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications. PERSONAL (WIRELESS) COMMUNICATION NETWORKS: Cellular Systems, Wireless Data Networks, and Broadband Wireless Access (April 20-22, 1994) This comprehensive course focuses on principles, technologies, system architectures, standards, equipment, implementation, public policy, and evolving trends in wireless networks. Topics include: modulation, coding, and signal processing; first generation systems; second generation systems; broadband networks; third generation systems; and applications and technology trends. This course is intended for engineers who are currently active or anticipate future involvement in this field. Lecturer: Anthony S. Acampora, Ph.D., Professor, Electrical Engineering, Columbia University. He is Director, Center for Telecommunications Research. He became a professor following a 20 year career at AT&T Bell Laboratories, is an IEEE Fellow, and is a former member of the IEEE Communications Society Board of Governors. For more information (complete course descriptions, outlines, instructor bios, etc.) contact: Harvey Stern U.C. Berkeley Extension/Southbay 800 El Camino Real Ste. 150 Menlo Park, CA 94025 Tel: (415) 323-8141 Fax: (415) 323-1438 ------------------------------ From: mgreeny@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu (David S. Greenberg) Subject: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! Date: 31 Mar 1994 09:48:27 -0600 Hi all, just thought I'd let everyone out there know that I just received in my daily pile of junk mail yet another company (which shall be named shortly ...) which has decided that they have the right to sell ****YOUR**** name and address AND PHONE NUMBER on CD ROM! Not only are they doing this for your home, but also for businesses as well! They pull no punches and have an ad which has several subheadings: "The Hook", "The Line", "The Sell", "The Close" -- they designed the paperwasting junk mail flyer for resellers. At any rate, I called to protest this unlicensed and unwanted use of my name/address and was told by the wonderful person I spoke to (after being forced to wait on hold with a joyful voice mail system for several tortous minutes) that "she'd certainly pass my request along". All I've got to say is that they'll be getting a FAX from me shortly and from my lawyers as well. I'd encourage EVERYONE out there reading this to call and protest this as well -- let your friends know and have them call as well. If you recall, the only reason that Lotus dropped their moronic Household CDROM was because they received 20,000 letters/calls requesting removal from the database. Lotus LEARNED THE HARD WAY HOW TO ALIENATE YOUR CUSTOMER BASE -- MAYBE THIS COMPANY NEEDS A GOOD KICK IN THE *&*(& AS WELL... CAll and let them know just how you feel about this sort of crapola: ProCD, Inc. 8 Doaks Lane, Little Harbor Marblehead, MA 01945-9866 1-800-992-3766 (800-99-CD-ROM) FAX: 1-617 631 9229 For DOS machines only ... worst of all, this product allows UNLIMITED downloading/searching of the database -- no metering, no extra fees so it encourages people to use it (or abuse it...). CALL NOW! Protect your right to privacy! Stop the abuse! Microcomputer Support Specialist, Student Residential Programs, WIU, Macomb, IL 61455 Internet: mgreeny@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu, greeny@srp.wiu.bgu.edu GEnie: GREENY (once a month, Internet's preferred) AOL: GREENY1@AOL.COM (really infrequently....use the internet!) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The thing is, they *do* have the right to see compiled listings -- as did Lotus or as does anyone else -- if they wish to do so. If a telephone book containing alphabetical listings is not illegal then neither is a consolidated listing of several telephone books made into one. Neither is the same thing when the medium happens to be CD Rom. Lotus decided it was in their best business interests to discontinue the sale of the product when sufficient numbers of people who expressed interest in all their products were angered by this. I think what you will find in this case however is that the company in question is merely a list seller. They specialize in lists for other companies to purchase, and they are not going to be impressed very much one way or the other by consumers, per se. Lists like this in all sorts of formats (both alphabetical by name and numerically by street address and/or phone number) have been compiled for over half a century. Haines of Cleveland, Ohio and R.L. Polk of Detroit were the pioneers at this, starting back in the 1920's. All of a sudden because the medium has changed (from great big hardover books with several thousand pages each in several volumes) to CD Rom the complaints become more vocal. Why? Is it because the ease and availability in obtaining the information has become greater? PAT] ------------------------------ From: Ellis Claggett Subject: Where Can I Find A Copy of Mosaic? Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 09:14:00 PST Hello, I recently heard of a product called Mosaic which acts as a front end for Internet access. Could some one provide me additional information on this product an where I might locate a copy on the internet. Your help will greatly appreciated. Ellis R. Claggett The Travelers claggette@bsp03c.primerica.com ------------------------------ From: unique7@aol.com Subject: Telemarketing Systems - Need Help/Suggestions Date: 31 Mar 1994 00:49:03 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) I am trying to put together a telemarketing function for a small start-up software firm. To facilitate this I am looking for any information I can on software to support the telemarketing function by doing things such as: tracking phone calls, tracking customer leads (including automatic "tickler" call reminders), interfacing with an email system to alert other parts of the organization of customer issues that might be of concern to them (e.g. reporting a bug to engineering), etc ... Does anyone have any thoughts on what systems might do this and where I could get info. Also can anyone recommend any journals that I might peruse to get a better handle on these products. Thanks in advance. I can be reached directly at unique7@aol.com. Marc ------------------------------ From: ekhart@fochsg01.tu-graz.ac.at (Christian Ekhart) Subject: Address of 'Planet Connect' Needed Date: 31 Mar 1994 12:16:41 GMT Organization: Graz University of Technology, Austria Hi, I need the address and fax number of a company called Planet Connect. They offer direct satellite uplinks at data rates of 19.2 kbit/s for about $500/month. Is that correct and is this possible with connects Europe-USA? This would be very cheap leased lines. One idea (grin) would be to link this line to the US-phone system (whereas only 9.6 kbit/s would be needed for compressed voice data) and to obtain that way an US-phone-line routed to Europe ;-) Are there any other providers for reasonably priced direct satellite uplinks. Thank you! Christian Ekhart University of Technology voice: +43-316-8738247 Department of Organic Chemistry fax: +43-316-811057 Stremayrgasse 16, 8010 Graz email: ekhart@fochsg01.tu-graz.ac.at Austria - Europe fidoNet: 2:316/3.0, DTP-Mailbox ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 13:09:54 -0600 From: Kimberly Kirlin Subject: Wireless Standards: GSM, UPT, UMTS, & FPLMTS Organization: Texas Metronet, Internet for the Individual 214-705-2917 (info) These are statements that I have taken from articles about GSM (Global Systems for Mobile Communications) in telecom trade journals: "... no one yet knows how first generation digital will mesh or evolve into PCS/PCN or from there into wideband FPLMTS or UMTS." GSM Phase 2 will provide for the "integration of GSM in UPT to make provision for UPT subscribers and services through GSM networks and vise versa." In fact in many articles there is reference to the eventual evolution of second generation digital cellular into UPT or UMTS or FPLMTS. FPLMTS - Future Public Land Mobile Telecommunications Systems (I think); UMTS - Universal Mobile Telecommunications Systems; UPT - Universal Personal Telecommunications. My QUESTION is: What is the difference between UPT, UMTS, and FPLMTS? From what I have read they all refer to having a personal number which is unique to each subscriber, which can be registered on any terminal on any network, fixed or mobile. And what makes these technologies so different from what GSM is trying to accomplish with the use of a SIM card? Any input to this debate is greatly appreciated! Kim Kirlin University of Colorado Telecommunications Program kirlin@metronet.com ------------------------------ From: cm@nwu.edu (Chris Michael) Subject: Privacy on Rolm switch Date: 31 Mar 94 23:18:20 GMT Organization: Northwestern University, Evanston, IL USA Reply-To: cm@nwu.edu (Chris Michael) My company has a Rolm 8000 (9000?) (something) switch. It's configured so that certain supervisors can monitor conversations on certain exten- sions by hitting the right key on their phone. This is all above board and well understood by everyone. There is a persistent rumor, however, that these people can monitor *all* conversations. The person who manages the switch believes this to be true, although she's never configured anything like that. The Rolm service people say it can't be done. Is it possible? If it were, could it be hidden from the switch console? christopher michael, george s. may international, 708-825-8806 x 395 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Persons with the ability to monitor the calls can probably do it on all extensions except that possibly there is some class of service higher than theirs and they are unable to monitor the extensions 'above them' in class of service. But if they can monitor anyone in class of service 'below them' then they can monitor all such lines. I've seen that feature on a couple of Rolm systems. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 16:47:26 -0800 From: Nick Sayer Subject: Hacking != Fraud (was Re: Cellular Phone Hacking) Might I interject at this point to mention that EVERYONE in this thread so far has mis-used the term 'hacking'? Until I saw the reference to cloning phones, I thought the original poster might have wanted tips on NAM programming his phone to roam differently, or perhaps to do any of the other things that are perfectly legitimate ways to alter the behavior of ones phone that have nothing at all to do with fraud of any sort. The term has, unfortunately, been hijacked and now those of us who hack (traditional definition) are left linguistically orphaned by the prevalance of the incorrect definition. Nick Sayer N6QQQ @ N0ARY.#NOCAL.CA.USA.NOAM +1 408 249 9630, log in as 'guest' PGP 2.2 key and geek code via finger [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Programming the NAM in a phone is not the same thing as duplicating the ESN. The only people who have permission to install, record, or change an ESN are the manufacturers of cell phones. Everyone else, keep away! That's the law. You are correct about how the words 'hacker' and 'hacking' have been confiscated. It reminds me of the word 'gay' and how traditionally it always meant happy, cheerful or merry. Now if the word is used, it is always taken to refer to persons who are, well, gay ... times change and so do definitions of words. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #156 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa11413; 1 Apr 94 14:51 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA22060; Fri, 1 Apr 94 10:32:03 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA22051; Fri, 1 Apr 94 10:32:01 CST Date: Fri, 1 Apr 94 10:32:01 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404011632.AA22051@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #157 TELECOM Digest Fri, 1 Apr 94 10:32:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 157 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson April NPA Report (David Esan) Mexican Audiotext ("Dial 900") (wright@LAA.COM) 911 Chatline (Richard Baum) Extended 911 and Cellular Phones (Dan Leifker) Is 800 Really Portable Yet? (Dave Leibold) 900 and Other Premium Numbers (was Pager Scam) (Atri Indiresan) 976, 540 Services (John R. Levine) AccessLine and 700 Service Information Wanted (Marita Anne O'Brien) USRobotics Email Address Wanted (Ralph Spitzner) Ethernet via Cable TV (John Biederstedt) STAR*Telecom Dialback Experiences Wanted (Daniel Winkowski) Getting Wired: Leased Line vs. Dial-up For 14.4kps Data Comm (P. Rukavina) Satellite/Mobile Data Applications (Carl Silva) Voice and Data Simultaneously Over Modem? (Tom W. Tomlinson) FAX Mailbox Services (Lars Nohling) New Area Codes List Wanted (David Winters) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: de@moscom.com (David Esan) Subject: April NPA Report Date: 31 Mar 94 20:24:00 GMT Organization: Moscom Corporation, Pittsford NY This is my quarterly report on the number of exchanges in each NPA in the NANP. It is derived from information in FCC #10. This is article #13 in the series. FCC #10 is a tariff issued by BellCore that contains all the area codes, exchange combinations in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP). It also contains lata information and V&H coordinate information. There is a lot of additional information that I don't use, so I won't add here. It is available through a number of sources. The one closest to the FCC is ITS, which can be contacted at 202-857-3800. My company compiles this information for use in its products and does not seem to be interested in selling this information. Queries are still flowing through the bureaucracy. I have used pages that are effective prior to April 21, 1994. I am not responsible for the information supplied in FCC #10. I have not included the following in my counts of exchanges: - NXX's that are not dialable by a standard user (ie nxx's that begin with a 1 or 0). - Mexican exchanges in the 52? series of area codes. I've got them, you can dial them with 011, but they're not really NPAs. - Exchanges that are non-dialable in the 88? series of area codes. I've got those also, but you can't dial them, so I'm not including them. Numbers that begin with 88 are nondialable stations in the US, Canada and Mexico. They are ranches in the middle of the Nevada or Texas desert, or isolated outpost of civilization (always wanted to use that phrase) in the tundra of Canada. I find place names like the Bar J Ranch, Double B Ranch, and JD Dye, Texas, Amargosa, Corncreek and Reese Valley, NV, and Chick Lake, Redknife and Taglu, NT. I gather they are ringdown stations, or radio-telephone stations. [It has been noted in c.d.t. that at least two of these numbers are for a bordello on the NV-CA border.] The fields are: ------------ rank last in January, 1994 213: 736 (1, 7) area code --^^^ ^^^ ^------- number of new exchanges |-------------- total number of exchanges 919: 731 ( 1, 8) 206: 699 ( 6, 17) 212: 638 (11, 0) 813: 615 (19, 13) 313: 731 ( 2, 9) 708: 696 ( 8, 11) 303: 625 (17, 24) 803: 609 (15, 7) 205: 729 ( 3, 13) 602: 691 ( 7, 15) 403: 619 (13, 2) 503: 608 (18, 11) 215: 710 ( 5, 14) 713: 670 ( 9, 7) 615: 617 (16, 16) 216: 606 (14, 2) 416: 707 ( 4, 8) 703: 655 (10, 10) 604: 617 (12, 0) 404: 601 (20, 11) 1. 919 - split is in progress. Number should be reduced by split. 2. 313 - split is in progress. Number should be reduced by split. 3. 205 - split is planned. Number should be reduced by split. 4. 215 - split is in progress. Number should be reduced by split. 5. 416 - split is in progress. Number should be reduced by split. 6. 206 - split is planned. Number should be reduced by split. 7. 708 - split is planned. Number should be reduced by split. 8. 602 - split is planned. Number should be reduced by split. 9. 713 - split is planned. Number should be reduced by split. Note: The Los Angeles Area (213/818/310) area will receive an overlay area code. While none of these NPAs are in the top 20 (they are 64/47/32), this is an area of rapid telephone growth. -> The NPA that is largest and is not splitting nor has plans, at this time, to split, is 703. -> The 3 smallest NPA's were 302, 906, 807. They are now: 302: 134 - Delaware (+2 exchanges) 906: 117 - Michigan's Upper Peninsula (no change) 807: 107 - Western Ontario (+1 exchange) -> The NPAs with the greatest growth rates are: NPA % growth 512 4.91 917 4.76 417 4.21 310 4.02 303 3.99 617 3.91 813 3.89 719 3.80 610 3.79 213 3.63 -> The 10 NPAs with the least growth rates are: NPA % growth 806 -.76 718 -.39 212 0 217 0 309 0 410 0 418 0 506 0 515 0 519 0 Just for grins: The most used NXX (not counting 555) is 754 used in 118 npas. The least used are: 211 and 311 used only in 212, 900 used in 213, 950 used only in 716 (my NPA), and 959 used only in 808. All the NPAs and the number of nxx's in each are listed below: 919: 731 214: 595 201: 472 213: 400 912: 360 819: 317 709: 264 313: 731 612: 592 412: 466 316: 396 810: 359 918: 310 509: 263 205: 729 314: 588 913: 460 704: 392 519: 359 613: 309 806: 261 215: 710 809: 577 306: 458 219: 390 204: 358 909: 308 608: 260 416: 707 501: 575 818: 455 910: 385 207: 357 706: 308 603: 251 206: 699 203: 573 407: 454 801: 383 304: 351 218: 303 901: 250 708: 696 904: 571 210: 454 914: 382 419: 347 610: 301 417: 223 602: 691 619: 562 617: 452 406: 382 319: 346 808: 300 308: 217 713: 670 817: 550 614: 452 504: 380 618: 345 202: 299 707: 206 703: 655 405: 546 415: 443 502: 380 517: 344 606: 292 719: 191 212: 638 310: 544 410: 441 908: 376 505: 343 903: 291 506: 186 303: 625 804: 542 515: 440 301: 376 702: 337 712: 289 802: 183 403: 619 717: 525 601: 439 510: 375 805: 335 812: 288 307: 182 615: 617 312: 521 402: 428 217: 375 915: 324 518: 281 607: 180 604: 617 414: 517 714: 426 418: 370 409: 323 507: 281 917: 176 813: 615 514: 510 516: 426 701: 367 815: 322 902: 279 401: 149 803: 609 718: 506 508: 419 408: 366 715: 321 705: 275 413: 136 503: 608 816: 496 716: 415 605: 365 208: 320 315: 273 302: 136 216: 606 513: 488 907: 414 318: 364 609: 319 814: 271 906: 117 404: 601 317: 486 616: 410 512: 363 905: 318 309: 268 807: 107 305: 596 916: 475 209: 402 David Esan de@moscom.com ------------------------------ From: wright@LAA.COM Subject: Mexican Audiotext ("Dial 900") Date: 1 Apr 1994 14:38:06 GMT Organization: Lynn-Arthur Associates, Ann Arbor, MI Reply-To: wright@LAA.COM Telefonos de Mexico is offering an audio text product much like our dial 900 services in the U.S. It is dialed within Mexico by dialing 91-801 xxxxx. The cost is whatever specific service cost associated with the dialed phone number plus the cost from the caller to Mexico City. If your business in Mexico has not prohibited calls from your PBX, you should consider blocking this number. As in the U.S., your business/hotel/etc. cannot reliably determine the cost of a call before you are billed by Telmex. As a result, you are likely to be out some money. We provide businesses in Mexico with call pricing data and call rating software. Our software will rate calls from any place in Mexico to anyplace in the world. We cover local, national, and international calling using a full V&H database. We can also provide Mexican private rating data for those who need it. Carl A. Wright Lynn-Arthur Associates, Inc. +1 313 995 5590 wright@laa.com Operations Support Systems +1 313 995 5989 (fax) 2350 Green Road Suite 160 Ann Arbor, MI, 48105 USA ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 09:01:56 -0500 From: Richard Baum Subject: 911 Chatline New service to pay for cost of enhanced 911 Date: Fri, 1 APR 94 8:20:19 EST NEW YORK (AP) -- Century Communications announced today plans for an exciting new 900 service, with profits to go to help defray the cost of installing and maintaining enhanced 911 service across the country. Called, 'The 911 Chatline,' it allows callers to choose an area of the country, and to listen to 911 emergency calls from it. When asked what prompted this unusual foray into the 900 business, Century spokeswoman Fawn Lebowitz said, "In recent years we've seen a dramatic increase in the popularity of reality-based television shows. The 911 Chatline allows callers to experience real-life drama while it is going on, all from the comfort of their own home." While listening to the emergency calls going through, callers to the Chatline have a number of options. They can listen to just the 911 calls for the area they select, switch their call to a different area, or, probably the most interesting option, connect their call to the '911 Chatline' to discuss the details of the emergencies with each other as they happen, and before the police have even arrived! Thanks to new voice recognition software from AT&T, callers do not even need a touch tone telephone in order to use the service. They can choose which 911 center to listen to simply by saying the area code and city that they are interested in listening to calls from. Calls are directed to the 911 center nearest this location. As 911 centers sign up to recieve their share of the profits, they are connected to the Chatline network. Century says it has already wired up over 50 centers, and that it has coverage in most major metropolitan areas. They plan to have the whole nation wired by April, 1995. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Probably by April 1, 1995 ... Readers, take care and think it over before writing me in response to this one. I guess by now everyone has heard about the infamous magazine article this past week which talked about new FCC regulations which '...ban speeding on on the Information Highway or driving on it while under the influence of drugs or intoxicating liquors ... and which ban any discussion of sexual matters using networks connected to the Information Highway ...' A reference number was given and there have actually been a large number of angry calls to Senators and others in Washington, DC. April 1 always brings these things to the net. PAT] ------------------------------ From: dleifker@mitre.org (Dan Leifker) Subject: Extended 911 and Cellular Phones Date: 1 Apr 1994 13:51:56 GMT Organization: self A twist to a recent thread on 911 over cellular phones... I am trying to gather information on the use of so-called "extended" 911 over cellular phones (e.g., the 911 provider can automatically zero in and locate the caller's location). This is relatively straightforward for fixed-address phone numbers, but with nomadic telephony it becomes more complicated. What is the state of the art in this area? Can anyone point me to resources that might discuss the technical, legal, and management aspects of this problem? Random thoughts and musings would also be appreciated. Thanks. Dan Leifker dleifker@mitre.org ------------------------------ From: Dave.Leibold@f730.n250.z1.fidonet.org (Dave Leibold) Date: 31 Mar 94 00:38:40 -0500 Subject: Is 800 ReallP portablY yet? Organization: FidoNet I just received a "New Releases" flyer from Bellcore, and one of the publications listed was a "Special Access Codes 800/900 NXX Assignments" (SR-OPT-001843) dated Dec. 1993. For USD$40, one can get the NXX assignments for 800 and 900 special access codes in North America. The thing is, there was supposed to be a cutover to "portable" 800 service last year which rendered the idea of 800 NXX assignments to carriers meaningless. Canada should also have 800 portability by now (as of January from my latest news). Does this mean there are still some carrier NXX assignments for 800, or at least 900 service? Tangent: a recent ad for a company just outside Toronto listed its regular number as (905) 819.wxyz while its toll-free number was (800) 819.wxyz, the seven digit components being identical. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: After portability started, I do not think all the numbers were just tossed in a big pot for everyone to pick from. I think they were left with the carriers which had them all along but the earlier prohibition against moving them was dropped. If you, for example, want a certain 800 number and it is found to be inactive and available, you go to your carrier of choice and ask for it. They in turn check the database and find that the number is in the custody of carrier X, where it always had been prior to portability. Your carrier has to then go to carrier X and ask to have the number released to them, and carrier X cannot frivilously refuse to comply. Now if you have existing service with carrier X and you want to move it to another company, then you have to sign a standard form all the carriers seem to be using which authorizes the change. And it must be properly filled out. AT&T for one has been very stubborn about cooperating with portability. Whenever the form is sent to them, they always refuse to accept it the first (and usually second or third) time around, claiming it has been filled out incorrectly. They claim they can only work with the signature of the president of the corporation, for example, even if he has nothing to do with the phone service at all. Then they challenge the signature and claim it must have been signed by someone else fraudulently; etc. The carrier losing the account is given 72 hours after each time the form reaches them to challenge it, contact the customer themselves and eventually give over the number or refuse to do so (without additional 'verification'). In summary, if you try to get a *working* 800 number away from AT&T, it is not easy. When it comes to 'good' numbers (i.e. they spell words or end in x000 or some other desirable combination) which are idle from AT&T, then AT&T always claims the number is 'reserved' for a pending customer. They never can produce the name of the so-called customer of course, and although reservations are theoretically only good for sixty days (at which point a carrier has to make it available without further hassles) AT&T keeps on renewing the reservations on the numbers they want. Protest all you like, it does not matter. The big three carriers seems to have an unwritten rule which says you keep out of our pool of 'good' numbers, and we won't raid your pool of 'good' numbers where idle numbers are concerned. That is, if you as a potential customer see that a number is idle and ask your carrier for it, chances are likely they will try hard to avoid bucking AT&T to get it ... of course as an existing customer you can change your 800 away to wherever you want -- they can't give you any bull about the number 'is not available, it is reserved by another customer' -- but AT&T will insist that the president of your company sign off on it and even then they will stall. So although portability is the law, it will only work as it should when the FCC orders all the carriers to start responding promptly to customer requests for numbers which 'belong' to other carriers and to quit reserving numbers for customers who do not exist in order to hang on to desirable numbers. PAT] ------------------------------ Subject: 900 and Other Premium Numbers (was Pager Scam) Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 14:20:25 -0500 From: Atri Indiresan I thought that when you called a premium number, by law, it was required to have a recording that told you what the service cost, and gave you thee seconds to hang up to avoid invoking any charges? I remember reading this a long time ago, and it was the case on the one occasion I had to call a 900 number. Does this rule apply only to 900 numbers, and not to local premium services? Or is it voluntary and only more "respectable" services follow the rule? It seems to me that if this were applied to all numbers to which anything but the normal toll charges applied, all such scams would collapse. As an aside, 900 numbers get a lot of publicity, and most people know that they are expensive to call. Until I started reading the Telecom digest, I was not aware of the existence of 976/540 or any other kinds of premium numbers. Offhand, I cannot recall seeing a single advertisement for local premium services, but anyone who has ever watched late night TV cannot help being aware that 900 calls are rather expensive. Atri ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 19:04 EST From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: 976, 540 Services Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. Is there anywhere a list of surcharged prefixes in the U.S.? In most places 976 is used for non-porn announcements, but the list of other surcharged prefixes seems to be large, growing, and largely undocumented. Here in eastern Mass, for example, the prefixes (valid in both 617 and 508) are: 550 - live chat lines 554 - live porn 920 - business info 940 - recorded porn 976 - recorded general info You have to ask in writing to get calls to 554 and 940 turned on. I am astonished at the report that Sprint billed the surcharge for a 212-540 number. Has anyone else ever had this happen? Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 19:37:39 MST From: O BRIEN MARITA ANNE Subject: AccessLine and 700 Service Information Wanted Does anyone have any experience with AccessLine service or know how popular this service is? AccessLine is a personal communications services offered via landline telephone service through local telephone companies (US West, Ameritech, BT, etc). It allows you to set up one number access with a personal service profile that will forward calls where you want, allow prioritization of forwarded calls via voice prompts, interaction with independent fax or email systems for paging, etc. This seems similar to the AT&T 700 Easy Reach Service introduced a couple of years ago, but I can't find any information about how useful these products are and how much they're selling. Thanks in advance, Marita ------------------------------ From: rasp@cj.in-berlin.de (Ralph Spitzner) Subject: USRobotics Email Address Wanted Organization: Christof Junge, Berlin Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 18:39:58 GMT Subject says it all. Any tips appreciated. rasp@cj.in-berlin.de [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I don't know about their email address, but their physical presence is here in Skokie just several blocks down the street from me on McCormick Blvd. I ride past their office on the bus when going to Chicago. PAT] ------------------------------ Subject: Ethernet via Cable TV From: John@msus1.msus.edu (John Biederstedt) Date: 31 Mar 94 16:01:28 -0500 Organization: The Electronmeister Is there a product that runs Ethernet (10mbps) over 75 ohm cable? I thought I had heard of such a product once. John Biederstedt Mankato State University Mankato, MN 56002 44d 8'N 93d 59'W El.1000' ------------------------------ From: winkowsk@stc.nato.int (Daniel Winkowski) Subject: STAR*Telecom Dialback Experiences? Organization: SHAPE Technical Centre, NL Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 13:04:16 GMT I saw an ad in the {International Herald Tribune} for a US dialback service provider called STAR*Telecom. From their response to my fax they state very good rates with no enrollment fee, monthly charge, or access costs. They also have a travel phone card for those on the move. Sample rates from Europe are: Netherlands to USA $0.40/minute Austria to USA $0.34/minute UK to USA $0.29/minute This seems almost too good to be true. Does anyone have experience with this company or dialback companies in general? Their phone number is (France) +33 1 39 28 00 19 (phone/fax) US +1 305 386 5343 (6352 fax) If anyone happens to call the Miami Better Business Bureau I would be interested in their record :-) Daniel Winkowski Voice: +31 70 314 2255 SHAPE Technical Center Fax: +31 70 314 2111 P.O. Box 174 winkowsk@stc.nato.int ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 16:11:12 AST From: Peter L. Rukavina Subject: Getting Wired: Leased Line vs. Dial-up For 14.4kps Data Comm Our small non-profit organization is trying to become an Internet service provider with a budget of ~$20,000 which demands that we do everything that we do on the cheap. Our plans are to connect our Linux-based PC to our local Internet service provider, which is using rack-mounted USR Courier v.32bis modems. I'm trying to figure out the best way of doing this given two options: (1) We get a regular POTS line installed, ($40/month, $60 for the installation), buy a relatively cheap 14.4kbps modem (~$300) and have our service provider dedicate a dial-up line to our exclusive use. (2) We get a leased data line (the phone company calls this an LDDS circuit, $32/month, $180 for the installation) installed and buy a more expensive but leased-line capable 14.4kbps modem (~$900) and connect directly. The first option works out to a cost of $840 for the year, the second option $1284 for the year, a not-insignificant difference. I do not know enough about high-speed modems and leased lines to be able to evaluate the two options technically, nor do I know enough about the telephone system to know if I'm missing a third [or fourth] option that would be a better route to follow. I would very much appreciate any advice in this regard. I am Peter Rukavina at the PEI Crafts Council, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada Telephone at work (902) 566-1584, fax (902) 628-8740, at home (902) 368-2871 Electronic mail to peter@crafts-council.pe.ca or rukavina@peinet.pe.ca ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 14:19:20 PST From: Carl Silva Subject: Satellite/Mobile Data Applications I am currently investigating what companies provide applications for mobile data/satellite networks such as remote data collection, fleet management, stolen car tracking, etc. Does anyone know of companies which provide these kinds of applications or would be interested in providing these kinds of applications? Carl ------------------------------ From: twt@mindlink.bc.ca (Tom W. Tomlinson) Subject: Voice and Data Simultaneously Over Modem? Date: 31 Mar 94 16:17:21 GMT Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada Hi, I have read in recent articles in computer magazines about two different schemes which allow SIMULTANEOUS duplex voice and data transmission using high speed modems. Voice is severely compressed and then multiplexed with the normal modem data. For example, a user could be connected to an online service and type away while simultaneously talking voice to support staff. Does anyone have ANY info about the above? It is a software standard which can be used with standard modems. Direct replies by E-mail appreciated. Thanks, Thomas W Tomlinson aka Tom, Hylas, Deep Purple Vancouver, BC, Canada twt@mindlink.bc.ca ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 12:34 EST From: Lars Nohling Subject: FAX Mailbox Services Does anyone have any info on companies that provide a FAXMAIL service? What I am looking for is a FAX Number I can give out that receives faxes and then allows me to retrieve them from any fax machine by dialing up my code. Lnohling@mcimail.com ------------------------------ From: davidw@bga.com (David Winters) Subject: New Area Codes List Date: 1 Apr 1994 04:23:57 GMT Organization: Real/Time Communications - Bob Gustwick and Associates There has been much talk as of late on the new area codes in the Los Angeles region and elsewhere. I haven't seen any comprehensive list of announced area codes to be implemented in the future. In particular, I believe that I read somewhere that there will be a second (third if you count outlying metro) area code for the Houston area (pagers and cellular). However, I've not seen a posting on this subject. Does anyone have a comprehensive list of thus far announced codes including Houston? Thanks, David Winters | davidw@bga.com [preferred e-mail address] Austin, Texas | CIS: 73510.2404@compuserve.com | AOL: davidwi@aol.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Our two resident area code experts here are David Leibold and Carl Moore. There are various archives files on the subject of area codes, and these guys generally update them from time to time. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #157 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa12133; 1 Apr 94 16:15 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA25606; Fri, 1 Apr 94 12:07:03 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA25595; Fri, 1 Apr 94 12:07:01 CST Date: Fri, 1 Apr 94 12:07:01 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404011807.AA25595@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #158 TELECOM Digest Fri, 1 Apr 94 12:07:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 158 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Call Counting Device Wanted (Paul Cook) Any Extra Features I Can Order For Analog Modem Line? (Rich Chong) Information About Ermes Project (Stewart Fist) Dials! (Bob Frankston) ZMODEM - Proprietary? (Christopher Tate) Where is alt.2600? (FILCHOCK@cup.edu) Job Opening (Doug Gurich) MCI Goes "Both Ways" (Was Useless 800 Number) (Paul Robinson) Looking For CID Box With Serial Port (David Vrona) Re: Humorous Names For the RBOCs (Ted Hadley) Re: Humorous Names For the RBOCs (Dave Ptasnik) Primeline Service (Peter Tindall) Modern Times (Jerry Leichter) *999; CB Channel 9 (Jonathan) Re: *999; CB Channel 9 (Andrew C. Green) Re: New Area Code 630 (Andrew C. Green) Re: Who Paid For My 550? (Jack Hamilton) Re: Country Code For San Marino (Jack Hamilton) Re: CATV Modems (wright@LAA.COM) Re: Ruling on Dark Fiber (Tom Watson) Re: Extension Cord For Cell Phone (Gregory Youngblood) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 18:46 EST From: Paul Cook <0003991080@mcimail.com> Subject: Call Counting Device Does anyone know of a box that could install in series with multiple phone lines to not only count calls, but deliver reports on the exact time between the first ring and when each call was answered? Output could be a printer or RS232 port. Paul Cook Proctor & Associates 206-881-7000 3991080@mcimail.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 08:12:16 CST From: Rich Chong Subject: Any Extra Features I Can Order For Analog Modem Line? Organization: University of Illinois at Chicago, ADN Computer Center I'm getting an analog phone line installed to be used for only modem work. I'll be using a v.fc modem. I understand that a normal voice grade line *should* work fine. But since the company is paying for it, I was wondering if there was any special conditioning I can request to be installed with that line to assure things are clean at my end; what it roughly costs; and is it worth it? I know v.fc and v.fast are different than normal v.32bis, but i've seen some problems where some 14.4k modems just dont want to connect at 14.4k on some phone lines. thanks. rc ------------------------------ Date: 31 Mar 94 07:00:34 EST From: Stewart Fist <100033.2145@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Information About ERMES Project Lars Kalsen requested information about the ERMES project. I doubt if I have anything substantial enough to interest him, and I think a lot of us would like to know what's happening here. Here's an outline for those who don't know Ermes. Iit is the European Radio Messaging System from ETSI. It is planned to be a pan-European VHF multi-channel, wide-area alphanumeric paging network with (originally) a 1993 launch date (which has since slipped). The European commission allocated 200 kHz of spectrum between 169.6 and 169.8MHz for Ermes, and other frequencies around 800 MHz have been reserved in the VHF band. It will use frequency-agile receivers which scan 16 possible frequencies. The data-rate is 6250bit/s and the system allows the transparent transmission of data. Ermes devices may eventually be able to receive common frequencies across the US, Asia and the Pacific region. The problem with the system appears to be the additional costs imposed by the need for agile receivers. Normal pagers only use a single frequency. Don't confuse Ermes with Hermes, which is a European development of a space shuttle. There's also a cut-down pre-Ermes standard called Euromessage in the UHF band, which is limited to the UK, Germany, Italy and France. ------------------------------ From: Bob_Frankston@frankston.com Subject: Dials! Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 09:47 -0400 My son (11) confronted a dial phone this past weekend and couldn't figure out how to use it. He tried pressing the "buttons" but nothing happened. We finally had to show him the concept of turning the dial. It took a little practice to get it smooth. I guess we've reached a milestone. What if he were confronted by the "anti-drug" pay phones with dials and had to dial 911? He'd be stuck. In designing UI's we make assumptions about cultural norms or icons. Most people see the phone dial as a very obvious interface. It isn't, it's just something most of us learned at an early enough age to assume it is a part of the natural world. ------------------------------ From: fixer@faxcsl.dcrt.nih.gov Subject: ZMODEM - Proprietary? Reply-To: fixer@faxcsl.dcrt.nih.gov Organization: DCRT, NIH, Bethesda, MD Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 01:04:43 GMT I'm trying to determine whether the Zmodem transfer protocol is proprietary. Specifically, are there any *free* (i.e. non-shareware) tools for sending/receiving files utilizing the Zmodem protocol? Christopher Tate MSD, Inc. fixer@faxcsl.dcrt.nih.gov ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 13:54:49 EST From: FILCHOCK@cup.edu Subject: where is ALT.2600? Hi, We do not receive any ALT newsgroups at our site ... ARGHHHHHHHHH Could someone please inform me how/if I could get on the mailing list for alt.2600 Thanks, Richard Filchock filchock@cup.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: You don't receive any alt groups at your site? What a horrible deprivation that must be! :) I could understand your sysadmins deciding to only take alt groups and dump all the Usenet groups ... but not the other way around. I dunno if alt.2600 even has a mailing list (electronically, of course they have their printed maga- zine) but surely somene from there reading this will get back to you with details if they do. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 13:59:02 CST From: Doug_Gurich@fcircus.sat.tx.us (Doug Gurich) Subject: Job Opening GlobalCom International, a diversified telcommunications firm with world-wide operations, is seeking a Proposal Engineer with significant experience in data communications, ISDN and video conferencing. The ideal candidate would also have voice communications experience. This request is for a part-time consulting position which maycould lead to permanent employment. Applicants from all areas of the world are encouraged to apply (most work will be done on a telecommuting basis). Please forward credentials and accomplishments to the attention of Doug Gurich. Internet Doug_Gurich@fcircus.sat.tx.us Compuserve 71650,3012 Fax +1 (210) 525-7959 Address 9311 San Pedro, St. 700, San Antonio, TX 78216, USA ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 02:31:04 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: MCI Goes "Both Ways" (Was Useless 800 Number) Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA Monty Solomon mentions MCI's 800-WOW-ITS-HOT number, to make us think of how hot it is during summer. (Actually it's a demonstration of MCI's network, of course.) Item three on MCI's WOW-ITS-HOT recording is of seagulls at the beach. This was also in their demonstration last summer, for numbers to listen to so we can cool off! I guess they figure this sound works both ways! Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Your mention of this brought to mind our illustrious former president Lyndon Baines Johnson (1963-1968). One of his campaign slogans was 'all the way with LBJ' ... but during his term in office, the person who was his chief of staff, principal right-hand man and confidant of many years standing -- a fellow named Walter Jenkins -- got caught in an indelicate situation in the public men's room at the YMCA in Washington, DC. Caught with his pants down in a manner of speaking, the newspapers had a great time with it for a few days and Jenkins was forced to resign, all the while President Johnson pleaded ignorance of his long time associate's predilection. Before long the slogan 'all the way with LBJ' was more commonly said as 'either way with LBJ' or 'both ways with LBJ'. If you recall the man, you'll appreciate well the slogan could fit him. He was a coarse and rough-talking old geezer; sex was never far from his mind. PAT] ------------------------------ From: dave@sashimi.wwa.com (David Vrona) Subject: Looking For CID Box With Serial Port Date: 31 Mar 1994 11:50:02 -0600 Organization: WorldWide Access (SM) Chicagoland Internet Services Reply-To: dave@sashimi.wwa.com Hi All, I am looking for a box like the old Classmate that does CID and has serial output. I know I can buy a modem like the ZyXEL that does this but I am looking for something for under $100. Oh, and also, I would like name as well as number capability. Thanks, David Vrona N9QNZ +1 708 367 1870 (voice) Internet: dave@wwa.com Computing Engineers Inc. +1 708 367 1871 (data) +1 708 367 1872 (fax) Home of WorldWide Access (SM), Internet services for the Chicagoland area. Send e-mail to info@wwa.com for information, or call +1 708 367 1871 (data). ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 09:59:34 PST From: tedh@cylink.COM (Ted Hadley) Subject: Re: Humorous Names For the RBOCs > US West Taco Bell FYI: Stockbrokers call Telefonos de Mexico (The newly privatized Mexican telephone company) Taco Bell. Fits better than with US West, IMO. ^^^^^^^^^ Ted A. Hadley tedh@cylink.com ------------------------------ From: davep@u.washington.edu (Dave Ptasnik) Subject: Re: Humorous Names For the RBOCs Date: 31 Mar 1994 18:54:28 GMT Organization: University of Washington DAVID AUS <71742.1102@CompuServe.COM> writes: > When the Bell System was broken up, some wags came up with a cute name for > each of the then new RBOCs. I think I remember some of them: > Ameritech ? > Bell Atlantic Liberty Bell > Bell South Southern Belle > Nynex ? > PacTel Tinker Bell > Southwestern Bell Mission Bell > US West Taco Bell > Does anyone remember all the names? Ameritech was Cow Bell as I recall. All of the above is nothing more than the personal opinion of - Dave Ptasnik davep@u.washington.edu ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 00:31 WET From: ptindall@io.org (Peter Tindall) Subject: Primeline PAT said: > PrimeLine is essentially the equivilent of AT&T's 'Easy Reach 700' > service. Pat - Unless I am mistaken about 'Easy Reach 700' - they are not the same. PrimeLine is a service in Toronto that gives you a 416-410-NNNN number on a DMS switch. Software on the switch (written by a company called AccessLine I believe) answers the call and plays a message of your choice to the caller- and then handles the call according to your instructions. Transfer to Home/Office/Cellular/Other-In town/Other- Out of Town/Pager/ Messaging/Meet me Service (Caller hears jazzy elevator music while party is paged -- then calls are connected). An assortment of screening options are included: Prompts caller to identify if call is urgent/Forces caller to enter private DTMF code/ Forces caller to speak name & reason. You can also setup a weekly schedule in advance to vary your call processing options. My only complaint is that all long distance transfers are billed to your calling card. (With appropriate transaction charges -- and a slight delay as the DMS is DTMF'ing your calling number -- (caller does not get to hear)). Also the service is available in Ottawa area. Definately not a new advance in the Telecom world, but new for Ontario. You could duplicate this with a PC -- two phone lines and a Voice Mail card. But having used Primeline since March 2 I have only good things to say about it (except for comment above). It has simplified my life, and lowered my voice mailbox costs. Regards, Peter ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 16:02:30 EST From: Jerry Leichter Subject: Modern Times The following appeared last Wednesday in the {New York Times} "Metro- politan Diary" section, a compendium of amusing little stories about life today: Lobby conversation overheard while waiting for an elevator in midtown Manhattan. First guy: Well, I sure wasted a buck and a half last night. Second guy: How's that? First guy: That TV program "Hard Copy" did a segment on Tonya Harding and invited viewers to phone in, at 50 cents per call, yes or no, to the question, "Should Tonya go to jail?" Second guy: And...? First guy: I dialed the 'Yes' number but after I hung up I realized I'd phoned the 'No' number by mistake so then, of course, I had to dial the 'Yes' number twice to make my vote count. Second guy: Remember when you could just sit and watch? Jerry ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 21:09:06 -0500 From: Jonathan Subject: *999; CB Channel 9 Hello. I am wondering why the police do not routinely monitor CB channel 9, since the primary use of this channel is to report emergencies. Also, I have never heard of *999. Does it only work in Illinois? ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 23:04:00 CST From: Andrew C. Green Subject: Re: *999; CB Channel 9 Jonathan writes: > I am wondering why the police do not routinely monitor CB > channel 9, since the primary use of this channel is to report > emergencies. I think I generalized a bit there. I have heard conversations on Channel 9, including participating in one with an Indiana State Trooper trying to get through backed-up traffic to the scene of a rather nasty accident on I-65 one night, so Indiana State Police are listening. I think it's reasonable to assume that in all the technology packed into those squad cars, particularly Highway Patrol cars, they probably have sprung an extra fifty bucks or so for a CB radio, or included the appropriate wavelengths in the tuners of whatever equipment they have. Nevertheless, the fact remains that on many occasions I've heard legitimate requests for State Police help, in the middle of Chicago rush hours when you just _know_ they're around, and those requests are not answered. Similarly, the "Minutemen" Department of Transportation heavy tow trucks on routine patrol seem to be unreachable via CB radio. Now, I know they are in contact with dispatchers, but it's somewhat ridiculous to be in line-of-sight with a Minuteman who's unaware of, say, some incident occurring behind him, and be unable to get his attention via a simple CB radio. > Also, I have never heard of *999. Does it only work in Illinois? It's an arrangement between the cellular providers and the State Police, and I know it's not unique to the Chicago area, but beyond that I don't know the details. PAT, please advise! Andrew C. Green Datalogics, Inc. Internet: acg@dlogics.com 441 W. Huron Chicago, IL 60610-3498 FAX: (312) 266-4473 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: *999 goes to a state police dispatcher who in turn can dispatch it out or forward the call to the appropriate city authorities as needed. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 10:19:44 CST From: Andrew C. Green Subject: Re: New Area Code 630 Carl Moore writes: > Just today, I have received note of 630 in Illinois and 562 in > California ... > 630 might get landlines (that would affect some people who shifted > from 312 to 708 only in November 1989); On further reflection here in 708-land, I would have to assume that 630 would overlay 708, not be created from a renumbered chunk of existing 708. When 708 was introduced as a renumbering of part of 312 (the part outside Chicago city limits), there was a great hue and cry, of course, but also a rather considerable lead-in time. I believe it was something much more than the eleven months indicated for the impending 630. Consider also how much complaining would be generated from 708 folks having to change their stationery yet again. The local press has responded with thundering silence to this news item, by the way. Andrew C. Green Datalogics, Inc. Internet: acg@dlogics.com 441 W. Huron Chicago, IL 60610-3498 FAX: (312) 266-4473 ------------------------------ From: jfh@netcom.com (Jack Hamilton) Subject: Re: Who Paid For My 550? Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 17:04:13 GMT > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Normally the agents are on the A or B > side but not both; that is in their contract with the carriers. ... > Tandy has the kind of money and influence with the carriers that > they can get away with it. Its the same kind of thing where Pepsi and > Coca-Cola are concerned. You never see them both in the same vending > machine; you never see them both in the same restaurant as fountain > drinks. In our vending machine room there are two Pepsi machines. One has Pepsi products plus a few other things like Mountain Dew. The other contains no Pepsi products, but does have several varieties of Coca-Cola. In one of the smaller buildings, there's a single machine with both Coke and Pepsi. I'd never heard of this happening before very recently, though. Jack Hamilton Postal: POB 281107 SF CA 94128 USA jfh@netcom.com Packet: kd6ttl@w6pw.#nocal.ca.us.na [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Probably they cut a deal with the local salesman. Whoever is the bottler (distributor) for the area is under pretty tight constraints with Pepsi headquarters in Purchase, NY or Coke headquarters in Atlanta, GA regarding those things. Note that the local Pepsi bottler also has the Mountain Dew franchise, but he *cannot* have the 7-Up franchise because they are aligned with Coke. So you won't -- or rarely -- see 7-Up in a so-called 'Pepsi machine', and you won't see 'Upper-10' or whatever it is called in a 'Coke machine'. All the little (by comparison) outfits, join one side or the other in the local bottling and distribution process where Coke and Pepsi are concerned. But they all want **so bad** to be in the fountain syrup vending machine at all Southland stores that they swallow their pride or ambition or whatever. Coke even goes so far as to say in fountain service, you *will* use their paper cups with their insignia and their products advertised ... none others. But 7-Eleven gets to break the rules, as does Tandy where cell phones are concerned. Tandy has tossed around the idea of starting their own national cellular service, you know. They'd buy *huge* blocks of capacity from various cell carriers and they would then call the shots. I'm sure all the A and B carriers would fall in line pretty fast, or get dealt out of the game completely. PAT] ------------------------------ From: jfh@netcom.com (Jack Hamilton) Subject: Re: Country Code For San Marino Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 17:09:14 GMT Richard Barry wrote: > The ITU has issued a batch of new country codes which includes a new > code for San Marino (+378 effective 26.10.93). Other countries that > will be getting their own country code include Andorra (Autumn 1994) > and Monaco (in 1995) when France Telecom introduces its 2-digit new > area code plan. Do you know what the new plan will be? The two-digit department number strikes me as being a good choice, although it might not have enough space for Paris. If I were in charge of France Telecom, I'd probably use the department number plus a third digit for overlays and very large departments. (A department is roughly equivalent to a state or province in North America. Postal codes start with the department number.) Jack Hamilton Postal: POB 281107 SF CA 94128 USA jfh@netcom.com Packet: kd6ttl@w6pw.#nocal.ca.us.na ------------------------------ From: wright@LAA.COM Subject: Re: CATV Modems Date: 31 Mar 1994 18:07:07 GMT Organization: Lynn-Arthur Associates, Ann Arbor, MI Reply-To: wright@LAA.COM In article , gabioud@uni2a.unige.ch writes: > Do you know any equipment (modem, remodulator, ...) that allows data > communication over the CATV cable. On the user side, the modem should > feature a well-known interface (RS232C, Ethernet, ...). Check out First Pacific Networks at 408-730-6600. They have been providing this equipment for years. Carl A. Wright Lynn-Arthur Associates, Inc. +1 313 995 5590 wright@laa.com Operations Support Systems +1 313 995 5989 (fax) 2350 Green Road Suite 160 Ann Arbor, MI, 48105 USA ------------------------------ From: tsw@cypher.apple.com (Tom Watson) Subject: Re: Ruling on Dark Fiber Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 12:45:24 -0800 Organization: Apple Computer (more or less) OK, I'll bite... What is "dark fiber". Tom Watson tsw@cypher.apple.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Dark Fiber is, as I understand it, simply the fiber from one point to another, without the intelligence on either end of the line **as supplied by the telco** to use it. Dark fiber could roughly be compared to a wire cable from one place to another without telco's battery and/or switching apparatus on either end; the customer left to his own devices on how to use it. Although telcos have for many years provided so-called 'private line service' -- that is, a piece of wire from one point to another with the subscriber doing his own thing on both ends of the wire, I understand they (telcos) are not terribly enthusiastic about providing fiber under the same conditions. George Gilder wrote about this, and his essay is in the Telecom Archives for interested parties to review. PAT] ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Extension Cord For Cell Phone From: zeta@tcscs.com (Gregory Youngblood) Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 12:57:24 PST Organization: TCS Computer Systems > I _still_ think you're crazy. Nearly any cellular connection will > cost more than nearly any equivalent wired connection. Please check > this out carefully. Not quite. Several carriers now have plans with free (yes *FREE*) airtime on weekends or extremely low rates at night during certain hours. In 1988, it was cheaper to call from your basic rate cellular phone in Galveston after 11PM at night to Houston than it was to use the regular telephone. The price was 0.045 cents per minute with cellular. Now, my cousin in houston has a phone that has free airtime on the weekend. They use it a lot ... and they should. They pay $70/month for it, but when you consider that the dialing area for cellular in houston is so much larger than telco, they can call all their friends and family in the surrounding Houston metro area for no charge. So, the idea of going with an extension cord is not a crazy one ... it could make sense, although you have to check very carefully to make sure that your plan really is cheaper. It is possible. Greg The Complete Solution BBS Allfiles List: Anonymous UUCP Calls Accepted 707-459-4547 (24hrs, v.32) ~/tcsbbs.lst Login: nuucp Password: nuucp Telemate Distribution Site zeta@tcscs.com Cellular Telephony Groups [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: But would they use $70 worth on a regular basis if landline was all they had? That is what has to be answered. We all know that the more service which is available, the more subscribers will use it. In other words, cellular service comes in many shapes and sizes. Some very inexpensive plans bill for every single minute day or night at high rates. There is nothing unusual about spending a lot of money on cellular and getting a sort of kickback from the carrier in terms of free or nearly free weekend and night service. And while landline service offers 'free local calling' in many areas, the geographic area is smaller as is the monthly fee for the 'free local calls'. Cellular service gives a larger 'local area' but charges by the minute. It has to be your own application as to which works out better; but overall, would you be willing to spend as much money on landline service call by call as you spend on cellular for the advantage of 'free' service nights and weekends if landline was all you had available? PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #158 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa12729; 1 Apr 94 17:51 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA00513; Fri, 1 Apr 94 13:33:03 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA00502; Fri, 1 Apr 94 13:33:01 CST Date: Fri, 1 Apr 94 13:33:01 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404011933.AA00502@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #159 TELECOM Digest Fri, 1 Apr 94 13:33:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 159 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Long Distance Dialing in Delaware (Wilmington News Journal via Carl Moore) Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto (Greg Trotter) Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto (George L. Sicherman) Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program (Fritz Friedlaender) Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program (Todd Inch) Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program (Nazli Meliha Roth) Re: Predictions About Future A/C Splits (David A. Kaye) Re: Predictions About Future A/C Splits (James Taranto) Re: Observations About Area Code Splits (David Esan) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Jeff Haran) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (102030@pwfl.com) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Ed Mitchell) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Laurence Chiu) Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links (Daniel Goemans) Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links (Lynne Gregg) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 1 Apr 94 11:54:21 EST From: Carl Moore Subject: Long Distance Dialing in Delaware This appeared on page 1 of the {News Journal}, Wilmington, Delaware, on March 31, 1994. Notice that 1 is being dropped for 555-1212. About 2/3 of the way through this article, it says "zeroes and ones as second digits in local numbers"; I don't know the meaning of this remark, because: 1. Some Bell Atlantic areas already use N0X/N1X prefixes. (New Jersey; 215 in Pa.; 410/301/202/703 in Md./DC/Va.) 2. As you know, Delaware is way down near the bottom in being crowded w/r to telephone numbers. (And in the history file, I do ask what will become of "no N0X/N1X prefixes unless NNX is running short".) ------------------ Long-distance dialing in Del. just got longer By JANE BROOKS, Staff reporter WILMINGTON -- Beginning April 1, people making long-distance telephone calls within Delaware should start dialing 11 digits. It's no April Fools' Day joke. Dial 1 (or 0 for collect), plus area code 302, plus the seven-digit number of the party you are calling. After April 1, however, you can drop the 1 prefix when calling directory assistance within the state. Just dial 555-1212. But should you forget to add the area code or dial the unnecessary 1 for information, have no fear. The phone company will be forgiving. The network will accept old and new dialing patterns for nine months. And there will be plenty of advertising reminders before the new methods become mandatory. Why change dialing patterns? There's no immediate problem in Delaware, but the nation is running out of phone numbers. Until now, all area codes had 0 or 1 as the middle digit, for instance, 302 and 610. As the population and telephone service grows, so does the need for more area codes and the subsequent need for different middle digits. Also, Bell Atlantic will begin using zeroes and ones as second digits in local numbers next year to open up a multitude of new number series. Eleven-digit dialing is designed to help computers distinguish area codes and local exchange numbers. The Delaware Public Service Commission approved. So, on Jan. 7, 1995, you fingers will have to walk a little longer from Wilmington to Dover, from Dover to Delmar. Bell Atlantic-Delaware suggests you start now. Rates will not be affected. ------------------------------ From: greg@gallifrey.ucs.uoknor.edu (Greg Trotter) Subject: Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto Date: 31 Mar 1994 01:39:03 GMT Organization: Home of the TimeLords... In article vantek@aol.com writes: > LIVINGSTON, N.J. (MARCH 22) BUSINESS WIRE - March 22, 1994 -- A new > company which is employing Bellcore-developed technology is expected > to have a far-reaching impact on electronic record keeping and on > controversies ranging from authenticity of business records to false > retouching of digital photographs. [...] > Surety Technologies welcomes developers and corporations who are > interested in testing the system and serving as beta sites for Digital > Notary software. Call Surety Technologies, Inc. at (201) 993-8178; > fax number is (201) 993-8748. Information is also available on the > Internet at infonotary.com. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ My system can't seem to find this place ... and whois at internic seems clueless as well. Anybody have any updated information? greg ------------------------------ From: George.L.Sicherman@att.com Subject: Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto Organization: Save the Dodoes Foundation Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 14:25:59 GMT In , vantek@aol.com wrote: > The new company, Surety Technologies, Inc., will offer its Digital > Notary service that can affix a tamper-proof time-stamp seal to any > electronic document. ... > At the core of the time-stamping technology is an innovative > application of software that generates a characteristic "digital > fingerprint" for any document. ... When a > user seals a document, computer software generates the document's > fingerprint and sends it as a "time-stamp request" to a Digital Notary > server, which immediately sends back a "time-stamp certificate" for > the document. ... Isn't the server a critical weakness? The details are missing, but it sounds as if the server encrypts the hashed document with the date and time, using a private R.S.A. key. To validate the document, the public would decrypt the cipher with the corresponding public key. If you obtain the private key, by bribery or other means, you can forge all the documents you like. For the service company to let the key fall into the wrong hands would be like a bank's letting a safe-deposit key fall into the wrong hands. That's bad for the bank's reputation and is not supposed to happen -- but it does. The lesson for us is that an authentication is no more reputable than the people doing the authenticating. In the computer age, everybody's reputation is on the line! P.S. I've never committed all the area codes to memory (though ASCII codes are another story), but anybody who thinks the Moderator's wits are crumbling just isn't reading carefully. The only warning symptom I've ever seen is his continuing to put out this Digest when he could be out enjoying life as a coal miner in Kentucky. Col. G. L. Sicherman gls@hrcms.ATT.COM [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Thank you Colonel. Tell me this: any ideas how Colonel came to be pronounced 'kernel' rather than 'call-on-nell'? Or put another way, why is it we make popcorn and have left over kernels rather than left over colonels? And even though this is April Fool's Day, there *was* at one point in the Army an actual person of Colonel in rank whose last name was Korne. At least it was not spelled 'corn'. And why do we call it the kernel in Unix instead of the colonel? PAT ------------------------------ From: fritzj@ecn.purdue.edu (Fritz Friedlaender) Subject: Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program Organization: Purdue University Engineering Computer Network Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 21:46:45 GMT If you have a modem that supports caller ID (e.g. PP14400 - the mini- tower and internal version, NOT the pocket version) it is easy to store the CNID data on a PC. Get Kermit (for instance), at zero cost, and run a "log file". This file will contain all the "ring" entries, and the Caller-ID information, usually between the first and second ring. Just be sure that your communications program is running and Caller-ID enabled in the desired format, IF available on your modem. See several very recent postings on the minimum conditions needed to make this work (in essence, if your Caller-ID box works, so will this scheme with the appropriate modem). Same information. FJF ------------------------------ From: Todd Inch Subject: Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 14:22:10 PST In volume 14, issue 154 it is written: > In article Paul Robinson > writes: >> Steve Lindsay , writes to TELECOM Digest >> as follows: >>> Does anyone know of a little DOS or Windows shareware program >>> that will act like the one of those caller-ID boxes? If, as others have said, most modems with Caller-ID can output formatted, human-readable text, why not simply use Windows' "Accessories Terminal" or Kermit or whatever to monitor the modem output? Most such communications programs will log output to a file as well. Of course this won't run in the background and pop up in the forground when a call comes in or have other fancy features, but the price is right. ------------------------------ From: Nazli@panda.dnr.state.mi.us (Nazli Meliha Roth) Subject: Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 00:22:58 +1000 Organization: Michigan State University > I am in the same situation as the original author. I have Caller-ID > service at my home, and I have a stand-alone Caller-ID box that > usually displays the numbers of callers in my local area codes (508 & > 617; BTW, I've never seen one from outside those areas ... yet). > However, I have a Practical Peripheral PM14400FXMT modem, and it > supports Caller ID, and I, too, would like a Windows utility that > basically acts like my stand-alone Caller-ID box. I want the utility > to display incoming caller information in real time, and also have to > ability to log this data to a file if I want. I should be able to > scroll thru some number of recent calls, etc, etc. You may do well by just loading up some decent terminal application (or terminal.exe if you are desperate), typing in the AT command that starts up your Caller-ID support and let it run in the background. I have a SupraFaxModem v.32bis and plan on doing this when (and if) I ever get the service. ------------------------------ From: dk@crl.com (David A. Kaye) Subject: Re: Predictions About Future A/C Splits Date: 31 Mar 1994 12:52:46 -0800 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Linc Madison (LincMad@netcom.com) wrote: > The following area codes could all at least TRIPLE the number of > exchanges in use without requiring a split. Any split is thus quite a > long ways off. > 707 - Napa/Eureka, California It's funny that you call this Napa/Eureka, since Santa Rosa is the largest city. Anyhow, I don't think they'll be splitting anytime soon, because aside from the Santa Rosa area there is no growth in the Redwood Empire. Eureka has only grown 3,000 people in 10 years, Napa about 10,000, and Ukiah about 2,500. Cell phone penetration is not big in that region, nor is voicemail. Paging is okay, but has none of the intensive growth seen in metro areas. It's not a fad there. I'll admit it is unusual to see a California area code amost 300 miles long and about 100 miles wide, but nobody's there! ------------------------------ From: taranto@panix.com (James Taranto) Subject: Re: Predictions About Future A/C Splits Date: 31 Mar 1994 00:59:43 GMT Organization: The Bad Taranto In article , LincMad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) wrote: > The splits in 703 and 214 in particular may put to the test the > sanctity of the "you must dial 1 for all toll calls, and you must be > able to dial all local calls without a 1" arrangement. That arrangement is hardly sacred. In NYC, for example, we have to dial 1 for all calls between 212 and 718. Cheers, James Taranto taranto@panix.com ------------------------------ From: de@moscom.com (David Esan) Subject: Re: Observations About Area Code Splits Date: 31 Mar 94 15:42:25 GMT Organization: Moscom Corporation, Pittsford NY In article LincMad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) writes: > I was looking at David Esan's 1/15/94 NPA-NXX list and noticed quite a > number of surprising numbers. There were a couple of instances where > I hope the answer is that a previously-effected split is not yet > reflected in the number of exchanges shown for the old area code. For > example, 212 shows 639 exchanges, and 168 for 917. I hope that the > total for 212 still includes the prefixes now in 917 and/or the Bronx > prefixes now in 718. Your hope is in vain. When the Bronx was moved to 718 there were more than 700 exchanges in 212. There were 99 exchanges that moved and 212 must have added a few. When 917 was created, I understood that all cellular, fax, modem, etc. numbers would be moved there. This does not seem to be the case. It looks more like all new numbers will be there, while the old numbers remain in 212. > Colorado's 303 is also one I hope is wrong: it shows 601 prefixes against > 184 in 719. Atlanta's recent split apparently isn't yet (fully?) reflected: > 404 shows 590 and 706 shows >308. I stand by my numbers. The numbers given will reflect the deletions caused by a split, when those deletions go into effect, usually three to six months after the end of the permissive dialing period. I can not speak for why NPAs were split the way that they were. It is possible that they were done in the hope that the NPAs would survive until Time T, when overlays would be more common and available. It makes sense on a map to draw a circle around Atlanta and say: This will be 404, the rest will be 706. It makes no sense from a telephonic viewpoint. The 303 split should have a been a overlay. The majority of the people in Colorado live in or near Denver. And yet that wouldn't have been polically expedient in those days. You can easily see why most the splits were done in the manner they were, circles drawn on the map. Dallas and the 'burbs remain 214, the exurbs go to 903. Houston goes by itself. Toronto, but not the surrounding area. Detroit, but not the 'burbs, Chicago but not the 'burbs. Do these splits actually split? Do they make sense for the future? No. Houston is now going to split while the surrounding NPA (409) has only 323 exchanges. 708 is going to split, just a few short years after the first split. 303 and 404 are bound to be split in the next few years. There will continue to be explosive growth in the West. I have seen studies that suggest the mountain states could quadruple their populations in the next 20 years. (Where the water is coming from I fear to find out.) This could mean an increase in telephone services of 6 to 8 times, as the newcomers will not add just one line, but several, and services will increase. David Esan de@moscom.com ------------------------------ From: jharan@cwa.com (Jeff Haran) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Organization: CWA Communications Products, Los Gatos, CA Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 01:02:06 GMT In article howard@hal.com writes: > A friend suggested to me that, sometime in the future, almost everyone > will carry around a cellular phone almost all the time. She thinks > this will significantly reduce the amount of crime, because it will be > very easy to report a crime or other suspicious behavior that one > observes. I'm skeptical, but it seems like an interesting topic for > discussion. There is an interesting sci-fi novel that you might still be able to find on the bookshelves that discusses this very topic (among several others), sort of. "Earth" by David Brin. Interesting method of reducing crime, but not a universe I want to live in. My problem is at this point I think it is a future scenario that is just about unavoidable in the not so far distant future, and I figure I still have quite a few years left. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: "Earth" discusses things that even a few years ago were unthinkable. But a lot of things which were unthinkable years ago are gradually becoming 'thinkable' ... solutions are being found for problems that are as frightening as the problems they solve. Yet they seem to be the only solution; the only real workable answer. Consider Chicago: what little civilization remains in large parts of the city is rapidly vanishing. Gangs rule in large parts of the south and west sides. Twelve children killed in the past two weeks in various incidents of gun battles between rival gangs ... the murder rate here is 25 percent higher than a year ago. Ditto Miami and Los Angeles to name two areas here: the inner cities are rotten to the core. I lived in Chicago for almost all my life and I would never want to go back into the city again. I cringe when I have to ride downtown to the post office where I still have my PO Box I've had for 25 years. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 15:57:06 EST From: E102030@PWAGPDB.pwfl.com Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cellphones Reduce Crime? Widespread use of cellphones will probably not reduce crime but it will give ball-less individuals another opportunity to not make a difference. Appropriate avoidance of physical involvement in violent situations is certainly a responsible behavior. However, not calling 911 because it does not involve 'me' is reprehensible. I'm glad I don't live in Chicago. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I'm glad I don't live there any longer also. First of all, 911 does not work from cell phones here. You can dial the oh-operator and ask to be extended if you wish. However, contrary to what you might hear when listening to a police scanner with the constant backlog of calls (the Chicago PD dispatchers *never* quit talking; *never* drop carrier -- seriously, there is a constant backlog of calls being given out), even though on all sorts of minor matters when the police are sent somewhere and the complaintant is given as 'citizen refused' or 'Mr. Good Citizen' as they sometimes mock the callers to 911 when talking on the radio, your number is recorded and they can get back to you if they wish -- which is fine, except! Try reporting a serious crime which you witnessed. If the criminal is caught, *you* will be subpoened to come to court and give your eye-witness account. *You* will be hounded and harassed by the ACLU attorney appointed to represent the defendant. *Your* integrity will be called into question. Defendants have the right, as I believe they should, to confront their accuser ... that's you if you were the one calling 911 to report it. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Ed Mitchell Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 12:06:49 PST Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? In Seattle WA, the 911 dispatchers have said that they often receive up to 30 calls from cellular phone users when an accident occurs on a major highway. This results in a massive overload of the 911 system. The result is that US West Cellular announced last winter that they would begin charging 50 cents for each 911 call, in addition to airtime charges, to discourage overuse of the system and to help fund additional 911 dispatchers to answer the phone. The Seattle Times article that reported on this also mentioned that the enhanced 911 system, which provides addresses of the caller, is going to become worthless in a world full of portable telephones. Clearly, this is a major problem to which some great minds will need to give a lot of attention. Lastly, use your own judgment in terms of reporting a crime. Ensure your own safety by not putting yourself in danger (an injured rescuer is worse than no rescuer since now there are at least two parties to rescue). Do report medical emergencies and serious vehicle accidents. Minor fender benders do not need a police response. Your state may wish that you report motorists with disabled vehicles along freeways. A few years ago, I read where a mother and daughter, parked will off the right side of the road, in broad daylight, hood up, flasher on, were slammed from behind by a drunk and killed -- if someone had called a tow truck or 911, perhaps they would not have been waiting beside the road so long. A couple of months ago, a woman was raped in her own vehicle on I-5, right in Seattle. She'd been on the side of the road, flashers on, for FOUR hours in the darkness of evening. State records showed that no patrol car had passed by. You should have called! Ed Mitchell edmitch@microsoft.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: One thing you do not want to do in Chicago is get out of your car for any reason on the Dan Ryan expressway where it runs through the center of the CHA housing projects on the south side. In general, avoid the Dan Ryan (I-94) whenever possible because they also shoot at the cars from the highrises nearby. PAT] ------------------------------ From: lchiu@crl.com (Laurence Chiu) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: 31 Mar 1994 17:42:33 -0800 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access In article , Andrew Robson wrote: > The Half Moon Bay Review (a local paper in CA) carried an article on > the front page about a bank robbery foiled by a cell phone. > When the getaway car roared away, a local citizen was offended by the > reckless driving. He didn't know about the robbery, he just wanted > safe driving on the local streets. He followed long enough to call > the licence, a description of the car, and its direction to 911. > There are only three roads out of town, with no turn off for several > miles. The robber was arrested a couple of minutes later. Out of interest, I presume that when you call 911 from your home phone you reach a dispatch service which is local to your community. So if you call 911 from a cell phone, which dispatch service do you reach? Laurence Chiu | Walnut Creek, California | Tel: 510-215-3730 (work) | Internet: lchiu@crl.com | [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In a lot of places, including the Chicago metro area you don't reach anyone. 911 goes to intercept telling you in an emergency to dial the operator for assistance. In other place where there is only one central dispatch, it goes there. PAT] ------------------------------ From: goemansd@kirk.usafa.af.mil (Daniel Goemans) Subject: Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 21:19:25 GMT Organization: United States Air Force Academy In article bobfromtn@aol.com (BobFromTN) writes: > These products are for direct links between RJ11 jack and the cellular > phone. Perhaps other/better products are available? With that link, does anyone know if you then need an MNP-10 standard modem *in addition* to the link (to package data) ... or does the link package the data accordingly on its own? Daniel Goemans USAF Academy ------------------------------ From: Lynne Gregg Subject: Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 13:15:00 PST From: bobfromtn@aol.com (BobFromTN) > A competitor's product is made by AXCELL, but I have no other information > about this product. I've used the AXCELL (Spectrum) product under the Fujitsu label. The Spectrum product performs very well and worked with a number of devices from PC's to fax machines. Regards, Lynne ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #159 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa13040; 1 Apr 94 18:18 EST Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA02629; Fri, 1 Apr 94 14:21:10 CST Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA02620; Fri, 1 Apr 94 14:21:08 CST Date: Fri, 1 Apr 94 14:21:08 CST From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404012021.AA02620@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #160 TELECOM Digest Fri, 1 Apr 94 14:21:00 CST Volume 14 : Issue 160 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson PC Pursuit Has Ended (Steven H. Lichter) Re: CATV Modems (Barton F. Bruce) Re: CATV Modems (Steve Kalkwarf) Re: CATV Modems (Darren Swartzendruber) Re: Telecom Business Idea (Paul Robinson) Re: Telecom Business Idea (Mike Lanza) Re: Telecom Business Idea (Robert L. McMillin) Re: Area Code 562 (Alan Larson) Re: Cellular Roaming Charges (Carl Jones) Re: Digital Cordless Phones -- How Private? (Bill Mayhew) Re: Pager Scam Resurfaces (David G. Cantor) Congo Expedition Video Con Kickoff (Steve Eggleston) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ***************************************************** DON'T FORGET! THIS IS THE WEEKEND WE IN THE USA MUST CHANGE OUR CLOCKS FORWARD ONE HOUR ON SATURDAY NIGHT OR SUNDAY MORNING. SPRING AHEAD AS 'THEY' SAY!! ***************************************************** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: co057@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Steven H. Lichter) Subject: PC Pursuit Has Ended Date: 1 Apr 1994 19:29:13 GMT Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (USA) PC Pursuit has now gone into The Information Highway history books. As of 9:00 PM Pacific Time it went down; that was three hours earlier then it was supposed to on 3/31/94. Many paid for a full month of $30.00 for 30 hours and got cheated for at least three hours. The talk among the many users of the service was Sprint killed the program by not advertising a service that could have made money. Global Access hasa service much like Pursuit but at a higher cost but from what I have seen soon to be 9600 and it covers much more of the country the Pursuit did since they have switched or are switching over to Tymnet. Sysop: Apple Elite II -=- an Ogg-Net Hub BBS (909) 359-5338 12/24/96/14.4 V32/V42bis Via PCP CACOL/12/24 ------------------------------ From: Barton.Bruce@camb.com Subject: Re: CATV Modems Organization: Digital Equipment Computer Users Society Date: 31 Mar 94 01:00:43 -0500 Organization: Cambridge Computer Associates, Inc. In article , leonard@telcom.arizona.edu (Aaron Leonard) writes: > In article , gabioud@uni2a.unige.ch writes: >> A CATV cable has a huge bandwidth available. A part of it is usually > I understand that Zenith also has (or is working on) such a device, > although Zenith's is cheaper and only provides .5Mbps. Zenith is what Continental Cable and PSI are using in their 500kb Internet to the home service in Cambridge MA. The Zenith NIC fits in you ISA bus PC and has NDIS and other reasonable drivers. A short cord ties it to a box that the CATV cable goes into. This per home stuff **LISTS* at $500, and obviously wholesales in CATV quantities for a LOT less. The 'headend' stuff (headend here is the 20 or so 'neighborhoods' Cambridge is split into -- done for normal video, before data) is a $2000 box plus another at $1000 to get to ethernet. Zenith puts four 500kb channels on a video channel, and two (one each way) are used for each 'LAN' of customers. More video channels can be used if needed, and 'neighborhoods' can be split into smaller ones. It is all fiber back to headquarters. Recent trade press has Continental buying MANY $100,000 each ATM switches to feed out to various towns. Zenith has the hardware, just order it. Oh, and while you are at it, you probably better BUY a cable TV company too ... ------------------------------ From: kalkwarf@netcom.com (Steve Kalkwarf) Subject: Re: CATV Modems Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 06:04:01 GMT In article , gabioud@uni2a.unige.ch wrote: > Do you know any equipment (modem, remodulator, ...) that allows data > communication over the CATV cable. On the user side, the modem should > feature a well-known interface (RS232C, Ethernet, ...). I've seen PR flack from Zenith Data Systems that promises 4 .5mb Ethernet "stripes" per 6mhz channel. The burning question in my mind that an engineer from TCI (my local franchise) couldn't answer is, "What can you do to guarantee that ingress won't snuff my network?" Steve ------------------------------ From: dls@cci.com (Darren Swartzendruber) Subject: Re: CATV Modems Organization: Northern Telecom, Network Application Systems Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 16:49:11 GMT In article , gabioud@uni2a.unige.ch writes: > A CATV cable has a huge bandwidth available. A part of it is usually > not used for TV channels and could be used (at least from a technical > standpoint) for data transmission, if a return channel is available. > Do you know any equipment (modem, remodulator, ...) that allows data > communication over the CATV cable. On the user side, the modem should > feature a well-known interface (RS232C, Ethernet, ...). I have been looking into PSICable. For $125 a month (flat fee) they offer a 500 Kb/s connection to the Internet to your home via cable. Small businesses and larger organizations can get a 2 Mb/s connection. Unfortunately, it is currently only available in Cambridge (not here!). I have a call into my cable company's VP of Marketing to find out when the Rochester, NY area will get it. Try PSICable at 1 800 827 7482 (1.800.82psi82). For me, forget ISDN! Darren Swartzendruber Internet: n2ktj@cci.com Northern Telecom NAS Packet->Internet: n2ktj@w2xo.wpa.pa.usa.noam Rochester, NY ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 12:22:00 EST From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Re: Telecom Business Idea Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA Mike Lanza , writes in TELECOM Digest: >> Since many people are buying computers with modems and >> software (and often trial Compuserve memberships), I feel >> there may be a market for providing a local access number that >> would give them a dial-tone in a neighboring city, thus >> allowing them to dial the service of their choice. > If the economics were there to do this, I don't see why the > packet networks wouldn't have already done it. Besides, it > seems to me that the most cost-effective way to get this done > is either through 800 access or 950 access for those who do > not have a local access number. I think they have. That's what Compuserve did. But remember that a large company is going to have large overhead, and higher costs. A small, lean company can get by on much less. What I find -- amazing is the kindest term - are the claims of people who suggest that using a packet network provider is less expensive. I've seen people quote rates for someone wanting to use Compuserve's network to connect their own system, and the rates are something like $7.80 an hour. Someone want to explain how this supposed to be an advantage to me? I can get $6.60 an hour on AT&T at night without even having to subscribe to their plans. Compuserve itself only charges its own customers $0.30 an hour for connection time through its network (probably because they make it up in the service fees.) And if I was doing a wats extender service, I would *never* give someone raw dial tone; you have something simulate it, let them dial in, then have your end dial out on a different line, then bridge the two together, being certain to instantly disconnect if it either gets CPC or hears dialtone on the distant line. > At low volume, 800 service (w/ T1 at the receiving end) goes for about > 14 cents a minute, while 950 access goes for around 18 cents a minute, > but the latter should definitely come down as its traffic increases. > This compares to about eight or nine cents a minute for packet access. > (Of course, keep in mind that the quantity discount for packet access > is greater since there is no fixed cost of local access -- four cents > a minute -- to account for.) This doesn't make any sense. If a call across the country at night is around 11c/minute, why would someone pay 3-7c/minute more to allow someone to be able to connect to them. I think your rate is much higher than actual rates. Even the smallest telephone company providing long distance service (Interexchange Company or IXC) can match AT&T's rates, which I'm sure they can't do it if a 1-800 access costs 14c, plus costs to then retransmit that traffic. Yet even a small IXC can't be doing that large a volume. Here's an example. If you have a small town and set up a bank of ten lines to allow them to be used for reduced-price outgoing calls, here's the numbers to expect: Fixed Costs: 10 Computers to do wats extender service- $5000 20 Installed lines 2000 Fiber and installation between points 1000 8000 Recurring Costs 20 Commercial lines at $20 a month each $400 Rental of a closet at each end 200 Electricity for computers 20 Connection between both points 200 Subtotal 820 One year's charges 9840 Total 17840 My estimate of "connection between both points" is based upon running your own connection across private property and leasing pole space. This does not include any permits or licenses it is claimed you might be required to obtain. Now, let's say that you can get the lines used for 50% of the time, due to the cost difference. If you charge, let's say 5c per minute, then 10 lines x 12 hours x 60 x 5 = 36000 minutes @.05 = 1800 a month. For small towns, there probably just isn't the interest for a larger company to spend the time and trouble to handle the load. 10% ROI is not bad -- if you can keep the lines loaded. If this can be done in several areas that someone can service all of them as one person, then it may be possible to make a living off of it. At least until the phone company wises up and cuts its rates or uses its political clout to try to allow you to be refused access. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 11:16:59 +0000 From: Mike Lanza Subject: Re: Telecom Business Idea >> At low volume, 800 service (w/ T1 at the receiving end) goes for about >> 14 cents a minute, while 950 access goes for around 18 cents a minute, >> but the latter should definitely come down as its traffic increases. >> This compares to about eight or nine cents a minute for packet access. >> (Of course, keep in mind that the quantity discount for packet access >> is greater since there is no fixed cost of local access -- four cents >> a minute -- to account for.) > This doesn't make any sense. If a call across the country at night is > around 11c/minute, why would someone pay 3-7c/minute more to allow > someone to be able to connect to them. You're talking about night rates. I didn't qualify what time period I was talking about. What you'll find with volume long-distance pricing is that it's a bit cheaper for non-peak times (i.e. nights and weekends), and a *lot* cheaper for peak times. Having an 800 number adds a small amount to the total cost. Let's take Sprint's 800 pricing. The structure is more complicated than I want to get into here, but Peak (M-F, 8-5) prices are about 15 cents less at least 12 percent volume discount (low volumes -- around $5000 month get around 12 percent discount, and the highest volumes get up to 20 percent). Non-peak prices are about 12.2 cents less at least 12 percent volume discount. These prices were as of about a year and a half ago. I'm sure that they're lower now, and will be lower a year from now. > Here's an example. If you have a small town and set up a bank of 10 > lines to allow them to be used for reduced-price outgoing calls, here's > the numbers to expect: > Fixed Costs: > 10 Computers to do wats extender service- $5000 > 20 Installed lines 2000 > Fiber and installation between points 1000 > 8000 > Recurring Costs > 20 Commercial lines at $20 a month each $400 > Rental of a closet at each end 200 > Electricity for computers 20 > Connection between both points 200 > Subtotal 820 > One year's charges 9840 > Total 17840 It sure looks like you've done your homework on how to do it your way. One problem that I have with your numbers, though, is that I think a very large cost of running these sites is the labor cost of setting everything up at a site (transporting hardware to the site, finding the "closet" and renting it, traveling to the closet to install the hardware and to get everything up and running) and maintaining each site. There's a *ton* of travel time in there. After all, these rural sites are almost always hard to get to by definition. One other problem -- how do you let the people in these rural areas know about your service? I can't think of a way to do it unless you team up with the online services to inform them. They'd have to change their welcome packet literature, software for online signup (AOL), and they'd have to get this information to all their customer support people. You're pretty much dependent on them to do all this, so you'd have to pay them for it. You might have to pay them, say, 20% (?) of your revenues. One thing I can guarantee you -- it won't be 1% or 5%, as you'd like. > Now, let's say that you can get the lines used for 50% of the time, due > to the cost difference. If you charge, let's say 5c per minute, then 50% utilization? Really? That's if you're doing *really* well. That's after you've been up and running for a couple of years and have tuned each node to match performance well. And to do the latter, you're going to have to monitor utilization on all these sites rather closely. How will you monitor them? Won't monitoring cost money (in terms of up-front software development time, telecom time to pick up data, and management time to collect and interpret the data)? I'm just skeptical that adding hardware at rural sites for connection to the telephone system can be profitable. As any telco numbers person -- their rural loops are *incredibly* unprofitable. The telcos will continue take a bath in rural loops because they're forced to. If they didn't have to, they wouldn't. Mike Lanza ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 20:44 PST From: rlm@helen.surfcty.com (Robert L. McMillin) Subject: Re: Telecom Business Idea On 24 Mar 1994 04:09:22 PST, Jonathan_Welch said: > If you're going to go to the trouble of leasing a line you might be > better off setting up a 486DX50 pc running linux and lease the line to > an internet provider. You'd then sell accounts on your machine for a > flat monthly rate. You'd have to be sure your local calling area > encompases enough subscribers so you don't end up losing money. Good grief! I run Linux and I know *I'd never* want to run it as an O/S directly connected to the Net, particularly one that is a public location. The networking code still has lots of security holes. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Mar 94 14:54:26 PST From: larson@net.com (Alan Larson) Subject: Re: Area Code 562 In article was written written: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: You know, this is getting to where it > isn't even funny any more. Thirty years ago I knew every area code and > where it was located. Now I can't remember half of them ... and wait until > next year when all those strange ones start popping up everywhere. PAT] Well, this is one of the unfortunate side-effects of getting older ... Alan [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Thank you for sharing. Who's next? PAT] ------------------------------ From: uswnvg!uswnvg.com!cajones@uunet.UU.NET (Carl Jones) Subject: Re: Cellular Roaming Charges Date: 31 Mar 94 23:43:53 GMT Not to be a pessimist here, but your method is not going to work very well for several reasons. Usually A system carriers do not have roaming agreements with B side carriers and vice versa. So you won't be able to use your phone on the non preferred system most of the time (unless you set up as a guest roamer which is expensive to the point of insanity). Also your roaming rates are pre-determined by your cellular carrier. Your home carrier sets up roaming networks with other carriers and will charge under the standard rate that the carrier that you are roaming into charges (or over, for that matter) I speak for everyone in a twenty mile radius around me. Any questions ... E-Mail cajones@uswnvg.com ------------------------------ From: wtm@uhura.neoucom.EDU (Bill Mayhew) Subject: Re: Digital Cordless Phones -- How Private? Organization: Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 00:47:07 GMT I don't know about most models. I have a Tropez "Digital 900DX". It appears to exchange a 16 bit key when it is placed on the base unit. It appears that the key is not sent out over he air. If the handset forgets the key due to a dead battery, the only way to resynchronize is to put it back on the base unit. There are three elelctrical contracts that engage when the handset is on the base. The logical extension of this fact is that the same key (or key sequence) will be used at least until the phone is hung up. If they were smart, a working key would be generated based upon the message exchanged without brodcast. Without too much work, the 900 MHz phones could be made pretty darn secure. It is all a matter of programming, and the processing power is will within the reach of modern inexpensive embedded controllers. I don't know if it is possible to exhaustively search the 65,536 or so available key combinations. I'm not terribly familiar with the operation of the Motorola CODECs and control microprocessors to make a judgement. A professional might be able to get your converstion, but the casual teenager next door with a scanner will be foiled. Bill Mayhew NEOUCOM Computer Services Department Rootstown, OH 44272-0095 USA phone: 216-325-2511 wtm@uhura.neoucom.edu amateur radio 146.58: N8WED ------------------------------ Reply-To: dgc@math.ucla.edu Subject: Re: Pager Scam Resurfaces Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 18:51:37 -0800 From: David G. Cantor In his note the TELECOM Digest Editor stated: > The other thing which makes this 'modem scam resurfaces' thing fishy > in my opinion is that suppose you have a pager and get such a call. > Where do you usually go to return the call? Either a pay phone or > you use your cell phone ... and telcos do not connect to 976 or 900 > numbers from pay phones either. How are they gonna get paid; are > you gonna stand there and deposit fifty dollars in quarters in the > box? And cellphone carriers also typically disallow 976 and 900 > calls. Usually the only place you can complete these calls is from > a private phone within the LATA. PAT] There are many workmen who go to customer's offices or homes and who can't afford cellular telephones. They carry pagers. When they get a page, they will ask the customer if they can return the page from the customer's phone. The customer will almost always say "yes". Furthermore, at least in California, you can make it very difficult for the fraudulent scam operator to collect. The back of my Pac Bell bill states "Your basic telephone service will not be disconnected for non-payment [of] 900 and 976 charges or other information services ..." David G. Cantor dgc@math.ucla.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: You know, failure to pay for your sub- scription to this Digest will not cause your phone to get turned off either ... but my phones here are in constant jeopardy of disconnection due to the high cost versus relatively low income where the publication of the Digest is concerned. Gifts from readers are always graciously accepted and may be made payable either to Ameritech or Northern Illinois Gas Company. Thanks go to a reader who wishes to remain anonymous who sent a check to the Village of Skokie Water Works; that bill is now paid in full; at least I don't have to worry about drawing water for my bath should I be inclined to take one or fixing a pot of coffee now and then. It was a long and very cold winter here though; I still have a few hundred to pay off on the gas bill. I've had a few contacts with a corporate/organizational sponsor for the Digest and I hope that those arrangements will be in effect soon. My sincere thanks go out to those readers who have contributed financially to the Digest over the past couple months; I appreciate the generosity you have shown. PAT] ------------------------------ From: nuance@access.digex.net (T. Stephen Eggleston) Subject: Congo Expedition Video Con Kickoff Date: 31 Mar 1994 20:59:53 -0500 Organization: Nuance Data Systems - Alexandria, VA (703)823-8963 I am posting this for an associate. ++++++ Cut Here ++++++ 28 March, 1994 THE CONGO EXPEDITION KICK-OFF Interactive Videoconference Be a part of the adventure that will capture the attention and imagination of the world. This 6,000 mile trek across Africa will bring the excitement of distance learning to students and teachers across the country. The Congo Expedition will reenact Stanley's historic search for the source of the Nile and Congo Rivers. They will leave Washington, D.C. on April 20, 1994 to begin their year long adventure. The Alliance for Environmental Education will use the exciting expedition to test a new educational model. This model will demonstrate the connection between exploration, accurate, timely information about environmental issues, and hands-on learning on the educational experience. BEGIN THE JOURNEY WITH US! Introduce your middle and high school students to the thrill of this adventure by subscribing to this LIVE-INTERACTIVE videoconference. April 13, 1993 we will be introducing the Expedition Leader, Jim Owens and his team, to students who will experience this journey with them. Jim will discuss what lies ahead for everyone as the Congo Expedition begins. This 60 minute videoconference will also host other dignitaries including representatives of the Afrcan Embassies, U.S. Department of Education and a possible guest appearance from the White House. IF YOU SIGN-UP IMMEDIATELY YOUR STUDENTS CAN ALSO PARTICIPATE IN THE Q&A SESSION WITH EACH OF THESE REPRESENTITIVES. Involve your students in the excitement and thrill of following scientific experiments, conducting cultural investigations and exploring environmental questions-all in real time-and from a global perspective. Date of Videoconference: April 13, 1994 Time: 11:30am-12:30pm (EST) Technical Requirements: Ability to access a satellite downlink facility. Broadcast Opportunities: The program can easily be captured and rebroadcast to multiple school locations for a nominal fee of $15.00. To Subscribe: Schools with immediate interest should contact VideoLinx Communications, Inc. at 703-658-5469 for complete subscription details. Contact: VideoLinx Communications at 703-658-5469 for Details E-Mail to: Steve Eggleston nuance@digex.net Steve Eggleston Internet:nuance@digex.net Nuance Data Systems (703)823-8963 CIS:72040,713 "Technology Should Set You Free, Not Make You Crazy" ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #160 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa26121; 4 Apr 94 15:33 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA15617; Mon, 4 Apr 94 10:40:06 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA15601; Mon, 4 Apr 94 10:40:03 CDT Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 10:40:03 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404041540.AA15601@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #161 TELECOM Digest Mon, 4 Apr 94 10:40:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 161 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson CID Modem Inits and Result Codes (Cid Technologies) STU 3 Secure Phones (Mark Kelly) Centrex - Disaster Recovery and Remote Access (Keith Luca) Question About MIN and ESN (Sathyadev Uppala) Satellite Seminar on Convergence of Computing, Telecom and TV (R. Layman) AT&T Screws up, Over and Over (Scott D. Green) Telco MUX to Home? (Roger Marquis) Information Wanted on Univ of Florida, Gainesville (Steven Glinberg) Bornstein, Cooper & Associates (Jeffrey Bornstein) Information Wanted on ATM (Apurva Shrivastava) New Use of ANI (Rob Boudrie) Help! Big Problem With Phone Company (smolko@che.ncsu.edu) Last Laugh! Dennis the Menace (Carl Moore) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: dreuben@netcom.com (Cid Technologies) Subject: CID Modem Inits and Result Codes Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 03:15:37 PDT I've recently been made aware that Caller ID decoding modems do NOT all use the same init string and/or now display the CID information on a terminal the same way. For example, I *thought* that the standard CID Init to enable Caller ID detection was: "AT#CID=1" (alternately you can use AT#CID=2 for the "raw data" output format). However, a ZyXEL modem user has told me that the Init string for him is something like "ATS40=4" (or something like that, ie, not the same as above). Moreover, I had come to believe that the standard output format for the CID data was as follows: TIME: 0900 DATE: 0401 NMBR: 6175551212 (I assume all modems with Rockwell chips look like this ... am I correct in this assumption?) However, it seems the ZyXEL outputs the info differently, and this doesn't even take into account Canadian CID or CNID (with the name somewhere in the string). So, if anyone has a Caller ID modem whose Init string is different from "AT#CID=1" to enable Caller ID detection, and/or whose output string differs from the above example (including people with CNID and CID in Canada), could you please drop me a note with what Init string you use, or a copy of a typical CID output from a call? (You don't need to use real numbers or anything, just so I'll know what the format looks like ...) Thanks in advance for any help! Doug dreuben@netcom.com (Since there will hopefully be a number of responses, please reply to netcom instead of my usual Wesleyan address - thanks!) ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 16:23:23 EDT From: Mark Kelly Subject: STU 3 Secure Phones Can anyone point me to (or provide me with) information about STU 3 phones. Based on a brief conversation I had with a potential customer, I believe it is a portable phone that can be plugged into an standard telephone jack to allow secure (scrambled) telephone calls. The customer asked me if he could hold multi-party conference calls using the STU phone through our service. We have direct T1 feeds from our local telco into our digial conference bridge. DSPs in the bridge mix the voice signals to do multi-point conferencing. I suspect that the STU phone scrambles the voice signal and the DSPs will just end up mixing a bunch of garbage. If this is true, does anyone know of H/W that can be connected to T1s to unscramble the incoming voice before it hits the conference bridge and then rescramble it on its way back out the T1. E-mail to mkelly@resudox.net would be appreciated. Thanks. Mark Kelly Advanced Multi-Point Conferencing Kanata, Ontario, Canada ------------------------------ From: kluca@pipeline.com (Keith Luca) Subject: Centrex - Disaster Recovery and Remote Access Date: 3 Apr 1994 10:57:01 -0400 Organization: The Pipeline My company has recently switched to NYNEX Intelepath Centrex service. We were given several disaster recovery options which were all very expensive. If you use Intelepath or any other Centrex service, preferably on an AT&T 5ESS switch, what kind of offsite disaster recovery plan are you using? Also, I would like to provide my users with remote access to the switch but I'm very concered about the security issue. I have not initiated this with NYNEX yet, but would appreciate any comments about opening up you switch. ------------------------------ From: sathya@uw-isdl.ee.washington.edu (Sathyadev Uppala) Subject: Question About MIN and ESN Date: 3 Apr 1994 22:53:10 GMT Organization: Electrical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle What is the difference between MIN and ESN? Each mobile unit in a celllular system has a unique ESN, so what is the need to have a MIN? ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 08:46:38 EDT From: Richard Layman Subject: Satellite Seminar on Convergence of Computing, Telecom and TV The Public Broadcasting Service's Adult Learning Satellite Service/The Business Channel, the Computer Television Network, and the Data Processing Management Association have joined together to produce a series of programs on information technology (IT) and telecommunications. {NetworkWorld} magazine is a promotional sponsor. (Previous programs in this year's series were "Deploying New Computer Technology Successfully" and "Solving Local and Wide Area Network Challenges.") "Bandwidth and Public Policy: The Data Highway Debate and Its Impact on Businesses" (4/14/94 - two hours) covers the convergence of television, computing, and telecommunications, and explores what this may mean for organizations. It features Robert Heldman, director of technical strategies for US WEST and author of {Future Telecommunications}, {Information Telecommunications}, and {Global Telecommunications} all published by McGraw-Hill and Richard Wiley, former chair of the Federal Communications Commission and the leading telecommunications attorney in Washington, D.C. The program features filmed Q&A with George Gilder, one of the leading "futurists" about convergence, and author of {Life After Television} and {Microcosm}. It will also feature filmed pieces with VP Gore, Rep. Rick Boucher of the House Telecommunications Subcommittee, and others. Mr. Heldman is well-known in the telephone industry for trying to figure out what their future may be -- his normal audience is made up of the presidents of the local telephone companies. Mr. Wiley will discuss how the federal government and regulation will respond to bring that future about. George Gilder has provocative ideas about how the computing industry will be in the drivers seat -- and how the laws of the microcosm and telecosm are driving much faster than 55 mph! (He has other provocative ideas too! -- for example, that cable companies and telephone companies ought to be able to work together TODAY, even in monopolistic situations, provided there are no barriers to unaffiliated content-providers.) Audience/Objectives: Everyone is talking about "video-on-demand" and the information highway. Most of the discussion has focused on the home consumer. This program focuses on the "enterprise" -- be it a profit-making or non-profit organization. The target audience is IT and telecommunications managers. How to receive this program: This program is distributed by the Public Broadcasting Service's Adult Learning Satellite Service, by satellite, direct to a site equipped with satellite-receive (TVRO) equipment. The license fee is based on the type of organization receiving the program. Affiliates of PBS-ALSS and Data Processing Management Association chapters pay $175. Other nonprofits pay $275. Businesses are charged $375. University Downlink Tips: Many of the college and universities that license the ITS programs do so through a continuing education division. (This may be in collaboration with a local chapter of the Data Processing Management Association and/or computing departments within the university, or with academic or administrative computing divisions.) Most charge non- University attendees a fee for the seminar. You may wish to explore this as a way to keep costs down. Downlink Tips for Businesses and other organizations: If your organization doesn't have satellite-receive equipment it is possible to identify a site in your area which does (colleges, PBS television stations, and K-12 school districts, etc., to name a few). PBS account representatives can provide suggestions about sites in your area. It is also possible that there is a site within your community which has already licensed the program, and is making it available to others within your area. We can help you identify such sites as well (send an e-mail request to rllayman@netcom.com). For More Information: For questions about downlinking, licensing, etc., please contact PBS's Adult Learning Satellite Service at 1-800-257-2578 or by fax at 1-703-739-8495. You may also send additional queries by e-mail to: rllayman@netcom.com Thank you for your time and interest. Richard Layman Marketing Director Computer Television Network East Coast Office 825 6th St. N.E. Washington, DC 20002-4325 202-544-5722 (voice) 202-543-6730 (fax) rllayman@netcom.com (email) ------------------------------ From: green@whrepro1.wharton.upenn.edu (Scott D. Green) Subject: AT&T Screws up, Over and Over Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 16:36:40 Here's a tale of AT&T Corporate Card/ProWATS hell that I've been going thru since 11/93. I share it with you to see if there are other battle-scarred veterans out there. My company, thru the Travel office and Telecom, got AT&T calling cards hooked up with our AMEX statements to provide single-statement "convenience" for submitting vouchers for reimbursement. Our rate schedule is on some sort of ProWATS plan, and provides a 10% discount of the total. So I get my 11/93 statement with a few calls between TX and PA listed. They were all made during night or weekend periods, yet the Rate Code listed is E(vening) or U (no rate - pretty strange for domestic calls). I also notice that calls made between the same CO's during the same rate period were costed differently: three one-minute calls at $.90, $.96, and $1.00. I call their "customer service" line and, shockingly, my next statement appears with a total of $5.43 in credit, against original charges of $10.13! Unfortunately on that (12/93) statement, I also had a bunch of new calls, but our AT&T/ProWATS page turned into an AT&T/Corporate page, and didn't have our 10% discount. So another round with customer service, only this time it has to go to the Corporate Card Center in Charleston, WV. Turns out that the entire university was billed incorrectly. They admitted it. Of course, most folks who use calling cards, and get reimbursed, have no incentive at all to analyze their charges and/or discounts, so this is pretty much a ripoff, even though AT&T pledged to credit back the differences. So the next statement (1/94) comes in, with no adjustments. AT&T said that they're still working on it. 2/94 rolls in, and AT&T's fix was to credit back every call from 12/93, and then re-bill it. This one is pretty interesting, because virtually all the calls were re-billed at a higher rate (under ProWATS) than under "Corporate", *even after the 10% discount*. And on top of that, there are several pairs of identical calls (CO's, rate period, length) that are again billed inconsistently. First thing I do here is call AMEX and explain to them that I have a dispute with a vendor (AT&T) and would they kindly not mark my account delinquent while this is being resolved. AMEX says they can't do that, I have to call AT&T. OK, I've got to call them anyway. :) AT&T can't explain to me the billing inconsistencies; they can't even tell me what the calling card surcharge is for the calls! What follows is a long series of phone calls to the Corporate Card Center, our local AT&T AE, and the folks at this university in Travel and Telecom, who are supposed to be watchdogging their vendor. It was a frustrating month, because most of it was spent trying to convince the aforementioned Bozos of the existence of a problem. The kicker came on my 3/94 statement. I had one new call listed, placed on a Saturday afternoon. The rate code listed was E(vening). Honest. And, AMEX placed a polite "your account is delinquent" message on my statement. Another round of calls to my new-found extended family: AMEX still says they can't deal with the AT&T dispute (why not? they handle it with every other vendor whose charges appear on their statement); AT&T said I need to contact AMEX about the dispute. AT&T finally got the three of us on a conference call to fix that. My "personal" AT&T CSR tried to foist some of the blame onto *their* "billing vendor," Cincinatti Bell. So, while we're waiting for corrected charges, the university is finally wondering how much we got ripped off for, and whether this program is really worth it. Meanwhile, AT&T, which has presumably been in the business of providing toll-call service longer than anybody, has not provided me an accurate billing since November, for calls made in October. That's six months, with no resolution in sight. How the mighty have fallen ... ------------------------------ From: marquis@netcom.com (Roger Marquis) Subject: Telco MUX to Home? Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 01:37:19 GMT When Pac Bell recently installed a second line into my (1940s) apartment building they didn't run any new wire but instead installed a new demark/ junction box. When I opened this box to connect my second line I was surprised to find only the one original line going in, and _two_ lines coming out! Could it be my lines are MUXed to the local switch? I've tested the quality of both lines by making a voice call on one and a data call on the other (while executing 'sz /dev/zero' at 14.4+) without finding any measurable degradation. The alleged MUX measures 2*3*3 in. and is fully sealed except for the contacts. Does anyone know what I have here? Roger Marquis ------------------------------ From: sjg@cs.wisc.edu (Steven Glinberg) Subject: Information Wanted on Univ of Florida, Gainesville Date: 3 Apr 1994 22:57:58 GMT Organization: U of Wisconsin CS Dept Sorry for the intrusion, but I was wondering if anyone could email input on the University of Florida, in Gainesville. I read this group all the time and I figured I could reach a lot of people quickly this way. I have an opportunity to study there this summer, particularly in the psych dept, and I would like input from anyone who studied/lived there, to help me make my decision. (what the campus is like, how big the school is, how close the campus is to the real world, about the city, Gainesville, anything about the campus would be helpful) I will be unable to read this newsgroup this week, but I will have access to my email, so please email any responses to sjg@yar.cs.wisc.edu Thanks much for your help. Steve Glinberg E mail: BEST ADDRESS sjg@yar.cs.wisc.edu 2nd best address glinberg@students.wisc.edu 3rd best glinberg@macc.wisc.edu ------------------------------ From: nteractive@aol.com Date: Sun, 03 Apr 94 20:10:12 EDT Subject: Bornstein, Cooper & Associates BORNSTEIN, COOPER & ASSOCIATES functions as a Broker and "Clearing House" for Agents and Marketing Companies that are already active, or wish to become involved in the RESALE OF LONG DISTANCE SERVICES, PRODUCTS, AND ANCILLARY ITEMS. BC&A Principals have been active in the Telecommunications Industry for over 40 years! Our Support Staff is located in all geographic areas of the United States. BC&A represents only reputable and proven PROVIDERS, RESELLERS, AND CARRIERS who in most cases, are members of TRA (Telecommunications Resellers Association). However, in all instances, each has been carefully screened and researched by our company, it's legal staff, and Dun & Bradstreet. BC&A CONTRACTS Agents and Marketing Companies DIRECTLY with the Providers, Resellers and Carriers that we represent. There are NO "MIDDLEMEN" involved with you and your COMMISSIONS! However, we are licensed to discuss all contractual issues so that you can achieve a proper match and fit. Nondisclosure Forms ARE NOT REQUIRED, since BC&A guarantees you can not secure a better deal, even if you negotiate directly with our service providers. If you are involved in Long Distance and desire: higher commissions, better and more accurate reporting, and a safer environment to market in, or ... if you are simply excited about becoming a part of a growing ($60 BILLION MARKET) and dynamic industry ... look to the experience and expertise of BC&A. Our PRODUCT LINE consists of the following: * OUTBOUND & INBOUND: AT&T, SPRINT, WILTEL, ALLNET, LDDS-METROMEDIA, LCI & WCT * DEDICATED (T-1) ACCESS * CALLING CARDS * DEBIT (PREPAID) CALLING CARDS * INTERNATIONAL CALLBACK * OTHER SMALL BUSINESS DISCOUNT PRODUCTS & SERVICES * QUALIFIED CUSTOMER/END-USER LEADS For more information, please contact Jeffrey Bornstein (nteractive@aol.com) or feel free to FAX/write or call for more information: Jeffrey Bornstein BORNSTEIN, COOPER & ASSOCIATES 1001 Village Road Orwigsburg, PA 17961 (800) 754-4411 (717) 366-1699 (717) 366-1827 FAX Jeff Bornstein Bornstein, Cooper & Associates nteractive@aol.com ------------------------------ From: ashrivas@st6000.sct.edu (Apurva Shrivastava) Subject: Information Wanted on ATM Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 22:26:29 EDT People, I am looking for material on doing my thesis on routing problems in ATM as this this is an open issue. It has been suggested by my guide, Dr. Doreen Erickson, to ask companies like Bellcore etc for material and also volunteer to do research on their behalf. Of course all confidentiality papers etc. would be signed by the entire committee. I have knocked one door after another but have been very unsuccessful as yet. (My confidence level seems to be decaying exponentially). All articles and material that I have read seem to say 'ROUTING IS AN OPEN ISSUE', but nobody elaborates (proprietory problems?). I know that this forum is very well and widely subscribed to and hence would like to take the great opportunity offered by this medium to request for help from all sympathetic souls. ADVthanksANCE, Apurva ------------------------------ From: rboudrie@chpc.org (Rob Boudrie) Subject: New Use of ANI Date: 4 Apr 1994 06:37:38 GMT Organization: Ctr for High Performance Computing, Marlboro Ma. Reply-To: rboudrie@chpc.org (Rob Boudrie) 800-WHY-GUNS is an 800 number set up by a gun control proponent to accumulate messages from people wanting to recieve literature on their cause. Interesting points : - Some users report that the message changes after the third call from the same number, stating that calls from a single number are limited to three because of harassment from opponents [note: I wonder if they still pay for a call to their computers to identify the caller and leave this message?] - The voice repsonse unit appears to do some checking on the zip code spoken into the system -- it replies invalid entry if you read in a nine digit zip (with a spoken dash in it). Robert Boudrie Center for High Performance Computing rboudrie@chpc.org 293 Boston Post Rd West (508) 624-7400 x635 Marlboro, MA 01752 ------------------------------ From: smolko@che.ncsu.edu Subject: HELP! Big Problem With Phone Company Date: 4 Apr 1994 02:21:40 -0600 Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway I have a big problem with the phone company, and I'm not sure how to deal with it. This "friend" of mine who lives at the university is forced to use a single long-distance carrier that charges top dollar for long- distance calls. Somehow he got MCI to set up an account that would allow him to make calls on my phone, using a special code, and have the bill for the calls sent to his address. This seemed rather unusual and so I called MCI to inquire about it. I was told that this is not really unusual and that I would not be responsible for the charges if this guy doesn't pay the bills. The impression I was given was that the special code that he would use is something like a calling card. That being the case, I told him he could use my phone. For several months he has been using this arrangement with MCI to make numerous, lengthy calls to a foreign country (he is not a U.S. citizen). However, on my latest phone bill there was listed nearly $700 worth of calls that this guy made using my phone. When I called MCI to try to rectify the situation I was told that his account had been closed by the fraud department. Apparently, he racked up between $3000 and $4000 worth of charges on that account, paid some of it, and then disputed the rest of the charges. I was told by MCI that I am responsible for the $700 bill since this guy used the phone with my permission. I was also told that they will probably come after me for the other charges as well. Apparently, they may try to use the same excuse -- that he used the phone with my permission. However, as I see it, there's a big difference between "Can I make a toll call on your phone?" and "Can I make a toll call on your phone and have it charged to my account?". What are my legal responsibilities in a situation like this? What is the best way to handle this predicament? I suppose I'll have to try to collect the $700 from this guy so I can pay my recent phone bill. As for the other charges, I guess I'll just have to wait and see what happens. Unfortunately, I don't expect it to be easy to get any money from this guy. I'll probably have to put a lot of pressure on him, and even then I may never collect a penny. I hope someone out there can provide me with some helpful advice, as this whole thing is starting to make me feel rather ill. Dan smolko@che.ncsu.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The long-standing rule in telephony has always been that each subscriber is responsible for the (physical) use of his instruments. That is, if someone uses your phone with your per- mission, then telco will as a courtesy attempt to bill the call however the party wants; but as a worst-case scenario, if the billing falls through then it comes back to the subscriber as a last recourse. The called party could agree to accept your collect call for example, and if later they change their mind, you get billed. When you, or someone you allow uses your phone, the tariff says you agree -- if no other billing is workable (third party, collect, credit card, whatever) to pay. If your phone is used, billing and collection is your problem. Now in your case, there seems to be no physical use of your phone, thus no liability on your part in that way. However, there is a credit issue involved: did you agree to allow your credit standing with telco to be used as the basis for an extension of credit to your friend? If the answer is yes, that you told telco they could rely upon you for payment of your friend's bills, then indeed you are now responsible for payment. Consider it like co-signing a note for an automobile purchase or any other credit purchase. On his own merits, he could not get credit, but you agreed to help, and as a good customer, telco accepted your guarentee. As 'they' say, now it is payback time. But did you really give this guarentee or permission to telco? Your first paragraph seems to imply otherwise. You say he 'somehow' got MCI to set up a credit account using your phone number as the basis for credit. Were you aware that he got MCI to make these arrangements prior to him making them? If so, then now this is your problem. You say you called MCI and were told this was not 'unusual'. No, it is not; telcos will issue credit cards to 'friends' or roomates or whatever, but they do it on the basis of someone, somewhere having a good credit standing and agreeing to pay. Your account with the local telco sufficed for this purpose. You say you were told by the MCI rep (orally I am sure, not in writing) that you would not be responsible for charges. That amounts to the same thing as a used-car salesman telling you that if you co-sign for some kid to buy a car, you won't be held responsible if the kid defaults on the payments ... of course you will be responsible! And needless to say, MCI will deny ever making such a statement in the first place; maybe they did and maybe they didn't. They'll help chase him, but its your problem. Most likely if you do not pay, one of two things will happen. If the charges are billed to you via your local telco, then failing to pay, you will get cut until you do. Telco may require a deposit to turn you back on. If the charges were billed direct by MCI on a separate statement, then if you fail to pay MCI will place you with an agency and probably auth- orize the agency to sue you. If at that point you can convince MCI or the court that you did not initially know of the billing arrangements and that the guarentee was not authorized by you, then you will be off the hook. If you knew about the arrangement from its onset, it is unlikely the court will accept your word that MCI told you 'that you would not be responsible if party did not pay ...'. If you can convince the court (should you get sued, although MCI may simply write you off as a bad debt) that you did not initially know of the arrangements; that they were made without your knowledge or permission and that you attempted to void the arrangements, then you will get off the hook. The catch is, what did you know and how soon did you know it and what efforts did you take to mitigate creditor's losses and your own? Only you and your friend know the answer to that, and should this go to the wall, a judge will decide who owes what. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 7:53:07 EST From: Carl Moore Subject: Last Laugh! Dennis the Menace I have just seen an episode of the "Dennis the Menace" TV series, made in 1959. It always opens with some mischievous incident; this morning, Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell were saying how someone "fixed" their phone so they could dial long distance without having to go through an operator, and Dennis then talks about dialing and hearing the ringing sound (he used nonsense syllables to describe it) and saying that "Aunt ___ was surprised to hear my voice". At that, Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell have astonished looks; left unspoken is "Dennis, did YOU make a long distance call?". (In case anyone is interested, Dennis was played by Jay North; Henry and Alice Mitchell, his parents, by Herbert Anderson and Gloria Henry; Mr. Wilson, by Joseph Kearns. It was based on Hank Ketcham's comic strip.) That reminds me that the Nancy comic strip had Aunt Fritzie holding a $98 phone bill and saying "NANCY, DID YOU MAKE ANY LONG DISTANCE CALLS?". ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #161 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa26757; 4 Apr 94 16:41 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA21283; Mon, 4 Apr 94 12:22:03 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA21273; Mon, 4 Apr 94 12:22:00 CDT Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 12:22:00 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404041722.AA21273@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #162 TELECOM Digest Mon, 4 Apr 94 12:22:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 162 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson FAQ: Telephone Call-Back Service Providers (v1.1) (Bruce Hahne) Globalcom Inernational Callback Service (Scott C. Bundren) AT&T Price Changes on International Calls (Van Hefner) LEC Competition/Value of Service (00r0nolting@leo.bsuvc.bsu.edu) Where Can I Find Back Issues? (Javier Montero) Need Advice on Terminal Server For PPP Access (Ben Lippolt) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Brian Gordon) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Jon Anhold) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Robert S. Helfman) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: FAQ: Telephone Call-Back Service Providers (v1.1) Date: Mon, 04 Apr 94 17:38:04 +0900 From: Bruce Hahne LIST OF COMPANIES PROVIDING INTERNATIONAL CALL-BACK SERVICE version 1.1 March 24, 1994 Introduction: This list started as an attempt to gather information about companies which provide call-back services to Japan. Such companies allow you to call from Japan to the U.S. at U.S. rates instead of at the (much less competitive) rates set by Japan's 3 international phone companies. I have since found that most call-back companies provide call-back services to many different countries, so I will not limit the distribution of this post to newsgroups such as soc.culture.japan and fj.life.in-japan. However, the pricing information I give has a bias towards examples connecting to or from Japan. This document is in the public domain. Please pass it around freely and help people to save some money! Please send additional information on old or new callback companies to Bruce Hahne at any of the addresses listed at the end of this post. Companies are listed in alphabetical order. This information is NOT guaranteed accurate, and may be based in part on advertisements or fliers which are out of date, as well as on 3rd-party reports. For full details and up-to-date pricing information, contact the companies directly. NAME: Business Communications Management, Inc. CONTACT INFO: Business Communications Management, Inc. 1320 El Capitan Drive, Suite 300 Danville, CA 94526 Phone: 1-510-277-3030 Fax: 1-510-277-3555 Internet: vthiry@netcom.com HOW IT WORKS: Call your access number (in the U.S.?), then hang up. Their computer calls you back at a preselected number. BILLING: $50 one-time enrollment fee. $25 monthly minimum. Billed to your credit card. SAMPLE RATES: Japan to U.S. or U.S. to Japan: $0.45/min. Japan to U.K. or U.K. to Japan: $0.74/min. Japan to Canada or Canada to Japan: $0.68/min. Japan to Germany or Germany to Japan: $0.91/min. (30-second minimum per call, billed in 6-second increments) COMMENTS: Rates are the same at all times of the day and week. Monthly statement is mailed to you. No PIN. You can register as many call-back numbers as you want. NOTES: - This company is a reseller of the MTC PASSPORT service, also available from MTC listed below. They do not resell the MTC OneCard mentioned in the MTC entry. - Vthiry@netcom.com appears willing to fax out rate sheets so that you have pricing information in writing. NAME: CSI (Communications Systems International) CONTACT INFO: Communications Systems International, Inc. 121 E. Pikes Peak Ave., Suite 226A Colorado Springs, CO 80903 USA Phone: 1-719-471-3332 Fax: 1-719-471-2893 or 1-719-564-0541 Internet: HVGriner@delphi.com Compuserve: 73174,2250 HOW IT WORKS: Dial an unlisted number assigned to you in the U.S. Their computer doesn't answer, but calls you back after you hang up, giving you a U.S. dial tone. BILLING: $250 refundable deposit required for account setup. $27.50 monthly service fee if your bill is under $100/month. Billed directly or via credit card. Billed in 6-second increments, not 1-minute increments. SAMPLE RATES: Per-minute costs from Japan to various sites are, in U.S. dollars: Japan Time: 8am - 2pm 2pm - 11pm 11pm - 8am first add'l first add'l first add'l Country or ZONE min. min. min. min. min. min. --------------------- ------- ------- ------- ------- -------------- Australia 4.48 2.07 3.98 1.99 4.51 2.19 United Kingdom 3.36 1.88 3.23 1.79 3.35 1.98 United States 2.52 1.38 2.41 1.30 2.56 1.48 COMMENTS: Can be set up for any of 235 countries. No PIN. It seems as if you will always be called back at the same number, though this isn't completely clear from their P.R. materials. Full pricing information available on MS-dos disk. Speed dialing available. NAME: Logical / Kokusai Telecom CONTACT INFO: 2-1-1 Minamidai Nakano-ku Tokyo 164, Japan (03) 5385-4701 Other information presently unavailable. Supposedly their rates are 25% below those of KDD, at all times. This company is the Japanese agent for a U.S. company. NAME: MTC OneCard CONTACT INFO: MTC Passport Telemanagement Call Clearance Center 55 S. Market St., Suite 1435 San Jose, CA 95113 1-800-967-5382 or (408) 298-2985 Fax: (408) 298-6905 HOW IT WORKS: Dial local access number, your PIN, the phone number you're calling FROM, then hang up. Their computer calls you back and gives you a U.S. dial tone. BILLING: $5 for initial account setup. Billed through your credit card. SAMPLE RATES: From Japan to U.S.: $2.50 per call + 46.3 cents/minute? COMMENTS: Works from anywhere in the world with a local access number: about 45 countries. Other services (speed dialing, conference calls, etc.) also available or will be available soon. NOTES: - MTC also sells a callback service called "PASSPORT", listed below. - I have had serious problems trying to figure out the facts behind what services MTC offers and where to contact them to request service. So far I have 3 postal addresses, 4 phone numbers, 2 fax numbers, and at least one person has reported being told that MTC doesn't offer the "OneCard". This is clearly not true, since I have one. See the entry below for more MTC addresses and phone numbers. - I do not have anything in writing directly from MTC giving their per-call and per-minute rates. I have reports of $2.50/call plus 46.3 cents per minute from Japan, but the math on my first bill does not match these numbers. I would suggest contacting them directly for pricing information. - MTC is allegedly receiving 100 new customers a day, so you may need to be patient about signing up and receiving information. NAME: MTC Passport CONTACT INFO: MTC Telemanagement Corporation 1304 Southpoint Boulevard Petaluma, CA 94954 1-800-999-2682 or 1-800-733-2682 Fax: (707) 769-5940 or Passport International Telemanagement 925 Lakeville St. #318 Petaluma, CA 94952 HOW IT WORKS: 2nd-hand information suggests it works as follows: dial local access number, your PIN, then hang up. Their computer calls you back at a predetermined number and gives you a U.S. dial tone. BILLING: $50 one-time enrollment fee. $25 monthly minimum. SAMPLE RATES: From Japan to U.S.: 46.3 cents/minute, no per-call charge? NOTES: - See notes above on MTC OneCard. - The Passport service is also resold by Business Communications Management, listed earlier. NAME: Progressive Communications CONTACT INFO: P.O. Box 5890 Athens, OH 45701-5890 Fax: 614-592-4970 Internet: dprince@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu COMMENTS: - Information presently unavailable, but hopefully will be in place by the time I release version 1.2 of this FAQ. NAME: Telepassport CONTACT INFO: P.O. Box 1003 Chicago, IL 60690 Fax: 1-708-329-0572 HOW IT WORKS: There are two main methods: 1: Dial a U.S. number given to you by Telepassport, then hang up. Their computer calls you back at your home number. PIN optional. 2: Dial a local toll-free number for Japan, enter account number and PIN, then enter a number which requests a callback to wherever you are. BILLING: $25/month minimum. Billed via credit card or via electronic funds transfer (bank to bank). SAMPLE RATES: From Japan to U.S., standard/discount/economy rates: .98/.85/.79 ($/minute) COMMENTS: PIN is 4 digits. You receive monthly statements. Service available all over the world. Message forwarding, voice mail, and other services available. For extensive information, email the following message to tel-archives@lcs.mit.edu : reply YOURNAME@YOURSITE.YOUR.DOMAIN info telepassport end Disclaimer: I don't work for any of these companies. Bruce Hahne Current address: bruce@jise.isl.melco.co.jp Lifetime address: hahne@acm.org ------------------------------ From: scottb@cats.ucsc.edu (Scott C Bundren) Subject: Globalcom International Callback Service Date: 4 Apr 1994 05:16:00 GMT Organization: University of California, Santa Cruz *****GLOBALCOM INTERNATIONAL CALLBACK SERVICE BEGINS APRIL 15****** Globalcom 2000 is a U.S. based telecommunications company offering Prepaid calling cards and long distance service to residential and commercial clients. Globalcom 2000 uses the WilTel fiber optic network for superior quality telephone service. On April 15th, 1994, Globalcom will begin to offer International Callback service to clients worldwide. HOW IT WORKS: The International Callback user dials a number which is a toll free call from anywhere in the world, and receives a busy signal. The customer then hangs up the phone, and the system calls them back, giving them access to U.S. lines and low Globalcom rates on International calling. SAMPLE RATES: All rates are per minute, for anytime of day Australia $0.88 France $0.56 Germany $0.57 Hong Kong $0.66 India $1.27 Japan $0.63 Sweden $0.54 United Kingdom $0.44 Features: -- The most sophisticated and technologically advanced callback system in the world. -- 24-hour operator assistance. -- Tremendous savings: Call from outside the USA to the USA at discount rates saving you 20%-70%. -- Call from outside the USA to other countries, including across closed political borders. -- Your personal/business voice mail message service in the USA--FREE. -- Fax service: Store and Foward -plus- Fax Mail Boxes. -- Access to all USA toll free 800 numbers. -- Immediate access to Directory Assistance anywhere in the USA. A complete rate sheet is available by e-mail. Please send requests or questions to scottb@cats.ucsc.edu. ------------------------------ From: vantek@aol.com Date: Mon, 04 Apr 94 09:00:44 EDT Subject: AT&T Price Changes on International Calls AT&T LOWERS PRICES ON INTERNATIONAL COLLECT CALLS SHORT HILLS, N.J. (APRIL 1) BUSINESS WIRE - March 31, 1994 AT&T customers can now save money when making collect calls to the United States from more than 125 countries using AT&T USADirect (R) Service. The new prices go into effect on April 13, thanks to a tariff filed this week with the FCC. "With these reductions, the price of a five-minute collect call on USADirect will be reduced by up to 27 percent," said Mike Dimperio, group product manager for AT&T Direct services. With AT&T's reduced prices, a customer who makes a five-minute collect USADirect call from London to New York would pay only $9.89, a 23 percent reduction from the previous price of $12.89. A similar call to the U.S. from Germany has dropped almost $3.00, from $12.04 to $9.36, a reduction of over 22 percent. AT&T also filed modest price increases on AT&T USADirect calling card rates. These rate revisions for calling card calls from 113 countries to the United States average about a 2.5 percent increase per call. Millions of people worldwide -- business people, vacationers, students and military persons -- use AT&T USADirect and AT&T World Connect (sm) Service for fast, convenient and economical telephone access to the United States and over 75 countries. "These services let customers call the U.S., or country-to-country, from more countries than any other telecommunications company," Dimperio said. AT&T USADirect and AT&T World Connect Service are available simply by dialing a toll-free access number. Callers are connected directly to an English-speaking AT&T operator or voice prompt to place calling card and collect calls. AT&T's international operators provide service in eight languages. Additionally, AT&T offers customers automated calling card and collect calls without operator assistance from more than 60 countries. Other AT&T USADirect and AT&T World Connect Service benefits include: o Sequential calling of up to 10 consecutive numbers o Voice messaging services allow callers to record a message and have it delivered to virtually any phone in 170 countries o Callers can conference up to 500 people in up to 270 countries on the spur of the moment or by reservation o Callers can gain access to AT&T Language Line Services for over-the-phone interpretations from English to more than 140 languages o Instant connection to all U.S. 800 numbers o Instant access to U.S. and international directory assistance o Customer service available 24 hours a day, seven days a week For AT&T Calling Card calls via AT&T USADirect, AT&T True World subscribers get a five percent discount off the cost of the call. And True World customers who call their designated country receive an additional 15 percent -- for a total of 20 percent -- on AT&T Calling Card calls via USADirect. For $3 a month, True World offers savings of up to 35 percent for customers who make international calls. AT&T USADirect customers who are also enrolled in the AT&T True Rewards(sm) program and spend at least $25 a month in long-distance services receive points that can be redeemed for frequent flier miles and long distance gift certificates. For more information on AT&T USADirect Service, customers in the U.S. may call 1-800-331-1140. CONTACT: AT&T, Short Hills, N.J. Pat Robinson, 908/221-7949 (office) 201/292-1557 (home) or Maureen Lynch, 201/564-3265 (office) 908/580-1125 (home) ----------------- Van Hefner Vantek Communications vantek@aol.com ------------------------------ From: 00r0nolting@leo.bsuvc.bsu.edu Subject: Information Needed on LEC Competition/Value of Service Date: 4 Apr 94 10:04:02 EST Organization: Ball State University, Muncie, In - Univ. Computing Svc's I urgently need information on pricing regulations in the local exchange with regard to universal service subsidies. I have heard the term "value of service" but am unable to find how the higher priced business phone subsidizes the rural phone. Is part of the monthly fee put into a fund, part of every local call? Three of us are participating in a competition and have to present our ideas on Friday, April 8th, in the morning. A short explanation or a reference will be appreciated. Anyone who wants to can have our handout e-mailed to them next week. Thanks, Reinhard Nolting, CICS, BSU 00r0nolting ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 10:36:17 UTC+0200 From: Javier Montero Subject: Where Can I Find Back Issues? Hi, Where can I find the back issues of TELECOM Digest? Is there another mag like this? Thanks a lot. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: You can have thirteen year's worth of back issues of this Digest by checking out the Telecom Archives. You can get there using anonymous ftp lcs.mit.edu; then when connected you would do 'cd telecom-archives/back.issues'. They are in batches of fifty issues with the most recent fifty or so at any given time available individually in the 'recent.single.issues' sub-directory or the 'telecom.recent' file. You can also use Gopher or WEB. In addition you can use the Telecom Archives Email Information Service, and a help file for that is available on request from me. Since like my competitor {The New York Times} I print all the news that fits (both the amount of space available and my own philis- ophical perspective on life), you need look no further. :) PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Apr 1994 06:51:01 GMT From: B.J.Lippolt@research.ptt.nl (Ben Lippolt) Subject: Need Advice on Terminal Server For PPP Access Reply-To: B.J.Lippolt@research.ptt.nl Organization: PTT Research, The Netherlands Hi, We want to start a pilot with PPP. We're looking for a terminal server (with 8 ports) which will be connected to our ethernet and which should support at least PPP (and preferable also (c)slip). Any suggest- ions about good brands, models, etc, positive as well as negative are welcome. Thanks for any info. Ben Lippolt ------------------------------ From: briang@netcom.com (Brian Gordon) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Organization: Netcom Online Communications Services (408-241-9760 login: guest) Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 19:33:43 GMT In article lchiu@crl.com (Laurence Chiu) writes: > Out of interest, I presume that when you call 911 from your home phone > you reach a dispatch service which is local to your community. So if > you call 911 from a cell phone, which dispatch service do you reach? > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In a lot of places, including the Chicago > metro area you don't reach anyone. 911 goes to intercept telling you > in an emergency to dial the operator for assistance. In other place where > there is only one central dispatch, it goes there. PAT] In CA, it goes to the nearest CHP (California Highway Patrol) dispatch center. At their discretion, they can transfer to an appropriate 911 dispatch center, but a very high percentage of the calls are CHP matters anyway (breakdowns and the like). Brian G. Gordon briang@netcom.COM bgg on DELPHI 70243,3012 on Compu$erve BGordon on GENie BGordon2 on AOL ------------------------------ From: jganhold@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Jon Anhold) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: 4 Apr 1994 13:24:48 GMT Organization: The Ohio State University In Cleveland, we have CECOM/CEMAC. It's an Emergency Management Agency with office space downtown. One of the departments is a central emergency dispatch, where they can talk to all of the suburbs Police and Fire Departments in case of a city/county-wide emergency. 911 calls go there from Cell phones, so it's city-independant. Jon Anhold N8USK jganhold@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu ------------------------------ From: helfman@aero.org (Robert S. Helfman) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cellphones Reduce Crime? Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 00:11:54 -0800 Organization: The Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, CA > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I'm glad I don't live there any longer > also. First of all, 911 does not work from cell phones here. PAT, you seemed to imply that Los Angeles' inner-city was "rotten to the core". It isn't true. I live here. The streets are not ruled by gangs, unless you consider the one that rides in the L.A.P.D. cars and wears blue. > 'Mr. Good Citizen' as they sometimes mock the callers to 911 when talking > on the radio, your number is recorded and they can get back to you if they > wish -- which is fine, except! Try reporting a serious crime which you > witnessed. If the criminal is caught, *you* will be subpoened to come to > court and give your eye-witness account. *You* will be hounded and harassed > by the ACLU attorney appointed to represent the defendant. *Your* integrity > will be called into question. Defendants have the right, as I believe they > should, to confront their accuser ... that's you if you were the one > calling 911 to report it. PAT, you should be ashamed of yourself for bad-mouthing the ACLU. First, the ACLU rarely handles the initial defense of a suspect. Their work is almost always on appeals (at least in criminal matters). And they aren't defending a particular defendant - they're defending a matter of constitutional law. You will note that they have defended the Ku Klux Klan and Oliver North and other such "non-liberal" defendants. Lawyers appointed by courts to defend indigents are almost always a public defender (or a private attorney appointed to defend one of multiple defendants when there would a conflict of interest if the public defender handled all the defendants). As an ACLU member, I take personal offense at your sometimes mindless conservative blather. For a guy with a sometimes wicked sense of humor, you take some things entirely to seriously. And I'll be the most surprised person on the Net if you let this posting into comp.dcom.telecom (That's a dare, PAT!) > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In a lot of places, including the Chicago > metro area you don't reach anyone. 911 goes to intercept telling you > in an emergency to dial the operator for assistance. In other place where > there is only one central dispatch, it goes there. PAT] In Los Angeles, dialing 911 from a cellular phone gets the California Highway Patrol dispatcher. In Southern California, it's important to know exactly what jurisdiction you're in. There are embedded sections of unincorporated L.A. County, served by the County Sheriff, within the City of Los Angeles. Use of 911 for reporting out-of-service traffic lights, water main breaks, car fires, etc. is encouraged here, by PacTel cellular and is free, 24-7. To save the dispatcher time, I just ask for the specific agency I need: City of L.A. Transportation, L.A. Department of Water and Power, L.A. Fire Department, etc. The dispatchers seem to appreciate this approach since it gets them off the line much faster. By the way, the response time is phenomenal. I was driving one evening with a friend and spotted a car fire. I called 911 and 1 1/2 minutes later, as we passed Engine Company 94's station house, the red lights came on and the guys (and woman, of course) were roaring out headed for the car. I've had similar response from DWP for water mains -- which can do horrible things to a street in just minutes if someone doesn't get on them right away. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Here we do not use 911 to report open hydrants, out of order traffic signals, railroad crossing gates stuck in the down position, draw bridges stuck in the open position, etc. If one wishes to bother -- and I *do* call on things like this, we call the water department, the department of streets bureau of electricity, or the appropriate railroad, bridge-tender, etc. The rule here, although it is not always followed, is that 911 is to be used *only* in a dire emergency when immediate police/fireman intervention is required. For example, someone stripped your automobile last night and you found out about it this morning? That's no longer an emergency; it is over with. By the way, thus far in 1994 here, *27 children* have been killed in the crossfire of gang-related incidents in Chicago. Their involvement? They were on their way (at various times) to/from Ludwig von Beethoven School, an elementary school located in the middle of the Chicago Housing Atrocity (oops, I mean Authority) complex of a dozen highrise buildings on the south side. That's about two per week. Now the teachers and the police meet the children at the entrances of the buildings to walk with them acting like human sheilds the *one block* from their home to their school and back again in the afternoon. Yet even the little ones too young to go to school are not safe. A three year old boy was hit by bullets which came through the window of his family's home. An optical nerve was hit; he will now be blind for the rest of his life. He repeatedly asks his father -- in the words of a three year old -- "Why can't I see? I'm not a bad boy, I am a good boy, why can't I see anymore?". His father would like to know how to explain to his son why gang members with guns shooting from the windows of highrise apartment buildings are afforded protection from reprisal by police under some bogus civil liberties theories. How, he wants to know, could the Fourth Amendment have been twisted and perverted that badly, that ACLU attornies get court orders to prevent police from searching the apartments where the shots were fired? Mayor Daley said it best about Mr. Harvey Grossman, director of the ACLU here: (quote) "He is a jerk." You can take all the offense you want as an ACLU member at my 'mindless blather'; personally I find the ACLU to be a direct affront to what little decency and civility still remains in the USA. And yes, I know the constitution quite well thank you, and the ACLU does not have a monopoly on its interpretation and implementation even though they think they do. Since you like El Lay so much, I'm sure you would love Chicago. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #162 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa27368; 4 Apr 94 17:43 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA26790; Mon, 4 Apr 94 13:46:11 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA26778; Mon, 4 Apr 94 13:46:08 CDT Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 13:46:08 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404041846.AA26778@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #163 TELECOM Digest Mon, 4 Apr 94 13:46:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 163 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson New OTA Study on Wireless Technology (Todd LaPorte) Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! (Les Reeves) Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! (Scott Coleman) Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! (Tarl Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Carl Moore) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Rob Boudrie) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (H. Peter Anvin) Re: PC Pursuit Has Ended (Thomas M. Allebrandi) Re: PC Pursuit Has Ended (James Taranto) Request For Information on Voicemail Systems (Henry Sobel) Small Scale Voicemail Information Needed (Eric A. Litman) Can I Use my Cellular Phone in Turkey and Germany? (Yilmaz Cengeloglu) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Todd LaPorte Date: Mon, 04 Apr 94 13:08:00 PDT Subject: New OTA Study: Wireless Technology and National Info Infrastructure We are pleased to announce that the Office of Technology Assessment+s study of the implications of wireless technologies for the National Information Infrastructure (NII) was formally approved by our Congressional Technology Assessment Board at its February 8th meeting. The texts of the request letters for the study, the press release from Representatives Brown and Boucher, and the proposal for the study, which outlines the issues we will be considering during the next 14 months, are all available via ftp at otabbs.ota.gov. Look in pub\wireless\ for these documents. Other study-related documents will be posted as they become available. The objective of this study is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the problems and promises of integrating wireless technologies into the NII. Wireless technologies and systems--such as TV and radio broadcasting, new personal communications services, and many kinds of satellite communications -- will form an integral part of the NII, but the role they will play and the implications of their widespread adoption are not yet clear. In particular, integrating the many wireless and wireline systems that will comprise the NII will prove a difficult challenge for Federal, State, and local regulators. Many factors, including standards development, interconnection and pricing arrangements, and differing industry regulation, must be addressed before radio-based technologies and systems can become an effective part of the NII. This study will: identify and discuss the various wireless technologies that could contribute to the development of the NII, assess the barriers to greater or more efficient use of radio-based systems, and explore the economic, regulatory, and social implications of the convergence of wireline and wireless technologies in the NII. The study will also present policy options addressing relevant wireless/NII issues. Over the course of the study, we will try to talk to as many people as we can in order to understand the wide range of interests and concerns surrounding these complex and difficult issues. In addition, OTA will also conduct several (as yet undetermined) workshops that will address specific issues in more detail. These meetings will be announced as far in advance as possible. If you would like more information, please feel free to contact the study team at our project e-mail address, wireless@ota.gov. Any suggestions you may have for people we should talk to, or other sources of data and information will be greatly appreciated. David Wye, Todd La Porte, Alan Buzacott, Greg Wallace Wireless Project Team Telecommunications and Computing Technologies Program Office of Technology Assessment U.S. Congress (202) 228-6760 wireless@ota.gov ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 09:29:07 PDT From: Les Reeves Subject: Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] David S. Greenberg (mgreeny@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu) wrote: > If you recall, the only reason that Lotus dropped their moronic > Household CDROM was because they received 20,000 letters/calls > requesting removal from the database. Lotus LEARNED THE HARD WAY HOW > TO ALIENATE YOUR CUSTOMER BASE -- MAYBE THIS COMPANY NEEDS A GOOD KICK > IN THE *&*(& AS WELL... > TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The thing is, they *do* have the right > to see compiled listings -- as did Lotus or as does anyone else -- if they > wish to do so. If a telephone book containing alphabetical listings is > not illegal then neither is a consolidated listing of several telephone > books made into one. ...... > Why? Is it because the ease > and availability in obtaining the information has become greater? PAT] Pat is correct. The CD Rom has simply brought this well established list business within reach of anyone with a PC. The Direct Marketing Association will help you make sure your name is not used by direct marketers. It will not remove your name from lists, but it will attempt to alert all direct marketers who are members that you do not wish to receive unsolicited mail. As for the ProCD product, if you have moved in the last five years the information on the CD is probably wrong. This company's products are loaded with errors. If you are going to complain to them, ask them to improve their accuracy . Les lreeves@crl.com Atlanta,GA ------------------------------ From: genghis@ilces.ag.uiuc.edu (Scott Coleman) Subject: Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! Date: 4 Apr 94 14:56:47 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana mgreeny@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu (David S. Greenberg) writes: > Hi all, just thought I'd let everyone out there know that I just > received in my daily pile of junk mail yet another company (which > shall be named shortly ...) which has decided that they have the right > to sell ****YOUR**** name and address AND PHONE NUMBER on CD ROM! [...] > CALL NOW! Protect your right to privacy! Stop the abuse! > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The thing is, they *do* have the right > to see compiled listings -- as did Lotus or as does anyone else -- if they > wish to do so. [...] I think > what you will find in this case however is that the company in question > is merely a list seller. They specialize in lists for other companies to > purchase, and they are not going to be impressed very much one way or > the other by consumers, per se. I'd like to add to these points that the above company is by no means the first to offer residential listings on CD-ROM. Last summere at the American Library Association annual conference there was a CD-ROM reverse directory shown, and its booth drew quite a bit of attention. What this means is the chances are good that you can walk right into your public library and use, in addition to the standard printed cross directory, a CD-ROM version, as well. The reference room here at the University of Illinois has a CD-ROM workstation dedicated to searches on a reverse directory disc. In short, your campaign, even if successful, won't make much of a dent in the abuses telemarketing scum make of our telephones. The information will still be available from too many other sources, including Compu$erve (via their PHONE*FILE service) and the 900 number which you can call and punch in a phone number via DTMF tones and retrieve the directory information. On the bright side, however, you *can* protect yourself. Call your phone company and have your listing changed to "city only" - i.e. your listing appears as "John Doe, Anytown USA." As others have noted, you can also choose to be listed under an assumed name, provided it sounds reasonable. There are scads of call screening devices, some designed specifically to thwart telemarketers, coming on the market now. I use one which I designed myself based on a PC voice mail card and a computer CNID interface, but I've seen similar devices in such catalogs as Home Automation Labs. Using these techniques, I have managed to cut my junk calls down to near ZERO. One other glimmer of hope is that the data sources used by these CD-ROM producers may not always be up to date. I sometimes look up the "unknown" numbers which show up in my caller logs to see who's calling me. Much of the time the information simply isn't there. A friend of mine who actually owns some of these CD-ROM cross directories laments this fact. Unless the CD-ROM in question has as its source the telco's proprietary directory assistance data, there's a chance your information isn't there or is listed incorrectly. Scott Coleman tmkk@uiuc.edu President ASRE (American Society of Reverse Engineers) Ed Green Fan Club #005 ------------------------------ From: tarl@coyoacan.dmc.com Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 22:04:00 EST Subject: Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! In article , mgreeny@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu writes: > to sell ****YOUR**** name and address AND PHONE NUMBER on CD ROM! Not > only are they doing this for your home, but also for businesses as > well! The Lotus database was more than phone numbers. It included juicy little details like annual income, credit history and marital status. This new database sounds more like one large phone book, which is far less irritating. [and our Moderator follows:] > All of a sudden because the medium has changed (from great > big hardover books with several thousand pages each in several volumes) > to CD Rom the complaints become more vocal. Why? Is it because the ease > and availability in obtaining the information has become greater? PAT] Yup. As long as it took big money to get that kind of data on me, it didn't bother me too much. Exxon and IBM have better things to do than harrass me. When the price falls down to a couple of hundred dollars, the local Church of the Latter Rain can get that data on everyone in town and target accordingly. That bothers me. Tarl Neustaedter tarl@bostech.com [work] Ashland, MA, USA tarl@coyoacan.dmc.com [home] [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: But Tarl, where do you draw the line? I mean, you do like this information superhighway concept and the ease with which everyone can get whatever information they want don't you? Funny part is -- really it is not so funny -- when Clinton talks about the Information Superhighway, he is not talking about how easy it will be for every home in America to access the Grollier's Encyclopedia online at Compuserve or America OnLine. Certainly the ease of obtaining neutral third-party non-specific information will increase ... but so will the ease in obtaining information on anyone about anything. We as human beings can employ some ethical standards and say that normally there are certain inquiries we won't make about others without their permission or some definite reason for doing so combined with a 'need to know' ... but to the computer, its all just bits of data flowing down the wires. The computer doesn't care what you ask about. Superhighways are designed to make it easy to get from A to B ... and the church people have the same rights as everyone else. Public information is becoming easier and easier for the *public* to get their hands on ... and I can see where to some people it might get sort of scary. The time is going to come -- I think in the lifetimes of most of us -- when there are no hiding places left; no secrets are hidden; everyone's soiled underwear on display at the laundromat; when we no longer have privacy to count on to hide our peccadillos. Then the computer will have metamorphosed from being our trustworthy tool to being our master instead. When the church people aren't getting after you, the government will be or your ex-wife or your former husband, or your parents or your neighbors. Forget Grollier's Academic Encyclopedia or the Fruitcake Recipe Database ... now the real lookups are getting underway! Come one, come all, serve yourselves. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 10:15:10 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? When the timing belt went bust on my car on March 19, I waited 3 1/2 to 4 hours on the route 33 expressway in Northampton County, PA. No one stopped to inquire (at LEAST someone needed to contact police). Although it had gotten dark, I had to leave the car and walk 1 1/2 miles, along a shoulder that was VERY narrow in some places, to an exit ramp on my way to a phone. I was honked at twice or so, but still nobody made a move to stop me. ------------------------------ From: rboudrie@chpc.org (Rob Boudrie) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: 4 Apr 1994 10:32:08 -0500 Organization: Center for High Performance Computing of WPI In article howard@hal.com writes: > A friend suggested to me that, sometime in the future, almost everyone > will carry around a cellular phone almost all the time. She thinks > this will significantly reduce the amount of crime, because it will be > very easy to report a crime or other suspicious behavior that one > observes. I'm skeptical, but it seems like an interesting topic for > discussion. Or it can increase it ... A few months ago, someone in Framingham, MA was held up for their Motorola flip phone at (I think knife point). The agressor then demanded that the phone be unlocked before he would leave. ------------------------------ From: hpa@eecs.nwu.edu (H. Peter Anvin N9ITP) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Reply-To: hpa@nwu.edu (H. Peter Anvin) Organization: Northwestern University Electromagnetics Laboratory Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 00:21:10 GMT In article of comp.dcom.telecom, rs2510@ dice.nwscc.sea06.navy.mil (Rhett Salisbury) responds to TELECOM Digest Editor: >> Sorry Pat, this is the kind of crap that keeps things the way they >> are. If you are not willing to get involved you have no right to >> complain about how screwed up things are. We will not have an end to > -- good stuff deleted -- >> Back to the original question, will the proliferation of cell phones >> reduce crime? The answer is: no, but your use of one might. > In total agreement with Sean Slattery -- Pat should excercise a > certain measure of responsible judgment. When someone flippantly > tells an international community that not only we live in a extremely > dangerous country, but also that it is dangerous to become 'involved', > someone will be injured due to your inaction. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: But it is true. Ask the few honest > people who work for the CTA. I see it happen over and over again. > And if you witness a crime and report it, you'll spend the next six > months or a year in court getting harassed by the defendant and his > attorney. My advice is don't get involved unless you like being a > martyr. Criminals are given so many rights, *you* will be made to be > the villian instead. PAT] How about asking the two brave young students in Evanston recently who stopped a rape and made a citizen's arrest on the perpetrator? They got a medal for it. America has problems largely *because* people don't get involved, and by saying "it is better not to", we are exacerbating the problem. Have some guts. hpa INTERNET: hpa@nwu.edu FINGER/TALK: hpa@ahab.eecs.nwu.edu IBM MAIL: I0050052 at IBMMAIL HAM RADIO: N9ITP or SM4TKN FIDONET: 1:115/511 or 1:115/512 STORMNET: 181:294/101 Linux system administrator (3 systems on the net, one off) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Certainly, and that kind of thing (giving a medal) happens occassionally in Chicago also. I will never forget the instance a few years ago of the woman who slipped on the ice and fell in the Chicago River and the kid about fifteen years old who jumped in and pulled her to safety. The next day in a rather unusual twist to the news of the day the {Chicago Sun Times} put a large picture of him on the front page with a headline, " is a hero". Mayor Washington gave him a medal and recognition as well. Now if that kind of thing happened more often, I might agree with you. Citizen's arrests are very dangerous things to do however and I have simply seen too many cases where the police harrassed the person(s) who tried to stop the crime while doing nothing to the person who *did* commit the crime. PAT] ------------------------------ From: tom@MCS.COM (Thomas M. Allebrandi) Subject: Re: PC Pursuit Has Ended Date: 3 Apr 1994 17:30:05 -0600 Organization: MCSNet Subscriber Acct, Chicago's First Public-Access Internet! Steven H. Lichter (co057@cleveland.Freenet.Edu) wrote: > PC Pursuit has now gone into The Information Highway history books. As > of 9:00 PM Pacific Time it went down; that was three hours earlier > then it was supposed to on 3/31/94. Many paid for a full month of > $30.00 for 30 hours and got cheated for at least three hours. The talk > among the many users of the service was Sprint killed the program by > not advertising a service that could have made money. PC Pursuit was originally intended as a way to make some money off of the unused network capacity that Sprint had after business hours. They were already providing remote outdial capabilities for thier business customers who went home at 5:00PM. Overnight, this gear sat their gathering dust. Enter PC Pursuit - $15.00 per month for unlimited use of the outdial network between 6:00PM and 7:00AM weekdays and all hours on weekends. The growth was incredible, it was not very long until the demand far outweighed the capacity. It got to the point that the costs of operating PC Pursuit at the level required by the demand was significantly greater than the costs of operating the daytime service for businesses. A way of making some extra money was turning into a full blown business entity. Sprint piddled around putting up with the complaints, made a lot of people mad, and then decided to meet the demand with significantly higher rates. That's when $30.00 for 30 hours was introduced. (There may have been a couple of steps before that, I don't recall.) This made a lot of people mad and there were massive defections. The problem was that there was no place to go and so people starting getting into other things like UUCP. I was using PC Pursuit in '87-'88 as a cheap way to get to Portal who at that time was $10.00/month. In 1988, $25.00/month for Internet Mail and USEnet news was a great deal. By the end of 1988, I had UUCP on my machine so I no longer needed Portal and hence no longer needed PC Pursuit. What exactly killed it in the end I canot say. But it would not surprise me that Sprint was simply tired of dealing with it. Tom [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I signed up with PC Pursuit about 1982 during the first week or so of its operation when they were using the 'dial us, we call you back' method of connecting callers to the network. At the time, no one really thought PCP would gain any real popularity. PAT] ------------------------------ From: taranto@panix.com (James Taranto) Subject: Re: PC Pursuit Has Ended Date: 4 Apr 1994 06:33:43 GMT Organization: The Bad Taranto In article , co057@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Steven H. Lichter) wrote: (I am commenting only on the writer's signature): > Sysop: Apple Elite II -=- an Ogg-Net Hub BBS > (909) 359-5338 12/24/96/14.4 V32/V42bis Via PCP CACOL/12/24 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Huh? Cheers, James Taranto taranto@panix.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Steve, want to explain it? PAT] ------------------------------ From: eccobbs@crl.com (ECCO BBS) Subject: Request For Information on Voicemail Systems Date: 4 Apr 1994 10:55:45 -0800 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] We are a small software development shop looking for a good voicemail package that we can set up ourselves. We need about five lines and will be purchasing all the handsets and hardware. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Henry Sobel ------------------------------ From: elitman@proxima.com (Eric A. Litman) Subject: Small Ccale Voicemail Information Needed Date: 4 Apr 1994 11:32:18 -0500 Organization: Proxima, Inc. I'm interested in purachasing a voice mail system for my company. I've always been impressed by the features of the Octel line, but my last investigation (maybe five years ago) revealed only relatively high-end systems. Audix and its offspring are OK. What are some recommendations for a system which will need to support between ten and fifty users? I'm not at all familiar with costs or administrative features, only with the systems from a user's perspective. I appreciate any information -- vendors welcome. Eric Litman Proxima, Inc. vox: (703) 506.1661 Systems Engineer McLean, VA elitman+@proxima.com ------------------------------ From: cengelog@sunny.dab.ge.com (Yilmaz Cengeloglu) Subject: Can I Use my Cellular Phone in Turkey and Germany? Date: 4 Apr 1994 12:28:01 -0500 Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway I use my cellular phone in FL, USA. I would like to know if I can use that phone in Turkey and/or Germany. If I can not use it, do you know any phone that is compatible with cellular system in Germany, Turkey and USA. Thanks in advance, cengelog@dab.ge.com ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #163 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa28235; 4 Apr 94 20:01 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA02097; Mon, 4 Apr 94 15:48:06 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA02087; Mon, 4 Apr 94 15:48:03 CDT Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 15:48:03 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404042048.AA02087@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #164 TELECOM Digest Mon, 4 Apr 94 15:48:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 164 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson What's Up With The NANP (John R. Levine) New NPA For Virginia (Karl Johnson) Re: Ruling on Dark Fiber (Michael P. Herlihy) Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto (Garrett Wollman) Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto (Peter M. Weiss) Re: Dials! (Tom Watson) Re: *999; CB Channel 9 (Chris Sullivan) Re: History: Vail, Monopoly, AT&T (Mike Eastman) Re: Leased Line Connectivity Question (Barton F. Bruce) Re: Is 800 Really Portable Yet? (Terry Eugene Knab) Re: Is 800 Really Portable Yet? (Steve Forrette) Re: ZMODEM - Proprietary? (Matt Silveira) Re: ZMODEM - Proprietary? (Linc Madison) Re: Charges For 800 and 950 Access (Kurt Albrecht) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: What's Up With the NANP Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 14:13:30 EDT I just picked up this FCC news release from the fcc.gov ftp server. Despite the date, it's real. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com -------------------------- Report No. DC-2581 ACTION IN DOCKET CASE April 1, 1994 CHANGES IN ADMINISTRATION OF NORTH AMERICAN NUMBERING PLAN PROPOSED (CC DOCKET NO. 92-237) The Commission has proposed to establish a new, non-government entity to administer the North America Numbering Plan (NANP). Administration of the NANP has evolved from its earlier focus on conventional area codes to include other numbering resources such as service access codes (e.g., 500 and 900 codes), N11 codes (e.g., 411), and carrier identification codes. As a result, the NANP administrator coordinates many of the telephone numbers used in the United States, Canada, and other parts of North America. To explore issues pertaining to future administration of the NANP, the Commission opened this docket with a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) in October 1992. The NOI divided the docket into two phases. Phase I requested comment on the identification of an appropriate entity to administer the NANP, future funding for such administration, and how such administration might be improved. Phase II sought comment on the costs, benefits and technical issues associated with expanding Feature Group D (FGD) Carrier Identification Codes (CICs) from a three-digit to a four-digit format. The expanded format has been proposed to avoid premature exhaustion of the current supply of three-digit FGD codes. In this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Commission tentatively concluded that ministerial administration of the NANP should be undertaken by a new, non-government entity and that the FCC should impose fees to offset the costs of regulating US numbering resources. The Commission also asked for comment on whether it, in conjunction with other World Zone 1 regulators, should impose numbering charges to finance future international administration of NANP. In addition, the Commission sought comment, on whether a new numbering policy board should be established to assist regulators. With respect to Phase II, the Commission tentatively concluded that FGD CICS should be expanded to a four-digit format. In addition, it proposed to specify a transition period of six years during which subscribers could use both the current three digit and the new four-digit FGD CICs. The Commission also sought comment on whether it should require local exchange carriers in equal access areas to deliver interstate, intraLATA "1+" MTS calls to the carrier preselected by the end user. In addition, the Commission sought comment on the need, if any or for a nationally uniform dialing pattern that would use the digit "1" as a toll call identifier. Action by the Commission March 30, 1994, by Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FCC 94-79). Chairman Hundt, Commissioner Quello and Barrett. New Media contract: Rosemary Kimball at (202) 632-5050. Common Carrier Bureau contact: Peyton Wynns at (202) 632-0745. ------------------------------ Date: 04 Apr 94 17:59:36 EDT From: Karl Johnson Subject: New NPA For Virginia In the business section of the 1 April 1994 {Washington Post} there is an article "announcing" a split for NPA 703. The Post gives the start date for this split as August (I personaly think that this will occur a year from August). No number or geographic location has been assigned as of yet. The article also states that over the next three months that an economic study will be conducted by Bell Atlantic, the local wireless companies, and 14 other local phone companies in the region. I think this will be a normal split with the line somewhere west of the Washington, DC suburbs, with the western part getting the new NPA. ------------------------------ From: mikeh@cbnewsg.cb.att.com (michael p.herlihy) Subject: Re: Ruling on Dark Fiber Organization: AT&T Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 11:19:08 GMT In article tsw@cypher.apple.com (Tom Watson) writes: > OK, I'll bite... > What is "dark fiber". > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Dark Fiber is, as I understand it, simply > the fiber from one point to another, without the intelligence on either > end of the line **as supplied by the telco** to use it. Dark fiber could > roughly be compared to a wire cable from one place to another without > telco's battery and/or switching apparatus on either end; the customer > left to his own devices on how to use it. Although telcos have for many > years provided so-called 'private line service' -- that is, a piece of > wire from one point to another with the subscriber doing his own thing > on both ends of the wire, I understand they (telcos) are not terribly > enthusiastic about providing fiber under the same conditions. George > Gilder wrote about this, and his essay is in the Telecom Archives for > interested parties to review. PAT] I thought Dark-Fiber was telco run fiber that wasn't being used. An AAV or CAP would lease it from a LEC and provide alternate access using the LEC's own facilities ... ------------------------------ From: wollman@ginger.lcs.mit.edu (Garrett Wollman) Subject: Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto Date: 4 Apr 1994 10:13:37 GMT Organization: MIT Laboratory for Computer Science In article , PAT writes: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Thank you Colonel. Tell me this: any ideas > how Colonel came to be pronounced 'kernel' rather than 'call-on-nell'? There is a reason for this, oddly enough. The English word `colonel' is a result of the collision between the French word `colonelle' and the Italian `coronello'. For some unknown reason, English adopted the French spelling and the Italian pronunciation. Garrett A. Wollman wollman@lcs.mit.edu formerly known as wollman@emba.uvm.edu ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Apr 1994 05:13:30 EDT From: Peter M. Weiss Subject: Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto Organization: Penn State University In article , greg@gallifrey.ucs.uoknor.edu (Greg Trotter) says: > In article vantek@aol.com writes: >> (...) Call Surety Technologies, Inc. at (201) 993-8178; >> fax number is (201) 993-8748. Information is also available on the >> Internet at infonotary.com. > ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ > My system can't seem to find this place ... and whois at internic seems > clueless as well. Anybody have any updated information? Taking a SWAG, I looked up info.notary.com which resolved to an MX host. Pete-Weiss@psu.edu "The 'NET' never naps" +1 814 863 1843 31 Shields Bldg. -- Penn State Univ -- University Park, PA 16802-1202 USA ------------------------------ From: tsw@cypher.apple.com (Tom Watson) Subject: Re: Dials! Date: Mon, 04 Apr 1994 12:42:59 -0800 Organization: Apple Computer (more or less) In article , Bob_Frankston@frankston.com wrote: > My son (11) confronted a dial phone this past weekend and couldn't > figure out how to use it. He tried pressing the "buttons" but nothing > happened. We finally had to show him the concept of turning the dial. > It took a little practice to get it smooth. Something similar to this is references to "clockwise" and "counterclock- wise" as directions to torn something. It seems that the notion of direction has been "depreciated" since we now have digital clocks. Are first and second graders being taught how to tell time on one of those "old-fashion" "dial" clocks? This is probably not the correct place to discuss this, but surfing over to 'alt.folklore.computers' will probably yield some interesting ideas on this subject ... Tom Watson Not much simpler!! tsw@cypher.apple.com ------------------------------ From: feedle@kaiwan.com (Prof. Feedlebom) Subject: Re: *999; CB Channel 9 Date: 4 Apr 94 17:58:17 GMT Organization: KAIWAN Internet (310/527-4279,818/756-0180,714/741-2920) Jonathan (jdl@wam.umd.edu) wrote: > I am wondering why the police do not routinely monitor CB channel 9, > since the primary use of this channel is to report emergencies. A few police departments monitor channel 9 across the country, however even at CB's peak that was not really who was monitoring. A long time ago, there was a group called REACT who's basic purpose was to monitor channel 9, and render assistance as needed by calling the appropriate authorities by telephone and acting as a "relay" for motorists in trouble. Unfortunately, even though REACT still exists, few still monitor channel 9. Most (especially here in LA) just act as roving reporters for the local traffic service. I know of entire TEAMS of REACT members that don't even have one CB radio between them. If you need emergency assistance while travelling, don't depend on your CB radio. Invest the $200 to buy a GOOD cellular phone, or pass the no-code Amateur license and use ham radio. You'll be doing yourself a favor. Chris Sullivan, KD6COS, Santiago REACT #19 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In some places, the REACT people have moved up to the 462 megs area in GMRS. During the height of the CB craze back in the 1970's, channel 9 was abused a lot in many places and what limited police attention it received wained. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Apr 94 08:56:38 EST From: mfe@ihlpm.att.com Subject: Re: History: Vail, Monopoly, AT&T Organization: AT&T In article , haynes@cats.ucsc.edu (James H. Haynes) writes: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Thanks for that great bit of history. > .... Without question, Ted Vail was the man who made AT&T what it is > today, or at least what it was for more than half a century. PAT] AT&T has an employee award called the VAIL Medal of Valor given for acts of bravery (e.g., saving someone in fire). I find it satisfying that it is not given out for technical achievement or monetary achievement, just for HUMAN achievement. Mike Eastman att!ihlpm!mfe (708) 979-6569 AT&T Naperville, IL 60566 ------------------------------ From: Barton.Bruce@camb.com Subject: Re: Leased Line Connectivity Question Organization: Digital Equipment Computer Users Society Date: 04 Apr 94 01:49:21 -0500 In article , kostick@umbc.edu (kostick christopher) writes: > I have some questions. I am more of a LAN person and this WAN stuff is > new to me. Before I approach vendors and providers about equipment and > connectivity, I like to have some knowledge of what I'm talking about, > and the net seems to be the place. > Two offices need connectivity. I was thinking through a leased line of > 56Kbps. I'm in the Bell Atlantic region, would I talk to them? AT&T? > MCI? Sprint? Anyone of them? > What kind of equipment would be necessary? I've heard of these CSU/DSU > devices? Do I need one? Bell Atlantic has frame relay in many places and more coming. If you are intralata, compare that to a DDS-II circuit or some FT1 circuits. Whether leased line or frame relay, you will need a CSU/DSU (think of it as a digital modem). The CSU/DSU (also spelled DSU/CSU - your choice) you get depends on speed. DDS to 56 or possibly 64 is one type. T1 or fractions is the other type. If small groups are at either end and this is otherwise suitable, bridge. It will be plug and play -- no configuration hassles. Get a Gandalf 5220 that does screaming good compression. Lists at 2295 each. Wholesales at Ingram at 1513, your street price depends on your bargaining. The base model used to just do 56kb. 2nd wan port is just $150 more. S/W upgrade (flash equipped, no less) to support compression to 384kb and T1 speeds without compression WAS $700, but may now be bundled free due to competition -- ask. DDS DSU/CSU ***SERIOUS QUALITY** try Adtran's DSU-III AR listing at $725. Shopping in the back of "Telecom Gear" may find ads offering it at $479 or less. A BAT brand one that JUST does 56kb and JUST has a v.35 (no rs232) lists at $299. **LARGE** discount %s generally available. A T1 CSU/DSU, oh, probably lists at $1595. There are MANY options -- best get someone you trust. With a little effort current models with reduced chip counts should be available just under $1000 with some careful shopping. If you really MUST route, get cisco's new 250x models. Hardware is 995 for one ethernet to two T1 capable ports. Software is 1500, 2300, or 3000 per end depending on what you need to do. Cisco discounts, though definitely available, are more difficult than othe rbrands. But you are getting 'class' stuff. The csico 250x router MUST be used if you are using frame relay, as the Gandalf doesn't do f/r. Cisco can bridge, too, but lacks compression that is promised in some future s/w upgrade. cisco ALWAYS will need con- figuring. If you must go interlata, then you need an IXC. Same leased line vs frame relay questions should be asked. Try other than the mainstream ATT/Sprint/MCI. Wiltel or C&W should be good. Resellers should be avoided until you get more experience. they tend to want your $s without really getting the service installed properly, and will help precious little later. 56kb is probably all you need, but you didn't give many details. Ignore 8:1 claims. With the gandalfs you probably will get 3:1 or maybe 4:1 compression on average. With a 56kb line, that is VERY nice. Get the v.35 connectorized versions even if just starting at 56kb. One last thing. 56kb DDS *WAS* and in some places still IS the old hubbed MEGA-RIP-OFF obsolete service. You want DDS-II, or BDS (Basic...) or GDS (Generic...) or, in AT&T terms ASDS (Acunet Spectrum of Digital Service). Specifically you want the LOWEST PRICE non hubbed generic digital service available. Check BOTH the in state utility commission tariffs and the FCC ones. *YOU* (in state only) and you alone can pick which you order under. There ARE rules saying which to use. No one polices this and no one seems to really care. Bigest problem if the FCC ones are cheaper inlata may be getting a local telco sales droid that even understands HOW to take your order under FCC pricing! Persist. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 06:01:52 CST From: Terry Eugene Knab Subject: Re: Is 800 Really Portable Yet? I applied for my 800 number (800-900-XXXX) on May 3, 1993 (two days after the new system started. When I enquired as to what was available, (and I was dealing with MCI) they offered me the 800-900- XXXX, 800-417-XXXX, 800-889-XXXX (all of which either ended in double 0 or repeated i.e. 8989) When I asked the MCI rep why I had these choices, she told me that all combinations were opened up for general use. BTW, 889 was a RBOC NNX. Terry Knab tknab01@services.dese.state.mo.us P.O. Box 34 Buffalo, MO 65622 417-345-7979 ------------------------------ From: stevef@wrq.com (Steve Forrette) Subject: Re: Is 800 Really Portable Yet? Date: 4 Apr 1994 10:10:26 GMT Organization: Walker Richer & Quinn, Inc. Reply-To: stevef@wrq.com (Steve Forrette) > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: After portability started, > When it comes to 'good' numbers (i.e. they spell words or end in x000 > or some other desirable combination) which are idle from AT&T, then AT&T > always claims the number is 'reserved' for a pending customer. They never > can produce the name of the so-called customer of course, and although > reservations are theoretically only good for sixty days (at which point > a carrier has to make it available without further hassles) AT&T keeps > on renewing the reservations on the numbers they want. ... > So although portability is the law, it will only work as it should > when the FCC orders all the carriers to start responding promptly to > customer requests for numbers which 'belong' to other carriers and to > quit reserving numbers for customers who do not exist in order to hang > on to desirable numbers. PAT] I had this problem last year. The number I wanted was not in service, but when I tried to get it through AT&T, I was told that it was "reserved" by the original carrier who owned that prefix, Cable & Wireless. So I called C&W, and they told me that it was reserved by themselves for "internal use." Instead of battling with them to get them to release it, I explained to them that I wanted to sign up for 800 service, but I will do so with them only if I can get the number I want, and that if I have to have a number assigned to me other than the one I want, that I might as well go with another carrier. I played dumb and acted like I didn't know anything about portability. Magically, the sales rep was able to get the number "released" and assigned to me. Once the account was set up and working, I filled out the RespOrg switch form and had it moved over to AT&T where I wanted it. Once it was in service in my name, there was no argument about moving it. Although it introduces a bit of a delay, extra work, and perhaps a setup charge and first-month's fee from a carrier you don't want to deal with, it is far easier than trying to battle it out. I'd recommend to anyone to do it this way if at all possible. Steve Forrette, stevef@wrq.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: You shouldn't have to play games like that however. I've had to do the same thing though. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 10:16:45 PST From: mws1@admin01.osi.com (Matt Silveira) Subject: Re: ZMODEM - Proprietary? Yes, many modems of like bps rate will not "communicate" due to proprietary bit compression schemes. V.fast and MNP are proprietary and will not "sync-up" with a standard modem. And save your money on fancy options for LEC lines or IXC lines and buy a better modem with more robust error correction. With regard to ZMODEM, it is not proprietary and there are many "shareware" programs available for Macs, PCs, and UNIX boxes, check a "mirrored" INTERNET site or sumex.aim at Stanford for Macs. Good Luck. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 18:20:12 -0700 From: lincmad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) Subject: Re: ZMODEM - Proprietary? Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) In article you wrote: > I'm trying to determine whether the Zmodem transfer protocol is > proprietary. Specifically, are there any *free* (i.e. non-shareware) > tools for sending/receiving files utilizing the Zmodem protocol? The ZMODEM protocol is definitely NOT proprietary. Particular implementations of it (such as the Mark/Space ZMODEM tool for the Apple Communications Toolbox) are proprietary, but the protocol itself is not. You can obtain complete source code for "sz/rz" for Unix. I don't recall the FTP site, but I'm sure someone on the net can inform you. There are also freeware comm applications for popular micros that supply ZMODEM (e.g., ZTerm for Macintosh). Linc Madison * Oakland, California * LincMad@Netcom.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 13:31:00 EDT From: National Electric Telephone <0006348890@mcimail.com> Subject: Re: Charges For 800 and 950 Access My company provides public telephones for general public use in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Consequently, I'm pretty familiar with access to 800 and 950 numbers from public telephones. I'm going to give you some of the history, rules, and reasons behind the rules. I'm also going to let you know where I think things are going on this issue. In the Telephone Operator Consumer Services Improvement Act of 1990 (TOCSIA) Congress mandated that telephone aggregators (i.e. public telephone providers, hotels, university provided phones, etc.) must provide access to 800 and 950 at no higher cost than what they charge to access their presubscribed 0+ carrier (i.e. the carrier that you get when you just dial 0). Since most aggregators don't charge to access their presubscribed carrier (they receive a commission from the presubscribed carrier in exchange for sending the traffic their way) they therefore should not be charging for access to 800 and 950 access. They definately cannot block access. TOCSIA also mandated that the FCC decide whether 10XXX should be handled in the same manner. In addition, they also directed the FCC to see if compensation should be granted to the aggregators for allowing the end user to access their carrier of choice. The carrier receives compensation from the end user who pays for the call, why shouldn't the company that provided the equipment from which the call originated also be compensated. In 1992 the FCC decided that 10XXX access should be handled in the same manner as 1-800 and 950 and that aggregators should be compensated on a per call basis. However, they couldn't figure out how to implement a per call compensation plan so they did nothing. At the urging of the American Public Communications Council (A trade group which represents public accessible communication companies) the FCC did implement a temporary plan in which the major long distance carriers pay into a fund. Each aggregator phone receives $6 per month to compensate them for interstate access code calls. Prior to this aggregators received *nothing* everytime someone placed one of these calls. You might wonder why an aggregator should receive compensation for 800, 950, and 10XXX calls when these are free to them to begin with. Well, if you decided to start a business providing public telephones for use by the public you would invest money in equipment, personnel, training, maintenance. Each month you have to pay a phone bill to the LEC (local telephone company) for dial tone service. Each month you have to pay to keep the phones in good repair (handsets, keypads, circuit boards, lamps). And each month you have a payroll you have to meet. Everytime someone uses your phone to make an 800, 950, or 10XXX call they tie up the phone from someone that is actually going to make a paid call. Prior to the per call compensation plan many aggregators felt that it was unfair to give away service for free. Consumers saw this as unfair because it had always been free. Most aggregators have now unblocked access to these codes. Issues that still need to be resolved are compensation for intrastate access code calls, calls to new access services like MCI's 1-800-COLLECT and AT&T's 1-800-OPERATOR, and subscriber 800 calls (ie. Calls to L.L. Bean). The number of 800 subscriber calls far outweighs 1-800, 950, and 10XXX carrier access calls. Basically, any call that is originated from a public telephone should be compensated. This is no different than the LEC's that receive access charges for *all* calls that they send onto an Interexchange carrier (i.e. AT&T, MCI, etc.). They aren't forced to pass any calls onto the long distance carriers for free. It is my opinion that once compensation is awarded on a time sensitive basis for all originated calls, that are not paid by coin at the public telephone, you will start to see rates on operator assisted calls come down. A lot of the cost now in non-dominant operator service calls is from the Premise Imposed Fee (PIF). This is a fee that the aggregator has asked the operator service company to collect on their behalf. Right now, the scales are unbalanced. If you have to give away calls for free on one hand you have to make up the loss elsewhere. Basically, calling card and collect call users are subsidizing callers who make 1-800 calls. Once proper compensation is in place these PIF fees should be greatly reduced or eliminated and the scales will finally be balanced. Hope this was helpful. Kurt Albrecht National Electric & Telephone ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #164 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa14239; 6 Apr 94 18:24 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06216; Wed, 6 Apr 94 14:31:12 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06205; Wed, 6 Apr 94 14:31:09 CDT Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 14:31:09 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404061931.AA06205@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #165 TELECOM Digest Wed, 6 Apr 94 14:31:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 165 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson ATM in the Government Sector II (Michael R. Brown) Beacon Initiative (Dave Sellers) PacBell Billing For AT&T - Constant Problems (Laurence Chiu) Meridian Mail Problem (rah@connectinc.com) Help Needed With Phone Wiring (Simon Shaw) Intrastate LD Rates (Todd Inch) Voice Mail System Log-Off (Stephen Polinsky) Toshiba Strata III Documentation (omniplex@access.digex.com) Re: Getting Wired: Leased Line vs. Dial-up For 14.4kps Data Comm (L Reeves) Re: Question About MIN and ESN (Jay Hennigan) Re: Cellular Roaming Charges (John R. Levine) Re: Ethernet via Cable TV (Jerry Yost) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Michael R. Brown Subject: ATM in the Government Sector II Date: 6 Apr 1994 13:33:33 GMT Organization: The MITRE Corporation ATM Networking in the Government Sector The MITRE Corporation and the ATM Forum are pleased to announce their second annual workshop on ATM networking in the government sector, to be held on 26 April 1993 in McLean, VA. The focus of this workshop is on the government's need for broadband network technology and services, and industry's plans for to meet these needs over the next five to ten years. Senior representatives from the Government and Industry will discuss a wide range of issues including requirements, technology developments, early (ATM) trial results, and product and service plans. Workshop sessions include: Keynote Speakers Rep. Rick Boucher Chair, House Subcommittee on Science Mr. Donald Teague,Jr. VP and GM, Sprint Government Systems ATM Networking Standards Mr. Irfan Ali VP, ATM Forum Mr. Richard Vickers Manager, Northern Telecom ATM Networking - Early Experiences Mr. Dan McAuliffe Director, Telecom Division, Rome Labs Ms. Chris Caldwell National Information Infrastructure Testbed Mr. Kwok Li Director, Product Development, WilTel Federal and State Government Requirements Dr. John Okay Director, Information Resource Mgt, US Army Dr. Howard Frank Director, ARPA/DISA AITS-JPO Pat Jackson Director, Council on Information Mgt, VA Mr. Nick Giordano Assisstant Director, Bureau of ATM, PA Vendor and Carrier Plans Dr. Mohan Kinra Director, Apex Marketing, General Datacom Mr. Bob Halligan VP & GM, Government Systems Division Mr. Tony D'Agata VP, Military, Bell Atlantic Federal Systems Mr. William Clark Director, Advanced Technologies, Cabletron In addition to these sessions, vendor demonstrations will be conducted throughout the workshop. Given the continued interest in related initiatives such as NREN, NII, and Global Grid, this workshop offers a unique opportunity for government and industry officials to discuss potential applications of this enabling technology. Because of the desire to facilitate one-on-one discussions between government and industry officials, non-government representatives will be admitted on a limited basis. The workshop will be held at : The MITRE Corporation Hayes Auditorium 7525 Colshire Drive McLean, VA 22102 For registration information contact: Ms. Holly Robbins hrobbins@mitre.org 703.883.5890 703.883.5914 (FAX) Michael R. Brown mrb@mitre.org Advanced Telecommunications Group 617.271.7390 The MITRE Corporation 617.271.7231 (FAX) S B280 Burlington Road Bedford, MA 01730 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Apr 94 15:42:49 EDT From: sellers@on.bell.ca (Dave Sellers) Subject: Beacon Initiative THE FOLLOWING NEWS RELEASE WAS ISSUED BY STENTOR APRIL 5, 1994 NR-94-E04 Stentor Companies Address Canada's Telecommunications Future Through The Beacon Initiative (TORONTO -- April 5, 1994) -- In a coast to coast broadcast today, Stentor telecommunications companies announced a joint initiative to bring the Information Highway to all Canadians. The companies will pool their resources to upgrade their local, regional and national networks to provide multimedia services into homes, offices, hospitals and schools across the country. Under the banner of the The Beacon Initiative , the Stentor companies outlined their plans and rationale to help bring the Information Highway to Canadian businesses and consumers. The central theme of the initiative is an open, collaborative effort with all interested players to bring enhanced interactive, data, image and video services to Canadians. The activities announced represent a major commitment to the future of Canada, investment in Canada's economic infrastructure, and improvement in the quality of life of Canadians. The Stentor companies have come together in a world first -- the delivery of a broadband network from the Pacific to the Atlantic. While many players have talked about the Information Highway, this initiative brings it into being. The joint activities include: - an $8 billion upgrade of the local telephone networks over 10 years to provide broadband capability for multimedia; - a $500 million enhancement program over six years to provide seamless national connectivity; - creation of a new company to supply multimedia services and applications; and - initiation of a venture capital fund -- possibly to reach $50 million -- to assist companies developing multimedia applications and products for the Information Highway. Host of the Toronto event, Brian Canfield, Chairman and CEO of BC TELECOM and Chairman of the Stentor Alliance Council of CEOs, said the Information Highway is a tool that will assist Canadians as they build a stronger economy and ever more modern society. It will be part of a network of networks connecting Canadians, he said. It will make communications faster and easier for Canadians. Mr. Canfield also outlined the impact this initiative will have on the Canadian economy. Our sector creates more employment growth than any other, he said. The types of jobs created are knowledge workers who are the fuel in the engine of our economic growth and increasing global competi- tiveness. He also noted that a strong telecommunications infrastructure has a direct relationship with a country's indust- rial competitiveness, economic development and social well-being. Ivan Duvar, CEO of MT&T, said the local upgrade program alone would fund 12,000 jobs nationally over a ten year period. Mr. Duvar also made a strong commitment to the universality of the Information Highway. We are committed to offering an Information Highway which is accessible and affordable for all Canadians -- in keeping with our tradition of innovation and service, he said. John McLennan, President and CEO of Bell Canada, outlined how the Stentor companies would capitalize on their long- standing cooperation to manage the necessary upgrades to their regional and national networks to provide seamless national connectivity. Mr. McLennan also announced a commitment to ensure Canada's educational, health care and cultural institutions have access to the Information Highway and the benefits it will deliver. As part of The Beacon Initiative each Stentor company will work together with the organiza- tions and institutions in their regions to deliver the desired multimedia capabilities in an affordable manner. Completing the full solution provided by The Beacon Initiative was the announcement of a new multimedia company, currently called MMI. Customers expect that multimedia will allow them to set up a desktop video conference, dial up a movie from their living room, exchange video messages with friends and colleagues, or browse through a far off database for visual information all as simply as placing a telephone call across town, said Mr. Neuman, President and CEO of WorldLinx, a Stentor company. MMI will become involved in all areas of the multimedia business, he said, including content and service acquisition and development, conversion of information to digital format, and distribution coordination of multimedia controllers and business software. MMI will also work closely with the appropriate agencies to ensure that privacy and security concerns are addressed. Stentor, an alliance of Canada's major telephone companies, provides customers uniform, leading-edge products and services and service excellence across Canada and internationally. The nine owner companies are: BC TEL, AGT Limited, SaskTel, Manitoba Telephone System, Bell Canada, NBTel, Maritime Tel & Tel, Island Telephone and Newfoundland Telephone. For further information, For interviews with our please contact: national spokespersons, please contact: Don Doucette Maureen MacDonald Stentor Communications Stentor Communications work: (613) 781-9223 on Apr. 5 (416) 585-3588 after Apr. 8 (613) 781-3495 after Apr. 5 (613) 781-9232 home: (613) 744-6025 ------------------------------ From: lchiu@crl.com (Laurence Chiu) Subject: PacBell Billing For AT&T - Constant Problems Date: 5 Apr 1994 17:47:51 -0700 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access Has anybody else noticed this? For the past six months each time I get my phone bill from PacBell I have go through the AT&T portion very carefully to see if I have been billed correctly. And it has been wrong every time, sometimes up to $40. This is mainly due to applying the wrong rate for calls (mostly international). AT&T have been very gracious every time I call them about this and always work out the discrepancy and send forward a credit. Finally I decided to ask the customer rep what the problem was. He sighed and said they always had problems with PacBell -- in fact this past month because of some software foulup, they viz. PB) screwed up 250,000 customer's bills! Now if only AT&T could bill directly as MCI do (I get direct MCI billing because I use them via 10222 for international calls occasionally) then this problem would not occur. Laurence Chiu Walnut Creek, California Tel: 510-215-3730 (work) Internet: lchiu@crl.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Apr 94 14:50:56 -0700 From: rah@connectinc.com Subject: Meridian Mail Problem Paul, Steve; Thank you both for your help! I have to apologize for not getting back to both of you sooner. but with end-of-quarter work to do I haven't had time to look at the switch until today. Of course our system went down briefly over the weekend and that gave me a bit more incentive... :-) Your suggestions were remarkable similar -- great minds must think alike. 1) I changed the TODC to a Message Service. Much to my surprise, the system accepted it. Unfortunately, it did not solve the problem. As a result of this experiment however, I realized that I *needed* an emergency TODC instead of a Message Service since I wanted the voice response to be different during different time periods. During the day I want key three to go to Customer Service, during Evenings, Weekends, and Holidays I want it to go to voicemail. No problem, I can deal with that. 2) During our latest emergency, I set the evening message service in TODC 1000 to 1004 (the emergency message). This worked! now the 408 NPA and the 800 NPA (on TODC 2000) both had the emergency message. This was useful, but not a long term solution because I can not do this with Remote Activation -- only from the console. However, This told me that there must be (as you both suggested) TWO DNs associated with the TODC 1000. 3) I looked in the "DN to Services" table and, sure enough, DN 520 *AND* DN zero were both set to TODC 1000. If I use Remote Activation to change both of those to TODC 2000 during an emergency, the system should work as planned. I haven't tested this yet, But I'm sure it will work :-) :-) I am a happy camper ... ------ Now, the mystery of the Holiday during working hours prompt! While fiddling around with the system, I discovered that someone (not me :-) had recorded a holiday message in the place of the menu choices prompt for Message Service 1001 (business days). Normally, we only have a greeting prompt recorded for any Message Service. Somehow, in some mysterious way, the Menu Choices prompt was being played for the edification of the occasional customer. I still don't know when or why a Menu Choices prompt is played instead of the Greeting prompt. However, I re-recorded the Menu Choices prompt to be the same as the Greeting Prompt and this seems to have solved the problem. Intuitively, this seems to be wrong. I think I should just erase the Menu Choices prompt ... So, thank you both very much! I will post a summary to comp.dcom.telecom as I promised. Regards, Rick rah@netcom.com rah@connectinc.com ------------------------------ From: mmine@yarrow.wt.uwa.edu.au (Micromine) Subject: Help Needed With Phone Wiring Date: 5 Apr 1994 04:00:58 GMT Organization: The University of Western Australia I am after a circuit to allow someone to put a caller "on hold" and play CD music to them down the line. To purchase such a beast here costs over $200 Australian ... Anyway, the line plug is like this: 0V --------- (Green wire) (Maybe black??? ?V --------- (yellow) ----+ | ----+ NC --------- NC --------- 48V --------- Red wire. ?V --------- Not too sure if colours are correct, (we have our own system at work so I can't check). Basically, an on/off button for the hold function and a circuit showing how to connect the CD player to the line is required. Anybody have answers? Private mail to me can be sent to the addresses below or post this group. Thanks, Simon Shaw Please finger mmine@yarrow.wt.uwa.edu.au for further company information. Micromine Pty. Ltd. Exploration and Mining Software [PHONE] +61 9 389-8722 [FAX] +61 9 386-7462 [BBS] +61 9 389-8317 ------------------------------ From: Todd Inch Subject: Intrastate LD Rates Date: Tue, 29 Mar 1994 09:19:21 PST TELECOM Moderator said: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Intrastate rates are peculiar things, > aren't they? Very odd in how they are calculated, a very much left > to the whims of the state PUCs, which frequently are nothing more > than tools of the local Bell company. If you can figure this out Bob, > an article here in the Digest would be welcome. PAT] Indeed. The biggest chunk of my phone bill is to my inlaws across the state. Intrastate is almost always the exception to the calling plan discounts -- I wish Idaho would annex Spokane. In a recent mailing from MCI, they promise savings over AT&T's interstate rates on "all calls all the time". One rep on the phone actually said yes, they'd beat AT&T's interstate rates on intrastate calls. I may have to take them up on it. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Apr 1994 13:52:00 EDT From: Stephen Polinsky Subject: Voice Mail System Log-Off Our local users are on a Northern Telecom Digital Centrex [DMS-100], and thus we use five-digit dialing to access our voice mail. The Centrex trunks terminating on our VMX 300 are in what Northern calls a UCD group [Uniform Call Distribution]. This allows incoming calls to sort through the busy trunks to find those that are available. For some reason, all of these trunks repeatedly "drop out" of the UCD group, and none of the 64 lines will take calls. Of course there is much fingerpointing between VMX and our LEC [Ameritech] as to whose problem it really is. We have a large [nearly 5,000], and increasingly hostile, user base that would appreciate any help you may be able to offer. Thanks, Stephen Polinsky tele_steph@ohio.gov ------------------------------ From: omniplex@access.digex.net (Omniplex) Subject: Toshiba Strata III Documentation Date: 6 Apr 1994 08:18:32 -0400 Organization: Express Access Online Communications, Greenbelt, MD USA I'm looking for documentation on a Toshiba Strata III electronic telephone system. I was able to pick one up for a reasonable price (free!) with nine telephones, 3 BFI Communication Sysetm 4000's, and a radio (holding with music). I would like to install it in a small business. I've contacted a local Toshiba distributor and they are currently attempting to get me a copy of the docs. I suspect that their effort will be weak as they have an opportunity to make some $$$ setting up the system for me. All the components were working when the phone system was removed. I'm missing some of the cables and need to get some documentation to connect and configure all the components. Thanks, Bob Omniplex Computer Consulting omniplex@access.digex.net Columbia, Md. 21045 410.290.6640 ------------------------------ From: lreeves@crl.com (Les Reeves) Subject: Re: Getting Wired: Leased Line vs. Dial-up For 14.4kps Data Comm Date: 6 Apr 1994 13:05:06 -0800 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Peter L. Rukavina (rukavina@bud.peinet.pe.ca) wrote: > Our small non-profit organization is trying to become an Internet > service provider with a budget of ~$20,000 which demands that we do > everything that we do on the cheap. Our plans are to connect our > Linux-based PC to our local Internet service provider, which is using > rack-mounted USR Courier v.32bis modems. I'm trying to figure out the > best way of doing this given two options: > (1) We get a regular POTS line installed, ($40/month, $60 for the > installation), buy a relatively cheap 14.4kbps modem (~$300) and have > our service provider dedicate a dial-up line to our exclusive use. > (2) We get a leased data line (the phone company calls this an LDDS > circuit, $32/month, $180 for the installation) installed and buy a more > expensive but leased-line capable 14.4kbps modem (~$900) and connect > directly. > The first option works out to a cost of $840 for the year, the second > option $1284 for the year, a not-insignificant difference. > I do not know enough about high-speed modems and leased lines to be able > to evaluate the two options technically, nor do I know enough about the > telephone system to know if I'm missing a third [or fourth] option that > would be a better route to follow. I would very much appreciate any > advice in this regard. I am certainly no expert on this subject, but it is possible that your LDDS requires a LDDS modem which is more like a line driver. They go to 19.2 kbps and are *much* less complex than a modem. While a modem will work just fine on line which is designed for LDDS (Limited Distance Data Set), the converse is not true. I can't tell you exactly how to determine if your circuit is compatible with these line drivers. I think there is a separate USOC for LDDS as opposed to voice channels for data. One way to tell is distance; LDDS will only work at 19.2 for a mile or two. BTW, I have a box of brand-new LDDS line drivers if you decide to experiment. Les lreeves@crl.com Atlanta,GA 404.874.7806 ------------------------------ From: jay@coyote.rain.org (Jay Hennigan) Subject: Re: Question About MIN and ESN Date: 6 Apr 1994 11:43:39 -0700 Organization: Regional Access Information Network (RAIN) In article sathya@uw-isdl.ee.washington.edu (Sathyadev Uppala) writes: > What is the difference between MIN and ESN? > Each mobile unit in a celllular system has a unique ESN, so what is > the need to have a MIN? The ESN (Electronic Serial Number) is programmed into the telephone when it is manufactured, and uniquely identifies that particular telephone transceiver. It is (supposed to be) secure against tampering, and used to verify that a particular subscriber is using the hardware assigned to it. The MIN is the "Mobile identification number", or the cellular phone number issued to the phone. It is assigned by the cellular carrier when the phone is activated, and programmed at that time. The MIN is what is sent by a cell site to page the phone and is matched against the ESN for validation. In a nutshell, the MIN identifies the phone *number*, the ESN identifies the phone *hardware*. Both the MIN and ESN must match the carrier's database as valid for a call to go through. Jay ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Apr 94 13:42 EDT From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: Cellular Roaming Charges Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. > Are then any tricks to cutting costs on the high roaming rates many > cellular carriers charge? Not really that I've ever seen. If you roam much, get the Cellular Travel Guide, a 1000 page book which lists every cellular company in North America with phone numbers, coverage areas, system numbers, and roaming prices. Also, contact your own cellular carrier to find out where they have reduced rate roaming -- in many cases you get rates in adjoining areas that are considerably lower than the list roaming price. In most areas there are two carriers, and the rates are often different; unless you have a really cruddy phone, you can tell the phone which carrier to use. Finally, if you roam in specific areas a lot, consider getting multiple numbers for your phone. For example, here in Boston I have a NYNEX Mobile number (they gave me the phone as part of the deal) which gives me home rates throughout eastern Mass, Rhode Island, and southern New Hampshire, and reduced rate roaming in Connecticut, Manchester NH, and much of southern Maine. I spend a fair amount of time in Vermont, so I have a second number from Atlantic cellular which gives me home rates in all of Vermont (there's two cell companies but they give each other's customers home rates) and northern New Hampshire, as well as reduced rate roaming in Concord NH. That covers the major areas I visit, I just have to remember to switch phone numbers, a procedure that involves pushing five keys on the phone, at the toll booth between Concord and Manchester. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 April 1994 02:54:04 PDT From: Jerry Yost Organization: First Pacific Networks, Inc. Subject: Re: Ethernet via Cable TV In , John@msus1.msus.edu (John Biederstedt) wrote: > Is there a product that runs Ethernet (10mbps) over 75 ohm cable? I > thought I had heard of such a product once. My company, First Pacific Networks, manufactures a broadband Ethernet product which operates at 10mbps over a standard CATV cable plant (fiber, coax, or hybrid) using two standard 6MHz TV channels in the forward path and two in the reverse path. If you'd like more information, please contact me via the information in my signature block below or e-mail me your complete mailing address. Regards, Jerry Yost Telephone: +1 800 544-4959 Director, Int'l Distribution Sales +1 408 943-7647 (direct) First Pacific Networks, Inc. 871 Fox Lane Facsimile: +1 408 943-7666 San Jose, California 95131 USA Residence: Telephone: +1 408 264-6987 2698 Custer Drive Facsimile: +1 408 264-6988 San Jose, CA 95124-1712 USA Internet: jyost@infoserv.com ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #165 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa14649; 6 Apr 94 19:00 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA08581; Wed, 6 Apr 94 15:22:38 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA08570; Wed, 6 Apr 94 15:22:35 CDT Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 15:22:35 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404062022.AA08570@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #166 TELECOM Digest Wed, 6 Apr 94 15:22:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 166 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Free Expo: Distributed Computing World - April 19/20 - Wash DC (B. Gavin) Update: Help! Big Problem With Phone Company (Dan Smolko) Win a Free SoundBlaster With Speech Recognition (Steven Feinstein) ISDN in Rhode Island (Tony Pelliccio) What Are Fortress Phones and Other Terms? (Leif Ordorica) Re: CATV Modems (Jerry Yost) Re: Who Paid For My 550? (Dave Niebuhr) Re: Who Paid For My 550? (Alan Dahl) Re: 976, 540 Services (Wm. Randolph Franklin) Re: 976, 940 Services (Dave Niebuhr) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Barbara Gavin Subject: Free Expo - Distributed Computing World - April 19/20 - Wash DC Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 07:23:35 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) FREE DISTRIBUTED COMPUTING WORLD & CLIENT/SERVER DEVELOPERS EXPOSITION Washington, D.C. Convention Center Tuesday, April 19, 12:00pm-6:30pm Wednesday, April 20, 10:30am-4:30pm See Over 100 of the Leading Distributed and Client/Server Technology Companies! Expand your Expertise Hear from today's industry leaders and slash thousands of dollars off your IS budget. No other industry event can offer you a broader range of today's leading edge suppliers of client/server computing, networking, and distributed computing at one time a nd in one place. Save Months of Costly Investigation Time Visit over 100 exhibits and see live demos of working client/server networks and the latest C/S application development tools in action. Discover key products and technologies and address your interoperability issues. Learn the secrets to Success Crucial questions ... important answers! Find out about the strengths and weaknesses of distributed computing. Learn how to use your distributed computing tools to meet your organization's strategic business requirements in a heterogeneous database environment. Glimpse into the Future See an impressive array of products and services unveiled for the first time at this pivotal industry event! Receive privileged insight into the industry's emerging technologies and services. And Much More! Don't Delay -- Get a jump on your competition and discover the secrets to your success. Bring your entire team and maintain your competitive edge by attending this year's largest and most comprehensive exposition event. FREE EXPOSITION EVENTS Client/Server Developers User Group Wednesday, April 20, 1994 - 9:00 am - 11:50 am This interactive event is part of a nationwide client/server user group sponsored by DCI. It provides technical attendees with a chance to discuss the interoperability issues that occur in a client/server environment. Discover the issues users like yourself have encountered, and work together to get answers to your questions. See registration panel to receive more information. Special Industry Presentation (Product Education Session) Another conference element which we've opened up to expo attendees. Attend in-depth session where leading companies present their products' technical capabilities in an informative classroom-style setting. FREE GIVEAWAYS Free software package from Syncsort ... come to booth #133 and learn how you can start to distribute your applications. Discuss the implementation of their "MVS to Unix Migration software". Human Factors International Inc. (booth 129) is giving away a complimentary course registration to "How to Design Effective Graphical User Interfaces." This three day course teaches system developers, interface designers and project managers to use the science of ergonomics to design optimal GUI screens Alternet -- The "Information Highway" of the 90's is here, and your computer is your vehicle -- so hop in, and get rolling! Come see how easy it is to tap into the Internet .. Retrieve your Email, become part of a global network of organizations and individuals. From its roots as the original commercial Internet service provider, AlterNet is now the most experienced, best connected, and most reliable Internet access service in the business. So whether you're looking for others to chat with, returni ng you E-mail, or trying to increase your companies productivity, tap into the Internet with Alternet. FREE KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS - TUESDAY, 11:00am - 12:00noon PAUL STRASSMANN, President, Strassman, Inc. The Politics of Distributed Computing - This session addresses the analogies between the design of information systems and organizational governance. Computing Reflects Organizational Politics Distributed Computing Not Autonomous Computing Organizational Governance Must Precede Network Architecture Technical Proposals Including Political Context ART BENJAMIN, President, Online People Limited The Business Case for Client/Server - By the end of the 90's the difference between a good I.T. infrastructure and an adequate one will be immense. Most companies are defaulting towards an infrastructure that is in inadequate, for the following reasons: Not Identifying Their Infrastructure Needs Basing Long-Term Infrastructure Direction on Current Needs Alone No Method of Measuring Costs and Benefits HERB EDELSTEIN, Principal & Founder, Euclid Associates AND LARRY DeBOEVER, Founder, DeBoever Architectures Rightsizing Point/Counterpoint: Two Industry Experts Go Toe-to-Toe on 1994's Hot Issues. These two leading industry visionaries put their reputations and friendship on the line, as they take on the toughest downsizing issues in this provocative present ation. Future of CASE Dowsizing Enablers Downsizing Issues FREE KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS - WEDNESDAY, 9:30am - 10:30am Beyond Rows and Columns: What's New in Relational DBMS Panel Moderator: Pieter Mimno Relational DBMSs are moving rapidly to support complex data, such as; very large databases, multi-dimensional data, multi-threaded server architectures, gateways, text, images, audio, and video. This forum will allow attendees the opportunity to questio n leading RDBMS vendors on the latest advances in database technology for a distributed client/server environment. Companies invited to participate include: Arbor Software, Cincom, IRI, Oracle and Sybase. ROHAN CHAMPION, Vice President of Solutions Strategy, Novell Where Upsizing Meets Downsizing - This presentation explores key management and technological issues that must be addressed if the full power and productivity of modernized information systems are to be realized. Values to Business Enterprise Infrastructure and Transition Planning Re-Defined Role IS Management CHRISTINE COMAFORD, President, Corporate Computing Techniques For Rapid Application Development of GUI Client/Server Projects - The structure, scope, methods and deliverables required to build solid applications are explored in this conference session. Application Design and Architecture Methods Development Tasks Can Be Done in Parallel GUI Client/Server Project Duration and Resources Development Rules and Tasks Planning/Analysis How to Scope and Control Prototypes GARY A. STEMLEY, Major General, US Army Components Automation System The World's Largest LAN/WAN System - This presentation describes the approach being used by the U.S. Army to design, develop, and install the world's largest client server network. Customers' Functional Requirements Why Client Server Architecture Was Chosen Major Challenges of Customer Community Installation, Start-up Problems and Solutions Short-range and Long-range Benefits INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT Join a select group of exhibitors who will unveil and demonstrate the technical capabilities of their newest products. Due to the delicate nature of this information, the details of some of these companies, their products and announcements will not be r evealed until show time. See highlights of the latest technologies including: Client/Server application development, networking strategies and Data Warehousing tips and techniques. EXPOSITION CO-SPONSORS: Client/Server Magazine Government Computer News IBM Integris JYACC KnowledgeWare Midrange Systems Network World Magazine Pyramid Technology Sequent Computer Systems, Inc. INVITED COMPANIES Acucobol Advanced Software Automation American Software Andersen Consulting Analysts International Corp. Arbor Software Corp. AT&T Beyond Computing Booz Allen & Hamilton Cincom Systems, Inc. CIMLIN, Inc. CIO Magazine Client/Server Magazine CODA, Inc. Codex/Motorola Cognos Corporation Command Technology Communications Week Computer Associates Int'l Computer Reseller News Computer Systems Advisers Computer Task Group Computerworld Concepts Dynamic, Inc. Corporate Computing Cortex Corporation Covia Technologies Data Based Advisor Database Decisions, Inc. Database Prog. & Design Datamation DBMS Magazine DeBoever Architectures Digital Equipment Corporation DPMA Encore Computer Evernet Federal Computer Week FourGen Software Government Computer News Hewlett-Packard High Tech Careers Human Factors Int'l IBM Information Builders, Inc. Information Week Informix Software Interactive Systems Corporation IRI Software James Martin Insight JYACC KnowledgeWare, Inc. Lattice, Inc. Logic Plus Open System, Inc. Logic Works, Inc. Lotus Development Corp. McCabe & Associates MDBS, Inc. Micro Decisionware Micro Focus Microsoft Corporation Microstrategy, Inc. Midrange Systems Momentum Software Corp. Netwise, Inc. Network World Magazine Neuron Data, Inc. News 3X/400 NeXT Computer, Inc. Novell, Inc. ODC Systems Open Systems Today Oracle Corporation Palindrome Corporation PC Magazine Peerlogic, Inc. PeopleSoft, Inc. Platinum Software Powersoft Corporation Prologic Corporation ProtoView Development Pyramid Technology Promark Corporation Q + E Software RAXCO, Inc. Red Brick Systems Revelation Technologies Select Software Tools Seer Technologies, Inc. Sequent Computer Systems, Inc. SMC Software Magazine Solbourne Computer SQA, Inc. SQL Connections Stratus Computer Sun Microsystems, Inc. Sybase Inc. Symantec Corporation SYNCSORT, Inc. Tivoli Systems, Inc. Transarc Corporation Trinzic Corporation Uniface Corporation UniKix Technologies (Integris) Unisys Corporation Universal Business Computing Co. US LAN Systems Corporation VAR Business Washington Technology Windows Magazine Wordperfect Corporation The Workstation Group XDB Systems ZYGA Corporation DISTRIBUTED COMPUTING WORLD & CLIENT/SERVER DEVELOPERS EXPOSITION-4015 YES! REGISTER TODAY FOR THE EXPOSITION--FREE NAME: TITLE: COMPANY: STREET: MAILSTOP: CITY, STATE, ZIP: E:MAIL ADDRESS: TELEPHONE: FAX: PRIORITY CODE: BVTQM1K OR CALL CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 508-470-3880 Compuserve - 75300,2002 ------------------------------ From: smolko@che.ncsu.edu Subject: Update: Help! Big Problem With Phone Company Date: 5 Apr 1994 23:08:43 -0500 Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway An update: Though I was led to believe my friend had an account with a special code, I now have some doubts about that. When I asked him yesterday what the code was that he used, he replied "102220 or something like that." Also, when I called MCI to try to resolve the problem I discovered something that seems rather weird. When I gave them my phone number and name they sounded a little puzzled. The only names listed were my roommate's and my friend's. Also -- and this seems most peculiar -- the address that they have listed as being associated with my phone number is my friend's address! It seems as though they never even bothered to check whether the phone number and address match up. While I'm not sure if this is possible, he may have called MCI, given them my phone number, and said something like "I'm one of Dan's roommates. He has AT&T and doesn't want to switch, but I want to use your overseas plan. Can you please set up an acount for me?" P.S. When I talked to a rep at the local telco today, he said to expect an additional $790 in calls to show up on my next bill. Dan smolko@che.ncsu.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: As I mentioned a couple days ago about this when you originally wrote, either you have a credit problem at this point with MCI/telco as a result of this, or you hava problem with fraud by your friend. If MCI changed over your phone records without telling you based on a call from your friend then my feeling is you will get off the hook completely. Give us a further update when you have one. PAT] ------------------------------ From: stevenf@world.std.com Subject: Win a FREE SoundBlaster With Speech Recognition Organization: Voice Processing Corp., Cambridge, MA Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 16:22:38 GMT I am collecting over-the-phone speech samples for a new speech recognition product being built by Voice Processing Corporation (VPC). To get the 300 more calls we need into our data collection system, we're offering the following deal: If you call into the system (whole thing takes about 2 1/2 minutes), you will be eligible to win one your choice of the following: 1. SoundBlaster 16 MCD with VPC's "Voice Assist" speech recognition. 2. Cellular telephone. (not a cheapy) This is a speech recognizer intended for the American market, so any American regional accent is fine, but heavy foreign accents might be discarded. HERE'S HOW TO DO IT 1. Call 1-800-560-0758 anytime. This will connect you with the collection system directly. 2. The system will prompt you to repeat about 60 voice commands. Don't speak over the prompt. If you make a mistake or can't understand a prompt, guess and go on to the next one. 3. The system sometimes hangs up prematurely, but it is supposed to end with the question "what state did you grow up in?" 4. When you're done, send me email with your name, phone number, and 5 command words you were asked to say. This will enter you into the random drawing. OR You can call (617) 494-0100, ask for extension 301. The receptionist will take your name and number and then transfer you into the system. The drawing will be held as soon as we get the rest of the calls. The winner will be notified by phone; losers won't be notified at all. I expect this to be done in two weeks. Thanks in advance for your participation, Steven Feinstein Voice Processing Corp. ------------------------------ From: Anthony_Pelliccio@brown.edu (Tony Pelliccio) Subject: ISDN in Rhode Island Date: 5 Apr 1994 19:11:04 GMT Organization: Brown University An interesting article appeared in the Tuesday, April 5, 1994 issue of the {Providence Journal} titled "Digital network a new on-ramp to information highway". Why is it that almost all the outlying areas have digital service (posh places like Barrington, Middletown, Portsmouth) but the capitol city won't get it until late 1994 and 1995. Does NYNEX have it's head up it's proverbial butt? And wonder why they're the worst performing RBOC in the country. Is there anyone from NYNEX who wants to counter this? Sure.. you changed the name but the level of service has barely changed. It's still shabby. Granted, they've improved basic customer service in areas like availability, etc. but service still remains in the dark ages. And of course you know that NYNEX is planning to install curbside fiber to the entire state by 1996 ... the biggest joke so far. I can't wait until competition for dialtone comes along! Anthony_Pelliccio@Brown.edu (Tony Pelliccio, KD1NR) Box 1908, Providence, RI 02912 Tel. (401) 863-1880 All opinions expressed are those of the individual, and not those of Brown University. ------------------------------ From: efn!leif@skinner.cs.uoregon.edu (Leif Ordorica) Subject: What are Fortress Phones and other terms? Organization: Prototype Eugene Free Net Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 20:36:07 GMT I've been wondering about these terms: What are Fortress Phones? What is a "trap-line?" What are "the bell master tones?" I know I've heard plenty about Fortress Phones but the last two terms sound hokey to me. Thanks, Leif Ordorica ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 April 1994 22:34:39 PDT From: Jerry Yost Organization: First Pacific Networks, Inc. Subject: Re: CATV Modems In , wright@LAA.COM wrote: > In article , gabioud@uni2a.unige.ch writes: >> Do you know any equipment (modem, remodulator, ...) that allows data >> communication over the CATV cable. On the user side, the modem should >> feature a well-known interface (RS232C, Ethernet, ...). > Check out First Pacific Networks at 408-730-6600. They have been > providing this equipment for years. Unfortunately, First Pacific Networks relocated its office from Sunnyvale to San Jose last month, so the above telephone number is no longer accurate. Our new number is +1 408 943-7600 and our San Jose address is listed in my signature block below, along with our facsimile number. However, I recommend that the original poster contact FPN's distributor in France, Reltek Communications, who has a great deal of experience with our broadband Ethernet products in Europe: Reltek Communications Contact: Marc Budan 26, Avenue de la Baltique Sales Manager Courtaboeuf ZA - BP 730 Telephone: +33 1 69187700 91962 Les Ulis Cedex B Facsimile: +33 1 69280609 France Regards, Jerry Yost Telephone: +1 800 544-4959 Director, Int'l Distribution Sales +1 408 943-7647 (direct) First Pacific Networks, Inc. 871 Fox Lane Facsimile: +1 408 943-7666 San Jose, California 95131 USA Residence: Telephone: +1 408 264-6987 2698 Custer Drive Facsimile: +1 408 264-6988 San Jose, CA 95124-1712 USA Internet: jyost@infoserv.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 06:58:10 EST From: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (Dave Niebuhr) Subject: Re: Who Paid For My 550 In TELECOM Digest Issue 158 jfh@netcom.com (Jack Hamilton) wrote: >> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Normally the agents are on the A or B >> side but not both; that is in their contract with the carriers. >> Tandy has the kind of money and influence with the carriers that >> they can get away with it. Its the same kind of thing where Pepsi and >> Coca-Cola are concerned. You never see them both in the same vending >> machine; you never see them both in the same restaurant as fountain >> drinks. > In our vending machine room there are two Pepsi machines. One has > Pepsi products plus a few other things like Mountain Dew. The other > contains no Pepsi products, but does have several varieties of > Coca-Cola. In one of the smaller buildings, there's a single machine > with both Coke and Pepsi. > I'd never heard of this happening before very recently, though. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Probably they cut a deal with the local > salesman. Whoever is the bottler (distributor) for the area is under > pretty tight constraints with Pepsi headquarters in Purchase, NY or > Coke headquarters in Atlanta, GA regarding those things. Ah, that brings back memories. When I was growing up in Northeastern Nebraska in the '40s and '50s, my parents owned a pharmacy and Coke was always the main soft drink. 7-up was the next one and cherry, strawberry and one other were always on hand. Root beer was home-made using root beer extract and sugar. I don't remember the exact formula but it was five pounds of sugar to get so many gallons of syrup which was diluted with carbonated water. I used to drink the carbonated water straight; it was the best thirst killer around. Dave Niebuhr Internet: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (preferred) niebuhr@bnl.gov / Bitnet: niebuhr@bnl Senior Technical Specialist, Scientific Computing Facility Brookhaven National Laboratory Upton, NY 11973 (516)-282-3093 ------------------------------ From: alan.dahl@mccaw.com (Alan Dahl) Subject: Re: Who Paid For My 550? Date: 5 Apr 1994 20:31:21 GMT Organization: McCaw Cellular Communications, Inc. [I know this is getting a little far from telcom issues but I had to pipe in - ABD] In article PAT writes: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Probably they cut a deal with the local > salesman. Whoever is the bottler (distributor) for the area is under > pretty tight constraints with Pepsi headquarters in Purchase, NY or > Coke headquarters in Atlanta, GA regarding those things. Note that > the local Pepsi bottler also has the Mountain Dew franchise, but he > *cannot* have the 7-Up franchise because they are aligned with Coke. > So you won't -- or rarely -- see 7-Up in a so-called 'Pepsi machine', > and you won't see 'Upper-10' or whatever it is called in a 'Coke > machine'. All the little (by comparison) outfits, join one side or In the Pacific Northwest 7-Up is bottled by Alpac, the same company that bottles Pepsi. It's quite common to find 7-Up in a Pepsi machine here. In fact everyone here wrongly assumes Pepsi owns 7-Up just as PAT wrongly assumes that Coke and 7-Up are "aligned". You will never find 7-Up in a Coke machine since Coke makes Sprite which is pretty much the same thing. No idea what "Upper-10" is since it's not sold here. People always assume that the way things are in their part of the country is the way it is everywhere else and that's not always the case. The local Coke and Pepsi bottlers had quite a battle when we wanted to install both a Coke machine and a Pepsi machine in our office but they finally relented. Our 7-11 stores sell both from the same fountain as PAT describes just as they do elsewhere. Alan Dahl Analysts International Co. 10655 N.E. 4th St. Suite 804 Bellevue, WA 98004 PH: (206) 803-4496 FAX: (206) 803-4901 ------------------------------ From: wrf@ecse.rpi.edu (Wm. Randolph U Franklin) Subject: Re: 976, 540 Services Date: 5 Apr 1994 23:15:37 GMT Organization: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy NY, USA Reply-To: wrf@ecse.rpi.edu (Wm. Randolph U Franklin) In article on Thu, 31 Mar 94 19:04 EST, johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) writes: > Is there anywhere a list of surcharged prefixes in the U.S.? Some time ago I was unable to get a complete list from a NYNEX operator. She didn't seem to know what I was talking about at first, but finally gave me what they said was a list for NYNEX territory, but she seemed so ignorant that I wouldn't trust it. Another example of NYNEX operator ignorance: I block those calls. It seems that this also blocks 700-555-4141 from finding my LD carrier. 1) She didn't know this. 2) She didn't even know about 700-555-4141. My current phone book nowhere suggests the existence of any extra-charge numbers, 900 or otherwise, anywhere in its 52-page introduction, altho it includes detailed rate information. I mention this since some people think that subscribers should know all about these things. How? Wm. Randolph Franklin, wrf@ecse.rpi.edu, (518) 276-6077; Fax: -6261 ECSE Dept., 6026 JEC, Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst, Troy NY, 12180 USA ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 06:23:50 EST From: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (Dave Niebuhr) Subject: Re: 976, 940 Services In TELECOM Digest Volume 14 : Issue 157 johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) wrote: > Is there anywhere a list of surcharged prefixes in the U.S.? In most > places 976 is used for non-porn announcements, but the list of other > surcharged prefixes seems to be large, growing, and largely > undocumented. > Here in eastern Mass, for example, the prefixes (valid in both 617 and 508) > are: > 550 - live chat lines, 554 - live porn, 920 - business info > 940 - recorded porn, 976 - recorded general info > You have to ask in writing to get calls to 554 and 940 turned on. > I am astonished at the report that Sprint billed the surcharge for a > 212-540 number. Has anyone else ever had this happen? NNYTel (oops, NYNEX) has 540, 550, 910, 920, 955 and 976 as special exchanges. 976 is general information, 540 is chat (and scam), 955 is radio call-in. I don't know about the others but all but 955 are classified as "Circuit 9(tm)" which means a surcharge is added. The exception is 976 which is a local call. All exchanges are enabled and the customer has to specifically request that they be disabled which I did. 540 received a lot of attention earlier this year when people were getting calls from a radio station of some sort that bilked the customers who did not realize what was happening, meaning kids replied. My number was called three times, ditto for work (on three extensions). PAT mentioned when I posted about this earlier that this thing had been around before and was an "urban legend" of sorts; well, when I take those calls, they are not legend at all but real. Dave Niebuhr Internet: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (preferred) niebuhr@bnl.gov / Bitnet: niebuhr@bnl Senior Technical Specialist, Scientific Computing Facility Brookhaven National Laboratory Upton, NY 11973 (516)-282-3093 ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #166 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa21759; 7 Apr 94 15:35 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA25977; Thu, 7 Apr 94 10:09:04 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA25968; Thu, 7 Apr 94 10:09:02 CDT Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 10:09:02 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404071509.AA25968@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #167 TELECOM Digest Thu, 7 Apr 94 10:09:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 167 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Ring Down Unit Wanted (Sal Kabalani) Call Waiting Detection (Michael Stroucken) Information Wanted on PCMCIA (Lars Kalsen) Wanted: Cellular/Microcellular Network Simulator (Ravi Prakash) Textbook Inquiry (Dennis Esteban) Re: Question About MIN and ESN (Gregory Youngblood) Re: Question About MIN and ESN (Henrik Rasmussen) Australian Communications Futures (Steven Byrne) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: sal@ins.infonet.net (Sal Kabalani - Operations Manager / Info Systems) Subject: Ring Down Unit Wanted Date: 6 Apr 1994 21:56:53 GMT Organization: INS Info Services, Des Moines, IA USA Reply-To: sal@ins.infonet.net I am looking for a "ring-down unit" which is used to send the output of a fax machine (scanned documents) to a PC directly without using the telephone lines. I am told the device is connected via a regular phone cord to the fax machine so that when a document is scanned into the fax memory, the ring-down unit is started, connects to the fax machine, and downloads the document to a PC conencted to it. If this sounds familiar, please drop me mail on what exactly it is, and where to get it. Thank you, Sal A Kabalani InterNet: SAL@ins.INFOnet.net Operations Manager PhoneNet: (515) 830-0436 Information Systems FaxNet: (515) 830-0123 Iowa Network Services YellNet: Yo! Sal-Man! 4201 Corporate Drive Centralized Equal Access West Des Moines IA 50265 Internet Provider ------------------------------ From: mxsst1+@pitt.edu (Michael Stroucken) Subject: Call Waiting Detection Date: 6 Apr 94 03:44:07 GMT Organization: University of Pittsburgh Hello, I've got call waiting where I live, and since I'm on my modem quite alot, I've relied on call waiting to interrupt my connection, so I could take the call. But lately, my connections seem hardly affected by the call waiting signal. I would like to know if there is something I can attach to the phone line that would either flash a light or make noise if a call is coming in. Thanks, Michael Stroucken mxsst1@pitt.edu Mud+IRC: Stroucki ------------------------------ From: dalk@login.dkuug.dk (Lars Kalsen) Subject: Information Wanted on PCMCIA Date: 6 Apr 94 21:01:39 GMT Organization: DKnet Hi, What is a PCMCIA card really? What are the uses and how does it work? Please E-mail me if you can explain that to me. Lars Kalsen dalk@login.dkuug.dk ------------------------------ From: prakash@cis.ohio-state.edu (ravi prakash) Subject: Wanted: Cellular/Microcellular Network Simulator Date: 6 Apr 1994 11:39:53 -0400 Organization: The Ohio State University Dept. of Computer and Info. Science I would like to simulate a cellular/microcellular network, and observe its performance over a period of time for different channel allocation strategies. Is there a simulation package available, that I can use for my work? I have access to CSIM, but would rather use a simulator that gives me greater flexibility to send messages between interacting processes. Any information will be highly appreciated. Thanks, Ravi Prakash Office: Bolz Hall, #319b prakash@cis.ohio-state.edu Phone: (614)292-5236 - Off. Department of Computer & Information Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210 Fax: (614)292-2911 ------------------------------ From: desteban@mis.nu.edu (Dennis Esteban) Subject: Textbook Inquiry Date: 7 Apr 1994 06:20:59 -0700 Organization: National University, San Diego I was wondering if anyone can recommend an informative text book on telecommunications to include cabling, communication protocols and LAN wiring. Thanks! desteban@mis.nu.edu ------------------------------ From: zeta@tcscs.com (Gregory Youngblood) Subject: Re: Question About MIN and ESN Date: Thu, 07 Apr 1994 00:19:00 PST Organization: TCS Computer Systems sathya@uw-isdl.ee.washington.edu (Sathyadev Uppala) writes: > What is the difference between MIN and ESN? > Each mobile unit in a celllular system has a unique ESN, so what is > the need to have a MIN? The ESN provides a unique serial number which is used to identify the phone. The idea behind the ESN is to make it difficult to change so that normally the rule/idea of one phone to one ESN is the case. The ESN can be written two ways, either in HEX or in DECimal.. here's a breakdown: HEX: xx xxxxxx DEC: xxx xxxxxxxx The first two digits (three in DEC) refer to the brand of phone. I don't have a chart in front of me, but each company has their own code for identification. This helps to insure that one company doesn't come up with the same ESN as another company. The last six digits (eight in DEC) is the actual electronic serial number. In several cases you can look at the physical serial number of the phone, add a couple of zeros or drop the first so many digits, add or subtract a certain value and insert the manufacturer's code to find the ESN. Each manufacturer is slightly different, for example, Motorola doesn't have a correlation between the ESN and the physical serial number, where NEC and others you can just add a couple of zeros the the decimal value, put the manufacturer's code in the front, and you have the ESN. Now, why the MIN? The MIN allows the phoen to be programmed for use in a certain area, and allows for more natural dialing. Can you imagine if all cellular numbers were either eight or eleven digits long (plus the 1 for long distance ones?) Not only would it make it unusual, it wouldn't be the "seamless" integration of wireless radio and telephone that many wanted in the industry's infancy. It also allows each phone to be used in a certain area and makes billing easy, since you can look at a NPA/NXX combination and knwo where that phone belongs to. [Imagine a database for billing roaming calls ... if the phones were known by ESN and not MIN, then the roamer database would have to have an individual record for every cell phone in use, whereas with a MIN, they can have a pattern match, i.e. 713-822-xxxx belongs to Houston Cellular and 713-823-xxxx to Houston's GTE Mobilnet (these are examples, they may or may not be accurate). So, two entries separated 20,000 physical phones to two separate carriers, but if the ESN was used, the database would have to have all 20,000 entries so it would know where to bill for each ESN. Also, the MIN and ESN combination also serves as an extra measure of security. If the ESN doesn't match the switch's record of what the ESN is supposed to be for a certain MIN, then the switch isn't supposed to let the call go through. [This doesn't take into consideration cloning where people actually change the phone's physical equipment so that it reports another phone's MIN and ESN effectively getting around this.] All in all, the MIN provides a very useful feature. My phone, for example, could have the number: 555-555-7500 for its' MIN, imagine trying to remember: A5-08c13d and use it for dialing. Greg ------------------------------ From: Henrik.Rasmussen@lambada.oit.unc.edu (Henrik Rasmussen) Subject: Re: Question About MIN and ESN Date: 6 Apr 1994 01:51:04 GMT Organization: The University of NC at Chapel Hill, the Experimental BBS. In article , Sathyadev Uppala wrote: > What is the difference between MIN and ESN? > Each mobile unit in a celllular system has a unique ESN, so what is > the need to have a MIN? MIN= mobile identification number, the "phone number" of the cellular phone. This is a number that uses area codes and NXX patterns that are part of the national system. Mobile phones need MIN because a customer may change phones over the years but want to keep a phone number. ESN= Electronic serial number. Identifies a piece of equipment not the user. Henrik Rasmussen Audiovox Cellular Communications Corp. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Another analogy might be to wired or 'landline' telephones: each phone wire running to the exchange has a number, but in addition each subscriber has a number. We dial the subscriber number (or listed directory number as it is sometimes called) to reach the other person, we do not dial the circuit or wire pair identification number. But these two provide a check on each other. We might claim we are speaking from one number or another, but the iden- tification of the wire pair is proof of the accuracy of the number we say we are at. I often times think of the MIN in cellular as the listed directory number and the ESN as the equivilent of the identification assigned to cables and wire pairs in the central office. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 16:10:01 EST From: Steven=Byrne%CFP%BTCE@smtpgate.dotc.gov.au Subject: Australian Communications Futures This may be of interest to a number of TELECOM Digest readers internationally who wish to be kept abreast of developments in telecoms research on the Pacific Rim. Some of this work (the Module 5 Paper 2) in particular contains an extensive discussion of technical developments that TELECOM Digest readers may want to find out more about. All CFP documents are available for anonymous FTP at happy.dotc.gov.au. =============================== AUSTRALIAN COMMUNICATIONS FUTURES PROJECT (CFP) OVERVIEW This posting sets out the background to the CFP, a research initiative of the Australian government to examine the emerging trends in the telecommunications and related industries, and consider their possible implications for Australia. The CFP on 28 March 1994 publicly released its first two work-in- progress papers, titled: "Emerging Communications Services - an Analytical Framework"; and "Delivery Technologies in the New Communica- tions World". Summaries of these papers are also below. Full text of all CFP papers will be available from 1 April 1993 by anonymous ftp from happy.dotc.gov.au, in the directory \cfp_documents\. Please note: Enquiries about any CFP matters, or anyone wishing to be included on the circulation list for Bureau work-in-progress papers for this project and/or for notification of relevant seminars should contact Ms Ann Morris, phone [Australia] +61 6 274 6016 or at Internet e-mail address: Ann=Morris%cfp%btce@smtpgate.dotc.gov.au. _______________________ ABOUT THE COMMUNICATIONS FUTURES PROJECT ... The CFP is a research project being undertaken by the Bureau of Transport and Communications Economics. It aims to upgrade understanding of future economic, technical, commercial, regulatory and policy implications of emerging information and communications services and technologies; and to stimulate and inform public debate on these issues. The project's terms of reference are wide ranging and call for an examination of likely developments in services and technologies; implications of these developments for market participants in those industries (including the underlying economic factors influencing industry growth and change, and emerging patterns of commercial relationships within and between traditional industries); and implications of these developments for policy and regulation over the coming decade. The project is due to report by the end of 1994. Project work is, however, proceeding in stages ('modules'), and work in progress (of which this paper is one of a series) is being exposed progressively to encourage feedback, and to stimulate discussion. Terms of Reference The CFP Team will examine and report on: 1. likely developments over the next decade and beyond in information, entertainment and communications services and technologies; 2. implications of these developments for market participants in those industries, including (a)the underlying economic factors influencing industry growth and change; (b)emerging patterns of commercial relationships within and between traditional industries; and 3. implications of these developments for policy and regulation over the coming decade. The proposed areas of project work include: Services, content and marketing 1. Emerging communications services - an analytical framework; 2. Development and marketing aspects of emerging services; 3. The effects of emerging electronic communications services on related industries; 4. Demand for emerging communications services; Technologies 5. Delivery technologies in the new communications world; 6. The state of Australia's existing communications infrastructure; 7. Cost models for delivery technology alternatives; 8. Costs and network evolution Market behaviour 9. A profile of industry participants (internal); 10. Corporate strategies and communications investment; Policy and Regulation 11. An analytical framework for regulation; 12. Market structure, competition, and emerging communications issues; 13. Industry development aspects of emerging services; 14. Some social policy implications of developments. CFP Paper 1, Module 1: EMERGING COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES - AN ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK INTRODUCTION The purpose of this paper is to provide a framework for understanding changes in the communications industry structure and performance. This is done by describing categories of communications services in terms of the technological combinations and the distinctive user needs they are expected to meet. The framework will provide a basis for further analyses, including: the identification of key demand factors, which may be used to forecast demand for emerging services; the analysis of service production possibilities, which may be used as a basis for outlining production functions, cost modelling and understanding industry organisation trends; and access issues. To understand convergence it is necessary to understand the dynamics of communications markets. This is because it is the competitive market which is driving convergence by pursuing both productivity improvements (such as increases in signal capacity) on the one hand and service improvements (such as increasing the range, volume and quality of services) on the other hand. This paper considers factors that drive communications demand as well as the productive processes by which organisations provide such services. This provides the context for the convergence framework. Structure of the paper: Chapter 2 describes the existing markets for communications and related services in terms of their current (but changing) demarcation as telecommunications, broadcasting, entertainment and information technology sectors. Key characteristics such as prices and volumes of various services are examined. A summary of the relative value of each sector, and available demographic and household expenditure information is provided. The outcome suggests an industry evolving in its approach to providing for the needs of users, and users who are becoming gradually more sophisticated in their needs. Chapter 3 illustrates the way a dynamic market has worked to develop services over recent years. It considers how individuals and organisations in a market make their preferences known, and how suppliers organise to provide goods and services in response to these preferences. The interaction of buyers and sellers to establish appropriate services is complex, extensive and ongoing. Market activity is also subject to influences intended to deal with questions related to both imperfections in the market and equity and social issues such as universal service and content control. Understanding the realistic dynamic context helps provide an understanding of current developments in the communications market. In this context the main characteristics of communications services as valued by users are outlined in chapter 4. The theory of consumer demand established by Lancaster (1971) considers services as bundles of characteristics. Different users value different characteristics differently, depending on their individual preferences. Many service features provide an indication to potential users of the likelihood that a new service will be useful or meet their needs. Understanding these characteristics will provide more information about which services may be more successful: by definition, the characteristics will form part of the analytical framework. In chapter 5 the main attributes of services from the service providers' perspectives are outlined. The chapter briefly describes how organisations combine different skills, materials and equipment, and through technology process them to provide, deliver and market services to buyers.The chapter summarises the theory and its application to communications and related industries. The distinguishing features for communications services are the technologies employed, including both the various inputs employed and the productive process itself. These include both delivery technologies and value-added and 'functionality' technologies. Key technological features define certain services and match characteristics valued by users. These also, by definition, form part of the analytical framework. Chapter 6 provides a brief summary of some of the main views on emerging communications services and environment. These include selected summaries from the USA, Canada, Japan, and from industry companies and analysts. The chapter also contains a literature survey of emerging services, and a classification scheme. Chapter 7 provides a summary of the communications services framework in the context of interacting buyers and sellers. The framework is comprised of (i) valued service characteristics; (ii) technological and functional attributes; and (iii) certain non-market influences, as indicated in preceding chapters. The framework has a dynamic aspect as it is based on observed trends in these factors in the life cycle of certain communications services. In conclusion, the framework may be used to provide indications of some likely new services (and claimed services) and as a basis for further research by the Communications Futures Project. (end of excerpt) CFP Paper 2, Module 5: DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES IN THE NEW COMMUNICATIONS WORLD INTRODUCTION Even a casual reader of the communications (and increasingly the popular) press both in Australia and overseas would quickly become aware that one of the major themes of discussion relates to the delivery platform(s) for future communications services. Among the more common questions that are raised, often implicitly, are the following: What sorts of delivery systems can be used to provide the range of new communications services that are often being mooted, and how do these delivery systems line up against each other? How are the various technological solutions likely to fare in the market place over the next few years? Is an optic fibre network the inevitable, all- embracing solution for satisfying all our communications needs in the future? (And, if so, should the Government be actively supporting this technology in preference to other solutions?) This paper provides some early insights into these and similar questions, and sets a foundation for future Communications Futures Project (CFP) work on the current and future development of communications markets and the policy implications arising from this development. The paper aims to provide a framework for further analysis by bringing together some early views about the key platform technologies and their market- relevant characteristics, about how these technologies influence and are influenced by market developments, and about some known market activities in Australia. Such a survey is perhaps timely given the almost unprecedented state of ferment at present in the cable and satellite industries. Much of the flurry of standards activity and corporate mergers and the general hype about 'information superhighways' surrounds the implications of two relatively new, but fundamental, changes in delivery platform technologies - digital compression and optic fibre. There are also some important developments in terrestrial wireless technologies that are sometimes overlooked. Taken together, these new technologies offer the prospect of a communications environment that is qualitatively different from the one that currently exists, characterised by service (or channel) abundance, and based on a wide range of delivery platforms that are or soon will be available. In comparison with many other markets, this matter assumes a somewhat greater practical significance in Australia than in many other markets because of the Commonwealth Government's decision to allow the introduction of narrowcast and subscription television. The practical implementation of pay television in particular will probably give rise to a range of issues with a technological dimension as it progresses commercially. Some of these are already apparent, including digital compression standards, capabilities of 'set-top unit' alternatives, and the maturity and costs of new technologies such as asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL). These are frequently the subject of conflicting claims from commercial participants who often speculate on the commercial timing and capabilities of particular solutions that are not yet commercially (and sometimes even technically) proven. This implies a transitional phase in which policy makers will need to have a clear understanding of important concepts and issues. In the longer run, these technological developments are important because they will strongly influence market structures. Some of the supply-side fundamentals of future communications markets will depend on the inherent economies of scale and scope, and the barriers to entry of different technological solutions. Although the level of technological maturity is not likely to permit definitive views on these issues yet, a basic understanding of how these issues can help shape market evolution is important. This paper focuses strongly on delivery platform technologies. While developments in information processing technologies are probably more pervasive, the issues relating to platforms are likely to have a particularly direct influence on the direction and nature of future market evolution and market structure and to raise more tangible issues for policy consideration. The paper is in two parts. Part One (chapters 2 to 5) sets out the technological framework: a description of important design concepts (chapter 2), the mature delivery platforms (chapter 3), the major recent developments in delivery technologies (chapter 4), and some of the issues surrounding the consumer electronics required to support a multi-channel environment (chapter 5). Part Two deals with market evolution (chapter 6), relevant current market activities in Australia (chapter 7), and some early observations on these developments (chapter 8). Posted by: Steven Byrne, Principal Research Officer Communications Futures Project. Canberra, Australia Internet: steven=byrne%cfp%btce@smtpgate.dotc.gov.au CIS: 100033,1506 OZ-Email: SBYRNE@OZEMAIL.COM.AU ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #167 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa22189; 7 Apr 94 16:20 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA27731; Thu, 7 Apr 94 11:05:10 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA27722; Thu, 7 Apr 94 11:05:08 CDT Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 11:05:08 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404071605.AA27722@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #168 TELECOM Digest Thu, 7 Apr 94 11:05:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 168 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Information Needed on LEC Competition/Value of Service (F. Goldstein) Re: Question About MIN and ESN (Daniel Goemans) Re: Cellular Roaming Charges (David E. Sheafer) Re: Cellular Roaming Charges (Tak To) Re: New NPA for Virginia (Carl Moore) Re: New NPA For Virginia (Karl Johnson) Re: Anonymous Phoning (Paul Robinson) CLID and Toll Saver (Jack Meth) Re: Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? (John R. Grout) The Sacred and the Profane (Paul Robinson) Re: Radio Contest Overloads 911 Lines, Business Calls (Mark Rudholm) Re: Switch Problems (Matt Silveira) Re: 900 and Other Premium Numbers (was Pager Scam) (Mark Brader) Re: FAX Mailbox Services (Les Reeves) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: goldstein@carafe.tay2.dec.com (Fred R. Goldstein) Subject: Re: Information Needed on LEC Competition/Value of Service Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 00:38:11 Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation In article 00r0nolting@leo.bsuvc.bsu. edu writes: > I urgently need information on pricing regulations in the local > exchange with regard to universal service subsidies. I have heard the > term "value of service" but am unable to find how the higher priced > business phone subsidizes the rural phone. Is part of the monthly fee > put into a fund, part of every local call? Three of us are participating > in a competition and have to present our ideas on Friday, April 8th, in > the morning. Yes, there is a fund. (I apologize in advance if my information is out of date; this was the way it was set up by the FCC in the early '80s and I am not aware of major changes, but I miss details like that at times.) The National Exchange Carriers' Association administers a Universal Service Fund. Low-cost telephone companies (Bells, especially in urban territories) contribute some of their carrier access charges (stuff paid by AT&T, MCI and the like for use of their local networks) to this fund, which is used to subsidize service in high-cost areas, such as Wyoming. It's not taken from local calls, but from interstate calls. Also, the price paid by carriers to local telcos varies, with some rural companies getting much more than the 3-5c/minute/end that Bells collect. So the long distance carriers lose money on those calls and it is made up for by the rest of their calls. Fred R. Goldstein k1io goldstein@carafe.tay2.dec.com ------------------------------ From: goemansd@kirk.usafa.af.mil (Daniel Goemans) Subject: Re: Question About MIN and ESN Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 15:47:20 GMT Organization: United States Air Force Academy In article sathya@uw-isdl.ee.washington. edu (Sathyadev Uppala) writes: > What is the difference between MIN and ESN? MIN (Mobile Identification Number) is the mobile unit phone number. It is user programmable and necessarily different from the ESN for two reasons: (1) The ESN is not user programmable (ideally) and it represents the true radio signature of the phone. (2) The ESN, more recently, is starting to become a security issue and is generally no longer posted on the packaging or shell of the phone. It is somewhat of a secret. Because a caller must identify the phone he/she is trying to call, the MIN is available -- which is not a security issue. ESN (Electronic Security Number) is everything said above, and stored separately from the info in the NAM (Number Assignment Module). Hope that helps. Daniel Goemans USAF Academy ------------------------------ From: David E. Sheafer <_sheaferd@merrimack.edu> Reply-To: __SHEAFERD@merrimack.edu Subject: Re: Cellular Roaming Charges Date: 5 Apr 94 22:19:25 EST Organization: Merrimack College, No. Andover, MA, USA In article , nsayer@quack.kfu.com (Nick Sayer) writes: > Lars Nohling > writes: >> Are then any tricks to cutting costs on the high roaming rates many >> cellular carriers charge ? >> Any sort of Resellers who provide discounts like in the Long Distance >> business ? > In any given area there can be up to two cellular companies. One of > them will probably be some sort of variation on "Cellular one", one is > very likely to be either some variation of GTE or a BOC. > Your only choice in the matter is if you are in an area where there > are two services. My phone is a Motorola 550 (one of the more popular > ones, so they tell me. It's a "flip fone" sort of reminiscent of Star > Trek TOS communicators). I can, using RCL * set up how it roams by > telling it which of the two services in a given area it should check > first for roaming. I can change this on the fly (not during a call, > though). So I could conceivably call *611 and ask whoever answers what > their roaming rates are, then switch to the other service and ask them > the same question. If I don't like the second answer better than the > first, then I will switch back to the first provider and there you go. The home system you subscribe to usually sets the roaming rates for any areas where you are allowed to roam, not the company that you are roaming with, they just bill your carrier according to their agreements and then bill you according to their charges. From what I understand some carriers take a loss in certain markets, to provide the customer less costy service in areas adjacent to the home area. In addition in some markets if you subscribe to the A side, you wont be able to roam on the B side, and visa-versa without setting up a temporary account. It all depends on your carriers agreements with other carriers. David E. Sheafer internet: __sheaferd@merrimack.edu ^^ thats 2 _ in the net address GEnie: D.SHEAFER ------------------------------ From: TTO@RANKIN.aspentec.com (Tak To) Subject: Re: Cellular Roaming Charges Date: 7 Apr 1994 04:12:35 GMT Organization: Aspen Technology, Inc. In LNohling_+a_BSSI_+lLars_Nohling+r% REMSBSSI@mcimail.com writes: > Are then any tricks to cutting costs on the high roaming rates many > cellular carriers charge? > Any sort of Resellers who provide discounts like in the Long Distance > business? Comparing to typical [roaming] air time charges, the long distance carrier charges are of secondary concern. I talked with an AT&T sales person before and he said that PRO WATS service is available to cellular accounts in some areas. (I did not ask which since it is not available in the areas that I have accounts in -- namely Boston and NYC/NJ.) Note that roaming charges are set more or less _solely_ by your home cellular serive and may or may not have anything to do with the what is charged by the cellular providers in the roaming locale. E.g., NYC-NJ Cell/1 charges has a much higher roaming rate for, say, DC, than Boston Cell/1. (Actually, in the off peak periods, the home rate in NYC charged by NYC-NJ Cell/1 is higher than the roaming rate charged by Boston Cell/1; even with the added L.D. charges!) So, shop around. Depending on your calling pattern, it might be cheaper to sign up for service in some other areas in addition to your home area. Tak To (617) 577-0310 x377 Box 45, MIT Branch PO, Cambridge, Ma 02139. tto@aspentec.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 19:30:42 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Re: New NPA For Virginia Well, it'd have to be one of those N00 codes if it's this coming August (1994). More likely, it'll be an NNX code becoming useable in August 1995. As has been discussed in the digest before, the DC area gets precedence for keeping the old area code, so Richmond and Norfolk switched from 703 to 804 in 1973, and Baltimore and Annapolis switched from 301 to 410. I am not yet aware of any N0X/N1X prefixes in Virginia beyond the DC area. Roanoke might be the biggest city to get the new area code in this upcoming split of 703. I've travelled across a lot of Virginia, so I'd be interested in hearing where the new boundary is. ------------------------------ Date: 07 Apr 94 07:17:45 EDT From: Karl Johnson Subject: Re: New NPA for Virginia Carl Moore replied to my post: > Well, it'd have to be one of those N00 codes if it's this coming > August (1994). More likely, it'll be an NNX code becoming useable > in August 1995. As has been discussed in the digest before, the > DC area gets precedence for keeping the old area code, so Richmond > and Norfolk switched from 703 to 804 in 1973, and Baltimore and > Annapolis switched from 301 to 410. I am not yet aware of any > N0X/N1X prefixes in Virginia beyond the DC area. Roanoke might > be the biggest city to get the new area code in this upcoming > split of 703. I've travelled across a lot of Virginia, so I'd > be interested in hearing where the new boundary is. In my comments in the original post I was trying to say these same speculations, but I suppose it may not have been visible enough. To further show that a likelihood of the split happening in 1995 one only needs to look at the upcoming splits in 205, 206, 708, and 602 each of which will happen in 1995 each NPA is (according to Friday's quarterly NPA count posted in TCD) larger and growing faster (in terms of number of NXXs). After further contemplation I think that the companies involved have been told by Bellcore to spend three months preparing their recmendations by the end of June and Bellcore will take another month to decide where to put the line. After looking at the map in the Northern Virginia Directory showing the NPAs for Virginia I think the border between 703 and the new NPA will be an east-west line going west from Harrisonburg or somewhere further south, but this is nothing but a WAG (wild assed guess) as I have no solid information as to the NXX counts in each county (I assume that like the Maryland split this will follow county lines). ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 00:05:50 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Re: Anonymous Phoning Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA jmm@elegant.com (John Macdonald), writes in Comp-privacy: > There has to be a middle ground which allows anonymous calling > to parties that are willing to accept such calls while not > allowing anonymous calls to parties that wish to insist upon ID. There is, and it's already available. > The phone company ought to provide a recipient option that lets > the recipient choose to never receive calls with blocked ID. That's exactly what is available now. > Their phone would not even ring This is *exactly* what happens. > (or be busy), and the caller would get an intercept message "The > number you have dialled does not accept calls with blocked > ID.". The caller would know why their call did not get through > and could choose to unblock and call again if they felt that > there was a need to complete the call. (The current situation > where the recipient's display says "number blocked" and the > recipient just does not answer can lead to the caller trying > again and again, hoping that the recipient will eventually get > home. While there may be some desire to cause such callers that > sort of nuisance, it also means that the recipient's phone is > busy.) Where they have Caller-ID, they can have (subject to political considerations) exactly the system you mentioned available. In Virginia and Maryland (DC probably has it if the suburbs do) the service is called "anonymous call rejection." You dial *77 and from that point on, if someone calls you by dialing *67, they don't get through; they are shunted to a recording that tells them that the party they are calling does not accept anonymous calls; if they want to reach the party, call again without blocking their number. This remains in effect until and unless the called party dials *87. Here, ACR is free with Caller ID (which costs $6.50 a month) or is $3.50 a month without Caller ID). As strange as that sounds, you *can* block calls from people who block the transmission of their number even if you don't have Caller-ID. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: And having it available for people without Caller-ID makes good sense since the caller would not know one way or the other and probably assumes they *do have it* if he goes to the trouble of adding the *67. Even though the recipient does not have Caller-ID they may not like the idea of getting calls from people who choose to block it for whatever reason, the theory being I don't care who you are, but I don't like the idea of you trying to hide from me. PAT] ------------------------------ From: methj@fi.gs.com (Jack Meth) Subject: CLID and Toll Saver Organization: Fixed Income Division - Goldman, Sachs & Co. Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 15:06:45 GMT I am considering getting Caller-ID on a line with an answering machine. The answering machine picks up before the second ring when in toll saver mode. CLID is delivered between the first and second ring. Will CLID be delivered if the phone is picked up before the second ring? The CLID will be a backup to a doctors off hours answering machine. If the machine fails to record the message then CLID can be used to figure out who called last. (Last number call back *69 won't work because the MD dials into the machine to check messages and wont know that machine failed until after she dials in.) CLID costs $6.50 per month in (718) 544. Thanks, Jack [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It will be haphazard at best. A lot of telcos deliver Caller-ID immediatly after the first ring, easily a second or so before the second ring starts (and the answering machine likely to pickup). If delivery is delayed until just before the second ring it is possible some of the transmissions will be garbled if the answering machine picks up at the start of the second ring. It would be better if you could delay the answer all the time until the third or fourth ring unless toll-saver is an important feature to the person using the system. PAT] ------------------------------ From: j-grout@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (John R. Grout) Subject: Re: Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? Date: 6 Apr 1994 20:00:51 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana Reply-To: j-grout@uiuc.edu In TELECOM Digest Editor responded to j-grout@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (John R. Grout): > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Generally it is only the rip-off > private payphones (COCOTS) which have charges for 950 and 800. They > are not supposed to either, but they get away with it. I am surprised > it was at a C&P phone. Maybe there was a programming error. PAT] According to Jonathan (jdl@wam.umd.edu), it is unlawful to charge for 800 calls, but C&P _does_ charge $.25 for a call to a 950 number from its payphones in Maryland. John R. Grout INTERNET: j-grout@uiuc.edu ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 00:15:00 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: The Sacred and the Profane Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA taranto@panix.com (James Taranto), writes: > In article , LincMad@netcom.com (Linc > Madison) wrote: >> The splits in 703 and 214 in particular may put to the test the >> sanctity of the "you must dial 1 for all toll calls, and you must be >> able to dial all local calls without a 1" arrangement. > That arrangement is hardly sacred. In NYC, for example, we have > to dial 1 for all calls between 212 and 718. Perhaps it is the age of some equipment that requires this, or because it was considered the simplest way for the public to handle the system. The DC area does a nice job: if the number is local and in the same area code, dial the seven digit number, or optionally dial the area code and the seven digit number. If it's local and in a different area code, dial the area code and number. If it's long distance, even in the same area code, dial 1 + area code + number. In *all* cases, dialing 1+ area code + number will put the call through even if the call is local, and at no additional charge. One thing to be careful of in this area is that IXC 10xxx codes are permitted to be used even for local calls. I got a couple of minor bites for about 40c when I misprogrammed my modem and dialed a local number via 10222 plus seven digits on a couple of local calls lasting less than five minutes each. But this sort of thing has all sorts of personal animosity attached to it. Let's go on to something less controversial, like which Church is the One True Religion of God, shall we? Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 07 Apr 1994 01:59:58 -0800 From: rudholm@aimla.com (Mark Rudholm) Subject: Re: Radio Contest Overloads 911 Lines, Business Calls sellers@on.bell.ca (Dave Sellers) writes in Telecom-Digest: Volume 14, Issue 151, Message 2 of 18 > As reported in the {Ottawa Citizen} March 27, 1994, radio and television. > Canada's national capital was put on hold Friday night when a local > radio station (CHEZ 106) gave away tickets to a Pink Floyd concert to > the first 53 callers. [deletia] > The calls overloaded Bell Canada's switching equipment even thou the > radio station was using special "contest lines". The switches > responded by making callers wait up to a minute for dial tone. It sounds like a simple case of too many simultaneous requests for dialtone. The special overload prefixes won't do anything to prevent this problem. This is usually what is going on when people say "my phone went out during the earthquake." [deletia] > Phone service was affected wherever the radio station had listeners -- > as far south as Cornwall and Smith Falls and as far north as Pembrook. > Many business were affected, like Pizza Pizza which Friday night is > their busiest. Pizza Pizza estimates they lost $12,000 because people > could not get through to place their order. Yeah, right! They've got to be selling some pretty darn expensive pizzas for a three hour loss of phone service to cost them $12,000. > The phone problems also hampered other services such as 911. Many > people called to complain about their problems with the phones. About > 280 calls were made to 911 between 5 to 9PM compared to about 125 on a > normal Friday night. Tony Yantha of the Ottawa Police said "I normally > have three clerks working on 911. Last night I had five and still > wasn't enough." Obviously some people could get dialtone. So why is it that when people find their phone doesn't deliver a dailtone quickly, when they finally get one, they dial 9-1-1 ?? News reports about phone outages always have to mention 911, I guess it makes for nice, sensationalistic copy. > Sandra Cruikshanks of Bell Canada said that the phone service was back > to normal by 9:30PM (started at about 6:20PM). The station's contest > number designed by Bell, is designed to allow large number of callers > to hear a busy signal if the line isn't available, without affecting > other lines. > She said that the sheer number of calls to the radio station during > the ticket give away "is just unheard of". But she said the phone > system responded exactly the way it should have. "It worked perfectly > well." It's nice to see that the Canadian press is as lousy as its American counterpart -- sensationalistic and largely ignorant about the issues on which it alleges to report. Mark D. Rudholm Philips Interactive Media rudholm@aimla.com 11050 Santa Monica Boulevard +1 213 930 1449 Los Angeles, CA 90025-7511 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 Apr 94 22:28:57 PDT From: mws1@admin01.osi.com (Matt Silveira) Subject: Re: Switch Problems Mr. Robinson brings up an interesting but NOT uncommon problem with clocks. The syncing required for digital lines are critical but many IXCs and LECs have clocking problems (this is why we have alarm messages on OOSs such as "Out of Sync" or "Clocking Error".) The solution, install better and more clocks in the backbone nets. And make sure each clock is synched properly to prevent timing issues. It is curious that you had so many problems, perhaps you should get on the case of your telco. ------------------------------ From: msb@sq.sq.com (Mark Brader) Subject: Re: 900 and Other Premium Numbers (was Pager Scam) Organization: SoftQuad Inc., Toronto, Canada Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 07:04:17 GMT > As an aside, 900 numbers get a lot of publicity, and most people know > that they are expensive to call. Until I started reading the Telecom > digest, I was not aware of the existence of 976/540 or any other kinds > of premium numbers. Offhand, I cannot recall seeing a single > advertisement for local premium services, but anyone who has ever > watched late night TV cannot help being aware that 900 calls are > rather expensive. This obviously varies either by region, or between the US and Canada. Around here (Toronto) we have 900 and 976 numbers also, but it is the 976's for which there are numerous late night advertisements featuring scantily clad women. As just about everyone reading this knows, in much (but not all) of the US and Canada, long-distance numbers must be dialed differently from local ones, so that you always know when you're dialing a toll call. Such a rule applies here. And when someone dials a 976 number here, *they must dial it as if it was long distance within their area code*. Are there places in the US or Canada where long-distance and local numbers are dialed differently, but where 976 or other premium numbers are dialed like *local* calls? Mark Brader, msb@sq.com SoftQuad Inc., Toronto [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Well here in the Chicago area, we have but one single source of 976 numbers; it is in Chicago downtown yet callers to those numbers only dial 976 and the number regardless of where we are in the region, ie. no 708-976 or 312-976 ... just 976. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 09:31:27 PDT From: Les Reeves Subject: Re: FAX Mailbox Services Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Lars Nohling (LNohling_+a_BSSI_+lLars_Nohling+r%REMSBSSI@mcimail.com) wrote: > Does anyone have any info on companies that provide a FAXMAIL service? > What I am looking for is a FAX Number I can give out that receives > faxes and then allows me to retrieve them from any fax machine by > dialing up my code. AT&T came out with a bunch of services for "professionals on the go" about a year ago, and a FAX mailbox was part of the package. The disadvantage was that callers had to dial an 800 number and then enter a bunch more digits for your mailbox. Most business users won't stand for this nonsense; they punch the number into the fax machine and walk away. If you come up with a FAX mail service that can be dialed like a standard fax machine, I too would like to know about it. Les lreeves@crl.com Atlanta,GA 404.874.7806 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Ameritech offers fax mailbox service. It uses straight seven digit DID numbers in area 312. IIt works just like voicemail; the caller dials 'your' number and gets a fax. You as the owner call in to the same number and retrieve your faxes. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #168 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa22568; 7 Apr 94 17:12 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA00652; Thu, 7 Apr 94 12:17:10 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA00643; Thu, 7 Apr 94 12:17:07 CDT Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 12:17:07 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404071717.AA00643@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #169 TELECOM Digest Thu, 7 Apr 94 12:17:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 169 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Alphanumeric Pager Software (Rob Lockhart) Re: Alphanumeric Pager Software (pdcchris@aol.com) Re: Specs For CDPD, Embarc, RAM, Ardis Wanted (Rob Lockhart) Re: Data Over Cellular (Lynne Gregg) Re: Dying Telephones (Charles L. Mclafferty) Re: FAX Mailbox Services (Ed Leslie) Re: PC Pursuit Has Ended (Steven H. Lichter) Re: Voice and Data Through PBX (William M. Davis) Re: April NPA Report (Hugh Pritchard) Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto (Robert Bonomi) Re: 976, 540 Services (Jay Hennigan) Re: 976, 540 Services (Mike King) Re: *999; CB Channel 9 (Jon Anhold) Re: *999; CB Channel 9 (David A. Kaye) Re: *999; CB Channel 9 (Gregory Youngblood) Re: Africa Telecom - Lunchbag Discussion (Bill Hofmann) Re: New LA Area Code (kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net) Agents Wanted Outside USA (miked23887@aol.com) EDI Electronic Data Interchange (Joakim Westman) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: rlockhart@aol.com (RLockhart) Subject: Re: Alphanumeric Pager Software Date: 07 Apr 1994 12:11:08 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , nsayer@quack.kfu.com (Nick Sayer) writes: > Does anyone have a description of the protocol used by such > software? Not everyone is saddled with x86 ISA machines running an OS > that was obsolete ten years ago at its introduction, which probably > means we have to write our own software for alpha paging. If it's > possible to write such a program ... The TAP protocol's available through PCIA (the standard setting and maintenance organization) at 202.467.4770. I've also a thread that covers the more commonly used parts of TAP and can POST it if you like. (It's a distilled version of the original spec we gave to Telocator (now PCIA) several years back that formed the basis of TAP.) However, If you don't feel like rolling your own, there're commercial apps for everything from DOS/Win boxes, to Macs, to AS/400s, to Mainframes, to even the little guys like HP100s and Atari Portfolios. We publish a freebie called the Motorola Third Party Referral Guide to Alpha and Data Paging that lists all the apps we know to exist in the marketplace (horizontal and vertical markets and information services) for both sending alpha and data pages to receiving them from such wireless data receiving devices as our NewsStream and NewsCard. The Guide gets updated once a quarter or so and is available in electronic form in Stuffed MacWord 5.1 (not readily convertable to W4W 6.0a). Unfortunately it's not available on the I'net ('cause I'm 'FTP challenged' ), but *is* available on CIS and AOL (04 March 94 edition). (AppleLink has the previous 17 Sep 93 edition.) 'Course the software interface specs for both our NewsStream and NewsCard are also available on those services in the same formats. Rob Lockhart Resource Manager, Interactive Data Systems (Home of the NewsStream, NewsCard, and Two-Way Paging) Paging Products Group Motorola, Inc. Desktop: Lockhart-EPAG06_Rob@Email.Mot.Com Wireless I'net (< 1K characters): Rob.Lockhart@RadioMail.Net Wireless I'net (<32K characters): Rob_Lockhart-ERL003E@Email.Mot.Com ------------------------------ From: pdcchris@aol.com (PDC Chris) Subject: Re: Alphanumeric Paging Software Date: 06 Apr 1994 12:25:01 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) I think someone here was asking about where to get the protocol specs for talking to alpha paging terminals. Anyway, call PCIA (Personal Communications Industry Association, formerly Telecator) at (202) 467-4770 and ask for info on TAP (Telecator Alphanumerice Paging) and TDP (Telecator Data Paging protocol). TAP is the older one supported by everyone, TDP is very new and is still being implemented. Chris ------------------------------ From: rlockhart@aol.com (RLockhart) Subject: Re: Specs For CDPD, Embarc, RAM, Ardis Wanted Date: 06 Apr 1994 22:16:05 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , tom.kee@mccaw.com writes: > Ardis is Native Mode for the device; MDC 4800/MG Protocol for the > network ... ARDIS also has pockets of RD/LAP, if memory serves. > EMBARC not quite sure (Motorola in Boynton Beach, Florida). Our EMBARC subsidiary doesn't publish it's protocols, but the main input method *has* been X.400 EMail (although there's a proprietary gateway, an MHS one, and an I'net one). The output format is also proprietary but is close to PCIA's TDP suite of protocols ... at least on the output side (e.g., TRT and TMC). Rob Lockhart, a Paging Motorolan ------------------------------ From: Lynne Gregg Subject: Re: Data Over Cellular Date: Wed, 06 Apr 94 12:57:00 PST Terry Gilson (tgilson@eis.calstate.edu) noted: > I think all of these units can trace their roots (through some kind of > licensing fee) to a company called Telular, which has successfully > defended it's patent on the dial-tone technology against quite a few > companies. In addition to Motorola and NEC, I've successfully used the Spectrum product. Actually, Telular has nothing to do with these interfaces, though a number of companies license the Spectrum technology. NEC and Motorola developed their own data interfaces that are equipment specific (that is they are designed to operate with specific phones within their product lines and in Motorola's case, that interface may be limited on the "device" end). Regards, Lynne ------------------------------ From: Charles L. Mclafferty Subject: Re: Dying Telephones Organization: University of Virginia Date: Thu, 06 Apr 1994 02:15:19 GMT I believe his phones are getting hit by lightning. They had very violent storms in Alabama two weeks ago, and the newer electronic phones can be very sensitive to power surges. Especially the 20Kv kind. I suggest that he may want to see if his NIU is grounded properly, but even that won't help all the time. Charles McLafferty UVa Dept of Ed Studies clm3c@virginia.edu ------------------------------ From: edleslie@apogee.ccs.yorku.ca (Ed Leslie) Subject: Re: FAX Mailbox Services Organization: York University Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 04:48:11 -0500 Lars Nohling (LNohling_+a_BSSI_+lLars_Nohling+r%REMSBSSI@mcimail.com) wrote: > Does anyone have any info on companies that provide a FAXMAIL service? > What I am looking for is a FAX Number I can give out that receives > faxes and then allows me to retrieve them from any fax machine by > dialing up my code. I think Delrina (the WinFAX people) are offering something like this with 1-800 numbers(?). Their phone is 1-800-268-6082. Ed ------------------------------ From: co057@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Steven H. Lichter) Subject: Re: PC Pursuit Has Ended Date: 6 Apr 1994 22:21:31 GMT Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (USA) I have now updated the signature file which is send out direct from Freenet. I just got signed up for Global Access which is like PCP. The best prt is they are moving over to Tymnet which has many more outdials. The cost is more, but I need it to run my system which is a hub. Sysop: Apple Elite II -=- an Ogg-Net Hub BBS (909) 359-5338 12/24/96/14.4 V32/V42bis ------------------------------ From: tyton@crl.com (William M Davis) Subject: Re: Voice and Data Through PBX Date: 06 Apr 1994 11:43:47 -0800 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Thomas Humphreys (trans-omega@mv.MV.COM) wrote: > I have asked the question "Would you recommend running both voice and > data (LAN) traffic through a PBX?" of 11 individuals. 4 said yes, 7 > said no. Wouldn't this depend on the type of PBX? I mean, we use an AT&T System 75 and if LAN traffic is routed (not switched data calls) through there would be system parameters I would explore along with recommend methods ... Mike Davis Communication Technician CSX Tranportation Atlanta, Ga. tyton@crl.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 06:22 EST From: Hugh Pritchard <0006348214@mcimail.com> Subject: Re: April NPA Report de@moscom.com (David Esan) notes, in his wonderful report on the NANP, > -> The NPA that is largest and is not splitting nor has plans, at this > time, to split, is 703. The local (i.e., the Washington, D.C. metro area) media are reporting that Bell Atlantic has indeed decided to split 703 -- northern Virginia. Bell Atlantic says it has decided neither the exact geographical boundaries, nor the NPA code. Hugh Pritchard, Senior Systems Specialist Smoke 'N Mirrors, Inc., Herndon, VA hugh@snm.com ------------------------------ From: bonomi@eecs.nwu.edu (Robert Bonomi) Subject: Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto Organization: EECS Department, Northwestern University Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 01:17:00 GMT In article , Greg Trotter wrote: > In article vantek@aol.com writes: >> Surety Technologies welcomes developers and corporations who are >> interested in testing the system and serving as beta sites for Digital >> Notary software. Call Surety Technologies, Inc. at (201) 993-8178; >> fax number is (201) 993-8748. Information is also available on the >> Internet at infonotary.com. > ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ > My system can't seem to find this place ... and whois at internic seems > clueless as well. Anybody have any updated information? Simple typo. try mailing to user 'info', at domain-name 'notary.com' -something- ate the "at"('@') symbol from the name. ------------------------------ From: jay@coyote.rain.org (Jay Hennigan) Subject: Re: 976, 540 Services Date: 7 Apr 1994 09:11:42 -0700 Organization: Regional Access Information Network (RAIN) In article johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) writes: > Is there anywhere a list of surcharged prefixes in the U.S.? In most > places 976 is used for non-porn announcements, but the list of other > surcharged prefixes seems to be large, growing, and largely > undocumented. I have the following, which is probably incomplete and out of date. I agree that such exchanges should be documented, as the numbering scheme appears to be random throughout the country. As to who is going to do the documenting, that's a good question. As things stand today, it may not be all that important to block these numbers outside of one's state (or LATA), as there doesn't *appear* to be a method of billing for them, and the IXCs will probably block them anyway. 976 LOOK-ALIKE LIST Location Area Code Local Prefix Maine 207 940 Massachusetts 413 550,940 Massachusetts 508 940 Massachusetts 617 550,940 New Hampshire 603 940 Rhode Island 401 940 New York 212 540,550,970 New York 315 540,550,970 New York 516 540,550,970 New York 518 540,550,970 New York 607 540,550,970 New York 716 540,550,970 New York 718 540,550,970 New York 914 540,550,970 New York 917 540,550,970 Maryland 301 915 Maryland 410 915 Pennsylvania 215 556 Pennsylvania 412 556 Virginia 703 844 Minnesota 507 960 Ohio 216 931 Ohio 513 499 Nebraska 308 960 Nebraska 402 960 Louisiana 504 636 New Mexico 505 960 Texas 214 703 Texas 512 766 Texas 713 766 Texas 817 892 Colorado 303 960 Colorado 719 898 South Dakota 605 960 Utah 801 960 Wyoming 307 960 Arizona 602 676,960 Idaho 208 960 Washington 206 960 District Columbia 202 915 Jay Hennigan jay@rain.org ------------------------------ From: mk@TFS.COM (Mike King) Subject: Re: 976, 540 Services Date: Thu, 6 Apr 1994 09:48:20 PDT In TELECOM Digest, V14 #157, johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) wrote: > Is there anywhere a list of surcharged prefixes in the U.S.? In most > places 976 is used for non-porn announcements, but the list of other > surcharged prefixes seems to be large, growing, and largely > undocumented. In Washington, DC, and the MD and VA suburbs, 976 is a surcharged prefix that defaults to permitted on each telephone line, but blocking can be installed for free by placing a phone call. The prefix 915 is also a surcharged prefix; however, it is blocked by default. To get access, a request must be made to C&P (Bell Atlantic) in writing. Mike King mk@tfs.com ------------------------------ From: jganhold@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Jon Anhold) Subject: Re: *999; CB Channel 9 Date: 7 Apr 1994 01:54:19 GMT Organization: The Ohio State University In article , Prof. Feedlebom wrote: > A few police departments monitor channel 9 across the country, however > even at CB's peak that was not really who was monitoring. The Ohio State Highway Patrol all have CB's in their cruisers. I don't know if they're on channel 9, but I would assume they are either there or on 19. > If you need emergency assistance while travelling, don't depend on your > CB radio. Invest the $200 to buy a GOOD cellular phone, or pass the no-code > Amateur license and use ham radio. You'll be doing yourself a favor. ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ Good plan ... 99.999% of the time there is someone around on 2m to help you .. it's the only reason I have a 146MHz radio in the car.. (440MHz is SO much nicer!) Jon N8USK, Northeastern Ohio ARES/Skywarn Net Control Jon Anhold N8USK (jganhold@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: 146 mhz is two meters, isn't it? I see a lot of that around here, and there are clubs operating repeaters. PAT] ------------------------------ From: dk@crl.com (David A. Kaye) Subject: Re: *999; CB Channel 9 Date: 7 Apr 1994 01:49:32 -0700 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Andrew C. Green (ACG@dlogics.com) wrote: > listening. I think it's reasonable to assume that in all the > technology packed into those squad cars, particularly Highway Patrol > cars, they probably have sprung an extra fifty bucks or so for a CB > radio, or included the appropriate wavelengths in the tuners of Squad cars of the Oregon State Police often monitor CB channel 9. In fact I was riding down I-5 when a trucker commented that he hoped there wasn't an OSP car around because he hadn't had time to fake his log book entries. The truck was just behind me. I heard another voice on the channel suggesting the trucker pull over. He said, "Who are you kidding?" The cop then turned on his red lights and said, "I'm not kidding anyone." He pulled over. ------------------------------ From: zeta@tcscs.com (Gregory Youngblood) Subject: Re: *999; CB Channel 9 Date: Thu, 07 Apr 1994 06:57:00 PST Organization: TCS Computer Systems feedle@kaiwan.com (Prof. Feedlebom) writes: > Jonathan (jdl@wam.umd.edu) wrote: >> I am wondering why the police do not routinely monitor CB channel 9, >> since the primary use of this channel is to report emergencies. > A few police departments monitor channel 9 across the country, however > even at CB's peak that was not really who was monitoring. I know in some places the Highway Patrols have monitoring equipment that can listen to Channel 9, but they do not have transmission equipment. Specifically, I _KNOW_ Wisconsin has this from when I was driving through and they had a rest area where they gave away free coffee and other stuff and were talking about how to report suspected drunk drivers in a campaign to get more of them off the highways. I also seem to remember somthing about when CB's were fairly popular and how the truckers and others used them like the police use their radios to track others. In this case, they tracked the cops. There was some talk about entrapment, and if a cop had a CB and could transmit, then the cop could have been giving the all-clear for truckers, and then pulling 'em over right and left. I don't know how factual this little tidbit really is, but it does seem reasonable, and would explain why at least _some_ police/highway patrol/law enforcement vehicles are equipped to _listen_ to the CD (ch. 9 at the least). Greg [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: 'Entrapment' is often confused with the term 'enticement'. One is illegal, the other is not. Generally speaking, if the government breaks the law in an effort to get you to do the same, that is entrapment, and it is illegal. If the government merely makes it more convenient for you to break the law -- without actually doing so themselves -- that is enticement. Sleazy perhaps, but not illegal. It happens all the time both ways, especially where drug enforcement is concerned. It does not surprise me that cops would use CB to encourage people to speed, then arrest them for it. I know they use CB at many truck stops to encourage and solicit prostitutes and/or drug sellers whom they then arrest when approached, but most of those cases get off in court (traffic, prostitution and drug cases) if the judge thinks the cops are lying about the way it happened. PAT] ------------------------------ From: wdh@netcom.com (Bill Hofmann) Subject: Re: Africa Telecom - Lunchbag Discussion Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Wed, 06 Apr 1994 17:09:25 GMT Barry Laina Raveendran Greene writes: > "EMERGING COMMUNICATION MARKETS IN AFRICA" > The event will also present some issues to be discussed at the Africa > Telecom'94 Forum (April 25-29 in Cairo). It is open to the public but > space is limited. RSVPs are required (for security passes to the World > Bank) by the 12 April 1994. Phone 202-833-3322 to leave a message. Can you post a summary of the meeting? Bill Hofmann wdh@netcom.COM Fresh Software and Instructional Design +1 510 524 0852 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: If a summary shows up here I'll be glad to include it in the Digest. PAT] ------------------------------ Subject: Re: New LA Area Code Reply-To: kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net From: sanctum!kris@uunet.UU.NET (Kris) Date: Wed, 06 Apr 1994 23:06 EDT James Taranto writes: > 907 is Alaska. New York City alone has 212, 718, and 917, and the > metro area, broadly defined, includes part or all of 516, 914, 201, > 908, 609, 203, and 717. [...] > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yes, thank you, I meant 917 and the > Alaska area code got in there by error. PAT] This reminds me of an AT&T commercial in which they were hyping their Reach Out America plan, where you would spend something like $10 for an hour of calls anywhere in the nation after 6 pm, and then $6 per hour thereafter. They showed different scenery from several cities around the nation, with the city name and NPA in very large type. Well, you guessed it, even AT&T was confused. They used 203 for Los Angeles. We all know that 203 is really the NPA for most of Connecticut. My roommate at the time, who was from CT, was quick to point that out every time the ad came on. Kris kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net uunet.uu.net!paladin!sanctum!kris ------------------------------ From: miked23887@aol.com (MikeD23887) Subject: Agents Wanted Outside USA Date: 6 Apr 1994 19:50:01 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) I am looking for agents to market long distance services to consumers and businesses around the world. You can do this in your spare time or full time. This is an easy sell as the rates are far below the local phone companies and you get high quality US dial tone. A five minute call from Germany to the US would cost $7.04 on the local PTT while only $3.84 with my firm, a 45% savings. >From Germany to Japan - 45%, Canada - 37%, Hong Kong - 41% and Australia - 51%. These savings can be achieved from most countries around the world. Our commission structure starts at the highest percentage that I am aware of. These commissions are recurring for all the clients you sign up and can add up to significant $$$. You can market this service even if you have no prior experience in telecommunications. Our company is located in New York City and has been at this for some time now. If interested please e-mail me with your address and country your interested in marketing this service. An agents package describing the service will be sent to you via air mail. Please also note that we plan to cut rates again in the next 30 days as well as introduce new services such as fax on demand, integrated voice response and many new value added services giving our agents the best combination of price and service. Please reply by private e-mail to our Compuserve corporate e-mail address at 73321.2252@compuserve.com. ------------------------------ From: westmanj@scico1.chchp.ac.nz (Joakim Westman) Subject: EDI Electronic Data Interchange Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 07:54:07 GMT Organization: Christchurch Polytechnic (NZ) I'm wondering if somebody knows what the concept of EDI -- Electronic Data Interchange is al about. I've been trying to get information about this, I believe quite new topic at least in NZ, with no luck. Therfore I turn to you as a new news user. Regards, Jo Westman ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #169 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa23584; 7 Apr 94 19:32 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06706; Thu, 7 Apr 94 14:33:04 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06689; Thu, 7 Apr 94 14:33:01 CDT Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 14:33:01 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404071933.AA06689@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #170 TELECOM Digest Thu, 7 Apr 94 14:33:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 170 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program (Ralph Becker) Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto (John Perkins) Re: What's Up With the NANP (Carl Moore) Re: What's Up With the NANP (Michael Israeli) Cellular Privacy??? (malcolm@apple.com) Shopping For an 800 Number (Shahid Ikram Butt) Jargon Dictionary Wanted (John Conwell) Caller-ID FAQ Update and "Never Say Never" (A. Padgett Peterson) Re: New Use of ANI (James Taranto) Re: New Use of ANI (Ron DeBlock) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Evan Leibovitch) Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? (Scott Johnston) Re: AT&T Cellular Privacy System (mcharry@cwc.com) Re: Information About ERMES Project (Rob Lockhart) Re: Canada Direct to European Customers - Why Not Possible? (Eric Snyder) Re: Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? (John R. Grout) Re: Where Can I Find A Copy of Mosaic? (Evan Robatino) Re: Can I Use my Cellular Phone in Turkey and Germany? (Gerald Serviss) Re: History: Vail, Monopoly, AT&T (syntech@access.digex.com) Re: Los Angeles Phone Fire (Nevin Liber) Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! (Robert Lightfoot) Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! (Steve Brack) Colonel vs. Kernel (Theodore M.P. Lee) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: rbecker@xap.xyplex.com (Ralph Becker) Subject: Re: Windows or DOS Caller ID Program Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 11:43:19 ET Organization: Xyplex Customer Support In article fritzj@ecn.purdue.edu (Fritz Friedlaender) writes: > If you have a modem that supports caller ID (e.g. PP14400 - the mini- > tower and internal version, NOT the pocket version) it is easy to > store the CNID data on a PC. > Get Kermit (for instance), at zero cost, and run a "log file". This > file will contain all the "ring" entries, and the Caller-ID information, > usually between the first and second ring. Just be sure that your > communications program is running and Caller-ID enabled in the desired > format, IF available on your modem. See several very recent postings > on the minimum conditions needed to make this work (in essence, if > your Caller-ID box works, so will this scheme with the appropriate > modem). Same information. I would like to follow up briefly on my request for a Windows-based Caller ID box simulation/replacement utility. I got a few "me too" requests, and I promised to let them know what I found. The only software I was pointed to is a $15 Shareware Windows utility. The file CID.ZIP is available in the Telecommunications Forum on Compu$erve (search on "Caller" will find it). I don't know of any FTP sites that have this (yet). This software is, er, a bit rough around the edges. I'm using it with my PPI PM14400FXMT, and it has several bugs. I am compiling a list that I will forward to the author. However, it's all there is, apparently, for now. The suggestion to use the logging feature on a Comm package was made to me, and I actually already tried this (works fine) with Crosstalk for Windows. I am still using this approach for now. I expect that as Caller ID increases in popularity, more of this type of software will become available in the coming months. Ralph Becker Xyplex Customer Support [Tech. Support hotline 800-435-7997] rbecker@sup.xyplex.com or 71174.1262@compuserve.com ------------------------------ From: johnper@bunsen.rosemount.com (John Perkins) Subject: Re: Bellcore Goes Crypto Organization: Rosemount, Inc. Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 12:04:10 GMT In article wollman@ginger.lcs.mit.edu (Garrett Wollman) writes: > In article , PAT writes: >> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Thank you Colonel. Tell me this: any ideas >> how Colonel came to be pronounced 'kernel' rather than 'call-on-nell'? > There is a reason for this, oddly enough. The English word `colonel' > is a result of the collision between the French word `colonelle' and > the Italian `coronello'. For some unknown reason, English adopted the > French spelling and the Italian pronunciation. There is no 'r' sound in the British pronunciation of 'colonel'. There is a sound that corresponds to the French 'eu', a sound that does not occur in American speech. John Perkins ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 9:48:03 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Re: What's Up With the NANP > other numbering resources such as service access codes (e.g., 500 and 900 codes) What is the meaning of the inclusion of 500 here? All I know about 500 is that it has been one of the "last-resort" N0X/N1X area codes. > In addition, the Commission sought comment on the need, if any or > for a nationally uniform dialing pattern that would use the digit "1" > as a toll call identifier. Notice this is ONLY the comment stage. What would be affected is some areas using just seven digits for long distance within area code. Also, some cases of local calls to another area code require a leading 1. ------------------------------ From: izzy@netaxs.com (Michael Israeli) Subject: Re: What's Up With the NANP Date: 6 Apr 1994 21:44:29 GMT Organization: Netaxs BBS and shell accounts! Where can one write or e-mail to state an opinion on this to? Michael Israeli - (izzy@access.netaxs.com) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I suppose one can now contact the FCC via their new online thing with the net which we have been hearing about. Does anyone know if the mail can go both directions on that or if pen and paper still required? :) PAT] ------------------------------ Subject: Cellular Privacy??? Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 08:39:20 -0700 From: malcolm@apple.com I saw a copy of RCD newsfax talking about cellular privacy. The gist of the article is that the Illinois Attorney General said "persons who use a telephone which transmits by radio waves have no justifiable expectation of privacy." The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association quickly pointed out that this is not what the federal law says and then goes on to say "As an industry, we are totally committed to the personal privacy of cellular telephone users." Hah! If they were that committed then they would encrypt the transmission and not depend on silly laws. Malcolm ------------------------------ From: sib1@Ra.MsState.Edu (Shahid Ikram Butt) Subject: Shopping for an 800 number Date: 7 Apr 1994 12:47:05 -0500 Organization: Mississippi State University Hello World, I am shopping for an 800 number for my business. We currently do not have one but our phone bill still exceeds $1,000/month. We expect the volume to increase with the new 800 number. I know I should probably be calling LD companies. But I know next to nothing about LD companies, their policies and charges etc. Any help on who to call at what number etc would definitely be appreciated. If you got a good rate and you liked the service from anybody, I would like to hear from you. Thanks a million. Shahid sib1@Ra.Msstate.Edu ------------------------------ From: John Conwell Subject: Jargon Dictionary Wanted Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 08:49:48 EDT I am looking for a book/dictionary for the great number of telephone (and cabletelevision) slang terms. You know, RBOC, STS, etc. I know a few, but a desk-top guide to the oft used shorthand phrases would be useful. I believe that the once monolithic Ma Bell produced one in-house, and probably the Baby Bells still do. Anything would be nice. :} [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Have you checked out the online glossaries which are part of the Telecom Archives? Use anonymous ftp to connect with lcs.mit.edu. Then, 'cd telecom-archives/glossaries'. You'll find several large files there; glossaries compiled at one time or another. You can also obtain glossary entries using the Telecom Archives Email Information Service. Use the regular instructions for that service. The command is given as GLOSSARY . For example, 'GLOSSARY COCOT' would cause email to be sent to you automatically explaining what that term meant. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 07:54:54 -0400 From: padgett@tccslr.dnet.mmc.com (A. Padgett Peterson) Subject: Caller-ID FAQ Update and "Never Say Never" I wrote: > My understanding is that the Motorola chip and most Caller-ID boxes > are designed to only accept data *before* pickup and to stop listening > when the line is answered. Further, the through connection is only > made once the line has been answered. For this reason there should not > be a problem. > Further, I have understood that a Caller-ID box would only accept one > valid sequence per call. I have since found out that the above is not always true. When I studied the Motorola chip specs, I noted that this mode was available but that the chip could also be placed in a maintenance mode (listen always). Did not think that any box other than a test set would ever do so since the alternative was obviously preferable in a consumer environment. Wrong Again. Turns out that a few manufacturers may have designed their boxes in this mode (was told that some boxes sold by US West were this way - have not personally confirmed it though) and *these* boxes could be flooded/spoofed by the DE after call pickup. Warmly, Padgett PS: I incorporated this information and other corrections submitted by watchful readers into v 1.1 of the Caller-ID FAQ and sent to Pat for inclusion in the archives. ------------------------------ From: taranto@panix.com (James Taranto) Subject: Re: New Use of ANI Date: 7 Apr 1994 00:17:22 GMT Organization: The Bad Taranto In article , rboudrie@chpc.org (Rob Boudrie) wrote: > > 800-WHY-GUNS is an 800 number set up by a gun control proponent to > accumulate messages from people wanting to recieve literature on their > cause. > Interesting points : > - Some users report that the message changes after the third call > from the same number, stating that calls from a single number are > limited to three because of harassment from opponents [note: I wonder > if they still pay for a call to their computers to identify the > caller and leave this message?] I tried the number. The message changes on the third call, and subsequent calls do not go through -- I got a fast busy on my fourth call. I dialed the number four times in rapid succession, so this is done automatically. Cheers, James Taranto taranto@panix.com ------------------------------ From: news@cbnewsj.att.com Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 12:30:53 GMT Subject: Re: New Use of ANI Organization: AT&T In article rboudrie@chpc.org (Rob Boudrie) writes: >- Some users report that the message changes after the third call > from the same number, stating that calls from a single number are > limited to three because of harassment from opponents [note: I wonder > if they still pay for a call to their computers to identify the > caller and leave this message?] This is not new. Limiting calls based on ANI has been done before, usually for contests and promotions. >- The voice repsonse unit appears to do some checking on the zip > code spoken into the system -- it replies invalid entry if you > read in a nine digit zip (with a spoken dash in it). Out of the box, the ASR systems I've seen do not understand "dash." They understand "zero" through "nine", "oh" (== "zero"), "yes" and "no." Unless the VRU instructs (through the prompts) otherwise, I would stick to that limited vocabulary when dealing with ASR systems. Decent ASR systems support word spotting -- "dash" or any other words not in the vocabulary would be ignored. Ron DeBlock AT&T Bell Labs / InfoWorx(R) Interactive Voice Service Somerset, NJ, USA rdb1@homxa.att.com ------------------------------ From: evan@telly.on.ca (Evan Leibovitch) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cell Phones Reduce Crime? Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 10:33:54 -0400 Organization: Somewhere just far enough out of Toronto In Ontario, they haven't yet told us they'd be charging for each 911 call, but there are a few alternates that (one would hope) discourage people from clogging 911 to report fender benders. In Ontario, *OPP gets one the Ontario Provincial Police (sorta like our State Troopers) on a free-airtime call. As well, though it ain't publicized much, *PEEL is a direct line to the local police serving my city (Peel Region, covering Mississauga and Brampton Ontario, just west of Toronto). Also airtime-free. I have used both on occasion, as well as calling in accidents to local radio stations. I have also used *CAA to call the local equivalent of triple-A, thankfully not very often. Evan Leibovitch, Sound Software Ltd., located in beautiful Brampton, Ontario evan@telly.on.ca / uunet!utzoo!telly!evan / (905) 452-0504 ------------------------------ From: scottj@MCS.COM (Scott Johnston) Subject: Re: Will Widespread Use of Cellphones Reduce Crime? Date: 7 Apr 1994 01:01:08 -0500 Organization: Another MCSNet Subs., Chicago's First Public-Access Internet! PAT says: >> thus far in 1994 here, *27 children* have been killed in >> the crossfire of gang-related incidents in Chicago. From the {Chicago Tribune}, April 4, 1994: (article about Le Twan Redmond, killed 4/2/94) Section 1, page 1, sports final edition) " Le twan was the sixth child aged 14 or younger to be killed in the Chicago area in the last week; 5 of those were killed by gunfire. He is the 15th child aged 14 and under to be killed in the Chicago area this year." Where do you get 27? Scott in 60657 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Note the key phrase in that particular story in the {Tribune} was 'aged 14 and under'. Put the upper age limit for 'children' at 18 and you get different figures. But you know Scott, I get the feeling you want to play games and discredit the entire thing based on my use of one set of figures and the {Tribune} story with other figures. For a moment, let's take your figures as correct. Isn't 15 kids killed since the first of the year -- that's about one per week -- still pretty sad? Wouldn't you say we are still in a state of emergency here exacerbated by the ACLU's unwillingness to cooperate? Of course, ACLU attornies live in Winnetka or Glencoe -- or maybe even in 60657, that fine bastion of liberal, modern thinking; although Jay Miller, one of the head people there lives on Printer's Row south of downtown -- so they wouldn't know much about an eight year old child on his way to school laying dead on the sidewalk. The ultimate deprivation of his civil liberties, along with 14 others (using your figures and ages) gone unnoticed by a group which purports to protect civil liberties for everyone. Now if you add the other dozen or so -- high school age kids, and I have not read the paper today to get the latest counts -- then we get over two dozen young lives given up. I guess that's the way it has to be; after all, we all know the ACLU is a fine, outstanding organization with only the purest of agendas and a monopoly on interp- reting the US Constitution. In general in Chicago, the rate of violent, deliberate murder is running 25 percent ahead of last year. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 06 Apr 94 09:52:28 EDT From: mcharry@cwc.com (McHarry) Subject: Re: AT&T Cellular Privacy System David Arneke wrote regarding the AT&T Cellular Privacy System: "This is the strongest scrambling algorithm available for handheld, transportable and mobile cellular subscriber equipment." This appears somewhat disingenuous -- there are cellular STU-IIIs available. The commercial versions use DES encryption. Granted, you need units at both ends of the link. I have only seen the units as mobiles and transportables. They are likely too large to build as handhelds. Nevertheless, to render Arneke's claim true, either one has to hold that encryption is different from scrambling, or to strongly construe the 'and' clause to take advantage of the lack of DES handhelds. ------------------------------ From: rlockhart@aol.com (RLockhart) Subject: Re: Information About ERMES Project Date: 7 Apr 1994 11:06:01 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , Stewart Fist <100033.2145@ CompuServe.COM> writes: > There's also a cut-down pre-Ermes standard called > Euromessage in the UHF band, which is limited to the UK, Germany, > Italy and France. EuroMessage isn't a 'cut-down' ERMES. (Atleast it wasn't last time I looked .) It's purely POCSAG and uses standard alpha pagers. Italy is linked into the network via SIP. France is linked in via France Telecoms. Germany is the DBP. The UK is through a couple of carriers. (And didn't Sweden and a few others plan on linking in at one time?) EuroMessage pre-dates ERMES by a couple of years (and technologies ). BTW, Hi Stewart ... are you getting these messages via Scott's posting of TELECOM Digest on CIS' TeleCom forum? Rob Lockhart Resource Manager, Interactive Data Systems Paging Products Group Motorola, Inc. Desktop: Lockhart-EPAG06_Rob@EMail.Mot.Com I'net Wireless Data <32K: Rob_Lockhart-ERL003E@EMail.Mot.Com I'net Wireless Data < 1K: Rob.Lockhart@RadioMail.Net CIS: 71333.1075@compuserve.com AOL: RLockhart AppleLink: ROBLOCKHART [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Responding only to the final paragraph in Rob's message, this is a good time to remind all readers that the TELECOM Digest is available as a regular feature on Compuserve. Look for it in the Telecom Forum area. Of course if you prefer, the Digest is also sent by email to the boxes of CIS subscribers requesting it that way instead. PAT] ------------------------------ From: ae924@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Eric G. Snyder) Subject: Re: Canada Direct to European Customers - Why Not Possible? Reply-To: ae924@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (Eric G. Snyder) Organization: The National Capital FreeNet Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 07:28:07 -0500 Could someone please describe exactly what the Canada Direct service is? Eric Snyder - Ottawa Canada Targeted Communication Mgt ae924@freenet.carleton.ca ------------------------------ From: j-grout@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (John R. Grout) Subject: Re: Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? Date: 7 Apr 1994 00:00:51 GMT Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana Reply-To: j-grout@uiuc.edu In j-grout@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (John R. Grout) writes: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Generally it is only the rip-off > private payphones (COCOTS) which have charges for 950 and 800. They > are not supposed to either, but they get away with it. I am surprised > it was at a C&P phone. Maybe there was a programming error. PAT] According to Jonathan (jdl@wam.umd.edu), it is unlawful to charge for 800 calls, but C&P _does_ charge $.25 for a call to a 950 number from its payphones in Maryland. John R. Grout INTERNET: j-grout@uiuc.edu ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 11:27:56 EDT From: erobatino@attmail.att.com Subject: Re: Where Can I Find A Copy of Mosaic? Organization: AT&T In article Ellis Claggett writes: > I recently heard of a product called Mosaic which acts as a front end > for Internet access. Could some one provide me additional information > on this product an where I might locate a copy on the internet. Your > help will greatly appreciated. Look in FTP site ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu. I believe it's in a subdirectory of /PC/Mosaic; there are versions of Mosaic for MS Windows (that's the one I use), UNIX and, I believe, Macintosh. To do anything useful with Mosaic, you'll need either direct TCP/IP access to Internet (in other words, you have to be an Internet host) or a dial-up SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol) or PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol) connection, which makes you a temporary Internet host. (Mosaic makes its own FTP connections, Gopher searches, Telnet sessions, and so forth which is why direct TCP/IP connectivity is needed.) Hope this helps. Evan Robatino AT&T erobatino@attmail.com Phone: (908) 457-3432 ------------------------------ From: serviss@tazdevil.cig.mot.com (Gerald Serviss) Subject: Re: Can I Use my Cellular Phone in Turkey and Germany? Date: 7 Apr 1994 17:40:27 GMT Organization: Cellular Infrastructure Group, Motorola cengelog@sunny.dab.ge.com (Yilmaz Cengeloglu) writes: > I use my cellular phone in FL, USA. I would like to know if I can use > that phone in Turkey and/or Germany. > If I can not use it, do you know any phone that is compatible with > cellular system in Germany, Turkey and USA. I am not sure about Turkey (do they even have cellular?) but, it would be impossible to use your AMPS or TDMA phone in Germany. Germany is mostly GSM now but, there was an analog system before that. I suspect that Turkey would be moving to GSM if it was installing a system. Jerry Serviss Motorola Inc serviss@rtsg.mot.com ------------------------------ From: syntech@access.digex.net (SynTech) Subject: Re: History: Vail, Monopoly, AT&T Date: 7 Apr 1994 14:00:21 -0400 Organization: Express Access Online Communications, Greenbelt, MD USA Can anyone give me any information about one Elmer Laverne Hageman? He was president of the telegraph operators union in the 50's. I am currently doing research on the topic, any input would be appreciated. Thanks! ------------------------------ From: nevin@cs.arizona.edu (Nevin Liber) Subject: Re: Los Angeles Phone Fire Date: 7 Apr 1994 00:19:16 -0700 Organization: University of Arizona CS Department, Tucson AZ In article , TELECOM Digest Editor responded to Mark Brukhartz was no dial tone in Hinsdale for a month. Some other communities got > dial tone back after a *mere two weeks*. Cellular service (both A and B) > and pagers were out here for about two weeks. 911 was out for several > days in many western suburbs. You see, Hinsdale was the hub for it all. And don't forget that everybody's favorite (at the time) 3B20 email hub, ihnp4, was also served by that switch. > Please, whoever controls these things: don't let it happen again. PAT] In these days of cost cutting and sacrificing the long term for the short term, I just don't see it happening. Nevin ":-)" Liber nevin@cs.arizona.edu (602) 293-2799 +++ (520) after 3/95 office: (602) 621-1685 ------------------------------ From: rlightfo@spd.dsccc.com (Robert Lightfoot) Subject: Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! Date: 7 Apr 1994 15:03:51 GMT Organization: DSC Communications Corporation, Plano, Texas USA This database of your home phone and address (and even how long you have lived there) is available on CompuServe. The age of information is here, I doubt you'll stop it. I have used this information in a helpful way, and don't see it as bad. A few days ago, someone re-landscaped my yard with their car, leaving behind the front license plate and part of the grill. I got the name and address from the DMV. They had moved two years ago with out telling the DMV (imagine that!). Compuserve told me right where they moved to, and even when they moved. I'm glad the information is out there! I'd like to see it. Robert, just Robert. ------------------------------ From: sbrack@jupiter.cse.utoledo.edu (Steve Brack) Subject: Re: Alert! New CD-Rom Database a la Lotus: Household! Organization: University of Toledo Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 10:44:19 GMT One thing I don't believe people are looking at is when it comes to telemarketing and market research, many companies don't use directory information at all, but rather use random digit dialing. I worked for a market research company, and the only time we worked from phone lists was when we were doing a survey, say, with people who purchased a particular product or service. The rest of the time, we used lists of AC/exchange pairs, then randomized the last four digits. Not being in the book isn't as helpful as it seems. Steven S. Brack sbrack@jupiter.cse.utoledo.edu Toledo, OH 43613-1605 STU0061@UOFT01.BITNET MY OWN OPINIONS sbrack@maine.cse.utoledo.edu ------------------------------ From: tmplee@MR.Net (Theodore M.P. Lee) Subject: Colonel vs. Kernel Date: Thu, 07 Apr 1994 10:44:11 -0600 Organization: Minnesota Regional Network > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: ... Tell me this: ... why is it we > make popcorn and have left over kernels ... PAT No April fool here ... twenty-some odd years ago (and yes, many of them have been been odd) I was baptized into the computer security game by being introduced to a (the) Colonel Roger Schell; he spent a lot of time talking about "security colonels"; it took me a *long* time to realize he meant "security {\em kernels}." Ted Lee tmplee@mr.net PO Box 1718 Minnetonka, MN 55345 ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #170 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa23880; 7 Apr 94 20:16 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07789; Thu, 7 Apr 94 15:07:08 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07779; Thu, 7 Apr 94 15:07:06 CDT Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 15:07:06 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404072007.AA07779@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #171 TELECOM Digest Thu, 7 Apr 94 15:07:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 171 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: PacBell Billing For AT&T - Constant Problems (Bob Schwartz) Re: PacBell Billing For AT&T - Constant Problems (puma@netcom.com) * Services (Cellular) (Lynne Gregg) Information Needed: Telecom Company in Milwaukee? (Scott Pope) Training Needed on AT&T PBX Architecture (Paul Lee) 700 Numbers (Michael Judson) HOTT: Table of Contents, Issue 940425 (David Scott Lewis) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: PacBell Billing For AT&T - Constant Problems From: bob@bci.nbn.com (Bob Schwartz) Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 09:52:27 PDT Organization: Bill Correctors, Inc., Marin County, California lchiu@crl.com (Laurence Chiu) writes: > Has anybody else noticed this? For the past six months each time I get > my phone bill from PacBell I have go through the AT&T portion very > carefully to see if I have been billed correctly. And it has been > wrong every time, sometimes up to $40. This is mainly due to applying > the wrong rate for calls (mostly international). > AT&T have been very gracious every time I call them about this and > always work out the discrepancy and send forward a credit. Finally I > decided to ask the customer rep what the problem was. He sighed and > said they always had problems with PacBell -- in fact this past month > because of some software foulup, they viz. PB) screwed up 250,000 > customer's bills! > Now if only AT&T could bill directly as MCI do (I get direct MCI > billing because I use them via 10222 for international calls > occasionally) then this problem would not occur. Laurence, It's things like this that have kept us in business for over ten years! I'm curious. When you call and ask for credit do you name the amount that is ultimately issued or do they say, Yes, we're aware of the problem(s) and a credit will be posted to your next bill of yet unknown amount? Also if you name the amount do you include taxes? If you skip calling one month do you get credits? The real issue here is whether or not they are acting to take care of the long term well known problem by issuing refunds on request or they're waiting to be sued in court and settle by issuing refunds? Often times we see friendly refunds issued promptly, on request, when the problem (refunds issued) are an amount less than the cost of fixing it. When they issue a refund then you are not damaged and can not easily be a plaintif. Eventually the problem is fixed and those late in requesting refunds are put off. After a couple of hundred are put off them someone might initiate a class action. The result, billing errors linger, the provider rakes in undue profits (enough to pay lawyers etc.) and the user community is none the wiser but a bit more poor. Yes, we've consulted class action and yes we can help larger users with these "problems". Thanks for the expose'. Regards, Bob Schwartz bob@bci.nbn.com Bill Correctors, Inc. +1 415 488 9000 Marin County, California ------------------------------ From: puma@netcom.com (puma) Subject: Re: PacBell Billing For AT&T - Constant Problems Organization: organized?? me? Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 13:56:02 GMT In article , Laurence Chiu wrote: > I decided to ask the customer rep what the problem was. He sighed and > said they always had problems with PacBell -- in fact this past month > because of some software foulup, they viz. PB) screwed up 250,000 > customer's bills! > Now if only AT&T could bill directly as MCI do (I get direct MCI > billing because I use them via 10222 for international calls > occasionally) then this problem would not occur. Perhaps you could consider the AT&T Universal (MasterCard) card. You can use it as a calling card, and they will direct bill you. Yes, they will charge you a calling card surcharge, but it would be small compared to the actual toll cost for international calls, and they credit a percentage back to you for calls charged to the Universal card, so you might actually come out ahead. puma@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: Lynne Gregg Subject: * Services (Cellular) Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 15:58:00 PDT A good month ago, jchin@panix.com (Johnny J Chin) posted a query on "Cellular/One * Codes". Johnny sought a complete list of * codes available from his local service provider. Our EDITOR noted that these * services vary from market to market and also by cellular carrier. This is correct. Johnny noted that he was aware of the *FILM service offered by his carrier. My question is, do Digest readers who have cellular service find any value in such * services (i.e., * FILM, * INFO, etc.)? If you post to me directly, I'll summarize for the group. Thanks, Lynne Gregg ------------------------------ From: scott_pope@wiltel.com Subject: Information Needed: Telecom Company in Milwaukee? Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 13:56:23 PDT Organization: WilTel I have been hearing about a telecom company in Milwaukee that hired amn MCI exec to run the company. Does anyone know the name of this company? ------------------------------ From: Paul Lee Organization: Woolworth Corporation Subject: Training Needed on AT&T PBX Architecture Date: Thu 7 Apr 1994, 12:01 CDT To all who might be able to help: After more than ten years in end-user data/telecommunications, I am now dancing with the Elephant (AT&T) for the first time. I find I have to virtually start over to understand their terminology and their PBX architecture. I have been trying to find training in AT&T PBX (System 25, System 75, and Definity) architecture and configuration -- not just how to blindly administer the switch features. AT&T has been no help -- they do not *allow* customers to attend the classes they offer in those areas. Does anyone know of third-party training on AT&T systems? Or, perhaps someone knows the "magic words" or a special contact to use within AT&T? I'd appreciate any insights that are forthcoming on dealing with AT&T. Even though we're a National Account (actually, international), AT&T still treats us like crap. But then, I more or less return the sentiment, since I'm not at all impressed by AT&T's offerings. I invited our National Account Manager to find me a class that would open my eyes and educate me as to the wonderful architecture and features of AT&T's stuff -- to no avail. They keep shoving the same glossy marketing drivel at me, along with babblespeak documentation and outrageous prices. I want to be able to *understand* their switches and just what it is they're trying to do. Can anyone out there help me to "see the light?" Or, am I right about AT&T's overpriced, lackluster, proprietary, obsfuscated, chauvinistic ... Jeez! Don't get me started ...! Paul A. Lee Voice 414 357 1409 Woolworth Corporation FAX 414 357 1450 CompuServe 70353,566 Internet '"/DD.ID=JES2CAOF.UEDCM09/"@SMX.sprint.com' [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Help you see and understand what is going on? Its not just AT&T, Paul. All the telcos like to keep things to themselves; at least that is the official policy. About all I can suggest is that you read a variety of telecom related publications -- including this Digest -- on a regular basis and pick up what you can as a result. Most of the readers here will be glad to answer your questions as best they can, so feel free to ask. There are even quite a few highly trained technical employees of AT&T on reading this Digest and I am sure they will share their thoughts with you also. So, welcome aboard! PAT] ------------------------------ From: judson@crl.com (Michael Judson) Subject: 700 Numbers Date: 7 Apr 1994 11:52:51 -0700 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Whatever happened to the personal 700 numbers? Do people still have them? It seems that the phone company gave a big hype about how you would always have the same phone number with you for life, even when you moved. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: EasyReach 700 service is still around. I still have my two 700 numbers, although I do not use them a lot. PAT] ------------------------------ From: callewis@netcom.com (David Scott Lewis) Subject: HOTT: Table of Contents, Issue 940425 Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 12:38:27 GMT HOTT -- Hot Off The Tree, 940425 Today's Date: Thursday, 31 March 1994 Transmission Date: Monday, 25 April 1994 Greetings! I'll make my remarks brief. (Do you really believe that?) I apologize for being late. No excuses. After the transmission of the first issue of the "reinvented" HOTT electronic magazine, we should be back on schedule, i.e., one issue every five weeks. As noted above, the first issue will be transmitted on Monday, 25 April. This is eight days after a segment on HOTT is scheduled to air on the U.S. nationally syndicated radio show "On Computers." (BTW, "On Computers" is also distributed internationally through the Armed Forces Radio Network.) If we release the issue prior to the Sunday, 17 April "On Computers" segment, I risk being flooded with e-mail from Prodigy and CompuServe subscribers asking me to send them the first issue. (I define a "flood" as having my e-mail spooled on a daily basis.) That would truly qualify as e-mail hell! Eight days should be enough time for someone to send in their e-mail subscription request. As a matter of reference, HOTT will be gated to the USENET group bit.magazines.computing, but not for a few issues. (Stay tuned for more info.) And, yes, a Web edition is in the works. But don't expect a Web edition until next year. It's too early in the innovation diffusion curve to justify a Web edition. If you don't believe me, run a Fisher-Pry analysis. And if you don't know what Fisher-Pry is, don't ask! At least, don't ask me! :-) HOTT has received a lot of publicity over the last month. HOTT was the *lead* feature in {The Los Angeles Times} Orange County Edition "Business" section on 2 March. (Other editions of The Times ran a condensed version of the story.) On 7 March, a segment on HOTT titled "Information Highway Magazine" aired globally on the Voice of America. And during March HOTT received favorable ink in IEEE Spectrum (the flagship publication of the IEEE), (IEEE) Computer (the flagship publication of the IEEE Computer Society), Wired (*the* lifestyle magazine of the digital generation), and several other periodicals. I greatly appreciate the support received from the mass and technical media. Thanks! (The Times article and VOA transcript will soon be available to the media by ftp and UCSD's gopher. FTPmail access instructions for those without an interactive Internet account will be provided in the first issue. I'll be happy to personally send The Times and VOA pieces to reporters, columnists, and show hosts.) Finally, I'm *very* pleased to announce that the founding editor and publisher, Susan Jurist, will be a regular contributor to HOTT. Her column, HOTTpixels, will cover lots of different topics. One of her special interests is Mac hardware and software. If you'd like to have her review your Mac-based products, please contact her at: sjurist@ucsd.edu (But I'm the guy for PDAs. If you'd like to have your PDA/mobile computing products reviewed, including Newton HW/SW, contact *me*.) BTW, Susan edited and published HOTT as a weekly for three years. Our new topical focus and scope of coverage is a wee bit different, but I am very thankful for her continued guidance and support. I'd also like to thank UCSD's Jim Madden. Jim is HOTT's de facto sysop. Well, he's really the sysop for UCSD in general, including HOTT's mailing list. We may very well have the largest mailing list in cyberspace ... and Jim has learned how to master list control, transmission difficulties, and a host of other nuances unique to such a large mailing list. We're planning to include paid advertorials beginning with the third issue; hence, we may be moving to another host. (The UC administration may view hosting a "for profit" e-magazine as a conflict of interest.) However, I'm hopeful that we can work out an arrangement to keep HOTT's mailing list on the UCSD system. HOTT will remain a FREE publication, but I need the advertorial sponsorships for covering my real production costs and for funding our expansion plans ... including a FREE HOTTWire news wire service (not to be confused with the *excellent* HPCwire e-magazine). ********************************** Here's the proposed Table of Contents for the first issue. You'll immediately notice one major problem. The TOC is twelve Microsoft Word pages. That will probably translate into 18-20 standard screens. If each summary is about 250 words (1,500 characters) ... well, forget the math. The bottom line: HOTT is pushing 100 pages, i.e., 180 screens! As a result, I expect to drop at least one-third of the articles listed below. And I plan to summarize groups of related articles in the style of The New York Review of Books. In other words, for a topic comprised of several related articles, such as General Magic, PCS, or special issues, don't be surprised if I write one long summary in lieu of several separate summaries. Final comment: If the first issue is too long, the interview conducted last December with Xerox PARC's Mark Weiser will be delayed until the second issue. See 'ya in late April. Bye! ISSUE "1": TABLE OF CONTENTS Note: Articles are NOT listed in any particular order within a topic Topics: Mobile computing, wireless communications, consumer information appliances, interactive multimedia, virtual reality, advanced digital communications, Information Superhighway, intelligent agents, General Magic, speech recognition, neural networks, genetic algorithms, evolutionary computation, fuzzy computing, advanced microelectronics, nanotechnology, and company profiles (in this issue, Apple & Microsoft) Request from the Editor: If you like what you see, please forward this message to your friends and colleagues. To receive a FREE subscription, send an e-mail request to -- listserv@ucsd.edu the "Subject" line is ignored in the body of the message input -- SUBSCRIBE HOTT-LIST do NOT include first or last names following "SUBSCRIBE HOTT-LIST"; this is a quirk of UCSD's listserv subscription requests MUST be sent to the listserv at the University of California at San Diego; do NOT send subscription requests to the editor, Susan Jurist, Jim Madden, or any other biological entity! :-) Mobile Computing ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "AST's handheld GRIDPAD 2390 brings real-world practicality to business users; 100 hour battery life on standard "AA" batteries, ready-to-use software including Pocket Quicken and America Online, and several connectivity options make it," BusinessWire, 20 March "Telcos may decide PDA fate," by Michael Fitzgerald Computerworld, 14 February "Better batteries," by Christopher O'Malley Mobile Office, March "Electronics firms target tinier batteries," by Junichi Taki The Nikkei Weekly, 31 January "No computer is an island," by Robert Lauriston CMP Publications, 11 March (via HeadsUp) Column by Michael Finley (on pen-based computing) (for the Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News syndicate) St. Paul Pioneer Press, 13 March (via HeadsUp) Speech, Mobile '4 Convention & Trade Show Mr. Doug Dunn, OBE, President & CEO Philips Semiconductor 10 March (via HeadsUp) Survey of Information and Communications Technology, Part 8 "Watchword for the future: Global mobile communications," by Paul Quigley Finical Times (London), 16 March (via HeadsUp) Survey of Information and Communications Technology, Part 16 "Potentially large market in the longer term: Like so much pioneering technology, the first generation of these small devices has largely failed to meet ...," anonymous Financial Times (London), 16 March (via HeadsUp) "New, improved PDAs becoming handy devices," anonymous Rocky Mountain News, 22 March (via HeadsUp) "Apple makes strides with new MessagePad," by Andrew Grove PC Week, 20 March (via HeadsUp) Wireless Communications (see also Mobile Computing) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "The wireless office," by Paul Korzeniowski Mobile Computing, 7 March "The cost of wireless data," by Jerry Lazar Mobile Computing, 7 March "Sweet successes in wireless attracting investors to PCS," by Jeffrey Silva RCR: Radio Communications Report, 14 February "All segments of PCS industry expected to see robust growth," anonymous RCR: Radio Communications Report, 14 February "PCS: Will it end cellular telephones?" by Harry Caul Popular Communications, March "PCS: Hands-on communications for all," by Randy Oster and Gary Brush Telephony, 28 February "PCS: Integrated wireless telephone-computer opportunities," by Thomas K. Crowe Voice Processing, January "Look, Ma! No wires!" by Andrew Kupfer Fortune, 13 December "Going on-line when you're off the beaten path," by Bart Ziegler Business Week, 6 December "Satellite-based Personal Communication Services," by Rob Frieden Microwave Journal, January "Unwired: The next generation of communications gear," by Chris O'Malley Popular Science, April Consumer Information Appliances (see also Mobile Computing) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Superhighway into the home: Efforts to turn couch potatoes into couch commandos," by Louise Kehoe Financial Times (London), 8 March "Group races chip makers to set-top," by Junko Yoshida and Terry Costlow Electronic Engineering Times, 7 February "Real-time OS, services drive TV decoders," by Eric Miller Electronic Design, 21 February "The interactive TV crusade: Chip makers seek the Holy Grail," by Dave Webb Electronic Buyers' News 31 January Interactive Multimedia ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Crunch time for digital video," (compression techniques) by Bob Doyle NewMedia, March "How codecs work," by Bob Doyle NewMedia, March "Invasion of the data shrinkers," by Peter Coy Business Week, 14 February "They can't wait to serve you," by Gary McWilliams with Robert D. Hof Business Week, 24 January "Interacting with HDTV," by Junko Yoshida Electronic Engineering Times, 31 January "HDTV shift stuns industry," by Norri Kageki The Nikkei Weekly, 28 February Virtual Reality ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Special Issue on Virtual Reality (10 articles) IEEE Computer Graphics & Applications, January Survey of Information and Communications Technology, Part 5 "A whole new shopping experience: Customers may one day don headsets for a 'virtual reality' armchair walk around their favourite stores," by Neil Buckley Financial Times (London), 16 March (via HeadsUp) Survey of Information and Communications Technology, Part 17 "Interaction of created worlds -- Virtual reality: Optimists see virtual reality as offering a richer form of communication, but pessimists see it as a ...," anonymous Financial Times (London), 16 March (via HeadsUp) "Where buying a ticket puts you right in the action," by William C. Symonds Business Week, 7 March "Virtual reality moves into design," by Andrea Baker Design News, 7 February "Virtual reality shapes surgeons' skills," by Linda Carroll Medical World News, February "Virtual warriors," by Frank Oliveri Air Force Magazine, January "VOR (Vision of Reality Corporation) prepares to launch its Cybergate adventure ride," by Callie Jones Silicon Graphics World, February "Virtual reality emerges as an industry," by Francis Hamit Silicon Graphics World, February "Virtual reality as it really is," by Paul H. Pause Puget Sound Computer User, February "Waking up to dream control: An alternative to virtual reality technology with vivid results," by Tom Foremski Financial Times (London), 22 February "Engineers develop real-world applications for virtual reality," by Greg Freilherr Medical Device & Diagnostic Industry, February "Ready for a wild ride?" Special report: Digital adventures in entertainment (Part two of a two-part series) by Barbara Robertson Computer Graphics World, February "Games blaze the VR trail," by Ron Dippold Computoredge, 21 January "Virtual reality: Immerse yourself," by Carrie R. Smith Wall Street & Technology, December "VR becoming reality for everyone," by R. Colin Johnson Electronic Engineering Times, 10 January "Inching closer to reality," Emerging Markets: Virtual Reality section by Brian Santo Electronic Engineering Times, 31 January "Video game incorporates world's first dive-in movie," anonymous Potentials in Marketing, January "Stubb's dive-in movie leaves consumers as sharkbait," by Terry Winkelmann P-O-P Times, January "Now playing in the virtual world," by Phil Patton Popular Science, April Advanced Digital Communications ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Cutting through ATM's noise," by Robert L. Bailey Electronic Engineering Times, 16 March (via HeadsUp) "ISSCC: Communications technology," by Jack Shandle Electronic Design, 21 February Information Superhighway (including the Internet) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Many PC makers steer clear of Information Highway," by Kyle Pope The Wall Street Journal, 28 February "No space in cyberspace?" by Aaron Zitner Boston Globe, 6 February "Microsoft tests waters with info highway projects," by Amy Cortese PC Week, 7 February "The great multimedia revolution," by John Maddox Nature, 20 January "Curtain's rising on a third generation of on-line services," by John Markoff The New York Times, 30 January "A refreshing approach, but some old questions," by James J. Mitchell San Jose Mercury News, 13 January "There's no reason to subsidize access to information highway," by Michael Schrage San Jose Mercury News, 18 January "Pothole alert for the Information Superhighway," by Thomas J. Duesterberg and Peter Pitsch Los Angeles Times, 11 January "A protest song -- '90s style," by David Bank San Jose Mercury News, 31 January "Information Highway will create jobs," by James Coates (Chicago Tribune) Washington Post, 17 January Intelligent Agents (see also "General Magic ...") ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Software valets that will do your bidding in cyberspace," by Evan I. Schwartz The New York Times, 9 January "AI & simulation," by A. Martin Wildberger Simulation, December 1993 General Magic ... MagicCap ... TeleScript (yes, it's own category!) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Just like Magic?" by Tom R. Halfhill and Andy Reinhardt Byte, February "Agent technology stirs hope of magical future," by Michael Fitzgerald Computerworld, 31 January "Telescript eases cross-network communication," by Yvonne L. Lee InfoWorld, 17 January "The metaphor is the message," by Barbara Kantrowitz Newsweek, 14 February "Robo-software reports for duty," by John W. Verity with Richard Brandt Business Week, 14 February "The butlers of the digital age will be just a keystroke away," by Barbara Kantrowitz Newsweek, 17 January "Software 'agents' will make life easy," by Andrew Kupper Fortune, 24 January Speech Recognition ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Number please: Speech recognition over the telephone," by Judith Markowitz PC AI, April "Say the word," anonymous Electronic House: Advanced Housing and Home Automation, February "Talking to computers: Time for a new perspective," by Nicholas Negroponte Wired, February "The power of speech," by Tim Bajarin Portable Computing, February "Hey computer, do my taxes," by Barbara Kantrowitz and Joshua Cooper Ramo Newsweek, 7 March "Conversations with my PC," by Michael J. Miller PC Magazine, 25 January "Automatic speech recognition," by Judith Markowitz PC AI, February "Computer: Take a memo," by Wendy Pickering Datamation, 7 January Neural Networks ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Special Issue on Neural Networks Communications of the ACM, March "The basic ideas in neural networks," by David E. Rumelhart, Bernard Widrow, and Michael A. Lehr "Neural networks: Applications in industry, business and science," by Bernard Widrow, David E. Rumelhart, and Michael A. Lehr "Neural networks in Japan," by Kazuo Asakawa and Hideyuki Takagi "Neural nets carve a niche in military systems," by John Keller Military & Aerospace Electronics, February "Will embed technology in handwriting-recognition systems/ IBM writes plan for neural networks," by R. Colin Johnson CMP Publications, 23 March (via HeadsUp) "Neural networks tackle manufacturing," anonymous Machine Design, 24 January "Hitting the limits of neural networks," by James Nevler Wall Street & Technology, December "Neural network enhances ICU patient monitoring," by F.G.B. Dodd and N.A. Dodd Medical Electronics, December "3-D wafer scale architectures for neural network computing," by Michael L. Campbell and Scott T. Toborg IEEE Transactions on Components, Hybrids, and Manufacturing Technology, Vol. 16, No. 7, November "Logicon breeds neural hybrid," by R. Colin Johnson Electronic Engineering Times, 17 January Genetic Algorithms ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Special Issue on Neural Networks Communications of the ACM, March "Genetic and evolutionary algorithms come of age," by David E. Goldberg Evolutionary Computation (see also Genetic Algorithms) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Special Issue on Evolutionary Computation (13 articles) IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks, January Fuzzy Computing ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Heaven in a chip," by Bart Kosko Datamation, 15 February Advanced Microelectronics ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "Material advantage," by Gary Stix Scientific American, January "Japanese electronics makers take steps to ensure strong position in flash race," by Simon Mansfield The Asian Wall Street Journal, 17 January "The end of the end for 'big iron'," Industry Outlook issue, High Technology: Computers section by Catherine Arnst Business Week, 10 January Nanotechnology ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Special Issue on Molecular Electronics (8 articles) IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Magazine, February/March "Mirror, mirror: Micromechanical chips challenge tubes for large-screen television," by W. Wayt Gibbs Scientific American, April "Small-scale structure yields big property payoffs," by Steven Ashley Mechanical Engineering, February "How far out is nanotechnology?" by Carol Levin PC Magazine, 8 February Company Profiles ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "A juicy new Apple?" by Kathy Rebello with Neil Gross Business Week, 7 March "How Mac changed the world," by Philip Elmer-Dewitt Time, 31 January "Microsoft hits the gas: It's bidding to lead the info highway pack," by David Woodruff with Mary Beth Began Business Week, 21 March END OF PROPOSED TABLE OF CONTENTS Send (or call in) your comments or request for sponsorship info to: David Scott Lewis, Editor & Publisher, HOTT electronic magazine Founder, High On Technology (HOT) Media Ventures E-Mail: d.s.lewis@ieee.org or callewis@netcom.com VoiceMail: +1 714 662 7037 Please be succinct ... even if I'm not! That's one of Kawasaki's "Laws of E-Mail." :-) Bye! David Scott Lewis Editor-in-Chief and Book & Video Review Editor IEEE Engineering Management Review (the world's largest circulation "high tech" management journal) Internet address: d.s.lewis@ieee.org Tel: +1 714 662 7037 USPS mailing address: POB 18438 / IRVINE CA 92713-8438 USA ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #171 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa01502; 8 Apr 94 19:42 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA01507; Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:04:03 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA01498; Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:04:01 CDT Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:04:01 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404081904.AA01498@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #172 TELECOM Digest Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:04:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 172 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson 38.4K Sync 5x5 Switch Box Sought (Daniel J. McCoy) Low vs. High Fiber Optics (Margaret Henderson) ADSL Information Needed (Louis Laborelli) Please Explain These Terms (vmatho@mason1.gmu.edu) True Voice Poem Wanted (Tom Ward) Sharing Modems on a Network (Mike McWhinney) Notice to AT&T Long Distance Customers (Paul Robinson) CO's and Disasters (Thomas Tengdin) SID Codes For All Cellular Systems (John Musselman) Non-Profit Needs Help Upgrading Phone System (Harold Hedelman) Consumer Market For PCS (Monte Hall) Hacking the Motorola Keypad Light (Don Montgomery) Looking For Good Ways to Move 1-20Mb Files Overnight (Peter Rowley) Information Wanted on PABX/PBX/Centrex (Richard S. Boswell) Information Wanted on Long-Distance Pricing Packages (Hjalmar Syversen) Need Technical Information on CPDP (Abnan Hafeez) NANP: Numbering Scheme? (Stan Schwartz) France's Departments (Anton Sherwood) 800-555-1212 Question (Lindy Williams) Unshielded Twisted Pair in Conduit? (Chris Plonski) Re: AT&T Cellular Privacy System (mcharry@cwc.com) Re: Please Explain the Term 'Steaming Terminal' (Dave Levenson) Re: International Free Numbers (Gregg Siegfried) Calling 911; Reporting Disabled Vehicles (Jonathan Loo) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: djmccoy@netcom.com (Daniel J. McCoy) Subject: 38.4K Sync 5x5 Switch Box Sought Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 15:11:26 GMT A coworker is looking for a piece of equipment that allows one to have a bank of ten modems or RS232 ports that can handle 38.4K synchronous links configured in a 5x5 matrix (see the figure below). In addition, it should be able to be configured remotely (via modem) and configure any particular path (ie: A1 to B5, A2 to B2, ect). Defaults should be used if something happens. This coworker says such equipment exists for asynchronous links and would like one capable of synchronous links. If you know of such a piece of equipment, it'd be more appreciated if you could e-mail the appropriate info (company, address, phone numbers, etc). +++++-A1 +++++-A2 Remote==+++++-A3 +++++-A4 +++++-A5 ||||| BBBBB 12345 Thanks, Daniel J. McCoy Internet : djmccoy@netcom.com or Daniel_J_McCoy@cup.portal.com Portal : Daniel J McCoy BIX: dmccoy ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 12:02:38 EDT From: henderso@cshl.org (Margaret Henderson) Subject: Low vs. High Fiber Optics Please respond to me and not to the list. I do not belong to the list but I need your expert advice. I researched various lists and I felt this list could help me with this problem. Our laboratory is installing a fiber optic network to replace our very old, barely hanging on, network. Right now plans are for a "low density" network but several people recommend a "high density" network. We would like to know, from experience, what is the best to choose. We have over 300 computers on the network so far doing all sorts of scientific applications and there are definite plans for expansion. Please advise so I can back up the articles I have found. I would also appreciate any suggestions for articles in case I have missed something. Thank you very much. Sincerely, Margaret Henderson henderso@cshl.org Head of Library Services Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory 1 Bungtown Road Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724 (516) 367-8493 ------------------------------ From: laborell@ina.fr (Louis LABORELLI) Subject: ADSL Information Needed Date: 8 Apr 1994 15:29:04 GMT Organization: INA, Institut National de l'Audiovisuel, Bry-sur-Marne, France Reply-To: laborell@ina.fr I would like to obtain some information on the ADSL technology for pushing up to 6 Mb/s on standard copper telephone lines. I haven't any pointer now. Thanks in advance, Louis Laborelli Institut National de l'Audiovisuel Departement de la Recherche 94366 Bry sur Marne Cedex, France Tel (33) (1) 49832009 , Fax (33) (1) 49832582 Email : laborell@ina.fr ------------------------------ From: vmatho@mason1.gmu.edu Subject: Please Explain These Terms Date: 8 Apr 1994 12:18:08 GMT Organization: George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA I was wondering if anyone knew what these terms meant: Locator Service Credit Adjustment Auth-Code Verification COS Override Traveling Classmark NAC-per bridge port/min NAC-Reservation/port Translation-per call In Stat Access-per call In Sel Access-per call Off-Net Information These are features to a point to point pricing manual and I don't know what they mean! If anyone could help me I would be most appreciative... Thanks in advance! Victoria ------------------------------ From: gaypanda@pinn.net (Tom Ward) Subject: True Voice Poem Wanted Date: 8 Apr 1994 15:58:43 GMT Organization: Pinnacle Online I am looking for the words of the AT&T TrueVoice poem you hear in the television ads. Does anyone have this information or can you help me aquire it? Thanks in advance!! Tom ------------------------------ From: ELJA inc Subject: Sharing Modems on a Network Organization: Milwaukee Internet Xchange BBS, Milw, WI (414) 241-5469 Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 22:44:53 GMT Does anybody use any of the following products? Articom (Artisoft, Inc) Modem Assist Plus Netware Connect I am trying to use Telix for networks, but need a NASI driver or a INT14 redirector compatible with Novell Netware 3.12. These above products all provide network communication services for programs like TFN and others (Crosstalk, Procomm Plus LAN, Dynacomm, WinComm, etc.) If anybody knows of any pluses or minuses of these products, or use a *different* modem-sharing/redirector package, I would be glad to hear about it. Mike McWhinney Elja, Inc. tel: (414) 357-6771 FAX: (414) 357-9394 INTERNET: elja.inc@mixcom.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 19:16:49 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Notice to AT&T Long Distance Customers From an ad on Page D12 of the April 7 {Washington Post} NOTICE TO AT&T LONG DISTANCE CUSTOMERS On April 1, 1994, AT&T filed tariff revisions with the Federal Communications Commission to increase transport rates on international card and operator handled long distance calls. These rates will become effective on April 15, 1994. These revisions will affect international operator handled and card standard, discount and economy period rates to 21 countries/areas, with an average price increase of 6.4% for a ten-minute call to these countries/areas. The increase in transport prices applies to calls to and from the U.S. Mainland. The affected countries are: Argentina, Columbia, Ecuador, Egypt, Ghana, Greece, Guam, Guatemala, Haiti, Japan, Nicaragua, Panama, Phillipines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, St. Kitts/Nevis, St. Vincent/Grens., Trinidad/Tobago, United Kingdom and Venezuela. In addition, AT&T filed tariff revisions with the Federal Communications Commission on April 4, 1994 to increase its interstate operator assisted sent-paid coin and coin person-to-person per minute rates. These changes will result in an overall increase of 0.79% for these calls. These revisions are scheduled to become effective on April 18, 1994. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 17:31:57 -0700 From: Thomas Tengdin Subject: CO's and Disasters I was at an earthquake disaster training session this week and a statement was made: The telephone company computers will connect some customers at a higher priority that others. Doctors, etc were mentioned. This is the first I have heard of calls being processed in any other way than first to finish dialing, first to be processed (more or less). Is there something in CO Class of Service? or other programming that gives "priority" service to a select class of lines? T3 ------------------------------ From: jcm@frank.nccom.com (John Musselman) Subject: SID Codes For All Cellular Systems Date: 7 Apr 1994 17:40:25 -0700 Organization: North County Communications, San Diego, California I am often curious when I am in other cities what that city's particular SID (System Identifcation) code is while I am there. I had a perfectly good reason for this a month ago ... I lived in Los Angeles for about two months. While I was there I was a PacTel Cellular (B system) customer. PacTel's coverage does not extend past Palm Springs while enroute on I-10 to Phoenix, AZ. LA Cellular covers about 50 or so miles east of Palm Springs to the Arizona border. I encountered something very frustrating. I attempted to place a call on LA Cellular (the A System in Los Angeles) when I had reached the point at which PacTel Cellular could no longer reach. Well, due to the fact that LA Cellular and PacTel are in the same market, they do not have a valid reason I guess to allow roaming on each other's systems. (I guess it would make sense for a phone that might be programmed with the correct NAM and the wrong SID to prevent the user from a month or so of roaming charges). Anyway, I attempted to place various calls -- Customer service and several local calls -- ALL WITHOUT LUCK, BUT the most frustrating part was: ::READ THIS:: 911 was blocked also!!! In a 50 mile part of Eastern California ... if you are a local Pactel L.A. Customer attempting to dial 911 ... you get a REORDER!!!! I spoke with Mike Kennedy (Vice Pres of Cust Svc) at LA Cellular who told me that must have been an error ... however in the process of researching the issue, he stopped answering questions and returning calls to me ... Does this mean that the limitations of LA Cellular (by NPA-NXX) also apply to 911 and their switch cannot make this exception? This problem STILL remains unsolved ... I plan on contacting several members of the media in L.A. to help ... Isn't it written that it is ILLEGAL to do this? (Block 911 Access) Anyways ... when I switched my NAM to 111-111-1111 it worked ... but who knows ... the next case may be limited by SID. Anyone have a list of ALL the valid SID's? jcm@nccom.com John C. Musselman, Systems Engineer ------------------------------ From: harold@futon.SFSU.EDU (Harold Hedelman) Subject: Non-Profit Needs Help Upgrading Phone System Date: 8 Apr 1994 04:20:51 GMT Organization: San Francisco State University Hi! The Center for Electronic Art is a non-profit school, and we have to save money as we upgrade our phone system for both office and Internet uses. We need some advice from experts. We need to have 20 inside lines as follows: > We'll only have six handsets, each accessing four lines; > Intercom and speakerphone on all sets, if possible; > Eleven lines to a computer lab (one line per computer); > Four lines to computer modems; > One line in waiting area for portable computers; > The inside lines might grow from 20 to 40 over the next year. We need eight outside lines as follows: > Four to the handsets; > Four to the computer modems; > The outside lines might grow to eight over the next year. We will be training people to install and configure modems on their PC's and our students will be calling a local extension to access our modem pool. We want these calls to not route through the local phone company, only through our inhouse phone system. We want the lab lines to be blocked from making outside calls. Voice mail would be nice, but we don't need a lot of it, or we could leave it out completely if it helps us save money. Call accounting is not needed. We're willing to use used equipment. We don't know what's out there, and will consider all kinds of options. The ideal would be donated equipment in exchange for tax deductions, with us paying reasonable installation and maintenance fees. If you can help, even with advice only, we'd be very grateful. Thanks, Harold Hedelman President Center for Electronic Art San Francisco Internet: harold@cea.edu Voice: 1 415 956 6500 ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 00:06:12 EST From: Monte Hall Subject: Consumer Market For PCS I am curious as to whether any market research exists as to the viability of a consumer market for PCS services. The need for a PCS offering such as data services as an addition to voice is clearly there for business customers. But it seems that pricing for PCS voice and data services will need to be significantly lower than current cellular services in order for the consumer market to grow rapidly. The growth of a strong consumer market for PCS seems necessary to justify the high cost of the license, equipment, site leases, marketing , and so forth. But how many consumers really wish to carry a personal digital assistant with them at all times? If anyone has an educated opinion on this issue or can point me to some answers, I would appreciate it. James L. (Monte) Hall jhall3@mason1.gmu.edu 703 476-2691 ------------------------------ From: donrm@sr.hp.com (Don Montgomery) Subject: Hacking the Motorola Keypad Light Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 20:58:25 GMT Organization: HP Sonoma County (SRSD/MWTD/MID) I have a Motorola Ultra Classic cellular phone, and was wondering if anyone on this forum knows if there is a way to program this beast so the keypad light stays on instead of timing out after eight seconds or so after last keypress. Motorola customer service says they don't think so, but enterprising designers can't resist putting backdoors into firmware to use up empty PROM space. Firmware on this phone appears to be the same as any of their more modern "Classic" series. Don Montgomery donrm@sr.hp.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 17:17:17 -0400 From: rowley@phoenix.oise.on.ca (Peter Rowley) Subject: Looking For Good Ways to Move 1-20Mb Files Overnight I'm trying to come up with a plan for transmitting about 2-40Mb of data per week from schools to a central site and a limited amount of data (probably under 1Mb) back from the central site. The data will be generated by students and stored on a Mac for transmission. The central site is in Toronto Canada and has a good Internet connection. Initially, there will be around a dozen school sites but there may eventually be hundreds. I'm looking for low cost first and reliability second ... as long as the data makes it (wholly intact) within a day or so, that will probably be fine for now. The main choices appear to be: 1: 14.4K modems with late night phone calls direct to the central site, using either a discount carrier or a 1-800 number; 2: 14.4K modems to local access numbers that lead directly or indirectly to our site, via public data networks and/or online services (e.g. AOL) and/or Internet access (e.g. Well, Portal); 3: SLIP or PPP connections to the Internet; Choice 3 will certainly be much more expensive, maybe an order of magnitude I believe, but would offer a lot of other advantages of course. I'm really not sure which of 1 and 2 would be better; any words of wisdom? ISDN doesn't seem like it would be competitive with 14.4K modems at this point, but I could be convinced otherwise. X.25 could be part of solution 2. As for the details of any scheme, I will be contacting suppliers for recent figures; are there particular questions I should be sure to ask? Are there organizations that publish up-to-date comparative reports of services for moving data around? We'd be willing to pay several hundred dollars for a comprehensive comparative report. Peter Rowley, OISE, Toronto rowley@phoenix.oise.on.ca ------------------------------ From: rsb9883@zeus.tamu.edu (BOSWELL, RICHARD S) Subject: Information Wanted on PABX/PBX/Centrex Date: 8 Apr 1994 05:25:00 CDT Organization: Texas A&M University OpenVMScluster I am writing a term paper on PBX/PABX/Centrex respective advantages/ disadvantages. I have found several sources in trade/technical periodicals but find myself short of the type of information I am searching for. If you have any old posts on the subject or know where I can find that type of information I would greatly appreciate your help. Yours ect., Sid Boswell student at Texas A&M University ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 08 Apr 1994 20:01:57 EDT From: hsyversen@BIX.com Subject: Information Wanted on Long-Distance Pricing Packages I am doing a comparative study on the packaging of long distance services for both business and residential subscribers. I am interested in price points and unique selling benefits, package naming, hidden disadvantages. If anyone else is interested I will be happy to e-mail compiled information or post it here if applicable. Please respond via e-mail to hsyversen@bix.com. Thanks for any assistance. Hjalmar Syversen hsyversen@bix.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 19:24:52 -0400 From: ahafeez@mason1.gmu.edu (Abnan Hafeez) Subject: Need Technical Information on CPDP. Can somebody provide me some information on CPDP? ------------------------------ From: stans@panix.com (Stan Schwartz) Subject: NANP: Numbering Scheme? Date: 8 Apr 1994 01:13:25 -0400 Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and Unix, NYC Is there any rhyme or reason with which the new area codes are being assigned? (Those like 334 in Alabama). Wouldn't it make sense to at least relate them back to the locality by tying them into the letters on the keypad? (692, for example for NYC, New York City). Just a thought ... Stan [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: And not a bad idea, actually. Some large national private networks do that such as Unitel, the United Airlines telephone network which covers the USA and anywhere United Airlines goes to. From their network for example, 732-xxxx reaches extension xxxx at the SEAttle airport. 673 is ORD, which means O'Hare, here in Chicago, and so forth. Makes sense to me. PAT] ------------------------------ From: dasher@netcom.com (Anton Sherwood) Subject: France's Departments Organization: Bureau of Making Sure You Eat Your Vegetables Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 05:42:27 GMT In article , Jack Hamilton wrote: > If I were in charge of France Telecom, I'd probably use the department > number plus a third digit for overlays and very large departments. Good idea! > (A department is roughly equivalent to a state or province in North > America. Postal codes start with the department number.) More like a county, I'd say, both in size and in degree of independence. Anton Sherwood *\\* +1 415 267 0685 *\\* DASher@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: Lindy Williams Subject: 555-1212 question Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 12:03:24 GMT I subscribe to AT&T long distance. I called 800/555-1212 to get a firm's 800 number and was told they didn't have one. Later on it talking to the firm, they gave me their 800 number. I told them that I had tried to get it from the phone company and couldn't. They asked me who was my long distance company and proceded to tell me they were with Sprint and an AT&T information operator wouldn't have their 800 number. Is this correct? Lindy Williams willi087@maroon.tc.umn.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yes and no. 800-555-1212 is not run by AT&T. It is managed on a day to day basis by Southwestern Bell Telephone Company under a contract with (I think) Bellcore. It is physically lo- cated in St. Louis, or maybe East St. Louis, IL ... down there someplace. Anyone with an 800 number is entitled to be listed with 800-555-1212. Unlike regular phone numbers where the default is to be listed and non-pub numbers having an additional fee, with 800 the opposite is true. With 800, non-pub listings are free and listings with 555-1212 cost money -- several dollars per month in fact. 555-1212 should not be con- fused with the various paper directories published by carriers. AT&T lists only their own 800 subscribers in their directory; ditto Sprint has an 800 directory I think (not certain) as does MCI. In whatever resources the your carrier has of its own, 800 numbers will probably be listed at no charge (or for some fee) as a routine thing. But if you wish to have your 800 number listed in the 555-1212 database, then your carrier -- whoever that might be -- has to submit it to the database and pay the monthly fee which is then in turn billed to you. Not many people bother with it where 'personal 800 numbers' are concerned; no one wants to bother getting a bunch of curiosity seekers calling them asking about their number -- yes, people do that, they go through the AT&T paper directory for example and call at random just to snoop around -- and besides, my 800 number as an example costs me $4-5 per month; the carrier said a listing with 800-555-1212 would cost me another $12 per month -- twice the cost of the number itself! So I imagine the firm you are dealing with might have been hedging a little in what they told you. They probably did not want the additional expense of a listing and the large number of idle time- and money-wasting calls that come with it. Your choice of long distance carrier or the firm's choice of 800 service provider has nothing to do with what you get when you call 800-555-1212. PAT] ------------------------------ From: cplonski@crow.csrv.uidaho.edu (Chris Plonski) Subject: Unshielded Twisted Pair in Conduit? Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 23:49:16 GMT Organization: University of Idaho Media Center I have heard that if you run Category 5 UTP in EMT conduit that it becomes shielded and therefore changes its bandwidth specifications. Is there any research/papers/personal experience to confirm or deny these allegations? We are starting to put alot of cat 5 cable into our campus and I need to know if this will limit running at 100Mb/s in the future. Please post or E-mail me with any info. Thanks, Chris Plonski ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 08 Apr 94 09:52:28 EDT From: mcharry@cwc.com (McHarry) Subject: Re: AT&T Cellular Privacy System David Arneke wrote regarding the AT&T Cellular Privacy System: > This is the strongest scrambling algorithm available > for handheld, transportable and mobile cellular subscriber equipment. This appears somewhat disingenuous -- there are cellular STU-IIIs available. The commercial versions use DES encryption. Granted, you need units at both ends of the link. I have only seen the units as mobiles and transportables. They are likely too large to build as handhelds. Nevertheless, to render Arneke's claim true, either one has to hold that encryption is different from scrambling, or to strongly construe the 'and' clause to take advantage of the lack of DES handhelds. ------------------------------ From: dave@westmark.com (Dave Levenson) Subject: Re: Please Explain the Term 'Steaming Terminal' Reply-To: dave@westmark.com Organization: Westmark, Inc. Date: Fri, 08 Apr 1994 02:49:05 GMT wjhalv1@pacbell.com writes: > 2. In a LAN: > Say your ethernet machine has a problem -- maybe it continually > transmits ICMP packets because its PING code is buggy -- so it just > "babbles databits" onto the LAN. How does Ethernet deal with this by > itself? Ultimately somebody has to figure out which machine is > causing the problem and turn the machine off. Some ethernet equipment uses twisted pair and an active hub. This equipment, called 10BaseT, connects an individual drop line between the hub and each network node. Some hubs are capable of detecting this fault, and disabling the defective node without interrupting communications between other nodes. Our AT&T StarLAN hubs have a 'jabber alarm' LED associated with each tap, to indicate that the tap has been disabled in this manner. Dave Levenson Internet: dave@westmark.com Westmark, Inc. UUCP: {uunet | rutgers | att}!westmark!dave Stirling, NJ, USA Voice: 908 647 0900 Fax: 908 647 6857 ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 07:12:00 PDT From: grs@claircom.com (Gregg Siegfried) Subject: Re: International Free Numbers Organization: Claircom Communications, L.P. In article was written: > What do you do when you want to call Britain from America (or vice > versa) and all you have is an 800 number? I'd happily pay the toll, > but last time I tried it the call was simply refused. I'm not sure about the Britain from America case, but to call a US 800 number from the UK, one can simply use USA direct, 0800-89-0011. This probably requires an AT&T calling card. Collect calling is also available, but I'm not sure whether that works to 800 numbers. I'm headed to Britain on Sunday ... I'll try a collect call to our 800 number while I'm there. Gregg Siegfried grs@claircom.com ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 10:56:19 -0500 From: Jonathan Subject: Calling 911; Reporting Disabled Vehicles I read in the TELECOM Digest: > In Seattle WA, the 911 dispatchers have said that they often receive > up to 30 calls from cellular phone users when an accident occurs on a > major highway. This results in a massive overload of the 911 system. > The result is that US West Cellular announced last winter that they > would begin charging 50 cents for each 911 call, in addition to > airtime charges, to discourage overuse of the system and to help fund > additional 911 dispatchers to answer the phone. Interesting. I thought that sometimes these accidents go unreported. In the future maybe I will ignore major accidents. Actually you have made a good argument for two things: (1) Increase the total number of dispatchers, 911 trunks, etc. drastically and (2) fund this partly by charging for calls to 911 from cellular telephones. If you can afford a cellular telephone then you can afford to pay $10 for each 911 call. I also read: > Your state may wish that you report motorists with disabled vehicles > along freeways. In general: I report disabled vehicles along regular roads but not along freeways. The rationale for this is that there are too many disabled vehicles along freeways, and problems on regular roads are less likely to already have been reported. Also, the problem with disabled vehicles is that you don't know what actually is happening. A vehicle sitting by the side of the road may be: illegally parked; disabled because of mechanical failure; disabled because of driver illness; stopped so that the driver can sleep; stopped because the driver is lost; etc. In general, along freeways I would report it to a nearby state police barracks if the driver appears to be ill (which often happens when the driver is merely sleeping!) or if there appears to be some other type of problem (smoke coming from under the hood) or if the driver is actively trying to get help or leaning on the horn, flashing headlights, etc. If there are any police from Maryland reading this, then please advise me on the correct way to deal with various problems that occur along highways. Jonathan D. Loo ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #172 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa01764; 8 Apr 94 20:12 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA03225; Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:55:17 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA03216; Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:55:15 CDT Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:55:15 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404081955.AA03216@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #173 TELECOM Digest Fri, 8 Apr 94 14:55:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 173 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson International Conference on Information Security IFIP SEC'94 (Willis Ware) Re: EDI Electronic Data Interchange (m19249@mwvm.mitre.org) Re: 900 and Other Premium Numbers (Tony Harminc) Contacting the FCC Using Email (Hans-Gabriel Ridder) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: Tenth International Conference on Information Security IFIP SEC'94 Reply-To: willis@rand.org Date: Fri, 08 Apr 94 11:31:57 PDT From: "Willis H. Ware" The Tenth International Conference on Information Security - IFIP SEC'94 Organized by Technical Committee 11 of the International Federation for Information Processing, IFIP/TC 11 - in cooperation with the Special Interest Group on Information Security of the Dutch Computer Society - and hosted by the Caribbean Computer Society. I F I P S E C ' 9 4 M A Y 2 3 - 2 7 , 1 9 9 4 I T C P I S C A D E R A B A Y C U R A C A O D U T C H C A R I B B E A N I N T E R N A T I O N A L P R O G R A M ** Five days, multiple parallel tracks, over sixty refereed unique presentations, specially invited speakers, dedicated tutorials workshops, working group sessions, lively panel discussions, and much, much more...... Dynamic Views on Information Security in Progress ABOUT IFIP'S TECHNICAL COMMITTEE 11 The International Federation for Information Processing was established in 1960 under sponsorship of UNESCO. In 1984 the Technical Committee for Security and Protection in Information Processing Systems, Technical Committee 11, came into existence. Its aim is to increase the reliabil-ity and general confidence in information processing, as well as to act as a forum for security managers and others professionally active in the field of information processing security. Its scope encompasses the establishment of a frame of reference for security common to organizations, professionals and the public; and the promotion of security and protection as essential parts of information processing systems. Eight working groups: Information Security Management, Small Systems Security, Database Security, Network Security, Systems Integrity and Control, Security Legislation, Information Security Education and IT Related Crime Investigations, all chaired by seasoned international experts, cover a major part of the actual TC 11 workload. ABOUT THE TENTH INTERNATIONAL INFORMATION SECURITY CONFERENCE This event is the Tenth in a series of conferences on information security. Something to celebrate. The organizers have compiled a truly exceptional, unique, and especially upgraded conference in a setting suitable for celebrating its Tenth birthday. Over 75 sessions will cover just about all aspects of information security, on a senior and advanced level. The formal language of SEC'94 is English. The proceedings are published by Elsevier North Holland in its acclaimed series. There are evidently some astounding surprises within SEC'94. As key note's SEC'94 will feature major players. Ten invited speakers, doubt-less seasoned seniors in their field, will contribute with their vision of the future. Ranging from the legislative aspects of data privacy, to the international impact of the Clipper chip, and the dimensions of new cryptographic standards and applications. Global policy making and breaking in respect of the international harmonization efforts of information technology security evaluation criteria, and other most enticing issues are advocated during the various invited lectures. Within the framework of this conference a series of special lectures are built in, dedicated to one most important aspect. SEC'94 includes a UNIX system security workshop and a cryptology tutorial. Special sessions are devoted to information security in developing nations, and information security in the banking and financial industry. Two major full day mini conferences "IT Security Evaluation Criteria" and "Open Systems Network Security" are included in the program as well. SEC'94 offers a panel discussion of the editors of Elseviers Journal Computers and Security, IFIP TC 11's formal journal. ABOUT YOU Each of the past ten years you have shown IFIP and TC 11 in particular, your commitment to information security by attending the IFIP SEC conferences. The visitors and delegates to IFIP SEC are a broad audi-ence, from everywhere: The Pacific Rim, Europe, Africa, the North and Latin America's and the Far East. The level of authority/positions is as usual: within practical, management, legal and technical level, the delegate to IFIP SEC is considered the top grade. Anyone - directly and indirectly - involved and/or interested in information security, wherever she/or he may live, is IFIP SEC's audience. You certainly may not miss SEC'94! SOMETHING EXTRA The organizers wanted to do something extra for this Tenth event. Besides compiling a unique conference program, its length was extended to FIVE days, extra tracks are added, the delegate admission is reduced, special student admission rate are available, Worldwide rebated air travel and discounted hotel accommodation can be obtained, and those not yet being a member of the World's largest and most influential computer society are being offered a free of charge membership for 1994! And that's not all! Yet, some surprises are saved for the event itself. IFIP TC 11's SEC'94 welcomes you to Curacao, BONBINI ! A W A R D S Technical Committee 11 of IFIP presents during its 10th event two prestigeous awards. The Kristian Beckman Award and the Best Paper Award. The Kristian Beckman Award has been established by IFIP TC 11 to com-memorate the first chairman of the committee, Kristian Beckman from Sweden, who was also responsible for promoting its founding in 1983/84. This award is granted annually to a successful nominee and is presented at the annual IFIP Security Conference. The objective of the award is to publicly recognize an individual - not a group or organization - who has significantly contributed to the development of information security, especially achievements with an international perspective. To celebrate the tenth annual conference the organizers have decided also to present a Best Paper Award. The award will be presented to the individual with the most significant paper at SEC'94. The audience itself will be selecting this presentation/individual. P R O G R A M INVITED PRESENTATIONS Computer based cryptanalysis: man versus machine approach by Dr. N. Balasubramanian, former director of the Joint Cipher Bureau/Crypto- graphic Services of the Department of Defense of the Government of India. Establishing a CERT: Computer Emergency Response Team by Kenneth A. van Wyk, manager Assist team, Defense Information Security Agency of the Department of Defense, United States Privacy aspects of data travelling along the new 'highway' by Wayne Madsen, scientist Computer Science Corp., United States. Issues in designing and implementing a practical enterprise security architecture by Ross Paul, manager information security, the Worldbank, United States. (key note's and other invited speakers to be announced by special bulletin) IFIP TC 11 position paper in discussion: Security Evaluation Criteria by H. Schoone, Netherlands. Special TC 11 Working group sessions: 11.8 Computer Security Education, chair: Em. Prof. Dr. Harold Highland 11.1 IT Security Management, chair: Prof. S.H. von Solms (S. Africa) 11.5 System Integrity and Control, chair: William List (UK) Special Appearance: Information Warfare: waging and winning conflict in cyberspace by Winn Schwartau (US) Panel discussion: Panel discussion of the editors of Elseviers Journal Computers and Security chaired by John Meyer, Elsevier (UK), editor. Extended UNIX tutorial: Unix meets Novell Netware by Kevin H. Brady, Unix Systems Lab. (US). Extended virus tutorial: Technologically enabled crime: shifting paradigms for the year 2000 by Sara Gordon (US). Viruses: What can we really do? by Prof. Henry Wolfe (New Zealand). Future trends in virus writing by Vesselin V. Bontchev (Bulgaria/Germany). Viral Tidings by A. Padgett Peterson (US). Integrity checking for anti viral purposes by Yisrael Radai (Israel). Special appearance: *title to be announced* Prof. Eugene Spafford (US). REFEREED PRESENTATIONS Operations Security: the real solution to the problem - A. Don Temple (US). Security in virtual reality: virtual security - Amund Hunstad (Sweden). Prohibiting the exchange attack calls for hardware signature - Prof. Reinhard Posch/Wolfgang Mayerwieser (Austria). Towards secure open systems - Dr. Paul Overbeek (Netherlands). A security officer's workbench - Prof. Dennis Longley/Lam For Kwok (Australia/Hong Kong). An introduction to Citadel: a secure crypto co-processor for workstations - Dr. Elaine Palmer (US) On the calculation and its proof data for PI 10-9th - Shengli Cheng et al (P.R. of China). Securenet: a network oriented intelligent intrusion prevention and detection system - Assoc. Prof. Dimitris Gritzalis et al (Greece). A methodology for the design of security plans - Drs. Fred de Koning (Netherlands). An open architecture for security functions in workstations - Stefan Santesson (Sweden). Security systems based on exponentiation primitives, TESS - Prof. Thomas Beth (Germany). The structure and functioning of the COST privacy enhanced mail system - Prof. Sead Muftic, Nada Kapidzic, Alan Davidson (Sweden). The need for a new approach to information security - Dr. Jean Hitchings (UK). A Practical database encryption system - Prof. C. Chang/ Prof. D. Buehrer (Taiwan, ROC). Security analysis and strategy of computer networks - Jie Feng et al (P.R.o.China). Information Security: legal threats and opportunities - Dr. Ian Lloyd (Scotland). Secure communication in LAN's using a hybrid encryption scheme - Prof. Mahmoud El-Hadidi, Dr. Nadia Hegazi, Heba Aslan (Egypt). Secure Network Management - Bruno Studer (Switzerland). Ramex: a prototype expert system for computer security risk analysis and management - Prof. Peter Jarratt, Muninder Kailay (UK). The need for decentralization and privacy in mobile communications networks - D.I. Frank Stoll (Germany). Is lack of quality software a password to information security problems ? - Dr. Peter Fillery, Nicholas Chantler (Western Australia). Smart: Structured, multi-dimensional approach to risk taking for operational information systems - Ing. Paul van Dam, et al. (Netherlands). IT Audit: the scope, relevance and the impact in developing countries - Dr. K. Subramanian (India). Program structure for secure information flow - Dr. Jingsha He (US) Security, authentication and policy management in open distributed systems - Ralf Hauser, Stefano Zatti (Switzerland/Italy). A cost model for managing information security hazards - Love Ekenberg, Subhash Oberoi, Istvan Orci (Sweden). Corporate computer crime management: a research perspective - Dr. James Backhouse (UK). A high level security policy for health care establishments - Prof. Sokratis Katsikas, Ass. Prof. Dimitris Gritzalis, et al (Greece). Moss: a model for open system security - Prof. S.H. von Solms, Dr. P van Zyl, Dr. M. Olivier (South Africa). The risk-based information system design paradigm - Dr. Sharon Fletcher (US) Evaluation of policies, state of the art and future research direc-tions in database security - Dr. Guenther Pernul, Dr. A.M. Tjoa (Austria). Exploring minimal ban logic proofs of authentication protocols - Anish Maturia, et al (Australia). Security concepts for corporate networks - Prof. Rolf Oppliger, Prof. Dieter Hogrefe (Switzerland). The security process - Jeanette Ohlsson (Sweden). On the security of lucas function - Dr. C.S. Laih (Taiwan RoC). Security considerations of content and context based access controls - Donald Marks, Leonard Binns, Peter Sell, John Campbell (US). Anonymous and verifiable databases: towards a practical solution - Prof. Jennifer Seberry, Dr. Yuliang Zheng, Thomas Hardjono (Australia). A decentralized approach for authorization - Prof. Waltraud Gerhardt, Burkhard Lau (Netherlands). Applying security criteria to a distributed database example - Dr. Marshall Abrams, Michael Joyce (US). A comparison of international information security standards based on documentary micro-analysis - Prof. William Caelli, Em. Prof. John Carroll (Australia/Canada). Security in EDI between bank and its client - Pauli Vahtera, Heli Salmi (Finland). Secure information exchange in organizations - D.I. Ralph Holbein (Switzerland). A framework for information system security management - Helen James, Patrick Forde (Australia). The security of computer system management - Xia Ling et al (P.R.o.China). Development of security policies - Jon Olnes (Norway). Factors affecting the decision to report occurances of computer abuse - John Palmer (Western Australia). Secure manageable remote access for network and mobile users in an open on-line transaction processing environment - Dr. James Clark (Singapore). Session lay-out: Monday May 23: plenary only Tuesday May 24 - Thursday May 26: four parallel tracks Friday May 25: plenary only Registration: Sunday afternoon May 22 at the conference venue Monday morning May 23 at the conference venue Terms and conditions: The conference registration/admission fee amounts US $1,295 for regular registrations per individual. However, if you are a member of a national computer society you may be eligible for a discount. Late charges and cancellations: Registration received after May 1, 1994 are charged with an extra late charge of 10%. Substitutions may be made at any time, though please advise us of a change of name. If you find it necessary to cancel the place, please telephone the conference office immediately and ask for a cancellation number. Confirm in writing quoting the cancellation number. Provided written notice is received by May 1, 1994, a full refund will be given less a 15% administration charge. It is regretted that cancellations received after May 1, 1994 are liable for the full registration fee. Payment: the registration fees are immediately due upon registration, and all cheques should be made payable to the High Tech Port Curacao Foundation, accompanying the signed registration form. Alternatively registrations by fax and electronic mail are accepted, provided the payment for the full amount in US dollars is released by wire transfer in favor of the High Tech Port Curacao Foundation within one week after the registration. Fax and/or email registrations must be completed before May 1, 1994. If payment is not received within stated period the registration is automatically cancelled and voided. Forms not signed or correctly filled in are not valid registrations. Conference registration fees should be paid in US dollars only, to prevent excessive exchange charges. It is possible to pay by credit card, however a surcharge of 25% is levied due to local monetary restrictions and policies. Immediately after registration you will receive a confirmation by fax or email. Included in the conference fee is the admittance to all sessions of all tracks of the conference, the lunches during Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday; coffee and tea during the intermissions, a welcome cocktail at your hotel, one admission ticket per delegate to the formal conference banquet, and a copy of the handout of the conference proceedings. Registrations made after May 1, 1994 are on space available basis only. If you apply for a discount the registration form and payment must be received before May 1, 1994. All other services ordered are separately billed, payable upon receipt of the respective order confirmation. --------------------- Curacao is a tourist destination in high demand. We advise you to make your flight and hotel accommodation reservations well in advance !!! FAX THE FORM BELOW TO: IFIP SEC'94 SECRETARIAT +599 9652828 OR AIRMAIL TO: IFIP SEC'94 SECRETARIAT POSTOFFICE BOX 4 0 6 6 WILLEMSTAD - CURACAO NETHERLANDS ANTILLES CARIBBEAN OR EMAIL TO: < TC11@IAIK.TU-GRAZ.AC.AT > IFIP TC 11 SEC'94 CONFERENCE REGISTRATION (one form per individual, copy for multiple registrations) Please register the following individual for IFIP SEC'94: Surname: First name: Title: Organization: Job title: Mail address: Post/zip code: Country: Telephone: Telefax: Email: If you are a member of a national computer society, use this priority registration by fax or email, and wiretransfer the applicable amount, you are entitled to a rebated admission rate. Instead of US $ 1,295, you pay only US $ 1,165. If you send this by fax to the Conference secretariat, a signature is necessary, here: I understand and agree to abide by the conditions as set out in the conference brochure, also printed elsewhere in this document. Date: If you send this form by email, a signature is not necessary. In that case the date of receipt of the wiretransfer of the applicable amount is the date of registration. CONFERENCE PAYMENT I will remit by wiretransfer US $ _________ in favor of the High Tech Port Curacao Foundation, bank account number 11.592652.5570.004 with CITco Bank NV, Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, immediately. Wiretransfer reference: IFIP SEC'94 ABA nr. of the CITco Bank (this is not the account number, but the banks' correspondents number): 021004823. US corresponding bank: Republic National Bank, New York. Upon receipt of the applicable amount by the High Tech Port Curacao Foundation I will receive within 24 hours by fax a confirmation and an invoice marked "fees paid". ADDITIONAL I apply for the 1994 free of charge membership of the ACM (valid only if you are not a member, yet) Mark yes > > < I have a special request: (insert your request here) HOTEL INFORMATION The Curacao Caribbean Hotel (tel: +599-9625000 fax: 599-9625846) as well as the Sonesta Hotel (tel: +599-9368800 fax: +599-9627502, in the US call tollfree 1.800.477.4556) are beach front hotels at walking distance of the conference center. Special roomrates start at US $ 112 per single room/night, including tax, services, full breakfast. Roomrates based on double, triple and quad are available. Various other hotels on request. AIR TRANSPORT There are daily non-stop flights from Miami operated by American Airlines, daily non-stop wide body flights from Amsterdam (Netherlands) operated by KLM, daily non-stop flights from Marquetia Aeropuerto Inter-nacional de Caracas (Venezuela), Santa Fe de Bogota (Colombia), and various Caribbean islands, all operated by regional carriers. Special promotional fares are by KLM, TAP Air Portugal, and American Airlines. Contact your travel agency for more information. * * * Curacao is tropical. Year-round an average temp. of 90 F/35 C. A constant tradewind makes it very pleasant. You do not need a jacket or coat! Make your flight and hotel reservation as soon as possible !!! * * * Come enjoy Dutch Caribbean hospitality soon ! SEC'94 also encompasses a great after hours social program, typical Caribbean style. ORGANIZING CHAIR: Dr. F. Bertil Fortrie (chairman SEC'94) ------------------------------ From: M19249@mwvm.mitre.org Subject: Re: EDI Electronic Data Interchange Date: Fri, 08 Apr 94 11:28:09 EDT Organization: The MITRE Corporation, McLean VA 22102 In article westmanj@scico1.chchp.ac.nz (Joakim Westman) writes: > I'm wondering if somebody knows what the concept of EDI -- Electronic > Data Interchange is al about. I've been trying to get information > about this, I believe quite new topic at least in NZ, with no luck. > Therfore I turn to you as a new news user. Think of all the possible business forms you can imagine. Now take the pieces of each on and break them apart. eg. name and address, shipping location, invoice info, bill of lading info, credit adjustment etc. Call each identifiable form a transaction set; call the reusable chunks segments; call the small pieces that make up segments data elements. Now agree on common definitions of the transaction sets, segments, and data elements and put them electronic format. That's what ANSI X12 in the US has done, similarly outside the US the standards are UN/EDIFACT. Since we now have electronic standards for business forms why don't I as a buyer use a clearinghouse to accept bids for products I want to retail from potential manufacturers. This is what many large retailers do. But why stop there, telephone bills, service order information, medical info., shipping info, ... can all adapt to or become new transaction sets. As for source info, try EDI World magazine, 2021 Coolidge St., Hollywood FL, 33020-2012, (305)925-5900. Several books are also available about EDI, two are: Electronic Data Interchange by Paul Kimberly, McGraw Hill, 1991 and EDI, A Total Management Guide, 2nd Ed, by Margaret Emmelhainz, Van Nostrand- Reinhold, 1993. As for the EDI standards, the Data Interchange Standards Assn, Alexandria VA, (703)548-7005 can get you the latest ANSI published standards. ANSI and EDIFACT EDI standards will converge on EDIFACT later in this decade according to current agreements. For us telecom types, there are industry standards bodies, ECSA/TBWG, that support EDI research and standards creation. DW ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 08 Apr 94 11:52:32 EDT From: Tony Harminc Subject: Re: 900 and Other Premium Numbers msb@sq.sq.com (Mark Brader) wrote: > Around here (Toronto) we have 900 and 976 numbers also, but it is the > 976's for which there are numerous late night advertisements featuring > scantily clad women. > As just about everyone reading this knows, in much (but not all) of > the US and Canada, long-distance numbers must be dialed differently > from local ones, so that you always know when you're dialing a toll > call. Such a rule applies here. And when someone dials a 976 number > here, *they must dial it as if it was long distance within their area > code*. There are doubtless several layers of politics involved here. Some years ago Bell Canada applied to the CRTC to drop 976- service entirely. The service providers objected strongly, and Bell was ordered to continue it. But shortly thereafter, toll dialing within NPA 416 went from 1 + seven to 1 + ten, and, doubtless to their satisfaction, Bell was able to make 976- numbers that much harder to dial and that much harder to advertise consistently. I notice that the late-night/scantily-clad-women ads often still list the numbers as 1 976-xxxx, and often speak them as 'one nine seven six x x x x', presumably to discourage callers from thinking about the 1 at the front. But then callers will get the recording telling them they must dial 1 plus the area code. It's not clear if the advertisers are being sneaky, or are just as stupid as those US companies who list their US-only 800 numbers in foreign publications. Tony Harminc ------------------------------ From: ridder@zowie.zso.dec.com (Hans) Subject: Contacting the FCC Using Email Date: 8 Apr 1994 16:36:36 GMT Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation - DECwest Engineering In article izzy@netaxs.com (Michael Israeli) writes: > Where can one write or e-mail to state an opinion on this to? > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I suppose one can now contact the FCC > via their new online thing with the net which we have been hearing > about. Does anyone know if the mail can go both directions on that > or if pen and paper still required? :) PAT] Some of the documents list an e-mail address at the end, some do not (the one posted did not have one, just telephone a number.) I suppose if you send something, you might get a reply. As far as sending your comments to the FCC via e-mail, note the following (from ftp.fcc.gov:/pub/Public_Notices/Miscellaneous/pnmc4001.txt): APPLICATION OF EX PARTE RULES TO INTERNET E-MAIL The Commission's new computer system now affords members of the public access to decision-making personnel through delivery of Internet E-Mail. The purpose of this public notice is to remind the public that the ex parte rules (47 C.F.R. 1.1200 et seq.) that apply to written presentations to any Commission decision- making personnel also apply to Internet E-Mail presentations. In restricted proceedings (e.g., proceedings involving mutually exclusive applications, a formal complaint, or a formally opposed application), oral and written ex parte presentations are generally prohibited. See 47 C.F.R. 1.1208. Therefore, as with other written presentations, Internet E-Mail presentations to Commission decision-makers in restricted proceedings are prohibited unless they are served on all parties to the proceeding. In non-restricted proceedings (e.g., most informal rulemakings after issuance of a notice of proposed rulemaking), ex parte presentations are permissible (except during the Sunshine Period) but must be disclosed. See 47 C.F.R. 1.1206. Therefore, as with other written presentations, if an Internet E-Mail ex parte presentation in a non-restricted proceeding is transmitted to any decision-making personnel, two hard copies of that presentation should be provided to the Secretary. The presentation (as well as any transmittal letter) should indicate clearly on its face the docket number of the particular proceeding(s) to which it relates and the fact that two copies of it have been submitted to the Secretary. The presentation should be labeled or captioned as an ex parte presentation. See 47 C.F.R. 1.1206(a)(1). During the Sunshine Period (the period which commences when an item is placed on the Sunshine Agenda and ends when the item is released), unless specifically exempted, all presentations concerning an item on the Sunshine Agenda, ex parte or not, are prohibited. See 47 C.F.R. 1.1203. This prohibition applies whether the proceeding is restricted, non-restricted, or is exempt under the ex parte rules. Therefore, unless an exemption specifically applies (e.g., a presentation specifically requested by the Commission or staff or a presentation from Congress or another Federal Government agency, see 47 C.F.R. 1.1203(b)&(c)), no Internet E-Mail presentations should be transmitted during the Sunshine Period to decision-making personnel. See 47 C.F.R. 1.1203. Action by the General Counsel. For further information, contact Steve Bailey (202) 254-6530. ------------------ Hans-Gabriel Ridder DECwest Engineering, Bellevue, Washington, USA ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #173 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa20883; 17 Apr 94 10:29 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA11981; Sun, 17 Apr 94 07:38:24 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA11972; Sun, 17 Apr 94 07:38:22 CDT Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 07:38:22 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404171238.AA11972@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #174 TELECOM Digest Sun, 17 Apr 94 07:38:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 174 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Bell Canada and CEP Modify Reduced Work Week Plans (Dave Sellers) Pac Tel / Air Touch Communications (Larry Jones) How Can FAX Use T1 But Keep POTS Number? (Barton F. Bruce) Ottawa Citizen Op-ed on Canadian Infobahn (Dale Wharton) SNET <-> BAMS Auto Call Delivery (Douglas Reuben) Many Hassles Here Last Week (TELECOM Moderator) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 08:46:26 EDT From: sellers@on.bell.ca (Dave Sellers) Subject: Bell Canada and CEP Modify Reduced Work Week Plans (MONTREAL, April 14, 1994) -- Bell Canada and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers' Union of Canada (CEP) agreed this week to modify the original plans for 13 000 Craft and Services employees, which involved a reduction of work hours (9 hours per day, 4 days a week) as well as five unpaid days off in 1994. When we finalized these plans with the union last year, the intent was to help Bell reduce payroll expenses, while still meeting our service obligation, said Richard French, Bell's Vice-President of Corporate Development. Once in place, we found the arrangements didn't give us the flexibility to keep up with increased demand in some areas and assure the quality of service customers expect. As a result, the company and union have agreed to offer additional options which permit employees to return voluntarily to a regular 5-day week (38 hours) or to continue with a 4-day schedule (36 hours) if they prefer. The five unpaid days off provided for in the original agreement are now optional. We're confident this will give us the flexibility to satisfy demand and manage the workload while still controlling expenses. Obviously, there will be operating costs associated with these changes, but we expect the impact to be fairly modest, French said. He added that the rest of the measures Bell has implemented to cut expenses this year are still in place and noted that Bell's workforce has been reduced by about 2,000 since January through retirements and termination incentives. Bell Canada, the largest Canadian telecommunications operating company, markets a full range of state-of-the-art products and services to more than seven million business and residence customers in Ontario and Quebec. Bell Canada is a member of Stentor -- an alliance of Canada's major telecommunications companies. For further information, please contact : Francine Giguere Patricia Broden Public Affairs Public Affairs (514) 870-3995 (Bus.) (514) 870-7398 (Bus.) (514) 923-2141 (Res.) (514) 933-1581 (Res.) ------------------------------ From: larry.jones@sdrc.com (Larry Jones) Subject: Pac Tel / Air Touch Communications Date: 16 Apr 94 14:49:41 GMT Organization: SDRC Engineering Services Recently, Pacific Telesis (by the way, is that pronounced TEL-uh-sis or tuh-LEE-sus?) split off its cellular business as a new company, Air Touch Communications, Inc. Pac Tel shareowners were given ATI shares so that their total combined price was the same as Pac Tel was the day before the spin off was completed. Small Pac Tel shareholders are being given the opportunity to rearrange their holdings with a very small commission: they can exchange all of their ATI shares for Pac Tel shares, exchange all of their Pac Tel shares for ATI shares, or sell either or both sets of shares for cash. My dad owns some Pac Tel shares by virtue of having been an AT&T employee/shareholder before the breakup and he's wondering what to do. I'm not necessarily asking for investment advice, but I'd be interested in any opinions about the quality of products and services provided by Pac Tel and ATI. Larry Jones, SDRC, 2000 Eastman Dr., Milford, OH 45150-2789 513-576-2070 larry.jones@sdrc.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 18:17:15 EDT From: Barton.Bruce@camb.com Subject: How Can FAX Use T1 But Keep POTS Number? Organization: Digital Equipment Computer Users Society An extremely well publicized FAX number that is on a POTS phone line now is in an office that has a T1 to an IXC. There is a LOT of long distance FAXing, and it would be very nice to put this machine on the PBX, but there are some problems and I am looking for creative solutions. It is not acceptable to change the FAX's phone number. Nor is it possible to add a second FAX machine. If the current phone line were to be fed through the PBX (a Mitel SX200D running G1005) to always ring that extension, everything would be ok with one exception. Outgoing LD calls would go on the T1. Outgoing local calls could easily be routed to the FAX's own line thereby busying it. But when a LD call is going out, the FAX phone number would simply ring and ring which WILL prompt callers to call the main number and complain about the machine apparently being broken or out of paper. - NOT acceptable. If we could get telco to forward FREE this FAX number to a DID station number we actually had the FAX on, or would let it jump hunt to such a DID number, I could then busy the FAX number *PERMANENTLY* and calls would then ring in on the DID line only and would get BUSY when appropriate. The bummer here is 1) getting telco to do this ever, and 2) the CO switch the FAX is on is an old 1A and the DID trunks are on the 5E both in the Cambridge Ware St. CO. Hunting between them seems impossible. Is there any clever trick anyone can think of? ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 07:25:56 EDT Reply-To: Canadian Issues Forum From: Dale Wharton Subject: Ottawa Citizen Op-ed on Canadian Infobahn Greetings from Infobahn Canada ****************************** The following article appeared in Friday's (April 8) Ottawa Citizen. INFORMATION RIGHTS WEEK OPENING THE DOOR FOR THE PUBLIC Canada is beginning the development of its much touted electronic superhighway. Unfortunately for the public, the loudest voices in determining its direction are those who want to make a profit from it. Not visible to the public, which has been excluded from the debates, are the extensive discussions between governments and the corporate sector over who will control and profit from it. Who is protecting the public interest in access to information and the new telecommunication networks? Not the Federal Government. Industry Canada's, "The Electronic Connection: An Essential Key to Canadian Survival" was released only after a Freedom of Information request. Of the 200 individuals consulted for the research, none were proponents of public access. The Honourable John Manley, Minister, Industry Canada is now establishing a high-level Advisory Committee on the electronic highway which will meet in secret and may not issue a final report. This is completely unacceptable. Not the Federal Government. It has been legislatively increasing exemptions from the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act. The Ottawa- based Coalition for Open Government is organizing a lobby to increase the power and range of existing FOI legislation and broaden dissemination of government information. The Library Depository program, which provides free copies of government documents to selected libraries across Canada, the main access for public use of government reports, is not even protected by government legislation and is in constant financial jeopardy. Not the Federal Government. It's Interdepartmental Committee on Database Industry Support encourages the commercial distribution of government electronic information but there is no comparable organization to assure public distribution. Not the Federal government and the many provincial and municipal governments which are investigating or have implemented "tradeable information" policies based on the Thatcher government's decision to increase government revenue through the sale of government information. Not Stentor. The telephone company consortium released "The Information Highway: Canada's Road to Economic and Social Renewal - A Vision Statement" with almost no reference to public participation and with no consideration of social policy issues. How can equal access to information can be assured when only 25% of the population own microcomputers? This report, along with virtually all others, ignores the cost of providing broad public access and training. Not the cable industry. Fixated on 500 channels of money-making entertainment and interactive commercials, the cable industry has shown no concern for public access and public involvement. The bubble may burst on these dreams of mega-dollars if the public agree with critics such as Neil Postman, who talks about "info-garbage" and the lack of content on the existing 60 channels. Not the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. It has effectively deregulated the telephone system and is now considering, with minimal public input, optional regulatory environments, such as new ways to charge for local telephone service. Options could include Local Metered Service - charging for every call and its length. The one tool of the information age which is currently available in most households will follow the U.S. experience after de-regulation, resulting in substantially increased local telephone rates. What about the media? Its role is two-sided. In its traditional role as newsgatherer, the media wants to force the government to expand the Freedom of Information Act and open the government to closer scrutiny. On the other hand, as business corporations different forms of media consolidating into ever larger units, as the recent Roger's offer to buy-out MacLean-Hunter demonstrates, it is integrating all forms of media including books, magazines, film, video, cable, newspapers, databases, television and radio. This consolidation limits the sources of news and editorial perspective. The loss of cognitive diversity, like bio-diversity, is a cause for alarm and concern. A new organization, Project Censored is concerned about this limitation and has evaluated a number of news stories to determine which has been the most censored in Canada in 1993. The winner (loser?) will be announced at the general meeting of the Canadian Association of Journalists in April. Only recently have public interest groups and activists emerged to present the case for free access to government information, access to the high speed telecommunication networks of the future, and access to community networks to create and disseminate information. Foremost among these have been Canadian library associations, librarians across Canada and FreeNets which are currently creating a national organization - Telecommunities Canada. Libraries are the predominant source for public access to information in Canada. Viewing themselves as the electronic library of the 21st Century, FreeNets are in their infancy world-wide, and struggling to establish non-profit, freely accessible, community computer networks in towns and municipalities. Ottawa, Victoria, and Trail are currently operational, and another sixteen FreeNets are actively organizing. Many other community and advocacy organizations, especially at the national level, are becoming aware of the implications for their organizations of the current debates on information policy. A revealing irony of the so-called "information age" is that while debates continue regarding who will benefit from the billions of dollars expected to be generated by new commercial information products and the information highway, libraries struggle to stay open and FreeNets are forced to exist hand-to-mouth. Information policy is not currently a "hot" public policy issue. It does not command the public attention of debates on the economy, unemployment, racial intolerance, the environment or the disintegration of civil society which is occurring all around us. The public is as unaware of information issues as are most of the politicians. An attempt to have an all-candidates meeting on these issues during the last Federal election resulted in an acknowledgement that no local B.C. candidates knew anything about the issues. However, the existence of libraries, FreeNets, and information policies which encourage free public access to government information and data collected in the enforcement of government regulations are fundamental to thorough discussions of our key public issues. Policies which widen the gap between those who have easy access to information and those who do not will further undermine democratic debate. Information Rights Week (April 11 - 17) is organized by the Canadian Library Association, with the co-operation of Telecommunities Canada. Libraries across Canada will have posters, displays, brochures, and programs to focus attention on these issues. The profound changes taking place in government policy regarding access to information, high-speed telecommunication networks, and the telephone system must be opened to the public. We are already divided into information rich and the information poor. Current policies to create a "pay per" society will magnify these disparities. TV programs, videos, government information, local telephone calls would all be paid per minute, per byte of information, per database searched. Simultaneously, public sources of information, like libraries, will deteriorate and electronic alternatives such as FreeNets will struggle to provide a non-profit option. Decisions regarding future access to free government information, universal and affordable telephone service and options for the creation and distribution of non-commercial content must be made openly and not behind closed doors. Brian Campbell Chair, Canadian Library Association Information Policy Committee President, Vancouver Regional Freenet Association For more information contact your local public library or the Canadian Library Association, #602 200 Elgin St., Ottawa, Ontario K2P 1L5 613-232-9625 Fax 613-563-9895 or Telecommunities Canada c/o David Sutherland, Computing Services, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6 or aa001@freenet.carelton.ca. Stuart Hertzog, President | shertzog@wimsey.com Global Village Communications Society | 2286 West 5th Avenue #201, | Using Mosaic? Vancouver, B.C., Canada V6K 1S3 | Check out International Teletimes +1 604 739 4263(vox) 739 2961(fax) | http://www.wimsey.com/ ------------------------------ From: dreuben@netcom.com (Cid Technologies) Subject: SNET <-> BAMS Auto Call Delivery Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 19:56:27 PDT About a week and a half ago, I noticed that SNET/CT customers were now getting automatic call delivery to the Bell Atlantic seacoast service areas, SIDs 00008 and 00018. SID 00008 corresponds roughly to the Philadelphia/Wilmington Metropolitan area (but extends as far west as Reading PA and north to Allentown/Bethlehem - it's a huge system, and has excellent coverage in most areas!), and SID 00018 being the Baltimore and Washington DC metro areas, including Annapolis, MD. Your features should also work, such as Call-Waiting, Call-Forwarding, "Do Not Disturb" (*78/*780), etc. Note that in the DC system, "Receive Calls/*78" = *18, and "Keep calls back in my home system so they can go to voicemail/*780" = *19. BAMS/DC, for some reason, has this thing where they want to impose the use of the Follow Me Slowly (:) ) codes (*18, *19) for all auto call delivery. Thus, even if you have auto call delivery, you STILL need to use the FMR codes instead of the *78/*780. (In 00008/Philly they "managed" [wow, big effort :( ] to put the *78/*780 codes in because some nearby (Scranton/00172?) system needed it). First off, I'm not sure why BAMS even wants this crazy system of mixing up the FMR codes with the auto call delivery codes - it confuses customers. I mean, they may hit *18 when they travel to Los Angeles, thinking "OK, I want to get calls automatically delivered", yet forget, or not even *know* that FMR has this ridiculous way of deactivating at midnight (GTE doesn't seem to know why they do this, just that it is etched in stone somewhere so they obviously can't change this ;) - of course the "A" side "Nationlink/Roam America" doesn't do this, but why should GTE Intercarrier Services care?). So a Philly-based roamer in LA hits *18, gets calls for a day, and the next day, not knowing that there is a big difference between auto call delivery and FMR, just turns the phone on, and drives, but won't get any calls because FMR took his number down automatically at midnight. The roamer won't know this (unless he calls himself and sees its not busy), so the system as enacted by BAMS can lead to missed calls, especially from customers who are not too familiar with the differences between FMR and auto call delivery. Moreover, if the Philly-based roamer using FMR in LA decides he wants calls to go to voicemail in Philly (they presently can't bounce back to voicemail thanks to the brilliant legal scholars at the Dept. of Justice who probably wouldn't know what a cellphone was if your dropped a few on them), he will hit *19 to deactivate FMR. *BUT* this will also deactivate auto call delivery. Thus, when the Philadelphia customer returns home, and drives to NY, or now CT, etc., ie, an area with auto call delivery, he won't get calls, as *19 ALSO serves to deactivate auto call delivery. The customers will have to know to reactivate auto call delivery, which I think many won't do, an thus further potential for confusion and missed calls. In addition, NYNEX/NY customers, who also have automatic call delivery to BAMS's DC 00018 system, can't even use *18/*19! There is no way for a NYNEX/NY customer to force calls back to Voicemail (or just to turn call delivery off) once he enters the DC/Baltimore system. NYNEX/NY tells me this is because every time you hit *18/*19, the carrier you are roaming in gets billed by GTE for the call. (No small wonder that cell carriers are trying to move away from GTE/FMR as fast as they can!) BAMS either is dumb, doesn't care, or has some deal with GTE they don't pay. Thus, they use the *18/*19 universally (and unwisely from the customers perspective as noted above). NYNEX, however, does pay for these calls, so they refused to allow BAMS customers to use *18/*19 in NYNEX territory. BAMS, in retaliation, refused to allow *78/*780 in their DC system for NYNEX customers, and I guess no one has noticed yet that it doesn't work for SNET (Question is does SNET allow *18/*19 for BAMS?) Anyhow, so this has been going on for about 8 months no, and NOTHING has been done. So here's yet another good way to get out of your annual service contract with BAMS and/or NYNEX- tell them you were told that you could control call delivery in NY or DC, and in actuality, you can't, so you want to cancel with no cancellation penalty. (Also, note that since carriers supposedly pay GTE for every instance that *18/*19 was used, if your visiting a system where FMR is regularly slow, hit *18 every 10 minutes until it kicks in. If you do it enough, it will cost them, and maybe they will look into improving set up speeds [which in most markets are under a minute now, I must admit], or ending that awful midnight deactivation!) Oh, and one last thing: SNET customers can use Call-Forwarding in all non-NYNEX/NY markets. You can't forward or unforward in NYNEX/NY. (And NYNEX/NY can't do it in CT/W, Mass, or other NYNEX/NY properties). Why? They claim it's due to "fraud". I'm not sure how call-forwarding promotes cell fraud, but isn't it amazing how cell co's think they can justify almost any sort of inconvenience to the customer in by yelling out "fraudulent calls"! It's nice to see that besides all the nonsense from the DOJ about call handling in visited markets, NYNEX and BAMS are so intent upon playing silly games with each other that customers have to suffer even more :( All I can say is that if I had anything to do with this, a situation like the above would never be a problem for long, let alone 8 months! But at least there's one more market with auto call delivery - some progress at least. Doug dreuben@netcom.com CID Tech (203) 499-5221 ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 07:16:29 CDT From: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Digest Editor) Subject: Many Hassles Here Last Week Hello everyone! Due to an unpaid phone bill, Illinois Bell zapped me off line. Unlike in the past where they have gone along with partial payments this time they are holding out for the full balance in CASH and my check-kiting and floating techniques did not bail me out ... I have a temporary setup for a couple of days and am working ernestly to get things back to normal but still need to get a little more $$ over to the collection office before service will be restored. In the meantime, I'll do what I can from my temporary, fallback connection here. PAT ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #174 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa21463; 17 Apr 94 12:10 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA12433; Sun, 17 Apr 94 08:26:04 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA12424; Sun, 17 Apr 94 08:26:02 CDT Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 08:26:02 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404171326.AA12424@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #175 TELECOM Digest Sun, 17 Apr 94 08:26:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 175 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Star Line Information (Tom Ward) 1-800 FAXMail Service (Jack Bzoza) Neat Tricks! (Glen Roberts) Line Load Control (was: CO's and Disasters) (John Botari) Local Number Portability - What a Can of Worms (John R. Levine) Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet (Paul Robinson) Operator Assisted Sent-Paid Coin Calls (Paul Robinson) SEM - European Commercial Broadband Services Seminar (J. Nicaise) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: gaypanda@pinn.net (Tom Ward) Subject: Star Line Information Date: 16 Apr 1994 22:01:44 GMT Organization: Pinnacle Online Star Line Information Sheet #1 Carrier: Contel Cellular of Virginia Inc Market: Norfolk, Virginia *INFO Free Contel Cellular Info Line *06 Airtime 804/254-3623 Weather Report *211 Airtime 800/621-2622 Atlanta CNMC *222 Airtime American Automobile Association (AAA) *30 Airtime 804/741-3800 Domino's Pizza *40 Special Routing *41 Special Routing *HELP Free 800/447-8500 Mr. Rescue *48 804/727-6111 Police Department *HUT Airtime 804/499-9999 Pizza Hut *51 Activate Octel Voice Mail *52 Deactivate Octel Voice Mail *57 Activate VMX Message Notification *58 Deactivate VMX Message Notification *61 Deactivate CCF *611 Free 800/333-4004 Customer Care Department *62 Deactivate ICP *620 Airtime 804/498-2000 Virginia Beach Installation Shop *71 Conditional Call Forwarding *711 Free 800/333-4004 Customer Care Department *72 Immediate Call Forwarding *73 Cancel Call Forwarding *811 Free 800/333-4004 Customer Care Department *86 Access Octel Voice Mail *880 Airtime 804/873-3663 Newport News Sales Office *911 Free 911 Police/Fire/Rescue Emergency Number ------------------------------ From: Jack Bzoza Subject: 1-800 FAXMail Service Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 20:56:00 -0400 On Thu, 7 Apr 1994 09:31:27 PDT Les Reeves wrote and asked about: FAX Mailbox Services >> Does anyone have any info on companies that provide a >> FAXMAIL service? >> What I am looking for is a FAX Number I can give out that receives >> faxes and then allows me to retrieve them from any fax machine by >> dialing up my code. > AT&T came out with a bunch of services for "professionals on the go" > about a year ago, and a FAX mailbox was part of the package. The > disadvantage was that callers had to dial an 800 number and then enter > a bunch more digits for your mailbox. Most business users won't stand > for this nonsense; they punch the number into the fax machine and walk > away. Delrina (the makers of WinFax and PerForm) has just announced a fax mailbox service exactly as you describe. It will ship (i.e. be available) in about two weeks time. It provides you with a personal 1-800 telephone number which can receive faxes or voicemail. It also has a paging notification feature which you can have page you when a fax arrives for you in your mailbox. To receive your faxes onto your computer, just click on 'Retrieve From MailBox' from the Service's menu found in WinFax PRO 4.0. Type in your password, and your faxes will automatically be sent to you. If you don+t have your computer, or access to one, you can instruct the service to send your faxes to a fax machine. Your faxes are retrieved from the same 1-800 number so there are no long distance access charges. It is currently the ONLY way to retrieve a fax sent to your fax mailbox directly to your hotel room with your laptop. You can call your Fax MailBox either from WinFax PRO or using a touch tone phone to find out if there are any faxes waiting for you. The service will let you know how many faxes you've got, how many pages are in each fax, and at what time each fax was received. And you can even pick and choose the faxes you want sent to you immediately, while leaving others in your MailBox for retrieval at a later time. Other options are available including DID numbers (for international access), and voicemail options (the same mailbox can also take your voicemail messages). Also your telephone company+s "call forwarding" service lets you have your faxes forwarded directly to your MailBox. If you want to receive your messages immediately, either to your office or an out of town location, simply call forward your Delrina Fax MailBox number to your current location. Your messages will be automatically transferred. And if that line is busy, your transmission can be rerouted back into your MailBox through your phone company+s "call forward when busy" service. For more info you can call Delrina in California at 1-800-268-6082. Jack Bzoza jackb@delrina.com Delrina (Canada) Corporation ------------------------------ From: glr@rci.ripco.com (Glen Roberts) Subject: Neat Tricks! Organization: RCI, Chicago, IL Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 23:12:42 GMT PROTECT YOURSELF WITH THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE'S TELEMARKETING TRICK The irritating telemarketing call comes in ... it's the middle of dinner and some lady wants to know if we get the Chicago Tribune ... I tell them, just when it comes free a couple times a week ... and the delight in the back of my mind that finally I have the phone number of the agitating telemarketer! For once, it's not "out of area" on the Caller-ID display. Well, my delight in phoning the back to express my displeasure with them, quickly turned to frustration! Try it ... 1-312-670-4113. It won't cost you anything. The familiar reorder tones followed by the number 670-4113 "is not in service for incoming calls!" The ultimate Caller-ID block. Why not use it to protect your privacy? Get your second line setup by the phone company that way, place all your out-going calls on it and bam no body can return call or redial your number. Yeah, the phone company will probably tell you they can't do that for you. Tell them to call 1-312-670-4113 as proof that it can be done. Also, here's another way to block caller-id. Dial 10288EEE-NNNN where EEE is your exchange and NNNN is the number. For example, from my home, if I call the surveillance hotline: (708) 356-9646... by dialing "356-9646" Caller ID gets my home phone. Yet, if I dial"10288356-9646" it comes in as out of area (yeah and I probably get billed the same as calling long distance). Glen L. Roberts, author, How To Spy On Anyone Without Getting Caught Host Full Disclosure Live (WWCR 5,810 khz - Sundays 7pm central) Box 734, Antioch, Illinois 60002. Fax: (708) 838-0316 Call the Surveillance Hotline: (708) 356-9646 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: One-way service (either way, incoming or outgoing only) is a common arrangement with Illinois Bell and there should be no hassles in getting a line set up that way if desired. The service reps will probably stress that it is important to have at least one line working both ways, but they won't refuse your request. Quite a few years ago I had a bank of phones in a rotary hunt group which were for incoming calls only: If you picked them up to make an outgoing call all you got on the line was battery; never a dial tone. Regards the use of 10288 (or other 10xxx) to bypass Caller-ID, I should note that Glen is in Antioch -- the outer reaches of 708 -- and things may be a little different there, but in much (most?) of IBT territory, 10-anything is disgarded by telco if it is a call they themselves are entitled to handle. That's not to say the call is not routed in such a way that somehow it avoids Caller-ID -- just that handling by the LD carrier is unlikely. PAT] ------------------------------ From: John Botari Subject: Line Load Control (was: CO's and Disasters) Date: Sat, 16 Apr 94 22:44:59 CST In article , Thomas Tengdin writes: > I was at an earthquake disaster training session this week and > a statement was made: > The telephone company computers will connect some customers > at a higher priority than others. > This is the first I have heard of calls being processed in any other > way than first to finish dialing, first to be processed (more or > less). > Is there something in CO Class of Service? or other programming that > gives "priority" service to a select class of lines? I believe that the answer to this is "yes" ... in Canadian practice, at least, it's referred to as "Line Load Control" or "LLC". The intent is (as I understand it) to ensure that lines associated with emergency services will be the first to be granted dial tone in situations where the telco's equipment is heavily loaded (as frequently happens in times of disaster). Pat, perhaps you could comment on the practice in American jurisdictions; I'd also be interested to know how this might have been accomplished in the days of electromechanical switching, before it became just a software configuration change! John Botari Environment Canada - Informatics Saskatoon, SK, Canada jb@desoto.wxe.sk.doe.ca ------------------------------ From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Local Number Portability - What a Can of Worms Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 02:00:51 EDT A recent copy of {America's Network}, formerly TE&M, a widely read trade rag for telco managers, has an interesting article on local exchange competition and number portability. The obvious way for CAPs to hook into the network is to set up their own central offices and prefixes and hook into the network using either tandem interfaces, as existing independent telcos do, or PBX interfaces, as cellular carrierrs do. But the argument is plausibly made that CAPs will be at a significant disadvantage that way, since you'd have to change your phone number if you switched phone companies. So the thought is that local phone numbers will have to be portable, much as 800 numbers are now portable. When you call an 800 number, your local telco looks up the 800 number and gets the carrier to which to route the call. With local number portability, someone would have to do the same lookup for every single call. Issues include: * Database control: Who's going to run the database(s)? The current LEC? The CAPs? Some yet to be created entity? * Database size: 800 numbers are a small fraction of the total calls made today, databases for local numbers would have to be orders of magnitude bigger. * Database performance: The speed at which 800 numbers are looked up may not be fast enough for local calls. * Database locations: Where is the lookup made? At the origin exchange, which may be 3000 miles from the target? Somewhere near the terminating customer? * Money: Who's going to pay for all this? 800 numbers are all toll calls (to the callee) so there's a stream of revenue that can be tapped to pay for the portability database. Where's it going to come from for unmetered local calls? Will PUCs let this into the rate base? If this lookup database existed, there would be all sorts of new services available, such as automatic rerouting on demand, at time of day, by type of call, etc. Expect exciting times ahead. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 03:47:29 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA Saturday I was over at Micro Center, a computer store in Vienna, Virginia. Visiting the book department, I spotted a new set of three books, highlighted in plain view, all having the word "Internet" on the cover. One was a book on things you can find, e.g. a list of sources for things such as Weather information, FTP sites for various types of files, and so on, e.g. a list of services similar to the ones on the internet, only broader and much better organized. It was also about an inch thick, which meant it was about 500 pages long. I didn't have much chance to look at it since I don't have that much interest in the services on the Internet. I know they are comprehensive, I just never thought about it. The second book was printed on yellow paper and I think it referred to itself as "The Internet Yellow Pages". In essence it was a topic and subject cross reference for news groups and mailing lists. This, I think is a good idea. It's better if someone knows that, for example, Com Priv deals with the Commercialization and Privatization of the Internet and not with say, Private Compost heap management. (Although some people who read that group might think the latter is more accurate.) Or that the Bitnet list ETHICS-L@VM.GMD.DE deals with the ethics of computer programming and computer-related ethical issues, rather than it being a general ethics list. This too, was a Phone Book sized tome, about 3/4 inch thick, and it also mentioned that it covers about 2700+ newsgroups, which doesn't make it comprehensive (as someone corrected me earlier this month, the worldwide set of public newsgroups is currently over 8,000 and runs close to 100 megabytes a day.) What I found most interesting was the third book, also about an inch thick, e.g. phone book sized, and what could probably be called "The Internet White Pages". Someone started collecting E-Mail addresses and names for people from public messages, probably those posted on newsgroups and heavily circulated mailing lists and put them in alphabetical order. A practice very similar to that done by the address lookup program on rtfm.mit.edu (formerly "pit-manager"). Apparently the compiler of the book collected some 100,000 people's names and printed them up. This book is fairly recent but not that much. As with most people, I looked myself up. While it does have my address on access.net and MCI Mail, it does not have my address here on TDR.COM, which implies that it stopped collecting before I started using it almost exclusively, which would be before December 5, 1993, which is when the TDR.COM domain is listed as last updated via WHOIS. Some people seem to have gotten upset over the collection of E-Mail addresses for advertising. Now, here, someone has generally collected everyone's address off public messages, and published them in a book that is sold over the counter in a computer store. I wonder how people feel about this issue. The author said in the preface quite frankly that he had started "surrepticiously" collecting E-Mail addresses for a while. I put that word in quotes because I think that was his term, not mine. I am trying to avoid being judgemental here, because I don't see it as that big a problem. My E-Mail address is not my street address and doesn't tell you where I live or what I do or how much money I make or how educated I am. But this practice does annoy some people and I wanted to let some people know that if you are worried about the collection of names and E-Mail addresses, you are a little late, someone's already done a White Pages that anyone can purchase. And if it's successful, I'll bet there will be new issues, as well as possibly competitors. Seriously, I have a full newsgroup feed coming into the site I use, there's nothing that says I couldn't set up a cron job that runs several times a day to scan the spool files and collect addresses for subsequent publication. Anyone who has access to a full news feed could have done the same thing. Here's some questions to think about: What do you think about the practice? Is it right or wrong and why? Does this impact people's security? Are there risks involved if your E-Mail address becomes well known or if it is misprinted in a published "white pages"? Are there other considerations to think about? Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 04:50:40 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Operator Assisted Sent-Paid Coin Calls Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA I was asked the following question: > You wrote: >> In addition, AT&T filed tariff revisions with the Federal >> Communications Commission on April 4, 1994 to increase its interstate >> operator assisted sent-paid coin and coin person-to-person per minute >> rates. > What are operator assisted sent-paid coin calls? Well, since the text excludes person-to-person coin (since they are mentioned separately), it probably refers to overseas coin calls since they cannot be handled automatically. I'm guessing here, but what it probably refers to is a historical issue. The coin holding tray (the part that keeps coins until the call supervises, not to be confused with the fare collection box) on pay telephones in the U.S. can't hold more than three dollars, I have been told. If an overseas call costs more than that, the operator has to process it manually. For example, at 10:00 in the morning Eastern time, a coin-paid station-to-station call to Israel costs $7.80 for three minutes, and $1.40 for each additional minute. This means that an operator would have to accept $3, wait for a connection, dump the tray, ask the recipient of the call to wait, accept another $3, dump the tray, accept $1.80, then allow you to talk for the 15 seconds you'd have left of the first three minutes you just spent throwing quarters into the pay phone! :) Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Apr 94 12:41:37 +0100 From: Jean-Philippe Nicaise Subject: SEM - European Commercial Broadband Services Seminar \\ | THESEUS INSTITUTE // | // /\| _ AND ______ ______ ____ __ __ __ // / //\ | __ \ | __ \ | __ \ | | | \ | | // / // / BRAIN | |_> / | |_> / | |_\ \ | | | \ | | // / // / R2095 | __ < | __ < | ____ \ | | | \ \| | // / // / ____ | | \ \ | | \ \ | | \ \ | | | |\ \ | \\/ _ // / \\ | | |_/ / | | \ \ | | \ \ | | | | \ | ||\/ / // | |____/ | | \ \| | \ \| | | | \ | || / // /\| ||__\ // / ANNOUNCE // / // / A Seminar examining the commercial availability // / of European Broadband services \\/ MIGRATING TO COMMERCIAL BROADBAND SERVICES April 28, 1994 THESEUS Institute Sophia-Antipolis France Broadband Communications, handling simultaneously voice, data and video transmissions at large bandwidths, hold the promise of creating new consumer and business services, as well as allowing companies to be organised in new and innovative ways. Today, various commerical broadband services are being offered to European users. However, in an emerging market, many issues are raised: * What is the nature of these services ? * Is the availability and variety of services meeting user requirements ? * Why are users choosing specific services ? * What are the technological and/or commercial dilemmas facing the large user ? * Make or buy ? What is the technological life span of alternatives and can they be effectively evaluated ? * What are the technical migration paths chosen by these users ? This seminar, held in France's Telecom valley, will directly address these issues. *** various commercial service offerings will be explored: *** *** SMDS, Frame relay, ATM, High speed X.25 *** *** the seminar will bring together: *** *** - broadband service providers *** *** - clients of the broadband providers *** *** - large corporate potential users *** *** - industry experts *** *** - American service providers *** Schedule Thursday, April 28, 1994 9:00 European Broadband Services Jeff GOULD, Datastrategies Jerome CAMUS, Theseus Institute 9:30 BT's National SMDS Network Chris GAHAN, Data Solutions Manager, BT 10:30 Frame Relay & ATM in Telecom Finland's Service Offering Portfolio Pekka TOYTARI, Development Manager, Telecom Finland 11:15 LAN Interconnection & High Speed X.25 at France Telecom Dominique FAUX, Broadband Infrastructures Marketing, FT 12:00 The American Experience in Developing an ATM Network Thierry BOSSER, Metropolitan Fiber Systems 14:00 Panel Commercial Broadband : Meeting User Needs, Technology Alternatives and Migration Paths Nigel DYE, Network Planner, Amadeus Olivier FAGOT, Administrateur Reseau, TF1 Chris GAHAN, British Telecom Jean LORRAIN, IBM La Gaude Pekka TOYTARI, Telecom Finland Dominique FAUX, France Telecom Francois BAR, Berkeley Roundtable on International Economics Thierry BOSSER, MFS 17:30 ATM Demonstrator A demonstration of ATM by France Telecom is planned in closing of the seminar. It would be held at the Agora, France Telecom's technology showcase, right next to Theseus Institute. This seminar is of interest to you if: * you are concerned with the choice or management of corporate telecommunications services * you would like to find out what broadband development possibilities exist and how they may apply to your organization * you are involved in the research, development or commercialisation of advanced broadband communication products and services * you wish to meet peers and have the opportunity to discuss with them similar concerns For additional information, contact: Jerome Camus +(33) 92.94.51.00 camus@theseus.fr Robert Liddington +(33) 92.94.51.23 liddington@theseus.fr Fax: +(33) 93.65.38.37 Fees Seminar fees, including materials, lunch & coffee breaks are of : 180 ECUs or 1200 FF (excluding VAT) VAT of 18.6% A special fee is available to individuals affilated with RACE projects (indicate RACE project number affiliation in registration form): 90 ECUs or 600 FF (excluding VAT) VAT of 18.6% Bank transfers can be made to Currency ECU French Franc Bank BNP Cannes BNP Sophia Antipolis Account # 185 000 33 0002 5026 582 Bank Code 30004 30004 Sort Code 00643 02037 Cle RIB 54 Or cheques can be sent to: Theseus Institute rue Albert Einstein BP 169 06903 Sophia-Antipolis cedex France Accommodation Specially-priced hotel accommodation is available at Hotel Omega, situated 50 metres from Theseus Institute. Call +(33) 92.96.07.07 and quote the Broadband Communications seminar. Registration Form (Please print if returned by mail) Title: Last Name First Name(s) Position: Organisation: Mailing Address: Postal Code: Country: Telephone: Fax: e-mail: RACE project affiliation (indicate project number) Please state what aspects of broadband communications are of interest to you: Payment (identify one) : Cheque enclosed Bank transfer BRAIN (Bringing Researchers in Advanced communications to INdustry) is a RACE project with the mandate of offering training and education programs to the community of persons concerned with the development of broadband in Europe. BRAIN runs a yearly Summer School and various seminars. Theseus Institute is dedicated to bridging issues in Strategy, Innovation and Information Technologies. Advanced management education programmes include a one-year MBA, Executive Education programmes and specialised seminars. Jean-Philippe Nicaise Association French Data Network - Paris (nicky@fdn.org) Institut Theseus - Sophia Antipolis (nicaise@theseus.fr) ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #175 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa21865; 17 Apr 94 13:51 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA13174; Sun, 17 Apr 94 09:42:25 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA13165; Sun, 17 Apr 94 09:42:23 CDT Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 09:42:23 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404171442.AA13165@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #176 TELECOM Digest Sun, 17 Apr 94 09:42:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 176 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Distinctive Ring Switch OK? (Stuart Whitmore) Job Opening, The Limited, Columbus, OH (Jane Fraser) TCP/IP Over X.25/Datapac (Gordon Sawatzky) Need HDSL Loop Simulator Vendor Information (Yee-Lee Shyong) Comments About Modem Connection From US to Germany (Marko Ruokonen) Source for T1 CSU/DSU? (Avi Freedman) Equal Access in Canada (Jeff Bamford) Broadband ISDN (Carl Larson) Can Residential Voltage (?) Drop? (Dick O'Connor) Sprint Upgrades Network to SONET (Paul Robinson) Help Reading AT&T and NYNEX Toll Tapes (Stuart Cohnen) Re: Need Technical Information on CPDP (PDC Chris) 800-555-1212 is Not Southwestern Bell (David Quist) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 03:51:55 -0700 From: whitmore@tahoma.cwu.edu (Rattlesnake Stu) Subject: Distinctive Ring Switch OK? Organization: Central Washington University Does anyone have any direct experience with phone line switches that use distinctive ring to determine which device (e.g., FAX, phone, modem) to ring through to? I've looked at two types in catalogs; one handles two devices (two ring types) and the other handles four. The basic function is that there is one "in jack" and two or four "out jacks". The unit determines the type of ring coming in, and passes the ring signal on to the device on the appropriate port/jack. I'm considering using this to mix a voice line with a data/FAX line, as adding a whole new line is not feasible at this time. Before I buy the switch, I'd like to know if people have had sucesses or (more importantly) problems with this type of configuration. The data/FAX line currently has a ZyXEL U-1496E+ on it ... I don't know if that makes a difference, but it might if the ring signal passed on by the switch is not identical to the phone company's ring. Any comments or advice? I apologize for posting this in multiple newsgroups, but each is applicable to the situation (nfp). Thanks, in advance, for informative input. Stuart Whitmore FAX: (509) 925-3893 Data: Same as FAX whitmore@tahoma.cwu.edu whitmore@cwu.bitnet 71221.1737@compuserve.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 04:19:10 EDT From: fraser@ccl2.eng.ohio-state.edu Subject: Job Opening, The Limited, Columbus, OH The following information is from a job announcement from The Limited, which is headquartered here in Columbus, OH. In talking with people at The Limited, I've learned that they will make this a management position "for the right person." For more information called Vince Dillon at 614-479-7510. Jane Fraser, Ohio State University Telecommunications Analyst The distribution and related business expertise of Limited Distribution Services provides a clear competitive edge to one of the largest fashion retailers in the world! A major division of The Limited, Inc., we how have an excellent opportunity at our headquarters for a technically skilled team player who is ready to grow. Our successful candidate will possess three years experience in all or most of the following areas: high-speed voice/data networking area, T-1, T-3, Frame Relay and SONET. Outstanding communication skills and highly creative analytical abilites are essential. A proven track record of user sensitivity and vendor management are also a must. We offer attractive salary commensurate with experience, outstanding benefits, and the setting of a leading edge industry pace setter. Please send your resume with salary requirements to: Limited Distribution Services, Human Resources Dept, P.O. Box 182199, Columbus, OH 43218. ------------------------------ From: gord@infomag.mb.ca (Gordon Sawatzky) Subject: TCP/IP Over X.25/Datapac Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 17:00:58 -0400 Organization: InfoMagnetics Technologies Corporation Does anyone know of products that allow TCP/IP over X.25 (datapac) connections for Windows? ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 10:31:12 GMT From: apollo@n2sun1.ccl.itri.org.tw (Yee-Lee Shyong) Subject: Need HDSL Loop Simulator Vendor Information Currently I am involved in the planning of HDSL deployment. I am just collecting information on three vendors: [1] W&G, German company [2] Consultronics, Canada company [3] TAS Can anyone provide me the eMail address of these companies? Best Regards, Apollo Shyong ------------------------------ Date: 17 Apr 94 05:38:10 EDT From: Marko Ruokonen <100031.31@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Comments About Modem Connection From US to Germany During the Easter holidays, I visited the US (Boston area) and had some "first-hand" experience with the US phone system. What follows are just some impressions a tourist (used to POTS, pulse dialing, etc.) had with some foreign phone system. I was amazed about the really good line quality when calling my parents at home in Cologne, Germany. I was traveling with my notebook that is equipped with an PCMCIA IBM Highspeed Fax/Modem (14400 bps), configured for the german phone system (since I normally use it in Germany). The modem had an RJ-11 jack that plugged into an adapter for the german TAE-N norm. Instead of using the german adapter, I used a standard phone cord that plugged directly to the phone jack. The modem even recognized the US dial tone (I really WAS suprised that things could be THAT easy...) Leaving out the adapter did the job of connecting to the US system, but since the adapter is supposed to do some "adjustments" for the german system, I am not quite sure if that was the correct way (legally or technically) to do that; IBM offers different adapters for different countries, so should I buy one for my next trip to the US to "play the game save"? Since I own an MCI calling card, I was able to conduct a test connection to the german DATEX-J and from there to my bank. The dialing string I used was: 1. 950-1022 (access MCI long-distance); 2. ,,,, (wait 8 seconds to get MCI "dial tone"); 3. 01492211910# (phone number, Cologne dial-in, the # eliminated the time-out); 4. , (wait for 2 seconds to get second dial-tone); 5. xxxxxxxxxxxxxx (MCI calling card number); 6. ,, (allow 4 more seconds to get to Germany, so modem will not just time out). The connection was completed, but was dropped after approximatly thirty seconds, no matter what I typed (or did not type). I figured out that I had to disable carrier supervision also, so that my modem would not disconect due to a short loss of carrier. From then on, the connection went just smoothly, maybe it was even cleaner than my local connection I use to have here in Germany: the built-up time for the display were slightly shorter). Now for some more questions: First, why did my modem quit after approximatly 30 seconds? Was the carrier suppressed after a certain time or was there some compression algorithm messing up the carrier? Second, some friend (working at NYNEX) told me that "all the talk about clearer connections when using different LD carriers is nonsense, because the LD carriers just rent the lines, so the lines are actually all the same". Is that true? If yes, from whom does MCI (for instance) rent the connection? And last, a (maybe) interesting story about tele-marketers: One of our friends there is the Director of Public Health in some small town in MA. He told us that he was called once at his office (!) by a telemarketer trying to sell additives for septic tanks (I hope that is the correct expression!). But actually, that guy did not even know WHERE he was calling, since such additives seem to be illegal in that area ;-). First, our friend let him do all the talk about "how great" all that stuff was and then told him that he was the Director of Public Health in an "no-additives" area. I suppose what followed was the fastest disconnect ever encountered :-)). Some more comments: The phone book (Concord area) did still had "New England Telephone" in it. Isn't it supposed to be NYNEX? It was the 1994 edition, after all. However, better yet, in the international dialing codes section, there was still an entry for West Germany (49) and East Germany (37) ! After almost five years? Boy, someone tell NYNEX that there is much more going on in the world than just area code splits in Zone 1! ;-) And last, about 1+7D dialing: since we do not use that kind of scheme in Germany, it was just interesting to use, but checking whether a call was LD or local was kind of unnecessary hassle for me, since the phone system is supposed to be so "smart" it could probably do that better. I heard about the different opinions about that, regarding unintended toll calls and shorter dialing sequences on the other hand. But I guess there is no way both of these opinions could meet, so thats the way it goes. Ok, that's it; comments on the above are really welcome. Marko Ruokonen Cologne, Germany Internet: 100031.31@compuserve.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: No, the fastest disconnect ever was on the call from a firm going by the name of 'Phone Company Repair Service' here in Chicago several years ago. They did telemarketing selling warranties and pre-paid repair service plans on phones purchased from various vendors in the area. They used that name to be deliberatly deceptive, making people think they were affiliated with telco. Then one day, they accidentally called Illinois Bell's head of security at his home number ... without saying who he was at first, he asked the telemarketer 'are you affiliated with Illinois Bell? ...' when the telemarketer said YES, the security man said he thought not, and identified himself. Click! PAT] ------------------------------ From: freedman@jane.sas.upenn.edu (Avi Freedman) Subject: Source For T1 CSU/DSU? Date: 17 Apr 1994 03:18:14 GMT Organization: University of Pennsylvania Does anyone know a good source for a T1 CSU/DSU? I need it to do full T1, not fractional, and to have a v.35 cable. I was told to look for a GDC 552A, but I assume any T1 CSU/DSU would work? So, good sources are welcome. Also, if anyone has one, feel free to send e-mail. Thanks, Avi ------------------------------ From: jeffb@audiolab.UWaterloo.ca (jeff bamford) Subject: Equal Access in Canada Organization: Audio Research Group, University of Waterloo Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 10:34:23 GMT My latest bill from my LD company has a little form to return for equal access dialing. Currently, you need to dial into a local port. They did not indicate when equal access would be arriving anywhere in Canada. They only wanted me to know that I could make the switch when it becomes available. Presumably it will happen first in the larger centres and then make its way to the smaller centres. Does anyone else have target dates? I'm also curious as to when we'll get carrier codes like in the U.S. Jeff Bamford jeffb@audiolab.uwaterloo.ca -- NeXT Mail welcome jeffb@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca / jeffb@physics.uwaterloo.ca ------------------------------ From: CARL.LARSON@tstation.mn.org (CARL LARSON) Subject: Broadband ISDN Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 11:38:00 GMT Organization: Terrapin Station BBS, 612-623-0152 v32.bis I need information, papers, thoughts or refs on broadband ISDN. I am in the process -- late in the process of course -- of writing a paper for school. I would be grateful if you could point me to some sources. I will have a chance to get on the archive computer this weekend if you know of anything there. I hope this message gets through as I am not very skilled at e-mail yet. ------------------------------ From: djo7613@u.washington.edu (Dick O'Connor) Subject: Can Residential Voltage (?) Drop? Date: 16 Apr 1994 22:58:19 GMT Organization: University of Washington Strange thing happened recently on my second of two residential lines. Suddenly one day the voice mail card stopped answering on that line, but when I switched lines it worked fine. Handsets that ring just fine on our first line stopped ringing on our second line in tests. Yet, if I called the second line from the first, I hear the "ring", and if my kid picks up a phone attached to the second line, it answers and we can talk. Is voltage somehow involved in "ringing" so that a decrease would cause to small a *something* for devices like modem cards and handsets to respond to? Where does this happen, and what's the fix? I shouldn't bother asking, of course, but the US West repairperson spent two hours yesterday confirming the problem and noting it isn't the interior wiring (good, good) but still hasn't solved the problem. Maybe I'm oversimplifying, but my concept is that whatever causes the signaling is like water pressure, and you have to have enough of it to do any useful work. Is this too simple? ;) Any hints I can pass on so the repairperson can fix it and get on with real problems?? Thanks, "Moby" Dick O'Connor djo7613@u.washington.edu Wash. Dept. of Fish and Wildlife *Remember: the fish were here first!* ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 19:31:53 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Sprint Upgrades Network to SONET Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA {Digital News & Review} News Briefs, March 21, 1994, Page 5 Sprint upgrades network to SONET Kansas City, Mo. - Sprint last week announced that it is embarking on a $350 million, 30 month plan to convert all of its line to SONET (Synchronus Optical Network) OC-48 level. Once installed, the network will provide a bandwidth of up to 2.4 gigabits per second (Gbps), although development work already is under way to increase the bandwidth to 10Gbps. The program, which was begun late last year, is expected to be completed by 1996. Sprint says the upgraded network automatically will double its potential capacity, but the addition of Asynchonus Transfer Mode (ATM) technology will further increase the system's load. Sprint is incorporating a double-ring technology that protects against network failures, says Anthony Alotto, director of technology and architecture integration. If a segment of the ring fails, the signal automatically is rerouted to a ring going in the opposite direction so that every node on the ring is accessible from reduntant networks rings, he says. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 05:15:40 EDT From: cohnen@ROCKVAX.ROCKEFELLER.EDU (Stuart Cohnen) Subject: Help Reading AT&T and NYNEX Toll Tapes Reply-To: cohnen@rockvax.ROCKEFELLER.EDU (Stuart Cohnen) Organization: Rockefeller University We are taking our call accounting software inhouse, buying a package that allows us to get the SMDR call records into an SQL database. As such I need to reconcile it with the toll tapes from NYNEX and AT&T. Does anyone have the format of these 9 track tapes. Are they EBCDIC or ASCII? Any info is greatly appreciated. Stuart Cohnen Manager of Engineering and Technical Services The Rockefeller University/Computer Services 1230 York Avenue New York, NY 10021 (212) 327-7509 Fax: (212) 327 8712 INTERNET: cohnen@rockvax.rockefeller.edu HEPNET : ROCKUP::COHNEn ------------------------------ From: pdcchris@aol.com (PDC Chris) Subject: Re: Need Technical Information on CPDP Date: 17 Apr 1994 09:22:02 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , ahafeez@mason1.gmu.edu (Abnan Hafeez) writes: > Can somebody provide me some information on CPDP? This is kinda old, but you get the idea: ------- Start of forwarded message ------- From: Sharpened Software To: penpoint@netcom.com (PenPoint Mailing List) Subject: CDPD Information Date: Thu, 25 Mar 1993 15:46:00 -0800 (PST) At the latest Pacific Northwest PenPoint Programmers meeting, Rob Mechaley, VP of Technology for Mc Caw Communications, presented an overview of the Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) service. The system is being deployed now and will being operation in specified areas by Fall. The 0.8 spec was printed on March 19. It contains 95% of the detail on how to build the network. The missing 5% include details on network management and more importantly, the API for OS's and application programs. The final 1.0 spec is due in June. The "footprint" of CDPD will eventually reach over the entire footprint of the cellular system, which currently encompasses 92% of all homes in the US. The current cellular system is split into approximately 10,000 cells, and most cells are then split into 2 or 3 sectors. The equipment for running CDPD needs to installed in each of these sectors. Each sector uses multiple "channels" (frequencies). A voice phone call uses one channel. Phone calls are "handed off" from cell to cell when the cell site informs the phone to switch channels to that of a neighboring cell. During all this switching, some channels are unused for a few seconds at a time. CDPD is a packet data network which runs on top of the current cellular frequencies within the "idle time" between voice phone calls. The system uses channel hopping to jump between the idle timeslots. When a mobile CDPD user moves around, the CDPD modem channel hops between cells. Each channel is a two-way 19.2Kb/s packet stream. The packets are routed as in a LAN or WAN with the added feature that the end points (the CDPD modems) can move around the network. TCP/IP and OSI's CLNP will be supported while other protocols may be added later. The network is designed to be secure (unlike the current cellular phones). The cells authenticate the CDPD modems and vica versa. The packet stream is very well encrypted. For further protection, true user id's are not used. Rather, aliases are created when the system logs in, and these aliases are changed at random intervals. This assures that a user's location cannot be determined by unauthorized listeners. The network was designed for low power systems. The modems can go into sleep mode. The network can store packets destined to the sleeping modem which awakens periodically to gather packets. Modems may also buffer packets, or can wake up the machine they are connected to when an important packet arrives. CDPD is a packet switching network. Users will be charged for data transferred, not by time online. It is expected that a user's modem will be left on at all times (except within airplanes) and the user will remain logged in. The system will be able to store to discard packets when the user disconnects. The technology needed to build a CDPD modem is a DSP and a radio. Since DSP's are programmible, it will be possible to build modems which are capable of acting as CDPD endpoints, analog cellular phones, and a landline modem. Due to all the off-the-shelf hardware, CDPD modems should be priced under $500. Companies are working on a 2 chip solution, others on PCMCIA cards. Modems from multiple vendors should be available by the time the network is opened. The CDPD Consortium is comprised of the major cellular phone carriers in the US, plus IBM. Because it is a group of companies the CDPD netowrk will be deployed at different times in different areas of the country. Each carrier is allowed to set its own rates for the service. Due to the way cellular is regulated, there should be two CDPD carriers in every city within a few years. The spec allows for roaming whereever the network exists. CDPD will look like one very large network with any modem being able to connect to any other modem. Gateways to other networks will be connected to the CDPD network through "land lines." The spec doesn't constrain the types of services which can be connected to the network. CDPD has been demonstrated at COMDEX Fall, Mobile '93, and Wireless '93. Apple, IBM, and EO hardware have been used to demonstrate various features of the network. -------------- The current spec can be optained for $100 from: CDPD Industry Input Coordinator (206) 828-8023 (206) 828-8436 FAX There is an NDA required to obtain the spec. posted by Michael Libes, Sharpened Software Inc. ------- End of forwarded message ------- ------------------------------ From: dquist@ben3b01.attmail.com (dquist) Date: 17 Apr 94 11:58:08 GMT Subject: 800-555-1212 is Not Southwestern Bell > Yes and no. 800-555-1212 is not run by AT&T. It is managed on a day > to day basis by Southwestern Bell Telephone ................. Pat, Thought you may be interested: 9. SECTION 9 - AT&T 800 DIRECTORY ASSISTANCE SERVICE AT&T COMMUNICATIONS TARIFF F.C.C. NO. 2 Adm. Rates and Tariffs 1st Revised Page 263 Bridgewater, NJ 08807 Cancels Original Page 263 Issued: March 10, 1994 Effective: March 11, 1994 WIDE AREA TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE SECTION 9 AT&T 800 DIRECTORY ASSISTANCE SERVICE AT&T COMMUNICATIONS TARIFF F.C.C. NO. 2 Adm. Rates and Tariffs 3rd Revised Page 264 Bridgewater, NJ 08807 Cancels 2nd Revised Page 264 Issued: March 10, 1994 Effective: March 11, 1994 SECTION 9 - AT&T 800 DIRECTORY ASSISTANCE SERVICE 9.1. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICE 9.1.1. General - AT&T 800 Directory Assistance Service permits a Responsible Organization (Resp Org) to list 800 service number(s) for which it is responsible in AT&T's Directory Assistance Data Base. This service allows callers, who access the AT&T Directory Assistance Bureau by dialing 1-800-555-1212, to obtain the 800 service number associated with a particular 800 service Customer name specified by the caller. AT&T 800 Directory Assistance Service is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week to callers located within the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. There is no AT&T charge to the caller for this service. 9.1.2. Provision Of Directory Assistance Information To Callers - A caller dialing the AT&T 800 Directory Assistance number will reach an AT&T operator at the Directory Assistance Bureau. The caller will specify to the operator the name of the Customer for which the caller is requesting an 800 service number. If the 800 Service Customer's name is listed in AT&T's Directory Assistance Data Base and the area where the caller is located is served by the Customer's 800 service number, the operator will furnish the caller with the Customer's 800 service number utilizing a synthesized voice announcement. If the Customer name specified by the caller is not listed or if the caller has given the operator an incorrect Customer name, the operator will respond with a "not found" report. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Well, 'AT&T Communications' is not the same company as 'AT&T' -- at least not on paper, and I do think SWBT is the manager of the service for AT&T Communications. Do I stand corrected? Please note there have been some problems here with telco of my own in the past week, thus the lack of Digests for several days ... I am trying to get things back in order here, but am still needing to raise a bit more cash to take IBT before all will be restored to 'normal', whatever normalacy around here is supposed to be! :) PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #176 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa02036; 18 Apr 94 5:17 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA24304; Mon, 18 Apr 94 02:25:05 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA24295; Mon, 18 Apr 94 02:25:03 CDT Date: Mon, 18 Apr 94 02:25:03 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404180725.AA24295@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #177 TELECOM Digest Mon, 18 Apr 94 02:25:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 177 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? (Frank Clark) Help Wanted - Switch Development (rtopp@delphi.com) Internet and the Info Highway (Scott Pope) Connect a Card Reader to a Cell Phone? (Andrew C. Green) What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? (David Gingold) Telemarketer Game Rules (Steve Edwards) GSM and Airbags (Stewart Fist) Videocrypt Pirating (Stewart Fist) More on UK Code Change (Peter Campbell Smith) Hughes Gets $80M Indonesia Wireless Contract (Paul Robinson) Need Gammalink Fax Card (Larry Rachman) Access to Unpublished Phone Numbers (Robb Arthur) Telecommunications Development in Asia (Hwa-Lun L Liu) X.25 in Ecuador Needed (gretske@delphi.com) AT&T's ClearSpeak (Alok C. Nigam) Sprint Gopher (was Re: Sprint Upgrades Network to SONET) (Peter M. Weiss) Delaware Memo (Carl Moore) Does Sparc/SunOS Work Well With X25? (H.J. Lu) Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" (Steve Kass) Phone Fraud: How To! (Glen Roberts) Wanted: Books on ATM/Frame Relay/SMDS (Mark A. Cnota) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Fclark@deathstar.cris.com (Franclark) Subject: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? Date: 17 Apr 1994 19:23:37 -0400 Organization: Concentric Research Corporation I need some advice. I own a small refrigeration company (two employees). Currently we lease a phone line from an answering service. When the customer calls in the operator dumps the message in my voice mail and I am paged. This is cumbersome, time consuming, and expensive. With an eye to the future, when I can afford full time office help, I am getting my own business line in June. I would like to be able to capture the calls on an answering machine which would automatically ring my pager(preferrably alphanumeric) upon receipt of each call. Are there answering machines available with this capability? Is software available to do this via modem? Thank you in advance for any information. Frank Clark fclark@cris.com ------------------------------ From: rtopp@delphi.com Subject: Help Wanted - Switch Development Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 13:22:37 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) I am interested in developing a telecom switch to provide message, admin, security, and accounting to a variety of clients whose messages would be relayed (by the switch) to one or more common carriers for transmission. If anyone has suggestions as to how to begin gathering information about switch development I would be grateful. ------------------------------ From: scott_pope@wiltel.com Subject: Internet and the Info Highway Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 12:55:31 PDT Organization: WilTel Does anyone have any thoughts on how the Internet will relate to the Information Highway? [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Not how it *will* relate, but how it *does already* relate to the highway ... the Internet is the backbone for the whole concept, and it has been around for more than a decade as old-timers will attest. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 17:30:37 CDT From: Andrew C. Green Subject: Connect a Card Reader to a Cell Phone? My father is exploring ways of setting up a credit card authorization terminal for one afternoon's use at an outdoor concert. He has the use of a standard card-swipe terminal which is normally installed in a retail installation on what is thought to be a POTS line; i.e. when a charge must be authorized, the card is swiped through the reader, the machine opens the line, dials the local bank and eventually flashes the result (e.g. authorization code or denial) on its display. In other words, connect the box to a telephone line and it does its thing. The problem is that at the concert location, no land line is available. He would like to use a cellular phone if possible, but there appear to be at least two distinct risks: 1) Whether the card-swipe terminal can be connected to the phone and function with it, even if the phone must be dialed manually; 2) Whether the transmission is secure. I suspect that the hardware connectivity might be solvable, but I have some obvious concerns about transmission security. My gut feeling is that a digital cellular connection would be the minimum required, and ideally a spread-spectrum PCS (like I used to have :-( Please note that this is for one afternoon's use for a non-profit organization, so cost is a consideration. If hardware can be specified, we can then go off and hunt it down to ask for one day's loan. In any event, we'd appreciate any input you might have, either here in TELECOM Digest with PAT's approval or privately via Email. My father can be contacted directly at the CompuServe address below: Anthony R. Green 73211.1200@CompuServe.COM Andrew C. Green Datalogics, Inc. Internet: acg@dlogics.com 441 W. Huron Chicago, IL 60610-3498 FAX: (312) 266-4473 ------------------------------ From: gingold@Think.COM (David Gingold) Subject: What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? Date: 17 Apr 1994 18:51:45 -0400 Organization: Thinking Machines Corporation I've got a Northern Telecom Meridian phone on my desk. It has a DB-25 connector on the back, which I suspect is a serial port. (The connector hooks to a small PCB in the base, which in turn plugs into what might be an ISDN plug inside the base?) Is this a serial port? Does anyone know how to talk to it and what I can do with it? In particular, I'd like to program my workstation to dial the phone. dg ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 22:30:36 PDT From: Steve Edwards Subject: Telemarketer Game Rules About six or so months ago, someone posted the "rules" to a game to play on telemarketers. It was based on a point system -- x points if you got the telemarketer to tell you their name, y points if you got them to lose their temper, z points if you got them to curse, etc. It was quite humorous. Do you remember this post? Can you repost it or point me to it in the archives? Thanks in advance, Steve Edwards Internet: steve@newline.uucp Voice: +1-619-723-2727 Newline CompuServe: 73677,3561 Fax: +1-619-731-3000 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: If I had the time I would go back in the archives and look for it. I'm sure it was more than six months ago. If anyone has a copy and sends it in I will try to find room to print it here again. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: 18 Apr 94 00:03:44 EDT From: Stewart Fist <100033.2145@CompuServe.COM> Subject: GSM and Airbags I've just received by fax a photocopy of a story from the {Guardian Weekly} (UK) dated April 3. It is headlined "Mobile phone set off airbag" and the story is about a couple of instances where (it is claimed) GSM handsets have set off airbags in luxury cars in Europe. I'm interested to find out whether this stuff is true, or an urban myth. I think it's probably myth, because I can't imagine anything easier to shield from EMI than an inertia switch in a car. However the story quotes Lawrence Donegan and says "Safety experts issued a warning ... not to use mobile phones while driving..." The story also quotes Viv Stephens, head of the Industry Research Centre as saying that it is possible for mobiles to trigger airbags. Can anyone give me a contact to either Lawrence Donegan (possibly a technical journalist) or Viv Stephens (Industry Research Centre) - which I presume is in the UK? I've tried to track similar stories in Germany, and sources tell me that the German Road Transport Research Unit is working on the problem, but when I contact them they deny it. BMW, VW and Mercedes are also reported to have had airbag blow-outs with GSM, but they also all deny it. Someone's not telling the truth. ------------------------------ Date: 17 Apr 94 07:03:36 EDT From: Stewart Fist <100033.2145@CompuServe.COM> Subject:Videocrypt Pirating I've been told by a usually reliable source that the full confidential, proprietary details of the Videocrypt video scrambling system are being released this week on some international bulletin boards. This is the system licensed by (and part-owned?) by Rupert Murdoch's News Datacom and used by the Sky network across Europe. The decoding system has apparently been successfully pirated for some time in Europe, and a flourishing business has grown up around it. One source says that there are almost as many pirated Sky systems as legit at the present time. Now someone is about to publish the full details. My information also is that once the information becomes public, it will be relatively easy for anyone with above-average technical ability to break the code in real-time on a home PC, and view Sky for free. If all the above is true, I'm interested in knowing what the pirates stand to gain from releasing the information on bulletin boards. Surely, it is more profitable to keep the information to yourself, and have something to sell. Or is this a move to force Videocrypt's hand in some way? Once a scrambling system has been compromised to this degree, it is probably better that it is broken up completely, but it still seems to be a strange thing for anyone to do. Does anyone have information or an explanation? ------------------------------ From: campbellsm@lish.logica.com (Peter Campbell Smith) Subject: More on UK Code Change Organization: Logica, London Date: Mon, 18 Apr 1994 02:56:54 GMT From the Oftel leaflet "A day to renumber" (Oftel is the UK government telecomms regulatory body): Code changes will start to be available mid-June 94, so call-barring equipment or payphones that analyze the dialed number need to be changed by then. The new codes will be available everywhere from 1 August 1994, and the 00 prefix for outgoing international calls will be available then also. Old and new codes will run in parallel from 1 August 1994 until PhONEday, 16 April 1995, when the old codes will cease to be available. The new national codes are the old ones with an added 1 after the 0 (so 071 becomes 0171, 0234 becomes 01234) except: 0532 xxxxxx becomes 0113 2xx xxxx 0742 xxxxxx becomes 0114 2xx xxxx 0602 xxxxxx becomes 0115 9xx xxxx 0533 xxxxxx becomes 0116 2xx xxxx 0272 xxxxxx becomes 0117 9xx xxxx The following are unchanged (no added 1): (free) 0500, 0800, (local rate) 0345, 0645, (premium rate) 0336, 0338, 0640, 0660, 08364, 0839, 0881, 0891, 0898, (mobile) 0374, 0385, 0802, 0831, 0836, 0850, 0860, 0956, 0958, 0973, 0976, (paging) 0941, (other) 0910. Paging numbers other than 0941 will get the added 1. Service codes such as 100, 151, 999 etc remain unchanged. Incoming international calls change accordingly, eg +44 71 222 1234 becomes +44 171 222 1234 and so on. Further details: Oftel leaflet line 071-634 8756, BT 0800 010101, Mercury 0500 041995. Peter Campbell Smith, Logica plc, London. Voice: +44 71 637 9111 Fax: +44 71 344 3638 Internet: campbellsm@lish.logica.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 18:04:35 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Hughes gets $80M Indonesia Wireless Contract Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA {Washington Post} Digest, April 14, Pg D12: "Hughes Network Systems of Germantown [Maryland], a unit of GM Hughes Electronics, won a contract for a fixed wireless telephone system in Jakarta Indonesia, valued at more than $80 million. The system will initially serve 250,000 subscribers and is expected to grow to 800,000 subscribers." ------------------------------ Date: 17 Apr 94 21:50:12 EDT From: Larry Rachman <74066.2004@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Need Gammalink Fax Card I'm looking for a used Gammalink Gammafax XPI (I believe its called) fax card, or something similar. The right card will sit in a PC next to a Dialogic D41 and talk to it via the MIVP connector. What I'm NOT looking for is a conventional fax modem that connects directly to a phone line via an RJ-11. Reply via email, phone, or fax. Larry Rachman 74066.2004@compuserve.com 516-427-1112 (voice) 516-427-0656 (fax) ------------------------------ From: Robb Arthur Subject: Access to Unpublished Phone Numbers Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 20:54:25 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) To anyone who can help us out: We are looking for the phone number to a Mr. John Patrick Quirk, 44 Boston Post Rd., Guilford, CT., 06437. The number is unpublished, he is running scams that have totalled over $200,000. We are trying to locate him and serve him with a subpeona. If you can find out his phone number or can confirm his address as it shows, I would appreciate it. Send any information by fax at (602)443-4040 or voice 1-800-966-2468, Attn. Darryl Biggs. Thank you. ------------------------------ From: hliu@mason1.gmu.edu (Hwa-Lun L Liu) Subject: Telecommunications Development in Asia Date: 17 Apr 1994 17:32:51 GMT Organization: George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA I am a graduate student majoring in Telecommunications at GMU. I am currently working on a paper entitled "Telecommunications development in Asia". My focus is on the marketplace in Asia, for the emerging technologies(e.g. ISDN, ATM, Frame Relay), covering China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia. If anyone is interested in this topic, or has something to contribute to my paper, please contact me at hliu@mason1.gmu.edu. Lynn ------------------------------ From: gretske@delphi.com Subject: X.25 in Ecuador Needed Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 21:24:16 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) I need an X.25 connection in Ecuador. Can anyone help? The Public networks such as BT and Sprint are not there. Gene ------------------------------ From: nigam@mitre.org (Alok C. Nigam) Subject: AT&T's ClearSpeak Date: 18 Apr 1994 01:51:31 GMT Organization: The MITRE Corporation I have heard that AT&T speaker phones use something called ClearSpeak, which allows full duplex communication and much improved communications. Does anyone know if this technology makes their speakerphones better than others, or if this is just a marketing ploy? [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The very same question has been asked by at least a few people regards AT&T's other product with a similar name, TruVoice. It is also intended to provide 'much improved communi- cations'. Your guess is as good as anyone's. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 16:29:15 EDT From: Peter M. Weiss Subject: Sprint Gopher (was Re: Sprint Upgrades Network to SONET) Organization: Penn State University Other SPRINT PR can be found by gophering to gopher.sprintlink.net. Pete-Weiss@psu.edu "The 'NET' never naps" +1 814 863 1843 31 Shields Bldg. -- Penn State Univ -- University Park, PA 16802-1202 USA ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 17:20:23 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Delaware Memo In a separate mailing from my latest Delaware phone bill, I have received a letter with the new Delaware dialing instructions, which have previously been discussed in the Digest. "To free up additional numbers, area codes will look like the first three digits of a telephone number; i.e., will use the numbers '2' through '9' as a middle digit, beginnin in January 1995." -- Not QUITE right; the NNX area codes will appear as new area codes are needed. Notice that, for remote call forwarding, "Bell Atlantic will automat- ically reprogram, if necessary". Long distance within Delaware is affected. "Remember to include the area code when dialing local fax machines outside of your area code." -- What does this mean? Local calls to other area codes will continue to be just seven digits. (From Delaware, this is all along the Pa. border and at a FEW places along Md. border; but FROM Pa. TO Del. is 1 + 302 + 7D.) ------------------------------ From: hjl@nynexst.com (H.J. Lu) Subject: Does Sparc/SunOS Work Well With X25? Date: 17 Apr 1994 21:24:50 GMT Organization: Nynex Science & Technology, Inc. Hi, We are using a Sparc 10 running SunOs 4.1.3 to talk to many remote hosts with SVC over x25 links. The average size of the messages is about 2K. Assume the traffic is not very heavy, we are wondering how many remote hosts a process on the local host can handle with reasonable performance. Our mains concerns are: 1. The number of files a process can open. 2. The nummber of SVCs a process can handle without heavy performance hit. Does anyone have experiences with x25 and Sun? Please email me. I don't read this group very often. Thanks, H.J. ------------------------------ Subject: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" From: skass@drunivac.drew.edu (Steve Kass) Date: 17 Apr 94 22:22:18 EDT Organization: Drew Univ Academic Computing I had to leave an important message after hours tonight, and the party I was calling warned me that to reduce their voice mail load, the system was set up not to answer for 16 rings or longer. The sanity of that aside, I placed the call through AT&T and was unable to get through. Before the call was answered, AT&T informed me that my party did not answer, and that they were sorry, I would now be disconnected. I then successfully placed the call by dialing 10222+ . I couldn't help wondering if an AT&T operator could have placed the call with this "feature" disabled. Steve Kass/Math & CS/Drew University skass@herne.drew.edu/(201) 514-1187 ------------------------------ From: glr@rci.ripco.com (Glen Roberts) Subject: Phone Fraud: How To! Organization: RCI, Chicago, IL Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 22:42:27 GMT PHONE FRAUD! The enticing brochure claims "Now, receive a discount on your long distance calls -- including every toll call over 23 miles, Interna- tional and Directory Assistance calls -- all without having to cancel you current long distance carrier." Budget Call says to dial "10368" before your number. Well, I called and asked the cost. They said, I'll "save 10%" I asked for the per minute rate. They wanted to know calling from where to where. Ok, "708-356" to "312-670" Here are their rates: Day Evening Night 1st Min $.304 $.273 $.1825 Addtl Min $.145 $.131 $.087 I asked if this would save me 10% "exactly" came the response "10% off Illinois Bell" rates that is. What does Illinois Bell charge me for that 708-356 to 312-670? 1st Min $.163 $.147 $.098 Addtl Min $.065 $.059 $.039 So, a ten minute call in the day with Budget call will cost: $1.609 The same call with Illinois Bell (AmeriTech) will cost : $0.813 That's not quite a 10% savings, but more like paying double! When I confronted the Budget Call representative with this fact, she claimed that she was sorry if she mis-spoke and that it was her first day on the job. Well, the written literature gives no indication that the service will help me pay twice as much for my calling. Donna Reeves, Vice President of Budget Call returned my call and said that they had old rates for Illinois Bell (and their checking tonight confirmed what I said). She said on Monday she'd check with the Public Service Commission and they would revise their rates to be at least 10% lower than Illinois Bell (AmeriTech). Additionally, she said that no bills had been issued and any calls placed now would be billed at a rate 10% lower than Illinois Bell's current rates. Incidentally, she said that Budget Call is owned by Rochester Telephone. Here's the info on Budget Call Long Distance Inc. 1-800-941-0368 Customer Service Center, 3441 W Henrietta Rd, Rochester, NY 14623 Glen L. Roberts, author, How To Spy On Anyone Without Getting Caught Host Full Disclosure Live (WWCR 5,810 khz - Sundays 7pm central) Box 734, Antioch, Illinois 60002. Fax: (708) 838-0316 Call the Surveillance Hotline: (708) 356-9646 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: A cute cartoon I saw today showed a picture of the Devil putting up a poster on a payphone which said, 'Save money on long distance calls: dial 666 before your number; your eternal soul the first minute; 99 cents each additional minute." I thought it was funny. PAT] ------------------------------ From: mac@rci.ripco.com (Mark A. Cnota) Subject: Wanted: Books on ATM/Frame Relay/SMDS Organization: Ripco Internet BBS Chicago Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 19:27:10 GMT Could anyone give me the names/authors of some good books on the subjects of ATM, Frame Relay, or SMDS? Anything from introductory to advanced would be appreciated. If anyone knows of a bookstore in the Chicago area that would have such books, let me know. I think the subject matter is too specific to be found and most regular bookstores. Thanks in advance! Mark A. Cnota (mac@ripco.com) Ripco Internet BBS (312) 665-0065 Chicago's Low-Cost Internet Alternative ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #177 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa00569; 20 Apr 94 8:17 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07916; Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:07:06 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA07907; Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:07:04 CDT Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:07:04 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404200707.AA07907@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #178 TELECOM Digest Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:07:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 178 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Study Hi-Tech With George Gilder (Mike W. Perry) Nicholas Negroponte to Give Keynote at ICMCS 94 May 17 (John F. Buford) Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone (Kris) T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections (Greg C. Meador) Questions on Fractional T-1 Service (Mike Foltz) Collect Call Business (Judith Oppenheimer) International Wireless Services (Alex Cena) AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted (Megan Kelleher) Occupied Territories Telecom (Miguel Cruz) PacBell Billing Exceptions to Cell, Page, Other WAC Subs (Bradley Allen) Phoning Cuba (Bubbette McLeod) Pricing on Northern Telecom SL/1 Switch (Paul Costello) Need TIE UMT-32 KSU Series 2 Information (Alan York) X.25 Card Required (Ray Wong) IEEE Symposium on Planning and Design of Broadband Networks (Ian Easson) Re: Source For T1 CSU/DSU? (Christopher G. Oxenreider) Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging (Pete Ferris) Re: 800-555-1212 is Not Southwestern Bell (A. Alan Toscano) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: discover@halcyon.com (Mike W. Perry) Subject: Study Hi-Tech With George Gilder Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 03:00:19 -0900 Organization: Discovery Institute Discovery Institute is offering a fellows program in technology and public policy from June 13-18 in Seattle, Washington. Faculty include: George Gilder, author of Wealth and Poverty, Recapturing the Spirit of Enterprise, Microcosm and Life After Television and a Senior Fellow at Discovery Institute. Roberta Katz, Senior VP and General Counsel, McCaw Cellular Communications. Bruce Chapman, President of Discovery Institute and a former director of the U.S. Census Bureau. Dr. Edward Larson, Professor of History and Law, University of Georgia. Dr. Philip Gold, lecturer at Georgetown University and a writer for Insight magazine. Dr. John West, Discovery Institute Senior Fellow. The week-long seminar will explore the history of technology, the role of entrepreneurs, ethical problems posed by technology, and the proper role of government in regulating and encouraging innovation. College juniors and seniors, graduate students and recent graduates are encouraged to apply. The $350 tution includes all books and reading materials, lodging and most meals. Students must pay their own way to and from the seminar. Some scholarships are available. For more information, contact Dr. John West, Program Director at (206) 287-3144. Applications should be received by mid-May. ___________ Discovery Institute is a Seattle-based public policy and research center. Named after the element of discovery that often attends sound research and inspires fresh policy ideas, Discovery Institute explores the benefits of free political and social institutions, free markets, high technology, regionalism and internationalism. Discovery Institute, 1201 Third Ave. 40th Fl., Seattle, WA 98101, USA ------------------------------ From: buford@remus.uml.edu (John F. Buford) Subject: Nicholas Negroponte to Give Keynote at ICMCS 94 May 17 Date: 19 Apr 1994 22:34:03 GMT Organization: UMass-Lowell Computer Science NICHOLAS NEGROPONTE, DIRECTOR OF MIT MEDIA LAB, TO ADDRESS IEEE MULTIMEDIA COMPUTING AND SYSTEMS CONFERENCE MAY 17, 1994, 9:30 am - 10:30 am Nicholas Negroponte, Director of the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Mass, will deliver the keynote address at an international multimedia conference to be held at the Copley Plaza Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts. Negroponte will give his view of "What Multimedia Means" -- is it a convergence of industries, ubiquitous communications and computing, or simply the progress of digital technology? He will review the remarkable shift that multimedia has recently made to center stage, and predict the challenges ahead in truly global systems. Nicholas Negroponte is a founder and the director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's uniquely innovative Media Laboratory. The six-year-old Media Lab, an interdisciplinary, multi-million dollar research center of unparalleled intellectual and technological resources, is focused exclusively on study and experimentation with future forms of human communication, from entertainment to education. Programs include: Television of Tomorrow, School of the Future, Information and Entertainment Systems, and Holography. Media Lab research is supported by Federal contracts as well as by more than seventy-five corporations worldwide. The address by Negroponte will open the 1994 IEEE International Conference on Multimedia Computing and Systems which is being held at the Copley Plaza Hotel, Boston, from May 15 -19. In addition to Negroponte's address, the conference will include tutorials on multimedia, a panel on the information superhighway, and two technical paper tracks. For further information about the conference and registration, contact Joseph Boykin, (617) 466-2803, boykin@gte.com. Publicity: John F. Buford, ph: 508 934 3618, fax: 508 452 4298, buford@cs.uml.edu. Dr. John F. Buford Dept. of Computer Science, UMass--Lowell, Lowell, MA 01854 buford@cs.uml.edu (508) 934-3618 FAX: (508) 452-4298 ------------------------------ Subject: Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone Reply-To: kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net From: sanctum!kris@uunet.UU.NET (Kris) Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 23:54 EDT I have a question that I hope someone can answer for me. With the advent of digital telephony, 1.5 megabit and higher lines running to each house, and even higher bandwidth on the poles, how much less is the potential for a delayed dialtone situation such as what was experienced during several of the many storms the Northeast has had this winter? Our area, like most, is being strung with new aluminum-encased cables by the local Cable TV company which would soon provide a huge amount of digital information, and (hopefully) dialtone service to compete with our local telephone monopoly. Since there is no longer any physical switching of the connection and more of a "sharing of bandwidth" among subscribers, how is overloading and/or delayed dialtone handled? Does the 64 kbit stream of voice data get broken up as the line is loaded down, much like Internet FTP transfers are over a TCP link? Would a subscriber be visited with a delayed dialtone (or a message telling them circuits are busy)? Wouldn't the number of concurrent dialtone users be increased substantially so as to avoid this situation substantially? Thanks, Kris kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net uunet.uu.net!paladin!sanctum!kris ------------------------------ From: meadogc@poers1.dnet.dupont.com (Greg C. Meador) Subject: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections Organization: Conoco Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 12:49:00 GMT Can anyone tell me what the theoretical limit is on number of connections or concurrent data transmissions that a T1 and a T3 line will support? Greg C. Meador Conoco, Inc. meadogc@poers1.dnet.dupont.com ------------------------------ From: mike_foltz@sgate.com Subject: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service Date: 19 Apr 1994 17:49:39 GMT Organization: Southgate Internet Host To all: Thanks in advance ... Is there a difference in how the fractional T-1 is delivered to a user whether it is inter or intra-LATA? As and example if I want a 128Kbps fractional T-1 is it a Tail Circuit from the C.O. where my DSU/CSU is slaved to a 128Kpbs reference from the C.O. or is it a T-1 from the C.O. with 2 DS0 channels being used in a DACS? Or am I totally messed up? What is the proper way a fractional T-1 gets delivered to a user via inter and intra-LATA? Thanks, Mike Foltz foltzmik@sgate.com 703-803-8361 ------------------------------ From: producer@pipeline.com (Judith Oppenheimer) Subject: Collect Call Business Date: 19 Apr 1994 14:10:26 -0400 Organization: The Pipeline Does anyone have any statistics regarding the market share breakdown among the carriers of the collect call business? Also, any idea of how much market share growth MCI attained with 1 800 COLLECT? And finally, is there an industry demographic breakdown of collect call service users (among all the carriers)? J. Oppenheimer Producer@pipeline.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 17:08:12 EST From: Alex Cena Subject: International Wireless Services Is anyone aware of recent (within the last year and a half) purchases of ownership (either complete, or partial) of wireless service providers in countries other than the U.S. If so, which countries or cities were covered, what price was paid, what percentage ownership was sold, and what population was covered by the wireless coverage or what was the subscriber base of the wireless carrier. If the wireless service did not have an existing base (i.e. a new service provider) I am still interested in as much information as possible. Alex M Cena, acena@lehman.com, Lehman Brothers ------------------------------ From: hst18a20@teetot.acusd.edu Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 14:24:24 PDT Subject: AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted Does anyone have any input they would like to share about the break-up of AT&T and the formation of the Baby Bells? What is your opinion on it? How did it affect the economy? What is its significance in American history? Thank you very much. Megan Kelleher University of San Diego hst18a20@teetot.acusd.edu ------------------------------ From: mnc@css.itd.umich.edu (Miguel Cruz) Subject: Occupied Territories Telecom Date: 19 Apr 1994 08:41:24 GMT Organization: University of Michigan ITD/User Services Does anyone know who will be providing telecom services in the occupied territories following an agreement with Israel for self-governance (or something like it; I don't want to get into the political questions)? My understanding was that projects were underway (on paper, anyway) to provide infrastructure independent of Israel's. Anyway, if anyone does have such information (preferably an email address of someone at the organization involved) please send it to me. I'm roughing it through Asia at the moment so I can't really read news (but oh, the stories I could tell about trying to place international calls), so direct email would be appreciated. Thanks. Miguel ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 17:29:12 EST From: Bradley_Allen_at_PPCFINAC@smtp-pub.prenhall.com Subject: PacBell Billing Exceptions to Cell, Page, Other WAC Subs (Please send all replies to Ulmo@Pyrzqxgl.Q.Net, as replies to the above sending address do not work.) My goal: Payphones calling my Cellular be a local 20 cent call. Result: Not yet; I just have to give people my 800 number. Details follow. Prompted by a descrepency in Pacific Bell operator price quotes and the claims of my LA Cellular Tel. Co. representative regarding pricing of PacBell->LACell calls, I called Pacific Bell Administration (811-9000 from PacBell phones). I asked for someone familiar with the price contracts between LA Cell and Pac Bell. Bob Duff returned my call. He explained in perfect detail and with great politeness the situation. My LA Cell rep was right. Companies such as cellular, pager, etc. may sign up with PacBell for "wide area calling". A whole NXX code (prefix) is required to be assigned to the company (he mentioned putting them into the access tandems). Then, everything within the (PacBell?) service area to that prefix is a "local" (i.e. free or near-free) call. The PacBell billing databases bill this correctly. However, there is a different database that both PacBell operators and payphones use to do pricing. This database knows an approximate "location" for each prefix, and then the price quotes are calculated on a formula according to mileage. The result is that operators are incorrect when quoting prices to certain cell and pager numbers within the service area, and payphones use this older system to charge the customers real coins. Bob explained that the database for billing is so large that it's difficult to update the database the operators use, but that Pacific Bell plans to fix this within a few years. Besides my obvious question of why don't they just plug the computers together and use the same database (I forgot to ask), I was happy to have the answer and decided I was ahead of the game because I knew what was up and have an 800 number anyway. Still waiting for the day that everything is flat-rate ... -Bradley Allen aka Ulmo P.S. Any companies offering 800 service that I can change my target at the touch of a button as often as I like (without the obnoxious per-minute air charge my cell phone gives me)? [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Cable & Wireless is one such provider of 800 service, and so far as I know, the only one allowing immediate change of forwarding numbers automatically by the subscriber. PAT] ------------------------------ From: bub@fid.morgan.com (Bubbette McLeod) Subject: Phoning Cuba Organization: Morgan Stanley & Co., New York, NY Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 21:39:08 GMT Does anyone know how to phone Cuba for a reasonable amount of money from the U.S.? Please reply via mail. bub@morgan.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Calls to most areas of Cuba (except for the United States Naval Base there) must be placed through the AT&T International Operator. The Naval Base can be dialed direct. PAT] ------------------------------ From: paul@corporate-staffing.com Subject: Pricing on Northern Telecom SL/1 Switch Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 20:15:07 PDT Organization: The Internet Access Company I'm looking to sell a Northern Telecom SL/1 Switch, and I need some advice as to its value. The following is an inventory of the switch, software, and cards. Any help would be much appreciated. Please contact me at paul@corporate-staffing.com. Thanks, Paul Costello NORTHERN TELECOM SL/1 SWITCH INVENTORY CARDS: QPC 163D QPC 187D QPC 190E QPC 197C QPC 219 QPC 33D QPC 362A QPC 376A QPC 41M QPC 425E QPC 43P QPC 450 QPC 450B QPC 451A QPC 452A QPC 478B QPC 574A QPC 61C QPC 71D QPC 74C QPC 80F QPC 82D QPC 84R SOFTWARE: NTI/00017009 MISCELLEANEOUS: BATTERY DISTRIBUTION BOX ABSOLYTE GNB BATTERY BACKUP DATE OF PURCHASE 12-85 Purchase Price $85,000 Located in Norwell, Massachusetts ------------------------------ From: Alan_York@mindlink.bc.ca (Alan York) Subject: Need TIE UMT-32 KSU Series 2 Info. Date: 20 Apr 94 01:07:58 GMT Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada I have just acquired a TIE UMT-32 KSU Series 2 KSU and a number of 10832 desk sets. Since there is no documentation with the system of course, can anyone advise to it capabilities etc. The KSU has 2 x CO cards and 3 x STU cards, a TSU card and a CPU card. So far I've figured out that it has eight incoming line, 12 station capacity. Thanks for an help. Al York Dynamic Datacorp People dynamic@mindlink.bc.ca Vancouver, B.C., Canada 604/294-9193 ------------------------------ From: rayw@research.otc.com.au (Ray Wong) Subject: X.25 Card Required Date: 20 Apr 1994 07:49:50 GMT Organization: Telstra Corporation Limited I am looking for a high performance X.25 card for a PC. The critical parameters are: 384 kbits/second and 200 packets/second mininum. The other requirements are: OS/2 and ISA bus support. I have tried a card made by Eicon but have not been able to achieve the packet rate required. Does anyone have any recommendations or suggestions? ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 23:26:00 -0400 From: ian easson Subject: IEEE Symposium on Planning and Design of Broadband Networks IEEE SYMPOSIUM ON PLANNING AND DESIGN OF BROADBAND NETWORKS Montebello, Quebec, Canada October 21 - 23rd, 1994 CALL FOR PARTICIPATION The first IEEE Symposium on Planning and Design of Broadband Networks will be held at Le Chateau Montebello, Montebello, Quebec, Canada on October 21 - 23rd, 1994. The purpose of this symposium is to provide an environment for the discussion and exchange of ideas concerning computer-aided planning and design techniques and tools for broadband networks. The symposium will include both invited and contributed talks, panel discussions, and demonstrations of broadband network planning and design tools. Abstracts of all presentations will be distributed at the symposium but no proceedings will be published. The symposium will address topics in the following areas: - Challenges in broadband network planning and design - Simulation methodologies and tools for planning and design of broadband networks - Tool applications and deployment case studies Please submit by June 15, 1994, 5 copies of the abstract of proposed talk or demo to the Technical Program Chairman: Professor Hussein Mouftah, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N0, Telephone: (613) 545-2934, Fax: (613) 545-6615 EMAIL: mouftahh@qucdn.queensu.ca For further information please contact: Ihor Gawdan, Symposium Chair, Bell Northern Research, P.O. Box 3511, Station C, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1Y 4H7, Telephone: (613) 763-9926, Fax: (613) 763-2976 EMAIL: igawdan@bnr.ca Technical Program Committee: Hussein Mouftah (Queen's U.) Marek Wernik (BNR) Victor Frost (U. Kansas) Robert Cahn (IBM) Treasurer: John Hopkins (BNR) Publicity: Ian Easson (BNR) IEEE Ottawa Chairperson: Ibrahim Gedeon Sponsors: IEEE BNR NT OCRI TRIO Ian Easson Bell-Northern Research easson@bnr.ca Usual disclaimers apply ------------------------------ From: oxenreid@chaos.cs.umn.edu Subject: Re: Source For T1 CSU/DSU? Organization: University of Minnesota, Twin Cities Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 21:55:23 GMT In freedman@jane.sas.upenn.edu (Avi Freedman) writes: > Does anyone know a good source for a T1 CSU/DSU? I need it to do full > T1, not fractional, and to have a v.35 cable. I was told to look for > a GDC 552A, but I assume any T1 CSU/DSU would work? ADC Kentrox. ATT. You may try this number, 800-985-8855. I do not work for them, I have not even called them myself. However, they have a nice ad in {Communications Week}. Datatech mostly deals in new/leased equipment. Another AS IS /WHERE IS is Metrocom 800-364.8838. Christopher G. Oxenreider Electronics Technician Sr. #include oxenreid@chaos.cs.umn.edu ------------------------------ From: pferris%mohawk.uucp@drd.com Reply-To: pferris%mohawk.uucp@drd.com Organization: Laughing Pines Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 07:12:26 -0600 Subject: Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? Fclark@deathstar.cris.com (Franclark) wrote to inquire about such a combination. Hi Frank, Here's a not-so-elegant method I came up with. You might be able to adapt/adopt it: Panasonic makes a series of speaker-phone/answering machines called "Easa-Phone"'s. I believe there are _several_ variations and models (2-line, 1-line, # of memories, etc, etc.). They are all DTMF remote controllable. Places like Circuit City, Service Merhandise, J&D, etc.) will give you a selection. There's even a model (or maybe several now) that will forward calls to a pager -- supposedly forwards the DTMF the caller enters to your pager service... can't vouch for this. However, here's the good news... ALL of the Easa-Phone's I've seen have a "Transfer" feature. All this does is to rattle your cage at a 2nd number after a message has been recorded. Here's how I exploit that with my pager -- also alpha-numeric, but a moot point for this trick! Note: The TRANSFER memory can hold, I believe, something like a 13-14 digit number, so there's (barely) room for the PAUSE character, etc. Program the number to TRANSFER to be your pager _AND_ a PAUSE character or two (to buy time while your paging service rings and answers!) _AND_ your answering machine's call back number (home, work, whatever). As a help to distinguish between my answering machine calling me from home vs. my wife, et al; I program in the FULL number and spaces which no one else would normally both with from within the same area code, e.g.: 999-999-9999 (on your pager you can create the "-"'s by hitting a "*" with most services). To me, that's not ambiguous - only my answering machine (so far) has told me to "call home" and uses an area code to do it ... no area code means it's likely a live human bean. The pitfall: You don't know before you call your answering machine who called, but just that someone did. The machine will attempt calling the TRANSFER number (your pager), I believe, three times. This isn't a big deal to me -- I'd rather get paged three times with that number than not at all. Set pager to vibrate/one chirp if this "feature" annoys you. I think of it as cheap insurance, but you may consider it a bug! Probably this'd only be good for folks with direct dialed pagers. Pagers using PIN's, etc; may call for too long a TRANSFER number to be programmed (possibly you can daisy chain memories, etc..!!). Good points: The world doesn't know your pager number, or even necessarily that their call is ultimately going to activate your pager. _You_ decide how quickly to response. "Just got back to the office..." vs. "Just got your message...". I like to wait at least a couple of minutes so folks don't think I live at home monitoring the answering machine on the local speaker! The Easa-Phones have a good VOX circuit in them, if the caller is answering machine phobic then and hangs up (no msg), then there's NO forward to bother you (to retrieve a null msg!). I know this is somewhat southern engineered, but it meets my needs! And for the cost of a otherwise _EXCELLENT_ answering machine, it's the most cost effective solution I've come up with. WRT: Software - I love Ex Machina's "Notify!" - alpha paging software. There are others. > Thank you in advance for any information. Yer welcome. Pete Ferris, N5KBD pferris%mohawk.uucp@drd.com ------------------------------ From: atoscano@attmail.com (A Alan Toscano) Date: 19 Apr 94 20:18:37 GMT Subject: Re: 800-555-1212 is Not Southwestern Bell In message , PAT writes: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Well, 'AT&T Communications' is > not the same company as 'AT&T' -- at least not on paper, and I do > think SWBT is the manager of the service for AT&T Communications. > Do I stand corrected? Back in the '60s and early '70s when I was growing up in suburban Chicagoland, calls from our region to 800 555-1212 (we didn't dial 1+ back then), reached the SW Bell central office in East Saint Louis, IL. I presume this service was staffed by SW Bell employees, under some arrangement with AT&T Long Lines. Since that time, SW Bell ceded its Illinois territory to the late Illinois Bell, as the Bell System redrew its operating companies' boundries to conform with state lines. (FYI: At about the same time, SW Bell picked up the West Texas territory of the late Mountain States Telephone, and the former Indiana Bell acquired Illinois Bell's Indiana territory.) Subsequently, Divestiture further affected the inter-relationships of Bell companies and their (former) parent. If SW Bell, has kept its 800 DA operation (under contract to AT&T), it has almost certainly moved it, in order for it to remain within the SW Bell geographic domain. I asked my sister (who still lives near Chicago) to check into this for me, and she reports that every inquiry which she made about their location was answered with "A Midwestern City." This may, or may not, be E. St. Louis. From here in Texas, my 800 DA calls have been answered in Chipley, FL for many years. (They have no qualm about saying where they are.) So, to partially answer PAT's question, I think we can safely conclude that ... At a minimum, Southwestern Bell "hosted" an 800 Directory Assistance Operating Center several years ago, in a building it no longer owns. SW Bell may or may not operate such a center someplace today, but if it does, it's under a contract to AT&T, since AT&T has, to date, kept the 800 DA "franchise." We know that there's at least one 800 DA center operating in "A Midwest- ern City," (possibly by SW Bell,) and at least one in Southern Bell's territory (Chipley, FL). I wouldn't be surprised to learn that there are one or two more 800 DA centers in other regions of the US. A Alan Toscano - atoscano@attmail.com - atoscano@speedway.net P O Box 741982 - Houston, TX 77274-1982 - 713 415-9262 ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #178 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa00728; 20 Apr 94 8:34 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA08230; Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:46:36 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA08221; Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:46:34 CDT Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:46:34 CDT From: TELECOM Moderator Message-Id: <9404200746.AA08221@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #179 TELECOM Digest Wed, 20 Apr 94 02:46:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 179 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Telecommunications Development in Asia (Cedric Hui) Re: Neat Tricks! (kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net) Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet (John Hall) Re: Internet and the Info Highway (Garrett Wollman) Re: Operator Assisted Sent-Paid Coin Calls (Ken Weaverling) Re: GSM and Airbags (Alex Veller) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: chui@netcom.com (Cedric Hui) Subject: Re: Telecommunications Development in Asia Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 06:36:05 GMT Here is some information on Hongkong Telecom. It is not meant to be a technical reference on the HK telecommunications infrastructure nor a objective view on the current communication policy and choice of technology deployment in the territory. The information is based on the HongKong Telecom's publication "Hong Kong - The Communications Hub of Asia". I believe it was published in 91 or 92, definitely before 1993. Hope the information is usefully to you and of interest to others, and I am looking forward to your paper on the telecommunications development in Asia. Company background: The Territory's domestic and international carrier. Publicly listed in New York, London as well as on the local stock exchange. About half of the public float, or 10% of the company's equity, is held by American investors. The two primary shareholders are Britain's Cable and Wireless (57.5%) and China International Trade and Investment Corporation (17.5%) CITIC is one of China's premier vehicles for overseas investment. The communications hub of Asia: According to the Information contains in the publication, of the 600 multinational companies that have regional headquarters in Asia, more than half are active in Hong Kong and nearly 500 use the territory as their Asian telecommunications hub. HK Telecom's annual investment on capital projects amounts to US$300-400 million and all the major fibre trunks that traverse Asia pass thru HK, providing both the capacity and the diversity that multinationals seek in a regional hub and those fibre links are backed up by one of the Asia's largest satellite earth stations with 10 dishes. Almost 200 International Private Leases Circuits (IPLCs) link HK Telecom customers with their offices or business partners in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen at speeds up to 64K bps. The number of IPLCs between HK and China is growing at around 50% a year. HK Telecom has forged strong ties with both national and provincial telecommunications authorities in the PRC. Some figures: The territory has nearly three million telephone lines; one for every two people. One resident in 10 has a pager. One in 25 a mobile phone. Nearly 200,000 fax lines (second only to Japan in fax penetration). The network is all digital. Local calls are free (residential and commercial). HK people make 11 million overseas telephone or fax calls a month, approximately half of them to China. International Direct Dailing is available to more than 200 countries and to more than 1,000 cities in China. (China traffic is growing at an annual rate of 35%). Services: Datapak: an X.25 based public data network supporting transmission at up to 64Kbps and a digital data service that offers dedicated circuits at speeds up to T3. Datapak International extends the domestic X.25 network to 175 public data networks in 84 countries, providing access to thousands of international messaging and information services. Value-added options such as Call Waiting, Conference Call or Do Not Disturb. Citinet (Centrex). Paging, cellular and CT2 services are licensed but subject to competition; multiple vendors are active in each sector. SUREFAX provides auto redial, auto resend and broadcast calls, comprehensive call tracking and accounting for high-volume fax users. HK Telecom's sole franchise for the domestic telephone service ends in 1995, when limited competition is expected to emerge, while its international valued-added services are already deregulated and have become intensely competitive. Sister company HK Telecom CSL operates one of the largest cellular telephone networks in the territory. It offers a unique roaming agreements that enable customers to use their portable phone in over 100 roaming destinations in China. International private leased circuits at speeds up to 2 Mbps between HK and 24 counties and is the dominant supplier into China. (no specific detail given) Direct optical fibre links with China. The cable between HK and Guangzhou can carry up to 47,000 voice channels simultaneously, while a 565 Mbps cable links HK with Shenzhen and connects to similar cable from Shanghai to Guangzhou. Newly introduced service: ISDN, VPN, GMDS, FNA and Banwidth on Demand services. A domestic frame relay service designed for LANs is also available ATM and SONET is under testing and are expected to become HK Telecom's core network technologies during the 1990s. Others: FMit: Asia's only comprehensive outsourcing service for users of private telecommunication network. Tariff: HK Telecom claims that following the recent tariff reductions agreed between the company and the HK government, it is cheaper to call every country in the world from HK than the other way round. The tariff differential can be as high as 30%. No comparison numbers were given though. ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Neat Tricks! Reply-To: kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net From: sanctum!kris@uunet.UU.NET (Kris) Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 23:47 EDT Glen Roberts writes: > PROTECT YOURSELF WITH THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE'S TELEMARKETING TRICK [...] > Why not use it to protect your privacy? Get your second line setup by > the phone company that way, place all your out-going calls on it and > bam no body can return call or redial your number. Yeah, the phone > company will probably tell you they can't do that for you. Tell them > to call 1-312-670-4113 as proof that it can be done. I don't agree with the idea that this may be an "intentional" call-back blocker. When I dial on our (old, outdated) PBX and hit 9 qto get an outside line, I actually get an *actual* *outside* *line*. Hitting 0 gives you the NYNEX operator, 00 gives AT&T operator, and you can even play with * codes. CNID blocking codes give you an almost instant "this number is not equipped to receive incoming calls". What I am saying is that this is a common arrangement with PBX systems. The "number" the telemarketers are calling out on probably does not accept incoming calls (it isn't even a "number" by that definition). A more modern ROLM CBX system (all digital, dials itself after you dial on the keypad, etc, etc) calling to one of the tracer 800 numbers gives you yet another fake "number". > Also, here's another way to block caller-id. Dial 10288EEE-NNNN where > EEE is your exchange and NNNN is the number. For example, from my > home, if I call the surveillance hotline: (708) 356-9646... by dialing > "356-9646" Caller ID gets my home phone. Yet, if I dial"10288356-9646" > it comes in as out of area (yeah and I probably get billed the same as > calling long distance). Not in all areas! National CNID is trying to correct this, and it may be fixed in most "hip" local telcos. If you can receive calls via AT&T (using the 10288 code) with caller-ID on them you can usually receive them with caller-ID on them even with this method. The tried-and-true method is to use a Mom & Pop 10-XXX code or 800 number (which presumably wouldn't be suitably equipped, but good luck finding one that doesn't rent lines from a major prime), or using a PBX. With a PBX they will get the famous fake calling "number", but dialing it will give you the error message regarding "no incoming calls" or just a constant ringing. Note that using AT&T through their 800 number won't win you much because 800 numbers always have ANI on them (and ANI is the big daddy of CNID). Have fun. This stuff is lots of fun. Kris kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net uunet.uu.net!paladin!sanctum!kris ------------------------------ From: john@pixel.kodak.com (John Hall) Subject: Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet Organization: Eastman Kodak Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 16:33:49 GMT In article Paul Robinson writes: > Internet White Pages". Someone started collecting E-Mail addresses > and names for people from public messages, probably those posted on > newsgroups and heavily circulated mailing lists and put them in > alphabetical order. > ... > trying to avoid being judgemental here, because I don't see it as that > big a problem. My E-Mail address is not my street address and doesn't > tell you where I live or what I do or how much money I make or how > educated I am. But this practice does annoy some people and I wanted > ... > Here's some questions to think about: What do you think about the > practice? Is it right or wrong and why? Does this impact people's > security? Are there risks involved if your E-Mail address becomes > well known or if it is misprinted in a published "white pages"? Are > there other considerations to think about? I agree with Paul. As long as the names and addresses are gleaned from public messages, no harm is done. Anybody who posts their address publicly, whether in a newsgroup or on the local supermarket notice board has no grounds for complaint about what others do with that information. On the other hand, if he's scanning headers of mail messages that are routed through his machine, or worse, reading packets that fly by on a net backbone, that's slimy. Rather like opening people's mailboxes to read the return addresses on their mail, or hooking a pen recorder up to their phone line. John Hall - john@kodak.com ------------------------------ From: wollman@ginger.lcs.mit.edu (Garrett Wollman) Subject: Re: Internet and the Info Highway Date: 19 Apr 1994 22:54:18 GMT Organization: MIT Laboratory for Computer Science In article , wrote: > Does anyone have any thoughts on how the Internet will relate to the > Information Highway? Very little (probably less than it does now). The so-called ``Information Superhighway'' is, for the most part, the biggest load of unmitigated bull**** which this country has seen in quite some time. From what I've seen and read of the public statements of so-called ``Industry Leaders'' in recent years, the entire Superhypeway is little more than an attempt by telephone and cable companies to get regulators to permit them to waste untold billions of ratepayers' money on projects of highly questionable utility or customer value. What the cable companies are interested in, for the most part, is one-way saturation of customers' homes with a huge amount of garbage beyond even what currently passes for television programming in this country, most if not all of which is produced by companies which are majority owned by the cable operators themselves. There are a few welcome exceptions, but by and large, this appears to be the pattern. All you have to do is read some of the testimony of the cable operators corporate officers about how they couldn't /possibly/ let customers actually attach their own equipment to ``The Network'', and it begins to take on a somewhat more sinister tone. At one television industry symposium, a speaker recounted his conversation with the managers of one of those new, digitally- compressed ``500-channel'' systems currently under testing. The speaker had asked this person what they were using all that extra capacity for; the manager replied, ``Well, we're currently running /Basic Instinct/ at five-minute intervals.'' The goals of the telephone industry are somewhat more difficult to discern, but most of their statements seem to revolve around a desire for de-regulation of their business environment, while simultaneously being allowed to continue to own most of the services for which they are primary providers. (I think the Rochester Tel proposal is quite a bit more forward-thinking than most of the ones I've seen lately.) Unfortunately, so long as they are unwilling to give up on their current business model, I think any attempt at de-regulation would result in a disaster of the first order. The telephone system does have one extremely significant advantage: the phone network is already two-way. This puts it miles ahead of most television systems, which are designed for delivery of huge volumes of data in one direction only. Although the phone system is of significantly lower capacity, it is much closer to being able to handle the needs of one-to-one and many-to-one communications than cable technology is. (You only need to compare the fraction of today's Internet that is connected together by telco technology as compared to cable...) The Clinton Administration's current rhetoric leaves me wondering whether anyone in the White House actually understands the fundamental principle of networking technology (perhaps they've been listening too much to cable and telco executives?). This principle is basic to why the Internet is as sucessful as it is today, and it's also fundamental to the misunderstanding that the ``Communications Industry'' appears to have. I generally express it, somewhat ungrammatically, as ``Bits is bits.'' That is to say, the most important and fundamental fact about digital communications networks is that they really /don't care/ what sort of information you are using them to transmit, whether it be digitized voice, video, text, exciting synthetic-aperture radar images from the Shuttle, encrypted mail, or random garbage you happen to be picking up on your microwave antenna. When you understand this principle, then you can quickly come to an understanding of some of the other chasms separating the Internet and the Superhypeway. Fundamentally, it simply doesn't make sense to build a network capable of delivering five hundred channels of television, two channels of voice without video, and one rather slow channel of data, when the average home has three televisions, 1.5 VCRs, and a single phone line. By contrast, in the Internet community, we have developed a tradition of (as Van Jacobson put it) ``You get what you pay for.'' In this typical home, you will never need more than more than five channels of video and one of voice, and it makes sense to permit the occupants to turn off a TV set and use the extra capacity to download a book from the public library, or scan the 'net for distant ``radio stations''. In the Internet community, researchers have also made significant strides in modeling one-to-one communications as a special case of many-to-many communications; our networks of the future should be designed to work well for the many-to-many case, and everything will win automatically, whereas the plans which the telephone and cable companies currently seem to be pushing concentrate on keeping the same model of operation that their executives are used to dealing with. This is a fundamental mistake, and continuing down this path will result in an very undemocratic and high-cost-to-entry information marketplace, which is clearly undesirable. Another significant difference between the Internet and the rest of the networking world is a fundamental shift in charging models. When I get my connection from NEARnet or AlterNet or PSI (or any one of a hundred other providers), what I pay for is NOT the service of ferrying my data from point A to point B. Rather, what I am paying for is access to all the other customers of all the other providers, at a certain specific line capacity. Those other customers in turn are paying their providers for the ability to talk to me (and lots of other people). This fundamental difference in what one buys from an Internet service provider as opposed to a telephone company or a cable operator has enabled the Internet to develop its now well-known settlement-free conectivity and charging model, which SIGNIFICANTLY reduces the tremendous amounts of overhead involved in accounting, billing, settlements, and collection which are inherent in the way telcos and cable companies do business. This model also has the substantial privacy advantage that my Internet service provider does not insinuate itself into the financial relationships I have with other entities, in the way that telephone and cable companies do. If Bill wants to sell me a data product, then we work out means of payment, execute the transaction, and I have my data, Bill has his money, and my service provider is none the wiser. If, on the other hand, Bill wants to sell me a video product, then I have to convince my cable operator to do business with Bill, then they buy the product from Bill, and I buy Bill's product from them, at an inflated price. Of course, if my cable operator is TCI, then they won't buy anything from Bill unless he is really their agent anyway, so our transaction never gets off the ground. The solution, it seems to me, is something that we need to work long and hard at developing, because whatever we end up with, we'll likely be stuck with it for at least the next twenty to fifty years. My preference would be to see the vertical de-integration of both telephone and cable companies, somewhat along the lines of Roch Tel's trial balloon. To wit, the telephone and cable companies should be de-regulated, with the significant proviso that they must first make a choice as to whether they want to be in the connectivity business or the service business, and divest themselves completely of the one they don't wish to concentrate on. Then, in each market, when a competitive environment can be said to exist for each sort of business, that business would be de-regulated. Only under these circumstances can we expect to have a true Information Superhighway to live up to the hype and qhopes of business, individuals, and their government. Garrett A. Wollman wollman@lcs.mit.edu formerly known as wollman@emba.uvm.edu ------------------------------ From: weave@hopi.dtcc.edu (Ken Weaverling) Subject: Re: Operator Assisted Sent-Paid Coin Calls Date: 19 Apr 1994 09:18:04 -0400 Organization: Delaware Technical & Community College In article , Paul Robinson wrote: > I'm guessing here, but what it probably refers to is a historical > issue. The coin holding tray (the part that keeps coins until the > call supervises, not to be confused with the fare collection box) on > pay telephones in the U.S. can't hold more than three dollars, I have > been told. If an overseas call costs more than that, the operator has > to process it manually. This reminds me of a time about 20 years ago when I was about 15 and had the hots for a girl in England. I called her constantly, so my parents eventually forbade me to ever call her again! :-) So I'd save up money, buy two rolls of quarters, and head for a pay phone. Then one lucky day I found a "busted" pay phone that, when loaded with $2.50 (what I thought was the max it could hold before collecting), when the operator "collected" the money, it'd fall through to the coin return! It went like this. The first three minutes cost $5.65, and each minute thereafter was $1.15. The operator began by asking me to deposit $2.50 and then she'd place the call to see if the party answered on the other end. When they answered, she'd ask them to hold, then collect the $2.50 (it'd go to the coin return for some reason), ask me to put in another $2.50, collect that (back to the coin return), and then finally 65 cents (which *did* drop into the coin box). After six minutes, an operator came on again, and asked me to deposit $3.35 for the three minutes overtime I had. I'd deposit $2.50, it'd fall through to the coin return, then 85 cents, which would drop into the coin box. Needless to say, it was a gold mine for me. I talked about an hour a day for a week. Until, as is usual with clueless persons, I got greedy. One day I was speaking for about two hours when a supervisor came on the line. The conversation went like this. Supervisor: Do you realize that you have been on the line for over two hours. Me: Yes, I have a lot of quarters Supervisor: Pretty fascinating, since, by my calculations, you would have already spent over $150 on this call ... Me: My daddy is rich, what can I say ... Supervisor: What is REALLY fascinating is that the coin box can't hold that much money. Did you know that? Me: Pretty stupid of me, looking back, since I went back the same time as usual the next day, and made a call again. This time, the pay phone was fixed. Of course, the telco could have figured out easily my calling pattern and been waiting for me. I'm sure a "crime of opportunity" would not be a valid defense for a kid. I never phreaked before, I just stumbled on it. I also never even heard of red boxes back then. I wonder if the telco thought I had one or something. Regardless, they fixed it, so they figured out the problem quickly. But I am curious. What type of fault could exist that would only cause $2.50 to fall back to the coin return? Anything less collected into the coin box as it should. This was a standard Bell armored pay phone, I believe it was touch-tone (memory isn't THAT good...) Ken Weaverling weave@dtcc.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Forty years ago when I was a kid, pay phones did not have trap doors on the coin return slot as they do now. It was quite easy back then to wiggle a bent coat hanger up there and trip the collection table to the left (by pushing upward from underneath on the right side) with the piece of wire before it occurred to the oper- ator to electrically dump it in the other direction (into the box). So if a long distance call cost $1.50 and we had three quarters between us, those three quarters would go in (bong bong bong!) then while the coat hanger was busy up the slot retrieving the same three quarters to use over again we would plead with the operator, "Just a minute please! I am looking for more change! Nimble fingers could maneuver that piece of wire and get the money back usually within five to ten seconds of its deposit. Once in a second time, we would *try* to retrieve it again before the operator dumped it, not always successfully. From certain payphones downtown in the Chicago-Wabash CO, the operator handling the call for whatever reason was unable to return the coins in the event of no-answer or busy condition. To get the coins back she would tell you to hold on a second; you'd hear a click as she connected to some other operator who answered saying 'Wabash trunking' or words to that effect; your operator would then say "Return on xxxxx" where xxxxx was some circuit number. In your ear you would hear an absolutely horrid 'CLACK' -- a loud noise for a second or two, and the money would fall into the return slot. For the longest time after we generally had the one-slot, trap-door style payphones here there remained two or three of the old-style three slot (5/10/25 cent) phones with no trap-door on them in the lobby of the Insurance Exchange Building. Guess where we always went to make payphone calls! :) PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 09:52:29 +0200 From: alexa.veller@fundp.ac.be (A. Veller) Subject: Re: GSM and Airbags Organization: Cullen In article , Stewart Fist <100033.2145@ CompuServe.COM> wrote: > It is headlined "Mobile phone set off airbag" and the story is about a > couple of instances where (it is claimed) GSM handsets have set off > airbags in luxury cars in Europe. These "stories" have even been circulated in a BELGACOM publication in Belgium (BELGACOM is our national telecoms operator). GSM telephones alledgedly also interfere with some types of hearing aides. > [...] BMW, VW and Mercedes are also reported to have had airbag > blow-outs with GSM, but they also all deny it. There was also some reference in the press to the Renault Safrane. As to whether this is a true story or an urban myth, I wouldn't know. But in an article I recently read (don't remember the magazine though) the journalists reported that the issue was being tested and that no correlation had been found between the expanding airbags and GSM phones. In controlled tests airbags were not triggered when the phone was used. So its possible that airbags trigger for no reason, but it could be something else that is causing this (or the airbag technology is just not up to standard). Note that GSM phones are still very expensive, you'll find them almost exclusively in luxury cars, which all have standard airbags. The statistical chance that an airbag blows up and a GSM phone is present is therefore automatically high. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #179 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa17201; 21 Apr 94 12:31 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA04037; Thu, 21 Apr 94 07:45:44 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA04028; Thu, 21 Apr 94 07:45:43 CDT Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 07:45:43 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404211245.AA04028@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #180 TELECOM Digest Thu, 21 Apr 94 07:45:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 180 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service (alleycat5@aol.com) Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service (Barton F. Bruce) Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service (Bud Couch) Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections (Al Varney) Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections (alleycat5@aol.com) Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections (Aaron Leonard) Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections (Ken Germann) Re: Pricing on Northern Telecom SL/1 Switch (Barton F. Bruce) Information Superhypeway & Garrett A. Wollman (George Gilder) FAX From Hell? (Bill Campbell) Feature Group B (Toll-Free Telecommuting) (Matt Holdrege) Lucy Waits For Call (Carl Moore) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: alleycat5@aol.com (AlleyCat5) Subject: Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service Date: 20 Apr 1994 20:57:02 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , mike_foltz@sgate.com writes: > Is there a difference in how the fractional T-1 is delivered to a user > whether it is inter or intra-LATA? As and example if I want a 128Kbps > fractional T-1 is it a Tail Circuit from the C.O. where my DSU/CSU is > slaved to a 128Kpbs reference from the C.O. or is it a T-1 from the > C.O. with 2 DS0 channels being used in a DACS? Or am I totally > messed up? What is the proper way a fractional T-1 gets delivered to > a user via inter and intra-LATA? Most RBOCs do not offer fractional T1. You end up with a whole T1 on the tail circuits linked to a 128 in the Interexchange carrier POP. For this reason it is often a good idea to work out an arrangement, often with the IXC, to allow sharing of the T1 tails among multiple applications. ------------------------------ From: Barton.Bruce@camb.com Subject: Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service Organization: Digital Equipment Computer Users Society Date: 20 Apr 94 21:28:08 -0400 Organization: Cambridge Computer Associates, Inc. In article , mike_foltz@sgate.com writes: > Is there a difference in how the fractional T-1 is delivered to a user > whether it is inter or intra-LATA? As and example if I want a 128Kbps > fractional T-1 is it a Tail Circuit from the C.O. where my DSU/CSU is > slaved to a 128Kpbs reference from the C.O. or is it a T-1 from the > C.O. with 2 DS0 channels being used in a DACS? Or am I totally > messed up? What is the proper way a fractional T-1 gets delivered to > a user via inter and intra-LATA? Actually quite possibly YES there IS a difference, and watch out! Ignore the clocking or whatever you are worrying about, that is not the issue. Here in NYNEX land, they do have 2 fractional T1 offerings. T 1/2 and T 1/3 (not what they call them but what they are). They give you 12 or 8 DS0s. They could care less about keeping the individual DS0s in sync! Each could take a different path through the DACS network and be delayed a different number of 1/8000 of a second. Makes not a twit of difference if those are individual voice channels. If you plan to run FT1 data at Nx56/64, that can kill you, and even if it works day one, there is NO guarantee that it will continue to do so. If you use end equipment that uses BONDING on the individual DS0, all will work. But a typical T1 CSU/DSU does NOT. A typical LEC ignoring customer needs, IMHO. In fact they KNOW what the customer wants, but probably KNOW full well that provisioning it and maintaining with their in place equipment and staff and record-keeping/ ordering systems is a DISASTER waiting to happen, and won't touch it because they feel they don't have to! Note WELL that they have had to do it themselves internally probably at considerable HASSLE for their 384kb frame relay ports they offer from the nearest DACS, not from the f/r switch. The IXCs, on the other hand, DO support FT1 speeds (or some semi- reasonable subset of possible speeds), and the tail ckts are full T1s priced as such. They WILL keep your bits together. ------------------------------ From: bud@kentrox.com (Bud Couch) Subject: Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service Organization: ADC Kentrox Industries, Inc. Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 20:19:15 GMT In article mike_foltz@sgate.com writes: > Is there a difference in how the fractional T-1 is delivered to a user > whether it is inter or intra-LATA? As and example if I want a 128Kbps No. > fractional T-1 is it a Tail Circuit from the C.O. where my DSU/CSU is > slaved to a 128Kpbs reference from the C.O. or is it a T-1 from the Let's use a different data rate, like 168 Kbps (3X56). A Basic Rate ISDN DSU *could* be used to supply 128Kbps as the signal, but you are asking about Fractional T1. > C.O. with 2 DS0 channels being used in a DACS? Or am I totally A Fractional T1 line uses the full T1 (1.544 Mbps) as a transport mechanism, regardless of the network provider. Sprint or PacBell; both use *standard* T1 lines. This sounds ridiculous, but it's a lot like the "fax phenomenon". The technology is so ubiquitous for situations which require it, that it's dirt cheap to use in other situations for which it appears overkill. The DACS at the network termination pulls out your couple of lines and combines them with other channels onto a T1 heading toward your opposite end. On any long (>500 mi.) connection, it would not be unusual to be muxed and/or reassembled five or six times. Of course, since this is a digital signal, none of this hurts anything. Any more questions about Fractional T1, feel free to e-mail me. The last product I worked on was our D-Serv, a fractional T1 DSU. If I can't answer your questions, I'm sure that I can find someone here who can. Bud Couch - ADC Kentrox When correctly viewed, everything is lewd. bud@kentrox.com (192.228.59.2) -Tom Lehrer ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 15:14:00 CDT From: varney@uscbu.att.com Subject: Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections Organization: AT&T Network Systems In article meadogc@poers1.dnet.dupont. com (Greg C. Meador) writes: > Can anyone tell me what the theoretical limit is on number of > connections or concurrent data transmissions that a T1 and a T3 line > will support? It is difficult to answer a "theoretical" question when terms such as "numbers of connections" are not spelled out. A T1 line operates at 1,544,000 bits/second (1.544 Mbit/s) using a bipolar (or ternary) line code. For switched and most private line applications, the T1 line is connected to a Terminal (Channel Bank, PBX, etc.) that "groups" the bits into DS-1 frames of 24 8-bit channels. The frames are repeated 8000 times/second. For typical uses, this gives you 24 voice or analog modem connections. A T3 line operates at 44,736,000 bits/second (44.736 Mbit/s) using a bipolar (or ternary) line code. For some applications, the T3 line is connected directly to a Terminal (Channel Bank or PBX) that "groups" the bits into DS-3 frames of 28 DS-1 signals for a total of 672 channels. More commonly, a Multiplexer is used to divide the DS-3 frames into 28 DS-1 signals. These DS-1 signals are then connected to the PBX, etc. DS-3 frames also repeat 8000 times/second. For typical uses, this gives you 672 voice or analog modem connections. Many current "T3" users are actually using DS-3 signals over optical fiber, operating as an OC-1 interface. A T1 or T3 line is operated as a duplex facility, so these connections are 2-way connections. Several vendors offer equipment that will use the individual 8-bit channels to carry two voice calls, using a "compression" method called 32K ADPCM. In this mode, it will not support analog modem calls over about 4800 baud. In theory, much higher bandwidth compression of voice (not analog modems) is possible, with a corresponding increase in expense in equipment and a decrease in quality. Individual channels can also be operated in a "56K" or "64K" bit/second data mode, where the user supplies directly the 7 or 8 bits to use in a particular channel. Various means, including ISDN, can be used to interface with these data modes. No modems are required but other equipment is needed (a DSU, for example). Also, if large amounts of "bursty" digital communication is occurring, it may make sense to operate the channels as X.25 data channels. This is a packet data method that supports multiple data "connections" over a shared channel. For example, eight users running interfacing to X.25 at 19,200 bps could share a single channel. With many lower-speed data applications, the sharing of the channel will be almost invisible. Such mechanisms are used by large data networks to aggregate large numbers of interfaces over faster facilities. If 8-to-1 multiplexing works for the application(s), the theoretical capacity of a T1 line would be 8*24 or 192 X.25 connections. A T3 would handle 8*672 or 5376 X.25 connections. Many users of T1 (and especially T3) lines divide up the channels and allocate some to voice/modem applications and some to data (Switched 56K or X.25 or ....) applications. Last, let me add this regarding your "theoretical" request. Current experimental implementations of 13 Kbps encoded speech (GSM) and some tests at half that rate are going on in the cellular community. This would suggest that a T1 with all 24 channels packed with about 12 Kbps "sub-channels" could handle 5 conversations per channel or 120 conversations. A T3 using this could handle 3360 conversations. If you are willing to live with artificial sounding vocoders, 2-3 Kbps per conversation is possible -- T1 in the 500 conversation area and T3 around 15000 conversations. Quality? Probably not acceptable -- but this is just theory, right? Al Varney ------------------------------ From: alleycat5@aol.com (AlleyCat5) Subject: Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections Date: 20 Apr 1994 20:50:07 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , meadogc@poers1.dnet.dupont.com (Greg C. Meador) writes: > Can anyone tell me what the theoretical limit is on number of > connections or concurrent data transmissions that a T1 and a T3 line > will support? There is no theoretical limit on the number of concurrent data transmissions. It depends on the speed of the transmission. A T1 is 1.544 MBPS and a T3 is about 28 T1s. If you are willing to live with one bit a week in your data transmission you can have a whole lot of them. If you want 1,544,000 bits per second (or there abouts) then you can have only one of them on a T1. ------------------------------ From: leonard@telcom.arizona.edu (Aaron Leonard) Subject: Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections Date: 20 Apr 1994 17:23:48 GMT Organization: University of Arizona Telecommunications Reply-To: Leonard@Arizona.EDU In article , meadogc@poers1.dnet.dupont. com (Greg C. Meador) writes: > Can anyone tell me what the theoretical limit is on number of > connections or concurrent data transmissions that a T1 and a T3 line > will support? If you're talking about virtual connections over a connectionless packet switched network (such as TCP), the answer is that there is NO theoretical limit on the number of simultaneous connections that a line of any speed will support. Consider that, if keepalives aren't on, an idle TCP connection sends NO data. Therefore, an infinite number of TCP connections can be supported on an arbitrarily slow line. Now, as to whether there is a PRACTICAL limit on the number of ACTIVE concurrent sessions ... the answer is, sure there is, and what that number is depends. Aaron Leonard (AL104), University of Arizona Network Operations, Tucson AZ 85721 ------------------------------ From: keng@skypoint.net (Ken Germann) Subject: Re: T1 & T3 Lines Number of Connections Date: 20 Apr 1994 13:43:50 -0500 Organization: SkyPoint Communications, Inc. In article , Greg C. Meador wrote: > Can anyone tell me what the theoretical limit is on number of > connections or concurrent data transmissions that a T1 and a T3 line > will support? 56k = 5.6k/s = DS0 T1 = 1.5 MB/s = DS1 = 24 DS0s T3 = 45 MB/s = DS3 = 30 DS1s Ken Germann SkyPoint keng@skypoint.com "Together We Stand; Divided We Fall" Founding Member of the Minnesota Coalition for Internet Accessibility. Voice: (612)475-2959 MCIA Modem: (612)473-5646. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 22:59 EST From: George Gilder <0004091174@mcimail.com> Subject: Information Superhypeway & Garrett A. Wollman I found the Wollman notes on the Information Superhighway interesting and provocative, but if he drives out looking only in the rear view mirror, where cable companies are still pumping one way garbage, he is going to crash into the Charles. The bottom four channels of every cable are currently devoted to upstream traffic and are used for that purpose in communications between cable headends. Every cable amplifier can be rendered a duplex device by a simple adjustment. Meanwhile, the phone companies do have extensive switching capability but it is all narrowband and thus irrelevant to superhighways. On the other hand, as soon as cable plant is upgraded for two-way digital communications it becomes a superhighway capable of as much as three gigabits per second communications in each direction. This cable advantage derives from the requirements of transmitting complex analog video and audio in a combination of AM and FM forms at between 40 and 50 decibels. With 50 decibels in new cable plant, it is possible to send as many as 8 bits per hertz. I agree that cable cannot supply highways alone. But if cable and telcos were permitted to collaborate in their own regions, the superhighway could be built over the next five years. Without cable, it cannot be built in less than 15 years. Broadband highways obviate most the the dangers that you cite. If you have a broadband system -- gigahertz of bandwidth to every home -- there are no advantages in converging conduits and content. Every content supplier will want to be on every conduit and every conduit supplier will want to carry as much content as possible. Thus an information superhighway would necessarily resemble the Internet more than a current cable system does. The monopoly model works only in narrowband systems. The information superhighway is anything but hype. It will totally change our economy and culture, dissolving most vertical structures and architectures and empowering individuals around the globe, the largest benefits flowing to the currently impoverished. As Andy Grove as put it: "During the last decade the PC overthrew the vertical structure of the computer business. Over the next decade it will overthrow the vertical structure of the communications business." ------------ [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: George Gilder's article "Life After Television, Updated" is in my queue of articles waiting for release at this time and I intend to send it out as a special mailing in the next day or so. I think everyone will enjoy it as much as I did. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Barton.Bruce@camb.com (Barton F. Bruce) Subject: Re: Pricing on Northern Telecom SL/1 Switch Date: 20 Apr 94 21:08:50 -0400 Organization: Cambridge Computer Associates, Inc. In article , paul@corporate-staffing.com writes: > I'm looking to sell a Northern Telecom SL/1 Switch, and I need some > advice as to its value. The following is an inventory of the switch, > software, and cards. Any help would be much appreciated. There are many dealers that make a market in such equipment and that have ads in the ONE industry publicaton that is almost exclusively telecom dealer/distributor ads and that targets dealer to dealer rather than dealer to end user trading. Nothing stopping end users reading "Telecom Gear", and when they know that is where you saw the ad, they KNOW you know who ALL their competition is. There are often "fax us your list and WE will call you if we want any of it" type ads. The price of a year's subscription is easily saved on the first card you buy let alone on the system you sell. Be careful. Many folks may not want it themselves, but may try to broker it to someone that they know DOES. It is a tad weird to start calling around with a system you are selling and get told "oh, thats the one with 43 zingdings and five whatevers -- we are offering $xxxx on that". They assume there is an auction and several dealers are all bidding on the same lot and are shopping for someone to dump it to. You may get quoted a price someone quoting you LESS was himself quoted by these same guys! Read the ads, make some calls, and you will know WHO really is buying and have a pretty good idea what the market is. I don't have anything to do with them except as a reader, and am posting their number to eliminate the usual flurry or 'where are they' mail. 800.866.3241 = subscriptions If you are not actively trading, the issues get a little boring very soon. It is the same ads over and over and they take turns being on the covers! But it IS what you need. ------------------------------ From: bcampbel@channel.fmrco.com (Bill Campbell) Subject: FAX From Hell? Organization: /home/ocean/bcampbel/.organization Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 15:38:34 GMT For the last several days, I have been the unhappy recipient of calls to my residential (voice) line from a fax machine (characteristic tone at about 1s intervals) at all hours of the day and night. *69 results in "not in the SmartCall area" or some such. When it happens after 11pm I usually disconnect the phone and leave the answering machine on. Gee, I hope nobody needs to call me in an emergency. Way cool the way you can do a "denial of service crack" just by programming the wrong number in your fax machine and being stupid enought to never check the call completion status for weeks on end. It turns out I'm also in the process of rewiring the whole house, and I only have one jack activated at the moment, so I can't easily hook up my computer to receive the fax and (possibly) see who done it. Any ideas on what I could do in the meantime (until I hookup my fax card), or what I can do if the transmitting station ID is missing or wrong? Any ideas on what I should do to these bozos when I find out who they are? :-) Regards, Bill Campbell Systems Admin Mgr Fidelity Management and Research Co. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: This topic comes up from time to time here. Some of the more outrageous examples have been reported here such as the First National Bank of Chicago's misprogrammed fax machine which called a private family in *Germany* -- at four in the morning German time! -- a few times nightly for about two weeks. Bundespost got after AT&T about it; and in turn Mother finally worked it back here and asked Illinois Bell to deal with it. Someone from IBT tried calling the telecom people at the bank, were responded to with blank looks and promises which went nowhere, and finally IBT got livid about it and was ready to dis- connect that line. When the bank finally got the machine programmed correctly it was time for their monthly phone bill to arrive; it came with several dozen one minute calls to Germany of course; and the bank's response at that point: to call IBT and complain that 'AT&T must have screwed up in billing us for all those calls' and wanting IBT to write it off! The answer generally provided by the readers is to hook up a fax machine in order to receive the message then attempt to go back to whoever is listed on the cover page, if anyone is. If you do not have a fax machine, try forwarding your line to someone who does. Alternatly, report it to the Annoyance Call Bureau at your telco and assure them you will happy sign a complaint when and if the offender is identified. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 09:26:24 PST From: Urban Surfer Subject: Feature Group B (Toll-Free Telecommuting) Reply-To: matt@phs.com Organization: Pacificare_Health_Systems I'm looking for alternatives to AT&T's Feature Group B. This is 950 access to AT&T's network. AT&T serves as a front end for corporate telecommuters. AT&T supplys an x.25 or Frame Relay PVC to carry the traffic to the target LAN. It's a great service, but they charge plenty for it and they aren't equipped to handle cellular modems yet. So I'm looking for alternatives. Who else can provide such a service? I appreciate any leads or comments. Matt Holdrege matt@phs.com MH235 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 10:46:39 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Lucy Waits For Call I have seen an episode of "I Love Lucy" where Lucy gets a party line cleared of a long conversation by claiming it's an emergency. (She was waiting for a call from a random drawing. Party line calls should be kept short out of courtesy, but I was concerned that this fictitious incident would run afoul of laws making it an offense to get use of a line by false claim of emergency.) In the same episode, neighbor Ethel Mertz (played by Vivian Vance) brings her phone to Lucy's apartment. Ethel's phone had a very long cord, and she said "don't tell the phone company, but every time someone moves, Fred gets a cord". Fred Mertz was played by William Frawley. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #180 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa06492; 24 Apr 94 10:19 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA22083; Sun, 24 Apr 94 07:21:33 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA22074; Sun, 24 Apr 94 07:21:31 CDT Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 07:21:31 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404241221.AA22074@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #181 TELECOM Digest Sun, 24 Apr 94 07:21:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 181 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? (Daniel H. Chang) Moving Digital Image Data From Mobile Van to Hospital (Douglas M. Tucker) Irish and European ISDN Approvals (fitzgeraldj@netc.ie) 16 Mbps Modem for Real? (maillet@delphi.com) MCI Mail Adds Services Available via Internet (mvm@cup.portal.com) Job Opportunities in ITI, NCB, Singapore (doreen@iti.gov.sig) Channel Bank Recommendations Wanted (Tom Simonds) IDB/Peoples Telephone Plan Merger (Fred Bauer) Remote Interactive Classroom Instruction - How Far We've Come! (Ralph Todd) ISDN Bridge Advice Please (Dean Banfield) DISN Information Request (Rodney Todt) Quality of Long Distance Telephone Lines (T.I. Boogaart) x.25 Networks (Chris Michael) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: hsingnan@ivo.jpl.nasa.gov (Daniel H. Chang) Subject: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? Date: 24 Apr 1994 00:15:58 GMT Organization: JPL Hello all- I am ordering DID service for the first time and have run across a strange situation. The DID lines ride in our case on eight time slots of a T1 line. We discovered the following: * When someone calls one of the DID numbers, we get an appropriate A/B signal on our side. * We are responsible for sending a wink to get the DID digits (that works fine), then providing the ring signal on the voice band for the sake of the caller on the other end. * Presumably at some point the intended guy picks up the phone, and our equipment seizes the line by raising the A/B bits and patches the call. * Here's the weird part: we discovered that at this point, after we've sent the wink and *before* we seize the line, we are able to patch that line to a phone and perform *full duplex* communications through it! We asked Pac Bell about this, who said the behavior is normal and the caller is not charged until we seize the line, and if we do not seize a timeout will eventually occur. We have determined that timeout is longer than ten minutes! I guess if the DID were carried on analog lines and the PBX had to supply the ring, then the CO having to offer full duplex is inevitable since there is no half-duplex in analog. To me this just says that it is unlikely for the CO to assign the ring responsibility to the PBX -- otherwise the resulting loophole and possibility for abuse seems enormous! Can anyone with more experience shed some light on whether what I described is typical, and what factors am I not taking into account which would make this the signalling behavior which Pac Bell (and I presume other RBOC's) finds advantageous to implement? Some historical perspective would be really interesting too. Dan Chang ------------------------------ From: dtucker@Erebus.rad.uab.edu (Douglas M. Tucker) Subject: Moving Digital Image Data From Mobile Van to Hospital Organization: CIS, Univ of Alabama at Birmingham Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 21:08:56 GMT Several months ago the radiologists in my department started providing a mobile radiography service. The service is provided in conjunction with another company that obtains the images, and the docs here read the films for a fee. To date, the way this works is a portable radiography unit is transported to the site (nursing home, outpatient clinic, etc) where an image receptor (called an IP) of a Computed Radiography (CR) system is exposed. The IP is returned to our institution where it is processed using dedicated equipment in a conventional manner. The film is then interpreted by a radiologist. I was approached with the following question: can the device which is used to extract the information from the exposed IP (a CR reader) be placed into some type of vehicle and be used in a mobile environment. In this setting, the CR reader and the radiographic equipment would be transported toq the site. At the site, the IP would be exposed and processed by the CR reader, with the resulting digital image data set saved on a associated computer system. The data would then be transmitted back to the department for processing. The hope is to reduce delays, etc, etc. The question that I have for this group is, provided all of the other issues are worked out, how to get the data from the van back to the department in an efficient and cost effective manner? What options are available? I have heard a little about cellular modems, but understand that they have very limited bandwidth. For this application, each image will be approx 8MByte, with 3-5 images / hour. Thank you for your help. Douglas M. Tucker, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Radiology UAB Hospital and Clinics 619 S. 19th Street Birmingham, AL 35213 E-Mail: dtucker@rad.uab.edu Phone: (205) 934-1905 FAX: (205) 975-4679 ------------------------------ From: fitzgeraldj@netc.ie Subject: Irish and European ISDN Approvals Date: 24 Apr 1994 06:21:22 -0500 Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway The Department of Transport, Energy and Communications (the Irish Telecommunications Approvals Body) has recently introduced its interim regulations for the approval of ISDN terminal equipment in Ireland. These regulations will remain until the ISDN Common Technical Regulations (CTRs) are available, which it now appears may not be for some time. The Department has nominated the National Electronics Test Centre (NETC), Forbairt (the Irish Development Agency), to evaluate all approval applications on its behalf. The Centre's application for accreditation has been recommended by the Irish Certification and Laboratory Accreditation Board (ICLAB). Companies wishing to sell their ISDN products in Ireland may apply directly to NETC. In cases where products have already been tested and approved in other countries, NETC will evaluate the relevant documentation and will advise on any further testing which may be required to meet the Irish regulations. NETC will also issue a short report to the Department. A fee will be charged for this service. Applicants with partial foreign approvals may also have the balance of work carried out by NETC. The Centre can provide testing to the new Irish requirements, including NET 3, the European mandatory requirement for Basic Access and to NET 5, the European mandatory requirement for Primary Rate Access. The Centre can also carry out full conformance tests (i.e. beyond the limited NET tests) for both of these services and for ISDN terminal adaptors. Because the Centre has the only Irish laboratory listed in the EC Official Journal for safety testing in accordance with the Low Voltage Directive, NETC can carry out the necessary safety testing, to harmonised European and international standards, on new telecommuni- cations products. American companies who wish to have their ISDN products approved to European standards or their existing approvals evaluated for connection to the Irish ISDN should contact me. Jackie FitzGerald Internet Mail : fitzgeraldj@netc.ie. National Electronics Test Centre Forbairt Glasnevin Dublin 9 Ireland Tel: 353 1 8370101 Fax: 353 1 8370705 / 8379620 ------------------------------ From: maillet@DELPHI.COM Subject: 16 Mbps Modem for Real? Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 21:59:14 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) From the May, 1994 issue of {Computer Shopper} Trends & Technology Pg-61 "Small Firm Delivers Big on Digital Signal Compression" Has anyone heard of a small company called Digital Compression Technology (DCT)? It claims it can move 16 Mbps of various kinds of data down a regular telephone line (yes, that's 16 MEGABITS per SECOND). "DCT technology lets telephone wire simultaneously carry four 1.5 Mbps VCR quality video channels; two broadcast quality 3 Mbps video channels; two 1.5 Mbps two-way interactive videoconferencing channels; and ten other channels dedficated to a mix of videophone, fax, and program selection channels." Is this for real or is DCT a couple of engineering students with some vaporware, a fax machine, and a gift for self-promotion? CYBERETSU BBS CONNECTING THE WORLD ------------------------------ From: MVM@cup.portal.com Subject: MCI Mail Adds Services Available via Internet Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 21:22:05 PDT (Found on the "MCI Mail News" bulletin board:) Date: Wed Apr 20, 1994 10:30 pm CDT Subject: MCI TO OFFER FAX, TELEX AND PAPER BASED MCI MAIL DELIVERY MCI TO OFFER FAX, TELEX AND PAPER-BASED MCI MAIL DELIVERY SERVICES TO INTERNET USERS WASHINGTON, D.C., April 18, 1994 -- To meet the growing demand of the some 20 million Internet users for fast, reliable messaging options, MCI Communications Corporation announced it will provide free subscription to its electronic MCI Mail value-added delivery services. The service expansion, announced at the Electronic Messaging Association's (EMA) 1994 trade show in Anaheim, enables Internet users to send important electronic mail messages to any valid facsimile, telex, postal or courier address worldwide, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at standard MCI Mail rates. The company plans to make these delivery options available in June to Internet users who register with MCI Mail. "The demand for more sophisticated messaging and information services will grow exponentially as businesses and consumers continue to take advantage of the capabilities developed through the convergence of multimedia, computers and telecommunications," said Marilyn Bardsley, MCI's vice president for messaging and information services. "Our efforts to expand MCI Mail services to the Internet user community is part of our overall networkMCI vision to harness technologies and turn them into real-world communications tools," said Bardsley. While Internet users have been able to exchange electronic mail messages and binary files with MCI Mail users since 1989, they did not have access to message delivery options or enhanced message handling capabilities commonly used by MCI Mail customers for years. Internet users must either go outside the Internet to send messages via other delivery methods or obtain them through specialized commercial providers on the Internet whose service offerings may be limited by available delivery choices and geographic coverage. With these new capabilities, Internet users can take advantage of MCI's full range of service options and enhanced features which include electronic message transfer to letterhead and use of signature graphics; image transmission via fax; alternate addressing when sending a fax; and automatic retry for fax and telex. According to Vinton G. Cerf, MCI's senior vice president for data architecture and president of the Internet Society, "the Internet community has always used electronic mail to communicate with associates. "Now, with the growth in the commercial Internet, we anticipate these millions of users will need access to reliable messaging services to supplement their e-mail correspondence. MCI Mail's global service is equipped to meet those needs," said Cerf. When the new options are available, Internet users will be able to register electronically for the services. Registration entitles users to have their mailbox information included in MCI Mail's online directory, as well as access to MCI Mail customer support. The cost to use these value-added services will be at the standard MCI Mail rates for fax, telex, postal and courier delivery. For further information and registration, Internet users should send an e-mail message to: MCI-info-request@gatekeeper.mcimail.com and type `help' as the text of the message. MCI also will be providing information about the new service at the EMA trade show in the MCI exhibit booth #210. MCI Communications Corporation headquartered in Washington, D.C., offers a full range of domestic and global telecommunications services through one of the world's largest state-of-the-art networks. The company, with 1993 revenue of nearly $12 billion, is the second largest long distance provider in the U.S. and has more than 65 offices in 60 countries and places. ------------------------------ From: doreen@iti.gov.sg (Doreen from NCS) Subject: Job Opportunities in ITI, NCB, Singapore Organization: National Computer Board, Singapore Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 06:45:43 GMT BE PART OF SINGAPORE'S VISION TO CREATE AN INTELLIGENT ISLAND The Information Technology Institute (ITI), the applied R&D arm of the National Computer Board, seeks to accomplish its mission of creating and deploying advanced IT innovations by working with local and international companies in joint ventures and projects. Our R&D efforts are industry-driven. We focus on innovations which would significantly improve our partners' competitive advantage, and products that have commercial potential. We invite applications from suitably qualified candidates for the position of: * Senior R&D Engineer * You are expected to set directions and provide technical leadership to the communication product development group. In addition, you should initate and lead projects as well as provide consultancy to project teams. - Degree in Computer Science or Electronic Engineering; - At least 5 years' substantial experience in data communications or networking preferably with industry; - Creative, self-motivated and good interpersonal skills; If you are keen to pursue a career with us and possess the relevant qualifica- tions and experience, please write to us with a comprehensive resume stating details of your qualifications, current and expected salary, contact number and internet account number. Please send these to: Dr Francis Yeoh Director, Research & Development Information Technology Institute 71 Science Park Drive Singapore 0511 Alternatively, you may wish to respond through internet account: doreen@iti.gov.sg ------------------------------ From: tom@interaccess.com (Tom Simonds) Subject: Channel Bank Recommendations Wanted Date: 23 Apr 1994 19:45:18 -0500 Organization: The second InterAccess INN server Our company is looking to buy channel banks. Can anyone recommend any brands/manufacturers? If so, phone numbers or city/state would be extremely helpful. Please email to tom@interaccess.com Tom Simonds tom@interaccess.com 708-671-3469 ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 13:20 EST From: Fred Bauer Subject: IDB/Peoples Telephone Plan Merger I think that the readers of the Digest may be interested in the latest merger in the telecom industry ... Fred Bauer IDB COMMUNICATIONS SIGNS LETTER OF INTENT TO MERGE WITH PEOPLES TELEPHONE COMPANY IDB EXPECTS COMBINATION TO BOOST EARNINGS LOS ANGELES, CA and MIAMI, FL - APRIL 21, 1994 -- IDB Communications Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDBX) and Peoples Telephone Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEL) today jointly announced they have signed a letter of intent under which IDB will merge with Peoples. Shareholders of the Miami-based Peoples will receive 1.1 shares of IDB Communications common stock for each share of Peoples common stock, subject to possible adjustment based upon IDB's stock price prior to closing. As of March 31, 1994, Peoples Telephone has approximately 15.8 million common shares outstanding and approximately 3.1 million common shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options and warrants at an aggregate price of approximately $23 million. The transaction will be effected as a pooling of interests, and will not be taxable to current Peoples shareholders. IDB Communications expects the merger to boost its 1994 earnings per share. Peoples has been in the public pay telephone business since 1985. The Company has an installed base of approximately 50,000 public, inmate and cellular pay telephones located in 46 states. During recent years Peoples has leveraged its industry expertise to expand into related telecommunication businesses including correctional facility telephones, cellular telephone rentals and prepaid calling cards. The proposed acquisition is subject to satisfaction of customary conditions, including completion of due diligence by both parties, execution of a definitive agreement, approval by the shareholders of both companies and certain regulatory filings, and is expected to be completed by the end of 1994. Jeffrey P. Sudikoff, chairman and CEO of IDB, stated, "One of our key goals in 1994 is to expand IDB's presence in the domestic telecommunica- tions marketplace. The merger with Peoples will accomplish this objective. Jeff Hanft and his team have built Peoples into the largest independent operator of public pay telephones in the United States. Combined with the company's related telecommunications services, Peoples currently generates more than 300 million minutes of long distance traffic a year. As a result, Peoples and IDB will have the foundation for a highly profitable domestic public switched network." "We fully expect this combination to have a positive impact on 1994 IDB earnings per share. By applying many of the principles we have successfully used in acquisitions during the past few years we expect to significantly enhance the operating strengths of Peoples while vastly expanding our domestic marketing capabilities," Mr. Sudikoff added. Jeff Hanft, CEO of Peoples stated, "IDB has emerged as the most innovative, rapidly growing telecommunications company in the world. We at Peoples share many of the same visions and strategic approaches of IDB's management team. We look forward to working with IDB and believe that all of our customers, employees and shareholders will benefit from the combination of the two companies." IDB Communications Group, Inc. is a global telecommunications company that operates a domestic and international communications network providing its customers with international private line and long distance telephone services, radio and television transmission services, facsimile and data connections, mobile satellite communications capabilities and the design and integration of satellite networks worldwide. Peoples Telephone Company, Inc., one of the nation's leading public communications companies, owns and operates approximately 50,000 public, inmate and cellular pay telephones in 46 states. For the year ended December 31, 1993, the Company reported revenues of $121.8 million, an increase of 63%, net income of $5.3 million, an increase of 64%, and cash flow from operations of $27.5 million, an increase of 54%, all as compared to the year ended December 31, 1992. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 20:05:58 EST From: Ralph E. Todd Subject: Remote Interactive Classroom Instruction - How Far We've Come! Greetings! I am the graduate student in the Telecommunications program at George Mason University (GMU) who submitted the request for information on conferencing on the Internet in early March. On behalf of my class project group, which formed to implement the solution that evolved from the many thoughtful responses I received, I wanted to inform you of our progress. You may recall that the immediate application is interactive televised graduate instruction. The prototype course, "Taming the Electronic Frontier," is taught by Dr. Brad Cox and televised on regional cable television. Most of the students, including an entire section, are in the TV audience. These tele-students had no way of participating in the interactive dimension of the course. Subsequent to publication of my request, I received a consensus response among TELECOM Digest subscribers that Internet Relay Chat (IRC) would provide an effective solution. With the combined dedication and effort of my fellow group members Umar Badeges, Leesia Huffner, Altaf Khan, and Cynthia Roubie, an extremely supportive computer system manager, and an enthusiastic and helpful television producer, Remote Interactive Classroom Instruction (RICI) made its debut at George Mason University on April 19. Students in the TV audience used their PCs at home to connect to the university Internet host computer, and join in an IRC conference with Dr. Cox during his lecture. The "mesg n" command was used in advance of initiating IRC to block distracting messages, and the "mode * +k" command, used by the professor when opening the channel, kept out intruders; we had several interruptions by "bots" while conducting group meetings on IRC. Our first RICI session was a resounding success! We have created student and instructor Guides to Using RICI, which along with a Guide to Future Enhancements will be available on the GMU Internet Gopher. Identified future enhancements include a switch to display IRC text on-air, audio conferencing including voice-delay, and videoconferencing to regional libraries using local cable television channels. We welcome questions and comments. Ralph Todd > rtodd@mason1.gmu.edu (703) 658-9668 George Mason University Telecommunications Program [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: What a really great report! I was one of many people a few years ago when IRC was first developed and put into use who wondered what real benefit it would have to the Internet. It has been often-times just a huge waste of network resources, but your report today shows there is a lot of good it can do. PAT] ------------------------------ From: idddsb@iddss1.iddis.com (Dean Banfield) Subject: ISDN Bridge Advice Please Date: 24 Apr 1994 02:36:04 GMT Organization: IDD Information Services Hi, We have a 10baseT Ethernet lan and would like an outlier individual to have access on a hardwired basis. ISDN sounds great, but I have no idea what's required here. You take the 64kpbs 'B' channels and then using a 'bridge?' you convert the serial data to 10baseT? Who makes bridges? At what prices? I assume higher price translates into higher performance. Any info appreciated. Thanks. Dean Banfield IDD/Information Svcs 90 Grove St Ridgefield CT 06877 ------------------------------ From: rtodt@relay.nswc.navy.mil (Rodney Todt) Subject: DISN Information Request Organization: NAVAL SURFACE WARFARE CENTER Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 03:12:57 GMT Can anyone in this group provide me with a pointer to online information about DISN. I am specifically looking for a map and how to get connected information. Thanks. Rodney Todt DDN Mail: rtodt@relay.nswc.navy.mil Naval Surface Warfare Center Phone: (703) 663-4146 Dahlgren Division DSN: 249-4146 Code E81, Networks Branch FAX: (703) 663-1952 Dahlgren, Virginia 22448-5000 ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 12:39:59 GMT From: T.I.Boogaart@research.ptt.nl (Boogaart T.I.) Subject: Quality of Long Distance Telephone Lines Reply-To: T.I.Boogaart@research.ptt.nl Organization: PTT Research, The Netherlands I would like to know if anyone has conducted research on the quality of long distance telephone lines. With "Quality" I mean the amount of noise and echo (e.g. signal noise ratio). In particular, I want to know if it is at all feasible to perform speech recognition / speaker verification over long distance lines. The focus is on the quality of lines to Europe, but any information on the subject (references, pointers, hints) is welcome. Please send e-mail to me directly, as I don't subscribe to this newsgroup. I'll summarize if there is enough interest. Thanks in advance, Tineke Boogaart ------------------------------ From: cm@nwu.edu (Chris Michael) Subject: x.25 networks Date: 23 Apr 94 17:20:59 GMT Organization: Northwestern University, Evanston, IL USA Reply-To: cm@nwu.edu (Chris Michael) I'm looking for data connectivity between Chicago and Milan Italy. I'm guessing that X.25 will be cheaper than a leased line, but I'm having a heck of a time finding anyone to quote me a price. Does anyone have any thoughts about relative pricing? I assume Telenet and Tymnet are still around. Anyone know where? Thanks, christopher michael, george s. may international, 708-825-8806 x 395 ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #181 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa07263; 24 Apr 94 13:08 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA23054; Sun, 24 Apr 94 09:51:03 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA23045; Sun, 24 Apr 94 09:51:01 CDT Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 09:51:01 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404241451.AA23045@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #182 TELECOM Digest Sun, 24 Apr 94 09:51:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 182 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson GTE/SF Supervising on Busy Calls? (Douglas Reuben) Delrina Fax MailBox Delivered (Jack Bzoza) What Human Resource Required to Set up Campus Network? (Martin Visser) Saying "NO" to Big Brother (Alan Furman) NANP and Switches (Howard Ramagli) Traffic Measurements (Miguel Rios) Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Commander (Lance Ware) GM-Hughes 500 Channels (A. Padgett Peterson) Telecommuting Policies and Procedures (Matthew L. Blackmon) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson Associates of Skokie, Illinois USA. We provide telecom consultation services and long distance resale services including calling cards and 800 numbers. To reach us: Post Office Box 1570, Chicago, IL 60690 or by phone at 708-329-0571 and fax at 708-329-0572. Email: ptownson@townson.com. ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. TELECOM Digest is gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom. It has no connection with the unmoderated Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom.tech whose mailing list "Telecom-Tech Digest" shares archives resources at lcs.mit.edu for the convenience of users. Please *DO NOT* cross post articles between the groups. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: dreuben@netcom.com (Cid Technologies) Subject: GTE/SF Supervising on Busy Calls? Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 05:03:35 PDT I'm not sure if anyone has discussed this before, but I recently noticed that GTE/SF (00040) is *supervising* if a dialed cellular customer is busy. That is to say, if you call my GTE Mobilnet/San Francisco cell number, and it is busy, the call will be BILLED, ie, you pay whatever local or toll charges to hear a busy signal. I tried calling my number when it was busy with a calling card, got a busy signal, and could NOT hit the "#" sign to make a new call. This was with Pac*Bell's CC service as well as AT&T's, both of which will allow you to make a "sequence call" with the octothorpe/pound/#/whatever key *only* if supervision hasn't been returned or after it is released. So I think this is a pretty good indicator that GTE/SF *is* supervising on busy calls. I don't know how GTE handles cell to cell calls, ie, if one GTE customer calls another who is busy, but if you are calling from a landline you are likely to be billed. If you want to try this, hit *710 (or *73 will work outside SF and San Mateo Counties) to turn off No Answer Transfer/Voicemail, dial some number that won't answer, and then call your GTE/SF carphone with a calling card. You generally won't be able to hit the "#" sign if you get a busy signal, at least that's what I've noticed. (NOTE: You need to turn off NAT by hitting *710 (or *73, which should turn all forwarding off where GTE will 'allow' you to do so, which they should everywhere). For some silly reason, GTE/SF bundles NAT with Busy Transfer (*74), and if you have NAT on, then Busy Transfer is also on, and any "busy" call will go to voicemail or whatever number you have set. For you AT&T people, do the newer Autoplex switches HAVE to work this way, or can they have two separate fields for NAT and Busy Transfer so that each can work independently of the other? [which is better, I think...]) So, if you don't use GTE/SF's voicemail because you think it is outrageous to pay airtime for voicemail deposition or even hang-up calls (and rightly so, may I add! :) ), this busy supervising thing may be a problem for some of your callers. Additionally, if you roam a lot, due to the way that the (IS-41 Rev A?) links work between the systems (ie, between GTE and Pac*Bell), if you make a lot of short calls you may not get Call-Waiting, and a lot of your inbound calls will be directed to a *supervising* busy signal. Many callers may not appreciate this. Finally, as an aside, to get out of your annual GTE/SF contract: Like the Cell One/NY problem with the nearby Motorola EMX switches where you can't get call-waiting when roaming in Motorola territory and calls go right to voicemail, the same thing occurs with GTE/SF. If you have No-Answer-Transfer set to voicemail (ie, *71*8) , and you roam into the Sacramento (00112) or Stockton (00224) systems, you will NOT get call-waiting! Even if you've been on the phone for five minutes and the IS-41 Rev A protocol nonsense where you can't get more than one call per minute is no longer an issue (and WHO wrote that flaky software, anyhow?), anyone who calls you will get sent to Sac or Stockton, the switch(es) will see you are busy, and then redirect your call back to Voicemail in SF (which supposedly violates the MFJ and/or Dept. Of Justice rules, but no one seems to have an answer as to why they can get away with this. Don't get me wrong, I *encourage* other cell co's to *flagrantly* violate these preposterous and onerous regulations! :) ) So if you call up GTE/SF and say "Hey, since I can't get Call-Waiting in Sac and Stockton as long as I have my voicemail on, I want to cancel my contract without penalty since you promised that all my features will work in Auto-Access markets..." they will have to let you out as long as you say it was a *major* reason why you signed up with them in the first place. Actually, I've been told that it is all a matter of software revisions on the Motorola EMXs, ie, the older versions gives Busy-Transfer a higher degree of precedence than Call-Waiting, while the newest version does the opposite, and if Pac*Tel would upgrade to the newest version, this wouldn't be a problem anymore. This is of course also true for ComCast and Metro Mobile (Bell Atlantic in CT), but it is futile to try to have them actually BUY new software, assuming they even DO have to buy it. In the meantime, though, it's an easy and painless way to get out of your annual contracts with GTE/SF or Cell One/NY! (Although I personally recommend them both over their respective "competitors" -- if you can call a duopoly competition! :( Frequent roamers on US-50 in CA may note that the Mountain Cellular (Placerville and South Lake Tahoe, 01080) EMX CAN handle call-waiting with NAT/Voicemail active, so it CAN be done. Mountain Cell, however, seems to think that confirmation tones are uneccessary, so when you hit *28/*29, *71/2/3/4, etc., you get a re-order/fast busy, leading you to think that those feature codes are not valid in the Mountain Cell system when in fact they DO work! (I'm wondering if I should bother calling these guys and try to have them fix this ... I doubt they even care. Hmmm ... I think the cell co's should pay me for this! :) ) Anyhow, I thought I'd pay a bit more attention to the West coast after some my other postings on the oddities of roaming back East. :) Doug CID Technologies (203) 499-5221 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: A lot of the cellular companies are getting away with murder where observance of traditional standards for telephony are concerned. But as you rightly point out, they don't give an iota; they just do their thing. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Jack Bzoza Subject: Delrina Fax MailBox Delivered Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 12:01:00 -0400 There was a recent enquiry in the Digest for information about Fax Mailbox Services. I posted a introductory summary at that time. Delrina has now delivered the service and I thought that readers would appreciate the whole story, straight from the horse's mouth. ---------- Delrina Delivers Fax Mailbox Service Users Praise Productivity Benefits and Convenience SAN JOSE, CA and TORONTO, ONT April 22, 1994 -- They faxed it to Chicago, but now you're in New York ... your office has been trying to fax a crucial document to your home, but you forgot to turn on your computer ... the fax cover sheet says there are three pages, but the hotel clerk insists he received only two ... you desperately need the fax tonight but the hotel's business office is closed till tomorrow morning ... Now there's a new way to get faxes when and where you need them. Delrina Corporation (NASDAQ:DENAF, TSE:DC), the world's leading vendor of fax communications software, today announced the immediate availability of its fax mailbox service. Delrina Fax MailBox is an enhanced fax messaging service that offers subscribers a +virtual+ fax mailbox with their own 800 number, eliminating the need to leave their PC+s running all the time or maintain an additional phone line for their fax device. Delrina Fax MailBox receives and stores faxes until the subscriber decides to retrieve them. Subscribers can retrieve their faxes at anytime directly into Delrina's fax software, WinFax PRO 4.0, or by simply dialing into their mailbox by phone and forwarding all their faxes to any fax device. Unlike other services, Delrina Fax MailBox allows users to retrieve faxes directly into their computer. The advantage of this is that faxes can be received anywhere and at any time without having a dedicated or incoming line; for example, a subscriber can now retrieve faxes from his or her hotel room and a home user does not require a second phone line to receive faxes. Furthermore, the service is "one button easy" - users select a menu item in WinFax PRO, enter their password and the software takes care of the rest. Alternatively, users can call into their mailbox by phone and forward faxes to any fax device. The service also includes a voice messaging capability, and options for international access and paging notification. Delrina is targeting its installed base of more than four million WinFax users with communication services. For the first time, these services are available +out of the box+ with the purchase of Delrina WinFax PRO 4.0 or Delrina Communications Suite. Delrina Fax MailBox users can retrieve their messages from any location using either their PC, a traditional fax machine, or a telephone. The service is reliable because the phone line is never busy and the system is paperless. Since the retrieval of messages is self-initiated the transmission occurs with complete security. More importantly the service eliminates the need for a dedicated telephone line or a PC which needs to be constantly switched on to receive faxes. For mobile subscribers Delrina Fax MailBox is a boon, since it guarantees that faxes will never be missed, lost or read by the hotel clerk. "Over a period of time and versions, WinFax has been eliminating the need for a fax machine, and has been exploding the uses of fax communication," said Delrina president, Mark Skapinker. "Early versions made sending a fax with WinFax as easy as printing from any Windows program. Then we focused on ease of use and wider functionality by focusing on usability, improving the phonebook functionality, adding file transfer capabilities, and making fax management an integral part of the product. All along our users have been asking us to make receiving faxes easier; they did not want to leave their computers on all the time in order to receive and portable users needed to receive faxes anywhere they might be. Fax mailbox now completes the range of functionality. WinFax 4 with fax mailbox provides the flexibility and reliability of receiving faxes anywhere, anytime with push-button simplicity." In a recent study, Marketfinders, a market research firm in Austin, Texas, forecasts the market for traditional enhanced fax services including fax broadcast, fax on demand, and fax mailbox to grow to $430 million in 1994 and to $940 million by 1996, and that fax mailbox alone will to grow to $122 million of this market within the next two years. The study does not include in its estimates PC-based faxing, in which the proliferation of fax modems and the increased use of fax-enabled software are expected to escalate the need for such services. BIS Strategic Decisions, Norwell, MA predicts that by 1997 seventy-two percent of portable computers and one-third of desktop PC's will have fax modems which enable easy access to services like Delrina's. Beta testers of Delrina's new service have been quick to applaud its benefits. DRK Inc., an advertising and marketing firm in Boston, MA, uses Delrina Fax MailBox to collect responses to a five-page marketing survey that is broadcast by fax to 120 people. "By using Delrina Fax MailBox I am able to receive multiple faxes in a timely manner, reducing the normal time required for such a survey by more than half," said Jeff Freedman, Supervisor of Media and Marketing Services. "A never-busy fax line and the convenient 800 access results in a higher than usual response to our surveys." "The accessibility to both fax and voice messages gives me the freedom and convenience to dial my 1-800 number to retrieve messages either at the office, at home, or on the road," said Alan Morris, programming consultant at Land Rover North America in Lanham, Maryland. "I am able to do this without having to leave any equipment on. And, I am guaranteed to be reached anywhere." Subscribers to the Delrina Fax MailBox service receive their own personal 800 telephone number. Users can customize Delrina Fax MailBox by purchasing additional services, such as 24 hour / 7 day call forwarding and rerouting, from their local telephone company. International access and paging notification are also available. An alternative number is provided for international calls. Different service plans are available to accommodate users+ volume and messaging needs with monthly payments as little as $9.95 (Cdn $19.95) plus retrieval charges. Volume discounts are also provided. International access and paging notification are provided for an additional $4.95 (Cdn $6.95) each per month with a 25 cent fee per paging notification. Billing options include a corporate account or credit card billing through VISA, Master Card, and American Express. Delrina develops, markets and supports PC-based software products and services for the fax and data communications, electronic forms processing and consumer content markets. Founded in 1988, Delrina employs more than 450 persons with headquarters in Toronto, Canada; and offices in San Jose, CA; Washington, DC; Kirkland, WA; the United Kingdom; France; and Germany. Delrina Fax MailBox customer service can be contacted at 1-800-670-8777. ------------------------------ From: Martin Visser Subject: What Human Resource Required to Set up Large Campus Network? Date: 14 Apr 1994 02:53:18 GMT Organization: BHP Steel - Slab and Plate Products Division Hi, We are about to undertake a project to set up the backbone and distribution communications network infrastructure at our Port Kembla Steelworks. The intention is use ATM as the backbone carrier, and 802.x LANs as the access media into the network. The "campus" is about 6 x 4 km and we should be interconnecting around 2000 end user nodes. We expect to be installing 30km backbone and 60km distribution fibre, as well as umpteen switches, hubs, routers, etc. As part of our final estimate and capital funding we are examining the personnel required to run this project. Outside of the physical installation what sort of people and for our long will we need them? We have estimated that the project life will be about two years, including a small trial period at the beginning. We also expect that because of the showcase nature (the first commercial ATM network in an industrial in Australia if not the world) that the prospective network vendors will be more than willing to help us in the technical aspects, especially to set up the generic solution that meets all our requirements. I guess I'm asking what manhour requirement there would be to do the technical design in association with the vendors, network configuration, change control, QA, management etc. to get the job done. Also what organizational structure is appropriate? Ordinarily large engineering projects (e.g. a blast furnace) have about 8-10% engineering, but is this is a different kettle of fish? I would appreciate input from those that may have been involved in large campus networks, or WANs, especically if they were done with "bleeding" edge technology, such as FDDI a few years. In expectation and appreciation, Martin. (PS We have selected our tenderers for the project and no correspondence will be entered into.) Martin Visser BHP Steel - Slab & Plate Products Division Engineering Technology - Computer Systems PO Box 1854 Wollongong NSW 2502, AUSTRALIA A.C.N. 006 476 218 Phone +61-42-753852 Fax +61-42-757897 Internet MARTIN.M.C.VISSER@ bhpmelmsm.x400.bhp.com.au X.400 G=MARTIN I=MC S=VISSER OU=BHPMELMSM O=BHP P=BHPMEL04 A=TELEMEMO C=AU ------------------------------ From: atfurman@cup.portal.com Subject: Saying "NO" to Big Brother Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 00:08:04 PDT NEWS FROM THE LIBERTARIAN PARTY 1528 Pennsylvania Avenue SE Washington DC 20003 For additional information: Bill Winter, Director of Communications (202) 543-1988 Libertarian Party Announces Opposition to Digital Telephony Act Calling it a "serious infringement of civil liberties and a gross violation of property rights," the Libertarian Party National Committee unanimously voted to oppose the Digital Telephony and Communications Act of 1994. At their quarterly meeting in Kansas City, Missouri, the governing body of America's third-largest political party charged that "the Digital Telephony Act would make furnishing the FBI with easy wiretapping capability the overriding priority for designers of telephone equipment and related software." "It is a lie to call this legislation a 'Privacy Improvement Act,'" said Bill Evers, the National Committee member from California who sponsored the resolution. The Digital Telephony Act, noted the resolution, "requires telephone, cable television, and computer network companies to ensure that the government can conduct surveillance while private communication is going on. It requires the installation of surveillance-facilitating software in telephone switching equipment to expose personal information -- such as telephone-calling patterns, credit card purchases, banking records, and medical records -- to the view of the government." "Such personal information should be the private property of either the company that assembles it or the individual to whom it pertains," said Evers. Libertarians also oppose the Digital Telephony Act because it "would require a fundamental re-engineering of the communications infrastructure at great expense to American taxpayers, and to the owners of private communications systems," said Evers. The Libertarian National Committee also unanimously voted to oppose the National Security Agency's Escrowed Encryption Standard - the so-called Clipper Chip system - or any "government policies promoting or requiring specific encryption methods for civilian use." The party also urged the "repeal of the U.S. ban on export abroad of Clipper-free encryption devices produced by American companies." "Government-mandated encryption standards will foster indiscriminate surveillance of private communications by the government," charged Evers. The resolution said "the Clinton Administration plans to induce American manufacturers to install government-readable encryption devices in every telephone, fax machine, and computer modem made in the United States." "The Clinton Administration is explicitly denying that the American people have the right to communicate in private," said Evers. By contrast, he said, "The Libertarian Party has long upheld the civil liberties of the American citizen." Approximately 120 Libertarians serve in elected and appointed office around the country, including four State Representatives in New Hampshire and two mayors in California. The Libertarian Party platform calls for vigorous defense of the Bill of Rights, free enterprise, civil liberties, free trade, and private charity. ------------------------------ Date: 23 Apr 1994 13:04:59 CST From: Howard Ramagli Subject: NANP and Switches I have just joined this list and have tried to scan the archives and the FAQ for an answer to the following questions and have found nothing that seem to address them. We currently have a Northern Telecom Meridian Option 61 (software relase 17) with 44 DID trunks, a T1 for long distance, and about 1300 active phones. We have been told by Ameritech that, in order for us to be able to comply with the implementation of the new North American Numbering Plan (NANP) on January 1, 1995, we must upgrade our switch with an additional memory card, another ROM board and software release 19. My questions are (1) is this really necessary and (2) can we wait until the middle of 1995 before doing this and still provide access via NANP? Any help out there would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Howard Ramagli Director, Information Services and Technology Lake Forest College 708.735.5115 INTERNET: ramagli@lfmail.lfc.edu APPLELINK: RAMAGLI.H ------------------------------ From: mrios@lascar.puc.cl (Miguel Rios) Subject: Traffic Measurements Organization: Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 18:14:04 GMT I would appreciate if some reader of the Digest can give me an insight about the following problem: -In a multicarrier long distance telephone system, we need to check for the QOS, so as to asure that all the available carriers give a certain QOS. What kind of measurement equipment is available on the market, that can perform the job?. (We need to check both national and international connections). -With respect to to the previous problem, what kind of statistics do we need (and what are the sizes of the samples needed). Thank you in advance, Miguel Rios Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering Universidad Catolica de Chile mrios@lascar.puc.cl ------------------------------ From: lware@voxel.com (Lance Ware) Subject: Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Commander Organization: VOXEL Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 08:40:23 GMT I need help with programming these two cell phones. Specifically I need to program the phone numbers, and get the ESN so that I may have them both put on the same phone number. This is legitimate, I am not interested in going to jail for many years! Lance Ware IS Manager & VOXEL Guru VOXEL ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 04:50:17 -0400 From: padgett@tccslr.dnet.mmc.com (A. Padgett Peterson) Subject: GM-Hughes 500 Channels A couple of months ago Hughes was advertising for technicians to service their new small-dish satellite TV system (500 channel?). Does anyone know what the status is, when it will become available, or have a contact phone or E-Mail number ? Reply to: padgett@tccslr.dnet.mmc.com Warmly, Padgett ------------------------------ From: blackmon@cs.utk.edu (Matthew L. Blackmon) Subject: Telecommuting Policies and Procedures Date: 23 Apr 1994 21:29:02 -0400 Organization: CS Department, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Greetings: I have been charged with the task of locating some resources on telecommuting policies and procedures that are in use in industry. We here at the University of Tennessee Medical Center are just entering this arena, and are interested in learning as much as possible. The particular areas of interest are personnel policies and procedures, such as, work hours and ethics, pay scales (ie, do you pay more or less for telecommuters?), payment of services and equipment (ie, do you pay for the equipment and the ISDN or data lines to the house, or does the telecommuter?), and etc. We are looking for any ideas and pointers along this line. Please email me and I will post a summary if there is sufficient interest. Thanks, Matt Blackmon blackmon@cs.utk.edu | mblackmo%utmck_mis@wpgate.utk.edu Department of Computer Science | Manager, Network Engineering and Tec The University of Tennessee | The University of TN Medical Center Knoxville, Tennessee 37996 | 615.544.6110 ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #182 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa07131; 27 Apr 94 5:28 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA13370; Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:50:10 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA13361; Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:50:08 CDT Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:50:08 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404270650.AA13361@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #183 TELECOM Digest Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:50:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 183 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson International Telecomunication Union to Sponsor Digest (TELECOM Editor) Other Telecom-Related Services to be Discontinued (TELECOM Digest Editor) Interactive and Broadband Strategy Development (ritim@uriacc.uri.edu More Information Needed on Motorola 550 Programming (Lance Ware) Link Budget for Fiber Optic LAN (Marcial Dumlao) Busy Hour Erlang (BHE) Capacity of Mobile Cellular System (Aamer Soomro) South Africa Voting Information (Carl Moore) Telephony/Data Integration Recommendations Wanted (Scott Sanbeg) AT&T vs. Ameritech (Chicago Tribune via Van Hefner) Cellular Bust (Van Hefner) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach me by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:01:09 CDT From: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Digest Editor) Subject: International Telecomunication Union to Sponsor Digest The International Telecommunication Union in Geneva Switzerland has agreed to help underwrite the costs involved in producing TELECOM Digest. The ITU will be providing me with a generous monthly stipend intended to offset some of the increasing expenses I incur here, and to relieve me of some of the burden I was faced with over the past few months in attempting to work elsewhere while producing the Digest. Their grant to me, or stipend arrived at a time when the need was greater than ever before. The ITU has not requested, nor have they been granted any control over the editorial content of the Digest. Their announcements and messages from staff members there who participate in the Digest will continue as in the past with no more or less frequency than before. The following announcement will appear in the masthead of each issue of the Digest beginning with the issue you are reading now (if you are reading the Digest version -- instead of via Usenet -- please go back and read it now for changes in case you skipped over it.) ------------------------ TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing views of the ITU. ----------------------- May I respectfully request that you take a moment to send a note of thanks to the ITU for their ongoing support of the Digest? Write to: Lucio Goelzer Chief, Information Services Dept, ITU Place des Nations 1211 Geneva 20 Switzerland Tel: +41 22 730-5333 FAX: +41 22 730-5337 X.400: S=goelzer; P=itu; A=arcom; C=ch Internet: goelzer@itu.ch Additionally, my thanks to to several other readers and supporters who have sent gifts in recent days; some payable to 'Ameritech' and others payable to either 'Northern Illinois Gas' or 'Edison'; some simply to TELECOM Digest with a note to 'use where need is greatest'. All have been put to use as intended and I continue to be amazed by the generosity so many of you have shown. Once again, to the ITU, my sincere thanks for your commitment to a generous monthly stipend on an ongoing basis. Patrick Townson TELECOM Digest Editor ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:18:18 CDT From: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Digest Editor) Subject: Other Telecom-Related Services to be Discontinued As most readers of the Digest know, for the past year or so I have attempted to fund the Digest through the sale/resale of telecom- related services such as Telepassport, Orange Card, 800/Inwats numbers and similar. Although I believe I handled these things at arms-length to the Digest itself and with fairness, there were from time to time questions raised about the propriety of the whole thing while editing the Digest. The monthly stipend from ITU announced in the message before this has made it possible to discontinue active involvement in those other things. I request that users of Telepassport begin directing their inquiries to the company itself rather than my office; likewise I can no longer supply 800 numbers. Residuals due me as commissions from Orange Card will continue to be received on a monthly basis. I believe in fairness to my new patron that I should devote my energies to the Digest as much as possible given financial realities. I'll still be doing other things to earn a living, but now the Digest is provided for and that has relieved me of a tremendous burden that I dealt with the past year. My thanks to all of you who supported the various sale/resale programs over the past year. Indeed, my deepest thanks. Patrick Townson ------------------------------ From: ritim@uriacc.uri.edu Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 16:06:05 EST Reply-To: ritim@uriacc.uri.edu Subject: Report: Interactive and Broadband Strategy Development The following is a brief outline of a report that we at the institute are very excited about. I believe that many members of this list will also be interested in the subject. Please be advised that this is not a RITIM publication and all inquiries should be directed to: Paul M. Orme 482 North Salem Road Ridgefield, Connecticut 06877 (203) 438-6828 INTERACTIVE AND BROADBAND STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT IN A CHANGING COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENT "In their rush to get into the multimedia business, America's Baby Bells are spending a fortune on acquisitions and new technology. This may help to crate an industry, but does it make financial sense?" - Economist, December 4, 1993 Over the last decade, we've worked with companies to develop consumer electronic, interactive information, communications, entertainment transaction and shopping services. Never has there been so much turmoil in the industry, never has there been a greater need to prepare for the future. We've examined the industry, technologies, competition, the consumer, new major markets/opportunities and want to share our analysis, projections and conclusions with you. TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary I. Overview of Telecommunications Distribution/Delivery Methodologies A. General B. Telephone Companies C. Cable Companies D. 1 Wire or 2 into Each Home E. Interactive Television F. Future Competitive Environment II. Deployment and Potential Displacement and/or Competition Among the Methodologies A. Twisted Copper Pair/Current Telephone Technology B. Cable Coaxial and Fiber-to-the-Neighborhood C. Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) D. Wireless Cable E. Broadcast Television F. E-On Technology III. Estimated Adoption of Interactive TV and Video-on- Demand A. Initial Indication of Demand for Interactive TV and Video-on-Demand B. Data Transmission Bandwidth Issues C. Supporting Technologies -- Converter Boxes IV. Cost of New Technology Deployment, Penetration Estimates and Timelines A. Cost Estimates to Deploy Various Technologies B. Market Penetration Estimates -- Consumer Acceptance/Penetration of Video-on-Demand and Interactive Television C. Relationships between Telephone Companies and Cable Companies D. Summary Timeline of Estimated Roll out of Largest Media Companies' Full Service Networks V. New Growth Opportunities for Interactive and Broadband A. Home Shopping B. Work at Home C. Telecommuting D. Gaming/Gambling E. Education F. Health Care (ed. this is an abridged TOC and does not contain the many exhibits and graphics) Author: Paul Orme has over 25 years experience in consulting, general management, business development and marketing. He has served in telecommunications and information companies, financial services organizations, and consumer packaged goods companies. For the past 10 years, he has focused on the definition and application of new technologies in interactive voice, data and video services. In the early 1980's, Paul Orme was President of Knight-Ridder's Viewtron, the interactive information, banking, entertainment and shopping service, which was delivered through telephone lines to household television sets. He led the redesign of Viewtron to serve PC users, and expanded the service nationally. At Citibank, Mr. Orme was Vice President of Electronic Delivery Systems where he led a department of over 120 project managers and business strategists to create, prototype, test market and introduce new electronic delivery capabilities to serve the consumer bank. Products included home banking/bill payment, screen phone/enhanced telephone and human factor design. Prior to his focus on the electronic delivery and interactive services business, he was regional Vice President and General Manager for Europe/Middle East/Africa for a consumer goods company and was responsible for over $100 million in revenue. Mr. Orme is a former consultant with McKinsey & Co. where he directed consulting assignments in the United States and International markets. He led the marketing evaluation of the McKinsey study which resulted in the creation of the Universal Product Code for the grocery industry. He is a frequent speaker at industry forums including the 8th Annual Interactive Services Association (Interact 93). He has served as Chairman of Electronic Services Division of the Information Industry Association and as a member of the board of Directors. ------------------------------ From: lware@voxel.com (Lance Ware) Subject: More Information Needed on Motorola 550 Programming Organization: VOXEL Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 00:00:21 GMT Earlier I requested general programming info on the Motorola 550. I am now looking for more info on the 61#, 66#, and 69# functions pertaining to ESN and identity transfer. If anyone can assist me I would appreciate it greatly. Specifically I wish to place the ESN from my already registered Fujitsu Mobile phone into my handheld motorola. This is a legitimate use and is not illegal. Lance Ware IS Manager & VOXEL Guru VOXEL ------------------------------ From: dumlao@cs.nps.navy.mil (Marcial Dumlao) Subject: Link Budget for Fiber Optic LAN Organization: Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 01:16:56 GMT I'm researching single-mode fiber optics in LAN. I'm fairly new on this subj. Is there any text or reference that can guide me thru the analysis of system design aspects in terms of fibers, fiber cables, sources and detectors. My goal in this project is to analyze a system by calculating and applying numerical aperture values, fiber xmsn losses, describe pulse propagation properties; select light emitters, detectors, connectors, and fiber cable to match system specs; and to compare commercial fiber links. I'ld like to be able to validate manufacture specs on LANs and create a "link budget". Any help or guidance is appreciated. VR, mbdumlao@nps.navy.mil -or- dumlao@cs.nps.navy.mil ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 12:26:22 EDT From: asoomro@bass.gmu.edu (Aamer Soomro) Subject: Busy Hour Erlang (BHE) Capacity of Mobile Cellular System Hello everyone, I am writing a paper on the Erlang capacity of the Mobile Cellular System and investigating the effects of cell radius on the system capacity. This analysis involves average Channel Hold time (for a call within a cell) as apposed to average call hold time used in fixed networks. Can someone please give me references to the studies on the Channel Hold time (Its distribution), and cellular system capacity analysis. Thank you for your time. Aamer Soomro (703) 273-4813 George Mason University Electrical Engineering Dept. Farifax, Va. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:48:28 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: South Africa Voting Information This appeared under HOW TO VOTE (information for voting in the South Africa election for eligible voters who are absentee) in the {News Journal} (Wilmington, Delaware), page A-12, April 24, 1994. I am sending it only for the interest in the phone system (NO COMMENT intended on the election). The number given for "international" is apparently Johannesburg area, and I do not see how it can be toll free or where the 09 prefix would be used. Here goes: More information Call the Independent Electoral Commission toll free at (09-27-11) 401-2000 (International) or 0800-11-8000 (South Africa). The toll free line is operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It would appear the paper simply reprinted the PR item it got from the Electoral Commission without bothering to adjust as required for local consumption. PAT] ------------------------------ From: ssanbeg@hebron.connected.com (Scott Sanbeg) Subject: Telephony/Data Integration Recommendations Wanted Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 00:58:42 -0700 Organization: Connected INC -- Full Service Internet Providers(tm) Hello All, We are in the process of upgrade our mid-70's mainframes to a new platform altogether. For this I am looking to install a fiber backbone, leaving the currently installed Cat5 copper alone which runs out to 100 workstations. So I'm looking for answers to several questions and any gotcha's I should be aware of. The diagram looks like this: Internet--------- \ \ 155 Mbps Equip. Rm. PSTN-------------------> Telco CO <--> Fiber MUX <--> POP ---| / (SONET) | Subscriber / | Connections---- Bandwidth /------------------------ Mangm't / Unit | | ACD Voice Processing \ |------- & FAX | / MEGA Router / Server / Modem --------/ UNIX HOST Pool (DNS) Video (Internet) Teleconferencing Without further ado, the fiber backbone connects the Router, Mega Server, UNIX Host and Video Teleconferencing together with the LAN side of the modem pool and Voice Processing Host. Not showing are, off the ACD, digital phone lines out to the one hundred agent workstations and the Cat5 copper LAN connections to each of the one hundred stations also. The copper plant is going into a Ethernet Optical Tranceiver (not shown) on the rack; the fiber is going into a fiber device (DACS?); bridging is done between the two. First question: Will the router, a Cisco 7000, be okay to function as our main router and route, instead of bridge, the FDDI and Ethernet traffic too? Second question: I've been looking at FDDI for the fiber side of things. Yet ATM looks attractive over SONET. Some vendors are reluctant to deploy ATM at the moment, like I am, because standards are still being written. We are seeing, nonetheless, some of the universities and corps. deploying ATM across their backbones. What are the thoughts here from netland? Third question: If using FDDI for the fiber side, is CDDI a solid solution to the agent stations over the Cat5? If using ATM for the backbone, are there ATM solutions to the workstations (PC's)? If using ATM for the backbone, is CDDI to the stations bridgable/routeable? Fourth question: Will someone recommend a modem pool solution that will take port routing from the ACD instead of T1's directly, give us 144 ports to start *and* acknowledge rlogin, telnet, ftp, PPP/SLIP, etc.? (The ACD routing allows us to assign ports, move them around, add to them and so forth as needed.) Fifth question: What functionality will a DACS, an Ethernet Optical Tranceiver and/or an Ethernet Switch give us over routing between FDDI/CDDI/ATM on a Cisco, the above gear and 3Com Linkbuilder Hubs on the Cat5 side of things? Sixth question: Is it recommended to have that Cisco serve as both our firewall *and* main router? If not, is it generally better to but in some- thing like a Cisco 2500 as the firewall in addition to the 7000? Last question, maybe: Who can recommend a vendor for the Bandwidth Management Unit? For background info, I have worked quite a bit with copper; am learning and am amazed by optical fiber. We already have the SONET MUX in our equipment room and our T1's are currently sent to us over fiber -- all in all we have the bandwidth requirements covered with 24 fiber strands. My intention is to perform no, or as little as possible, electro-optical conversions and use only digital equipment through the telephony parts (no analog). Thanks, Scott Sanbeg Computer Systems Engineer, Seattle, WA ssanbeg@hebron.connected.com ------------------------------ From: vantek@aol.com Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 19:23:44 EDT Subject: AT&T vs. Ameritech Open local phone service, AT&T urges Illinois By Jon Van Tribune Staff Writer Illinois should become a national showcase for local telephone service competition, American Telephone & Telegraph Co. said Tuesday in a petition filed before the Illinois Commerce Commission, but AT&T itself won't compete. The nation's biggest long-distance phone company said it would benefit because competition with Ameritech would reduce the fees it pays to complete long-distance calls. Ameritech, the regional Bell operating company based in Chicago that provides local telephone service to five Midwestern states, responded that AT&T's petition is really intended to delay competition, not promote it, because AT&T doesn't want Ameritech in the long-distance business. Ameritech has asked federal officials and the ICC for permission to enter long-distance service. In exchange, Ameritech is willing to allow competitors into its local-service arena. Both telecommunications giants did agree Illinois likely will become a test bed for phone-service competition and deregulation because of favorable state laws and an attractive market. Dudley Burgess, AT&T vice president for governmental affairs, said Ameritech's proposal is a step in the right direction, but doesn't go far enough, which is why AT&T filed its own petition. Issues such as allowing customers to keep their same telephone numbers when they change local telephone companies must be addressed if competition is to thrive, Burgess said, and Ameritech's proposal doesn't address them. AT&T also opposes Ameritech's requirement that it be allowed to offer long-distance service before it abandons monopoly control of its network. But, said Burgess, AT&T doesn't plan to enter the local-service market. MCI Communications, the No. 2 long-distance carrier, announced last month that it plans to offer local service in several large cities later this year. Burgess didn't rule out the possibility that AT&T may one day seek to offer local service. "This business is evolving so dramatically anything is possible," he said. A decade ago, AT&T's monopoly in local- and long-distance service was split up by court order, with AT&T keeping the long-distance business and seven Baby Bells, including Ameritech, given local-service monopolies. Doug Whitley, president of Ameritech's Illinois service company, said AT&T's petition was filed primarily to divert the Illinois Commerce Commission from taking prompt action on Ameritech's requests to enter the long-distance market. "We think this filing is superfluous," said Whitley. "There's nothing they asked for in this petition that we haven't already addressed. I see no reason for AT&T to step in except for purposes of delay. Van Hefner Vantek Communications vantek@aol.com ------------------------------ From: vantek@aol.com Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 19:24:29 EDT Subject: Cellular Bust Cellular phone fraud operation busted by law enforcement officials and BellAtlantic Mobile BRIDGEPORT, CONN. (APRIL 11) BUSINESS WIRE - April 11, 1994 -- State and local law enforcement officials in conjunction with the network and corporate security operations of Bell Atlantic Mobile today uncovered and shut down a cellular phone fraud operation similar to the ones that are costing the industry up to one million dollars per day. Police inspectors of the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice, Office of the State's Attorney Donald A. Browne, Judicial District of Fairfield, in cooperation with Bridgeport Police Narcotic and Vice Officers executed a search and seizure warrant and arrested Teofila A. Torres, 26, at her residence at 810 Howard Ave. in Bridgeport. Ms. Torres is accused of defrauding Bell Atlantic Mobile and long distance carriers of services determined to be in excess of $50,000. The search warrant was executed on April 5, 1994 at approximately 5:45 p.m. Officials uncovered nine cellular telephones, mobile phone monitoring equipment, papers and notebook ledgers recording phone numbers and names of individuals alleged to have used telephone facilities through the scheme. State and local law enforcement officials acted after receiving a complaint from security officers of Bell Atlantic Mobile, following detection of unusual activity on the carrier's network. "Cellular fraud effects our customers in many significant ways," stated Gary Schulman, regional vice president, Bell Atlantic Mobile. "Operations such as this one could prevent customers from reaching emergency numbers or from completing calls. The additional costs to the carrier can ultimately effect our operations and our subscribers. Using a sophisticated computer system called "FraudTec", Bell Atlantic Mobile can detect abnormal usage as it occurs. In this case, a tip from Bell Atlantic Mobile led to further investigation by the State's Attorney's office with officers of the Bridgeport Police Narcotics and Vice Units. From this operation, numerous telephone calls were made throughout the United States and to the Dominican Republic. Inspector John F. Solomon, Supervisory Inspector for the office of the State's Attorney in Bridgeport praised the work of Bell Atlantic Mobile investigators and their technical tracking team. Ms. Torres was charged with larceny in the first degree: theft of utility services for profit. Also arrested was a juvenile, a relative of the accused. Three small children at the apartment were transported to the Bridgeport Police Department and later turned over to relatives of the defendant. Bell Atlantic Mobile's cellular operations constitute the largest carrier on the east coast and one of the largest carriers in North America, serving markets with a total population of 35 million. Bell Atlantic Mobile provides cellular service and equipment in Washington, D.C., and 15 states in New England, the mid-Atlantic, the Carolinas and the Southwest. The Northeast region is headquartered in Wallingford, Conn. CONTACT: Bell Atlantic Mobile Gary Schulman, 203/269-8858 or State Attorney's Office John F. Solomon, 203/579-6506 or Mason & Madison Inc. James S. Frawley, 203/393-1101 Van Hefner Vantek Communications vantek@aol.com ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #183 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa11666; 27 Apr 94 17:13 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA21680; Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:03:05 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA21671; Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:03:03 CDT Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:03:03 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404271703.AA21671@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #184 TELECOM Digest Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:03:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 184 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls (Tom Holderby) Reach Out and Touch Someone ... (Worth Magazine via Van Hefner) AT&T Craft Access Terminal (Chris Klugewicz) Re: GTE/SF Supervising on Busy Calls? (Mike Borsetti) Looking For International Switching Symposium Proceedings (Jeong-Gyun Shin) Where is NPA/NXX Current List? (Kim Kempf) Incident Management Call Boxes (Paul Robinson) Source of 25 Pair AMP Connectors to RJ11 Patchboard Needed (Joe McGuckin) Qualcomm and ATM (John Anderson) NT Script Files (Jeff Whitcomb) What is True Voice? (Kendall Willis) Wanted: Chip CS61574A or CS61575 (Sorokin Anatole) CFP: NCC'95 (IIT Kanapur, India) (Chandrabose Aravindan) CFP: First Smart Card Research/Advanced Application Conference (Vandewalle) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: holderby@inca.gate.net (Tom Holderby) Subject: Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls Date: 27 Apr 1994 10:50:34 -0400 I've recently become aware of the fact the many BBS's and Internet service providers use the call-forwarding trick where they go buy a phone number (without a phone) in outlying exchanges which are permanently call-forwarded to their main lines, thereby increasing their local call area. Apparently some of them carry this to the point of multiple forwarding, which may get them 50 or 75 miles without a toll. I was just wondering how the phone companies feel about this. Is this something that you can just tell them you want to do, being very open about it? Or do you need to sneak around, get the numbers in different names, etc? Also, assuming that this is legal and acceptable, can you forward multiple calls off of one line, or do you need one line per call? Thanks in advance for any help. Tom Holderby holderby@gate.net [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Generally, using the *regular, residential variety* of call forwarding will NOT save money where toll charges are concerned unless you are able to link two or three large toll free calling areas together. Generally, two or more short calls linked together cost more than a single long-haul call covering the same points. There is a service offered by many telcos called 'remote call forwarding' which con- sists of a phantom number in a central office with no actual wire pair going somewhere attached to it. This phantom number is programmed perman- ently by telco to automatically 'call forward' to some other location outside the CO. The subscriber pays for those calls at the direct dial rate in effect at whatever time a call is received. Remote call forwarding usually requires a 'path' for each call to be forwarded at the same time. You want to be able to receive three calls at once, you need three paths, etc. This often times is not intended so much to save money for the caller as it is intended by the called party to provide a local presence in the community where the caller is located. Remote call forwarding is legal and a published tariff. On the other hand, the casual stringing together of phones in a call forwarding link purely for the purpose of toll-avoidance is not legal; but more important, it rarely can be justified economically with the exception mentioned above of phones in large toll free areas which have been *very* strategically placed at certain locations. As long as they buy the line 'without the phone' from telco according to remote call forwarding tariffs (they are NOT priced the same as regular call forwarding tariffs) then it is legal. Subscribers who elect to use this really need to sit down with pencil and paper and work out the costs before proceeding to see if it makes any real difference or not to them and their subscribers before proceeding. It might if they are large like Compuserve. PAT] ------------------------------ From: vantek@aol.com Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 09:24:04 EDT Subject: Reach Out and Touch Someone ... The following is a reprint from the May 1994 issue of {Worth Magazine}. Shady Operators A new measure would mean phone callers don't have to put everything on the line. How would you feel if your telephone company were to sell your name and address to a travel agency because you make lots of international calls? What if it gave your name to an X-rated video marketer as part of a list of phone-sex addicts? Though they haven't been hashed out in court, such actions are likely legal right now. Phone companies aren't barred from hawking lists of names, organized by calling habits, to all comers. Meanwhile, police departments and other authorities need a subpoena to see such records. Most phone companies insist they'd never divulge your habits to a marketer -- although they may use them for their own marketing purposes. But many other companies sell phone-call records: Mail-order companies, for instance, often use caller-identification technology that tells them who's calling, then sell that data to other merchants. And some numbers exist just to gather mailing lists. "A great deal of information about us is collected, analyzed, and sold when we are conducting everyday activities," says Congressman Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts, who's pushing a measure to limit info harvesting. Markey's proposal, included as an amendment to a broader telecommunications bill, seems like a no-brainer: It would mainly require phone companies to get a consumer's express consent before disclosing any calling patterns or other data. The bill also would set nationwide privacy standards for caller-identification technology and require new privacy rules for all telecommunications media. But powerful local phone companies oppose the measure, which will likely be debated in the late spring. "The telephone business has been around for more than 100 years, and sacrosanct privacy has always been its hallmark," says a spokesman for BellSouth. "It seems strange that anyone thinks legislation like this is necessary." -- by David A. Andelman ============================================ Van Hefner Vantek Communications vantek@aol.com ------------------------------ From: c.klugewicz@chesbay.com (Chris Klugewicz) Subject: AT&T Craft Access Terminal Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 02:52:35 -0500 Organization: Chesapeake Bay Information Systems I recently purchased a surplus AT&T Craft Access Terminal for use as a telephone test set -- a function it fulfills quite adequately. However, I would like to be able to use the "Craft Access Terminal" part as well -- it'd be a nifty handheld data terminal, for instance. Using the CAT, I dialed into one of the modems around here and discovered that the set features a 1200 baud modem, which connected quite readily with my own AT&T DataPort. However, I could do nothing more. The CAT sends out a steady stream of ESC-LF-LF-LF-LF-ACK-NUL-NUL (pause) as if it's expecting a reply from the other end. Anybody familiar with AT&T's Craft computers or CAT test sets? I'd appreciate follow-up here or by email. Thanks! Chris Klugewicz Chesapeake Bay Information Systems c.klugewicz@chesbay.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 00:40:02 PDT From: Mike Borsetti, Cellular One/San Francisco Subject: Re: GTE/SF Supervising on Busy Calls? In TELECOM Digest V14 #182 dreuben@netcom.com writes: > [...] I recently oticed that GTE/SF (00040) is *supervising* if a dialed > cellular customer is busy. > That is to say, if you call my GTE Mobilnet/San Francisco cell number, and > it is busy, the call will be BILLED, ie, you pay whatever local or toll > charges to hear a busy signal. That is correct; we've found the same problem with ring no answer situations. Of course, there is a second cellular carrier in the Bay Area , and it *does* handle call supervision correctly. Additionally, almost all of its roaming partners are on the NACN, and call waiting works in almost all of them. Mike.Borsetti@bactc.com Cellular One/San Francisco ------------------------------ From: Jeong-Gyun Shin Subject: Looking For International Switching Symposium Proceedings Date: 27 Apr 1994 20:15:57 GMT Organization: University of Delaware I came across few references quoting proceedings of International Switching Symposium (ISS) for 1990. Since the library where I am does not have these proceedings, I requested inter-library loan in my location. But, the problem is that the inter-library loan office in my location is unable to locate these proceedings. I consulted so called I.S.T.P. (? I forgot exact acronym) which is a manual with cross-references of all (?) technical conferences held around the world, and I failed to find this so called International Switching Symposium. Now, it is more of my *curiosity* than need. Can somebody knowledgeble tell me where to find (library/institution) the proceedings of Interna- tional Switching Symposium? Does your library has proceedings of ISS? If so, what years? Please email to shin@udel.edu. Thanks for attention and time. ------------------------------ From: mcrware!kim@uunet.UU.NET (Kim Kempf) Subject: Where is NPA/NXX Current List? Organization: Microware Systems Corp., Des Moines, Iowa Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 18:41:37 GMT I seem to recall a periodic posting of NPA/NXX numbers on the net somewhere. Is it still available and if so, where? Thanks in advance. Kim Kempf MicroMall, Inc. kim@microware.com (515) 224-9655 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 16:37:35 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Incident Management Call Boxes Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA In another news group, a representative of North Carolina State University wanted some information about costs and usage for setting up a system of roadside call boxes for freeways, as they've been asked to do so by the State. Someone else pointed out that the Texas Department of Transportation created a callbox system on freeways in the Fort Worth/Dallas area; the system uses cellular to call 911. The writer from Texas pointed out that "the system does not allow calls to anywhere else." It was at this point that I mentioned the incident in Southern California where one call-box unit was either stolen or monitored to get its identification code, which was used to cause tens of thousands of dollars in fraudulent cellular calls. I am wondering if there isn't some sort of "dispatch/reply" system that would use several shared radio frequencies along with a "request" channel where someone would send in an identifier and then be told what frequency to tune to? Someone could have perhaps 10 channels and use them as needed, instead of paying airtime and usage of a cellular network, or some other ideas. Responses may be made to me personally (I'll forward them), to TELECOM Digest or to list . Thank you for any responses. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ From: josephm@pumasillo.San-Jose.ate.slb.com (Joseph McGuckin) Subject: Source of 25 Pair AMP Connector to RJ11 Patchboard Needed Date: 27 Apr 94 14:25:50 Organization: Schlumberger Technologies, ATE Division I'm looking for a rack mountable patchboard that accepts a 25 pair AMP connector and fans it out to 25 RJ11's. Thanks, Joe josephm@San-Jose.ate.slb.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 16:53:59 CDT From: andrsonj@ranger.rtsg.mot.com (John Anderson) Subject: Qualcomm and ATM I heard that Qualcomm is doing something with ATM. I'm just getting interested in ATM (better late than never :-) Does anyone have some information? Thanks, John ------------------------------ From: jeff.whitcomb@pcohio.com (Jeff Whitcomb) Subject: NT Script Files Date: 27 Apr 1994 00:08:20 -0400 Organization: PC-OHIO PCBOARD - Cleveland, OH - 216-381-3320 For the past few years, I have been writing script files in xtalk for interfacing to Northern Telecom PBX's. We currently have Option 11's at our remote sites, and an Option 61 at our RHQ. I was wondering if there is any market out there for such a product, or if it is even possible to sell them without permission from Northern or Xtalk. I would imagine that it would at least have to include the old, "NT is a trademark of Northern Telecom ... blah,blah". So far, I have written scripts for menu-driven programming changes, (changing phone features, setting date and time, and some misc), an automatic NPA,NXX updater for NARS/BARS equipped switches, A DTI/T1 interface monitor, which alerts my pager of a t1 outage,(outages effect my actual bonus $) or high error rate, an automatic phone TRACer, and some other misc shtuff. I am currently writing one for doing automated remote backups of all of our Option 11 switches on a monthly basis which would save time and money for visits to the actual site for P.M.'s. I am also planning to add all of these routines into a single script file, that is upgradeable by adding specific modules. I was also writing one to alert my pager of the actual load that is seeing a problem, such as 911-60 for a T1 outage or 911-32 for a set outage. Well ... just curious and looking for input. I would hate to write all of these, and not let anyone else have the opportunity of using them. Jeffrey T. Whitcomb jeffwhitcomb#pcohio.com ah535@cleveland.freenet.edu ------------------------------ From: kowillis@umr.edu (Kendall Willis) Subject: What is True Voice? Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 19:19:03 GMT Organization: University of Missouri-Rolla, Missouri's Technological University I'm interested in some of the technical specifications of True Voice by AT&T. Is it another method of companding the signal to get better sounding voice? I got the feeling that it only works between subscribers that are both AT&T. The ads say it is part of the I-plan and I suspect it is a bit of a ploy to get family members to join AT&T like MCI's friends & family. Most importantly, does it mess with data transmission? I would suppose it changes the channel characteristics. Kendall Willis [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Several months ago a detailed technical analysis of TruVoice (that's the official spelling, I think) was presented here in the Digest, and it is available in the Telecom Archives for your review of interested. The archives is accessible using anonymous ftp at the archives site, lcs.mit.edu. PAT] ------------------------------ From: sab@lesko.msk.su (Sorokin Anatole) Subject: Wanged: Chip CS61574A or CS61575 Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 20:21:13 +0400 Reply-To: sab@lesko.msk.su Wanted: Chip CS61574A or CS615785 and quartz CXT8192 in quantity of ten. Payment in US Dollars. E-Mail: SAB@lesko.msk.su Fax: 7 (095) 187-01-52 Lesko Ltd. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 14:02:37 GMT From: Chandrabose ARAVINDAN Subject: CFP: NCC'95 (IIT Kanapur, India) The five IITs and IISc (Bangalore) of India jointly announce NCC'95 sponsored by their Joint Telematics Group. The NCC conferences will be held annually. Their goal will be to foster greater interaction between communications professionals, academics and students in India through research papers, tutorials and workshops. ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL FOR PAPERS National Conference on Communications (NCC'95) I.I.T., Kanpur, INDIA March 1995 Sponsored By: The Joint Telematics Group of the five IITs and IISc. Papers are solicited on research and development work in the general area of communications. Topics of interest include but are not limited to: Base band transmission and modulation theory including detection, estimation and equalization. Information and rate distortion theory. Channel coding, spread spectrum and line codes. Source coding, voice, video and data encoding, compression and encryption. Telecommunication and computer networks. ISDN and broadband integrated networks. Telecommunications switching: message, circuit and packet switching, photonic switching and fibre optic networks. Signal processing, optical signal processing Neural networks, artificial intelligence and expert systems in communications. Radio, microwave, millimetre wave and optical communications. Satellite communications. Mobile and personal communications. Telecommunication devices and circuits. Telematics including audio and video conferencing Network architectures, planning and management. National telecommunication policies, standards, regulation and planning. Future telecommunication technologies. The conference will be preceded by a few tutorials on topics of current technical interest. Suggestions for tutorials are also solicited. Schedule: Intention to submit due: July 1, 1994 Full Paper Due: Sept 1, 1994 Notification of acceptance: Nov 15, 1994 Final Manuscript Due: Jan 1, 1995 Address for Correspondence: Prof. Sanjay K. Bose Email Address: skb@iitk.ernet.in Dept. of Electrical Engineering, I.I.T.,Kanpur - 208 016, INDIA ------------------------------ From: jeanjac@iad.ift.ulaval.ca (Jean-Jacques Vandewalle) Subject: CFP: First Smart Card Research/Advanced Application Conference Reply-To: jeanjac@iad.ift.ulaval.ca Organization: Universite Laval, Quebec, Canada Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 13:22:42 GMT CALL FOR PAPERS : CARDIS FIRST SMART CARD RESEARCH AND ADVANCED APPLICATION CONFERENCE October 24 - 26, 1994 LILLE FRANCE Sponsored by IFIP - The International Federation for Information Processing AIMS AND GOALS Smart cards or IC cards are becoming a significant part of the information processing world. Furthermore they are beginning to move towards real integration into the information systems. They participate in the overall data management, security and communication processes. But they bring their own special characteristics. It is very likely that future IC cards will require many scientific and technical improvements which represent a challenge for the success of the technology. So far there are many events which are mostly devoted to the commercial and application aspects of IC cards. There is now an opportunity to initiate a scientific conference bringing specialists who are involved in all aspects of design of the future IC cards and related devices and environment. IFIP - the International Federation for Information Processing has agreed to sponsor this conference. It will be the first occasion for the IC card community to start a permanent activity: In addition to the conference itself there will be discussions about creating a permanent group within IFIP with possible implication for advancing standards, publishing and international cooperation. SUBMISSIONS Six copies of detailed abstracts of original papers corresponding to one or several themes for the conference should be sent in English to the program chairman before May 2, 1994. The submissions will start with a succinct statement of the problem addressed and their significance, appropriate for a non-specialist. Technical development directed to the specialist should follow as needed (at most ten pages). They should be accompanied by a fact sheet indicating the following: - Title of the paper with the relevant conference theme(s); - Author(s) with affiliation, address, phone and fax numbers, E-mail. Proceedings will be available at the conference. IMPORTANT DATES Submission deadline May 2, 1994 Acceptance notification June 17, 1994 Camera ready paper due August 13, 1994 Conference October 24 - 26, 1994 THEMES TECHNOLOGY IC architecture and techniques Memories and processor design Read/Write unit engineering Specific co-processors for cryptography Biometry Communication technologies Interfaces with the owner, the service suppliers Reliability and fault tolerance Special devices Standards SOFTWARE The operating system Models of data management Communication protocols IC CARD DESIGN IC cards formal specification and validation Tools for internal or external software production Validation and verification Methodology for application design SECURITY Models and schemes of security Algorithms Security interfaces Hardware and software implementation Security of information systems including cards Formal verification of transaction sets IC CARDS, INDIVIDUALS AND THE SOCIETY IC cards and privacy Access to his data by the owner IC cards: political and economical aspects Is the IC card going to change regulation? Patents, copyrights FUTURE OF THE IC CARDS Innovative technologies Moving towards the pocket intelligence Convergence with portable PCs, laptops etc ... PCMCIA INNOVATIVE APPLICATIONS Design methodology of applications IC cards and the information system Examples of new applications Requirements for innovative cards ORGANIZATION General Chairman Program Chairman Prof. Vincent Cordonnier Prof. Jean-Jacques Quisquater RD2P Universit'e Catholique de Louvain CHRU CALMETTE Dept. of Electrical Eng. (DICE) Rue du Prof. J. Leclerc Place du Levant, 3 F - 59037 LILLE CEDEX B - 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve FRANCE BELGIUM Tel (33) 20 44 60 47 Tel (32) 10 47 25 41 Fax (33) 20 44 60 45 Fax (32) 10 47 86 67 e-mail: cardis@rd2p.lifl.fr Quisquater@dice.ucl.ac.be Program committee Mart'in Abadi (Dec Research, USA) Ross Anderson (Cambridge, UK) Benjamin Arazi (Ben-Gurion, Israel) Todd Arnold (IBM, USA) Jacques Berleur (FNDP, Belgium) William Caelli (Queensland, Australia) David Chaum (DigiCash, Netherlands) Vincent Cordonnier (Lille, France) Mark Cummings (SRI, USA) Amos Fiat (Tel-Aviv, Israel) Andr'e Gamache (Quebec, Canada) Marc Girault (SEPT, France) Louis Guillou (CCETT, France) Joseph Hoppe (TRT Philips, France) John Kennedy (Cylink, USA) Philippe Maes (Gemplus, France) Roger Needham (Cambridge, UK) Jean-Jacques Quisquater (Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium) Laurent Sourgen (SGS-Thomson, France) Doug Tygar (Carnegie-Mellon, USA) Michel Ugon (Bull-CP8, France) Klaus Vedder (GAO, Germany) Robert Warnar (NIST, USA) The city of LILLE is about 150 miles away from PARIS. It can be reached : from Paris by either motorway (two hours) or train (one hour). From most European countries by train, motorway or plane. The conference will take place at the University of Sciences and Technology of Lille. Accommodation can be provided either on the campus or in the center of the Lille. We will provide maps and help for hotel reservation and travels. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #184 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa12434; 27 Apr 94 19:08 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA23324; Wed, 27 Apr 94 13:15:04 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA23315; Wed, 27 Apr 94 13:15:02 CDT Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 13:15:02 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404271815.AA23315@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #185 TELECOM Digest Wed, 27 Apr 94 13:15:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 185 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Looking For Information on BNC, Inc. (jrcrum@bb1t.monsanto.com) Customer <-> Local Phone Company Contact Point (Jonathan Liu) Proprietary Rights and Pirate Psychology (A. Padgett Peterson) Voice Recognition With Octel Systems (Eric A. Litman) BT Redirection Message (Tony Harminc) Telecom Inventory Management (Mark Kelly) Multi-Line Office Phone System - How to Connect Modem? (Misha Glouberman) Help! Need 800 Number/WATS History (Dwight Phili Victor) Intelligent Network Architecture (INA) (Brian Anzaldua) Answering Machines: What Use? (Daniel Joha) Responses to Voltage Drop Query (Dick O'Connor) E1 Help Wanted (Jack W. Lix) FYI: CommerceNet Press Release (William Tao-Yang Wong) Alfred Hitchcock Episode - Bomb Scare (Carl Moore) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jrcrum@bb1t.monsanto.com Subject: Looking For Information on BNC, Inc. Organization: Monsanto Company, St. Louis, MO Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 21:39:10 GMT I'm trying to find some information on a company called Business Network Communications, Inc. (BNC). They are supposedly a long-distance wholesaler, reselling AT&T services. A friend of mine is considering investing in this company, and asked me to post this to see if anyone may be familiar with them. If anyone has any direct experience with this company (or one like it), we would appreciate any information. I also have another question. This company claims that due to some FCC rulings, AT&T is required to make discount packages like the ones they give large companies available to resellers. The resellers can then make money selling AT&T long-distance service to other companies or individuals. Is this for real? Joe Crum | 577-6476@mcimail.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed 27 Apr 1994 01:51:32 -0400 From: Jonathan Subject: Customer <-> Local Phone Company Contact Point I would like to suggest that after local telephone service competition is under way, somebody should create a special point of contact between all customers and all local telephone companies. This entity would represent customers, all local telephone companies or the government. It could either be a separate government agency in each state or it could be a single industry-wide organization. This agency would have multiple functions. First, it would control the assignment of area codes, prefixes and telephone numbers; it would maintain a database of what company handles whose services. Second, it would verify any service orders when somebody is trying to change local telephone service from one company to another. Third, it would handle reports of trouble on calls, localize them to one company's network, and then refer it to that company. Fourth, it may provide some operator services or billing functions. Fifth, it would set business, ethical and technical standards for the industry. I am sure that there are other functions for it too. The point is that this agency should either represent no telephone companies and be either customer- or government-controlled, or it should represent each and every local phone company in the nation. It could be organized with a two-house board of directors: one with one director from every LEC and one apportioned to which LEC has the most customers. What do people think? [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Wouldn't this be redundant since we already have both the Federal Communications Commission and a state agency in every state at present? In addition there are already many consumer organizations which devote their attention to utility matters. Why add still another layer to the whole thing? PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 11:58:44 -0400 From: padgett@tccslr.dnet.mmc.com (A. Padgett Peterson) Subject: Proprietary Rights and Pirate Psychology Originator's name unimportant > I've been told by a usually reliable source that the full confidential, > proprietary details of the Videocrypt video scrambling system are being > released this week on some international bulletin boards. Am not a lawyer so may be ignorant and would appreciate education if wrong. My understanding is that there is no legal meaning to the word "proprietary" other than a contractual (civil) obligation that may be required for access to data. This contract does not exist between any other parties who may gain access (note: am not addressing *how* access was gained, merely that it was). Further "confidential" in the civil as opposed to the military sense is similar: actionable only on those people who have contractually agreed that it is. As such, merely marking "proprietary" or "confidential" on a document does not automatically induce any obligation on the part of any individual who has not entered into a "proprietary rights agreement" beyond the test of "common sense". There is no consideration and there is no contract between any party who happens on it due to a lack of proper protection on the part of the originator. (Again not talking about any improper acts, merely the fact that no-one who has not signed a PRA is under any obligation to keep information secret merely because it is considered "proprietary" by another). Please correct if wrong but if so, please be explicit about under what juristiction. (sovereign can do *anything* but only in area of sovereignty). > If all the above is true, I'm interested in knowing what the pirates > stand to gain from releasing the information on bulletin boards. > Surely, it is more profitable to keep the information to yourself, and > have something to sell. Or is this a move to force Videocrypt's hand > in some way? Some people claim that "information should be free", others feel that by sharing what they have others will share what they have. Yet another might be involved in a competing system and feel that its market share will improve if VideoCrypt's secrets are known. Too many possibilities to list. Why are there computer viruses ? Warmly, Padgett ------------------------------ From: elitman@proxima.com (Eric A. Litman) Subject: Voice Recognition With Octel Systems Date: 26 Apr 1994 13:50:33 -0500 Organization: Proxima, Inc. I have a client with (n:n>100) Octel systems who would like to develop polling/survey applications with Octel's TransAct software option. I am looking for any way to incorporate speech recognition technology into this system. As I understand, AT&T has recently started a marketing blitz with a new speech recognition package they are offering. Can this interface with the Octel systems? Does anyone have any more information on this in gereral? Any information appreciated. Eric Litman Proxima, Inc. vox: (703) 506.1661 Senior Systems Engineer McLean, VA elitman+@proxima.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 04:41:30 EDT From: Tony Harminc Subject: BT Redirection Message The 26 March 94 issue of {New Scientist} mentions an example of BT ineptitude. The London number +44 81 975 9759 has been changed to +44 81 242 3000. If you dial the old number, BT's automated system will tell you the new number, in UK-internal format (081 242-3000). "But whereas BT's numbering system groups digits logically into an area code followed by the number, BT's electronic stitcher works in a completely different way." The new number is read as 0812 423 0 00, with the last group read as "double oh". (The number is that of the UK Press Gazette.) Tony Harminc ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 05:06:23 EDT From: Mark Kelly Subject: Telecom Inventory Management Thanks to everyone that responded to my request for information about STU III phones. I'll post a summary soon. But who knows anything about Telecom inventory management? In particular, what options are available for management of telecom assets and circuits? It would seem to me that given the large number of service providers and telcos in North America there must be off-the-shelf software that provides inventory management functionality. I know that in Canada most of the large telcos (Stentor) have their own internal systems for managing their assets. Is this because everyone does it differently or because this software isn't available and has to be custom designed. Any comments or assistance would be appreciated. I will post a summary back to this Digest. Thanks, Mark Kelly Advanced Multi-Point Conferencing Email: mkelly@resudox.net 320 March Road, Suite 102 Phone: 613-592-5752 Kanata, Ontario, Canada K2K 2E3 ------------------------------ From: misha@abacus.concordia.ca (Misha Glouberman) Subject: Multi-Line Office Phone System - How to Connect Modem? Reply-To: misha@abacus.concordia.ca Organization: Concordia University, Montreal, Canada Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 22:19:15 GMT I'm trying to hook up a modem in a friend's office. They have those typical office phones that require you to pick a line to get a dial tone. This is a real drag for the modem setup of course. Anyone know of a way to hook up a modem in such a situation? (The system's a Trillium TalkTo 616, if that helps.) It's a small office they've got, and phone lines for businesses are real expensive here in Canada. AT&T, who bought out the company that made the system, want an absurd amount of money to connect a POTS jack onto the existing system. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Misha Glouberman misha@abacus.concordia.ca ------------------------------ From: dwightv@hawaii.edu (Dwight Phili Victor) Subject: Help! Need 800 Number/WATS History Organization: University of Hawaii Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 03:12:05 GMT Howzit! I'm a student at the University of Hawaii and I'm doing a report for my communications class on 800 Numbers/WATS. I need some info/history as soon as possible. I'm looking for when and why this service began. If you have any information, could you please e-mail me at: dwightv@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu Mahalo in advance, Dwight Victor University of Hawaii College of Communications [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: This was received during the time I was off line a couple weeks ago and Mr. Victor needed his information about a week ago unfortunatly ... but it seemed like an interesting question to present here. WATS service began in the late 1950's with the advent of direct long distance dialing. In-WATS (or 800 service, as it is more commonly known) began *under that name with direct dialing* in the middle to late 1960's; however the predecessor to 800 service was called 'Enterprise Service' in some areas and 'Zenith Service' in other areas. Companies which agreed to accept incoming collect or reverse charge calls on an automatic basis -- without the operator asking their permission to place the charge each time -- were assigned a four digit number with the prefix 'Enterprise' or 'Zenith', ie Enterprise 5781, which was my toll-free number in those days. Callers dialed the operator and asked for connection to the desired Enterprise number. Dial-it-yourself 800 numbers largely made Enterprise service obsolete by the late 1970's. PAT] ------------------------------ From: briana@corp.hp.com (Brian Anzaldua) Subject: Intelligent Network Architecture (INA) Date: 26 Apr 1994 20:11:12 GMT Organization: Hewlett Packard Does anybody know where I can get a copy of a white paper on INA? briana@hpccoa.corp.hp.com ------------------------------ From: johaciie@w206zrz.zrz.TU-Berlin.DE (Daniel Joha) Subject: Answering Machines: What Use? Date: 26 Apr 1994 22:05:11 GMT Organization: TUBerlin/ZRZ Short Discussion on ANSWERING MACHINES, comments are welcome! - Answering machines save time since they allow asynchronous communication. - Answering machines are impersonal. I don't like to talk to machines! - With answering machines one can answer calls in a "bulk" and is therefore less disturbed while working. - Many callers hesitate talking on to the tape. - While absent, it is possible to obtain messages. This can be important if upon one's return the caller himself is absent. - Callers never know whether the called party is absent or just happily listens to them. - Call screening is possible: only calls that are welcome are answered. - An answering machine causes additional costs: electricity and phone charges. Which positive and negative experiences have you had with answering machines? What is the major benefit of answering machines? Daniel Joha johaciie@w206zrz.zrz.TU-Berlin.de [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Answering machines came on the scene in the middle 1960's. They were simply an automated form of the old telephone answering services which had been around since the beginning of the telephone itself. By the early 1970's answering machines were beginning to become quite popular and the telephone answering services were beginning to feel a pinch in their business. The term 'voicemail' was unheard of back then. PAT] ------------------------------ From: djo7613@u.washington.edu (Dick O'Connor) Subject: Responses to Voltage Drop Query Date: 27 Apr 1994 09:57:52 GMT Organization: University of Washington Recently I asked a question about residential phone line voltage drops (if they were possible, could they be what was suddenly affecting the devices I put on that line, etc.). I got some very useful responses that I'm summarizing below. On the second day of troubleshooting, with two US West folks involved at our house, they found a circuit board in one of the two boxes on the side of the house ("their" box, not "mine") that was testing flaky. They replaced it, and voltage returned to normal; all devices ring or pick up now, as before. Happy ending! Responses follow: Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 09:38:51 PDT From: Jay Hennigan Ringing is a low-frequency AC signal applied to the line (Typically 90 volts at 20 Hertz). Tell the repair desk that "ringing voltage is not being applied". They will likely find the problem to be the line equipment (printed circuit card in modern exchanges) feeding your line. Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 14:27:44 -0800 From: jbaker@halcyon.com (James Baker) Yep, the ring voltage falls during peak calling times, when lots of ringers are ringing simultaneously. Most cards have a sensitivity setting. Bigmouth for example has rsens = XX or some such thing in setup software. (I had the same problem with PCX software and bigmouth card on US West line in Seattle). Good luck! From: Floyd Davidson Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 14:17:19 -0800 You gave a very apt description! And to take it one step farther... if your water pipe isn't leaking, but it has low pressure... you look at the pump? Yep. The line card which supplies ring voltage appears to be bad. If it were anything else it probably would affect your ability to talk over the phone or it would abort the ringing on the first or second ring. The explanation for that is probably longer and windier than you want to sit through ... so I won't unless you ask. One thing that is obvious is the fellow who took two hours to figure out it wasn't you house wiring is not very good at what he does... That should have taken about 15 minutes, most of which would be just finding the demarc point and opening the box. After that it should take about 15 seconds. And that is what he should have done to start with. Whatever ... the "line card" could be in a remote-switching unit, it could be in the telco switch if you are close enough to it physically, or if you are on any kind of cable carrier it might be in the nearest junction box to your house. It is where the ring voltage comes from. Note that what you hear when calling a phone is NOT the "ringing" that rings the phone. There is no talk path at that time and the "ringback" is sent toward the calling line just to let them know it is working. It is usually not sent at the same time the ring voltage is being sent. Have a good day, Floyd Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 22:45:02 EDT From: Michael Jacobs Hi There! I am a technician for Bell Atlantic in Pennsylvania. It sounds to me like your problem is in one of two areas: 1- Insufficient ringing current on the line or 2- Ring-trip insulation breakdown fault. The first problem is usually caused by too many sets on a line. There is a limit (usually 5 or 6) as to the number of sets that can be on a line and still have the ringers work properly (each takes a certain amount of the limited power that can be supplied over the line). Otherwise, a fault in the telco's central office or loop carrier equipment may be present. Ringing voltage should be greater than 90 Vrms AC. Your telco technician should be able to make this measurement. The second problem is usually related to a resistive fault somewhere in the line. It is most easy for the technician to find this problem by first ensuring that there are no obvious faults on the line by using loop testing equipment or an ohmmeter. If the line tests ok, I then usually monitor the line with my butt-set (the phone-like thing hanging from the tech's belt) and have someone call the line. I can immediately hear whether ringing current has been applied to the line, and whether it was abruptly terminated by a ring-trip condition. This means that there is a fault in the line which presents a high-resistance condition at DC (where most line test equipment operates) but which becomes a low-resistance fault at 60 Hz (ringing signal). Since you acknowledge a ringing telephone by lifting it off the hook (closing a switch to lower the line resistance), this fault is spoofing the central office into thinking the line has been answered, thus it stops applying the ringing signal. An experienced technician should be able to troubleshoot this condition rather quickly. Other, more obscure problems could relate to custom-calling features (like call-forwarding) being inadvertantly activated on the line, or even having a different number accidently sent out over your line due to a telco splicing error. Hopefully, your telco (USWest?) will get this straightened out. Other action you can take would be to plug into the network interface jack for that line (if telco installed one) and checking for normal operation. Normal operation indicates a fault in the wiring on your premises. Problem operation at the NI indicates either telco trouble or a bad set being used to test. Let me know if I can be of more assistance, or if telco finds anything interesting. Date: Mon, 18 Apr 1994 10:28:46 -0700 From: richgr@netcom.com (Rich Greenberg) My best guess as to what happened is that somewhere between your demark and the CO, there is a partial short. Another possibility is that somebody's phone line was connected across yours. If you have too many ringers on one line, some or all won't ring. In any case its probably telco's problem. Keep on them till its fixed. Ask them to give you another pair from the CO to you. -------------- Thanks to all who responded! "Moby" Dick O'Connor djo7613@u.washington.edu Wash. Dept. of Fish and Wildlife *Remember: the fish were here first!* ------------------------------ From: jwl@netcom.com (Jack W. Lix) Subject: E1 Help Wanted Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 09:59:19 GMT I need some information about "real world" E1 usage. Does timeslot 16 (normally used for signalling) ever get used for data in point to point usage. I also understand some satellite transceivers use an E1 interface. Would they also reserve timeslot 16?? If so, whats the point?? Thank you for your help. Jack W. Lix jwl@netcom.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 14:28:55 GMT From: wtwong@eit.COM (William Tao-Yang Wong) Subject: FYI: CommerceNet Press Release For press information, contact: Lisa Croel Edelman Technology Communications Phone: (415) 968-4033 Fax: (415) 968-2201 MCI Mail: 629-8643 or Lisa_Croel@mcimail.com CommerceNet Makes Electronic Commerce over the Internet a Reality in Silicon Valley New Infrastructure for Electronic Commerce on the Internet Enables Companies to Streamline Procurement, Cut Costs, Shrink Development Cycles and Communicate More Effectively SANTA CLARA, Calif., April 12, 1994 PP -- CommerceNet, the first large-scale market trial of electronic commerce on the Internet, will be formally launched today by BARRNet, Enterprise Integration Technologies (EIT), and Stanford University's Center for Information Technology (CIT) at an event here at the Techmart. The event will include the first public demonstration of CommerceNet, which goes "live" on the Internet today, offering Silicon Valley-based companies access to services and applications that make the Internet suitable for electronic commerce. Many of the companies who have indicated an interest in participating in the CommerceNet market trial will be on hand at today's event to show their support and to discuss the potential impact of CommerceNet on the way they transact business (see page 6). In addition, representatives from sponsoring organizations including Smart Valley, Inc., Joint Venture:Silicon Valley Network and the State of California Trade and Commerce Agency were present to discuss the potential economic impact of CommerceNet on the local economy and on business. CommerceNet was created and is operated by a consortium of major Silicon Valley users, providers and developers. It seeks to revolutionize the Valley's core electronics, software and information service industries by making interactions between customers, suppliers and development partners as efficient as interactions among internal departments. CommerceNet will ultimately help to revolutionize the way most Bay Area companies transact business, regardless of their size or business focus. CommerceNet's founders and supporters believe that the new electronic marketplace will benefit participating companies by: Shortening procurement cycles up to 80% through online catalogs, ordering and payment; cutting costs up to 10% on both stock and manufactured parts through competitive bidding; and shrinking development cycles up to 50% and accelerating time-to-market through collaborative engineering and product implementation. "The Internet is a vast, untapped marketplace," said Jay M. Tenenbaum, Chairman and founder of EIT and the visionary behind CommerceNet. "With over 20 million users, the Internet is the biggest and most immediate venue for electronic commerce. CommerceNet provides the tools that will make the Internet secure and easy to use, 'unleashing' its potential to transform how business is done." An outgrowth of ARPA-sponsored research begun in the 1960's, the Internet was originally used by colleges, universities and the government for research and development purposes. It has since evolved to become "the network of networks," interconnecting not just government and education, but a huge portion of the commercial business sector as well. Today, the Internet links over 20,000 public and private networks encompassing over 20 million users in nearly 140 countries, and it is growing ten percent a month. Several factors have kept the Internet from facilitating electronic commerce until now. They include: The lack of standard and easy-to-use interfaces; the lack of a secure means for transmitting sensitive data or identifying users; and the lack of indexing and search mechanisms that make it easy for users to find information. "We evaluated all of the barriers to electronic commerce on the Internet and then came up with what we believe are excellent solutions that break down most of these barriers," said Allan M. Schiffman, Chief Technical Officer of EIT and Principal Architect of CommerceNet. "CommerceNet will win over many skeptics who thought electronic commerce either wasn't possible over the Internet, or was years away from becoming a reality." Specifically, CommerceNet provides an integrated set of services from a single source, including: % Affordable, high quality Internet connectivity using a variety of connectivity options including T1, 56K, Frame Relay and ISDN. Many are available immediately; others will be rolled out during the remainder of 1994. % Easy access to user interface and networking software and registration forms for CommerceNet access. % Software tools for providers that make it easy to put up interactive CommerceNet services on any Internet host. % Simple point-and-click access to all CommerceNet services using an enhanced version of Mosaic, a popular hypermedia user interface from the NCSA (National Center for Supercomputing Applications). Mosaic supports full multimedia presentations, including audio, video, text and graphics, as well as electronic forms. % A variety of specialized directories to help users locate information and services on CommerceNet. These directories, as with other CommerceNet services, can be browsed or searched for keywords using Mosaic. % Security mechanisms, including authentication and encryption, supported within applications, including Mosaic, using RSA public key cryptography. Public-key certification services will also be provided to CommerceNet members. Buyers and sellers will be able to meet on the network and safely exchange sensitive information such as credit card numbers and bid amounts, sign legally enforceable contracts, maintain audit trails, and get paid through cooperating financial institutions. Data and transmission security issues are minimized on CommerceNet because there are no remote logins and private information such as passwords is transmitted under encryption. Digital signatures ensure that important information is delivered uncorrupted and untampered. Secure client and server products will be available for beta testing in May of this year; widespread release will follow in August. Participating companies are expected to use CommerceNet to provide customers with online catalogs, product literature, and ordering. Job shops will provide online access to engineering and manufacturing services that are faster, cheaper, or better than those available in-house. Companies will also use CommerceNet for competitive solicitations and bidding, interactive EDI, and inter-company collaborative engineering and product data exchange. The Commerce.Net Server The CommerceNet server, which acts as the hub of CommerceNet, provides users access to all CommerceNet-related information and applications via the World Wide Web, a general purpose architecture for information retrieval developed by groups of Internet users. Information about CommerceNet is also available via electronic mail. The CommerceNet server hosts: Information on the CommerceNet organization; directories of participants, value-added third-party services and Internet resources; member registration and communications; and tutorials and examples. The server is also a principal distribution channel for CommerceNet software. Like the Internet, CommerceNet is open to all. Any individual or organization can offer information, goods and services by creating a multimedia "home page" on their own server and listing it in appropriate directories on the CommerceNet server, as well as with value-added directories and referral services operated by third parties. These home pages serve as "virtual storefronts," providing brief company overviews and paths for accessing their product literature, catalogs, order forms, etc. CommerceNet is thus a fully distributed network of information service providers whose growth is essentially unbounded. The CommerceNet server is merely a convenient starting point for entering this marketplace. The CommerceNet Consortium CommerceNet is operated by the CommerceNet Consortium, a non-profit corporation funded by a six million dollar, three year grant from the United States government's Technology Reinvestment Project, which will be matched by contributions from the State of California and member companies. The Consortium consists of the core development team members, sponsoring organizations, and industry participants. The core team is comprised of BARRNet, EIT and Stanford CIT. They have been responsible for developing and operating CommerceNet and securing its funding, and will oversee the day-to-day management of CommerceNet, led by the organization's new executive director, Cathy J. Medich. The sponsoring organizations PP Smart Valley, Inc., Joint Venture:Silicon Valley Network, and the State of California Office of Strategic Technology PP were instrumental in raising CommerceNet's visibility with the State and Federal Government. They continue to support the efforts of CommerceNet and other initiatives that improve the competitive and business environment in Northern California. The following industry participants, in alphabetical order, have indicated their interest in CommerceNet: Amdahl Corporation, Anthem Electronics, Inc., Apple Computer, Inc., AVEX Electronics Inc., Bank of America, Citibank N.A., Dataquest, Digital Equipment Corporation, Dun & Bradstreet Corporation, Electronic Marketplace Systems, Inc. (An International Data Group Company), Hewlett-Packard Company, Integrated Systems Solutions Corporation (A Subsidiary of IBM), Intel Corporation, Internet Shopping Network, InterNex Information Services, Inc., Lockheed Missiles & Space Company, Inc., Nanothinc, A California Corporation, National Semiconductor, Network Computing Devices, Inc. (NCD), Pacific Bell, PartNet, Inc., RSA Data Security, Inc., Solectron Corporation, Sun Microsystems, Inc., Synopsys Inc., Tandem Computers Incorporated, Trusted Information Systems, Inc., Wells Fargo & Co. and Xerox Corporation. Other affiliated organizations that are participating in CommerceNet include: the Association of Bay Area Governments, the California Department of General Services, the Commercial Internet eXchange Association, the Financial Services Technology Consortium (FSTC), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Silicon Valley Public Access Link (SV-PAL). Information on how to participate in CommerceNet can be obtained by calling (415) 617-8790, by sending e-mail to info@commerce.net, and by connecting to http://www.commerce.net/. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 17:42:25 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Alfred Hitchcock Episode - Bomb Scare An Alfred Hitchcock episode I just saw has a reference to a bomb scare; the persons and events depicted are FICTICIOUS, and resemblance to actual persons and events is coincidental. The episode seems to date from the early 1960s. In it, a man retires from a job with a firm, and makes off with a big stash of money (from that firm) which he carts off in a briefcase to his home, where his wife is. He then steals away from there with the briefcase, and intends to fly off to Hawaii with another woman. He insists on taking the briefcase with him onto the plane, and has some problems storing it when in the passenger compartment. Then there are apparent mechanical difficulties with the plane and all passengers have to get off. He impatiently inquires what the problem is, how long the delay, etc., and finally learns that there was a bomb scare and that luggage will have to be searched. He and that other woman are then approached by plainclothesmen who say "Police. We need to ask you some questions." Then the wife (already aware of the theft of the money from the firm) is seen slipping into a phone booth and saying on the phone that the bomb scare was a joke. At the end of the episode, Mr. Hitchcock notes that the man had the last laugh in this (FICTITIOUS) case, because the wife was prosecuted for the bomb scare. (The offense is conveying information about a bomb while knowing that the information is false.) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Ah yes, the bomb scares of the sixties. I guess kids in school still call them in anonymously on the phone now and then when they want an afternoon off. During the Vietnam era when there were constant protests against the government and large corporations I was working for the Amoco/Diners Club credit card billing office when it was located here in Chicago. We shared a building on Canal Street with Social Security. Social Security had about a thousand employees in the building using three floors; the Diners processing office had about two thousand employees using four floors. First nice warm day every spring you could count on it: Some disgruntled employee would make an anonymous call to the Amoco/Diners switchboard to report 'a bomb is gonna go off, better get out of there!'. Or maybe they would call upstairs to the Social Security switchboard and report it there. Either office which got it would report it to the police and the other office. The inevitable announcement on the public address system that, 'it is necessary to leave the building at this time ...' would cause the chickens who were roosting at their desks after lunch to wake up. Thousands of employees streaming down the stairway out to Canal Street, standing around until the all clear signal was given to return to the office; but always there were a few who did not bother to return for the day, especially if the 'bomb' was called in perhaps an hour before closing time. I think it was mostly the government employees at the SSA who caused the disruptions. That particular SSA back-office was the pits as I recall in terms of the employees they had there, although the credit card back-office was just as bad. Do schools/companies still get bomb scares on nice spring afternoons? Is the Pope Catholic? :) PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #185 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa12818; 27 Apr 94 19:58 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA26458; Wed, 27 Apr 94 14:30:35 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA26449; Wed, 27 Apr 94 14:30:33 CDT Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 14:30:33 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404271930.AA26449@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #186 TELECOM Digest Wed, 27 Apr 94 14:30:30 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 186 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Canadian Information Highway Advisory Council Memebers Named (Nigel Allen) Free Compu$erve Membership Kits (mvm@cup.portal.com) DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 (Jonathan Aitken) Looking For Internet Over Satellite (Kirk Woolford) $$$$$$$ For Concepts! (blmark@pucc.princeton.edu) Traineeship Request, Help Please (Jeroen de Leeuw den Bouter) DunsNet (echo@bix.com) Info on CSTA (Computer Supported Telephony Architecture) (Andy Spitzer) Basic ISDN Question (Mike Jones) Market Survey - Please Participate (Tom and Randi Fecker) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: Canadian Information Highway Advisory Council Memebers Named Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 05:39:40 EDT From: ndallen@io.org (Nigel Allen) The following press release was issued by the Canadian federal government's Industry department. If you would like to be added to the mailing list for Industry Canada press release, please contact tyson@debra.dgbt.doc.ca (Tyson Macaulay). Industry Canada MANLEY ANNOUNCES ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND ISSUES INFORMATION HIGHWAY DISCUSSION PAPER OTTAWA, April 19, 1994 "Together, as Canadians, we must decide how we want to develop and use the information highway for the economic, cultural and social advantage of all Canadians," said Industry Minister John Manley. He made the comment today as he announced the membership of the national information highway advisory council and issued a discussion paper The Canadian Information Highway: Building Canada's Information and Communications Infrastructure. "This document is intended to foster that dialogue between Canadians; so is the advisory council," said the Minister. He added that these discussions are essential to the implementation of a Canadian strategy for the information highway. On March 16, Minister Manley named McGill University Principal and Vice-Chancellor David Johnston as Chair of the council. Commenting on the membership (list and biographical notes attached), Mr. Johnston said, "I believe Canadians will agree that this is a highly qualified group of volunteers who will work hard to ensure that a wide range of views is represented." The advisory council, along with other Canadians, will have the discussion paper as a starting point as it looks at the many issues to be addressed in developing a strategy for Canada's information highway. These include: how to use the information highway to improve the growth and competitiveness of all Canadian businesses; how to ensure that Canadians have universal access to essential services at reasonable cost; how to achieve an appropriate balance between competition and regulation; how to promote the development and distribution of Canadian culture and content. "We know that these rapidly evolving issues will have profound impacts on the people of Canada," said Mr. Manley. "The federal government is determined that these effects will be positive ones that enable us to meet our objectives: - to create jobs through innovation and investment; - to reinforce Canadian sovereignty and cultural identity; and - to ensure universal access at reasonable cost." It is anticipated that the council might form five or six working groups to address the specific issues. "Canadians can expect to have the opportunity to work with council members on these matters," said the Minister. People will be able to contact the council secretariat to put forward views and suggestions, as well as to obtain information. The secretariat can be reached in the following ways: Internet: I.H..Council@Banyan.dgim.doc.ca Telephone (fax): (613) 941-1164 Telephone (voice): (613) 990-4268 Mail: Room 640, 300 Slater Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0C8. Further information: Bill Milliken or Eli Turk Susan Baldwin Minister's Office Industry Canada (613) 995-9001 (613) 990-4262 For copies of the discussion paper: (613) 954-5716 Release/7038 INFORMATION HIGHWAY ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBERS Neil Baker Neil Baker is Chairman of the Telecommunications and Information Technology Committee for the Regina Economic Development Authority. He has been a successful entrepreneur and corporate executive for twenty-three years in a number of areas, including strategic planning, sales and marketing and financial analysis and management. Andre Bureau Andre Bureau has been involved in publishing, broadcasting and telecommunications during his entire career. He was Chairman of the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and is currently Vice-Chairman of Astral Communications Inc., Vice-Chairman President and Chief Executive Officer of the Astral Broadcasting Group and a member of the Board of some major communications and telecommunications corporations. Andre Chagnon Andre Chagnon is Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Groupe Videotron Ltee. He has been awarded many honours, including the Grand Laureat du Prix des Communications (1983). In 1993, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada and received the Edouard-Montpetit Medal for his role in the economy and his commitment in the field of communications. Robert H. David Robert David is the President and Chief Executive Officer of ED TEL Inc. (Edmonton Telephones Corporation). He is a Civil Engineer (University of Saskatchewan) and holds a Master of Science Degree from the University of Alberta. He serves on the Boards of TRLabs, Grant MacEwan Community College Foundation and the Edmonton YMCA. He has received the Governor General's Commemorative Medal for Service to the Community. Dr. Mary Dykstra Mary Dykstra is a Professor and Director of the School of Library and Information Studies in the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University. Her area of teaching and research in information management is subject indexing and retrieval, including epistemology, linguistics, and the impact of information technology. Consultancies include the National Film Board of Canada where she developed a national film information system, and the Art and Architecture Thesaurus Project of the J. Paul Getty Trust. William Etherington Bill Etherington is President and Chief Executive Officer, IBM Canada Ltd. He held several marketing and service positions across Canada before his appointment as IBM Vice President, Western Region in 1989. He has also served as Chief Financial Officer, Latin America Vice President and Assistant General Manager with IBM Canada. Mr. Etherington is a Director of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Ontario Hydro, the Conference Board of Canada, Junior Achievement of Canada, and is a founding board member of the National Quality Institute. The Honourable Francis Fox Francis Fox is former federal Minister of Communications and has served in several other cabinet portfolios. He is Chairman of the Board, Rogers Cantel Inc., Chairman, Fasken Martineau, and President, CITEC's Committee to Implement the Recommendations of the Review on Science and Technology in Montreal. George E. Harvey George Harvey is Chairman of the Board of Unitel Communications Inc. He led Unitel's bid to bring competition to Canada's long distance communications market. Mr. Harvey has extensive experience in the computer and communications industries gained over three decades. W. Brian Hewat Brian Hewat is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bell-Northern Research, one of the world's leading telecommunications research and development organizations, with global headquarters in Ottawa. Born in Noranda, Quebec, Mr. Hewat has held numerous senior executive positions with leading corporations during his 30-year career in the telecommunications industry. Elizabeth Hoffman Elizabeth Hoffman is the Chair of the Coalition for Public Information (CPI), a national coalition of organizations, public interest groups and individuals whose goal is to foster broad access to affordable, useable information and communications services and technology in Canada. She is the University Ombudsperson, University of Toronto, and has served as a member of the Advisory Committee on a Telecommunications Strategy for the Province of Ontario, the Ontario Library Association Task Force on Information Policy and as Chair, of the Ontario Public Library Strategic Planning Group. Douglas M. Holtby Douglas Holtby is President and Chief Executive Officer of WIC Western International Communications Ltd., operating in television, pay television, radio and satellite network services. Mr. Holtby studied at the University of Alberta and received his Chartered Accountant's designation in 1972. He is Chairman of Canadian Satellite Communications Inc. (Cancom) and serves as a Director on the Boards of the CTV Network and Northwest Sports Enterprises Ltd. Rosemarie Kuptana Rosemarie Kuptana is President of the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada. She was active in the establishment of Television Northern Canada (TVNC) and was President of Inuit Broadcasting Corp. (IBC) from 1983 to 1988. She co-chairs the International Arctic Council and is the author of No More Secrets, a book about child sexual abuse in Inuit communities. Ms. Kuptana has received several awards and distinctions for her self-government work, including the Governor General's Confederation Medal, and has been named to Maclean's Honour Roll. Veronica Lacey Veronica Lacey is the Director of Education for the North York Board of Education. The North York Board recently pioneered the creation of the National Network for Learning - an electronic highway for schools. Under Ms. Lacey's leadership, the Board has developed innovative and strategic partnerships with the private sector and government to bring technology into schools. Ms. Lacey has received numerous awards and was recently named Educator of the Year by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. John MacDonald John MacDonald is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the New Brunswick Telephone Company Limited (NBTel). A native of Cape Breton, he is an electrical engineering graduate of the Technical University of Nova Scotia (TUNS). Mr. MacDonald serves on the advisory board for Softworld '94 and the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP) Advisory Board. Terry Matthews Terry Matthews founded Newbridge Networks Corporation in March 1986. The company was formed to address a rapidly growing demand for greater digital communications capacity. Newbridge has grown to a public company employing more than 2,000 people worldwide. The company maintains facilities in North America, Europe and Asia and has an installed base of its switching products in more than 100 countries. John T. McLennan John McLennan is President and Chief Executive Officer of Bell Canada. Mr. McLennan has held senior positions with a variety of companies, including Bell Ontario, BCE Mobile Communications Inc., Cantel Inc., and Mitel Corporation. Mr. McLennan was also the President and founder of his own firm, Jenmark Consulting Inc., which specialized in strategizing, financing and managing technology companies in Canada and the U.S., with a primary focus on telecommunications. Gerry Miller Gerry Miller is Chairman of CA*net Networking Incorporated, the non-profit company that manages and operates the Canadian national Internet backbone network which connects regional networks in all ten provinces. He is also Chairman of MBnet Networking Inc., the non-profit company that manages the Manitoba regional Internet. Reginald Noseworthy Reginald Noseworthy, M. Eng., P. Eng., is President of Porak Enterprises Ltd., a management consulting company primarily involved with Information Technology and Strategic Management. He was Vice-President, Information Services, Inter-City Gas Corporation; Vice-President Operations and Information Services, Mercantile Bank of Canada, and acting Executive director, Information Services, Government of New Brunswick. Jean-Claude Parrot Jean-Claude Parrot is Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). He began his career in the post office in Montreal in 1954. Active in the Canadian Union of Postal Workders (CUPW) since 1961, he held several local positions before becoming Vice-President, then President of the Union. Anna Porter Anna Porter is the Publisher, President and Director of Key Porter Books. She has had an extensive career in the publishing industry, including Executive Chairman of Double Day Canada and as President of McClelland-Bantam Ltd. She serves on the boards of various companies and non-profit organizations, including Alliance Entertainment, Young Naturalist Foundation and the UNICEF Advisory Board. She is an Officer of the Order of Canada. Derrick Rowe Derrick Rowe is President and Chief Executive Officer of NewEast Wireless Technologies Inc. NewEast is an integrated wireless telecommunications carrier and product developer. Mr. Rowe currently serves on several Executive Committees such as the Communications Research Centre (Industry Canada), the Newfoundland Provincial Science and Technology Advisory Council and a national Sectoral Advisory Group on International Trade (SAGIT). Guy Savard Guy Savard is President and Chief of Operations, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec. He is a member of the Ordre des comptables agrees du Quebec, and was awarded the designation of Fellow by this corporation. He is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario, the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, the Leaders' Networking Group of Quebec Inc. and the Order of Chartered Administrators of Quebec. Irene Seiferling Irene Seiferling is Vice-President, Issues and Policy, of the Consumers' Association of Canada. A small business owner/manager, she received the Canada 125 Commemorative Medal and the Saskatchewan Consumer Award of Merit in 1993. Dr. Gerri Sinclair Gerri Sinclair is Director of ExCITE (Exemplary Center for Interactive Technologies in Education) at Simon Fraser University. She is also the President of GeoSync Interactive Corp. Dr. Sinclair has gained an international reputation first, for her pioneering work in the field of educational telecommunications, and more recently, for developing interactive multimedia applications designed to run over high-speed networks. Charles Sirois Charles Sirois is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Teleglobe Inc. and National Telesystem Ltd. He has been active in the telecommunications industry, both as a business executive and an investor, particularly in cordless communications, data transmission and international telecommunications. David Sutherland David Sutherland headed the organizing committee for the National Capital FreeNet and currently holds the positions of Chairman of the Board of Directors and acting President. Mr. Sutherland is Director of Computing and Communications Services at Carleton University in Ottawa. His major interests in this context are public literacy in the use of telecommunications technology and services, the social impacts of these services and the development of a "new democratic process" via computer mediated communications. J.G. (Gerry) Turcotte Gerry Turcotte is President of the Ottawa-Carleton Research Institute (OCRI). One of OCRI's major achievements is OCRInet -- an asynchronous transmission research network in the National Capital Region. An electrical engineer with degrees from Royal Military College and McGill University, he is a department head at Algonquin College. Dr. Mamoru (Mo) Watanabe Mo Watanabe is a Professor in Internal Medicine at the University of Calgary and a former Dean of the Faculty of Medicine. He chaired Alberta Health's Advisory Committee on the Utilization of Medical Services. To support rural physicians, he has been developing the Remote Consultative Network, a tele-medicine project utilizing two-way interactive video. Colin D. Watson Colin Watson is President and Chief Executive Officer of Rogers Cablesystems Limited. In 1992, Mr. Watson was named to the Canadian Cable Television Association's Honour List for "outstanding achievement and dedication which have significantly enhanced the industry's ability to serve its public." He also acts in a fund raising capacity for a number of public charities, including IMAGINE and Juvenile Diabetes. ------------------------------ From: MVM@cup.portal.com Subject: Free Compu$erve Membership Kits Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 09:28:40 PDT There was an ad in the 20 Apr 94 {Wall Street Journal} offering free Compu$serve membership kits (sell for about $39.95 retail) obtainable one to a customer, excepting present members, by calling its order service at 800 554-4067 and requesting one. You get your choice of "Mac" or "IBM", DOS (the rep pronounced it as doss; I use to attempt to explain the difference between abbreviations and acronyms whenever I heard that abbreviation pronounced -- an extremely futile undertaking) or Windows, 3.5 or 5.25 inch media. (Readers may do as they please, but if it gets back to Compu$erve that the REAL reason so many membership kits are being requested is a result of a posting on a Usenet group, Compu$erve will realize that the purpose of targeting TWSJ's "select" readership has been defeated, thereby, undoubtedly, queering the freebie for all.) ------------------------------ From: canadian@leland.stanford.edu (Jonathan Aitken) Subject: DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 Date: 27 Apr 1994 17:57:47 GMT Organization: The Stanford Daily Reply-To: canadian@leland.stanford.edu Phone Question for those in the know.(I am not one of them, so please reply in layperson lingo if possible. :-)) I am the Business Manager of the Student newspaper, the Stanford Daily. We are independent from the university, and are running a very tight budget. We pay alot each month to be connected to our phone service and have no choice but to use the university phone service. We are currently we are being charged anywhere from $28.50 to $37.50 per month for each phone (which we own) plus $12.50 per phone for an expanded local calling area ranging from San Francisco to San Jose and parts of the East Bay. The Daily intends to convert its current incoming 32 line mixed ET and single-line set configuration to a set of 16 analog DID wink-start trunks mapped to our current 32 numbers. We will be installing a DID-ready PBX, station lines, and PBX telephones on our premises. We are planning on a PBX from Panasonic, the KX-T336 system. Please tell me what you think! I need to know thoughts about PBX's, DID's and University Phone services. Also how much does Pac-Bell charge and how much do other university services charge? Stanford has a SL-100 systems and I think that Stanford rates are currently tarriffed as analog DID service at a base charge of $10 for an 8 line group and $2 line/month for each line. However Stanford Communication Services does not currently tariff standard analog DID service, but we understand that the Stanford SL-100 system is capable of providing this service, and would like to work it in tariffing this offering at standard and reasonable rates as soon as possible. Any replies or suggestions would be appreciated. Jonathan Aitken (415) 725-8232 - canadian@leland.stanford.edu ------------------------------ From: KiRk WoOlford Subject: Looking For Internet Over Satellite Date: 27 Apr 1994 15:40:26 GMT Organization: Kunsthochschule fuer Medien Koeln I need to find a way to receive and send internet services over satellite from continental Europe. Initially, I just need a low speed connection 19.2 Kbs capable of sending/receiving email and basic services like xmosaic, gopher, WAIS, etc. This low speed link should be as portable as possible, require very little maintenance, and be installable by an engineer with extensive experience building internet/ethernet LANS, but no experience with satellite communications. In addition, I need to know if it is possible to set up a high speed satellite link (1.2Mbs or faster) capable of IP multicasting, or if such a link could feed to a single site which would then use multi- casting to broadcast the data. And, of course, I need prices for these services, and equipment lists of what we would need to purchase, lease, steal, to get the links up and running. Kirk Woolford Kunsthochschule fuer Medien Kolen kwolf@khm.uni-koeln.de Academy of Media Arts, Cologne ------------------------------ From: BLMARK@pucc.princeton.edu Subject: $$$$$$$ for Concepts !!!!!!!! Organization: Princeton University Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 21:46:22 GMT I work for a company that does a lot of new product concept generation directed to small and medium sized businesses. These concepts are both product and services, and both medium and high tech. We have a preference for IT and telecommunications concepts and services, but are flexible. We need more ideas and will pay $10.00 for every concept used. Contact Gene at (AT&T Mail) !cencondev or fax @ 609-921-7799. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Hey, you mean you will pay me ten dollars for every new idea I come up with that you can develop into millions of dollars in sales? That sounds like a great deal! Are you sure the company can afford to pay that much? I think I will ditch all my other projects and begin sitting here all day full time thinking up new products and concepts for you. This message reminds me of the joke 'help wanted' ad placed in the {Chicago Tribune} some time ago: A 'job' was offered by something called the 'Cash Recovery Corporation'. The job involved working outside all the time. Your duties would be to walk around wherever you wanted to go, looking down at the sidewalk. Whenever you found some money that someone had dropped on the sidewalk by accident, you were to take it and turn it in to the company ... in turn, they would pay you a ten percent commission on whatever money you found and turned in. Hey Gene ... if I have any bright ideas, I'll milk 'em myself for all they are worth and find some investors, etc. Somehow I will sacrifice and get by without the ten dollars you are offering. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 15:21:14 +0200 From: v922326@bruning.si.hhs.nl Subject: Traineeship Request, Help Please Hello, As a third-year student of the faculty of Information Science and Technology at the Haagse Hogeschool (The Hague Polytech- nic), I am looking for an opportunity to fulfill my trainee- ship in the USA. This traineeship is a requirement of my pro- gram of studies. When I graduate I will have earned the title of "Ing.", for Ingenieur, which is equivalent to a Bachelor's degree. A foreign placement will contribute to the international orientation that I feel will help in my future career. The general conditions the school sets for traineeship are the following: I must be a trainee for 100 working days (about five months). This traineeship must start in September (1994). The Hague Polytechnic wants to have a contactperson or mentor in the organization where I work as trainee, this because there has to be contact between the place where I work as trainee and the school. I have to work on a project or on an assigment. The traineeship must also be in the line of office automation or system analyses. Why the USA? The USA is the country were the history of the computers are, for example IBM who made the first PC and of course the Intel corporation who produces many computer chips. Also the USA has got a high developed network of computers which are of course connected to the Internet, the big globall network. I like to know if you know companies that are willing to take trainees, for that period at a project. About money, don't worry; if you pay for my stay it will be more then enough, if you pay for the trip, it would be great. But I am a hard worker so money will be appreciated. Hope I gave enough information, if not please e-mail. If you have such trainee spot and are willing to take me please e-mail. Please help. Sincerely yours, Jeroen de Leeuw den Bouter Galileiplein 18 2871 XP Schoonhoven The Netherlands internet e-mail : v922326@si.hhs.nl [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Why don't you investigate the great opportunity offered by Gene in the message just before this one? His company will pay you ten dollars for each new idea you come up with. I suppose considering the large amount of money involved you would have to sign over all your intellectual property rights to your ideas, but you'd get valuable experience in how some American firms do business. :) Who knows, you might like it and stay on with the company after you finish school. PAT] ------------------------------ From: echo@BIX.com (echo on BIX) Subject: DunsNet Date: 26 Apr 94 01:15:32 GMT Organization: Delphi Internet Services Corporation Has anyone out there heard of a PSN called DunsNet? As much information as possible about it would be appreciated. Please mail me. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: DunsNet is a service of Dun and Bradstreet which delivers business and credit reports to companies dealing with other companies. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 11:47:21 EDT From: woof@telecnnct.com (Andy Spitzer) Subject: Info on CSTA (Computer Supported Telephony Architecture) Does anyone out there have pointers to information about CSTA (Computer Supported Telephony Architecture)? We are also curious to know what products suport it, if anyone is using it, and what the general impressions of it are. We will compile e-mail responses and post here if there is enough interest. Please respond to: woof@telecnnct.com Andy Spitzer The Telephone Connection 301-417-0700 Voice ------------------------------ From: jonesm2@rpi.edu (Mike Jones) Subject: Basic ISDN Question Date: 27 Apr 1994 10:50:25 GMT Organization: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy NY, USA Reply-To: jonesmd@aule-tek.com ISDN has recently become available here in this corner of NYNEX-land. The cost is a $10 surcharge onto normal business rates. We're interested in using the 64 Kbps data channel to connect to a local internet provider; I've checked with NYNEX and ISDN is available at both our and their CO's. My question is, how does this practically work? I have a moderate understanding of ISDN at a conceptual level, but no real feel for how you go about hooking things up. Any information would be appreciated. Mike Jones jonesm2@rpi.edu ------------------------------ From: sngmedia@world.std.com Subject: Market Survey - Please Participate Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 02:25:15 GMT We are a small, dedicated group of people desperately trying to get a video production company off the ground. Recently, we secured enough financial backing to produce several videos on the subject of personal computing. Because we don't have the financial resources to perform a traditional market analysis, we considered several alternatives and concluded that we should consult the people of the Internet, who are technically proficient and tend to be enthusiastic personal computer users. We would like you to indicate which three of the below described videos would appeal to you most. Please note that each video synopsis is numbered. When you are ready to send your response, please specify the numbers corresponding to your three video selections, and use commas to separate the numbers. For example, if you choose selections four, eight, and eleven, the body of your letter would simply be: 4,8,11 and nothing more. When you send back your response, please specify "MARKET SURVEY" in the subject field. Then, direct your response back to sngmedia@world. std.com. Please realize that this is not an advertisement, or solicitation. We simply would like to know your response. You will not be contacted further. Thank you in advance for your help and cooperation. Tom and Randi Fecker sngmedia@world.std.com. Please select three videos that interest you most: 1. The Internet Pilot's Guide A plain English guide to getting around on the Internet by veteran users. How to use Internet resources to send/receive e-mail, and to search for documents and files relating to a particular subject. How to use LISTSERVs, GOPHER, ARCHIE, WWW and WAIS. How to use FTP and Telnet to access remote computers for file transfers, remote logins, etc. Also, learning how to observe Internet's "netiquette." And how to access multimedia Mosaic bulletin boards. 2. How to Make Money at Home With Your PC I -- Successful PC-Based Businesses Meet five successful entrepreneurs who started their own home-based businesses using a PC. Includes businesses that provide typing services, mailing list management, horoscopes, bookkeeping, and even a software developer who does not know how to program -- he hires other people to implement his software designs. Includes ideas for two dozen home-based businesses you can start using your PC. 3. How to Make Money at Home With Your PC II: Portfolio Management. Whether you manage your own portfolio for investment gains, or you take on clients for a consulting fee, a PC can give you powerful tools for portfolio management. Meet three successful home-based portfolio managers who use their PCs to maximize profits. They'll inspire you, and share some tricks of the trade that can help you land clients and get started. We'll also show you how to determine which software applications will meet your needs, and which online services will satisfy your requirements. 4. How to Make Money at Home With Your PC III: Telecommuting Learn how to use your PC to telecommute to companies across America that are looking for specialized consultants with skills like bookkeeping, software design and programming, editorial and script writing, technical proofreading, graphic design, copywriting, and more. Includes interviews with three successful telecommuters who use their PCs, faxes, modems and phones to serve distant clients, and information about a telecommuting referral service that could help you find employers. 5. How to Upgrade Your Hard Drive, Step-By-Step From choosing your new hard drive, through ordering, installing and testing it. This plain English video shows you how to do the job correctly, one simple step at a time. Using industry-wide standards, we'll show you what all hard drives have in common. Includes how to determine if your controller will support a particular hard drive. How to remove the old drive, and install, format and test the new drive. Includes a discussion on the differences between the various standards. 6. How to Design Your Own PC You don't have to be an engineer to design and build the PC of your dreams. This plain English video shows you how to figure out the PC design that is best for you, how to specify components, how to make sure they'll work together, and where to buy them. You'll end up with a top quality system that will save you money. 7. How to Build Your Own PC Once you've designed your PC, we'll show you how to build it. The actual process will take you only a few hours. Using an easy-to- understand method, we'll show you how to inspect, install and test components. Includes tips and tricks from computer production experts. The technical skills can be easily mastered by almost anyone, and you probably already own most of the tools you would need. 8. How to Increase Your Computer's Memory This plain English video shows you how to determine whether your computer memory can be increased, and how to do the job correctly, one step at a time. You'll learn about industry-wide standards for memory, how to configure additional RAM and cache, how and where to buy RAM chips, and three ways to eliminate low-quality RAM chips. Covers all phases of the process from opening your computer, to testing your memory. Includes discussions on how to ensure your DOS set-up is able to access all available memory, and how to use various memory management software applications. 9. How to Use MS-Windows 3.1 This powerful graphical user interface can help you work smarter and faster, but the manual and the online tutorial that come with Windows leave many questions unanswered. This plain English, step- by-step video will show you how to install Windows on your computer and set it up to get optimum performance. 10. How to Find a Job in the Information Age A PC can give you an incredible advantage when you're searching for a new job -- or even a new career. But you have to know just how it can help you. In this video, an experienced employment counselor will show you how to tap the power in your PC to find job leads, create a winning resume and customized cover letters, tap into databases and find bulletin boards that will lead you to job openings, and use online services to research potential employers. 11. How to Install a Sound Card in Your Computer Here's how to add incredible stereo sound to your computer with step-by-step help. In plain English, you'll learn how to determine if your computer can support a sound card, how and where to buy a high-quality sound card. How to open your computer, and install and test the sound card. 12. How to Install a CD-ROM Drive in Your Computer Using simple tools, this plain English video shows you how to install a CD-ROM Drive in your computer. You'll learn how to make sure your computer can support a CD-ROM drive -- and what to do if it can't. Covers internal vs. external drives, how and where to buy a high quality CD-ROM drive, what you need to know about differing industry standards, preparing the drive bay, testing and trouble-shooting. Covers SCSI and IDE. 13. How to Fix the Most Common Computer Problems Your computer serviceman may not want you to know this, but all you need is the know-how you'll get from this video, simple tools, and easily-obtainable diagnostic software -- and you can fix most common problems you'll ever encounter with a PC. 14. What to Do When a Virus Strikes Your Computer Viruses can come from almost anywhere: a colleague or friend's disks, a network, a bulletin board, even commercial software. If you ignore the first warning signs, a virus can wipe out your data and permanently damage your computer's memory. In plain English, this video will tell you how to scan disks for viruses, how to check downloaded files from bulletin boards, how to set up a virus prevention program for your home or office computer, and how and where to buy the best anti-virus software. We'll also cover the pros and cons of the antivirus software in DOS 6.X and Windows 3.X, how to use antivirus software, and more. 15. How Your PC Works: Inside the Case Here's a down-to-earth explanation of how your PC actually processes information, and what really goes on inside the case. You'll get a guided tour of the insides of a PC, learn about how the various components work and how they communicate with each other, and get a clear explanation of technical terms. A must for anyone who wants to really understand how to program, use and repair a PC. 16. How to Create Config.Sys, Autoexec.Bat and Batch Files These basic files can make it much easier to use your computer -- or cause incredible headaches if they are not written properly for your particular software and peripherals. Now you don't have to be at the mercy of murky tech manuals, because we'll show you how to create files that work for your system -- step-by-step, in plain English. You'll learn how to write, modify and test Autoexec.Bat and Config.Sys files; and how to create batch files. 17. How to Add a Modem or Faxmodem to Your Computer Here's the easy way to add a modem or faxmodem to your computer, with step-by-step guidance from this plain English video. You'll learn how to determine if your computer can support a modem or faxmodem, and what to do if it can't, how to choose and buy the best modem or faxmodem, how to open your computer, and install the modem or faxmodem, how to test it, how to quickly eliminate common problems, and how to set your modem or faxmodem correctly. 18. How to Make Money at Home With Your Computer The information age is opening up incredible new opportunities for PC owners to make undreamed of money, using skills and knowledge you may already have! Here's inside information on the ten most promising telecommuting jobs and 12 small businesses you can run right from your home, using your PC. Includes profiles of PC owners who are actually running PC-based home businesses. 19. The Super-Highway Roadmap This is your guide to where to go and what to see. You can make incredible contacts and gather powerful, valuable information on the Internet, but the problem is that most people can't begin to imagine the potential of something that seems so abstract. This plain English video will introduce you to the Internet, and make these opportunities concrete. Includes interviews with 7 people who did the impossible by gathering information and making contacts on the Internet. 20. How to Upgrade and Repair Your PC I: Basic This is the video your repairman doesn't want you to know about! Since the components of most PCs are highly modular, PC repair is easier than you think. Just pinpoint the problem component, unplug it, remove a few screws, replace it, and presto! You're in business again. This step-by-step video shows you how to pinpoint problems and replace your PC's components, using ordinary household tools. 21. How to Upgrade and Repair Your PC II: Multimedia Here's how to save big money on a PC with all the latest multimedia peripherals. You learn how to determine if your PC can be upgraded, how to upgrade your video card and bus, and how to add a CD-ROM drive, sound card, video accelerator, and more. Presented in plain English. The procedures you'll learn require ordinary household tools -- nothing fancy! 22. Plain English Guide to DOS 6+. The powerful sub-programs buried deep within DOS 6.0 and higher can help you work smarter and faster, but the manual and the online tutorial that come with DOS leave many questions unanswered. This plain English, step-by-step video will show you how to install DOS on your computer and set it up to get optimum performance. In addition to DOS commands, you'll learn how to use the shell, defragmentation, scan and antivirus programs that come with DOS. 23. Home Financial Management on a PC. Your computer can help you create and manage a budget, keep track of your credit card accounts, handle your tax deductions, and reconcile your bank accounts. But that's not all! You can also determine whether you should pay down your mortgage, finance a new car or pay cash, buy or rent your home, and how much you'll need for retirement. The financial information your computer can give you might mean the difference between just getting by and a very comfortable lifestyle -- if you ask the right questions and use your PC to develop a financial strategy. 24. The Online Bulletin Board Guide Bulletin boards can be the on-ramps to the Information Super Highway -- if you know how to access and use them. This step-by- step guide shows you how to find bulletin boards, set-up your modem, log on, find out what they have to offer, find bulletin board users who share your interests, search for information, and upload and download files. Thank you. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #186 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa21264; 28 Apr 94 14:31 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA14622; Thu, 28 Apr 94 10:25:15 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA14613; Thu, 28 Apr 94 10:25:12 CDT Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 10:25:12 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404281525.AA14613@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #187 TELECOM Digest Thu, 28 Apr 94 10:25:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 187 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Book Review: "Internet for Dummies" by Levine/Baroudi (Rob Slade) Unitel (Canada) Calling Card Rates (Dave Leibold) Minority Scholarships in Telecommunications (Dennis Foote) Top Ten Networks More Shaky Than T3 (Paul Robinson) Dial Back Services With Account Codes (David M. Sokolic) Joint Venture Partners For Internet (Barclay Hambrook) Internet Access in Kenya (Elmar Bob) Questions Ahout SS7 (John Mehringer) Radio Station Interference on Phone Line (Don Saewert) Wanted: Recomendations on Telephony Books (John and DonaLeigh Engstrom) Cellular Phones: What to Look For? (Terry Cary) X.25 Information Request (Mike Vandusen) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 15:35:27 MDT From: Rob Slade Subject: Book Review: "Internet for Dummies" by Levine/Baroudi BKINTDUM.RVW 940124 Macmillan of Canada 29 Birch Avenue Toronto, Ontario M4V 1E2 Elizabeth Wilson 416-963-8830 Fax: 416-923-4821 or IDG Books Worldwide, Inc. International Data Group 155 Bovet Road, Suite 310 San Mateo, CA 94402 USA 415-312-0650 fax: 415-286-2740 Brandon Nordin, Marketing and International Sales "Internet for Dummies", Levine/Baroudi, 1993, 1-56884-024-1, U$19.95/C$26.95 dummies@iecc.com Generally speaking, most of this book is a good, basic overview of the primary uses and tools of the Internet. The ordering of material is sound, and the formatting and presentation is friendly and useful. I would, however, note some relatively important tips that are missing, and extensive material that has very limited usefulness. I have some problem with the "... For Dummies" titles, but I have no problems with the intent of providing an easily accessible "leg up" for those who, as the Introduction has it, "have access to the Internet," and, "are not interested in becoming the world's next great Internet expert." With that in mind, I have no idea why the six chapters of part one are even in this book. Nobody except technical historians cares about ARPANET. Nobody even understands the phrase, "network of networks." And I solemnly promise you that nobody except IP routing programmers have to understand the concept of dynamic rerouting. Part one is well written, and it may even be of interest. But it is certainly not required reading and doesn't deserve this prior position in the book. "Not so!" I hear Levine cry (seconded by Ed Krol). "Part one tells you how to get connected!" Well, yes and no. Chapters three, four and five do go over some points, but I think the most apposite comment is the statement that "[g]etting SLIP or PPP configured correctly is a pain in the neck." It is a pain which Levine is obviously not willing to put much space or effort into. Not that I blame him at all, but it does severely restrict the usefulness of these chapters. Following part one, however, the book improves immensely. Part two deals with what might be seen as personal communications: mail, mailing and distribution lists, Usenet news and the real time functions of talk and Internet Relay Chat (IRC). The various tools are well related where they intersect. For example, both BITNET and Internet LISTSERVs, although distinguished from one another, are discussed together. A nice feature is the inclusion of a brief list of recommended resources for the user to try out (such as some well chosen distribution lists when discussing LISTSERVs). Parts three and four carry on to discuss the more advanced tools, first telnet and ftp, and then archive, gopher, WAIS and World Wide Web. Part five is a collection of quick tips for troubleshooting, short cuts, and a little fun. Part six is a set of resource lists. The software listing is very useful, and quite possibly worth buying this book for, in and of itself, if you really want to make your workstation a part of the Internet. The list of Internet providers is less so: very US-centric and woefully incomplete. Chapter twenty-nine, listing sources of further information, gives contact information for three magazines, three organizations -- and none of the dozens of related books. A book for beginners cannot be exhaustive. The choice of topics must be made carefully, and you can't include absolutely everything. I am very glad to see a strong emphasis on the interpersonal aspects of communication. Although there is no chapter on netiquette, per se, there are a number of important tips strewn throughout the relevant chapters on mail and news, and they possibly have a greater impact that way. Some omissions, however, are rather odd. The number one newbie mistake on distribution lists is sending administrative messages to the list, itself, rather than the LISTSERV. Levine gives the correct information, but doesn't point out this common error. Ftp-by-mail servers are mentioned but the one specified only works for BITNET systems. Under "cool things to do" is listed "read a book" -- but Project Gutenberg isn't mentioned at all. The suggestions about how to find email addresses on the Internet doesn't mention the most helpful that I've found: the usenet- addresses mail-server at MIT. (It is mentioned in the book -- under ftp sites.) Some aspects of the book will be open to subjective reaction. There are numerous "well, maybe" errors, such as the statement that UNIX was developed at Berkeley. The "...For Dummies" format does not fit well with this material. The Internet cheat sheet, for example, is fine for ftp and OK for news, but basically useless otherwise. Although it is evident that Levine is most comfortable in UNIX, the book does not have quite the UNIX bias as that of Krol (BKKROL.RVW) or Dern (BKTIGFNU.RVW). One prejudice that Levine does share with Krol is the "whole Internet" elitism. In a great many ways, the impression is given that unless your machine has an IP connection, and you are running your own gopher, ftp, WAIS and WWW clients, you aren't truly on the Internet. Overall, a good, solid intro to the Internet for beginners. copyright Robert M. Slade, 1994 BKINTDUM.RVW 940124 - Distribution restricted to TELECOM Digest and associated mailing lists. Postscriptum - apparently an "Internet for Dummies Quick Reference" and "More Internet for Dummies" are in the offing. ====================== DECUS Canada Communications, Desktop, Education and Security group newsletters Editor and/or reviewer ROBERTS@decus.ca, RSlade@sfu.ca, Rob Slade at 1:153/733 DECUS Symposium '95, Toronto, ON, February 13-17, 1995, contact: rulag@decus.ca ------------------------------ From: Dave.Leibold@f730.n250.z1.fidonet.org (Dave Leibold) Date: 27 Apr 94 22:59:58 -0500 Subject: Unitel (Canada) Calling Card Rates Organization: FidoNet Nameserver I got my hands on some tariff info for the new Unitel calling card. This is from their tariff, CRTC 4005 (which is subject to revision and change as time goes by). The idea is that card callers dial a Unitel 800 number, then use tone dialing to enter the card number, and destination phone number. Since Unitel cannot (yet) determine the caller's number, it can only bill on the basis of which area code the call originates (Unitel says it can find out which area code the 800 call came from based on the incoming trunk group; the originating area code is necessary anyway, for the 800 service to operate properly and determine which area codes can call). The cited lack of ANI or CNID service from Bell (at present) was the reason for going with area code only billing. There is the card surcharge rate: 85 cents from areas 416, 418, 514, 519, 613, 705, 709, 807, 819, 905 (Ontario, Quebec, Newfoundland) 68 cents from 506 (New Brunswick) 63 cents from 604 (BC) 42 cents from 902 (Nova Scotia, PEI) The surcharge on Canada to Mexico calls is a trifling $5.00. Card calls are eligible for time of day discounts, business customer home discount number, and a discount for residential customers (the 15% for those with existing Unitel residential service). No Close Connections discounts are allowed, unfortunately, nor can calls originate from Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan (though Unitel is apparently looking at connecting provinces other than Sask.) The surcharge for calls from the U.S. to Canada is similar to the above surcharges, except add an 85c surcharge for calls to 306 (Sask), 403 (Alta.) and add 55c surcharge to 204 (Man.). For intra-U.S. calls on the Unitel card, these are billed at U.S. carrier rates, converted to CAD$ by Unitel (which U.S. carrier, you ask? Well, since Unitel is partly owned by AT&T, one might wonder if they are a suspect ...) Now usage charges are added to the surcharge to get the total call cost on the Unitel card ... some main area codes work out like this ($ per minute): <---------------- to -------------> from 416 905 604 613 519 416 .191 .255 .408 .322 .305 905 .254 .258 .408 .329 .260 604 .408 .408 .281 .408 .408 613 .326 .331 .408 .225 .332 519 .298 .254 .408 .332 .262 Note that it costs 85c + 19.1c/min to place a Unitel card call within 416 (Toronto exchange) as opposed to the flat 75c for the Bell card, or 25c in coin. Note also that the usage charges from 416 to 519 are 30.5c/min while from 519 to 416 they are 29.8c/min; a slight difference, yet an interesting asymmetry. Calls to continental U.S. are all rated at 43c/min, Alaska $1.52/min, Hawaii 81c/min, Mexico $1.72/min (plus a slight $5 surcharge, remember). Minimum charge per call is 26c. Since the call origin can only be determined by area code, the time zone remains constant throughout an area code. That means 807 is assumed to be Eastern time for time of day discounting purposes, even though some areas of 807 are in Central time. 604 (BC) is assumed to be Pacific time. In Ontario, the discounts go 35% for 18-23h Mon-Fri, 60% 23-08h M-F, weekend & statutory holidays. (BC has a slightly different discount timing, as does calls involving a U.S. or Mexico point). There is also an introductory $10 free calling deal, which is provided for in the tariffs until the end of April. This means up to $10 in the first to billed months usage of the card is free. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 1:19:23 PDT From: DENNIS FOOTE Subject: Minority Scholarships in Telecommunications The University of San Francisco (USF) announces the availability of scholarships for minority students from California in its graduate programs on Telecommunications Management and Policy, and on Telecommunications Economics and Policy. The McLaren School of Business at USF offers two telecommunications programs: one that is a specialization in "Telecommunications Management and Policy" within the regular Masters of Business Administration (MBA) curriculum, and one that offers a "Masters in Telecommunications Economics and Policy" under a joint program of the Business School and the Department of Economics. The Telecommunications Program has received funding from the Telecommunications Education Trust, established by the California Public Utilities Commission, to provide scholarships for minority degree candidates who have demonstrated an interest in the effects of telecommunications regulation, technology, and policy on California's most vulnerable consumers. Applicants for the Jack P. Eckley Minority Scholarships should be minority California residents. Additional information and applications can be obtained by e-mail to "hudson@usfca.edu", or by writing or calling the addresses given at the end of the program description below. ____________________________________________ UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO McLaren School of Business MBA PROGRAM IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS MANAGEMENT AND POLICY Careers for the Information Age With the arrival of the "information age," business and government are recognizing the strategic importance of information technologies. As a result, professionals with combined expertise in business and telecommunications are in heavy demand. The Telecommunications Management Program is USF's response to this growing demand. It is targeted to meet the advanced education needs of those preparing for information-age careers, and also of those already in telecommunications-oriented occupations who decide to expand their applied expertise by taking time off for graduate-level education in telecommunications management. The Curriculum The Program prepares students for careers in telecommunications administrative management, marketing, strategic planning, public-policy analysis, and consulting. No technical background is required, but students must be prepared to learn basic technical concepts. Those with technical backgrounds may choose electives that build on their knowledge, integrating their technical skills with management and/or policy-analysis expertise. Telecommunications courses are taken as electives within the regular MBA curriculum. They include: * MBA 651: Telecommunications Technology and Management (convergence of telecommunications, computers and media) * MBA 652: Telecommunications Planning (planning of data networks) * MBA 653: International Telecommunications (trends in deregulation and privatization, and business applications of global networks) * MBA 654: Telecommunications Policy (the evolution and present structure of the U.S. telecommunications industry) * MBA 659: Special topics in Telecommunications (providing timely and in-depth analysis of current events and trends) Students may combine telecommunications with another area of concentration in Management, Marketing, International Business, or Information Systems. USF is fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and colleges (WASC). The Business School is fully accredited by the American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). Industry Participation The Telecommunications Program, under the directorship of Dr. Heather Hudson, has achieved international recognition for the high quality and successful careers of its graduates, its research activities, and its innovative curriculum. A major reason for its success is its "real world" orientation. It features: * An Advisory Board composed of executives and other professionals from diverse sectors of the telecommunications industry * Adjunct faculty and guest speakers from leading Bay Area telecommunications vendor and major user organizations * A Telecommunications Club that organizes site visits to San Francisco and Silicon Valley companies and links students with Program alumni * Attendance at trade shows and conferences featuring new technologies, products, and services * Seminars and workshops for professionals and executives in the telecommunications field, examining key issues and developments in the industry * Student internships with Bay Area companies USF's Strategic Location USF is located in one of the world's leading centers for the development and application of information technologies. Silicon Valley is the birthplace of high technology entrepreneurship. The Bay Area is the headquarters for many telecommunications and computer manufacturers, software vendors, wireline and wireless common carriers, and value-added service providers. As the financial center of the West Coast and a major U.S. gateway to the Pacific, the San Francisco metropolitan area is the home of many leading-edge, telecommunications-intensive financial and other user organizations. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Professor Heather Hudson, Director Telecommunications Management and Policy Program McLaren School of Business University of San Francisco 2130 Fulton Street San Francisco, CA 94117-1080 Telephone: (415) 666-6642 or 666-2504 Fax: (415) 666-2502 E-mail: hudson@usfca.edu ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 06:14:37 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Top Ten Networks More Shaky Than T3 Top ten less reliable networks than NSFnet's T3: 10. Cans tied together with string during a San Fran 8.5 earthquake. 9. The Arthritic's Morse Code net. 8. AT&T's net during a transparent software upgrade. 7. Bouncing signals off satellite, orbiting asteroid near Alpha Centauri. 6. "Great Valleys Of The World"'s semaphore net. 5. Chain-packet net (every time you get a packet, send off two more). 4. Using carrier mackerel across the Sahara. 3. Single Side Band transmitted from ground zero of a thermonuclear explosion. 2. 100 monkeys sending at random (by chance, they'll eventually send the information you want sent). 1. L.A.'s smog signal net. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 05:44:19 EDT From: David M Sokolic Subject: Dial Back Services With Account Codes Hello Trelecomm gurus: I live and work outside of the US., I am looking for a dial-back service that will let me use different account codes for business use. In other wordsd, I want to be able to assign codes so that I can charge clients for different call and I want to get a bill itemized by call. Can any of the services do this? It sounds like a simple thing to program into the software. The solution of just getting a differetn dialback nuumber for each case code will not work for two reaswons: 1) Five of us work in the office and we all soetimes call from home.We have 8-10 projects going at any time. This would require us to have about 50 call back access numbers - each with a minimum of about $20. No good? I want something where we can each have just one access number and where we can enter a code taht will show up in the bill. Any such animal? Thanks, David dsokolic@world.std.com ------------------------------ From: Barclay_Hambrook@mindlink.bc.ca (Barclay Hambrook) Subject: Joint Venture Partners For Internet Date: 28 Apr 94 01:11:59 GMT Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada Our firm is searching for joint venture partners for internet providers in various centers around the world for business applications. Serious parties only please contact Mr. B. Hambrook by email, fax (604) 687-0688 or phone (604) 685-3877. Forward details on your organization or yourself to expedite matters re qualifying. Barclay Hambrook, P. Eng., MBA Phone (604) 687-4525 or (604) 685-3877 Fax (604) 687-0688 Email: Barclay_Hambrook@mindlink.bc.ca ------------------------------ From: Elmar Bob Subject: Internet Access in Kenya Organization: B.U.G., Inc., Sapporo, Japan Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 10:25:27 GMT Hi netters, I am posting this for a friend who will be going to Kenya very soon and would like to find out whether she can gain access to the internet somehow over there. Best regards from Japan, Elmar ------------------------------ From: uswnvg!uswnvg.com!jmehrin@uunet.UU.NET (John Mehringer) Subject: Questions About SS7 Date: 28 Apr 94 00:09:43 GMT Looking for references regarding the SS7 Network. This is for a term paper/presentation ... but also for my own interest. Anything out there that is considered outstanding? What I'm looking for mainly is clarity of explanation and moderate in depth technical exploration. Thanks in advance. ------------------------------ From: Don.Saewert@f851.n102.z1.fidonet.org (Don Saewert) Subject: Radio Station Interference on Phone Line Date: 28 Apr 1994 19:18:54 -0700 Organization: Occidental College, Los Angeles CA 90041 USA Hello, with all the knowledge out there I am sure I will get an answer. A friend of mine has a phone where she can hear a local radio station in the background on her phone. I do not hear it at the time but she does. She has used other phones on the same line and the music is gone. The phone she hears the music has a builtin answering machine so she was wondering if that may be the problem. Any solutions would be helpful. Thanks! Don [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It is very likely that she is close (maybe within half a mile or so) of some radio station's transmitter/antenna. Better quality phones would probably be shielded against that sort of interference which is possibly why she gets it on the one phone but not on others. Components in the affected phone act like a little radio rec- eiver, with the earpiece on her phone as the speaker for her after-the- fact 'radio receiver'. There are filters which can be added to the phone itself or the phone line to remove the interference, but unless it is demonstrated to be in the phone line itself (not likely since she gets it only when using that one phone) then telco won't be able to help very much, and they may charge her to add the required filtering. If the radio station is broadcasting within the technical requirements of the law -- almost certain they would be, if a commerical station -- then they are not obliged to do anything either, but now and then an appeal phrased in a polite way will bring some assistance from the engineering staff at the radio station. One thing often overlooked when purchasing an inexpensive phone/answering machine is whether or not it is properly sheilded against such interference in the event the user is located relatively close to a powerful transmission source. A few readers here have the technical expertise required to suggest solutions and perhaps they will write you with diagrams and/or instructions you can experiment with. PAT] ------------------------------ From: engstrom@netcom.com (John and DonaLeigh Engstrom) Subject: Wanted: Recomendations on Telephony Books Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 13:46:27 CDT I've never posted to this newsgroup before, but I have been reading it for about the last two months. I think Patrick and all the posters out there in netland provide an interesting useful reference source and I just wanted to let everyone know how much I appreciate their work/time. Now, I was wondering if anyone knows of a good book to explain the hardware/software/protocols used in the wonderful world of telephony. What I would really like is a description of how communications between two entities happens -- from a residential phone line going to a CO which gets switched to a carrier which gets switched to anothe CO and finally to the destination phone line, all the way to how a company's switch can connect to other switches, COs, etc and what type of analog and digital information is passed along and how. I have a solid background in packet switched computer networks and protocols (ethernet, token-ring, TCP/IP, DECNET, etc) but I tend to get lost talking about T3s, ISDN, ANI, DNIS, DUSs (I think) and the like. Thanks in advance for any information you can provide. John Engstrom engstrom@netcom.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 14:16:08 EDT From: The One and Only Subject: Cellular Phones: What to look for? Organization: Penn State University I'm in the market for buying one and don't know what to look for or where to look. What's out there? Who are more carriers? Is it true that there are only two in any given area? Why? Any replies appreciated. Thanks, Terry Cary ------------------------------ From: vandusen@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM (Mike Vandusen) Subject: X.25 Information Request Date: 27 Apr 1994 16:10:30 -0500 Organization: NeoSoft Internet Services +1 713 684 5969 I am looking for general reference material (ie. books, ftp'able docs, etc.) describing X.25. I am interested in documentation that starts with conceptual overview, discusses details of the various other protocols involved (X.28, X.29, etc.), and finally addresses typical software interfaces. I would appreciate a reply from anyone who has a working knowledge of X.25 as to the reference material you have used. I understand that the CCITT Fascicle recommendation is not available for ftp ... and makes for rather dry reading anyway;-) Thanks in advance, Mike ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #187 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa22360; 28 Apr 94 16:25 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA16035; Thu, 28 Apr 94 11:21:04 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA16026; Thu, 28 Apr 94 11:21:02 CDT Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 11:21:02 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404281621.AA16026@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #188 TELECOM Digest Thu, 28 Apr 94 11:21:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 188 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Bell/Beacon Project (Bell News via Dave Leibold) Dial-an-Art (Toronto Star via Dave Leibold) How and Where is Big Brother Watching? (Dave) Getting Caller-ID Out of the Box (Joe Portman) Re: What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? (Vance Shipley) Re: What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? (Linc Madison) Re: Equal Access in Canada (Dino Moriello) Re: Equal Access in Canada (Jean Sarrazin) Re: Equal Access in Canada (Vance Shipley) Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? (John Nagle) Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? (Brett Frankenberger) Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? (Dave Levenson) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Dave.Leibold@f730.n250.z1.fidonet.org (Dave Leibold) Date: 27 Apr 94 23:00:24 -0500 Subject: Bell/Beacon Project Organization: FidoNet: The Super Continental - North York, Canada [from Bell News, Bell Ontario 18 Apr 94] Bell and the Beacon Initiative at a glance The Beacon Initiative and Bell Canada: * Bell Canada will invest $5.4 billion in the Beacon Initiative over the next 10 years. * Combined investment from the Stentor owner companies will total $8.0 billion. * Based on preliminary estimates, Bell's investment will fund about 8,000 jobs over the next decade. These jobs will be generated both within Bell and indirectly in other sectors, through spinoff effects. * The total investment from the Stentor owner companies in the Beacon Initiative will fund, directly or indirectly, an estimated average of 12,000 jobs over the next decade. * Between 80 and 90 per cent of all businesses and homes in Canada will have direct access to the new technology by 2005. Bell will use alternative technologies to provide broadband capabilities to the remaining 10 to 20 per cent of its customers. Canada's telecommunications infrastructure: * 99 per cent of Canadian h omes have telephone service, giving Canada one of the highest penetration rates for telephone service in the world. * The Stentor companies invest more than $4 billion a year to expand and develop Canada's telecommunications network. More than $2 billion of this is invested by Bell Canada. * In 1992, Canada's telecom network generated $13.7 billion in operating revenues, provided employment for 97,000 Canadians and generated $1.7 billion in annual tax payments. * According to a recent U.S. study, Canada is among the top four countries with the highest levels of digital access lines. Canada's telecommunications industry: * The telecommunications industry is one of the fastest growing sectors in Canada. In 1990, the sector grew by 8.6 per cent, versus 0.3 per cent for the Canadian economy as a whole. * In 1992, the Canadian telecommunications industry created 5,000 new jobs. Wage rates for these jobs were 30 per cent higher than the Canadian average. * In 1993, the total telecommunications market in Canada was worth $15.1 billion. * In 1992, the telecommunications industry was responsible for 17.5 per cent of all R&D expenditures in Canada. Bell's network: * As of December 1993, Bell's network was: Access Network * 3 per cent fibre penetration Local Network * 95 per cent of local lines served by digital switches * 93 per cent digital trunks * 57 per cent fibre trunks Toll Network * 100 per cent digital switching * 97 per cent digital trunks * 73 per cent fibre trunks * Since 1985, Bell has spent more than $1.4 billion placing fibre optic cable - approximately 600,000 fiber kilometres, including the company's portion of the national fibre optics network. Research and development: * In 1992, Bell Canada, Northern Telecom and Bell-Northern Research together spent $1.3 billion on research and development. ------------------------------ From: Dave.Leibold@f730.n250.z1.fidonet.org (Dave Leibold) Date: 27 Apr 94 23:10:07 -0500 Subject: Dial-an-Art Organization: FidoNet Nameserver {The Toronto Star} today reports of an art "faxhibition" by artist Robert Tonks. The idea is that artworks will be transmitted by fax (during the night to control costs and avoid active business periods). The 32 fax-artworks are apparently free. The art is being offered the fax way because it "doesn't belong in a gallery". For information, contact (416) 588.8889 and maybe some art can be faxed your way. This event will happen 3-27 May. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 19:33:27 CDT From: David Causey Subject: How and Where is Big Brother Watching Organization: Southeastern Louisiana University I need articles, and legislative reference numbers for current and future government access to direct and indirect communication. Including but not limited to; cellular, radio, telephone, satellite, computer, or television. I want to identify means of accessing these and other media, and where the government or subgroups is already using simple and high tech means to listen in to public and private communication. Thank you, Dave (please reply e-mail) ------------------------------ From: baron@hebron.connected.com (Joe Portman) Subject: Getting Caller-ID Out of the Box Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 13:44:05 -0700 Organization: Connected INC -- Full Service Internet Providers(tm) I just started using a Caller-ID box (from US West) and I have discovered that I love it. In fact I want to expand on the capabilities of Caller-ID. Basically, I need a device that will allow me to capture the incoming Caller-ID info and transmit it to my home computer. Why, you ask? Simple, I write and maintain Voice Mail systems for a living and I want to put together a custom home voice mail package that will respond to the incoming calls based on the Caller-ID information. For instance, calls with out-of-area or private or no Caller-ID will get a generic greeting, with no personal information. Calls from friends will get my "warm personal greeting". Calls from undesired numbers will get either nothing (hang up) or a warning not to call again. So, does anyone know of a Caller-ID box with a serial port? Or something similar? Any good ideas, and: what do you think of the overall idea? Thanks, Joe Portman (Westin Hotels & Resorts) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Your idea has already been elaborated on by various organizations, and has been discussed here a few times. There are modems available with Caller-ID capabilities built into them and Caller-ID display units with serial ports. Shop around for them. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Vance Shipley Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 08:08:01 -0400 Subject: Re: What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? Organization: XeniTec Consulting, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada In article , David Gingold wrote: > I've got a Northern Telecom Meridian phone on my desk. It has a DB-25 > connector on the back, which I suspect is a serial port. (The > connector hooks to a small PCB in the base, which in turn plugs into > what might be an ISDN plug inside the base?) > Is this a serial port? Does anyone know how to talk to it and what I > can do with it? In particular, I'd like to program my workstation to > dial the phone. Ask your administrator for a User's Guide for the data adaptor; they are easily available. You may use the data port as a Hayes compatable "modem" to communicate with other data ports in your office. You may also use it to control your telephone. There are two ways of doing this. The simplest is to use AT dialing commands to initiate a voice call; send the following string to the port to dial 9-1-555-1212: ATDP915551212 Since pulse dialing would make no sense they chose it as the command to dial the voice line of the telephone instead of the data line. The second way is to put the port in a transparent mode which will send all signalling between the set and the switch throught the port to your computer and accept signalling from your computer on behalf of either the switch or the set. This allows you to read the incoming callers number (which is sent to the set's display by the switch) or transfer the caller to another destination as an example. To put the set in transparent mode send the following string to the port: ATSP! I'm afraid that if you want to use this mode you'll either have to buy Northern Telecom's Visit product or reverse engineer the protocol. They aren't too eager to share. I did the later. Vance Shipley, vances@xenitec.on.ca ------------------------------ From: lincmad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) Subject: Re: What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 08:32:34 GMT David Gingold (gingold@Think.COM) wrote: > I've got a Northern Telecom Meridian phone on my desk. It has a DB-25 > connector on the back, which I suspect is a serial port. (The > connector hooks to a small PCB in the base, which in turn plugs into > what might be an ISDN plug inside the base?) > Is this a serial port? Does anyone know how to talk to it and what I > can do with it? In particular, I'd like to program my workstation to > dial the phone. I had just such a beast on my desk two years ago. I don't know all the technical details, but the way our phone system was configured, each station had three different extension numbers: 2XXX, 4XXX, and 5XXX, which were, respectively, the normal extension, "priority" call extension (warble the ringer even if you're off-hook), and data extension. The last of these ran out through the serial port thingie. I could use this to plug my desktop computer directly into the phone and dial as if it were a modem. I never tried, so I don't know if it could dial '9' and seize an outgoing line; I only ever connected to the company's internal port server. (They were sufficiently security-paranoid that I won't even tempt fate by mentioning them by name, even though I'm no longer employed there.) Linc Madison * Oakland, California * LincMad@Netcom.com ------------------------------ From: dino@CAM.ORG (Dino Moriello) Subject: Re: Equal Access in Canada Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 00:50:35 -0500 Organization: VE2DM In article , jeffb@audiolab.UWaterloo.ca (jeff bamford) wrote: > My latest bill from my LD company has a little form to return > for equal access dialing. They did not indicate when equal access would > be arriving anywhere in Canada. The CRTC has given July 1st as a starting date. Dino Moriello PO BOX 105 Internet: dino@CAM.ORG Radisson,Quebec Compuserve: 76120,1472 Tel.: 514-974-0773 CANADA J0Y 2X0 Packet: VE2DM@VE2FKB 819-638-8281 Please E-mail replies since I can't always read the USENET postings. ------------------------------ From: jeans@CAM.ORG (Jean Sarrazin) Subject: Re: Equal Access in Canada Date: 28 Apr 1994 12:38:11 GMT Organization: Communications Accessibles Montreal, Quebec Canada jeff bamford (jeffb@audiolab.UWaterloo.ca) wrote: > My latest bill from my LD company has a little form to return > for equal access dialing. Currently, you need to dial into a local > port. They did not indicate when equal access would be arriving > anywhere in Canada. They only wanted me to know that I could make the > switch when it becomes available. Presumably it will happen first in > the larger centres and then make its way to the smaller centres. Does > anyone else have target dates? I'm also curious as to when we'll get > carrier codes like in the U.S. We are already getting some "universal access" via the Unitel calling-card. At last, you don't have to spend a quarter just to access an alternate LD company from a public phone-just use the 800 number. Unitel is pressing Ottawa to allow a nation-wide "survey" to let every customer decide for themselves which LD company to choose. I guess they want to beat the inertia and dig deeper into Bell's base of "do-nothing" customers. Full universal is indeed on its way -- but it's still up to the CRTC to determine when. My concern is: when will we be able to choose our own LD company when using Canada Direct -- right now, you can only use Bell ... Jean B. Sarrazin jeans@cam.org Montreal ------------------------------ From: Vance Shipley Subject: Re: Equal Access in Canada Organization: XeniTec Consulting, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 08:18:15 GMT In article , jeff bamford wrote: > My latest bill from my LD company has a little form to return > for equal access dialing. Currently, you need to dial into a local > port. They did not indicate when equal access would be arriving > anywhere in Canada. They only wanted me to know that I could make the > switch when it becomes available. Presumably it will happen first in > the larger centres and then make its way to the smaller centres. Does > anyone else have target dates? I'm also curious as to when we'll get > carrier codes like in the U.S. The Canadian Radio-television & Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), in it's 92-12 decision, directed Canada's federally regulated telephone companies to provide "Equal Ease of Access" to competetive long distance providers. The access methods were to be FGB, FGD and FGD with CCS7. On July 1st, 1994 Bell Canada will begin providing trunk side access in virtually all it's service areas. Carrier access codes (CICs) will be available to select the long distance provider to handle any toll call. Equal access will also start on July 1st. The default long distance provider for a given telephone line will be programmed into the serving switch by the telephone company at a long distance providers request. Bell Canada's CIC is 323, Northquest has 289. To make a casual call through Northquest's network a telephone user would dial 10289-905-893-3210 while Bell's network could be used by dialing 10323-905-893-3210. In these examples the destination telephone number is 905-893-3210. (Don't bother, it's an out of service recording. :) Once your telephone line has been presubscribed to your carrier of choice (Northquest I hope :) you may dial as before; 1-905-893-3210. While it seems likely that Bell will make the July 1st date for trunk side access, it remains to be seen whether they will provide any reasonable amount of equal ease of access availability. Putting the connections and routing in place is one thing, data filling millions of presubscriptions is another. Long distance providers gain access to the telephone company networks at the access tandem level. There are eleven access tandems in Ontario. By gaining FGD connection to an access tandem a provider may accept calls from all telephone subscribers served by central offices under that tandem. The CRTC stipulated the amount which a telephone company could charge for switching and aggregation (and a further settlement to offset the cost of upgrading the telphone companies network to equal access). This charge is consistent across the country and does not reflect the distance from the subscriber to the tandem or the number of subscribers in the service area. This should mean that barriers to ubiquity of service are minimized. In other words; equal access will be available nearly everywhere, right away. BCTel, in British columbia, and AGT in Alberta will follow suit later this year. Vance Shipley, vances@xenitec.on.ca ------------------------------ From: nagle@netcom.com (John Nagle) Subject: Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 17:19:43 GMT hsingnan@ivo.jpl.nasa.gov (Daniel H. Chang) writes: > I am ordering DID service for the first time and have run across a > strange situation. The DID lines ride in our case on eight time slots > of a T1 line. We discovered the following: > * Here's the weird part: we discovered that at this point, after > we've sent the wink and *before* we seize the line, we are able > to patch that line to a phone and perform *full duplex* > communications through it! We asked Pac Bell about this, who > said the behavior is normal and the caller is not charged until > we seize the line, and if we do not seize a timeout will > eventually occur. We have determined that timeout is longer > than ten minutes! That offers a possibility for a useful PBX feature -- fax/voice/ data routing. The PBX could listen for fax and modem setup tones before routing the call within the PBX. There's also the possibility of determining whether a call is fax, voice, or data before accepting it. So would this work generally, or is it just a fluke? John Nagle ------------------------------ From: brettf@netcom.com (Brett Frankenberger) Subject: Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 12:20:50 GMT hsingnan@ivo.jpl.nasa.gov (Daniel H. Chang) writes: > I am ordering DID service for the first time and have run across a > strange situation. The DID lines ride in our case on eight time slots > of a T1 line. We discovered the following: > * When someone calls one of the DID numbers, we get an appropriate > A/B signal on our side. > * We are responsible for sending a wink to get the DID digits > (that works fine), then providing the ring signal on the > voice band for the sake of the caller on the other end. > * Presumably at some point the intended guy picks up the phone, > and our equipment seizes the line by raising the A/B bits and > patches the call. > * Here's the weird part: we discovered that at this point, after > we've sent the wink and *before* we seize the line, we are able > to patch that line to a phone and perform *full duplex* > communications through it! We asked Pac Bell about this, who > said the behavior is normal and the caller is not charged until > we seize the line, and if we do not seize a timeout will > eventually occur. We have determined that timeout is longer > than ten minutes! You are right. But it would be improper, and probably illegal, for you to implement this hack to get free calls. Just as you have the responsibility to not use stolen credit card numbers, you have the responsibility to properly report supervision to the telco. > I guess if the DID were carried on analog lines and the PBX had to > supply the ring, then the CO having to offer full duplex is inevitable > since there is no half-duplex in analog. You could do the same thing in analog. The two wire analog local loop is immediately converted to a four-wire (two for transmit, two for receive) once it hits the telco office. > To me this just says that it is unlikely for the CO to assign the > ring responsibility to the PBX -- They have little choice, because your PBX might not always return ring. If the called number is busy, it will report busy. While today they could have you digitally tell the CO switch which to provide, when DID originally came out, there was no easy way to signal the CO whether to provide ring or busy. (Especially since CO switches usually see the DID customer as just another witch with a trunk connection, and it has always been standard that the far end of a trunk connection privide ring-back or busy signal). > otherwise the resulting loophole and possibility for abuse seems > enormous! Not too enormous. And it would be fairly easy for the telco to detect if they wanted to. Also note that AT&T will NOT open the forward path until supervision is provided. That is, if the call is long-distance via AT&T, the AT&T part of the call will only carry voice one way until you report answer. (I'm told the reason is that an AT&T PBX once has a bug that prevented it from always reporting supervision. To fix it, they released a patch then closed the talk path on their network until supervision was returned, to make sure that everyone implemented the patch). > Can anyone with more experience shed some light on whether what I > described is typical, and what factors am I not taking into account > which would make this the signalling behavior which Pac Bell (and I > presume other RBOC's) finds advantageous to implement? Some > historical perspective would be really interesting too. It is indeed typical. As I said, it would be trivial for the telco to detect. (Calls that ring for a long time. No one will really listen for ring for ten minutes). Also, as I said above, if you want to use this hack to give free incoming LD to friends, make sure they call with Sprint or MCI. Most, if not all, RBOCs DID works the same way. (All require the terminating PBX to provide ring or busy, as there is no standard (short of ISDN) way for them to digitally indicate to the CO whether to provide ring or busy, but some might close the forward path until superivison is returned). Brett Frankenberger brettf@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: dave@westmark.com (Dave Levenson) Subject: Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up?? Reply-To: dave@westmark.com Organization: Westmark, Inc. Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 01:54:09 GMT It has been the case for many years that the destination CPE is responsible for returning off-hook supervision on DID trunks when cutting the call through to a live person or voice mail or whatever. In some cases, two-way communication is possible before off-hook supervision is sent; in other cases, only one-way communication, allowing the caller to hear call-progress tones or recordings, is supported. If the DID call arrives via the AT&T network, they typically block forward audio until the reverse supervision shows off-hook. The local telco often does not do this. Yes, there is some opportunty for fraud ... but like most fraud, if you do it to any large extent, you'll probably be noticed and asked to correct the situation. Dave Levenson Internet: dave@westmark.com Westmark, Inc. UUCP: {uunet | rutgers | att}!westmark!dave Stirling, NJ, USA Voice: 908 647 0900 Fax: 908 647 6857 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Not only asked to correct the problem, but in some instances if telco really wants to get tough about it they may choose to back-bill an estimated amount lost on completed calls which went unsupervised. Illinois Bell found a company here in Chicago deliberatly playing games like that and back-billed them a half-million dollars covering calls over a five year period. The company protested of course, but all the facts pointed to them doing it on purpose as toll-avoidance; they were slow to answer their phones because they did not want to hire the help needed to do so promptly and they were playing a tape recorded music on hold 'all positions busy please wait for an available agent' message to their callers for five or ten minutes at a time. Their customers squawked about the cost of *their* calls as a result so the company gerry-rigged the system to not supervise until they got ready to handle the call. IBT said it wasn't *their* problem ... they wanted their money! Instead of going back to each individual caller (thousands of them) to collect the couple dollars each of them would have paid had they been supervised properly, telco told the company since they pulled this stunt they could pay for it instead ... or get sued with the resulting publicity, etc. Telco did not get all they asked for, but they collected a nice chunk of it. So be careful about playing games with supervision. If telco wants to do so, they'll work you over good to show who is boss. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #188 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa22541; 28 Apr 94 16:30 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA17419; Thu, 28 Apr 94 12:11:35 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA17403; Thu, 28 Apr 94 12:11:31 CDT Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 12:11:31 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404281711.AA17403@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #189 TELECOM Digest Thu, 28 Apr 94 12:11:30 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 189 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" (Peter M. Weiss) Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" (Les Reeves) Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet (H. Peter Anvin) Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet (Gregory P. Monti) Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet (John Anderson) Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet (Michael Covington) Re: GSM and Airbags (David Josephson) Re: GSM and Airbags (Gary Sanders) Re: GSM and Airbags (Jari Junikka) Re: ISDN Bridge Advice Please (Bob Larribeau) Re: DISN Information Request (Bob Larribeau) Re: Quality of Long Distance Telephone Lines (Carl Oppedahl) Re: DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 (Jay Hennigan) Re: How Can FAX Use T1 But Keep POTS Number? (puma@netcom.com) Re: TCP/IP Over X.25/Datapac (Garrett Wollman) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 07:11:50 EDT From: Peter M. Weiss Subject: Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" Organization: Penn State University Once upon a time, we here at PSU were advised NOT to let our outgoing LD calls ring more than eight (?) times or else we would incur toll charges even without an answer. Don't know what the rules of the game are today. Pete-Weiss@psu.edu "The 'NET' never naps" +1 814 863 1843 31 Shields Bldg. -- Penn State Univ -- University Park, PA 16802-1202 USA [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: For lack of ability to supervise your calls, they were saying if you stayed on the line longer than that they were going to assume you got an answer. I imagine the same would have been true if you listened to a busy signal without hanging up for more than 30-40 seconds. The flip side of the coin was if you were able to get connected, convey your message in twenty or thirty seconds and disconnect you would not get charged for the call. PAT] ------------------------------ From: lreeves@crl.com (Les Reeves) Subject: Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" Date: 28 Apr 1994 02:59:22 -0700 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Steve Kass (skass@drunivac.drew.edu) wrote: > I had to leave an important message after hours tonight, and the party > I was calling warned me that to reduce their voice mail load, the > system was set up not to answer for 16 rings or longer. The sanity of > that aside, I placed the call through AT&T and was unable to get > through. Before the call was answered, AT&T informed me that my party > did not answer, and that they were sorry, I would now be disconnected. > I then successfully placed the call by dialing 10222+ . I couldn't > help wondering if an AT&T operator could have placed the call with > this "feature" disabled. I find this AT&T "feature" particularly annoying. As far as calling through the AT&T operator is concerned, you would have gotten a solicitation to use their Voice Mark Messaging Service (they no longer refer to it by that name) by pressing *123. This kind of invasion of 0+ calls is fine. However, disconnecting an unanswered 1+ call is *unacceptable*. Les lreeves@crl.com Atlanta,GA 404.874.7806 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I'll tell you why AT&T adopted that stance. Radio talk show host Larry King was in the habit of helping his callers avoid toll charges by telling them, "when you call us, just let it ring, we will answer you when it is your turn to be on the air ..." While most talk shows answer and screen your call, then leave you on hold upwards of 30-45 minutes waiting for your chance to spill your bile (on your nickle, I might add ... very few are willing to provide an 800 number for you to camp out on at their expense), King's thing was to have all his bells turned off and let the lights on his phone wink instead. That way the caller did not have to pay and neither did King. AT&T got stuck with the cost instead of having their circuits tied up in a non-revenue position for the several hours King is on the air. AT&T finally got tired of being the straight man for King's routine and started cutting off his unanswered calls after a couple minutes. King's response was predictable: when he found out what AT&T was doing he blasted them over the air and told all his callers to start calling him using Sprint's 10333 code instead. AT&T's response: Good! Let him abuse Sprint instead. AT&T was glad to get rid of all that non-revenue dead weight traffic. So send thanks to Larry King for his abuse of the network which led AT&T to install the 'feature' you do not like. PAT] ------------------------------ From: hpa@eecs.nwu.edu (H. Peter Anvin N9ITP) Subject: Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet Reply-To: hpa@nwu.edu (H. Peter Anvin) Organization: Northwestern University Electromagnetics Laboratory Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 09:11:10 GMT > In article Paul Robinson > wrote: > I agree with Paul. As long as the names and addresses are gleaned > from public messages, no harm is done. Anybody who posts their > address publicly, whether in a newsgroup or on the local supermarket > notice board has no grounds for complaint about what others do with > that information. > On the other hand, if he's scanning headers of mail messages that are > routed through his machine, or worse, reading packets that fly by on a > net backbone, that's slimy. Rather like opening people's mailboxes to > read the return addresses on their mail, or hooking a pen recorder up > to their phone line. Based on the subset of the users on machines I maintain that were listed, I can almost guarantee that the addresses were from public USENET messages. They also have an option for unlisting your address (by sending mail to delete@whitepages.com) or adding it if you don't post (add@whitepages.com). Seems fair to me. hpa INTERNET: hpa@nwu.edu FINGER/TALK: hpa@ahab.eecs.nwu.edu IBM MAIL: I0050052 at IBMMAIL HAM RADIO: N9ITP or SM4TKN FIDONET: 1:115/511 or 1:115/512 STORMNET: 181:294/101 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 11:43:48 EDT From: Gregory P. Monti Subject: Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet A recent posting noted that an "Internet Yellow Pages" had been published. The writer speculated that a white pages might be along soon. Too late. The other weekend, I was in the Borders Book Store in Bailey's Crossroads, VA, and noted that an "Internet White Pages" was for sale. About three inches thick. Listed by personal last name, then first name, just like the telephone directory. I, and a friend whose Internet address I knew offhand, were both in it. They must have "fingered" or "pinged" the world to find all the personal names and associated them with their Internet addresses. Greg Monti Arlington, Virginia, USA gmonti@cap.gwu.edu ------------------------------ From: andrsonj@rtsg.mot.com (John Anderson) Subject: Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet Date: 28 Apr 94 11:40:46 GMT Organization: Motorola Cellulsr Infrastructure Group john@pixel.kodak.com (John Hall) writes: > In article Paul Robinson > writes: >> Internet White Pages". Someone started collecting E-Mail addresses >> and names for people from public messages, probably those posted on >> newsgroups and heavily circulated mailing lists and put them in >> alphabetical order. > On the other hand, if he's scanning headers of mail messages that are > routed through his machine, or worse, reading packets that fly by on a > net backbone, that's slimy. Rather like opening people's mailboxes to > read the return addresses on their mail, or hooking a pen recorder up > to their phone line. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there are on-line databases that you can query to get a person's e-mail address. MIT provides a service that will search for a user's e-mail address given a search string. Supposedly, MIT gathers this info based on posts to Usenet News that pass through their site. Here's an example of how to get a list of all users named "anderson": > mail mail-server@pit-manager.mit.edu Subject: send usenet-addresses/anderson ------------------------------ From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) Subject: Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet Date: 28 Apr 1994 00:59:35 GMT Organization: AI Programs, University of Georgia, Athens I don't object to people knowing my email address, PROVIDED they don't presume that I'm the secretary for the whole university and maybe the whole state of Georgia! I hope this directory cautions new users that they should _not_ send mail to people other than the person they're actually trying to reach. The mere fact that I live within 50 miles of someone else doesn't mean I am handling email for them! Does anybody else get this kind of stuff, or is it just me? Michael A. Covington, Assc Rsch Scientist, Artificial Intelligence Programs The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7415 USA mcovingt@ai.uga.edu Unless specifically indicated, I am not speaking for the University. For information about any U.Ga. graduate program, email gradadm@uga.cc.uga.edu. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I believe former Digest participant John Higdon once commented that he recieves a large amount of mail at his site each day from people who make all sorts of erroneous assumptions about who he is, what his company does, how to reach other people via his site, etc ... all sorts of time-wasting, junk mail inquiries, and some of it quite rude at that claiming it is his fault the mail did not go through. PAT] ------------------------------ From: davidj@rahul.net (David Josephson) Subject: Re: GSM and Airbags Organization: a2i network Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 08:17:17 GMT In Stewart Fist <100033.2145@CompuServe. COM> writes: > I've just received by fax a photocopy of a story from the {Guardian > Weekly} (UK) dated April 3. > It is headlined "Mobile phone set off airbag" and the story is about a > couple of instances where (it is claimed) GSM handsets have set off > airbags in luxury cars in Europe. I'm interested to find out whether > this stuff is true, or an urban myth. I think it's probably myth, > because I can't imagine anything easier to shield from EMI than an > inertia switch in a car. If you want to do some research, check on the safety regulations for the distance between a 3 watt (or even 600 mW) 900 MHz transmitter and a blasting cap is. The actuating mechanism of an airbag is essentially a shotgun shell (without shot; the expanding gas is vented to the bag which it inflates) fired by a blasting cap or electric squib. > problem, but when I contact them they deny it. BMW, VW and Mercedes > are also reported to have had airbag blow-outs with GSM, but they also > all deny it. > Someone's not telling the truth. Would you? How about asking them just plainly what it is in an airbag that blows the bag up, eh? David Josephson ------------------------------ From: gws@gwssun.cb.att.com (Gary Sanders) Subject: Re: GSM and Airbags Reply-To: gary.w.sanders@att.com Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Columbus Ohio. Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 12:49:04 GMT In article , Stewart Fist <100033.2145@ CompuServe.COM> wrote: > I've just received by fax a photocopy of a story from the {Guardian > Weekly} (UK) dated April 3. > It is headlined "Mobile phone set off airbag" and the story is about a > couple of instances where (it is claimed) GSM handsets have set off > airbags in luxury cars in Europe. I'm interested to find out whether > this stuff is true, or an urban myth. I think it's probably myth, > because I can't imagine anything easier to shield from EMI than an > inertia switch in a car. Yes but think about it; what is a switch but a couple of contacts? Add a liitle bit of dirt and gunk and you now have a diode. What can you you do with a diode -- you can detect radio signals. You now have an RF switch. Actually this warning went around the Ham radio circles for a while with friends and friends of friends having the problem. I have never heard anyone directly with the problem. However with all the electronics going into car the idea of RF floating around is scarry. Gary W. Sanders (N8EMR) gary.w.sanders@att.com AT&T Bell Labs 614.860.5965 ------------------------------ From: jarij@cc.jyu.fi (Jari Junikka) Subject: Re: GSM and Airbags Date: 28 Apr 1994 17:03:10 +0300 Organization: University of Jyvaskyla, Finland One of the Finnish evening papers had a story some weeks ago claiming that a GSM phone had set off a fire alarm in a hotel several times. What else? Soon you can probably get pregnant by using a GSM phone ... jari ------------------------------ From: blarrib@netcom.com (Bob Larribeau) Subject: Re: ISDN Bridge Advice Please Organization: Consultant Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 16:10:30 GMT In article idddsb@iddss1.iddis.com (Dean Banfield) writes: > We have a 10baseT Ethernet lan and would like an outlier individual to > have access on a hardwired basis. ISDN sounds great, but I have no > idea what's required here. > You take the 64kpbs 'B' channels and then using a 'bridge?' you > convert the serial data to 10baseT? Who makes bridges? At what > prices? I assume higher price translates into higher performance. > Any info appreciated. Thanks. You can get either bridges or routers. Bridges are available from Combinet, Digiboard, Gandalf, Extension Technology. Routers are available from Cisco, Ascend, and ACC. Prices for bridges start about $2,000 and routers around $3,000. You have a lot of good choices for connecting IP networks. There are fewer choices for Novell networks. Bob Larribeau Consultant San Francisco ------------------------------ From: blarrib@netcom.com (Bob Larribeau) Subject: Re: DISN Information Request Organization: Consultant Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 16:11:49 GMT In article rtodt@relay.nswc.navy.mil (Rodney Todt) writes: > Can anyone in this group provide me with a pointer to online > information about DISN. I am specifically looking for a map and how > to get connected information. Thanks. Call Bellcore at 1-800-992-ISDN. They should be able to help you. Bob Larribeau Consultant San Francisco ------------------------------ From: oppedahl@panix.com (Carl Oppedahl) Subject: Re: Quality of Long Distance Telephone Lines Date: 28 Apr 1994 10:55:42 -0400 Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and Unix, NYC In T.I.Boogaart@research.ptt.nl (Boogaart T.I.) writes: > I would like to know if anyone has conducted research on the quality > of long distance telephone lines. With "Quality" I mean the amount of > noise and echo (e.g. signal noise ratio). In particular, I want to > know if it is at all feasible to perform speech recognition / speaker > verification over long distance lines. > The focus is on the quality of lines to Europe, but any information on > the subject (references, pointers, hints) is welcome. Well, for calls originating in the US it is easy to make the test calls, anyway. You precede your dialing string with 10222, 10288, 10333, etc. So for a test call to someone in England you might dial, from New York, 011-44-71-XXXXXXX as a normal way to dial. Instead, to do this kind of testing, you would dial 10222-011-44-71-XXXXXXX or 10288-011-44-71-XXXXXXX or 10333-011-44-71-XXXXXXX to force your call to MCI, AT&T, Sprint, respectively. If you were doing modem calls this way, and if your modem is the kind that keeps session statistics, you could note down how many resent packets there were, how many NAKs, etc. etc. This is all taken from The Phone Book, page 98 and following. (Consumer Reports Books, ISBN 0-89043-364-X). Carl Oppedahl AA2KW Oppedahl & Larson (patent lawyers) Yorktown Heights, NY voice 212-777-1330 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Carl Oppedahl wrote 'The Phone Book' although he modestly fails to mention that point in his remarks above. PAT] ------------------------------ From: jay@coyote.rain.org (Jay Hennigan) Subject: Re: DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 Date: 27 Apr 1994 16:47:14 -0700 Organization: Regional Access Information Network (RAIN) In article canadian@leland.stanford.edu writes: > Phone Question for those in the know.(I am not one of them, so please > reply in layperson lingo if possible. :-)) > I am the Business Manager of the Student newspaper, the Stanford > Daily. We are independent from the university, and are running a > very tight budget. We pay alot each month to be connected to our > phone service and have no choice but to use the university phone > service. We are currently we are being charged anywhere from $28.50 > to $37.50 per month for each phone (which we own) plus $12.50 per > phone for an expanded local calling area ranging from San Francisco > to San Jose and parts of the East Bay. > The Daily intends to convert its current incoming 32 line mixed ET and > single-line set configuration to a set of 16 analog DID wink-start > trunks mapped to our current 32 numbers. We will be installing a > DID-ready PBX, station lines, and PBX telephones on our premises. Unless you get an extraordinary amount of incoming traffic, 16 DID trunks for 32 numbers is gross overkill. Six to eight trunks are far more realistic. Also, keep in mind that DID trunks are usually one-way incoming, so you'll need some outbound and/or two-way ground-start trunks as well. Depending on your expected growth, six would be a good starting number here as well. If your traffic includes substantial long distance, you might want to consider a T-1 trunk from an interexchange carrier. (This means that AT&T, Sprint, MCI, etc. bring in a special circuit that is used solely for outbound long distance, you need a lot of long-distance traffic to handle this.) T-1 direct from a carrier is a way around the outrageous local exchange carrier toll rates (with it, you will no longer pay more to call 25 miles away than across the country). > We are planning on a PBX from Panasonic, the KX-T336 system. Please > tell me what you think! This is a good switch, thought without a real track record yet. It will not handle T-1 circuits, but you could use an external channel bank if T-1 becomes attractive to you. You might also want to look at the Mitel SX-50 or even the SX-200 Digital if you are expecting substantial growth. I like the Panasonic 7000 series feature phones, they are a good value for the price. > I need to know thoughts about PBX's, DID's and University Phone > services. Also how much does Pac-Bell charge and how much do other > university services charge? As for Pac Bell, call them and ask. They will most likely try to sell you Centrex, with a sales pitch that it is more reliable or easier to expand than a PBX. Centrex is (IMHO) not really a good deal unless you have a number of satellite offices spread out within a local calling area. You pay for every feature every month, and the features aren't usually very user-friendly. Ask your centrex sales rep exactly what steps you would take to put a call on hold on one phone and pick it up on another across the room for an example. > Stanford has a SL-100 systems and I think that Stanford rates are > currently tarriffed as analog DID service at a base charge of $10 for > an 8 line group and $2 line/month for each line. However Stanford > Communication Services does not currently tariff standard analog DID > service, but we understand that the Stanford SL-100 system is capable > of providing this service, and would like to work it in tariffing > this offering at standard and reasonable rates as soon as possible. Are you limited by Stanford to taking what they offer, or can you deal with Pacific Bell? If you're limited, then you don't have a choice. If not, haggle. You're in a lot better position than most in that you have a choice of dial-tone provider. Jay Hennigan jay@rain.org ------------------------------ From: puma@netcom.com (puma) Subject: Re: How Can FAX Use T1 But Keep POTS Number? Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 16:51:48 GMT In article , wrote: > An extremely well publicized FAX number that is on a POTS phone line > now is in an office that has a T1 to an IXC. > There is a LOT of long distance FAXing, and it would be very nice to > put this machine on the PBX, but there are some problems and I am > looking for creative solutions. > It is not acceptable to change the FAX's phone number. Nor is it possible > to add a second FAX machine. Adding a second fax machine is a fairly low-cost alternative. You might be better off to reconsider. I hate to quote all the rest of what you said, hopefully folks will remember. It should be possible with a couple of line relays and some creative electronics to: - allow the fax to answer either line - place outgoing calls on the line of choice - busy out either line when the other is in use. The only problem I could see is that there could be a narrow timing window where an incoming call could be answered by busying out the line (because of a call coming in or going out on the other line). I really think a second fax would be the least costly and most effective solution, and would provide more functionality also, as you could send faxes and still leave the original line open for receiving. puma@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: wollman@ginger.lcs.mit.edu (Garrett Wollman) Subject: Re: TCP/IP Over X.25/Datapac Date: 28 Apr 1994 12:59:38 GMT Organization: MIT Laboratory for Computer Science In article , Gordon Sawatzky wrote: > Does anyone know of products that allow TCP/IP over X.25 (datapac) > connections for Windows? I don't know of any for Windows, as PCs in general tend to have lousy serial interfaces and synchronous cards are generally very expensive (cheaper to build 'em yourself if you have the EE expertise). However, IP has been running over X.25 for a LONG time now, so it wouldn't surprise me if you could dig up someone who has done it. I was listening to the Seattle IETF and someone from UCL (Jon Crowcroft?) was talking about the development of the Internet in Britain. The British academic network was based on home-grown "Coloured Book" protocols which were layered on top of X.25 network service. People at UCL were given a contract to figure out how to migrate the little IP clouds which were attached to this big X.25 network to OSI networking (so that they could then be completely part of the network). The result of this work has been an explosion in IP connectivity in Great Britain. In the original network, IP was encapsulated the standard way over X.25 and then forwarded around by the X.25 switches. In the current network, X.25 traffic is encapsulated in TCP and forwarded about a 622-Mbit IP network instead, so the network setup has gone from: Internet applications -> TCP -> IP \ Coloured Book Applications +-> X.25 ISO applications -> TP0 -> CONS / ...to: ISO applications -> TP0 -> CONS \ Coloured Book Applications +-> X.25 \ Internet applications +-> TCP -> IP The speaker noted that they never did transition from Internet to OSI protocols, but they do now provide the best X.25 service ever seen... Garrett A. Wollman wollman@lcs.mit.edu formerly known as wollman@emba.uvm.edu ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #189 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa23432; 28 Apr 94 18:04 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA20919; Thu, 28 Apr 94 14:03:37 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA20911; Thu, 28 Apr 94 14:03:35 CDT Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 14:03:35 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9404281903.AA20911@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #190 TELECOM Digest Thu, 28 Apr 94 13:56:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 190 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Demise of Newsgroups Feared (Dan Reifsnyder) Re: Looking For Information on BNC, Inc. (Jay Hennigan) Re: Customer <-> Local Phone Company Contact Point (Gregory P. Monti) Re: Basic ISDN Question (Bob Larribeau) Re: Telecommuting Policies and Procedures (Peter M. Weiss) Re: Help Reading AT&T and NYNEX Toll Tapes (Paul S. Sawyer) Re: 16 Mbps Modem for Real? (cjl@mitre.org) Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service (John Zambito) Re: Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone (Dave Held) Re: Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone (David D-Weber) Re: Occupied Territories Telecom (Josh Backon) Re: How Can FAX Use T1 But Keep POTS Number? (Dean Banfield) Re: NANP and Switches (Linc Madison) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: ryfe@interaccess.com (Dan Reifsnyder) Subject: Demise of Newsgroups Feared Date: 28 Apr 1994 17:28:49 GMT Organization: InterAccess, Chicagoland's Full Service Internet Provider Remember the bozo who cross-posted a message about an upcoming lottery for green cards to every single newgroup on the net? According to a Clarinet Newsbytes article, he recieved over 35,000 responses, most of which were flames and mail bombs comprising over 73GB(!) of data. As you can imagine, his service provider, Internet Direct, was more than a little peeved, as this caused over a dozen system crashes and brought their machine to it's knees; they ended up revoking his account, citing storage costs. This bozo then has the balls to show up at Internet Direct's office with four lawyers threatening to sue for $250,000, claiming that not being able to get to their e-mail would cost them at least that much. The thing that kills me is the bozo's attitude about the entire situation. His name is Laurence Canter, and he claims that: 1) Most of the responses that he got were for more information, and he'll gladly do the same thing again once he clears the resulting order backlog. 2) The revocation of his account is of no concern to him since he has accounts with a number of other Internet service providers. 3) If a newsgroup isn't moderated, they have to expect and accept crossposts. In an interview with Newsbytes, he concludes by saying that he has every intention of advertising other products and services through Usenet groups. He adds that "Although what we're doing may upset them, there's no doubt that will change. Other people will advertise on the Usenet in the same manner, because it makes sense financially." My personal belief is that Mr. Canter is taking advantage of and abusing the system, but that's just one man's opinion... and while I am *NOT* advocating doing anything nasty to Laurence Canter (of Canter & Siegel, (602) 661-3911), I think it would be an interesting analogy to his service provider's problem if his phone was inundated with more data than *it* could handle... *NOT* that I'm recommending that anyone in the 602 area code program caller-id blocking and (602) 661-3911 into their autodialers before they go to work in the morning. I'm also *NOT* suggesting that people outside of the 602 area code program (602) 661-3911 into a speed-dial button on their phone so that they can call, let the phone start to ring and then hang up before it's answered. My biggest concern is that if Mr. Canter carries out his intent of advertising products and services through newsgroups, it could lead to others feeling justified in doing the same thing ... and will end up destroying the best example of consensual anarchy that I've ever been privileged to participate in. Dan Reifsnyder /ryfe@interaccess.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I have said it before, I will say it again. Moderated forums is where things are at. Some months ago I made a comment which has apparently been widely spread on the net, at least judging from the places I have seen it reappear: Usenet is a dung heap. It is getting worse every day. Years ago, the 'make money fast' messages appeared only rarely; perhaps one every year or so. Now they appear almost daily in one or more newsgroups. Massive crossposting of the kind you mention is very commonplace now. Advertisements appear regularly. You will see more and more of them. The world has discovered the Internet in general, and Usenet in particular. Lotteries, chain letters, make money fast, send postcards to sickly children, Jesus Saves, AIDS is God's punishment for gays ... Gene Spafford's 'Sunday afternoon in the park' analogy is still a good one, but the park has turned into an inner city park in Chicago; gangs of maruders making the park miserable for everyone else. And its not that they intend to disrupt or ruin everyone else's day; its generally that they *just don't know any better*. Why, some of them think they are just as entitled to sit here and do their thing as anyone else ... :) Listen kids, some of us are old enough we remember in the late 1960's when Citizens Band Radio was going to be the place where all could express themselves freely and the rest of us would listen respect- fully to the ideas of the others, etc. By sometime in the late 1970's CB radio had gone to hell, and the newest thing was computer bulletin boards. Then came the linking of the boards in networks and of course Usenet. Everything I heard about the glories of CB back in 1970 I heard about Usenet back in 1983-85. 'The people' discovered CB when Johnny Cash popularized it in a song, and that ended CB for all intents and purposes. And now the latest rage is 'how do I get an account on the Internet?' ... everyone wants one. At least once a day I get asked that by someone here in Skokie. System administrators face a major challenge from now through the year 2000 as they try to deal with the flood of new users coming aboard; many of whom -- shall I say in a polite way -- don't give an iota about the standards of the past. You'll see soon enough; the moderated groups will survive and thrive, the unmoderated groups will get more trashy than ever. The traffic will get so heavy that more and more of the unmoderated groups will get dropped by sites which can no longer deal with a full 'news' feed .. that is, if they still refer to it as 'news'. PAT] ------------------------------ From: jay@coyote.rain.org (Jay Hennigan) Subject: Re: Looking For Information on BNC, Inc. Date: 27 Apr 1994 17:00:06 -0700 Organization: Regional Access Information Network (RAIN) In article jrcrum@bb1t.monsanto.com writes: > I'm trying to find some information on a company called Business > Network Communications, Inc. (BNC). They are supposedly a long-distance > wholesaler, reselling AT&T services. A friend of mine is considering > investing in this company, and asked me to post this to see if anyone > may be familiar with them. If anyone has any direct experience with > this company (or one like it), we would appreciate any information. As I recall, this is an aggregator/reseller using a pyramid-style sales system a la Amway. His "investment" is likely going to include convincing his friends (you) to "invest" in it, too. > I also have another question. This company claims that due to some > FCC rulings, AT&T is required to make discount packages like the ones > they give large companies available to resellers. The resellers can > then make money selling AT&T long-distance service to other companies > or individuals. Is this for real? Sort of. Depending on the arrangements with AT&T, they may or may not have the same access to the network as regular AT&T subscribers. With some of these companies there is a "software-defined network", meaning that although the calls use AT&T facilities, if the reseller only "bought" 1000 "lines", and 1001 of its customers attempt to call at the same time, the last guy gets a "circuits busy". Billing may be done by a third party, and credit for wrong numbers and the like will probably not be what you're accustomed to. There are dozens of these small resellers, and to a large extent you get what you pay for. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Speaking of Amway, did you know there is now 'amway.com'? Yep, they're on the net. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 07:16:21 EDT From: Gregory P. Monti Subject: Re: Customer <-> Local Phone Company Contact Point On Wed 27 Apr 1994, Jonathan wrote: > I would like to suggest that after local telephone service competition > is under way, somebody should create a special point of contact > between all customers and all local telephone companies. This entity > would represent customers... > Third, it would handle reports of trouble on calls, localize them to > one company's network, and then refer it to that company... > Fifth, it would set business, ethical and technical standards for > the industry. The Editor wrote: > Wouldn't this be redundant since we already have both the Federal > Communications Commission and a state agency in every state at > present? In addition there are already many consumer organizations... I think Jonathan meant that the FCC, other regulators and consumer groups usually only get involved after the sin of "slamming" has been committed. His fear is that local telephone service, once numbers become portable between local carriers, would be subject to slamming (unauthorized change of a customer's vendor). His proposed agency would be the "slamming prevention agency", not the "slamming complaint handling agency." Also, with many telecom companies, local or not, handling a service, who would coordinate repair calls among providers? If a circuit or a call passes through six companies on its way across the country, which one do you call when repairs are needed? On the other hand, many people's data circuits pass through Rolm (CPE), NYNEX (local svc), then MCI (interexchange svc), then Illinois Bell (local svc), then Northern Telecom (CPE). With the usual finger-pointing, those five companies seem to be able to handle a repair call. I guess he wants to avoid the finger-pointing. That would require a lot of first-hand knowledge of the customer's current problem, which an outside agency would be unlikely to have. Greg Monti Arlington, Virginia, USA gmonti@cap.gwu.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Well the way we used to do it in the past, until 1983 or so, was we called Repair Service and let it go at that. Of course, that wasn't good enough ... :( PAT] ------------------------------ From: blarrib@netcom.com (Bob Larribeau) Subject: Re: Basic ISDN Question Organization: Consultant Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 14:16:39 GMT In article jonesm2@rpi.edu (Mike Jones) writes: > ISDN has recently become available here in this corner of NYNEX-land. > The cost is a $10 surcharge onto normal business rates. We're > interested in using the 64 Kbps data channel to connect to a local > internet provider; I've checked with NYNEX and ISDN is available at > both our and their CO's. My question is, how does this practically > work? I have a moderate understanding of ISDN at a conceptual level, > but no real feel for how you go about hooking things up. Any > information would be appreciated. You need to find an Internet service provider that supports ISDN. They should be able to help you with the implementation. PSI supports ISDN, others are starting to. Bob Larribeau Consultant San Francisco ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 08:11:33 EDT From: "Peter M. Weiss" Subject: Re: Telecommuting Policies and Procedures Organization: Penn State University Don't forget the notebook archives of FLEXWORK stored on the listserv@psuhmc.hmc.psu.edu. Here is the script that I sent to the listserv followed by the INDEX output. Change the INDEX to PRINT to get the actual text: /* --------------------- clip and save ---------------- */ //ListSrch JOB Echo=no Database Search DD=Rules OUTLIM=3000 f=mail //Rules DD * S (pay or salary) and (policy or policies) in flexwork index /* // EOJ /* --------------------- clip and save ---------------- */ > S (pay or salary) and (policy or policies) in flexwork --> Database FLEXWORK, 5 hits. > index Item # Date Time Recs Subject ------ ---- ---- ---- ------- 000057 93/05/26 07:04 447 teleco 000059 93/05/31 13:21 943 NEW SIRI SERVICES 000060 93/06/19 14:08 99 Tele-Community (fwd) 000065 93/10/15 16:15 592 INT'L ACADEMY OF BUSINESS DISCIPLINES CALL FOR PAP+ 000079 93/11/02 08:30 962 (Forwarded) article on telework ------------------- co-owner LDBASE-L, et -L Pete-Weiss@psu.edu "The 'NET' never naps" +1 814 863 1843 31 Shields Bldg. -- Penn State Univ -- University Park, PA 16802-1202 USA ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 08:34:11 -0400 From: Paul S. Sawyer Subject: Re: Help Reading AT&T and NYNEX Toll Tapes Organization: UNH Telecommunications and Network Services In article is written: > We are taking our call accounting software inhouse, buying a package > that allows us to get the SMDR call records into an SQL database. As > such I need to reconcile it with the toll tapes from NYNEX and AT&T. > Does anyone have the format of these 9 track tapes. Are they EBCDIC or > ASCII? Any info is greatly appreciated. They are EBCDIC. Both AT&T and NYNEX (at least ex-NET) have extensive documentation available. Good luck. Paul S. Sawyer - University of New Hampshire CIS - Paul.Sawyer@UNH.Edu Telecommunications and Network Services VOX: +1 603 862 3262 50 College Road FAX: +1 603 862 2030 Durham, New Hampshire 03824-3523 ------------------------------ From: cjl@mitre.org Subject: Re: 16 Mbps Modem for Real? Date: 28 Apr 1994 13:23:36 GMT Organization: The MITRE Corporation In article maillet@DELPHI.COM writes: > Technology (DCT)? It claims it can move 16 Mbps of various kinds of > data down a regular telephone line (yes, that's 16 MEGABITS per > second. ^^^^ > "DCT technology lets telephone wire simultaneously carry four 1.5 Mbps ^^^^ > VCR quality video channels; two broadcast quality 3 Mbps video > channels; two 1.5 Mbps two-way interactive videoconferencing channels; > and ten other channels dedficated to a mix of videophone, fax, and > program selection channels." There's a big potential difference between a telephone line and a telephone wire pair. A telephone line may be multiplexed over various carrier systems that limit the carried bandwidth to approximately 4 KHz. There is no way that one can transmit (lossless) data at 16 Mbps over such a line or channel. On the other hand, the wire pair that normally runs between a subscriber and the central office can support much high bandwidths, depending on its length and condition (for example, proposals exist for putting 155 Mbps on short -- 100 m -- wire pairs within a building). ------------------------------ From: jvz@pt.com (John Zambito) Subject: Re: Questions on Fractional T-1 Service Organization: Performance Technologies, Incorporated Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 11:33:31 GMT In article Barton.Bruce@camb.com writes: > In article , mike_foltz@sgate.com writes: >> Is there a difference in how the fractional T-1 is delivered to a user >> whether it is inter or intra-LATA? As and example if I want a 128Kbps >> fractional T-1 is it a Tail Circuit from the C.O. where my DSU/CSU is >> slaved to a 128Kpbs reference from the C.O. or is it a T-1 from the >> C.O. with 2 DS0 channels being used in a DACS? Or am I totally >> messed up? What is the proper way a fractional T-1 gets delivered to >> a user via inter and intra-LATA? > Actually quite possibly YES there IS a difference, and watch out! > Ignore the clocking or whatever you are worrying about, that is not > the issue. Here in NYNEX land, they do have 2 fractional T1 > offerings. T 1/2 and T 1/3 (not what they call them but what they > are). They give you 12 or 8 DS0s. > They could care less about keeping the individual DS0s in sync! Each > could take a different path through the DACS network and be delayed a > different number of 1/8000 of a second. Makes not a twit of difference > if those are individual voice channels. > If you plan to run FT1 data at Nx56/64, that can kill you, and even if > it works day one, there is NO guarantee that it will continue to do > so. We just purchased a fractional T1 service from Rochester Telephone. It's used to connect the file servers at two buildings which are serviced by two different COs. We were told that we will be getting all 24 DS0s but they only guarentee the first six that we actually bought. Six channels at 64000 bits per second each gives us 384K. The way the istaller kept telling me we would get 24 DS0s made me question exactly what he meant. After making sure that these 6 channels must be provided in the same frame that they left in, he realized that we must need the "Super 8" option of the Newbridge mux which our span passes through. We tested the whole span and it does not maintain sync for all 24 DS0s but it does (and will) maintain sync with the first 6 timeslots. We have an Ethernet router at each end to connect the two Ethernets together. We connect to the CO from this building using a set of HDSL cards which are connected through 16,750 feet with no repeaters with a 6dB of noise margin. We actually only buy the connection from CO to CO. So far it's working like a champ. John Zambito, Performance Technologies Incorporated jvz@pt.com 315 Science Parkway, Rochester, New York 14620 uupsi!ptsys1!jvz ------------------------------ From: daveheld@delphi.com Subject: Re: Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 12:44:59 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) Kris writes: > With the advent of digital telephony, 1.5 megabit and higher lines > running to each house, and even higher bandwidth on the poles, how > much less is the potential for a delayed dialtone situation ... The wider bandwidth available does not reduce the change of blockage (dial tone delay). It may increase it. That is because the bandwidth is not available all the time for everyone simultaneously. Instead, it is "concentrated" at various places in the network. With good traffic engineering, you'll never know that others are using bandwidth when you're not. But in a "crunch" situation, a wideband network like this has a greater number of points where concentration occurs, and any one of these can become overloaded. Let's put it like this. In a direct wired network, there are two wires that go from your phone to the switch. Those wires are yours; no one else can use them. The switch may get too busy to handle your call, but at least you can be sure that your call request got all the way up to the switch. But in a distributed bandwidth network, you don't have a unique wire; you share access to a digital highway with your neighbors. If that highway is full at any given time, your attempt to place a call won't get beyond your own block. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 09:11:17 CST From: weberdd@clover.macc.wisc.edu Reply-To: David Devereaux-Weber Subject: Re: Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone kris%sanctum%paladin@uunet.uu.net asked about the potential to reduce delay of dialtone in events such as storms. Delayed dialtone occurs when more people attempt to dial calls than the switching equipment is designed to handle; it is not a function of the bandwidth from the switch to the customer. During the design of a telephone system, the designer chooses to equip the system for a particular level of simultaneous calling. Designers of new or alternative telephone systems will still need to make such decisions -- balancing system cost against peak handling capacity. David Devereaux-Weber, P.E. weberdd@macc.wisc.edu (Internet) The University of Wisconsin - Madison (608)262-3584 (voice) Division of Information Technology (608)262-4679 (FAX) Network Engineering 1210 W Dayton St. B263 Madison, WI 53706 ------------------------------ From: BACKON@vms.huji.ac.il Subject: Re: Occupied Territories Telecom Date: 28 Apr 94 15:53:04 GMT Organization: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem In article , mnc@css.itd.umich.edu (Miguel Cruz) writes: > Does anyone know who will be providing telecom services in the > occupied territories following an agreement with Israel for > self-governance (or something like it; I don't want to get into the > political questions)? My understanding was that projects were > underway (on paper, anyway) to provide infrastructure independent of > Israel's. > Anyway, if anyone does have such information (preferably an email > address of someone at the organization involved) please send it to me. > I'm roughing it through Asia at the moment so I can't really read news > (but oh, the stories I could tell about trying to place international > calls), so direct email would be appreciated. Thanks. Your's truly :-) I am involved (through the United Nations UNDP) in setting up Internet connectivity in both Jordan and the West Bank through a private satellite link to our teleport in the United States. Josh backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL ------------------------------ From: idddsb@iddss1.iddis.com (Dean Banfield) Subject: Re: How Can FAX Use T1 But Keep POTS Number? Date: 28 Apr 1994 22:31:29 GMT Organization: IDD Information Services In article Barton.Bruce@camb.com writes: > An extremely well publicized FAX number that is on a POTS phone line > now is in an office that has a T1 to an IXC. > If the current phone line were to be fed through the PBX (a Mitel > SX200D running G1005) to always ring that extension, everything would > be ok with one exception. Outgoing LD calls would go on the T1. > Outgoing local calls could easily be routed to the FAX's own line > thereby busying it. > But when a LD call is going out, the FAX phone number would simply > ring and ring which WILL prompt callers to call the main number and > complain about the machine apparently being broken or out of paper. - > NOT acceptable. Working with the local telco is pointless in this case. In the back end of your PBX hook up the old telco line and your T1. On the front end of the PBX configure a POTS extension to support the FAX machine. In PBX programming configure all dial-out to take the proper path, T1 for LD, local line for local calls. For inbound calls, the default station to ring is the POTS extension for the FAX. Sounds like your already this far in the configuration. The trick is how to configure the POTS extension when it is busy. Your PBX (I'm not familiar with the Mitel *at all*) should have a way to create an internal rollover of stations. E.G. call station 1, if it is busy, have call route to station 2 ... depending on the sophistication of your setup when station 1 (FAX machine) is busy you could: a) forward to a voice mail message - "Sorry, the FAX is currently in use" b) forward to a second fax machine c) forward to a 'dead' extension (in our PBX an extension with no handset would produce a busy signal) d) outdial to the local FAX number which is definitionally busy due to the incoming call. Any help? Let me know what you come up with. Dean Banfield IDD/Information Svcs 90 Grove St Ridgefield CT 06877 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 02:48:15 -0700 From: lincmad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) Subject: Re: NANP and Switches Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) In article is written: > We currently have a Northern Telecom Meridian Option 61 (software > relase 17) with 44 DID trunks, a T1 for long distance, and about 1300 > active phones. We have been told by Ameritech that, in order for us > to be able to comply with the implementation of the new North American > Numbering Plan (NANP) on January 1, 1995, we must upgrade our switch > with an additional memory card, another ROM board and software release > 19. My questions are (1) is this really necessary and (2) can we wait > until the middle of 1995 before doing this and still provide access > via NANP? Any help out there would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. I don't know about the hardware/software requirements for your specific switch, but whatever changes your switch requires to work with the "new-style" area codes *CANNOT* wait until mid-1995. They *MUST* be up and running and fully functional absolutely no later than 1/15/95, when the first two "new" area codes go into service. Otherwise, Murphy's Law guarantees that someone will try to call Alabama. Linc Madison * Oakland, California * LincMad@Netcom.com ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #190 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa23235; 2 May 94 16:59 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA26680; Mon, 2 May 94 12:26:25 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA26668; Mon, 2 May 94 12:26:23 CDT Date: Mon, 2 May 94 12:26:23 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405021726.AA26668@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #191 TELECOM Digest Mon, 2 May 94 12:26:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 191 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Toll-Free Prank Calls (Keith Laaks) Inteljak Wireless Phone Jak System (Lindy Williams) OSP Employment Opportunity (busnetcom@aol.com) 5ESS Setup For Multipoint ISDN (Allan D. Griefer) San Carlos Joins Internet (Brian Moura) Perhaps Finally a Good Cordless Phone? (Danny Burstein) PageMart Changes Services, No Notice (Doug Reuben) NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! (Fred Heald) IPX Network Through T1 (Azeus Systems Ltd.) Call Costing Database (Omnitrend) Hybrids, Electronic or Transformers (Scott Barnes) Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Telephone Line (Dirk Menzel) Fight A*vertising! Petition! (Michael P. O'Leary) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: itbkl@puknet.puk.ac.za (Keith Laaks) Subject: Toll-Free Prank Calls Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 06:22:39 GMT Organization: ITB Department, University of Potchefstroom Can anybody tell me how the problem of prank calls to toll-free numbers can be cured? Often, immediately after a toll-free client advertises it's service on the radio/television or in the press, it receives hundreds of prank calls, for which it pays the toll-free service provider. This bill can run up to thousands of Rands/Dollars. With some of the prank callers calling from old electromechanical exchanges, who do not provide caller identification, CLI/ANI is not always usefull. How is this problem solved in your country? Is it a problem, or does this thing only happen here in South Africa? One possible way of overcoming this problem is if the Telco gives the Toll- Free client a refund for all calls shorter than five seconds, or if it only starts the billing after the first five seconds. Any comment or suggestions? (Please Email me direct also, as i cannot get into news on a regular basis) Potch Univ. Email : Tel: Potchefstroom itbkl@puknet.puk.ac.za Voice (0148) 992126 West Transvaal FAX (0148) 992799 South Africa [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It happens here in the USA also. The extent of the 'prank', and when it turns from a prank into harassment or downright viciousness depends on who operates the 800 number and who is doing the calling. A very notorious case here a few years ago involved the toll free lines of Jerry Falwell, a well known televangelist and leader in what is sometimes termed the 'Christan Right' (where American politics is concerned.) Falwell has about 20-25 incoming toll-free lines in a rotary hunt group. They terminate in a phone room in Lynchburg, Virginia along with all the centrex lines for the university and church he operates there. Several operators staff the phone room around the clock; according to the report from Southern Bell at the time, he gets a couple thousand toll free calls daily from people who wish to communicate with him or recieve his liter- ature, etc. The operators work at positions connected to an automatic call distributor; they get a 'click' in their headset indicating a call is on the line and the call could be via the 800 lines or via the regular incoming lines to the centrex or whatever. Some fellow around Atlanta somewhere had a real grudge against Falwell and decided to make trouble for him. He programmed a modem to dial the 800 number once a minute forever ... and to sit on the line silently for several seconds until it timed out. That went on for *several weeks*. Because of the volume of calls received in the phone room, it was almost impossible to trace, and for at least a week or so after the calls first started, there was no communication between the operators and their sup- ervisors to establish any kind of pattern. Everyone got a few calls each day, and no one thought much of it. The calls would arrive somewhere in the hunt group; the same operator rarely got two in a row. Finally the staff realized *something* was going on and their first assumption was that the ACD was malfunctioning; that it was 'tossing' non-existent calls to the various operator positions, or maybe the carrier AT&T was handing them non-existent calls, or maybe the calls did exist but for some reason the ACD was not supervising correctly and AT&T was then not opening the talk path, or whatever ... A couple technicians from Southern Bell tore their hair out working on that ACD for a day. The volume of incoming traffic was so high that it was almost impossible to check some of the trunks since as soon as one call dropped off instantly there was another seizure. They finally were able to prove the ACD was not at fault and started watching the incoming 800 lines with a counterpart at AT&T. Meanwhile the calls kept coming in to the phone room from this guy's modem and Falwell's phone operators kept dealing with them. Then one day the phone bill arrived. Normally the 800 number cost Falwell about fifty thousand dollars per month and this time the bill was for much more than that. The ANI had lots and lots of one minute calls, costing about 10-13 cents each for one minute all originating at the same number in Atlanta. Most calls tended to last four or five minutes or longer since the callers wanted counseling or wanted to order literature sent to them, etc. Armed with the printout as a clue, AT&T zeroed in on that phone number and looked at it closely. Sure enough ... once a minute, now about two months after the 'prank' began the calls were still coming in. Security representatives from AT&T and Southern Bell were at the dude's door the next day with a warrant and local police officers for backup. Naturally everything in sight relating to telecom or computers was seized -- the usual routine in cases which involve phreaking. Over the three billing cycles during which this had been going on it cost Falwell several thousand dollars which Southern Bell wrote off for goodwill, charging it to AT&T. AT&T filed criminal charges against the phreak and asked for restitution. Depending on the amount of money involved, there is not a lot that can be done before the cost of detection/prevention exceeds the cost of the abuse. The larger the incoming phone room and volume of calls, the less likely it is that detection will be accomplished. About all you can do is check the phone bill closely looking for very short calls from the same phone number(s) in a repeating pattern, etc. If/when it becomes outrageous, as in Falwell's case, then you nail one or two of the worst offenders and let it go at that. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Lindy Williams Subject: Inteljak Wireless Phone Jak System Date: Sun, 1 May 1994 17:21:05 GMT Saw an ad for this system. Says phone extensions can be located anywhere there is an existing electical outlet. Is this safe? Is it UL approved. Pluses are obvious, what are minuses? ------------------------------ From: busnetcom@aol.com Date: Sun, 01 May 94 17:23:13 EDT Subject: OSP Employment Opportunity Business Network Communications, Inc., a leading reseller of long distance services -- and provider of an extensive menu of telecommunications products and services, seeks an experienced individual for continued development of our Operator Services division. We are currently well positioned in this industry and now seek a qualified individual with experience in institutional accounts. The candidate should have experience in contract negotiation. Salary plus commission commensurate with experience. Mail, fax, or eMail resume to Business Network Communications, Inc. - ATTN: Mr. Glaspie BNC, Inc. 2770 Ridgway Ct. Walled Lake, MI 48390 Fax (810) 669-9068 eMail Address: BusNetCom@aol.com ------------------------------ From: adg@netcom.com (Allan D. Griefer) Subject: 5ESS Setup For Multipoint ISDN Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 00:54:49 GMT I'm trying to have Pac Bell set up my ISDN line for two devices and they seem to be having trouble getting it correct. Does anyone out there have some knowledge of the switch setup? Here's the data: Switch: 5ESS Software: 5E8 Terminal 1: Combinet 400 Type: E BCHAN: 2 Ckt Data SPID: Supported Terminal 2: IBM Waverunner Card Type: A BCHAN: Alt Voice/Ckt Data SPID: Supported Any help greatly appreciated. Al Griefer, KC6ZTW adg@netcom.com EMT-1A, AHA CPR Instructor San Jose, CA ------------------------------ Date: 01 May 94 21:08:12 EDT From: Brian Moura <76702.1337@CompuServe.COM> Subject: San Carlos Joins Internet CITY OF SAN CARLOS 666 Elm Street San Carlos, CA 94070 ###### For More Information, Call: Brian Moura, Assistant City Mgr. For Release 9:00 A.M. (415) 802-4210 May 2, 1994 SAN CARLOS JOINS THE INTERNET San Carlos On Line Project Expands SAN CARLOS, CA -- May 2, 1994 -- The City of San Carlos announced today that citizens can now communicate with City officials and City departments using the Internet. Anyone who has access to the Internet (or commercial services with Internet gateways such as America On Line and CompuServe) can reach City Hall by addressing their message to scarlos@crl.com. Use of the Internet is part of the San Carlos On Line project that began in 1993. During 1993, the City of San Carlos distributed information on economic development, telecommunications and public safety through the America On Line and CompuServe commercial on-line services. Acknowledging the popularity of the Internet as a key part of the future "Information Superhighway," San Carlos is now bringing City information and services to the Internet. The first phase of the San Carlos Internet presence will involve a mail box for messages to the City. Later in the year, the project will expand to include files on a Gopher server and City information on a World Wide Web (WWW) hypertext server accessible with the popular new Mosaic and Cello browsers. The project will then move on to bring Internet connectivity to the San Carlos School District. The schools see the Internet as an educational tool and a key part of the City/School joint technology sharing program known as "Technology Goes to School." San Carlos Mayor Tom Davids stated: "I am pleased to announce the availability of Internet messaging to the citizens of San Carlos. The establishment of an Internet mailbox to the City demonstrates our continuing commitment to finding new ways of serving businesses, citizens and students in San Carlos." City Manager Mike Garvey noted that "San Carlos has been working on innovative ways to disseminate City information during the last year. Over 100 people have downloaded our user-friendly guide to opening a business in San Carlos called "Doing Business in San Carlos" from the GO WUGNET, GO WINAPD and GO CALFORUM forums on CompuServe. I am hopeful that our work on the Internet is as successful in helping people discover what the City of San Carlos has to offer." ------------------------------ From: dannyb@panix.com (danny burstein) Subject: Perhaps Finally a Good Cordless Phone? Date: 1 May 1994 13:04:03 -0400 Has anybody heard anything -definitive- about this AT&T real-soon-now cordless unit? Thanks, danny From misc.consumers Sun May 1 13:01:13 1994 From: os2user@sneakers.gate.net Subject: Re: 900MHz cordless phones Date: 1 May 1994 15:44:03 GMT I am looking at a spread spectrum phone by AT&T. It is not yet on the market. AT&T keeps telling me "any day." The phone is suppose to go about two miles. Additionally, (and this is why it is late - they want to get all the accessories FCC so everything comes out at the same time), it supports repeaters!, encryption, etc. Later. --------------------- dannyb@panix.com (or dburstein@mcimail.com) ------------------------------ From: dreuben@netcom.com (Cid Technologies) Subject: PageMart Changes Services, No Notice Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 02:36:55 PDT Since Monday, I noticed that PageMart -- a local and nationwide paging company -- has REDUCED the number of digits per page to only 15. They used to take at least 22, perhaps even more (24 Max). I spoke with Mike Mahler at PageMart about this, and after a few days of checking, he got back to me just now and stated that this was indeed policy because having more than 15 digits slowed down the effectiveness (speed?) of nationwide paging. He said this change was permanent, and that it was for the benefit of "over 200,000 of their customers". What this does for me is make my pager basically useless: If someone wants to beep in their number and extension, or some special code, the last digits will be truncated and not come through above and beyond 15 digits! Thus, if someone beeped you with: 18005551212*12345 (ie, a "*" as a space to show 'the following is an extension number') will not come out fully, and all you will get is "18005551212 123"! Note that even without the "*", you will STILL not get a five-digit extension number (and these are common) if the caller(s) place a "1" before the telephone number, which many do. I mentioned this to Mike Mahler at PageMart when I initially spoke with him, and his response was "Yeah, that sounds like it could be a big problem to me". He even tried beeping me with his 800 number and extension, and it just fit in. If he had one more digit in his extension, or wanted to use a code like "911" after the extension number to show urgency he would not have been successful, the paging system would merely cut him off and not let him enter extra digits. (He could of course page me twice, but this would run up my quota of 200 nationwide pages per month twice as fast, which *conveniently* nets them more money in "overpage" charges, which at 25 cents each can amount to a bit of cash at the end of the month! :( ) Basically, if you have a long-term contract with them (any amount of time, ie, not month-to-month), and you do not like this policy, you should be able to break your contract, as this may be a substantial modification of past performance which can vitally affect the use and functionality of your pager service with PageMart. I intend to bring this to the attention of PageMart management, and they are supposed to call me back presently. I would suggest that any other PageMart customers who are affected or who think they will be affected by this new policy should call PageMart at: (800) 864-4357 and ask to be IMMEDIATELY connected to a manager or to have someone at the corporate level call you back. (Forget customer service -- they will usually tell you it is something wrong with your pager! :( ) Also, don't let them pull the routine where they say "Well, in the back of your contract with us in tiny little print it says we can change the terms of the contract at will and there is nothing you can do about it". Regardless of whether they wish to claim this or not, if they make a substantial change from their past performance like this change, and/or one which you relied upon prior to signing your contract with them, they can not simply change it and claim that you have no recourse. I don't know how many people use PageMart, or how many actually care if they can get more than 15 digits (ie, one full screen plus three digits on the next screen of a standard Motorola pager), but if you are affected or anticipate being affected by this, I urge you to call now to complain before this policy becomes institutionalized. It seems all so silly me to that they think they are going to speed up paging so much by going from 24 digits to 15; how many people do a full 24 and how much time would 9 digits less really save? Doug Reuben CID Technologies (203) 499-5221 ------------------------------ From: justfred@netcom.com (Fred Heald) Subject: NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 08:01:06 GMT To my surprise this morning I found that a feature I've been asking for forever finally works! My phone is in 818 (but I'm travelling all over LA, 213, 909, 310, 714, 805, 619, and all. Not 524 yet, but soon I'm sure. So I tend to always dial the entire number (1-NPA-NXX-XXXX) first, and get the ridiculous message "We are sorry, it is not necesary to dial one and the area code for this call". Well, this morning (in fact, calling Netcom) I accidentally dialed the 1-818, and the call went through! Since I'm in PacBel land, I'm hoping they've implemented this all over the area. FINALLY! and yet with no fanfare or even notice -- I guess they'd be admitting a mistake. Fred Heald justfred@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: azeusgps@hk.net (Azeus Systems Ltd.) Subject: IPX Network Through T1 Date: 02 May 94 07:18:58 GMT Organization: Hong Kong Internet & Gateway Services, Wanchai, Hong Kong Our company has connected two Novell file servers through the T1 line. Although we have set the CSU/DSU and the HP router to their limit, the performance of the network is very poor. We have tested the speed of the network by the Norton 'SI'(sysinfo) and we found that the transfer rate of the network is about 10KB/s. Normally, if you test a workstation which is in the LAN, the through will be about 400KB/s or even 600KB/s. We don't think that there is the problem of the telecom company. We think that the configuration of the CSU/DSU and the HP router may not be correct. Also, we have thought that there may be the limitation of the IPX WAN, i.e. Novell is not suitable for WAN. Does somebody knows about the performance of the IPX network in the WAN environment. Here is the configuration of the our IPX WAN. CSU/DSU - DCP3552 from Cray Communication HP Router SR and PR Novell 3.12 If you know the answer or you want to know more about our configuration, please send us email. ------------------------------ Date: 02 May 94 08:00:59 EDT From: Omnitrend <72662.455@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Call Costing Database I hope someone there can help me. I understand there are companies that have updated databases of "call costs". These are costs for long distance calls made on the major carrier's (ATT, MCI, SPRINT) lines for all the different kinds of services. I am writing a call accounting system and need the information in order to compute the cost of each call. I know there are several companies that provide subscription services for this info, but I have no idea who they are. Can you help me? ------------------------------ From: csa@bones.et.byu.edu (CSA) Subject: Hybrids, Electronic or Transformers Date: 02 May 94 07:28:17 Organization: Brigham Young University, Provo UT USA I am looking for a source for good hybrids, electronic and/or transformers. I haven't had much luck with the transformers. I need to be able to record and play back to/from a codec at the same time. Does anyone suggestions or sources where I might look? Scott Barnes ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 04:03:59 PDT From: Dirk Menzel Subject: Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Telephone Line Please help me if you can. My home is wired for two residential telephone lines. Because of my proximity to an am radio transmitter (am 1550khz), many of my audio and telephone devices suffer from "radio noise", from that one station only though. Some days it is worse than others, some days there is no interference at all. I have had all of the affected telephone devices modified by their respective manufacturers ... the problem persist on a recently puchased Panasonic KXT3175, two-line, Easa-Phone. The local telco has installed several blue capacitors(?) at the demark box on my house. I have tried to eliminate the Panasonic telephone as the culprit by putting it in a metal breadbox (really!!!), with no success. I believe that the noise is entering the line via a TP four-conductor cable strung along the outside of my home. At this point I am open to suggestions. Might I be able to install a filter (to filter out mainly 1550khz) right at the telephone? (I use one of my lines for voice and modem.) A commercially available inline filter (#Z100B1), besides being a single line device, did not have any effect. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am fairly technically and mechanically competent and could handle minor electrical modifications with limited instructions. Please respond via e-mail to ld18@clark.edu. Thank you! Dirk Menzel ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 22:07:08 EDT From: Michael P. O'Leary Subject: Fight A*vertising! Petition! Organization: Penn State University Read with great interest the article quoted below, it IS the future of teh internet. BUT, it shouldn't be. People like this have no right ot waste bandwidth on a valuable resource like the internet. We must stop happenings like this with legislation so that the 'information highway' (or whatever you want to call it) doesn't become expensive and riddled with a*vertisi*g. (And oh yeah, I use the wild card so people with the wor a* in their kill file still get this message. I am taking upon myself the burden of collecting a petition from this group (and eventually other groups as well) stating our opposition to this practice and our support for legislation to stop it. We must act fast though, because the bills that will govern the future are quickly advancing through Congressional committees. Here is what to do: Send a note eo me at mpo107@psuvm.psu.edu with the following subject: SUBJECT: I SUPPORT Then put this comment in the body of your letter: I support legislation against advertising on the internet. Also include any other comments you wish to make. I will compile this hopefully lenghty list of responses, print out several copies, and distribute them to: 1: the Congressmen working on these bills (Markey, Fields, etc...) 2: Political lobbying groups such as The Policy Roundtable, EFF, TAP, etc... Please, read this, respond, and pass it on to anyone or anywhere you wish; we need to start the fight now! > Remember the bozo who cross-posted a message about an upcoming lottery > for green cards to every single newgroup on the net? According to a > Clarinet Newsbytes article, he recieved over 35,000 responses, most of > which were flames and mail bombs comprising over 73GB(!) of data. As > you can imagine, his service provider, Internet Direct, was more than > a little peeved, as this caused over a dozen system crashes and > brought their machine to it's knees; they ended up revoking his > account, citing storage costs. This bozo then has the balls to show > up at Internet Direct's office with four lawyers threatening to sue > for $250,000, claiming that not being able to get to their e-mail > would cost them at least that much. The thing that kills me is the > bozo's attitude about the entire situation. His name is Laurence > Canter. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #191 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa23878; 2 May 94 17:55 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA28397; Mon, 2 May 94 13:33:27 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA28386; Mon, 2 May 94 13:33:24 CDT Date: Mon, 2 May 94 13:33:24 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405021833.AA28386@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #192 TELECOM Digest Mon, 2 May 94 13:33:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 192 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Clipper Petition Delivered to White House (CPSR National Office) New Electronic Privacy Group Formed (Dave Banisar) Intellectual Property and Telecom Conference (Barry Greene) Protocol For Alpha-Numeric Pagers (Gary Morris) AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead (John C. Fowler) Bell Atlantic Gets Maryland Competition (Gregory P. Monti) Information Wanted on GSM (Tullamore Andre Pettigrew) What's a Ballpark Cost For a T1 Line? (Bruce O'Neel) What is Infopath? (Gayton Osgood) Frame Relay Questions (Glen Bojsza) Hayes Optima 288 Problems With PMaster IIe (soniq@terrorcorp.phantom.com) Information Wanted: Telecommunications in IVHS (Kilian Scholz) Motorola "Advisor" pager Information (Pat Barron) Telecommunications Management Standard (3010) Wanted (Bedryfsingenierswese) MCI as a Long Distance Carrier For Data and Voice (Javier Henderson) Wanted: Information on Computer Telephone Interface (Xiaoyi Eve Zhang) Bulk Call Display (Tony Harminc) Info SuperHighway Seminar (Roy Kerwood) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 07:12:07 +0000 From: CPSR National Office Subject: Clipper Petition Delivered to White House CPSR PRESS RELEASE Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility P.O. Box 717 Palo Alto, CA 94301 415-322-3778 (voice) 415-322-4748 (fax) cpsr@cpsr.org "CLIPPER" PETITION DELIVERED TO WHITE HOUSE COMPUTER USERS CALL ON ADMINISTRATION TO DROP ENCODING PLAN NEW PRIVACY CENTER ESTABLISHED Washington, DC -- A national public interest organization today delivered to the White House a petition asking for withdrawal of the controversial Clipper cryptography proposal. The Clipper plan would provide government agents with copies of the keys used to encoded electronic messages. The petition was signed by more than 47,000 users of the nation's data highway. The petition drive occurred entirely across the Internet. It is the largest electronic petition to date. Earlier this year, the White House announced support for the Clipper proposal. But the plan has received almost unanimous criticism from the public. A Time/CNN found that 80% of the American public opposed Clipper. Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility began the petition drive in January. In the letter addressed to the President, the organization said that if Clipper goes forward, "privacy protection will be diminished, innovation will be slowed, government accountability will be lessened, and the openness necessary to ensure the successful development of the nation's communications infrastructure will be threatened." The petition asks for the withdrawal of Clipper. It is signed by many of the nation's leading cryptographers including Whitfield Diffie, Martin Hellman, and Ronald Rivest. Users from nearly 3,000 different sites across the Internet are represented. Responses came from more than 1300 companies including Microsoft, IBM, Apple, DEC, GE, Cray, Tandem, Sun, SGI, Mead Data Central, AT&T, and Stratus. Signatures also came from more than 850 colleges and universities and 150 non-profit organizations. Many responses came from public networks such as America Online and Compuserve. Nearly a thousand came from government and military sites including NASA, the Army and the Navy. Next week hearings will be held in Congress on the controversial cryptography proposal, an initiative developed by the FBI and the National Security Agency. Most of the witnesses are expected to testify against the plan. In a related development, the establishment of the Electronic Privacy Information Center was announced today. EPIC is jointly sponsored by CPSR and the Fund for Constitutional Government. It will focus on emerging privacy issues surrounding the information data highway. [see accompanying release]. CPSR is national membership organization, based in Palo Alto, California. For more information about CPSR, contact CPSR, P.O. Box 717, Palo Alto, CA 94302. 415 322 3778 (tel) 415 322 4748 (fax) cpsr@cpsr.org (email). ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 10:02:33 +0000 From: Dave Banisar Subject: New Electronic Privacy Group Formed EPIC Press Release Electronic Privacy Information Center 666 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 301 Washington, DC 20003 (202) 544-9240 (tel) (202) 547-5482 (fax) epic@cpsr.org (email) NEW PRIVACY CENTER ESTABLISHED EPIC TO MONITOR DATA HIGHWAY WASHINGTON, DC -- A new organization was launched today to address growing public concerns about privacy protection for the national information infrastructure. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) will focus on emerging threats to personal privacy. Among the threats are the government's controversial Clipper computer encryption proposal, which has caused widespread protests from companies and computer users around the world. Proposals for an information superhighway and recent plans to reform the nation's health care system also involve significant threats to personal privacy. "We have established EPIC to focus public attention on these new privacy issues -- the Clipper Chip, the Digital Telephony Proposal, medical record privacy, and the sale of consumer data." said Marc Rotenberg, director of EPIC. A 1993 poll by the Lou Harris organization found 80 percent of Americans concerned about threats to their privacy. More than two thirds believe they have lost all control over personal information. Still, 70 percent believe that privacy is a fundamental right comparable to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," and a clear majority of Americans favor establishment of a privacy agency within the government. EPIC brings together an unprecedented group of experts from computer science, information law, civil liberties, human rights, public interest advocacy, library and research communities, as well as privacy experts and scholars. Among the members of the EPIC Advisory Board is former Congressman and Presidential candidate John B. Anderson. Mr. Anderson said today at a Capitol Hill press conference he was very pleased by the establishment of the new organization. "Privacy is one of the bedrock American values. EPIC will help ensure that privacy is protected in the information age," said Mr. Anderson. Simon Davies, the Director General of Privacy International, welcomed the launch of EPIC. Speaking from London, England today he said, "EPIC is an exciting initiative on the leading edge of privacy protection. My hope is that EPIC will be the forerunner of many such organizations around the world." EPIC is a joint project of the Fund for Constitutional Government and Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility. FCG is a non-profit charitable organization established in 1974 to protect civil liberties and constitutional rights. CPSR is a national membership organization established in 1982 by professionals in the computing field concerned about the social impact of computer technology. For more information contact EPIC, 666 Pennsylvania Ave., SE Suite 301, Washington, DC 20003. 202 544 9240 (tel), 202 547 5482 (fax) epic@cpsr.org (email). Current materials include a program description and list of Frequently Asked Questions about EPIC. Marc Rotenberg, EPIC Director David L. Sobel, Legal Counsel Dave Banisar, Policy Analyst ------------------------------ From: Barry and Laina Raveendran Greene Subject: Intellectual Property and Telecom Conference Date: Mon, 02 May 94 10:45:22 -0500 Organization: Baha'i Computer and Communications Association The Global Telecommunications Society & The Foreign Lawyers Forum, Inc Invite You To A Panel Discussion On: "International Law & Telecom: Issues of Intellectual Property Rights" Wednesday, May 11'94, at 6.30 pm, at The International Law Institute, 1615 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington D.C. (Near Dupont Circle Metro) Moderator: Emery Simon Executive Director, Alliance to Promote Software Innovation Panelists: Peter Farkas Partner, Graham & James, and Chair of Intellectual Property Committee, American Bar Association Edward Kazenske Executive Assistant to the Commissioner and Director of Interdisciplinary Programs, Patent and Trademark Office Ronald Palenski Senior Vice President & General Counsel, Information Technology Association of America Members of the Global telecommunications Society or the Foreign Lawyers Forum, Inc get in for free. Non-members pay $10 at the door. A wine and cheese reception will follow the discussion. Please RSVP by 5.00 p.m. Tuesday, May 10th, 1994. Call 202-833-3322 and leave a message on the voice mail. If interested in becoming a member of either group, please leave a message at the same number. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 2 May 94 09:55:34 PDT From: garym@alsys.com (Gary Morris @ignite) Subject: Protocol for Alpha-numeric Pagers I would like to write some software for a specialized computer system to send pages to alpha-numeric pagers. Is there a standard protocol that these services use to accept messages via a modem? I haven't selected a pager provider yet, so if some use proprietary protocols I would be interested in know which ones to avoid. I've talked to several providers and they have said we can do paging from a PC and they have a software package for PC's, but I have a special need that requires custom software (and it's running on Sun/Unix). I checked the Telecom archives but didn't find much about paging there. Gary Morris Internet: garym@alsys.com (garym@cts.com) SDSD/EPD/RACES Packet: KK6YB @ N0ARY.#NOCAL.CA.USA.NA San Diego, CA, USA Phone: +1 619-457-2700 x128 (voice/fax) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In the Telecom Archives you might want to check out 'ixo*' files for some information. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 2 May 94 09:47:25 -0600 From: John C. Fowler Subject: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead (Newcomers: The Public Phone 2000 was a venture attempted by AT&T a few years ago. Essentially, computer terminals were placed at many international airports in the U.S. With a calling card, you could place calls anywhere there was a modem, without having to worry about bringing your own laptop and somehow connecting it to a pay phone. Unfortunately, it turned out the phone terminals were not tariffed, so AT&T had to disable the terminal feature pending approval.) I had the chance to spend a couple of hours at the St. Louis International Airport this weekend, and I saw a couple of AT&T Public Phone 2000 booths, so I decided to check them out. Alas, what I found were plain old pay phones. I suppose this means that AT&T has decided to give up. John C. Fowler, fowlerc@boulder.colorado.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: That's a shame, because the 2000's were a very useful service. Too bad it did not work out. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 11:05:52 EDT From: Gregory P. Monti Subject: Bell Atlantic Gets Maryland Competition According to the 4/29 {Communications Daily}, Metropolitan Fiber Systems (MFS) has just won the right in Maryland to compete on a substantially equal footing with Bell Atlantic-Maryland. MFS will become a "co-carrier", which means it will have blocks of telephone numbers (possibly whole prefixes) assigned to it and will originate and terminate calls to and from toll carriers and to and from Bell Atlantic-MD. Presumably, the access charge that a toll carrier normally pays per minute to the local phone company that terminates each call will now be paid to MFS if the call is completed to one of MFS's numbers. MFS will serve mainly business and government, no residential competition was announced yet. MFS won similar rights in NY state about two weeks ago. The Maryland decision by the PSC takes NY a step further. In NY, customers will be required to change their phone numbers to jump to MFS service. In Maryland, customers may keep their old phone number. PSC ordered BA to make numbers portable among local carriers. PSC also ordered BA to interconnect with MFS using "collocation" or "virtual collocation." Greg Monti Arlington, Virginia, USA gmonti@cap.gwu.edu ------------------------------ From: tap@mundil.cs.mu.OZ.AU (Tullamore Andre PETTIGREW) Subject: Information Wanted on GSM Organization: Computer Science, University of Melbourne, Australia Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 14:01:48 GMT I am looking for information on the GSM digital phone system used in Australia for an essay I am writing. Of particular interest are comments/articles etc about privacy, security and the standard in general. Thanks for your help, Tully Pettigrew ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 2 May 94 13:38 EDT From: oneel@athena.gsfc.nasa.gov (Bruce O'Neel) Subject: What's a Ballpark Cost For a T1 Line? Hi, I was wondering what the ballpark cost for a T1 line is? I figure it will depend greatly on a number of factors, so I'm thinking about Maryland around Washingtion DC, with maybe 20 miles for a length. These figures are to give us a direction on a project. Thanks for any information!! bruce ------------------------------ From: gayton@world.std.com (Gayton Osgood) Subject: What is Infopath? Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 08:08:54 GMT My local library has put their card catalog on line but in order to access it they say you must have a NYNEX Infopath account and to contact the phone company to open one. I don't know wnhat an Infopath account is or how much it costs. I am reluctant to pay NYNEX ant more than I already do. If anyone has one of these accounts could you tell me a little about it. Gayton Osgood gayton@world.std.com ------------------------------ From: Glen_Bojsza@mindlink.bc.ca (Glen Bojsza) Subject: Frame Relay Questions Date: 02 May 94 19:44:09 GMT Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada Frame relay is already a "HOT" topic ... so where can someone find some good design reference material. Notably there are standards but many vendors routers don't work with them ... ie. for congestion control if a BECN is sent out most boxes ignore this and lead to timeouts and retrans. Another area I would like some information on is what kind of parameters are being set when using Frame relay ... if a router does support BECN and its CIR is set to zero does that not mean it will drop to that rate on the first BECN it receives? I would appreciate hearing from anybody that has worked with and or has some refernce material I could read. I realize traffic analysis is required but there must be some guidelines based on protocol used and application. Please contact me at: GLEN_BOJSZA@MINDLINK.BC.CA ------------------------------ From: soniq@terrorcorp.phantom.com Subject: Hayes Optima 288 Problems With Liv. PMaster IIe Date: Mon, 02 May 94 03:45:58 PDT Organization: Columbia University Center for Telecommunications Research Has anyone got any experience with Hayes Optima 288 and Livingston Portmaster IIe terminal servers? I am at the end of my rope trying to configure these beasts. The problem? After a fresh init or a power reset, the modems work fine, but after dropping a session -- although AA remains lit the modem WILL NOT answer any calls. This is true for all 30 Hayes modems installed on this server. I've got a sneaking suspicion it's got something to do with the combination of &D3 and &Q5 that the Hayes tech told me I must use. TIA soniq ------------------------------ From: kscholz@mednet.med.miami.edu (Kilian Scholz) Subject: Information Wanted: Telecommunications in IVHS Date: 02 May 1994 20:43:24 GMT Organization: University of Miami Can someone point me to any info published on telecommunications related to intelligent vehicle highway systems on the net. Please mail info to: shooby@ece.miami.edu Thanks. ------------------------------ From: Pat_Barron@transarc.com Subject: Motorola "Advisor" Pager Information Wanted Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 17:34:34 -0400 Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Does anyone have technical info on the Motorola "Advisor" alphanumeric pager? Specifically, any sort of configuration or status report modes, and/or what one can do with the serial port that seems to be on the bottom of the unit. Any info would be most welcome. Thanks, Pat ------------------------------ From: pan@itu2.sun.ac.za (Abrie Nel Bedryfsingenierswese) Subject: Telecommunications Management Standard (3010) Wanted Date: 02 May 1994 14:41:24 GMT Organization: University of Stellenbosch I am currently doing a project in a South African cellular telephone company. My brief is that I should create management procedures utilizing the Telecommunications Network Management Standard (TMN 3010). If anyone: 1) Knows where to find telecommunications standards, 2) Knows where to find this specific standard, I would be most grateful if they could help me! Abrie Nel Coopers & Lybrand Management Advisory Services South Africa Cape Town e-mail: pan@itu1.sun.ac.za ------------------------------ From: henderson@mln.com Subject: MCI as a long distance carrier for data and voice? Date: 02 May 94 10:38:18 PST Organization: Medical Laboratory Network; Ventura, CA Hello, We're currently using Cable & Wireless for long distance for data, and AT&T for voice. We've been approached by just about every long distance vendor and a number of telemarketers trying to get us to switch over. Even though we're getting good rates from AT&T, the contract we have with them was negotiated long time ago when we were owned by another company. That's no longer the case, and we fear that the new contract with AT&T will have the rates hiked (the total volume is not near what it used to be). So far MCI seems to have the better deal, and they would handle both data and voice. I'd like to get in touch with current (or past) MCI customers to hear their good and bad stories about service. Thanks ever so much. Javier Henderson henderson@mln.com ------------------------------ From: Xiaoyi Eve Zhang Subject: Wanted: info on Computer Telephone Interface Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 21:39:20 -0400 Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Hi there; I am new, and seeking help here. It's not exactly CPI, hopefully I can make you understand my question. Basically two sides. 1) When I want to place a phone call I want to dial the number from my computer, then let my phone set pick the response up, then my computer will be freed; 2) When a phone comes in, I want my computer be able to recognize the number (assume we have ANI service), and my phone set pick it up. If anybody there knows how to do it or where to go for the information, your help will be GREATLY appreciated. Reply back to xzhang@henry.ece.cmu.edu, or xz22@andrew.cmu.edu, or if you live in Pittsburgh area, you are more than welcome to call me at (412) 422-3822. Thank you all for your help. Eve [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: More and more people are asking how to use Caller-ID or ANI (in the case of 800 service) to accomplish certain tasks on their computer in the process of handling incoming phone calls. What you need is a modem with Caller-ID functions built in; there will surely be software and/or documentation with it showing how to use it. Another solution is a Caller-ID display box with a serial port. These are also quite common. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 94 10:16:45 EDT From: Tony Harminc Subject: Bulk Call Display There is an alternative long distance provider here (Toronto) that a friend subscribes to. I don't remember their name, but they have a local access number 416 860-1900. I notice that when I dial it from my friend's phone, they return a dial tone almost immediately. If I block Call Display using *67, they return a normal busy signal almost immediately. (By 'almost immediately' I mean well under one second.) So what interface are they using to receive the Call Display data ? It must be some sort of bulk interface, since they are certainly not letting it ring once and waiting for the data to come down the wire between the first and second rings. I wasn't aware that any such interface was tariffed or standardized. Tony Harminc [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Is it possible that the number you dial is being 'handled like' an 800 number, i.e. the way '950' is handled here in the USA? On our 950 numbers, the recipient gets the calling number instantly, as part of the connection the same as with delivery of the ID on 800 calls. If that is the case with your example there, then the blocking could be done almost instantly. It may also be that some form of 'block-blocking' -- or whatever you want to call it -- is in effect there such as we have in a few places in the USA where the subscriber can dial a code saying they will not accept calls with blocked ID. Here, the telco then returns a voice announcement to that effect, but perhaps in your exchange telco returns a busy signal instead. 'Block-blocking' is not too common here yet. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Roy_Kerwood@mindlink.bc.ca (Roy Kerwood) Subject: Info SuperHighway Seminar Date: 02 May 94 17:30:26 GMT Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada I have organized the following seminar for June 24 from 8AM - 8PM: THE TRAVELLERS GUIDE TO THE INFO SUPERHIGHWAY All the information you need to KNOW about the INFO SUPERHIGHWAY!! Keynote Address Respected professionals involved with the Info Superhighway will provide detailed info on the superhighway and a personalized ROAD MAP for you so you or your company can get onto the SUPERHIGHWAY and get there at the highest speed. Hands on displays of the latest Communications Software Video Tele-Conference information. On line Databases WORLDWIDE Internet Connections, World Wide Information access. You will be part of the highest level of the Information SUPERHIGHWAY and have access to the leading edge of the latest Communications Technologies Lectures on The Information Superhighway. Display by hardware, Software, Communications, Information Suppliers. Stage : Presenters Timing: 9:00 - Registration of attendees explore exhibits 9:30 - Introduction to show by Roy Kerwood 10:00 - Hon Gordon Campbell has been invited to deliver a Keynote address (Mr. Campbell's attendance is not critical to the show but would provide us with a perspective as to where the Government intends to help with Information Superhighway) 10:20 - Mr Mike Patterson of the Internet Service provider BC Net informs audience of latest developments in the Superhighway from his perspective and future visions in Panel Format 11:00 - BC Tel has been invited to explain the current state of the communications Superhighway from a providers point of view and how it will develop 12:00 - Break for lunch examine the exhibits (lunch will be included.) 2:00 - Hon. John Manly has been invited to Video Tele-conference link 3:00 - Richard Pitt will explain "point and click" access to the infor- mation super highway using Mosaic and give live demonstration of the World Wide Web, Archie and other exciting new developments in the state of the art. 4:00 - Bruce Woodward of Cyberstore will do a live demonstration of a local BBS. 5:00 - Wrap up by Roy Kerwood, participants question period. 8:00 - Show closes Thank you for you interest in the seminar. Date June 24, 1994 Please E-mail me if you would like to reserve space for you and any of your co-workers. Admission is $40.00 You may mail your Cheque for tickets to: Roy Kerwood @ Associates 907-1011 Beach Ave. Vancouver BC. V6E-1T8 Phone or fax 604-687-3422. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #192 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa24294; 2 May 94 18:20 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA00443; Mon, 2 May 94 14:26:04 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA00434; Mon, 2 May 94 14:26:02 CDT Date: Mon, 2 May 94 14:26:02 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405021926.AA00434@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #193 TELECOM Digest Mon, 2 May 94 14:26:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 193 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: NANP and Switches (Al Varney) Re: NANP and Switches (Randal Hayes) Re: E1 Help Wanted (Steve Daggett) Re: Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls (billy@mix.com) Re: Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls (Sean P. Peacock) Re: X.25 Information Request (Ketil Albertsen) Re: ISDN Bridge Advice Please (Curtis Sanford) Re: ISDN Bridge Advice Please (Ken Germann) Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? (Rob Lockhart) Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? (D. Castillo) Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? (Sean Daly) Re: Basic ISDN Question (William H. Sohl) Re: CO's and Disasters (Andrew Ayers) Re: CO's and Disasters (Michael Jacobs) Re: Telco MUX to Home? (Kendall Willis) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 02 May 94 10:20:10 CDT From: varney@uscbu.att.com Subject: Re: NANP and Switches Organization: AT&T Network Systems In article lincmad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) writes: > In article is written: >> We currently have a Northern Telecom Meridian Option 61 (software >> relase 17) with 44 DID trunks, a T1 for long distance, and about 1300 >> active phones. We have been told by Ameritech that, in order for us >> to be able to comply with the implementation of the new North American >> Numbering Plan (NANP) on January 1, 1995, we must upgrade our switch >> with an additional memory card, another ROM board and software release >> 19. My questions are (1) is this really necessary and (2) can we wait >> until the middle of 1995 before doing this and still provide access >> via NANP? Any help out there would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. > I don't know about the hardware/software requirements for your > specific switch, but whatever changes your switch requires to work > with the "new-style" area codes *CANNOT* wait until mid-1995. They > *MUST* be up and running and fully functional absolutely no later than > 1/15/95, when the first two "new" area codes go into service. > Otherwise, Murphy's Law guarantees that someone will try to call > Alabama. Alternatively, you can tell your 1300 users that attempts to reach numbers where NPA is not of the N0X/N1X form must be made through your IXC operator, using operator dialing. There is no requirement that all numbers in the NANP (or the world) be directly dialable from your CPE. Whether or not this would cause irate users, I have no idea. You could try to guess which, if any, of the new NPAs would be commonly called. Again, there is no REQUIREMENT of CPE to be able to reach all dialable points using direct dialing -- but it sure is nice to be able to do so. Al Varney ------------------------------ From: HayesR@uihc-telecomm-po.htc.uiowa.edu Date: 2 May 94 10:30 CST Subject: Re: NANP and Switches > must upgrade our switch. 1)Is this really necessary, and 2)can we wait > until the middle of 1995 before doing this and still provide access via > NANP? I was just at a seminar with Harry Newton, and, although it is necessary to accomodate switches for the NANP, he had a suggestion for those who may have a need to delay a switch upgrade for this purpose. Harry suggested putting in a couple of Centrex lines for the switchboard operator/receptionist, and anyone needing to place calls to areas with the new style area code could go through them for call placement. Centrex lines will surely be able to reach the new area codes. Although this suggestion will not be acceptable in all companies, it may buy some time for those who are buying a new switch/upgrading a little beyond January 1, 1995. Just passing on what sounds like an interesting idea. randal-hayes@uiowa.edu ------------------------------ From: sdaggett@netrix.com (Steve Daggett) Subject: Re: E1 Help Wanted Organization: NETRIX Corporation Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 18:29:33 GMT Jack W. Lix - jwl@netcom.com writes: > I need some information about "real world" E1 usage. Does timeslot 16 > (normally used for signaling) ever get used for data in point to > point usage. I also understand some satellite transceivers use an E1 > interface. Would they also reserve timeslot 16?? If so, whats the > point?? It's pretty simple really. If ANY of the timeslots in the E1 require A/B signaling in timeslot 16 then TS 16 MUST be reserved for Channel Associated Signaling (CAS). If NONE of the timeslots require A/B signaling then TS 16 MAY be used for data. This is of course dependent on the transmission network being able to pass TS 16 as a clear channel. Some networks don't allow TS 16 as a clear channel. The satellite modems shouldn't care what's being carried in any of the timeslots. The satellite modems I'm familiar with only require a 2.048 meg clock and an adequate 1's density in the data stream. They didn't care about framing or signaling at all. (BTW: I've installed voice/data networks running E1's lines in Europe and Africa.) Steve Daggett sdaggett@netrix.com ------------------------------ From: billy@mix.com Subject: Re: Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls Organization: Digital Equipment Computer Users Society Date: 2 May 94 12:26:02 -0400 In article Tom Holderby writes: > I've recently become aware of the fact the many BBS's and Internet > service providers use the call-forwarding trick where they go buy a > phone number (without a phone) in outlying exchanges which are > permanently call-forwarded to their main lines, thereby increasing > their local call area. Apparently some of them carry this to the > point of multiple forwarding, which may get them 50 or 75 miles > without a toll. > I was just wondering how the phone companies feel about this. Is this > something that you can just tell them you want to do, being very open > about it? Or do you need to sneak around, get the numbers in different > names, etc? I'm the guy who started this back in the early 80's here in the Los Angeles area. My own BBS is a non-profit thing, but many others around here are not; they make money (and for some of them, lot of it) and four or five hops are quite common now, providing a rather big toll free calling area. Some years ago one of the spoil-sport BBS operators here tried to turn in all the other BBS operators for making commercial use of a non-commercial service. (Back when I began this one could use remote call forwarding for it, which is a business service, as there was no metering of time used. It was later changed in California around 1984/85 to measured service, thus forcing the use of phones lines actually terminating at a residence -- this sent the bill for a month on such a line from about $14 to $440+). The result -- nothing happened, and it's still business as usual here. I don't know the details, perhaps someone reading this does ...? > Also, assuming that this is legal and acceptable, can you forward > multiple calls off of one line, or do you need one line per call? This depends on how the central office switch is set up to handle this. Here Pac Bell forwards all calls on the same one line. GTE will only pass the first call, all other callers get a busy signal. I have not tried to talk them out of this, I instead moved my lines to Pac Bell when the local limit here went from 8 to 12 miles (for other reasons like crummy service). This is not a fun thing to attempt getting changed in many phone companies. Billy Y. ------------------------------ From: speacock@netcom.com (Sean P Peacock) Subject: Re: Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 18:23:35 GMT Tom Holderby (holderby@inca.gate.net) wrote: > I was just wondering how the phone companies feel about this. Is this > something that you can just tell them you want to do, being very open > about it? Or do you need to sneak around, get the numbers in different > names, etc? > Also, assuming that this is legal and acceptable, can you forward > multiple calls off of one line, or do you need one line per call? Depends on how the CO is set up. PacBell has the capability to, but has not implemented 1 forwarded call per forwarded line _yet_. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Generally, using the *regular, residential > variety* of call forwarding will NOT save money where toll charges are > concerned unless you are able to link two or three large toll free calling > areas together. Generally, two or more short calls linked together cost > more than a single long-haul call covering the same points. [...] Usually the forwarded lines are within local calling distance of each other and are flat-rate service. I know of at least five BBS services in my local area that provide this service. Most commom is that a member is given a free account and a monthly allowance to drop in a second line that is permanently forwarded. As for size, there is one group of about 20 people splitting the cost of a forwarded line to save on toll charges. Sean ------------------------------ From: ketil@edb.tih.no (Ketil Albertsen,TIH) Subject: Re: X.25 Information Request Organization: T I H / T I S I P Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 08:43:23 GMT In article , vandusen@Starbase.NeoSoft. COM (Mike Vandusen) writes: > I am looking for general reference material (ie. books, ftp'able docs, > etc.) describing X.25. I am interested in documentation that starts > with conceptual overview, discusses details of the various other > protocols involved (X.28, X.29, etc.), and finally addresses typical > software interfaces. > I understand that the CCITT Fascicle recommendation is not available > for ftp ... and makes for rather dry reading anyway;-) It certainly is available -- gopher to info.itu.ch and climb the tree through ITUDOC / Search using group structure / ITU Telecom Standardization Sector / Recommendations / X series. You won't find them all there, but X.25, X.28 and X.29 are certainly there right now, in Postscript format (som recs are also or only available in MS-Word-for-Windows format). Yes, it is dry reading, but I have never seen any textbook going to sufficient depth to make the recommendations superfluous. In our tech.college we use W.Stallings: Data and Computer Communications, 4th ed, MacMillan 1994, for an introduction to X.25. It does not cover X.28/X.29, and there are other books going in greater depth about X.25 (I think Uylless Black's book on OSI networking is somewhat more thorough), but Stallings' book is a good preparation for attacking the recommendation! I too wonder what a "typical software interface" to X.25 looks like :-) ketil ------------------------------ From: sanford@Ascend.COM (Curtis Sanford) Subject: Re: ISDN Bridge Advice Please Date: 02 May 1994 09:03:45 GMT Organization: Ascend Communications, Inc. In article , Bob Larribeau wrote: > In article idddsb@iddss1.iddis.com > (Dean Banfield) writes: >> We have a 10baseT Ethernet lan and would like an outlier individual to >> have access on a hardwired basis. ISDN sounds great, but I have no >> idea what's required here. > You can get either bridges or routers. Bridges are available from > Combinet, Digiboard, Gandalf, Extension Technology. Routers are > available from Cisco, Ascend, and ACC. Prices for bridges start about > $2,000 and routers around $3,000. Bob is generally correct. However, our newest model (Pipeline 50) can be either a bridge or a router, and starts at $1,495. Contact info@ascend.com for more information. Curtis Sanford Ascend Communications ------------------------------ From: keng@skypoint.net (Ken Germann) Subject: Re: ISDN Bridge Advice Please Date: 02 May 1994 06:26:34 -0500 Organization: SkyPoint Communications, Inc. In article , Bob Larribeau wrote: > In article idddsb@iddss1.iddis.com > (Dean Banfield) writes: > You can get either bridges or routers. Bridges are available from > Combinet, Digiboard, Gandalf, Extension Technology. Routers are > available from Cisco, Ascend, and ACC. Prices for bridges start about > $2,000 and routers around $3,000. The Digiboard ISDN, New Port Server with the NET C/X for SCO and Novell drivers and a demo for ATM will be shown at Interop in Las Vegas next week. The Digiboard ISDN products are priced from $795.00 to $3200.00 depending on the configuration. Ken Germann SkyPoint keng@skypoint.com Voice: (612)475-2959 MCIA Modems: (612)473-5646. ------------------------------ From: rlockhart@aol.com (RLockhart) Subject: Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? Date: 02 May 1994 08:13:03 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) In article , Fclark@deathstar.cris.com (Franclark) writes: > When the customer calls in the operator dumps the message in my > voice mail and I am paged. This is cumbersome, time consuming, and > expensive. and > I would like to be able to capture the calls on an answering machine > which would automatically ring my pager(preferrably alphanumeric) upon > receipt of each call. Are there answering machines available with this > capability? Is software available to do this via modem? There are some answering machines that'll turn 'round and outdial a preprogrammed number on receipt of a message (Panasonic makes one, I believe), but these rely solely on DTMF and blind timers to send the numeric message, not any sort of handshaking protocol. This is less than optimal 'cause during the busier paging times of the day (the 'busy hour'), that timing can be *way* off to where you get a portion of your preprogrammed dial back number or even no number or page at all ... your message just gets 'blindly thrown over the wall' with no regard top anyone on the other side capable of catching it. An alternative, if you want to play, is to get a voice mail add-on to your PC or Mac that supports DDE or Apple Events and link it up with one of the alpha paging apps that supports paging via DDE or Apple Events (e..g. EvTek, Ex Machina, InfoRAD ... to name a few). This way, when your voice mail comes in, you would link the event to the alpha paging app and let the TAP alpha page protocol stiffen up the link to the paging system for you ... and if you could find a voice mail card that supported CLI, you could have it link *that* information to the page, as well. Rob Lockhart Resource Manager, Interactive Data Systems Paging Products Group Motorola, Inc. Desktop I'net: Lockhart-EPAG06_Rob@email.mot.com Wireless Data I'net (<32K characters): Rob_Lockhart-ERL003E@email.mot.com Wireless Data I'net (< 1K characters): Rob.Lockhart@RadioMail.Net ------------------------------ From: castillo@unm.edu (D. Castillo) Subject: Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? Date: 02 May 1994 10:58:36 -0600 Organization: University of New Mexico, Albuquerque Another really cheap way of having your answering call your pager (sort of) is what I did. I assume you have a computer and modem, you're posting here after all :-) I wrote a real simple script for my comm software (commo, ms-dos based) that sits there and looks for RING, waits two minutes (you can set it for any length, but if they have to leave a message longer than two minutes it's probably someone without a life). Then I've got it call my pager: xxx-xxxx,,,any number here (in my case my home number with a couple of **) So far it's worked great, and it basically didn't cost me anything. You have to leave your computer on, true, but that's a whole other discussion. Someone with a CID modem could write something really neat where it would send the actual number of the person that called to your pager! Castillo@hydra.unm.edu ------------------------------ From: dalysea@elof.acc.iit.edu (Sean Daly) Subject: Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? Organization: Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago Date: Mon, 02 May 94 08:27:28 GMT In article Fclark@deathstar.cris.com (Franclark) writes: > I need some advice. I own a small refrigeration company (two employees). > Currently we lease a phone line from an answering service. When the > customer calls in the operator dumps the message in my voice mail and > I am paged. This is cumbersome, time consuming, and expensive. > With an eye to the future, when I can afford full time office > help, I am getting my own business line in June. I would like to be > able to capture the calls on an answering machine which would > automatically ring my pager(preferrably alphanumeric) upon receipt of > each call. Are there answering machines available with this > capability? If you want to spend around $300, I saw a device in Damark called a Bogen Friday or something like that. I know the brand name was Bogen and I have seen a company listed in other magazines as Bogen Telecommunications Products. Anyway, it connects to two phone lines. Then, you program eight mailboxes. Four of them are for outside calls to leave messages for four employees. Three are for internal messages, and the last was described as a "gateway" for a modem or fax. You can program each mailbox to 1) forward to another number, 2) take a digital message, or 3) take a message, then page you. When I called them, they said all those options can be set remotely. This was the coolest answering machine I've ever seen. ------------------------------ From: whs70@cc.bellcore.com (sohl,william h) Subject: Re: Basic ISDN Question Date: 02 May 1994 09:26:50 -0400 Organization: Bell Communications Research (Bellcore) In article , Mike Jones wrote: > ISDN has recently become available here in this corner of NYNEX-land. > The cost is a $10 surcharge onto normal business rates. We're > interested in using the 64 Kbps data channel to connect to a local > internet provider; I've checked with NYNEX and ISDN is available at > both our and their CO's. My question is, how does this practically > work? I have a moderate understanding of ISDN at a conceptual level, > but no real feel for how you go about hooking things up. Any > information would be appreciated. That depends on the purpose of the connection. If the ISDN connection is to simply connect you as an "end user" to your Internet provider, then it is a simple 64Kb dial up connection to the Internet provider. To do so, you need ISDN AND the Internet provider must have an ISDN line also. The bottom line is that the connection is no different (other than the transmission speed and the termination equipment ... ISDN) from a typical modem connection operating at a lower speed. Another possibility is that your location wants to connect to an Internet provider using ISDN B channel dial-up between your location for a multitude of users on a Local Area Network (LAN) that you and others at your location connect to. In that arrangement, the ISDN connection is made between the LAN and the Internet provider without any involvement by you (or other users) on your LAN. That's a very short explanation, I know, but that's it in brief. Any questions, please post or call us: Bill Sohl - Bellcore ISDN Hotline 1-800-992-ISDN For additional information...check out Bellcore's FTP site at: info.bellcore.com look for ISDN information in the subdirectory: /pub/isdn Bill Sohl (K2UNK) BELLCORE (Bell Communications Research, Inc.) Morristown, NJ email via UUCP bcr!cc!whs70 201-829-2879 Weekdays email via Internet whs70@cc.bellcore.com ------------------------------ From: Andrew Ayers Subject: Re: CO's and Disasters Organization: Indiana University Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 09:12:42 GMT In article Thomas Tengdin, teto@mbari.org writes: > I was at an earthquake disaster training session this week and > a statement was made: > The telephone company computers will connect some customers > at a higher priority that others. > Doctors, etc were mentioned. > This is the first I have heard of calls being processed in any other > way than first to finish dialing, first to be processed (more or > less). > Is there something in CO Class of Service? or other programming that > gives "priority" service to a select class of lines? It is possible to do that sort of thing in programming. You can also wire an MDF so that if a switch goes down, certain subscriber lines still have access to a tandem (long-distance) switch. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 94 19:07:00 EDT From: Michael Jacobs Subject: Re: CO's and Disasters The program that administers priority handling of calls during emergency situations is the National Communications System's Telecommunications System Priority program. Most CO switches have the capability to assign higher service priority to designated lines for either originating or terminating service. I believe Bellcore in its role as government SPOC (single point of contact) is involved in this. Last year at the Network Reliability Council's meeting in Arlington, VA, there was mention made of expanding this service to include cellular operators since many emergency and essential service providers use cellular extensively. If anyone has details on the implementation of this, please let me know since I have been trying to get TSP priority for certain cellular numbers used by a Hax-Mat response team with which I am involved. Michael W. Jacobs Service Technician - Bell Atlantic-Pennsylvania ------------------------------ From: kowillis@umr.edu (Kendall Willis) Subject: Re: Telco MUX to Home? Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 03:41:17 GMT Organization: University of Missouri-Rolla, Missouri's Technological University Roger Marquis (marquis@netcom.com) wrote: > When Pac Bell recently installed a second line into my (1940s) apartment > building they didn't run any new wire but instead installed a new demark/ > junction box. When I opened this box to connect my second line I was > surprised to find only the one original line going in, and _two_ lines > coming out! Could it be my lines are MUXed to the local switch? > I've tested the quality of both lines by making a voice call on one and a > data call on the other (while executing 'sz /dev/zero' at 14.4+) without > finding any measurable degradation. > The alleged MUX measures 2*3*3 in. and is fully sealed except for the > contacts. Does anyone know what I have here? Don't ever fool yourself into thinking that you will see high tech stuff installed by the phone company anywhere near your house. :) The whole philosophy is to keep your end of the connection simple and their end modern. Even the much ado and hoopla given to network interfaces is ridiculous. Most are glorified junction boxes and the exceptions are rare. I doubt it is a MUX. More likely it is a new box with two more connections. Many locations are capable of adding a second line without stringing another wire because there is plenty of wires in the original bundle. You may not have to run a second wire into your apartment if you really did not want to. The four-conductor wire in many houses is capable of handling two lines. The green and red are tip and ring of Line one and the yellow and black are for Line two. The big problem is that some equipment is not designed to take advantage of this. That is why you have two wires at the network interface. You could wire it up in this fashion, though. Now a word of caution. If you have inside wiring that is blue, orange and white, the system won't work obviously. Also, sometimes that extra yellow-black pair is hooked up to a power transformer somewhere in the house which lights the dial and pushbuttons in older TrimLine phones. Don't shock yourself, test them before using. Kendall Willis kowillis@umr.edu ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #193 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa24686; 2 May 94 18:52 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA02462; Mon, 2 May 94 15:20:12 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA02449; Mon, 2 May 94 15:20:09 CDT Date: Mon, 2 May 94 15:20:09 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405022020.AA02449@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #194 TELECOM Digest Mon, 2 May 94 15:20:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 194 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Two Communication Courses (Richard V. Tsina) Senior Telecom Engineer Wanted at Intel/Oregon (Mike Gore) Open Position SWE / ISDN TCP/IP Unix Networking Agent SFSYS (Hal Kinney) Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed Up? (Jonathan Loo) Re: DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 (Zafar Khalid) Re: GSM and Airbags (Bill Tighe) New BBS List to Save Money (Stu Whitmore) Re: Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Commander (puma@netcom.com) Re: Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Commander (John Barcomb) Re: E1 Help Wanted (Marc Chatel) Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" (Jay Hennigan) Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" (Jonathan Loo) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: rtsina1@uclink.berkeley.edu (Richard V Tsina) Subject: Two Communication Courses Date: 2 May 1994 19:15:51 GMT Organization: University of California, Berkeley U.C. BERKELEY Continuing Education in Engineering Announces Two Short Courses on Communication Technology: 1. WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (July 26-27, 1994) There are technical bottlenecks to developing a ubiquitous wireless multimedia environment: the capacity of the radio link, its unreliability due to the adverse multipath propagation channel, and severe interference from other channels. This course covers the principles and fundamental concepts engineers need to tackle these limitations (e.g., a thorough treatment of channel impairments such as fading and multipath dispersion and their effect on link and network performance). Topics include: Introduction to Wireless Channels, Cellular Telephone Networks, Analog and Digital Transmission and Wireless Data Networks. Comprehensive course notes will be provided. Lecturer: JEAN-PAUL M.G. LINNARTZ, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of California, Berkeley. His work on traffic analysis in mobile radio networks received the Veder Prize, an innovative research in telecommunications award in the Netherlands. At Berkeley he works on communications for intelligent vehicle highway systems and multimedia communications. Professor Linnartz is the author of numerous publications and the book "Narrow Land-Mobile Radio Networks" (Artech House, 1993), the text for the course. 2. COMMUNICATION NETWORKS: FROM FDDI TO ATM (August 9-10), 1994) This course provides an overview of the operating principles and design guidelines for communication networks, and includes a description of the popular current networks and a discussion of major industry trends. Topics include: History and Operating Principles, Open System Interconnection, Overview of High-Speed Networks, Physical Layer, Switching, Trends in Data Networks (FDDI, DQDB, Frame Relay, SMDS), Trends in Telecommunication Networks (SONET, Fiber to the home, ISDN, Intelligent Networks, ATM) , Topological Design of Networks, Control of ATM Networks. Comprehensive course notes will be provided. Lecturers: PRAVIN VARAIYA, Ph.D., Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of California, Berkeley. At Berkeley he works on stochastic systems, communication networks, power systems and urban economics. He is the author of "Stochastic Systems: Estimation, Identification, and Adaptive Control" (Prentice-Hall, 1986) and coeditor of "Discrete Event Systems: Models and Applications" (Springer, 1988). He is a fellow of the IEEE. JEAN WALRAND, Ph.D., Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of California, Berkeley. He is the author of "An Introduction to Queuing Networks" (Prentice-Hall, 1988) and "Communication Networks: A First Course" (Irwin/Aksen, 1991). For more information (complete course descriptions, outlines, instructor bios, etc.,) contact: Richard Tsina U.C. Berkeley Extension Continuing Education in Engineering 2223 Fulton St. Berkeley, CA 94720 Tel: (510) 642-4151 Fax: (510) 643-8683 email: course@garnet.berkeley.edu ------------------------------ From: mike_gore@ccm.hf.intel.com Subject: Senior Telecom Engineer Wanted at Intel/Oregon Organization: Multimedia Software Technology Group Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 11:09:05 GMT SR TELECOM ENGINEER Intels Oregon Information Technology Group is looking for a senior Telecom engineer to create an Enterprise-wide Plan for the deployment and support of Network and Systems technologies, focusing on the Operational Infastructure Requirements. Individual will work with Central Network and LAN Systems engineering staffs and site IT Network. Candidates should have knowledge of 802.3,FDDI, and ATM standards. Knowledge of TCP/IP,IPX,RIP,OSPF. In addition you should have experience any Cabletron, Synoptics, Cisco, and Wellfleet hardware. Must use network analyzers, and SNMP management Spectrum, HP-Openview, SunNet Manager or Netview 6000. BA and 6 to 9 yrs experience in designing and implementing mul-protocol enterprise routed networks.. This position includes great salary, bonuses, stock options, 401K, and excellent relocation package. If you are interested: EMAIL: mike_gore@ccm.hf.intel.com Or you may call 602-554-4485 ------------------------------ From: halkin@netcom.com (Hal Kinney) Subject: Open Position SWE / ISDN TCP/IP Unix Networking Agent SFSYS Organization: Netcom Online Communications Services (408-241-9760 login: guest) Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 00:24:58 GMT Position: SWE Software Engineer Skills: C programming - Heavy Communications knowledge Minimum Industry Experience: Three years experience. College projects do NOT qualify. Location: Palo Alto Ca. Start Date: ASAP Pay Rate: Commensurate with experience Length: Contract to hire Student Visa ok ?: No No No No H1 Visa ok ?: For the right candidate Comments : Should be very strong writing device drivers in the communications environment. Should be experienced with ISDN, TCP/IP, X.25, POTS, Unix, Routers and Bridges, PC's. Programming devices in the communications / network environment. Contract to hire or immediate hire for the right engineer. FAX/email resume and/or lets talk. San Francisco Systems, Inc. Contact: Hal Kinney halkin@netcom.com 110 Sutter St. Suite 701 Voice: 415.982.3500 San Francisco, Ca. 94104 FAX: 415.982.6013 (high res. please) ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 01:30:09 -0400 From: Jonathan Subject: Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed up? TELECOM Digest Editor noted: > TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Not only asked to correct the problem, > but in some instances if telco really wants to get tough about it they > may choose to back-bill an estimated amount lost on completed calls > which went unsupervised. Illinois Bell found a company here in Chicago > deliberatly playing games like that and back-billed them a > half-million dollars covering calls over a five year period. The > company protested of course, but all the facts pointed to them doing > it on purpose as toll-avoidance; they were slow to answer their phones > because they did not want to hire the help needed to do so promptly > and they were playing a tape recorded music on hold 'all positions > busy please wait for an available agent' message to their callers for > five or ten minutes at a time. Their customers squawked about the cost > of *their* calls as a result so the company gerry-rigged the system to > not supervise until they got ready to handle the call. IBT said it > wasn't *their* problem ... they wanted their money! Instead of going > back to each individual caller (thousands of them) to collect the > couple dollars each of them would have paid had they been supervised > properly, telco told the company since they pulled this stunt they > could pay for it instead ... or get sued with the resulting publicity, > etc. Telco did not get all they asked for, but they collected a nice > chunk of it. So be careful about playing games with supervision. If > telco wants to do so, they'll work you over good to show who is boss. Sounds pretty ingenious to me. I would like to note a few things: 1. No meaningful conversation occurred until after the company turned supervision on. 2. The telephone company could have been nicer about the whole thing. Instead of waiting for five years and then billing for half a million dollars, why not send a warning to the company within one month and then bill them shortly thereafter? There must be a way for the telephone company to automatically detect this kind of stunt. Furthermore, the company that received the calls may have assumed that the telephone company would have objected immediately had its stunt been illegal. After all, nobody lets the phone ring for five minutes on a routine basis. If the telephone company had been doing its homework, then it should have noticed calls ringing for several minutes, in- vestigated the possible trouble, referred it to the business office, and told the company to stop, quickly. ------------------------------ From: clipper.robadome.com!khalid@pmail.com (Zafar Khalid) Subject: Re: DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 Date: 02 May 1994 17:03:03 GMT Organization: ROLM - A Siemens Company Reply-To: clipper.robadome.com!khalid@pmail.com In article 13@eecs.nwu.edu, jay@coyote.rain.org (Jay Hennigan) writes: > In article canadian@leland.stanford.edu > writes: >> Phone Question for those in the know.(I am not one of them, so please >> reply in layperson lingo if possible. :-)) >> I am the Business Manager of the Student newspaper, the Stanford >> Daily. We are independent from the university, and are running a >> very tight budget. We pay alot each month to be connected to our >> phone service and have no choice but to use the university phone >> service. We are currently we are being charged anywhere from $28.50 >> to $37.50 per month for each phone (which we own) plus $12.50 per >> phone for an expanded local calling area ranging from San Francisco >> to San Jose and parts of the East Bay. >> The Daily intends to convert its current incoming 32 line mixed ET and >> single-line set configuration to a set of 16 analog DID wink-start >> trunks mapped to our current 32 numbers. We will be installing a >> DID-ready PBX, station lines, and PBX telephones on our premises. > Unless you get an extraordinary amount of incoming traffic, 16 DID > trunks for 32 numbers is gross overkill. Six to eight trunks are far > more realistic. Also, keep in mind that DID trunks are usually > one-way incoming, so you'll need some outbound and/or two-way > ground-start trunks as well. .... I agree that 16 DID lines are overkill, while six to eight are very realistic. I would further recommend that instead of DID lines, you get ordinary loop start or ground start lines arranged in a hunt group, and route all calls to a Auto-Attendant system behind your PBX. Auto-attendant can redirect incoming calls and also could be used as voiceMail system. These systems are in $3000-15000 price range depending upon the vendor. For example: Centigram, ROLM PhoneMail, ActiveVoice, Octel SmoothOperator are worth looking into. Cheers. ------------------------------ From: bill@noller.com (Bill Tighe) Subject: Re: GSM and Airbags Date: 2 May 94 10:24:1 GMT gws@gwssun.cb.att.com (Gary Sanders @ AT&T Bell Labs, Columbus Ohio.) once wrote ... > In article , Stewart Fist <100033.2145@ > CompuServe.COM> wrote: >> I've just received by fax a photocopy of a story from the {Guardian >> Weekly} (UK) dated April 3. >> It is headlined "Mobile phone set off airbag" and the story is about a >> couple of instances where (it is claimed) GSM handsets have set off ... > Yes but think about it; what is a switch but a couple of contacts? Add > a liitle bit of dirt and gunk and you now have a diode. What can you > you do with a diode -- you can detect radio signals. You now have an > RF switch. I have a brochure from Chrysler with a photo of one of their cars undergoing RF testing. The car is on a turntable in an anechoic room with a _huge_ Yagi-like antenna pointed at it. The test stated that all the cars systems are tested in every conceivable RF environment. It looks like they spend a lot of money to make ambient RF a nonproblem. I know RF has been a problem in the past; my 83 Volvo drops out of cruise control when near a CB transmitter. Some Audis in the early 80s would respond to RF by having the cruise control go to full throttle while the ABS disabled the brakes! I think the car makers have learned their lesson and now test their cars for use with cellular phones and other transmitting products. Hackers with multi-kW linears may still have problems. Bill Tighe Noller Communications, Inc. Email: bill@noller.com 1250 Holm Road Phone: 707-778-0571 Petaluma, CA 94954-1172 FAX: 707-778-0235 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 13:40:47 -0700 From: whitmore@tahoma.cwu.edu (Rattlesnake Stu) Subject: New BBS List to Save Money Organization: Central Washington University I have decided to compile a list of BBSs that use Sprint for a long distance carrier for outbound long distance. The sole purpose for this is to save money through Sprint's automatic discount on Sprint-to-Sprint calls. If you run a BBS and your long distance carrier (on at least one line) is Sprint, feel free to fill out the information below and e-mail it to me. The list will be published in two forms: The terse form will be limited to one line per BBS, and the verbose form will include a second line for comments. Please feel free to pass this along to other SysOps so that a comprehensive list can be established. Let it be known upfront that I do not work for Sprint and am in no way affiliated with Sprint other than as a customer. The list will not be sold, but will be distributed freely. There is little in it for me other than the savings, which I hope to pass along to other Sprint customers. I fully encourage customers of other carriers that offer similar automatic discounts like Sprint's to start similar lists. The form for the data is: Data needed: Example: ------------ -------- System name: [_______________________] [Hibernation BBS________] Primary #: [___-____-_____] [628-433-9812] City: [___________] [Cyberville_] State: [__] [IT] SysOp: [_______________________] [Big Bear_______________] # Nodes: [__] [1_] Free-form Comments: [______________________________________________________________________] (Example: [This is a BBS for beekeepers and bear watchers.__(NOT A REAL BBS!)____] ) E-mail to whitmore@tahoma.cwu.edu or 71221.1737@compuserve.com. These addresses are temporary - send a note of inquiry after 5/15/94 to either of these addresses for an address update. Stuart Whitmore whitmore@tahoma.cwu.edu Standard disclaimers apply (no implied representation of CWU) ------------------------------ From: puma@netcom.com (puma) Subject: Re: Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Commander Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 21:40:47 GMT In article , Lance Ware wrote: > I need help with programming these two cell phones. Specifically I > need to program the phone numbers, and get the ESN so that I may have > them both put on the same phone number. > This is legitimate, I am not interested in going to jail for many > years! You may consider it legitimate, but it's a violation of federal regulations and also contrary to your contract with the service provider. Not that folks haven't done it in the past, you understand, but it's against the rules. If you, at some point, have both phones powered up at the same time, the service provider is likely to detect it and lock you out. The ESN's are supposed to be a permanent part of the phone, and not changeable without replacing the ROM. I've heard, though, that some are capable of being changed in the setup. Also, Motorola for one has a special version of their phones with loadable ESN so that they can provide a loaner in service situations. Normally the setup only allows changing the telephone number and other setup info, not the ESN. puma@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: uswnvg!uswnvg.com!jbarcom@uunet.UU.NET (John Barcomb) Subject: Re: Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Commander Date: 02 May 94 17:51:00 GMT Lance Ware (lware@voxel.com) wrote: > I need help with programming these two cell phones. Specifically I > need to program the phone numbers, and get the ESN so that I may have > them both put on the same phone number. > This is legitimate, I am not interested in going to jail for many > years! The ESN of your Motorola phone will be listed on the phone in HEX, starting with an 8. I'm not too sure about your Fujitsu. My experience with having two cellular phones programmed with the same number is that both WILL ring, but no matter which one is answered, the call will drop right away. Can't explain it, it just happens. John ------------------------------ From: chatel_m%annecy.dnet.dec.com@decuk.uvo.dec.com (Marc Chatel) Subject: Re: E1 Help Wanted Date: 2 MAY 94 08:56:39 HEC Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation In article , jwl@netcom.com (Jack W. Lix) writes: > I need some information about "real world" E1 usage. Does timeslot 16 > (normally used for signalling) ever get used for data in point to > point usage. I also understand some satellite transceivers use an E1 > interface. Would they also reserve timeslot 16?? If so, whats the > point?? Hmmm ... where do I start? E1 (described in ITU-TS G.703) is a 2.048Mbps clocking standard (unlike 1.544Mbps T1). All the E1 implementations I have seen so far use HDB3 for coding. This means that, unlike some forms of T1, E1 is always (to my knowledge) data-insensitive. That is, you can send as many zeroes or ones in succession on an E1 link without losing sync. How is E1 used in practice in the field for data usage? 1) Most common: Keep timeslot 0 for framing as per G.703 and use timeslots 1 to 31 (including timeslot 16) for data. Effective bandwidth available to the access device: 1.984 Mbps. Useful because the carrier can monitor timeslot 0 and detect if the link is down at the same time as the user (more or less) ... 2) Next most common: If the devices at both ends can create their own framing without requiring G.703 framing, and if the PTT providing the link is prepared for it (no intermediate devices on the line that expect G.703-compliant timeslot 0), you can use timeslots 0 to 31 for data. Effective bandwidth available to the access device: 2.048 Mbps. You get more bandwidth, but the carrier cannot tell if the user end-to-end link works or not, until a loopback is inserted, of course ... 3) Fractional: Just like for T1, some administrations offer lower link speeds (any N x 64 speed) by providing the user a 2.048 Mbps G.703 access with only some of the timeslots being transported to the far end. There is no standard among PTTs and carriers about what timeslots are used in such a case. This is more difficult to get in some European countries than others, believe me. The only case where timeslot 16 has a special meaning is when E1 is used to transport standard voice traffic. In that case, timeslot 16 (as per G.704, G.732, etc.) is used to transport the signalling for the voice channels being carried in timeslots 1-15 and 17-31. Two signalling standards are defined for E1: CAS (a 4-bit value per voice channel is transmitted 500 times per second) and CCS (timeslot 16 is used as a straight 64Kbps data channel, usually carrying CCS-7 style signalling). In the hope this helps, Marc Chatel consultant currently at: Digital Equipment France Annecy, France e-mail: chatel_m@annecy.enet.dec.com mchatel@pax.eunet.ch (permanent) ------------------------------ From: jay@coyote.rain.org (Jay Hennigan) Subject: Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" Date: 02 May 1994 11:02:39 -0700 Organization: Regional Access Information Network (RAIN) [In reference to AT&T disconnecting unanswered direct-dial calls] > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I'll tell you why AT&T adopted that stance. > Radio talk show host Larry King was in the habit of helping his callers > avoid toll charges by telling them, "when you call us, just let it ring, > we will answer you when it is your turn to be on the air ..." While most > talk shows answer and screen your call, then leave you on hold upwards > of 30-45 minutes waiting for your chance to spill your bile (on your > nickle, I might add ... very few are willing to provide an 800 number > for you to camp out on at their expense), "The only information highway you'll ever need" does. 1-800-282-2882. > King's thing was to have all his bells turned off and let the lights > on his phone wink instead. That way the caller did not have to pay and > neither did King. AT&T got stuck with the cost instead of having their > circuits tied up in a non-revenue position for the several hours King > is on the air. AT&T finally got tired of being the straight man for > King's routine and started cutting off his unanswered calls after a > couple minutes. This seems a bit hard to swallow. How many incoming trunks does Larry King have? Maybe a dozen. Maybe two dozen. How many million calls a day does AT&T carry? So ten or twenty people listen to ringing for an hour or so. Are you suggesting that this is going to have enough impact on AT&T's revenue that they are going to re-engineer their network to prevent it? Thousands more get busy signals. If AT&T would improve their call processing time by one second, they would free up the thousands of busy signal circuits one second sooner (and AT&T indeed has very fast setup times). > King's response was predictable: when he found out what AT&T was doing > he blasted them over the air and told all his callers to start calling > him using Sprint's 10333 code instead. AT&T's response: Good! Let him > abuse Sprint instead. AT&T was glad to get rid of all that non-revenue > dead weight traffic. So send thanks to Larry King for his abuse of the > network which led AT&T to install the 'feature' you do not like. PAT] This makes even less sense on the part of AT&T. They are willing to anger someone with an audience the size of Larry King's, and suffer his public endorsement of their competitor for a miniscule amount of potential lost revenue from a couple of dozen callers a day listening to ringback tone? Somehow, "all that" non-revenue traffic seems bearable in the face of free advertising for Sprint on the Larry King show. I'll bet Sprint is delighted to take such "abuse". Jay Hennigan jay@rain.org [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It was never a question of how much or how little network resource was being used. Obviously it was only a drop in the bucket regards the overall network, although it may concievably choked things up a little in the local center where King's calls terminated. The point was that King was unwilling to pay part of the cost involved in his business communications, yet he wanted his 'customers' to maintain their goodwill, so he pawned off what should have been his expense (if he wanted his callers to get by as inexpensively as possible) onto AT&T. It certainly was not their problem either. I think AT&T simply looked at him as sort of a petty leecher, ripping off a little bit at no cost to enhance his position. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 01:53:07 -0400 From: Jonathan Subject: Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" I disagree with the conventional wisdom on the unwelcome AT&T "feature." I believe that it is a VERY good idea to disconnect callers after the called party number does not answer or gives a busy signal for several minutes. This condition may occur when the caller leaves the phone off hook accidentally and also may occur if the caller leaves the phone off-hook for the purpose of refusing incoming calls. Disconnecting the call frees up network resources and prevents large amounts of toll charges from accruing in a system which does not accept answer supervision. However, if the call is placed as 0+ then there should be a way for the operator to override the feature! By the way, several times (in the past) I called collect (410) 954-xxxx and got a recording saying that all representatives are busy. After about 2.5 minutes of waiting I got the recording, your party is not answering. we're sorry, but your call will now be disconnected. This was very annoying, and the AT&T operator could not override the recording. (This was a COLLECT call, as I remember.) As I see it, the number ought to have turned on supervision as soon as the all-attendants-busy recording came on, and the number should have given a busy signal instead of cutting off if no representative had picked up in 2.5 minutes. Actually, with that particular number, I think that what should happen is that it should say, "We're sorry; your call cannot be completed at this time unless it is urgent. If you have an urgent call, then please remain on line for the next repair representative; otherwise, please hang up now" if the wait is longer than 4 minutes. Supervision should begin about 10 seconds after the "please hang up now." The number should never make people wait and then cut them off after they wait. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #194 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa03908; 3 May 94 15:46 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA19912; Tue, 3 May 94 11:40:58 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA19901; Tue, 3 May 94 11:40:55 CDT Date: Tue, 3 May 94 11:40:55 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405031640.AA19901@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #195 TELECOM Digest Tue, 3 May 94 11:40:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 195 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Summary: Information on Telecommuting Policies Wanted (Matthew Blackmon) Worldwide Telecom Information (Ion Publishing Systems) Commercial E-mail and News Service in Argentina (Horacio Stolovitzky) Easy Asia-Pacific Roaming For Pagers and Phones (Greg Alexander) Cirrus Network ATM Usage in Slovakia? (Barry Bouwsma) Any Modem Decode DTMF? (Mark Boylan) Programming For Mitsubishi 4000 Cellular Phone? (Alan M. Gallatin) Government Limits Number of Modem Redial Attempts (Tim D. Gilman) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: blackmon@cs.utk.edu (Matthew L. Blackmon) Subject: Summary: Information on Telecommuting Policies Wanted Date: 3 May 1994 10:00:33 -0400 Organization: CS Department, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Greetings: I received over 30 requests for summaries regarding my recent posting with respect to telecommuting policies. As such, I am posting a summary of the large number of replies that I received. I have pared this down as much as possible, but the posting is still quite long. Any omissions or errors as a result are mine. A very large THANK YOU to all those that responded. Thanks again, Matt Blackmon blackmon@cs.utk.edu | mblackmo%utmck_mis@wpgate.utk.edu Department of Computer Science | Manager, Network Engineering and TechnologyThe University of Tennessee | The University of TN Medical Center Knoxville, Tennessee 37996 | 615.544.6110 ********BEGIN SUMMARIZED POSTING Article 13464 of comp.dcom.telecom: Date: 23 Apr 1994 21:29:02 -0400 From: blackmon@cs.utk.edu (Matthew L. Blackmon) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Telecommuting Policies and Procedures Organization: CS Department, University of Tennessee, Knoxville X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 14, Issue 182, Message 9 of 9 Greetings: I have been charged with the task of locating some resources on telecommuting policies and procedures that are in use in industry. We here at the University of Tennessee Medical Center are just entering this arena, and are interested in learning as much as possible. The particular areas of interest are personnel policies and procedures, such as, work hours and ethics, pay scales (ie, do you pay more or less for telecommuters?), payment of services and equipment (ie, do you pay for the equipment and the ISDN or data lines to the house, or does the telecommuter?), and etc. We are looking for any ideas and pointers along this line. Please email me and I will post a summary if there is sufficient interest. -------------------------- From: ae446@freenet.carleton.ca (Nigel Allen) You might want to contact some large institutional employers, such as your state's civil service commission . Some Canadian organizations that you may want to contact are: Deputy Minister Management Board Secretariat Government of Ontario 12th floor, Ferguson Block 77 Wellesley Street West Toronto, Ontario M7A 1N3 Canada telephone (416) 327-3805 fax (416) 327-3809 Francine Giguere Director - Public Affairs Bell Canada 1050 Beaver Hall Hill Montreal, Quebec H2Z 1S4 Canada telephone (514) 870-3995 fax (514) 876-3958 Ontario Hydro Corporate News Office Attn: Terry Young 700 University Ave. Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X6 Canada telephone (416) 592-3338 Secretary General Public Service Commission of Canada 300 Laurier Ave. West Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0M7 Canada telephone (613) 992-2425 These people may not be able to answer your questions, but they should be able to refer you to someone in their organization who can help. A researcher at McGill University (I don't know her name) in Montreal is doing a study of "teleworkers", salaried employees who work at home. You might want to give her a call at (514) 843-8044 (voice). She might be able to give you some good contacts. From: uswnvg!jlbrand@uunet.UU.NET (Jack Brand) Organization: US West NewVector, Inc., Bellevue, WA I used to work for Pacific Bell and my work group did quite a lot of telecommuting. If you can contact P.B. they might send you their official guidelines for telecommuting (it's a well-written booklet). jb From: Organization: Concurrent Computer Corporation, Oceanport NJ I am the Telecommunications Administrator for my company, and we have many telecommuters in our company. We handle them in various different ways. In most cases they use their company calling card and use their own personal lines for the calls. In some cases, where the employee uses their home for more than data telecommunicating, i.e. receiving calls at home, I install telephone and data lines and the bills are charged to the company, and reviewed monthly. Each location receives one data line and one voice line. I never install more than two lines. I hope this helped a bit. Carla Parisos From: dpy1@CORNELL.EDU (David Young) Organization: Cornell University Hi, I'm a graduate student at Cornell University. I work with Professor Frank Becker at the International Workplace Studies Program. The program is sponsored by organizations like Aetna, Arthur Andersen, Ernst & Young, Herman Miller, Steelcase, Silicon Graphics and several others. Many of these organizations have implemented successful telecommuting programs and other innovative workplace strategies like virtual offices, hotelling and non-territorial offices. These organizations sponsor research in the area you are interested in. You can find out more by contacting Frank Becker: email: fdb2@cornell.edu phone: 607-2551950 David Young Department of Design & Environmental Analysis Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14850 From: micky2@violet.berkeley.edu (Micky Skronski) I spotted your April 23 post in comp.dcom.telecom. I had just subscribed to comp.dcom.telecom for exactly the same reason. In my inquiries around my campus (UC Berkeley) I have found one written policy from one of the other departments in our control unit -- Information Systems and Technology. If you would like, I can send that to you. It is not terribly sophisticated but is the only thing I have so far. I hope that you will share any other responses you receive. I will send along a University policy if I find any. I also have friends who work in the computing industry and will be asking them. I called a cousin who works in human resources for Charles Schwab -- they don't really have a policy -- they strongly discourage the practice. Let me know if you are interested in the only "department level" document I have. From: "senator@well.sf.ca.us" Saw your post in the TELECOM Digest on this subject. You should know that the "telecommuting guru" is Gil Gordon, 10 Donner Court, Monmouth Junction NJ 08852; (908) 329-2266; (908-329-2703 fax). Extremely knowledgable and very helpful a couple years ago when my former employer was planning and implementing a flexplace program. John Covell From: dmausner@brauntech.com (Dave Mausner) Ny previous employer made these arrangements: He paid dedicated line (9600 baud) costs if employee lived in service area of company's telco exchange office; Otherwise, he paid connection charges over dialup lines using automatic expense reimbursement; Telecommuters were NOT discriminated against with respect to pay. Work was based on completion of assigned tasks, not hours-per-day quotas. Hope you find this useful. Regards. Dave Mausner, Braun Technology Group, 30 W. Monroe 300, Chicago, IL 60603 From: sd03@gte.com (Shuang Deng) Organization: GTE Laboratories, Waltham, MA Bellcore reportedly has, or is working on, a policy. My employer is looking at it, but no thing is expected to come out for at least another six monthes. Regards, Shuang Deng Email: sdeng@gte.com GTE Laboratories or sd03@gte.com 40 Sylvan Road Phone: +1 617 466 2165 Waltham, MA 02254, USA Fax : +1 617 466 2650 From: Michael Duane x7827 The telecommuter saves you money (by not occupying office space, so you should pay for the phone lines). ISDN probably isnt needed except for graphics intensive applications. I'll include an a similar posting I recently saved: Date: Thu, 27 Jan 1994 13:17:59 +0100 From: cvitoa!koos@relay.NL.net (Koos de Heer) Subject: Telecommuting Summary Recently I have had email discussions with a few people about telecommuting. A number of questions remained unanswered between us, so I am posting a summary of our discussions and the questions that we have. Anyone who is willing to contribute: please do so. Preferably by posting, but if you cannot post, email me and I will summarize in a future post. Special thanks to G. Trevor Foo (foo@buvax.barry.edu) for his contributions. Driving forces for the proliferation of telecommuting: Technology: For example, the advent of low priced desktop videoconferencing equipment and the recent movements in the U.S. for a national information infrastructure. The LINK Resourse, a telecommuting research firm, states that employees are spending an increasing amount of money on acquiring their own equuipment to telecommute. From 1991 to 1992, PCs sold to information workers have increased by 27%. Traffic problems: No need to elaborate: costs, time, environment ... Job mobility: Lifetime employment means moving once to the town of your employer and never having traffic problems again. Planning to switch jobs means living where you want to live, independent of where your job is located because after a few years you will have another job somewhere else anyway. Women's (and men's) lib: More flexibility in the daily schedule, for both partners, makes it easier to both have a career and children. Changing management culture: Output oriented management instead of process (attendance) oriented management. This is a requirement, telecommuting is not going to work well without it. Size of business that will especially adopt (and benefit from) telecommuting: Small organizations: - small businesses have a less formal organizational culture, less bureaucracy, than larger organizations. - innovation is easier and more common, new technologies are adopted faster. - they have less rigid operating procedures. Large organizations: - large businesses are changing management culture and desperately looking for ways to become more efficient. - another important condition for effective telecommuting is specialization: in a small organization, the workers tend to be less specialized. When someone has more different tasks, more contact with co-workers is needed. - large organisations are familiar with the use of elctronic links between co-workers, possibly to the extent that they will not know if a co-worker is at home or in the office. Numbers and growth: Present estimates of the size of the potential telecommuting work force range from 30% to 45% of the total work force in highly industrialized countries. This does not mean that 30% or 45% of the _work_ is telecommutable. Many of the workers will telecommute only part of the week. The portion of the total amount of work that could be considered telecommutable is probably less (does anyone have a hunch about a figure for this?). The present research seems to start from jobs and criteria as they are now, allowing for growth of telecommuting on the basis of growing acceptance of technologies and growing political concern. It would be useful to have a prediction of how other factors may change. There are developments in society that will influence the telecommuting potential in the years to come: - Industrial jobs are decreasing in number as processes are automated. Jobs in commerce, automation, consultancy and other services are increasing. - Not only technology develops, but also people get more used to technology for communication. The need for personal meetings will never disappear, but become less over the years to come. We have not found a way to calculate a figure for the impact of these changes. Anyone have ideas on this? A thought: if there are figures for the penetration of email and fax and for the growth of internet, and if there are predictions for how those figures will develop in the future, would that information be useful to say something about the rate at which technology becomes accepted? Of course, that does not solve the equation yet, as there are more unknown variables. Like the necessary change in the culture and management style of organizations (output driven rather than process driven). As I said, any comments are appreciated. koos de heer - centrum voor informatieverwerking koos@cvi.ns.nl tel. ++31.30.924860 michael.duane@sematech.org From: "Peter M. Weiss" Organization: Penn State University Don't forget the notebook archives of FLEXWORK stored on the listserv@psuhmc.hmc.psu.edu. Here is the script that I sent to the listserv followed by the INDEX output. Change the INDEX to PRINT to get the actual text: /* --------------------- clip and save ---------------- */ //ListSrch JOB Echo=no Database Search DD=Rules OUTLIM=3000 f=mail //Rules DD * S (pay or salary) and (policy or policies) in flexwork index /* // EOJ /* --------------------- clip and save ---------------- */ > S (pay or salary) and (policy or policies) in flexwork --> Database FLEXWORK, 5 hits. > index Item # Date Time Recs Subject 000057 93/05/26 07:04 447 teleco 000059 93/05/31 13:21 943 NEW SIRI SERVICES 000060 93/06/19 14:08 99 Tele-Community (fwd) 000065 93/10/15 16:15 592 INT'L ACADEMY OF BUSINESS DISCIPLINES CALL FOR PAP+ 000079 93/11/02 08:30 962 (Forwarded) article on telework ------------------- co-owner LDBASE-L, et -L Pete-Weiss@psu.edu "The 'NET' never naps" +1 814 863 1843 31 Shields Bldg. -- Penn State Univ -- University Park, PA 16802-1202 USA ********END SUMMARIZED POSTING Matt Blackmon blackmon@cs.utk.edu | mblackmo%utmck_mis@wpgate.utk.edu Department of Computer Science | Manager, Network Engineering and Technology The University of Tennessee | The University of TN Medical Center Knoxville, Tennessee 37996 | 615.544.6110 ------------------------------ From: gpalmer@dgs.dgsys.com (Ion Publishing Systems) Subject: Worldwide Telecom Information Date: 3 May 1994 10:40:48 -0400 Organization: Gigital Gateway Systems I am looking for information about the current telephony infrastructure in each country around the world. Is there such a source anywhere? Please reply directly. Thanks! Gerry ------------------------------ Subject: Commercial E-Mail and News Service in ARGENTINA From: horacio@satlink.net (Horacio Stolovitzky) Date: Tue, 03 May 94 00:47:49 -0400 You can find enclosed an updated information about SatLink in Argentina: SatLink ======== Argentina SatLink Uucp/Internet gateway SatLink service was introduced in 1992 as the first independant e-mail and USENET news commercial provider in South an Latin America. The network users are UUCP connected. Satlink serves companies, enterprises, academic and scientific institutions, government agencies, embassies, media, public organizations, and individuals. Facilities: =========== Electronic mail, USENET news, Domain Name Server, FTP mail service, ARCHIE service, listserv, argentinian mail lists, directory and naming services, UUCP connectivity. Addressing: =========== All computers and subnetworks on SatLink use Internet-style domain addresses. SatLink has its own domains for its hosts and routers (satlink.net, ar.net and argentina.com). Each attached member organization has its own Internet-style set of domain addresses. Each attached member system has a postmaster account for inquiries on addresses and users. Please contact postmaster@satlink.net for information or help. There are about 300 attached member domains and sub-domains across Argentina connected to Satlink (April 1994). Contact: ======== Horacio D. Stolovitzky SatLink Uucp/Internet gateway Casilla de Correo 3618 (1000) Correo Central Buenos Aires - ARGENTINA Telephone: +54-1-983-6740 Modem: +54-1-958-1041 E-mail: postmaster@satlink.net postmaster@ar.net Future Plans: ============= SatLink plans to open a TCP/IP connection by the beginning of 1995. Notes: ====== Satlink is developing POPs (Points of Presence) all around Argentina in the major cities: Buenos Aires, Cordoba, La Plata, Rosario, Mendoza, Comodoro Rivadavia, etc ... Horacio Stolovitzky Internet address: root@satlink.net SatLink Uucp/Internet Gateway root@ar.net Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA root@argentina.com SatLink: Networking for the masses! ------------------------------ From: gregalex@cybernet.cse.fau.edu (Greg Alexander) Subject: Easy Asia-Pacific Roaming For Pagers and Phones Date: Tue, 03 May 94 03:41:19 EDT Organization: Cybernet BBS, Boca Raton, Florida I'm trying to help my father out by finding a way for us and his work to keep in contact with him as he travels throughout Asian countries (and sometimes Europe). We live in Australia, so the GSM Digital phones look good, but aren't yet functioning in most of the countries. Hong Kong, New Zealand and Singapore are easy to get, but Vietnam, Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia are quite difficult. Does anyone know of any company that has a pager or phone roaming feature that might work (without signing up in every country individually for our Analogue phone to have a different number everywhere (preferably :) -- that would cost alot!) I've heard a new Global Paging System is being setup for release in July, but no-one in Australia seems to know anything about it. This would seem ideal (for one-way communication). Anyone know anything? Thanks heaps, Greg galexand@ozemail.com.au (above address less frequently used) ------------------------------ From: ag786@yfn.ysu.edu (Barry Bouwsma) Subject: Cirrus Network ATM Usage in Slovakia? Date: 3 May 1994 04:13:37 GMT Organization: St. Elizabeth Hospital, Youngstown, OH Reply-To: ag786@yfn.ysu.edu (Barry Bouwsma) Yes, the money machine type of ATM. I made a post to this group somewhat over half a year ago, in which I inquired about the behavior of my money machine card when it would work, and wouldn't work, in the Slovak Republic. Shortly thereafter, the ATM card I was using was reissued, and the replacement card was supposed to work throughout the world. It seemed to, except not in Slovakia. I'm now trying to figure out if this may have been a problem with the Slovak bank network, or with my US card and bank. What I would like to ask, seeing as I never had any success trying to use the Cirrus/MasterCard/EuroCard ATMs anywhere in Slovakia from about October of 1993 through March of 1994, is whether anyone from anywhere in the US, or elsewhere in the world, might have tried to use a Cirrus card, or even a MasterCard, anywhere in Slovakia (such as in Bratislava) during this time, or recently, and whether you had success or failure with this. Of course, mail your responses directly to me rather than to the group, to help me see if this problem is unique to my bank, or if it has affected others and would then be a problem with the Slovak bank. I'm asking this of Telecom readers, because as they travel, I would expect them to pay more attention to these electronic fund transfers then your typical traveler. Thanks in advance ... Barry Bouwsma, back in Michigan, wishes he were in Europe MIME mail to , ASCII text to ------------------------------ From: boylanm@iia.org (mark boylan) Subject: Any Modem Decode DTMF? Date: 3 May 1994 00:24:41 -0400 Organization: International Internet Association. Is there a modem that can accept and decode DTMF tones after it's answered an incoming call? And also, how can I send the output of a SoundBlaster card over the same phone line? I'm trying to write an app that will allow a caller to select a .WAV file from just a phone, and then listen to it. mark ------------------------------ From: Alan M. Gallatin Subject: Programming For Mitsubishi 4000 Cellular Phone? Date: 2 May 1994 21:39:19 -0400 Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and Unix, NYC Greetings. I have a Mitsubishi 4000 cellular phone (unless I'm mistaken, it is the same as the Diamondtel 22X) -- I need to change my security code (not the lock code) and, therefore, need to get into the phone's programming mode. Does anyone have the programming code for this model (along with appropriate instructions for entering this mode)? Replies via e-mail only, please. Thanks a bunch! Alan M. Gallatin amg@panix.com amg@israel.nysernet.org amg@jerusalem1.datasrv.co.il ------------------------------ From: tdgilman@iris-1.CE.Berkeley.EDU (Tim D. Gilman) Subject: Government Regulates Number of Modem Redial Atttempts? Date: 3 May 1994 03:51:30 GMT Organization: UC Bezerkeley I was trying out new modem software yesterday, and under the option where one can specify the number of redial attempts before giving up, somthing like the following reads: "Governement regulations may limit you to 10 redials maximum." I had never heard anything about this. Out of simple curiosity, could someone enlighten myself (or others as well) on this matter? Thanks, Tim [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: That has been the case in Canada for quite a few years and I think it is true here in the USA also now. The reason is a modem has no way of knowing it is dialing a wrong number and being offensive to the human victim at the other end ... and some owners of modems could care less :( ... by limiting the number of redial attempts, the owner is forced to re-enter the data for the dialing string now and then, meaning if he entered the wrong information to start with (and as a result has been hounding some poor person for several minutes with modem calls) the chances are likely he may enter the correct string the next time he has to enter it manually. Some people, you see, leave the speaker turned off all the time and as a result don't even realize they are connecting to a live person in errror instead of another modem. I would rather have seen a rule saying that if voice was detected instead of carrier, the speaker would automatically turn on regardless of its setting and play the intercept message (or bewildered human saying 'hello' over and over) to the person at the computer. But the way they have it now with limits on the redial attempts is the next best solution. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #195 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa04652; 3 May 94 16:47 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA21263; Tue, 3 May 94 12:26:06 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA21249; Tue, 3 May 94 12:26:03 CDT Date: Tue, 3 May 94 12:26:03 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405031726.AA21249@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #196 TELECOM Digest Tue, 3 May 94 12:26:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 196 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson The Great Clipper Debate - 5/9/94 (Dave Banisar) Telecom in China (Todd Allmendinger) "The President's Analyst" is on AMC Tonight! (Jim Maurer) Re: Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Line (puma@netcom.com) Re: Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Line (Carl Oppedahl) Re: Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Line (Rich Osman) Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead (Edwin Green) Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead (Hans-Gabriel Ridder) Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead (Rob Levandowski) Re: NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! (Rich Greenberg) Re: NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! (Bill Hofmann) Re: 16 Mbps Modem for Real? (Christian Weisgerber) Re: 16 Mbps Modem for Real? (John Lundgren) Re: GM-Hughes 500 Channels (puma@netcom.com) Re: Source of 25 Pair AMP Connector to RJ11 Patchboard Needed (J. Lundgren) Re: Source of 25 Pair AMP Connector to RJ11 Patchboard Needed (J. Hennigan) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 18:17:02 +0000 From: Dave Banisar Subject: The Great Clipper Debate 5/9/94 The Great Clipper Debate: National Security or National Surveillance? Sponsored by: The Georgetown University Law Center Space Law Group and Communications Law Forum In Coordination with: The George Washington University Institute for Computer and Telecommunications Systems Policy, the Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group for Computers and Society, and the American Bar Association Criminal Justice Section. Date and Time: May 9, 1994, at 7:30 p.m. Place: The Georgetown University Law Center(Moot Court Room) 600 New Jersey Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. The Administration, through the Department of Justice and the National Security Agency, has proposed a standard encryption algorithm for both the public and commercial marketplace, with the goal of making this algorithm the method of choice for persons wishing to encode their telephone and other voice and data communications. The FBI and the NSA are concerned that the increasing availability, and affordability, of encryption mechanisms will make it difficult and in some cases impossible for law enforcement and intelligence agencies to tap into and to understand the communications of criminals and other pertinent groups. This proposal has become known as the "Clipper Chip," in that it would be implemented by the voluntary insertion of a computer chip into telephone, fax machine, and other communications systems. The Clipper Chip has generated considerable controversy. Opposing it are various civil libertarian groups, as well as telecommunications companies, software and hardware manufacturers, and trade associations. The debate has raged behind closed doors, and openly in the press. On Monday, May 9, at the Georgetown University Law School, a round table debate will take place on this controversy. The participants represent both sides of the issue, and are illustrative of the various groups which have taken a stand. The participants are: Dorothy Denning, Chairperson of the Computer Science Department of Georgetown University Michael Godwin, Legal Counsel of the Electronic Frontier Foundation; Geoffrey Greiveldinger, Special Counsel to the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section of the U.S. Department of Justice; Michael Nelson, of the Office of Science and Technology Policy of the White House; Marc Rotenberg, Director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center; and Stephen Walker, President of Trusted Information Systems, Inc., and a former cryptographer with the National Security Agency In addition, there will be two moderators: Dr. Lance Hoffman, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at The George Washington University, and Andrew Grosso, a former federal prosecutor who is now an attorney in private practice in the District of Columbia. The program will last approximately two and one half hours, and will be divided into two parts. The first half will offer the panel the opportunity to respond to questions which have been submitted to the participants beforehand; the second will present the panel with questions from the audience. There is no charge for this program, and members of the public are encouraged to attend. Reservations are requested in advance, and should be directed to one of the following individuals: - C. Dianne Martin, Associate Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, The George Washington University, Phillips Hall, Room 624-C, Washington, D.C. 20052; telephone: (202) 994-8238; E mail: diannem@seas.gwu.edu - Sherrill Klein, Staff Director, ABA Criminal Justice Section,1800 M Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036; telephone: (202) 331-2624; fax: (202) 331-2220 - Francis L. Young, Young & Jatlow, 2300 N Street, N.W., Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20037; telephone: (202) 663-9080; fax: (202) 331-8001 Questions for the panelists should be submitted, in writing, to one of the moderators: - Lance Hoffman, Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C. 20052; fax: (202) 994-0227; E mail: ictsp@seas.gwu.edu - Andrew Grosso, 2300 N Street, N.W., Suite 600, Washington, D.C., 20037; fax: (202) 663-9042; E mail: agrosso@acm.org ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 08:46:23 MST From: Todd Allmendinger <24874@ef.gc.maricopa.edu> Subject: Telecom in China I am working on a project concerning leased line digital telecommunications, using satellite links. I understand a joint equity venture is not possible, however a joint revenue sharing agreement is permitted, and in use by several companies. I am interested in talking with some telecommunications persons in China. Either from the MPT, regional local PTT or some of the other minitries such as Minstry of Electronics who operate their own networks, CHINAPAC etc. I will be in Harbin for June and July and in Bejing for a few days in Aug. I plan to attend the information technology conference in Beijing. I would also like to find out about upcoming conferences either in China or outside of China which will talk about telecommunicat- ions in China. Again these could be related to MPT organizations or Other Ministries that have their own networks. Please respond directly to my E-mail address. Thank you. Todd Allmendinger 24874@ef.gc.maricopa.edu ------------------------------ Subject: "The President's Analyst" is on AMC Tonight! Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 09:41:03 PDT From: Jim Maurer The movie "The President's Analyst" will be on the cable channel AMC tonight at 9:30 pm (at least in California, check your local listings). I'm sure it'll be on again, but I don't know any dates or times. Be sure to watch it and find out how the Bell System took over control of the government in the 1960's!!!! Classic Telecom entertainment! Jim Maurer Specialix Inc. jim@specialix.com +1-408-378-7919 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 18:42:52 -0700 From: puma@netcom.com (puma) Subject: Re: Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Telephone Line In article is written: > My home is wired for two residential telephone lines. Because of my > proximity to an am radio transmitter (am 1550khz), many of my audio > and telephone devices suffer from "radio noise", from that one station > only though. Some days it is worse than others, some days there is no > interference at all. > The local telco has installed several blue capacitors(?) at the demark box > on my house. > Please respond via e-mail to ld18@clark.edu. The problem with radio-frequency energy actually becomes a problem when it ends up at "a something" that demodulates it, then you hear the signal. One potential 'something' is anything containing semiconductor electronics. Another 'something' is any kind of a poor connection, which sometimes acts as a diode. You can fight this by reducing the signal. Capacitors/RF filters at the demarc and capacitors across the carbon mike in a telephone (it's non-linear and will demodulate RF) are good starts. A ferrite choke (donut) placed near the telephone, with the line cord making a couple turns through it, is another common tactic. Non-electronic phones often are less of a problem (although less functional) than electronic ones. Visit your local amateur radio / electronics shop for parts and advice. Good luck! puma@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: oppedahl@panix.com (Carl Oppedahl) Subject: Re: Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Telephone Line Date: 3 May 1994 00:26:02 -0400 Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and Unix, NYC In Dirk Menzel writes: > I have had all of the affected telephone devices modified by their > respective manufacturers ... the problem persist on a recently puchased > Panasonic KXT3175, two-line, Easa-Phone. > The local telco has installed several blue capacitors(?) at the demark box > on my house. > I have tried to eliminate the Panasonic telephone as the culprit by > putting it in a metal breadbox (really!!!), with no success. This was unlikely to have helped. > I believe that the noise is entering the line via a TP four-conductor > cable strung along the outside of my home. Could be. > At this point I am open to suggestions. Might I be able to install a > filter (to filter out mainly 1550khz) right at the telephone? I would consider installing low-pass filters at many locations, to break up your lines so that they are unlikely to present any resonant lengths. > (I use one of my lines for voice and modem.) A commercially available > inline filter (#Z100B1), besides being a single line device, did not > have any effect. You can filter each line (red/green and yellow/black) separately. Pick up the May issue of QST. It has ads in the back from companies that sell phone line filters, and it has an article on the FCC testing phones tht turn out to be bulletproof against RF interference. Carl Oppedahl AA2KW Oppedahl & Larson (patent lawyers) Yorktown Heights, NY voice 212-777-1330 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 2 May 94 18:13:20 CDT From: ROsman@swri.edu Subject: Re: Radio Frequency Interference on Residential Telephone Line > My home is wired for two residential telephone lines. Because of my > proximity to an am radio transmitter (am 1550khz), many of my audio > and telephone devices suffer from "radio noise", from that one station > only though. Some days it is worse than others, some days there is no > interference at all. This is an increasingly common problem. Newer more electronic devices have more opportunities for rectification and internal amplification. This makes them more susceptable to this kind of interference. I have an AM Spanish-language station 3/4 of a mile from the house -- same problem in my bulletprook ole' 1A2. The problem is occurring in the music-on-hold receiver or amp. > I have had all of the affected telephone devices modified by their > respective manufacturers ... the problem persist on a recently puchased > Panasonic KXT3175, two-line, Easa-Phone. **IF** the problem appears on both lines equally, then it is probably the Easa-Phone. My guess is that the variation in the problem correlates to wet weather or wet ground. If you are powering the phone off the wall (not the phone line), see if you can run it off a battery temporarily. Unplugging the phone lines may tell you something, but I'll bet they need to be plugged in to see the problem, even if it's coming in the power line. It is possible that it's sneaking in the power connection. There are some off-the-shelf filters available to add addtional filtering in the line. I'll have to see what I can spot. I'll be you get other notes suggesting brands and sources. How many devices are on the line with the Easa-Phone? Does the problem appear on both lines? The bad news is that the problem may actually be occurring in another device and only appears on Easa-Phone. If the problem is not on both lines, you might try swapping lines into the Easa-Phone, and try swapping devices between lines. > The local telco has installed several blue capacitors(?) at the > demark box on my house. *Ahem*, condensers my good man! These really are caps, and are good for certain applications, but I'm found them to be really useful only when installed inside early (read: non-electronic hybrid) 500/2500 sets. Since you have already said that you've had the Panny modified by them, I'd try external filtering at the phone. The blue cans are cute, but I don't hold a lot of hope for them. A good commercial filter is the best bet. > I have tried to eliminate the Panasonic telephone as the culprit by > putting it in a metal breadbox (really!!!), with no success. It's unlikely that this will help. The problem is probably coming in the phone or power line. The only way this *might* help is if the problem was occurring in the phone itself, and them you'd need to be sure the grounds were all correct and that the lid really was grounded too. Try putting an AM radio tuned to 1550 in the breadbox and see what happens. Try tuning another strong local station. > I believe that the noise is entering the line via a TP four-conductor > cable strung along the outside of my home. Why do you believe this? > At this point I am open to suggestions. Might I be able to install a > filter (to filter out mainly 1550khz) right at the telephone? (I use Right at the phone, or better yet inside are the only really useful locations in this kind case. > one of my lines for voice and modem.) A commercially available inline > filter (#Z100B1), besides being a single line device, did not have any > effect. Whose part number is that and what were it's specifications? Many of these are designed to combat higher frequency problems (like CB) and are inneffective at AM broadcast frequencies. > Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am fairly technically and > mechanically competent and could handle minor electrical modifications > with limited instructions. One thing I'd try is to e-mail info@arrl.org and ask them for their lastest RFI brochure. It's written from the standpoint of a ham trying to solve his own problems and prevent problems with and for neighbors. I think there's also a note in the archives under RFI or somesuch. Oz@SwRI.edu (Rich Osman) (210) 522-5050 (w) (210) 699-1302 (h;v/msg/fax) ------------------------------ From: egg@inuxs.att.com (Edwin Green) Date: Tue, 3 May 94 07:41:47 EST Subject: Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead Organization: AT&T In article is written: > (Newcomers: The Public Phone 2000 was a venture attempted by AT&T a > few years ago. Essentially, computer terminals were placed at many > international airports in the U.S. With a calling card, you could > place calls anywhere there was a modem, without having to worry about > bringing your own laptop and somehow connecting it to a pay phone. > Unfortunately, it turned out the phone terminals were not tariffed, > so AT&T had to disable the terminal feature pending approval.) > I had the chance to spend a couple of hours at the St. Louis International > Airport this weekend, and I saw a couple of AT&T Public Phone 2000 > booths, so I decided to check them out. Alas, what I found were plain > old pay phones. I suppose this means that AT&T has decided to give up. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: That's a shame, because the 2000's were > a very useful service. Too bad it did not work out. PAT] The reports of our death are premature! We received partial approval from the FCC to turn on terminal emulation, but not full approval. We have been waiting since March to turn it back on. It could be any day or it could be months. At any rate, when we get approval I will let you know. Edwin G. Green AT&T Bell Laboratories Indianapolis, Indiana, USA INH 1A-519 317-845-3659 egg@inuxs.att.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Please do! I'll be happy to post it here and let everyone know the 2000 phones are back in full service. PAT] ------------------------------ From: ridder@zowie.zso.dec.com (Hans) Subject: Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead Date: 3 May 1994 16:37:27 GMT Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation - DECwest Engineering In article John C. Fowler writes: > I had the chance to spend a couple of hours at the St. Louis International > Airport this weekend, and I saw a couple of AT&T Public Phone 2000 > booths, so I decided to check them out. Alas, what I found were plain > old pay phones. I suppose this means that AT&T has decided to give up. I was in the Alaska Airlines terminal at the Seattle-Tacoma airport two weeks ago, and saw a couple of Public Phone 2000's *with keyboard*. I didn't have time to check them out ... I assume they were working since after the tariff problems all the keyboards seem to have been removed. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: That's a shame, because the 2000's were > a very useful service. Too bad it did not work out. PAT] Since John based his remarks on his experience in one airport, and not from any offical announcements from AT&T, it's probably a bit premature to be speaking in the past tense, don't you think? Hans-Gabriel Ridder DECwest Engineering, Bellevue, Washington, USA ------------------------------ From: rlvd_cif@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Rob Levandowski) Subject: Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead Organization: University of Rochester - Rochester, New York Date: Tue, 3 May 94 00:41:11 GMT It strikes me as odd, too ... considering that the 2000s have been very visible in some episodes of the NBC-TV show "Viper" lately as videophones -- logo, name and all -- I had been wondering if AT&T was considering a new use for them. Especially considering the way AT&T has been pushing videophone technology of late. One would imagine it would not be impossible to retrofit the 2000s with video codecs ... Perhaps not cost-effective, but possible. Rob Levandowski Computer Interest Floor associate / University of Rochester macwhiz@cif.rochester.edu ------------------------------ From: richgr@netcom.com (Rich Greenberg) Subject: Re: NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! Organization: Netcom Online Communications Services (408-241-9760 login: guest) Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 22:36:32 GMT In article justfred@netcom.com (Fred Heald) writes: > To my surprise this morning I found that a feature I've been asking for > forever finally works! [...] > Netcom) I accidentally dialed the 1-818, and the call went through! > Since I'm in PacBel land, I'm hoping they've implemented this all over > the area. FINALLY! and yet with no fanfare or even notice -- I guess > they'd be admitting a mistake. I am in the 310 part of Pa Bell, and it worked here also. Thanks Pa. Rich Greenberg Work: ETi Solutions, Oceanside & L.A. CA 310-348-7677 N6LRT TinselTown, USA Play: richgr@netcom.com 310-649-0238 ------------------------------ From: wdh@netcom.com (Bill Hofmann) Subject: Re: NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 03:04:02 GMT This has been the case in 510 since October. Bill Hofmann wdh@netcom.COM Fresh Software and Instructional Design +1 510 524 0852 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 22:30:00 +0200 From: naddy@mips.ruessel.sub.org (Christian Weisgerber) Subject: Re: 16 Mbps Modem for Real? In comp.dcom.telecom was written: > Has anyone heard of a small company called Digital Compression > Technology (DCT)? It claims it can move 16 Mbps of various kinds of > data down a regular telephone line (yes, that's 16 MEGABITS per ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ > "DCT technology lets telephone wire simultaneously carry [ a lot ] ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ > Is this for real or is DCT a couple of engineering students with some > vaporware, a fax machine, and a gift for self-promotion? Quite possibly this is real. However, you're completely misinterpreting the achievement. Those people move 16Mbps over telephone type cabling, comparable to, say, Twistet Pair Ethernet (10Base-T). They're not doing this over the traditional PSTN. There's no reason to get particularly excited. Christian 'naddy' Weisgerber, Germany naddy@mips.ruessel.sub.org ------------------------------ From: jlundgre@kn.pacbell.com (John Lundgren) Subject: Re: 16 Mbps Modem for Real? Date: 02 May 94 18:36:33 GMT Organization: Pacific Bell Knowledge Network I thought CDDI and fast ethernet were already here. In this case, the 16MBPS modem sounds more like a CSU/DSU, or TA. If so, then the phone co. would provide service at whatever speed your heart and wallet desires. If you want 45MBPS, then they will provide it. They may decide the most practical solution is to provide fiber to your location, or a microwave link if it's more cost effective. You hook up your 16MBPS thingy, and away you go. ------------------------------ From: puma@netcom.com (puma) Subject: Re: GM-Hughes 500 Channels Organization: organized?? me? Date: Mon, 02 May 1994 21:51:14 GMT In article , A. Padgett Peterson wrote: > A couple of months ago Hughes was advertising for technicians to > service their new small-dish satellite TV system (500 channel?). Does > anyone know what the status is, when it will become available, or have > a contact phone or E-Mail number ? Reply to: padgett@tccslr.dnet.mmc.com From the Friday, April 22nd, {Milwaukee Journal} The DBS dishes are small, about 18 inches in diameter vs. 6 to 10 feet across for conventional satellite dishes. DBS dishes are also less expensive. Suggested retail prices range from $700 to $900, quite a bit lower than the $2,000 to $3,000 cost of the larger dishes. They will be manufactured by Thomson Consumer Electronics and sold under the RCA brand name. Up to 150 channels will be available through DBS, including most major cable channels and premium stations like HBO. Programming will be provided by DirecTV, a unit of GB Hughes Electronics, and United States Satellite Broadcasting. Users will have to pay monthly fees ranging from $22 to $35, depending on the channels they want. puma@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: jlundgre@kn.pacbell.com (John Lundgren) Subject: Re: Source of 25 Pair AMP Connector to RJ11 Patchboard Needed Date: 03 May 94 10:11:30 GMT Organization: Pacific Bell Knowledge Network Joseph McGuckin (josephm@pumasillo.San-Jose.ate.slb.com) wrote: > I'm looking for a rack mountable patchboard that accepts a 25 pair AMP > connector and fans it out to 25 RJ11's. > Joe josephm@San-Jose.ate.slb.com ^^^^^^^^ You look like you're within a reasonable distance from Fry's Electronics. Check them out. The one here in Orange County has a fairly good supply of stuff such as octopus cables, etc. for telecomm. Best of success. ------------------------------ From: jay@coyote.rain.org (Jay Hennigan) Subject: Re: Source of 25 Pair AMP Connector to RJ11 Patchboard Needed Date: 03 May 1994 06:15:01 -0700 Organization: Regional Access Information Network (RAIN) In article josephm@pumasillo.San-Jose. ate.slb.com (Joseph McGuckin) writes: > I'm looking for a rack mountable patchboard that accepts a 25 pair AMP > connector and fans it out to 25 RJ11's. Try Allen-Tel (sold by Graybar) for their model AT125-SM. This does what you want but it's surface-mount. Bolt one (or more) to a blank rack panel and you're done. Jay Hennigan jay@rain.org ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #196 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa05651; 3 May 94 18:29 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA24764; Tue, 3 May 94 14:11:06 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA24751; Tue, 3 May 94 14:11:02 CDT Date: Tue, 3 May 94 14:11:02 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405031911.AA24751@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #197 TELECOM Digest Tue, 3 May 94 14:11:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 197 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: NANP and Switches (James Slupsky) Re: NANP and Switches (Carl Moore) Re: X.25 Networks (Doug Gurich) X.21 Testing (Gabor Fencsik) Sun and X25 (James Slupsky) Information on X.25 and Other CCITT Documents (Emmet Hikory) Re: Demise of Newsgroups Feared (Barry Mishkind) Re: More Information Needed on Motorola 550 Programming (John Barcomb) Re: DunsNet (Thrivikrama Shenoy) Re: Connect a Card Reader to a Cell Phone? (George Beuselinck) Re: Connect a Card Reader to a Cell Phone? (Sean Donelan) Re: Equal Access in Canada (Carl Moore) Re: Equal Access in Canada (Matthew Stone) Re: Phoning Cuba (John R. Levine) Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 (Emmet Hikory) Re: CO's and Disasters (Tom Watson) Computer Information Systems (Terri M. Kouba) Re: Telco MUX to Home? (David Kiviat) Re: GSM and Airbags (John Lundgren) Re: DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 (John Lundgren) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 11:39:00 +0700 From: jslupsky@pwss.gov.ab.ca (James Slupsky) Subject: Re: NANP and Switches > In article is written: >> We currently have a Northern Telecom Meridian Option 61 (software >> relase 17) with 44 DID trunks, a T1 for long distance, and about 1300 >> active phones. We have been told by Ameritech that, in order for us >> to be able to comply with the implementation of the new North American >> Numbering Plan (NANP) on January 1, 1995, we must upgrade our switch >> with an additional memory card, another ROM board and software release >> 19. My questions are (1) is this really necessary and (2) can we wait >> until the middle of 1995 before doing this and still provide access >> via NANP? Any help out there would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. In answer to question one, no. Firstly, if you are using an access code to dial outside calls (such as "9"), then your software will not care what digits are dialed after that. An exception is if your local area gets an NXX (that's the first three digits of your seven digit phone number) that has a "1" or a "0" as the second digit. In that case, if you have assigned a COS which restricts toll calls to that local, the call will be blocked. This is not a very large possibility, since it will take time for telco's to introduce these NXX's. For Toll calls, you would not have this problem. Just tell all the users that Toll calls MUST be 10 digits, and you MUST use a "1" in front of the 10 digits. (so a typical toll call might look like -assuming you access outgoing trunks using "9"- "9 1 520 447 5003". Your switch will cheerfully pass "1 520 447 5003" to the serving CO. In answer to two, yes. It is unlikely that you will run into NXX codes using a "1" or "0" as the second digit for some time to come. One small problem with CDR however. You should change your CDR collection options from OTL (Only Toll Calls) to OAL (All calls). The presence of the "1" or "0" as part of the NXX may cause problems for the OTL option. Regards, James Slupsky, P.Eng. (jslupsky@pwss.gov.ab.ca) (403)427-0896 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 94 06:50:33 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Re: NANP and Switches Just my idea: be wary of companies taking advantage of the change (area codes being generalized) to push across expensive new equipment. Perhaps dust off anecdotes about people on the east coast in the 1970s trying to reach prefixes of N0X/N1X form in southern California? No other area codes had such prefixes until New York City around the end of 1980. On further thought: the old equipment (along with the old area codes) is useable until you start reaching full cutover for the NNX area codes. But it's been known (certainly in the Digest) for years that NNX area codes were coming. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 11:39:51 CST From: Doug_Gurich@fcircus.sat.tx.us (Doug Gurich) Subject: Re: X.25 Networks > I'm looking for data connectivity between Chicago and Milan Italy. > I'm guessing that X.25 will be cheaper than a leased line, but I'm > having a heck of a time finding anyone to quote me a price. Does > anyone have any thoughts about relative pricing? I assume Telenet and > Tymnet are still around. Anyone know where? Chris, I believe GlobalCom International can help you with your data connectivity problems. We routinely provide quotes for international leased lines and other services such as X.25, ISDN, etc. It is difficult to say whether X.25 would be cheaper than a leased line in your situation, without knowing more detail. However, in the interim I can provide you with a rough measure as to what costs a leased line would entail. Just a few days ago, we quoted a 56/64 Kbps line for a customer wishing to connect New York City with Rome, Italy. Because of the difference in US termination points, I will leave off the US local loop costs. However, the longhaul portion would be the same in your case. We quoted a price of $6,690/month for both the US 1/2 circuit and the Italy 1/2 circuit combined. Without knowing your expected usage volume, I cannot say whether this cost would be justified. You would be able to use the circuit 24 hours a day and could even mux the line into 4-6 distinct channels which you could use for data or voice (with the appropriate equipment), but it still may be more than you are willing to pay if your usage is relatively low. Doug Gurich GlobalCom International ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 12:32:08 PDT From: gabor@sbei.com (Gabor Fencsik) Subject: X.21 Testing I am looking for equipment to test/simulate X.21 interfaces (both DTE and DCE). I would appreciate any pointers, including vendor recommendations and/or war stories from past product testing efforts. Thanks. Gabor Fencsik VOX: (510)355-7725 Manager, Comm Software FAX: (510)355-2020 SBE, Inc. Email: gabor@sbei.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 14:26:48 +0700 From: jim@isnpo1.pwss.gov.ab.ca (James Slupsky) Subject: Sun and X25 I run X25 connections on a Sparc 10 myself, using Brixton's BrxX25 software. I have developed my own applications using their API. I don't have many connections open simultaneously (currently three, sometimes 4), but the programs work fine, and I haven't noticed any effect on performance. Regards, James Slupsky, P.Eng. (send replies to: jslupsky@pwss.gov.ab.ca) (403)427-0896 ------------------------------ Subject: Information on X.25 and Other CCITT Documents Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 22:38:46 EDT From: Emmet Hikory The ITU maintains a document store that includes the CCITT standard definitions. Information about this service can be obtained by sending a message to itudoc@itu.ch with HELP in the message body. If I remember correctly CCITT has changed their name to the ITU Telecommunications Standardization Sector. More useful information is available from ITU directly. Emmet Hikory ehikory@lynx.dac.neu.edu [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I would like to remind readers that this Digest is funded in part by a grant from the ITU, and the Digest is available for retrieval from that organization's public ftp directory. I'm quite thankful for their valuable assistance, and hope that if you have not yet sent a note of approval to them you will do so today. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 11:03 MST From: barry@coyote.datalog.com (barry mishkind) Subject: Re: Demise of Newsgroups Feared Organization: Datalog Consulting, Tucson, AZ You raise some excellent points. In an interview printed in the {Arizona Daily Star}, Canter claims that not only will he do it again, but he is going to write a book telling others how to advertise on the net. He sure is getting his full value of publicity. A post in another newsgroup suggested asking for information, and at least making them mail out material. Phoning them, or flaming them may simply encourage them to do more ... Of greater import, as Pat pointed out, the entire structure of the net is threatened as the growing cyberchildren each try their hand at abusing the 5000 or so newsgroups with more and more garbage. I wouldn't be surprised to find somewhere a little program designed, with the data already entered, to hit every newsgroup with a message. That, the gB of porno moved around the globe each day, and the recent reports that some radio stations are planning to "feed" their programs into the net seem to me to be likely cataylsts for some bureaucrat to try to get a law passed for a "Net Czar" would will administer (for a user fee, payable to the government, assessed like the long distancs access fee) the whole pie, and decide what can and can't be used. The old notion of being a good neighbor has broken down in the world. We can see it in the rude, abusive way people treat each other in public, on the road, and especially in poor sections of town. The children who discovered the Net have been extremely good at screaming about their "first amendment rights" to use any language they wish, send any file they wish, and generally fill the Net with their "scrawlings". Total anarchy brings control. Control will change the net ... and it will cost us all. Regards, Barry Mishkind barry@coyote.datalog.com Tucson, Arizona [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: That First Amendment always has been a troublesome thing ... all the Bill of Rights was written under the mistaken assumption that citizens in the USA would take *responsibilty* for their actions and words; under the mistaken assumption that people would know the difference between *freedom* on the one hand and *license* on the other. Sadly, that is becoming less and less the case. The Bill of Rights will cause the ultimate demise of the United States. Not today, not this month, but over the next hundred years or so, maybe less. At nearly 218 years of age, our country and government is one of the oldest in the world. Very few last as long as our has, and ours is definitly showing signs of old age and decay. The gradual decay of Usenet is just one small part of the picture. Violent crime is epidemic in the USA. All the prisons in the world are not going to contain it or slow it down, and anyway, prisons only are able to operate when they have the cooperation of the prisoners; witness Attica two decades ago or New Mexico several years ago. Enjoy the Bill of Rights while it lasts! Lots of things that fifty years ago were unthinkable are starting to become more and more 'thinkable' where the government is concerned. Enjoy Usenet! PAT] ------------------------------ From: uswnvg!uswnvg.com!jbarcom@uunet.UU.NET (John Barcomb) Subject: Re: More Information Needed on Motorola 550 Programming Date: 03 May 94 17:56:10 GMT Lance Ware (lware@voxel.com) wrote: > Earlier I requested general programming info on the Motorola 550. I > am now looking for more info on the 61#, 66#, and 69# functions > pertaining to ESN and identity transfer. If anyone can assist me I > would appreciate it greatly. Specifically I wish to place the ESN from > my already registered Fujitsu Mobile phone into my handheld motorola. > This is a legitimate use and is not illegal. Sounds pretty strange to me. Those #xx# functions you talk about are for a Motorola Universal Loaner phone program. There is a special box used to transfer the identity from your phone into a phone that is set to all zeros. After the transfer, the ESN in your original phone is set to "FFFFFFFF". The phone goes to Motorola, where they reset it and then send it back to the shop to do the reverse transfer after a repair is completed. John ------------------------------ From: vikram@merlin.dev.cdx.mot.com (Thrivikrama Shenoy) Subject: Re: DunsNet Reply-To: vikram@merlin.dev.cdx.mot.com (Thrivikrama Shenoy) Organization: Motorola Codex, Canton, MA Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 18:49:04 GMT DunsNet is a corporate packet switching network of Dun & Bradstreet Corporation. It is a X.25 packet switching network spanning U.S, Europe, Australia. Recently I heard it reached India too. The network is used mainly to deliver Information services offered by subsidiaries of Dun & Bradstreet Corporation. The subsidiaries offer variety of services; most popular is the corporate credit report services. In addition the network carries services of OAG, McCormick & Dodge (?), Donnelly Directory, A.C. Neilsen Co etc. As far as I know, only user contact with the network as one of customers using the services offered -- using a Async dial-in connection. Vikram Shenoy ------------------------------ From: cexer@csbh.com (George Beuselinck) Subject: Re: Connect a Card Reader to a Cell Phone Organization: Performance Systems Int'l Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 11:52:32 GMT What you are trying to do can't be too tough. After all, Hertz and Avis do it all the time. Perhaps the easiest way would be to rent a car with the cellular phone installed ... George Beuselinck Porsche 944 Ecology georgeb@csbh.com ------------------------------ From: Sean Donelan Subject: Re: Connect a Card Reader to a Cell Phone? Date: 03 May 94 04:17:17 CDT Organization: Data Research Associates, St. Louis MO In article , Andrew C. Green writes: > My father is exploring ways of setting up a credit card authorization > terminal for one afternoon's use at an outdoor concert. He has the use You might want to contact Verifone, Inc. They have been advertising a card authorization system that uses cellular telephones for use in taxi cabs. It might be useful in your application. A lot of banks also resell/lease Verifone equipment (at rather massive markups), so you might ask your local bank. Yes, I know more than likely the bank will be clueless, but that is the drill. Supposedly Verifone was working with the cellular telephone companies on getting a special air rate for these calls. I don't know if they had any success. Most "mobile" merchants seem to have found it too expensive though. Some just chance it, and don't get any on-line authorization batching them up till later. Others use a cellular telephone for voice authorizations. No one seems terribly concerned about broadcasting credit card numbers in the clear. After all, its illegal for unauthorized people to listen to cellular frequencies, isn't it? Sean Donelan, Data Research Associates, Inc, St. Louis, MO Domain: sean@dra.com, Voice: (Work) +1 314-432-1100 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yes it is illegal, and yes people listen illegally to cellular calls. However there is very little risk of fraud by passing credit card numbers in this way. One, there has to be someone listening to a scanner which is in the proximity of the tower from which the message is being transmitted. Two, they have to have their scanner land on the channel (out of 832 such channels) during the five seconds or so that the card number is being read. Third, credit card verification involves reading the number, the expiration date and the amount of the sale -- not the name and address of the card holder. Fourth, without having physical possession of the card they cannot make purchases in stores. Fifth, with only the number but no name or address to go with it they cannot very easily engage in mail order fraud. Sixth, without having actual possession of the card they cannot see who the issuer of it was -- unless they have the list of four digit (starting with three for AMEX, four for VISA, five for MC or six for DISCOVER) codes telling which bank (or credit grantor) issued the card -- thus no calls can be made to customer service putting in bogus inquiries or name/address changes. In short, a non-issue here. If I were going to rip off credit card numbers, PINS and related data, I would find it far easier to tap the phone line used by an ATM machine and put some kind of data capture device on that instead ... yet people use ATMs quite willingly. So what's the beef about cellular phones and credit card numbers? On the one in a million chance someone *might* happen to hear your credit card number read, what is it gonna get them? PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 05:38:15 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Re: Equal Access in Canada Back in January, I went to Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. before turning around back into the U.S. I got to a pay phone on 705-759 there, and 10288 didn't work (I then omitted it, got the "boing" for Bell Canada, then punched in my AT&T card number and the call, going to the U.S., went through). The call didn't make it to my phone bill until March, and it was in the AT&T part of the bill. So there are no 10xxx codes currently useable in Canada? The Orange Card did work from there. That went through as being from "800" as happens in many places in the U.S. ------------------------------ From: mstone@nyx10.cs.du.edu (Matthew Stone) Subject: Re: Equal Access in Canada Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept. Date: Tue, 3 May 94 00:39:13 GMT Does anyone know what companies will be offering equal access when it comes into service July 1st? And the access codes to access the different LD companies? [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I have been told it will by and large follow the USA numbering scheme; i.e. 10288 for Mother, 10222 for MCI, etc. with Canadian-only carriers getting a few numbers as well. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 11:56 EDT From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: Phoning Cuba Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. > Does anyone know how to phone Cuba for a reasonable amount of money > from the U.S.? > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Calls to most areas of Cuba ... > must be placed through the AT&T International Operator. Recent news reports say that Wiltel and MCI have arranged to re-establish cable service to Cuba. Apparently the head of Wiltel was born in Cuba and used informal contacts to get the arrangements made. AT&T was not real pleased and may have filed regulatory complaints that could delay the start of service. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ Subject: Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 13:45:44 EDT From: Emmet Hikory I called AT&T about the data communications potential of the Public Phone 2000 about eight months ago, and after being referred to many departments, was told that the FCC had told AT&T they couldn't have public access data terminals for unspecified reasons. Due to the time involved, my memory is a little vague on all of this, but I seem to remember that AT&T was pursuing the possiblilty. Emmet Hikory ehikory@lynx.dac.neu.edu ------------------------------ From: tsw@cypher.apple.com (Tom Watson) Subject: Re: CO's and Disasters Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 09:02:53 -0800 Organization: Apple Computer (more or less) In article , Thomas Tengdin wrote: > The telephone company computers will connect some customers > at a higher priority that others. > Is there something in CO Class of Service? or other programming that > gives "priority" service to a select class of lines? Yes, they DO exist. Will the local operating company tell you if you are one of the selected few, NO! The reason for this is that they want some traffic to get through. In addition, they will usually pick out one house in a block and give it the "good" treatment. The object here is to at least let some people get out. This load-leveling (there is a snazzy term for it, but I don't remember) usually relates to the priorities in getting dial tone. In addition, they can deny dial tone to the "unfornatate", but when I talked to the head of the CO (admititally a few years ago) he said that "turning the switch" requires a MOUND of paper work, and justification, and they will avoid doing at ALL cost. The capability exists though. Tom Watson Not much simpler!! tsw@cypher.apple.com ------------------------------ From: kouba@uclink.berkeley.edu (Terri M Kouba) Subject: Computer Information Systems Date: 03 May 1994 15:41:18 GMT Organization: University of California, Berkeley Hello. My name is Terri Kouba. I work in the Telecommunications Department at the University of California at Berkeley. I have been assigned a project to bring in a new Telecommunications Management Information System for the department. This system includes, but is not limited to: order processing, billing, call costing, call routing, directory services, equipment inventory, cable management, and management information systems. This system can either be purchased software packages or written in-house. The Telecommunications Department provides voice and data service to over 18,000 sites. The campus phone systems are connected to and served by a dedicated Pacific Bell Centrex switch. In addition to voice communications and modem services, the department also provides data circuits for point-to-point data connections, ISDN lines, wireless services, and alarm circuits. As part of my analysis, I need to get a feel for what kinds of computer information systems are currently out there. I would appreciate it if you could spare a few minutes and answer some questions and/or offer some advice. I want to thank you in advance, for your time and information. What kind of order processing, billing, reporting, telecommunications information system(s) do you currently use? On what hardware platform(s)? Are you satisfied with the system? Is it integrated with other systems (i.e., campus general ledger, directory services, network traffic analyzers, etc)? Can customers look at their ordering/billing information on-line? How are you getting the SMDR information? What software are you using to do your cost-a-call processing? Do you know of any software vendors who may have a system which could handle all or some of the above-listed items? If so, could you please pass their name and number on to me? Do you know of anyone tackling the same sort of project? If so, could you please pass their name and number on to me? Any software/hardware vendors reading this are free to call me and/or send me information. At this point I am requesting information and am open to all solutions. Thank you for your time. Terri M. Kouba University of California at Berkeley Telecommunications 2168 Shattuck Ave., Suite 310 Berkeley, CA 94720 (510) 642-3724 ------------------------------ From: davidk@netcom.com (David Kiviat) Subject: Re: Telco MUX to Home? Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 01:12:28 GMT Kendall Willis (kowillis@umr.edu) wrote: > Roger Marquis (marquis@netcom.com) wrote: > When Pac Bell recently installed a second line into my (1940s) apartment > building they didn't run any new wire but instead installed a new demark/ > junction box. When I opened this box to connect my second line I was > surprised to find only the one original line going in, and _two_ lines > coming out! Could it be my lines are MUXed to the local switch? I definately have one of these installed. I have a four conductor cable coming in to my house and have three phone lines now. Apparently they started installing these around six months ago. I believe they started using these to avoid having to dig lots of trenches as a Pac Bell employee told me that if you need a trench dug now they WILL do the work. This is a change from their policy of a year ago where I was told that since my phone line had been direct buried with no pipe around it I would have to dig a conforming trench to get a third line installed. Perhaps the PUC cuased this change because of people electrocuting themselves while trying to dig trenches to add phone lines. The audio quality using the 'DAML', which is the installer's name for this device is not noticeably affected by the unit. I can't say anything about its effect on computer modems because my PC is on the non-muxed line. However I recently discovered to my distress that there is a sort of 'bug' to these systems. If there is ever any trouble on your phone line the unit will shut down and STAY down till a repairperson comes by and 'shorts' the inside of the device. This has already caused a 24 hour shutdown when some sort of ground fault on one of my phone lines during a storm shut off the entire unit (2 phone lines) till someone could come and fix it. The unit I have is made by Raychem. dk ------------------------------ From: jlundgre@kn.pacbell.com (John Lundgren) Subject: Re: GSM and Airbags Date: 03 May 94 09:01:59 GMT Organization: Pacific Bell Knowledge Network Pregnant from using a cellular phone ... happens all the time, just ask any escort service. The problem is that the inertial sensor that detects the excessive G-force of a crash has some wires from the contacts to the trigger circuit. If the sires are about the length of a 1/4 wave at the cellular feequency, or a multiple thereof, then they will act as an antenna. The trigger circuit rectifies the signal, and thinks it's a valid contact closure. Ka-Boom. Instant airbag. My own thoughts were that the airbag system would be much more susceptible to CB and Ham radio, because they are so much higher power than a phone. But the airbag system could have short wires, and not pick them up since they are lower frequency and longer wavelength. ------------------------------ From: jlundgre@kn.pacbell.com (John Lundgren) Subject: Re: DID, PBX and University Phones, SL-100 Date: 03 May 94 17:39:13 GMT Organization: Pacific Bell Knowledge Network We are currently being serviced by Pac Bell Centrex, at our local Community College, where I work. We have all of the (714)564-4xxx, 5xxx, and 6xxx numbers, but we have about 1500 of them used. No wonder that the telcos need more area codes ... The rate for a local line is $17.25 per month for the line, which isn't a lot more than a 1MB measured business line. But that's just in our local exchange CO. Our other campus is in an adjacent Foreign Exchange, and it costs us another $25 a month for each line, total $42.25. Ouch. Well, when the budget crunch hit a year or two ago, we cut back on as many FX lines as we could. So, the other post says that a Centrex isn't a good deal. WE are using a David Systems manager to give us the features that we had with our old 1A2 Key system. But the phones cost $300+ each, and a lousy wall bracket costs $45. But we're stuck with the managers because our network runs through them. WE will be rewiring our buildings with 10baseT in the near future, so I'm thinking that that would remove the network from the managers, and allow us to go with whatever PBX we wanted. Trouble is that it won't ever happen because of politics, so just a thought. WEll, it sounds like the cheaper way to go is having your own PBX, but there are a lot of IFs, like who supports them, since they're just like a mainframe computer. Our managers have had to be relocated because of problems with air conditioning, etc. and we've had to put in air ducts. I wonder what would happen to a PBX. Our phone bill used to run around $30K a month before the cutbacks. There seems to be some room for saving money. One of my suggestions was to upgrade our links to other campuses from 56KB to a microwave. But it looks like the choice will be T1 or a fractional T1. We may be getting bridges that do compression, so that should help. Who knows what the future will bring. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #197 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa10376; 4 May 94 3:18 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06526; Tue, 3 May 94 23:38:04 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06517; Tue, 3 May 94 23:38:03 CDT Date: Tue, 3 May 94 23:38:03 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405040438.AA06517@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #198 TELECOM Digest Tue, 3 May 94 23:38:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 198 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Book Review: "Modems for Dummies" by Rathbone (Rob Slade) IXC Timing Problem (Linda Slovick) Help: Bogen 2-line Friday AND Distinctive Ring Call Router (R. La Ferla) CONNECT Preview: May/June '94 (Patricia Snyder-Rayl) Re: Info SuperHighway Seminar (Steven King) Re: Worldwide Telecom Information (Judith Oppenheimer) Re: Worldwide Telecom Information (Alan Leon Varney) Re: What is Infopath? (Barry Margolin) Re: What is Infopath? (John R. Levine) Re: What is Infopath? (Carl Oppedahl) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 14:48:34 MDT From: Rob Slade Subject: Book Review: "Modems for Dummies" by Rathbone BKMDMDUM.RVW 940127 Macmillan of Canada 29 Birch Avenue Toronto, Ontario M4V 1E2 Elizabeth Wilson 416-963-8830 Fax: 416-923-4821 or IDG Books Worldwide, Inc. International Data Group 155 Bovet Road, Suite 310 San Mateo, CA 94402 USA 415-312-0650 fax: 415-286-2740 Brandon Nordin, Marketing and International Sales "Modems for Dummies", Rathbone, 1993, 1-56884-001-2, U$16.95/C$21.95/UK#14.99 76004.3267@compuserve.com tinotin@aol.com rathbone@cerf.net For those who are not reading this online, trust me. An almost iron-clad, gold plated, guaranteed way to turn your local computer guru into a mumbling idiot is to give him or her a modem to set up. Computer communications is extremely easy -- on the second call. (Even then, I'm not so sure. A friend calls the same BBS I do and uses the same settings I do. My messages go out OK using the word wrap on the editor, his have to have a carriage return at the end of every line. Then, there is the national public data network that we have here in Canada. I have to give my high tech modem a forty character command to convince it to act brain damaged in order to use it as all. Even then, the flow control doesn't work (Ceterum censeo Datapac delendam esse). All of this is to say that I have only the best wishes towards those who try to explain modems in simple terms. You cannot simply explain modems; you also have to talk about telephone service, telephone jacks, serial cables, serial connectors, conflicts and communications software. And that is only to test and see if the modem is working. The installation and setup is the hardest part: usage is relatively easy. Thus, parts one and two of Rathbone's work are somewhat disappointing. Only relatively speaking: it is easily as good as anything by, say, Baaks (BKPRTCOM.RVW, BKMDMREF.RVW) or Pournelle (BKPCCOMB.RVW). (It is also a lot more fun: at least we will assume that you will find Important Tips about keeping Chinese parsley fresh and jokes about your mouth being your cereal port amusing when you are banging your head about installing software.) Organization of presentation is critical with newcomers. Rathbone has organized the material, but, in spite of extensive efforts to make this a non- technical manual, the design is best understood by those who already understand data communications. This fits in with the statement in the Introduction that this book is a reference, but neophytes don't need a reference. They need either a tutorial or a cookbook. Part three is substantially better. An overview of whom to call, it has excellent comparative coverage of Prodigy, CompuServe and America Online. Treatment of GEnie is quite terse, and one suspects it was written from the perspective of a few days' exploration with a guest account. Delphi fares even worse, being lumped in with MCI Mail and other specialized also-rans. Rathbone's presentation is substantially better balanced than other works, though, with the inclusion of discussions of BBSes and the Internet. Rathbone seems somewhat hostile to the Internet, for some reason, but at least the material is there. Part four gives some very helpful troubleshooting lists organized by symptom. In conjunction with parts one and two, and a section from the BBS chapter, there is likely more material altogether than in other books. However, without the more practical organization of Gianone's "Using MS-DOS Kermit" (BKUMSKMT.RVW) or LeVitus and Ihnatko's "Dr. Macintosh's Guide to the Online Universe" (BKDMBTOU.RVW), this may not be of much help to the beginning user. One very good point, though, is the lack of system bias. Rathbone covers both Mac and MS-DOS specific points without denigrating one or the other. (A passing comment on the cartoons in the "...For Dummies" series. These seem to be assigned by the publisher rather than the individual authors. They also indicate a strong commitment to recycling on the part of IDG. May of the cartoons reappear in different books, with minor modifications to either the captions or elements of the pictures. There also doesn't seem to be much thought to matching cartoon to content: a picture of an evil looking djinn arising out of the smoke from a monitor which has obviously been rubbed the wrong way introduces not the chapter on GEnie but Compuserve.) For the novice, one would still have to recommend Gianone or LeVitus and Ihnatko in order to get the best chance for connection. Rathbone, however, is possibly the best work to date for an overview of where to call once you have "OK" to your "AT". copyright Robert M. Slade, 1994 BKMDMDUM.RVW 940127. Distribution is permitted via TELECOM Digest and associated newsgroups/mailing lists. ====================== DECUS Canada Communications, Desktop, Education and Security group newsletters Editor and/or reviewer ROBERTS@decus.ca, RSlade@sfu.ca, Rob Slade at 1:153/733 DECUS Symposium '95, Toronto, ON, February 13-17, 1995, contact: rulag@decus.ca ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 94 20:33:27 PDT From: Linda Slovick Subject: IXC Timing Problem I've been testing a product that must redial inter-LATA calls using the same IXC as the original call. The original call is made from a pay phone (where the IXC is determined by the pay phone owner, and the caller just dials 0-NPA-NXX-XXXX, then enters his/her calling card number), and the redial attempts are made from a voice mail machine in the same LATA as the pay phone (where the machine knows which PIC to use, dials the call as 10XXX-0-NPA-NXX-XXXX, then tries to "guess" when the IXC will want the original caller's calling card number entered by "listening" to the call's progress through the IXCs announcements, etc.). So far, testing this product has been a nightmare. It appears that different IXCs have totally different timing requirements. Some have a bongtone, some don't, one has a chime, some have an announcement, some just sit there, etc. This intro verbage varied from 0 to 6 seconds in length, though it seemed pretty consistent for a given IXC. The window for valid calling card entry varied from 4 to 49 seconds after whatever the IXC used for an intro (most of the IXCs seemed to have a pretty stable window, however). Finally, there's a 3 to 7 second lag (with or without talking, or other noise) while the calling card is verified and my machine "thanked" for using that particular IXC before the called party's line is rung. As if this wasn't bad enough, there were a few IXCs with REALLY exotic problems. One won't allow me to redial the call at all, requiring my voice mail machine to have them as its primary IXC. Another has different timing when dialed from different exchanges in the same LATA. One IXC totally ignored the redialed calling card number and just dialed the call (I suppose my voice mail machine is supposed to get billed for those calls?). At this point, I had to call a halt to testing and go back to basics. From reading the Bellcore literature on the subject, I'm getting the strong impression that we're going about this all wrong. Bellcore specifically mentions that timing is NOT guaranteed after the call is handed off to the IXC. Arrgh! Much as I might like to just exclude the oddballs, this is NOT an option for this project (sigh...). Questions: 1.) This whole thing is sounding a bit like the old problems folks used to have trying to thread FGB calls. The solution to that was to hook in to SS7ness and dump all this inband listening for signalling stuff. Is there something tariffed in SS7land that I could hook my machine through to get signalling that all the IXCs would have to respect? 2.) Is there some standards body for IXCs like Bellcore is to the LECs (maybe CCITT?) where I might find documentation on this subject? (any documentation pointers?) 3.) Anybody have any other ideas on how to approach solving this problem? Thanks for any and all info and ideas! Linda Slovick Slovick Engineering ------------------------------ From: Robert La Ferla Subject: Help: Bogen 2-line Friday AND Distinctive Ring Call Router Reply-To: Robert La Ferla Organization: Hot Technologies Date: Wed, 4 May 1994 03:45:15 GMT I am looking for a distinctive ring call router that will work with a Bogen 2-line voice mail system. I want the long ring to go to one mail box and the double ring to go to the other. i.e. trick the Friday in thinking that there are two incoming lines. I don't plan on using the second line for pagers or anything. I have a Lynx Automation Ring Director but that doesn't work -- however I think it's because the unit is defective. Furthermore, Hello Direct tells me that I can't use their Ring Decipher because: (1) the 'pin configuration' coming from the Ring Decipher product will not conform to what the Friday line two port will be expecting; (2) a 'ground loop' short will be created between the two products; (3) the call forwarding features and remote urgent notification features will not work with distinctive ring service (with one line in use, the other will appear as busy). Please e-mail since I want to get this thing up and running ASAP. Thanks in advance, Robert ------------------------------ From: pegasus@cyberspace.org (Patricia Snyder-Rayl) Subject: CONNECT Preview: May/June '94 Date: 3 May 1994 14:37:59 -0400 Organization: Cyberspace Communications Public-Access UNIX CONNECT Magazine Table of Contents Vol 2 No 3 May/June 1994 FEATURES Education Online by Jack Germain CONNECT magazine scoured Cyberspace for online learning opportunities and this article brings you the results of our exhaustive search. Kids in Cyberspace by Rilla Moulden This article takes another look at the blending of online activities and education, with real-life examples of how online resources are helping kids and parents. File Express for Windows by the CONNECT Technical Staff A review of Synergy Communication's File Express for Windows, the remote file management software which brings "The Worldwide Desktop" to your PC. National Videotex Network by Alan Frayer An avid National Videotex Network (NVN) member introduces CONNECT readers to the online service and what it has to offer. Cryptography for the Unwashed Masses by L. Detweiler Privacy issues are an important part of the "information superhighway" debate. This article helps average users understand what's at stake and why cryptography should be important to them. CRIS -- A New Kind of Online Serivce by Bill Rayl The author takes a look at CRIS, a new online service offering the best features of BBSes and national commercial services. Prodigy Revisited by Mike Whalen Prodigy has had its ups and downs in the last few years, but the author tells us why he's recently given Prodigy another chance. Getting Lost on the Internet by Hal Hill Don't know your way around the vast Internet universe? This article teaches you to stop worrying and learn to love being lost. Getting there really can be half the fun! A Security Primer for BBS Operators by Geoff Northcott Crackers and others bent on breaking into systems have been a part of the online world since the first BBS took callers. In this article, the author shares some common sense ideas on how to make your system more secure. WORDNET Translation Service by Bryce Webster This article shows how businesses benefit from an online language translation service available 24 hours a day, thanks to computers, modems, faxes and some of the best translators in the business. COLUMNS The Inside Line Editorial Staff Columnist Michael A. Banks is on the move, and he explains how the online services are helping him decide on his destination. Eye on America Online Columnist Julia Wilkinson focuses on the Lifestyles and Interests areas on America Online. Connecting with CompuServe Electronic privacy issues and encryption tools available on CIS are discussed by Columnist Jim Ness, who also takes a detour to access two useful online databases. Telecomputing the DELPHI Way Columnist Dick Evans talks about DELPHI's planned GUI interface, online etiquette, USA Gymnastics online, the Fox Network, and more. GEnie's Treasures Continuing this issue's focus on online education, Columnist Jim Mallory tours the educational services available on GEnie. The Internet Gateway Columnist Paul Gilster gives useful tips on using Veronica to find information on the Internet. Clear to Send Stop your search for the ultimate PC-based terminal program, because columnist Victor Volkman says Terminate is it! Dial M for Macintosh Columnist Ross Scott Rubin reports the latest developments concerning eWorld, Apple's newest venture into the online service market. Staying Connected for about a Pound Sending e-mail and keeping in touch using the Apple Newton MessagePad is Columnist Marty Mankins' focus this issue. CONNECT magazine is available at the following magazine outlets: B.Dalton Bookseller, Bookstop, Bookstar, Barnes & Noble, Doubleday, Scribner's, Crown Books, Tower Books, Little Professor, Lichtman's News and Books, Coles Book Stores, CompUSA, Computer City and Software Etc. chains, as well as other chains and independent newsstands, book stores and computer dealers in the U.S. and Canada. Call (313) 973-8825 to find the magazine dealer nearest you who carries CONNECT. CONNECT is a bi-monthly magazine covering the major commercial online services (such as America Online, BIX, CompuServe, DELPHI, GEnie and Prodigy), the Internet, and bulletin board system networks (such as Fidonet, WWIVnet, and GlobalNet). The magazine is platform-independent, with columns focusing on PC-specific (DOS and Windows), Macintosh-oriented, and Palmtop/PDA-related topics. CONNECT Magazine (313) 973-8825 Covering commercial online "The Modem User's Resource" (313) 973-0411 fax services, Internet and BBS 3487 Braeburn Circle (313) 973-9137 BBS networks from a user's Ann Arbor, MI 48108 14.4Kbps V.32bis perspective. ------------------------------ From: king@wildebeest.cig.mot.com (Steven King, Software Archaeologist) Subject: Re: Info SuperHighway Seminar Date: 3 May 1994 14:26:11 GMT Organization: Motorola Cellular Infrastructure Group Reply-To: king@wildebeest.cig.mot.com Roy_Kerwood@mindlink.bc.ca (Roy Kerwood) publicly declared: > I have organized the following seminar for June 24 from 8AM - 8PM: > THE TRAVELLERS GUIDE TO THE INFO SUPERHIGHWAY This is a public plea to anyone who uses world-wide newsgroups or mailing lists to announce a seminar, lecture, symposium, or other gathering of corporeal bodies: PLEASE STATE WHERE THE EVENT IS GOING TO OCCUR! I found this announcement in the TELECOM Digest, which *is* a world-wide forum. I saw the announcement four times and I still don't know where the seminar is going to take place. The mailing address for tickets is Vancouver so I assume that's where the event is to be held, but then again it may simply be a convenient mailing address for the persons working pre-registration. The actual event may be held anywhere. And it looks especially silly for an event teaching about "WORLDWIDE Internet Connections" to be parochial and assume that only locals will read the announcement. Steven King -- Motorola Cellular Infrastructure Group ------------------------------ From: producer@pipeline.com (Judith Oppenheimer) Subject: Re: Worldwide Telecom Information Date: 3 May 1994 14:51:57 -0400 Organization: The Pipeline The Telecommunications Library in CompuServe seems to be pretty thorough. I'd be surprised if you didn't find at least *some* of what you were looking for there. > I am looking for information about the current telephony > infrastructure in each country around the world. Is there such a > source anywhere? Oppenheimer Producer@pipeline.com ------------------------------ From: Alan.Leon.Varney@att.com Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 14:28:35 +0600 Subject: Re: Worldwide Telecom Information Organization: AT&T Network Systems In article gpalmer@dgs.dgsys.com (Ion Publishing Systems) writes: > I am looking for information about the current telephony > infrastructure in each country around the world. Is there such a > source anywhere? Dataquest is a Dunn-Bradstreet company that has a subscription service for a newletter/multi-volume-binder set of information on Telephone Services, markets, vendors, etc. Their address/phone is probably easily found in any large library's reference section. They are not cheap. ------------------------------ From: barmar@Think.COM (Barry Margolin) Subject: Re: What is Infopath? Date: 3 May 1994 22:48:16 GMT Organization: Thinking Machines Corporation, Cambridge MA, USA In article gayton@world.std.com (Gayton Osgood) writes: > My local library has put their card catalog on line but in order to > access it they say you must have a NYNEX Infopath account and to > contact the phone company to open one. I don't know wnhat an Infopath > account is or how much it costs. I am reluctant to pay NYNEX ant more > than I already do. If anyone has one of these accounts could you tell > me a little about it. Infopath is NYNEX's public X.25 data network. It's basically a regional analogue of the international networks Tymnet and SprintNet (formerly Telenet). You can call a local number, enter your user name and password, and then connect to the server system. I think rates are around $5-10/hour, depending on the time of day; there may also be monthly subscriber charges. Barry Margolin System Manager, Thinking Machines Corp. barmar@think.com {uunet,harvard}!think!barmar ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 94 22:54 EDT From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: What is Infopath? Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. Infopath is the intra-LATA X.25 network operated by NYNEX. It is indeed used by many suburban libraries to link to a shared on-line catalog. For more info on Infopath, call a NYNEX business office. It's really stupid that they don't have any dial-ins at all -- for casual use it's a lot easier to pay for a few 50 cent toll calls than to get set up on Infopath. I have heard rumors that there's an Internet link to the suburban libraries catalog but I haven't been able to pin it down. There's a similar network of urban libraries (Cambridge, Somerville, etc.) and I don't know whether they're dialable, Internettable or not. Online public library catalogs are wonderful things. The library near my beach cottage in New Jersey is part of the Ocean County library which added dial-in service (regular 2400 POTS, no X.25 nonsense) to their catalog last year, thoughtfully providing three local numbers, one per LATA, so it's a local call from anywhere in the county. You can look for books, check whether copies are checked in or out, put yourself on the hold list for a popular book, and ask for books in other branches to be fetched to your local library. It's great -- I dial in from home in the morning, tell it to get the book I want, and I usually get a call from the library the next afternoon so I hop on my bike and go down and get it. For some really popular books, e.g. new Sue Grafton mysteries, they have 100 copies but there are 300 people on the waiting list, so I can call in from home and put myself on the hold list a few weeks before I go down so my turn comes up while I'm still there to get the book. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ From: oppedahl@panix.com (Carl Oppedahl) Subject: Re: What is Infopath? Date: 3 May 1994 00:32:55 -0400 Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and Unix, NYC In gayton@world.std.com (Gayton Osgood) writes: > My local library has put their card catalog on line but in order to > access it they say you must have a NYNEX Infopath account and to > contact the phone company to open one. I don't know wnhat an Infopath > account is or how much it costs. I am reluctant to pay NYNEX ant more > than I already do. If anyone has one of these accounts could you tell > me a little about it. I have never understood Nynex's babble-names for digital services. I assume one of them is switched-56, another must be ISDN, another must be a fancy name for a T1 line. Why not ask the library to introduce you to one or two people who actually have access to the card catalog? They could tell you how they do it. Here in New York City there is a number that you can call with a "regular" modem (a V.32 or V.32bis modem) and then you dial a number, and end up calling infopath destinations. I always assumed it must simply be an ISDN gateway. It's 212-385-2551. Perhaps someone can explain what that number really is. Carl Oppedahl AA2KW Oppedahl & Larson (patent lawyers) Yorktown Heights, NY voice 212-777-1330 ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #198 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa11234; 4 May 94 3:44 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06932; Wed, 4 May 94 00:20:17 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA06922; Wed, 4 May 94 00:20:15 CDT Date: Wed, 4 May 94 00:20:15 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405040520.AA06922@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #199 TELECOM Digest Wed, 4 May 94 00:20:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 199 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone (John Lundgren) Re: Internet Access in Kenya (John Lundgren) Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" (David H. Close) Re: NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! (David H. Close) Re: Motorola "Advisor" Pager Information Wanted (Thomas Baird) Re: Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Cmdr (Hans-Gabriel Ridder) Re: Any Modem Decode DTMF? (puma@netcom.com) Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead (Supak Lailert) Re: Government Regulates Number of Modem Redial Atttempts? (Dave Niebuhr) Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed up? (Alan Leon Varney) Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet (John Anderson) Re: Equal Access in Canada (Tony Harminc) Re: Bell Atlantic Gets Maryland Competition (Carl Moore) Re: Bell Atlantic Gets Maryland Competition (Gregory P. Monti) Re: Fight A*vertising! Petition! No, Don't. (John R. Levine) Re: CO's and Disasters (Tom Board) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jlundgre@kn.pacbell.com (John Lundgren) Subject: Re: Question About Digital Telephony and Delayed Dial Tone Date: 03 May 94 18:22:01 GMT Organization: Pacific Bell Knowledge Network My understanding was at this time, if you have ISDN, or 2B+D, you have a full channel all the way to the CO. That goes for POTS too, even if your pots line runs into a SLIC channel bank at the corner. You still get a dedicated 'bit in the bitstream'. It seems obvious to me that this can't continue when the home gets a coax to the nearest 'muxer', and then the muxer talks to the central office using fiber optics. But still, if the telco expects to offer the mythical 500 channels and all the other stuff too, then the bandwidth of all the links to the CO, and beyond will have to be increased. To offer T1 to the home, where the home already has ISDN, would mean an increase in bandwidth of appx. 12. That doesn't sound unreasonable, and could be done by the telco. ------------------------------ From: jlundgre@kn.pacbell.com (John Lundgren) Subject: Re: Internet Access in Kenya Date: 03 May 94 18:51:12 GMT Organization: Pacific Bell Knowledge Network Elmar Bob (elmar@bug.co.jp) wrote: > I am posting this for a friend who will be going to Kenya very soon and > would like to find out whether she can gain access to the internet somehow > over there. My ex-boss's wife is in Kenya. They have a FIDO Net setup, according to what info I can find. She says that the last few miles of phone lines is so bad that it's difficult to do anything serious by modem. I think the name of the city/town/place/oasis/water hole she's in is Athi River. Best of success ... ------------------------------ From: dhclose@alumni.caltech.edu (David H. Close) Subject: Re: Unwelcome AT&T "Feature" Date: 3 May 1994 05:27:10 GMT Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena Re the cut off of unanswered calls: my answering machine is designed to be able to turn itself on, if I forget to, upon receiving rings for a long time. (I don't remember the time but my experience is that it takes about 12 rings. I then have to enter my code to complete the activation.) Seems to me that AT&T's feature would make this nice feature unusable. Dave Close, Compata, Costa Mesa dhclose@alumni.caltech.edu dave@compata.attmail.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: No, not at all. Your machine turns itself on after 12 rings, or approximatly one minute. AT&T is letting calls ring for at least two or three minutes before cutting them off. Anyway, how often would it be the case that you forgot to turn your machine on and an out-of-town call was the first one to arrive thereafrer (instead of say, a local call, or your own call checking for messages, etc?) PAT] ------------------------------ From: dhclose@alumni.caltech.edu (David H. Close) Subject: Re: NPA Optional in 818 - it Works! Date: 3 May 1994 05:30:56 GMT Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena justfred@netcom.com (Fred Heald) writes: > My phone is in 818 (but I'm travelling all over LA, 213, 909, 310, > 714, 805, 619, and all. Not 524 yet, but soon I'm sure. So I tend to > always dial the entire number (1-NPA-NXX-XXXX) first, and get the > ridiculous message "We are sorry, it is not necesary to dial one and > the area code for this call". Well, this morning (in fact, calling > Netcom) I accidentally dialed the 1-818, and the call went through! I just tried it in 714 and it worked for me. I think this is great! Dave Close, Compata, Costa Mesa dhclose@alumni.caltech.edu dave@compata.attmail.com ------------------------------ From: tmb1@SanDiegoCA.NCR.COM (Thomas Baird) Subject: Re: Motorola "Advisor" Pager Information Wanted Organization: AT&T GIS (San Diego, CA) Date: Tue, 3 May 94 16:51:00 GMT Pat_Barron@transarc.com wrote: > Does anyone have technical info on the Motorola "Advisor" alphanumeric > pager? Specifically, any sort of configuration or status report > modes, and/or what one can do with the serial port that seems to be on > the bottom of the unit. Also has Motorola published the interface information for accessing the "advisor" from an IBM PC? I talked to a salesman and his only knowledge was it could be accesed from a PC and the maximum message size was 2000 characters per message. Tom ------------------------------ From: ridder@zowie.zso.dec.com (Hans) Subject: Re: Help: Programming Motorola 550 and Fujitsu Commander Date: 3 May 1994 17:35:13 GMT Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation - DECwest Engineering In article puma@netcom.com (puma) writes: > In article , Lance Ware > wrote: >> I need help with programming these two cell phones. Specifically I >> need to program the phone numbers, and get the ESN so that I may have >> them both put on the same phone number. >> This is legitimate, I am not interested in going to jail for many >> years! > You may consider it legitimate, but it's a violation of federal > regulations and also contrary to your contract with the service > provider. [...] > The ESN's are supposed to be a permanent part of the phone, and not > changeable without replacing the ROM. I don't know what the regulations or contracts say, but I can read. Note that Mr. Ware asks only how to "get" the ESN, not "change" it. I don't believe merely *knowing* the ESN violates any federal law. It's also hard for me to believe that changing the phone number is illegal (although his phone may cease to function.) Please don't overreact to people simply wanting information about the programming of their phone. No doubt Mr. Ware should be talking to his service provider to arrange the phones the way he wants. Hans-Gabriel Ridder DECwest Engineering, Bellevue, Washington, USA ------------------------------ From: puma@netcom.com (puma) Subject: Re: Any Modem Decode DTMF? Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 18:31:49 GMT In article , mark boylan wrote: > Is there a modem that can accept and decode DTMF tones after it's > answered an incoming call? And also, how can I send the output of a > SoundBlaster card over the same phone line? I'm trying to write an > app that will allow a caller to select a .WAV file from just a phone, > and then listen to it. There are several modems that will do that, mostly the better (read, higher priced) ones. The USR dual standard will, with the following commands ... ATH1%T The H1 takes the modem off-hook, the %T reads the touchtone. Sending a character or dropping DTR will hang up the line. puma@netcom.com ------------------------------ From: lailert@ucssun1.sdsu.edu (Supak Lailert "spk") Subject: Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000 Probably Dead Date: 3 May 1994 18:40:44 GMT Organization: San Diego State University Computing Services Hans (ridder@zowie.zso.dec.com) wrote: > I was in the Alaska Airlines terminal at the Seattle-Tacoma airport > two weeks ago, and saw a couple of Public Phone 2000's *with > keyboard*. I didn't have time to check them out ... I assume they > were working since after the tariff problems all the keyboards seem to > have been removed. Yes, keyboard is there but it won't work as data terminal. It works only as a TDD device. 8-( Supak Lailert -- MBA (Information System) Program, San Diego State University lailert@ucssun1.sdsu.edu lailert@aol.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 94 14:53:54 EDT From: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (Dave Niebuhr) Subject: Re: Government Regulates Number of Modem Redial Attempts? In TELECOM Digest V14 #195 tdgilman@iris-1.CE.Berkeley.EDU (Tim D. Gilman) wrote: > I was trying out new modem software yesterday, and under the option > where one can specify the number of redial attempts before giving up, > something like the following reads: "Governement regulations may limit > you to 10 redials maximum." I had never heard anything about this. > Out of simple curiosity, could someone enlighten myself (or others as > well) on this matter? and the TELECOM Digest Editor noted: > That has been the case in Canada for quite > a few years and I think it is true here in the USA also now. The reason is > a modem has no way of knowing it is dialing a wrong number and being > offensive to the human victim at the other end ... and some owners of > modems could care less : Text deleted for brevity. > But the way they have it now with limits on the redial attempts is > the next best solution. PAT] With my modem, which has a ten memory location, I could easily misoprogram the unit and not know it unless I caught it during a dialing sequence. Looking away or being otherwise occupied during the dialing, I would not be aware of a misdail and just call up the number's location. Granted, there are problems with these types of calls. I sure wouldn't want to be the recipient of them and hopefully won't in the future. Dave Niebuhr Internet: dwn@dwn.ccd.bnl.gov (preferred) niebuhr@bnl.gov / Bitnet: niebuhr@bnl Senior Technical Specialist, Scientific Computing Facility Brookhaven National Laboratory Upton, NY 11973 1+(516) 282-3093 FAX 1+(516) 282-7688 ------------------------------ From: Alan.Leon.Varney@att.com Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 14:27:49 +0600 Subject: Re: DID Loophole or I'm Screwed up? Organization: AT&T Network Systems In article Jonathan responded to TELECOM Digest Editor: >> TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Not only asked to correct the problem, >> but in some instances if telco really wants to get tough about it they >> may choose to back-bill an estimated amount lost on completed calls >> which went unsupervised. Illinois Bell found a company here in Chicago >> deliberatly playing games like that and back-billed them a >> half-million dollars covering calls over a five year period. The >> company protested of course, but all the facts pointed to them doing >> it on purpose as toll-avoidance; they were slow to answer their phones >> because they did not want to hire the help needed to do so promptly >> and they were playing a tape recorded music on hold 'all positions >> busy please wait for an available agent' message to their callers for >> five or ten minutes at a time. Their customers squawked about the cost >> of *their* calls as a result so the company gerry-rigged the system to >> not supervise until they got ready to handle the call. >> .... Telco did not get all they asked for, but they collected a nice >> chunk of it. So be careful about playing games with supervision. If >> telco wants to do so, they'll work you over good to show who is boss. > Sounds pretty ingenious to me. I would like to note a few things: > 1. No meaningful conversation occurred until after the company turned > supervision on. Per FCC Part 68 and TELCo tariffs, anything other than audible ring and busy tone (with some exceptions) is "meaningful" -- and the call must be supervised (answered). This includes calls routed to TELCo-operated Voice Mail systems, which have been known to forget ... > 2. The telephone company could have been nicer about the whole thing. > Instead of waiting for five years and then billing for half a million > dollars, why not send a warning to the company within one month and > then bill them shortly thereafter? There must be a way for the > telephone company to automatically detect this kind of stunt. Nope. Nothing automatic until a bunch of PBXs started playing this game several years ago, probably as the result of a "PBX underground" passing the word. But the tariffs are usually very clear about when supervision must be returned. There have been arguments about the "glitch" in busy tone during call forwarding to voice mail, etc. I don't know if supervision must be returned at the time of forwarding or not -- but certainly anything beyond busy/audible ring REQUIRES supervision. TELCos today would not take five years to find the culprit. Nor would they be likely be nice enough to accept less than the full settlement. Maybe they would throw in a little extra for the investigation's costs. Just waving around the tariff and talking "fraud" with the CEO and the DAs office will usually get the matter resolved quickly. Al Varney ------------------------------ From: andrsonj@rtsg.mot.com (John Anderson) Subject: Re: Let Your Fingers do the Walking on the Internet Date: 3 May 94 20:08:38 GMT Organization: Motorola Cellulsr Infrastructure Group andrsonj@rtsg.mot.com (John Anderson) writes: > Here's an example of how to get a list of all users named "anderson": > mail mail-server@pit-manager.mit.edu > Subject: > send usenet-addresses/anderson I have learned that to use the above service, it is preferable to mail to: "mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu" Regards, John D. Anderson, M.S. Motorola, Inc. Internet: andrsonj@rtsg.mot.com 1475 W. Shure Drive johnanderson@acm.org Arlington Heights, IL, USA 60004 Phone: +1-708-632-4259 Mail Stop: IL75-1C5 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Just my curiosity -- why is it better or preferable to write to the one address instead of the other? PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 18:45:55 EDT From: Tony Harminc Subject: Re: Equal Access in Canada Carl Moore wrote: > Back in January, I went to Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. before turning > around back into the U.S. I got to a pay phone on 705-759 there, and > 10288 didn't work (I then omitted it, got the "boing" for Bell Canada, > then punched in my AT&T card number and the call, going to the U.S., > went through). The call didn't make it to my phone bill until March, > and it was in the AT&T part of the bill. So there are no 10xxx codes > currently useable in Canada? Right now - no. They are coming on 1st July. But see below. > The Orange Card did work from there. That went through as being from > "800" as happens in many places in the U.S. The proprietors of the Orange Card have chosen to allow their 800 number to be reached from Canadian points. Once the call is in their system they can do what they like with it. They are doubtless paying fairly outrageous rates to (currently) the local monopoly 800 carrier in whatever part of Canada you call from. Whether their charge to you reflects this is an interesting question. Moderator's note to a following post: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I have been told it will by and large > follow the USA numbering scheme; i.e. 10288 for Mother, 10222 for MCI, > etc. with Canadian-only carriers getting a few numbers as well. PAT] Well I'm not so sure. The national and regional Canadian carriers will have their own 10xxxs, but it's not clear to me that US (or any other foreign) carriers will suddenly find that their 10xxx codes work from Canada. Are all these US carriers really going to install facilities at all the access tandems across the country? Who in Canada is going to dial those US 10xxxs? It seems an unlikely investment just to keep US visitors like Carl happy when they use a payphone on their trip. And it seems highly unlikely that US carriers are going to pull fibre across the country just for this. So presumably if they do want a point of presence they'll lease capacity from the exist- ing carriers in Canada. I'm sure the 10xxx (or should we be saying 10xxxx?) numbers will not clash across the border, but I wouldn't bet on your favourite US carrier magically starting service on 1st July. Tony Harminc ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 94 16:44:41 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Re: Bell Atlantic Gets Maryland Competition How would local telephone directories' lists of prefixes, calling areas, etc. be affected? (I now live in Maryland, but away from the DC area.) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I'll tell you what is done here in Chicago although technically it is not 'competition' and there is no overlapping of territory. Centel has Park Ridge/Des Plaines, IL along with a very tiny section of Chicago. Their Chicago subscribers are listed in the Illinois Bell directory for Chicago (it is transparent, just the address and phone number like any other listing which is actually IBT) but in addition, Centel has their own directory entitled "Chicago-Newcastle". Their switching equipment for Chicago customers is in the Newcastle CO on Miner Street. And while they have one set of tariffs for their sub- scribers in Park Ridge and Des Plaines, they have a different tariff for their Chicago subscribers which closely parallels that of IBT. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 1994 19:18:01 EDT From: Gregory P. Monti Subject: Re: Bell Atlantic Gets Maryland Competition On Mon, 2 May 1994, Carl Moore wrote: > How would local telephone directories' lists of prefixes, calling > areas, etc. be affected? This is one of many issues that were not mentioned in the story I summarized. I suspect there are a host of them. For example, if MFS elects to use a smaller number of central offices than Bell Atlantic, but covers a larger land area with each one, what does that do to local calling areas? It could be that a call in one direction from one company to another will be local, but it would be toll in the other direction. This is not unlike cellular. My cell phone is 'databased' to Bethesda, Maryland, but has an enormous local (airtime charges only) calling area consisting of the entire Washington and Baltimore LATAs approximately. A call from the Bethesda cellular to Aberdeen, MD, is local. But a call from a landline phone in Aberdeen to Bethesda (about 75 miles) is toll. Same issue if a cable operator installs a telephony CO in his head-end. Arlington is served by six telco COs (which are not all in the same rate zone) but only one cable head-end. I guess we're going to have to learn a whole new mess of rules. Greg Monti Arlington, Virginia, USA ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 May 94 17:09 EDT From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: Fight A*vertising! Petition! No, Don't. Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. > I support legislation against advertising on the internet. Oh, Lord. One bozo bombs the net with tacky advertising, and now we want to start passing laws. Before we do that, it would be nice to decide what's the Internet (Usenet? That includes large amounts of UUCP, Fido, etc. directly connected Internet? E-mail? Who knows?) And for that matter, what's advertising? If I post a message in a telecom group about some used phone equipment I'm selling, is that an ad? What if I have a Gopher or WWW server that returns such info on demand? I'm as cheezed as anyone about Canter's junk news bombing, but the solution is for Internet providers to get more sophisticated about regulating their users (as Internet Direct has now done), and perhaps some technical fixes so that we can decline to receive news and mail from known antisocial sites. Incidentally, if we can figure out to deal with Canter, we can deal with anyone. Someone recently posted a note reporting that he was effectively disbarred in Florida (actually, resigned before they disbarred him) due to unethical and possibly illegal dealings with immigration clients. He can fairly be described as a slimeball. > We must stop happenings like this with legislation so that the 'infor- > mation highway' ... doesn't become expensive and riddled with a*vertisi*g. Expensive? Advertising generally makes media cheaper -- newspapers are delivered for far below the cost of production, and TV is delivered free courtesy of ads. There are cogent arguments to be made about adver- tising on Usenet and Internet, but cost to the users isn't one of them. I note that the primary backbone Internet carriers are now Sprint, MCI, and AT&T, roughly in that order, so I expect that the Information Supercollider will end up fused with the phone system more than with the TV biz. This suggests that it won't be advertiser sponsored. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ From: tboard@nwu.edu (Tom Board) Subject: Re: CO's and Disasters Date: 4 May 1994 00:36:07 GMT Organization: Northwestern University In article , tsw@cypher.apple.com (Tom Watson) wrote: > ...... This load-leveling (there is a snazzy term for it, but I > don't remember) usually relates to the priorities in getting dial > tone. In the DMS-100 central office switch, this feature is called Line Load Control (LLC). It is assigned to a line like any other feature (e.g., call waiting). During an emergency, when the CO switch is having difficulty completing calls or delivering dialtone, the controlling technician can force the switch into Line Load Control mode via a console command. At that point, the switch will not recognize off-hook events unless the line has the LLC feature programmed. This has the effect to reducing demand on the switch and stabilizing service to those lines with the feature attached. Tom Board tboard@nwu.edu ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #199 ****************************** Received: from delta.eecs.nwu.edu by MINTAKA.LCS.MIT.EDU id aa11867; 4 May 94 5:16 EDT Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA08031; Wed, 4 May 94 01:51:36 CDT Return-Path: Received: by delta.eecs.nwu.edu (4.1/SMI-4.0-proxy) id AA08022; Wed, 4 May 94 01:51:34 CDT Date: Wed, 4 May 94 01:51:34 CDT From: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Message-Id: <9405040651.AA08022@delta.eecs.nwu.edu> To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Subject: TELECOM Digest V14 #200 TELECOM Digest Wed, 4 May 94 01:51:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 200 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Telecom Design Tricks Manual - Free Book For Digest Readers (Jeffrey Race) Re: Answering Machines: What Use? (Don B. Cameron) Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? (Ray Normandeau) Phone 'Zines Wanted (Jeremy Brandt) Re: AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted (Ken Hoehn) Re: AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted (Gene Gretske) Re: AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted (thanna@aol.com) Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links (Lynne Gregg) Re: What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? (Y. Eisenstadter) CallerID With Serial Port - Where? (John Landwehr) Re: Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls (Leonard Erickson) Re: Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? (Steve Brack) Re: Incident Management Call Boxes (John R Levine) Re: Getting Phone Bills Over The Internet (Robin Fairbairns) Re: ZMODEM - Proprietary? (William J. Rehm) Cellular Call Forwarding (Bruce Mchollan) Re: Videocrypt Pirating (Robert Shaw) Re: Lucy Waits for Call (Jim Derdzinski) Re: Lucy Waits For Call (Eric Ziemer) Re: Lucy Waits For Call (David C. Tuttle) Ricky Finds Old Phone (Carl Moore) Teaser (Carl Moore) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: wu/O=JEFFREY_RACE/DD.ELN=62075697@mhs.attmail.com Date: 4 May 94 01:24:56 GMT Subject: Black Magic! Telecom Design Tricks - Free Book For Digest Readers Release of "Telecom Design Tricks" Engineering Manual Cambridge Electronics Laboratories announces the release of "BLACK MAGIC! Telecom Design Tricks," a manual for hardware engineers concerned with telecom power, ringing or ISDN circuits. The thirty-five page text may save careful readers time and grief since it assembles technical arcana resulting from ten years of mistakes, false hunches and failed designs of Cambridge Electronics Laboratories and its many customers around the world, some of whom survived. The manual also includes twenty "cookbook" schematics as well as appendices detailing sundry traps for the unwary engineer, further technical references, and dozens of vendors of unusual or little-known components utilized in the included schematics. The manual is free upon request to readers of TELECOM Digest. Generous-spirited readers are requested to provide suggestions for corrections or improvements to subsequent revisions of the manual. Any who make it to the last page and still want more such paper in their in-baskets from possible survivors of future design projects are respectfully encouraged to submit the form at the rear of the manual for future technical mailings (if we survive this one). Cambridge Electronics Laboratories Telephone: +1 617 629-2805 20 Chester Street Telefax: +1 617 623-1882 Somerville MA 02144-3005 Telex: 948580 RACE SOMV UD USA Internet: 62075697@eln.attmail.com Point of contact concerning this announcement is Dr. Jeffrey Race who may be reached as above. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: When you write to Dr. Race to request your free copy of the manual, please mention reading about it in TELECOM Digest. Thanks. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 10:31:43 EST From: Don B. Cameron Reply-To: dcameron@mason1.gmu.edu Subject: Re: Answering Machines: What Use? > Short Discussion on ANSWERING MACHINES, comments are welcome! >- Answering machines save time since they allow > asynchronous communication. I disagree. Unless you play back the message at a faster rate or speak faster onto the tape the amount of information conveyed in the message is fixed in time and doesn't change by nature of being asynchronous. >- Answering machines are impersonal. I don't like to talk > to machines! The richness of life is enhanced by human contact. I agree, BUT, this is sometimes the only way to get a hold of people who screen calls. >- With answering machines one can answer calls in a "bulk" > and is therefore less disturbed while working. Sounds like an "impersaonal approach" to answering the phone. Imagine answering the phone by mistake then saying, sorry, no time, please call back and talk to my machine. >- Many callers hesitate talking on to the tape. This can be a problem especially when your tape cuts them off while they decide to talk or not. Perhaps the time out can be delayed on future machines. >- While absent, it is possible to obtain messages. > This can be important if upon one's return the caller himself is absent. I think this is confusing. If what you mean is that if both caller and receiver have machines then communication can happen via tape delay, then the I agree, this has value. >- Callers never know whether the called party is absent or just happily listens to them. Truely one of the great values of machines. My girlfriend uses this method to let me through, and her salesmen out. (I think!) >- Call screening is possible: only calls that are welcome are answered. A more effective way to prevent un-welcome calls is to get an unlisted number. Sure, lots of you TELECOM folks know how to find these out no doubt, but since getting one I get only random dialing sales calls and many fewer hangups on my machine. >- An answering machine causes additional costs: > electricity and phone charges. Many a phone message has saved me time and effort and gas etc. So the cost is well balanced by the benefits. > Which positive and negative experiences have you had with answering > machines? I use my answering machine as a message center at times when I am in transit to friends. They leave messages there, and I pick them up. This answering machine acts as my "voice mail" if needed. I have gone to some really cool parties and dinners as a result. I have had a bad experience recently. My Mom keeps forgetting to put her machine on, so if I call and she is not in and I can't leave a message, she calls and says "You never call". So lack of machines can be a problem too! > What is the major benefit of answering machines? It allows you flexibility to be or not be in touch. The almost inborn urge people develop to answer a ringing phone can be kept in check with an answering machine. ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Answering Machine With Voice Mail and Paging? From: ray.normandeau@factory.com (Ray Normandeau) Date: 03 May 94 21:20:00 GMT Organization: Invention Factory's BBS - New York City, NY - 212-274-8298v.32bis Reply-To: ray.normandeau@factory.com (Ray Normandeau) > With an eye to the future, when I can afford full time office > help, I am getting my own business line in June. I would like to be > able to capture the calls on an answering machine which would > automatically ring my pager(preferrably alphanumeric) upon receipt of > each call. Are there answering machines available with this > capability? Is software available to do this via modem? I have such a set-up. A Panasonic KX-T2710 Only one disadvantage, it only calls my pager one time for each message. If I am in a basement or a subway I may not get my page. I would prefer to be paged every 30 minutes till I call in. ------------------------------ From: jeremyb@comtch.iea.com (Jeremy Brandt) Subject: Phone 'Zines Wanted Date: 4 May 1994 05:31:15 GMT Organization: CompuTech, Spokane WA I was wondering if there is any way to subscribe to the newsletters/ magazines that each phone company puts out? i.e. {Telephony}. If so could someone E-mail me with the addresses to write to, or a telephone number to call? thanks. jeremyb@comtch.iea.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: {Telephony} is a privately owned and published magazine. It is not published by any telephone companies. Ditto with {Teleconnect}, the magazine which has stolen a lot of {Telephony}'s readers in recent years. The latter is published by the Telecom Library in New York City. The public relations stuff put out by telcos themselves is usually free for the asking. Just write the various telcos and ask to be put on their mailing list. PAT] ------------------------------ From: kenh@w8hd.org (Ken Hoehn) Subject: Re: AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted Date: 03 May 1994 22:30:04 -0400 Organization: The w8hd Group Per your request for comments: The breakup of AT&T, from the Justice Department's point of view, was not unlike a mother telling a child that she must punish him, and asking him what the punishment shall be. Naturally, the child will pick the punishment of eating cookies and watching TV. Judge Green's group really did not understand the technology involved (does ANYONE really?), and looked to AT&T for a breakup plan. They considered and later acted on the opportunity to offload the higher cost, less efficient local operating groups, and concentrate on LD. They knew full well, or at least anticipated the new technologies coming today (like PCS, ESMR and direct satellite projects like Iridium), recognized that local service would become an expensive dinosaur, and made the best move. We are at an advantage from a long-distance point of view ... it costs less in real dollars TODAY to call California than it did 13 years ago in the dollars then. That's impressive. We are at a DISadvantage from a local point of view ... local service is getting poorer, less well designed and maintained, more poorly staffed, and overall more expensive. Offhand, I would say it is *just* about a wash. When they finally manage to pull off measured local service, it will swing the equation into the red from the consumer's point of view. kenh@w8hd.org Ken Hoehn - Teletech, Inc. Compuserve: 70007,2374 N8NYO P.O.Box 924 FAX: (313) 562-8612 Dearborn, MI 48121 VOICE: (313) 562-6873 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: 'They' already have pulled off measured service in many parts of the USA. We have had it here for several years now. PAT] ------------------------------ From: gretske@delphi.com Subject: Re: AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted Date: Wed, 04 May 94 05:15:52 GMT Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) Megan- There is a wealth of literature about the effects of the break-up on our telecommunications network, Wall Street, etc., etc. But I think that there is a real human side to this. Having experienced it from the inside, I saw lifetime relationships, friendships, and marriages impacted. I have never seen anyone address this from the "grassroots" perspective of the nearly one million employees and their lives. Gene ------------------------------ From: thanna@aol.com (THanna) Subject: Re: AT&T Divestiture Comments Wanted Date: 03 May 1994 16:57:02 -0400 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) The breakup of AT&T (after over 100 years of monopolistic practices) did create competition in the market place. If you count all the big profitable companies today that do justice to the consumer i.e. advances in technology etc ... then I would bet it was a good thing Judge Greene broke it up. What about the so called McCaw/AT&T merger that is on hold? ------------------------------ From: Lynne Gregg Subject: Re: Direct Modem / Cellular Links Date: Tue, 03 May 94 15:50:00 PDT goemansd@kirk.usafa.af.mil (Daniel Goemans) wrote: > With that link, does anyone know if you then need an MNP-10 standard > modem *in addition* to the link (to package data) ... or does the link > package the data accordingly on its own? Daniel is speaking of the Spectrum/Axcell interface, I believe. My experience has shown that MNP10 is not required, but it sure does help. Without this EDAC enhancement, you are liable to see some garbled data coming across your screen. Despite the inbound garbles, however, I've found that outbound data transmission is quite reliable. If you're doing data communication on cellular (regular ol' analog), I highly recommend a modem that incorporates MNP10. Regards, Lynne ------------------------------ From: yoram@panix.com (Yoram Eisenstadter) Subject: Re: What Does the Serial Port on NT Meridian Phones Do? Date: 03 May 1994 21:03:59 -0400 Organization: PANIX Public Access Unix, NYC In article gingold@Think.COM (David Gingold) writes: > I've got a Northern Telecom Meridian phone on my desk. It has a DB-25 > connector on the back, which I suspect is a serial port. > Is this a serial port? Does anyone know how to talk to it and what I > can do with it? In particular, I'd like to program my workstation to > dial the phone. It is indeed a serial port. At my workplace, the serial ports provide access to a pool of modems that must be used for dialing out, since it is impossible to directly connect a normal modem to the PBX lines (the line voltages, ring signals, impedances, etc. are all non-standard). I don't think the port can be used to control the phone itself. Y ------------------------------ From: John_Landwehr@NeXT.COM (John Landwehr) Date: Tue, 03 May 94 16:21:40 -0500 Subject: CallerID With Serial Port - Where? Although several TELECOM Digest articles have mentioned caller ID boxes with serial ports, I have never seen a reference to a model number, manufacturer or distributor. I think most of us would agree that buying a modem for such a purpose is a waste. So the question remains: Where can I purchase a caller ID box with serial port? [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In the electronics department at Venture they had one from BellSouth I believe. I don't think buying a modem for 'such a purpose' would necessarily be a waste. If the modem had Caller-ID built into it and all you needed was to get that data over to your computer for whatever reason, then such a modem would be a fine investment. Who else sells CID boxes with serial ports? PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 13:33:21 PST From: Leonard.Erickson@f51.n105.z1.fidonet.org (Leonard Erickson) Subject: Re: Using Call Forwarding to Avoid Tolls In v14 #184, TELECOM Digest Editor noted: > TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Generally, using the *regular, residential > variety* of call forwarding will NOT save money where toll charges are > concerned unless you are able to link two or three large toll free calling > areas together. Generally, two or more short calls linked together cost > more than a single long-haul call covering the same points. This is only true where measured service is mandatory. On the west coast it is generally optional (here in Oregon, we passed an initiative *forbidding* mandatory measured service). This makes a huge difference. As an example, up until a couple of years ago, calls to between Portland and it's suburbs were local. But calls between suburbs on opposite sides of Portland were long distance. So BBS operators in the suburbs would get a friend in the "core" area to set up a number with call forwarding to their BBS. That way the folks who could call Portland for free, but not call that suburb for free had a way to access them via a free call. Note that since call forwarding doesn't interfere with *outgoing* calls, anyone with a line they only used for outgoing calls (such as calling BBSes) could just add call forwarding and keep using their line normally. I was the call forwarder for one BBS, and it worked out fine. One local Unix site offered forwarding for a *lot* of BBSes by letting them use his outgoing lines. That way they got a call forwarding number, and he got lines that would *never* be troubled by incoming calls. :-) uucp: uunet!m2xenix!puddle!51!Leonard.Erickson Internet: Leonard.Erickson@f51.n105.z1.fidonet.org ------------------------------ From: sbrack@jupiter.cse.utoledo.edu (Steve Brack) Subject: Re: Local Charges for 950 and 800 Access? Organization: University of Toledo Date: Wed, 04 May 1994 02:08:27 GMT Here in Ohio Bell (well, Ameritech) territory, I haven't encountered any payphones that charge for 800 numbers. My boyfriend's MCI card works off of a 700 number which requires the deposit of a quarter to reach it, but returns the coin after you hang up. Steven S. Brack sbrack@jupiter.cse.utoledo.edu Toledo, OH 43613-1605 STU0061@UOFT01.BITNET MY OWN OPINIONS sbrack@maine.cse.utoledo.edu ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 17:57 EDT From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: Incident Management Call Boxes Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. > [re cellular roadside call boxes that call 911] > The writer from Texas pointed out that "the system does not allow > calls to anywhere else." It was at this point that I mentioned the > incident in Southern California where one call-box unit was either > stolen or monitored to get its identification code, which was used to > cause tens of thousands of dollars in fraudulent cellular calls. Seems to be it'd be easier to work with the cellular company to fix their switches to give a special class of service to the roadside boxes that only permits 911, no other numbers, and no roaming. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ From: rf@cl.cam.ac.uk (Robin Fairbairns) Subject: Re: Getting Phone Bills Over the Internet Date: 03 May 1994 11:51:54 GMT Organization: University of Cambridge Computer Laboratory [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The original message in this thread appeared in the telecom newsgroup in the UK; it did not appear here but the thread seems interesting enough. PAT] In article , John Lines wrote: > I would like to be able to receive my phone (and other bills) over > the Internet. As I pay them by Direct Debit in any case their function > is to inform me what I have spent the money on. It would be cheaper > for my phone company (who would not have to print and mail a bill, and > save time for me. It would be nice, wouldn't it? > The actual itemised bill section would just have the number dialed, the time and date, the duration, number of units and cost; one per line, separated by tab characters. It would be easy to write a program to digest such a bill, and it would benefit many.For example small businesses, such as lawyers who re- charge phone costs to clients, would be saved from having to re- key data from a paper bill. Students living in shared housed and splitting the phone bills could save some time each quarter. Anyone does some a mixture of business and private calls on the same phone line and wants to be able to split them for tax purposes would be saved a great deal of time. Of course, here you identify the major problem with this proposal of yours: anything that transmitted could contain sensitive business information. Since the internet is inherently insecure, that means that the bill as transmitted would need (at the least) to be encrypted; authentication information (e.g., digital signatures) wouldn't come amiss either. Now, we observe that you're posting from a UK address. This means that security software available to you is either: 1. Illegally exported from the USA 2. Academically produced (or otherwise free) 3. Bloody expensive It's inconceivable that a serious telco is going to accept software in categories 1 or 2, so you're lumbered with 3. Where are the cost savings going...? I agree with you that electronic billing is highly desirable. I disagree with the assertion that it's presently doable. Robin (Campaign for Real Radio 3) Fairbairns rf@cl.cam.ac.uk U of Cambridge Computer Lab, Pembroke St, Cambridge CB2 3QG, UK ------------------------------ From: wjrst1@pitt.edu (William J Rehm) Subject: Re: ZMODEM - Proprietary? Date: 03 May 94 13:33:10 GMT On 4 Apr 94 18:16:45 GMT, Matt Silveira wrote: > With regard to ZMODEM, it is not proprietary and there are many > "shareware" programs available for Macs, PCs, and UNIX boxes, check a > "mirrored" INTERNET site or sumex.aim at Stanford for Macs. As I understand the situation, zmodem is indeed a proprietary protocol. It's use on hosts is only free under certain restricted contexts, academic use being one of them. Clients, on the other hand, are free to incorporate zmodem protocols, since a host is required to use them. I have admittedly limited knowledge of this situation, but this is how it was explained to me when I contacted the author's company. Bill Rehm wjrst1+@pitt.edu ------------------------------ Subject: Cellular Call Forwarding From: bruce.mchollan@keystone.keystone.fl.us (Bruce Mchollan) Date: Tue, 03 May 94 21:12:00 -0500 Organization: Communications World Reply-To: bruce.mchollan@keystone.keystone.fl.us (Bruce Mchollan) A person I work with has a cellular phone with call forwarding. When he forwards his calls to another number and then calls his own cellular number he is not charged for the call ($0!). This works even when he forwards his calls to a number within our LATA that would invoke toll charges if dialed by land line. He takes advantage to save the toll charges. Is this legal? ------------------------------ Date: 03 May 1994 11:23:38 CET From: SHAW +41 22 730 5338 Subject: Re: Videocrypt Pirating Stewart Fist <100033.2145@CompuServe.COM> wrote: I know several shops here in Geneva (which has a huge English- speaking expat community) that are selling fake Videocrypt cards that give full access to the English Sky Multi-Channel package. In many cases, they give these cards away free to sell dish/receiver packages. The fake cards have flourished in Geneva because Sky does not sell subscriptions to its services Outside the UK (I guess because they only have purchased broadcast rights in that area). I heard the down side is that Sky somehow manages to change their encryption every few months so that you need to go back to the shop for an updated PROM for which the shop charges $30.00. There are thousands of dishes In this area pointing to Astra and receiving Sky via these fake cards or by supplying friends/relatives addresses in the UK. I don't know if it is actually illegal in Switzerland or not. Reminds me of a story I heard. It seems that a person here who became a Sky subscriber by supplying his mother's UK address had a phone call to the number listed on his subscription form. When they asked to speak with him, she replied "oh no, he lives out in Switzerland". I heard Sky disabled his subscriber card remotely that night. Robert Shaw International Telecommunication Union ------------------------------ Date: 03 May 94 22:37:00 EDT From: Jim Derdzinski <73114.3146@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Re: Lucy Waits for Call > I have seen an episode of "I Love Lucy" where Lucy gets a party line > cleared of a long conversation by claiming it's an emergency. (She I saw this episode, and the way she finally cleared the line was hysterically classic Lucy (she breaks in and says something like "gotta go dear, I just hear the doorbell" in which both ladies in the conversation say goodbye and hang up"). > In the same episode, neighbor Ethel Mertz (played by Vivian Vance) > brings her phone to Lucy's apartment. Ethel's phone had a very long > cord, and she said "don't tell the phone company, but every time > someone moves, Fred gets a cord". Fred Mertz was played by William > Frawley. This reminds me of when I was living in Indiana in the '70's. I knew this woman whose job was to clean and prepare vacant apartments in a local complex. Back then, as the telephones belonged to Bell, people would leave them when they moved. Well, to sum it up, this woman had about 50 or so Western Electric telephones of various designs and configurations that she would swipe while cleaning and painting the apartments (she was good with 42A blocks). I lost track of her, and my folks and I still joke about her being sent up the river by Indiana Bell. With all the crap on the store shelves that passes for telephone equipment these days, I wish I still had access to that "collection". ------------------------------ From: ziemer@MCS.COM (Eric Ziemer) Subject: Re: Lucy Waits For Call Date: 26 Apr 1994 18:19:02 -0500 Organization: Another MCSNet Subscriber, Chgo's First Public-Access Internet! Carl Moore (cmoore@BRL.MIL) wrote: > I have seen an episode of "I Love Lucy" where Lucy gets a party line > cleared of a long conversation by claiming it's an emergency. (She > was waiting for a call from a random drawing. Party line calls should > be kept short out of courtesy, but I was concerned that this fictitious > incident would run afoul of laws making it an offense to get use of a > line by false claim of emergency.) Sure. Just get her telephone number and file a complaint! Eric R. Ziemer ziemer@tmn.com ziemer@mcs.com Chicago, IL ------------------------------ From: dct@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu (David C. Tuttle) Subject: Re: Lucy Waits For Call Date: Tue, 03 May 1994 13:56:33 -0600 Organization: University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center In article , Carl Moore wrote: > I have seen an episode of "I Love Lucy" where Lucy gets a party line > cleared of a long conversation by claiming it's an emergency... The "I Love Lucy" episode I remember doesn't go quite that way (these may be different episodes...). The party line is being used, and Lucy wants to clear it. Lucy announces that it's an emergency, but the people ignore her -- she's pulled that trick one too many times. (And while it's a crime to falsely state an emergency, it's also one not to yield the line when an emergency is announced.) So Lucy stays on the line and waits for a lull in the conversation, then says (with a Brooklyn accent) "Oh, there's the door, I've got to call you back." Both parties think the other person said it, so they both hastily say "goodbye" and hang up. Jeez, why do people like me bother to remember these things? :-) David C. Tuttle, Biomathematics ----> dct@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu <---- University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center +1 713 792 2606 Mail Stop 237, 1515 Holcombe Boulevard, Houston, TX 77030-4096 USA [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Columbia Video Club (that's the reincar- nation of the old Columbia Record Club/Columbia House operation) down in Terre Haute, IN has a whole series of the old "I Love Lucy" shows on videotape taken from the original masters. There are several dozen videotapes in the entire collection if anyone is interested. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 22:48:32 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Ricky Finds Old Phone In the famous birth episode of "I Love Lucy", Ricky Ricardo seeks to make a call from the waiting room and finds a telephone with a cup-shaped ear piece and no dial. Ricky (played by Desi Arnaz) asks about the lack of a dial and is told to give the girl (the operator) the number. (Reminds you of the recent incident of someone not knowing how to use a rotary phone.) He asks the operator for CIrcle 1-xxxx. If this supposedly happens in New York City, I find there was a CH1 in zone 7 (Brooklyn). When did the suggestion about 555-xxxx come in? (Also, on this early TV program, I fail to see the disclaimer that the persons and events shown are fictitious.) [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: This episode is another one available in the series from Columbia Video. Lucille Ball once noted that even had her child been a girl (in those days, pre-birth sex detirmination had not been developed as a medical technique) they had decided to go ahead with a boy on the show. The airing of that show was timed in such a way that Ms. Ball gave birth an hour or so before the pre-recorded show (usually "Lucy" was done live, before an audience, but not that night) was aired. Red Skelton's comedy show came on CBS right after "Lucy" each week, and that night as the show started, Skelton announced that Ms. Ball had successfully given birth about two hours earlier. Desilu Productions took a gamble and wrote a boy into the script, which is how it turned out. They debated back-pedaling and changing the newborn into a girl in future shows had it been one but eventually decided to stick with a boy in future shows regardless of the actual outcome in Ms. Ball's personal life. There is/was a CIrcle exchange in New York. CIrcle-5-1500 was the number for the Diners Club switchboard when that credit card processing office was located in NYC on Circle Plaza (Park?). PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 May 94 22:42:58 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: Teaser April 1994 phone bill in Md. said "You'll never have to write another check payable to C&P Telephone". The catch is that you'd write checks to Bell Atlantic-MD instead. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #200 ******************************