HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
Date: 26 SEP 92 04:24   
From: MPA15AB!RANDY@TRENGA.tredydev.unisys.com
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Speech Recognition Added to Telephone Messaging System
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 733, Message 4 of 13

john@zygot.ati.com (John Higdon)writes:

> As an indication as to how well this will all work, it probably should
> be noted that Unisys is the vendor for [drum roll] -- Pac*Bell's
> Message Center. We certainly know how functional and reliable THAT
> system is!

Pac Bell's Message Center has suffered some very unfortunate outages.
But they are far from the only major installation of this equipment,
and I have not heard of any significant problems at any other site.  I
have been told of some reasons for Pac Bell's troubles, and they do
not implicate the system itself.

The Unisys system is really very exciting -- it is a platform which
runs on a very wide range of code-compatable mainframes, ranging from
very small to room-filling.  By using this platform, telephony
applications can be purchased or written (including by the 4GLs
available).  This opens up the power, security, reliability, and
flexability of the mainframe environment for telephony.  Multiple
applications can be running at the same time, and new development can
coexist with production systems.  Advanced data management systems
(including semantic models), fully-featured operating systems (with
very easy multi-tasking and very flexable memory management), and a
productive, mature software environment combine to make it easier to
create complex systems.

I'm surprised that John Higdon is so down on this system -- I would
have expected someone with his experience, imagination, and spirit to
conceive and create his own NAP applications, going beyond what is now
available, and marketing them.  I would have thought that he would
have lept at the chance to make money off such an interesting
environment.  Instead he points to some problems experienced by one
application at one customer, and paints the entire system as bad.

Please note that, although I work for Unisys, I do not work on NAP; I
have no direct knowledge of NAP or Pac Bell's Message Center, and I am
not speaking for Unisys.


Randy Gellens            randy%mpa15ab@trenga.tredydev.unisys.com
>>>>>>> If mail bounces, forward to rgellens@mcimail.com <<<<<<<<
Opinions are personal; facts are suspect; I speak only for myself
Date: Sat, 26 Sep 1992 17:57:29 GMT
From: m13079%mwunix@linus.mitre.org (Mary Anne Walters)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: EUUG Address? Help Please
Organization: MITRE Corporation, McLean VA
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 738, Message 5 of 14

I got an address for EUUG of euug@nic.eu.net.  I emailed, asking for
the list of European Internet sites, but the mail bounced.

Does anyone have the correct address so I can try again?


Thanks,

Mary Anne
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 92 23:36:35 EDT
From: Nigel.Allen@lambada.oit.unc.edu
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Canadian Politician Sends Out "Junk Faxes"
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 742, Message 8 of 9

Anyone who has a fax machine in Toronto (at least one that's listed in
the Business Connexions directory of fax numbers published by
Telinfomatic Inc.)  has gotten used to receiving "junk faxes"
promoting 976 numbers and fax supplies.

Dennis Mills, the federal Member of Parliament for the Toronto
constituency of Broadview-Greenwood, has discovered the joys of junk
faxing.
  
I have in front of me a fax from him dealing with the Canadian
constitutional referendum scheduled for October 26th. I suspect that
every Toronto-area fax machine listed in Business Connexions will
receive the same message from Mr. Mills.

I think the fax was probably sent out using the facilities of DFD
Telebroadcasting, a 976-number company that uses junk faxes and
automatic dialing and announcing devices to promote its 976 numbers.
Mr. Mills has also used automatic dialing and announcing devices to
promote himself.
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 92 13:43:14 EDT
From: Carl Moore (VLD/VMB) <cmoore@BRL.MIL>
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: New 540 Scam
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 753, Message 15 of 18

This apparently refers to calls in NYC and New York suburbs.  Do the
same numbers on 540 prefix work from all such area codes, or is it
possible to have a 540 number working in some but not other such area
codes?

$225/hour looks VERY steep, even though I have seen late-night ads for
"900" numbers.  Doesn't anyone review such charges before the numbers
on 540 are turned on?

As for the scam: Be strict about identifying visitors (for example,
phone company people who need to visit homes or businesses have to
carry phone company photo ID), and make sure only authorized people
place or accept calls (you could offer to make the call yourself, but
you'd want to block 540 and/or remember what 540 is).
Date: 28 Sep 92 18:56:03 GMT
From: wah@zach.fit.edu ( Bill Huttig)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Delphi via Telnet
Organization: Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne USA
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 744, Message 10 of 14

I can't seem to find the article but PAT wrote that delphi was not
telnetable ... well it is from my site at delphi.com ...


Bill
Date: Thu, 01 Oct 92 18:49:47 EDT
From: David Leibold <DLEIBOLD@VM1.YorkU.CA>
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Teleglobe Inaugurates Direct Service With Ukraine
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 753, Message 2 of 18

 From {Global Connections}, Aug-Sept 1992:


In mid-July, the Ukrainian Ambassador to Canada officially placed the
first phone call from Canada to Ukraine which was not routed through
Moscow. The telephone call was made during a two-way videoconference
between the Ambassador in Montreal and government officials in Kiev.

Telephone traffic volume, currently almost 30,000 minutes a week, is
expected to triple by year-end; the new direct telephone circuits to
Ukraine will be tripled or quadrupled accordingly.


dleibold@vm1.yorku.ca
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 14:07:41 CDT
From: cybrspc!roy@cs.umn.edu (Roy M. Silvernail)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: AT&T Public Phone 2000
Organization: Villa CyberSpace, Minneapolis, MN
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 746, Message 11 of 11

Mike.Riddle@ivgate.omahug.org (Mike Riddle) writes:

[regarding my article about the AT&T Public Phone 2000]

> Maybe I'm wrong, but I can "explain way" all of Mr. Silvernail's
> concerns by referring him to the relatively new, and only now becoming
> effective, Americans With Disabilities Act.

> Another part of the Telecommunications section of the ADA requires TDD
> terminals in pay phone installations of some size > X.  If The Phone
> Company is allowing for equal access to the TDD, the possibility of a
> wheelchair customer might explain the low keyboard height and the
> slantex keyboard.

Perhaps I should have stated this explicitly ... a Public Phone 2000
is distinctly different from a TDD phone.  In both airports, I saw
TDD-equipped pay-phones in addition to the Public Phone 2000
installations.  These were, indeed, placed to make wheelchair access
easy.

With that in mind, the ergonomics of the PP2K (if I may coin a noun)
still need work.  At the stand-up kiosk, the keyboard would be a bit
high to be comfortable for a wheelchair-bound user.  The user would
have to peek over the top of the keyboard to see the available keys,
and crane the head awkwardly to see the screen.  This may be a moot
point, since the PP2K cannot communicate with TDD units, only with
standard 3/12/2400 bps modems.

In the sit-down kiosk, the wheelchair isn't a consideration, since the
opening wouldn't admit one.

> Disclaimer: I've not personally seen one of these new payphones yet,
> and also I recognize the increasing marketing attractiveness of some
> computer connection to a payphone.  But what I've heard, and the
> timing of their appearance, suggests to me that these phones were
> driven by the ADA.  Perhaps ongoing market research into who uses them
> and how will lead to increased availability of computer communications
> capability for business travelers as well.

Certainly, TDD installations are likely driven by the ADA.  I think,
though, that the PP2K is more driven by the growing electronic
communications market, in combination with the American preoccupation
with gadgets.  The PP2K is flashy looking, with an attraction mode
screen display on unused units.  It also offers access to translation
services and a few other options I didn't have time to explore.  The
PP2K will probably be used mostly by business travellers, as they need
to keep in electronic touch more than mere mortals.

Now, if AT&T and the airports were to join some forces, perhaps we
might see a PP3K that includes TDD access along with the rest of the
fancy features.


Roy M. Silvernail |+|  roy%cybrspc@cs.umn.edu
Date: Sat, 26 Sep 92 09:40:24 GMT
From: rhcohen@netcom.com (Robert Cohen)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: 800 Numbers Restricted by NYTel?
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 733, Message 5 of 13

Henry Mensch (henry@ads.com) wrote:

> Now I just don't understand this.  Why on earth would a public phone
> on the street be restricted from placing 800 calls?  Any clues?

Henry,

Could this be a new 'revenue enhancement' scheme?  If 800's are
restricted from the phone, then the phone is more available for
revenue producing calls.  What'll they think of next?  :=) (I'd be
curious to hear a comment from a NYNEX person on this!)


Robert Cohen   rhcohen@netcom.com  <- preferred
rhcohen@PacBell.COM    tel.415.553.4033
From: gmw1@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu (Gabe M Wiener)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: The Smallest US Telephone Company
Date: 30 Sep 92 15:28:08 GMT
Reply-To: gmw1@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu (Gabe M Wiener)
Organization: Columbia University
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 751, Message 6 of 14

In article <telecom12.748.5@eecs.nwu.edu> TELECOM Moderator notes:

> the smallest phone company however. There is (or was) a guy in
> Colorado who owned a telco with *eight* subscribers. 

How does he qualify as a telco per se?  How does this differ from any
organization that buys its own PBX?  Or is the distinction that any
call outside of the local equipment is long-distance?

Incidentally, I've always wondered ... hypothetical: someone moves out
to the middle of nowhere ... buys switch and hooks up 30 odd
subscribers to old used SxS ... how does he go about getting long
distance connectivity?


Gabe Wiener - Columbia Univ.   gmw1@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu 
N2GPZ in ham radio circles     72355,1226 on CI$           


[Moderator's Note: I think he qualifies as a telco instead of a 'PBX'
because he has several users who are not associated with each other
through any common affinity group, i.e. not all of the same employer;
not all of the same residential premises, etc. To get long distance
service he cuts a deal with the various carriers. That is how it is
done now days. Anyone can be a telco; anyone can be an LD carrier.  PAT]
From: doug@cc.ysu.edu (Doug Sewell)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Two-Line Switching Device
Date: 1 Oct 92 20:50:38 GMT
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 753, Message 16 of 18

Bob_Frankston@frankston.com writes:

> I think that Radio Shack used to and might still sell a device
> designed for sharing an answering machine on two lines.  It will
> respond to a call coming in on either line.  I presume that the first
> line is still the default for outgoing.  Unlike the switch box, it
> would be automatic.  Since I never used the device, I might be wrong.

They sense an incoming call on either line (it takes the two-line --
RJ14? -- input and sends output to an RJ11 ... RS also has the 2xRJ11
to one RJ14 cords).

Outgoing calls are placed on the line that most recently received an
incoming call.

They're only $9.95, but I've had two of them fail already (the second
one was a replacement for the first one).  They seemed ideal for an
answering machine or a cordless phone, but they just don't seem to
work very well, after a while they refuse to answer one of the lines.

I got a cheap answering machine for the second line (it's a
listed/data line anyway, without a phone on it) instead, and have been
much more satisfied.


Doug Sewell, Tech Support, Computer Center, Youngstown State University
doug@cc.ysu.edu	   doug@ysub.bitnet	<internet>!cc.ysu.edu!doug
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1992 10:28:16 -0400
From: jacksch@insom.eastern.com (Eric Jacksch)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Modem <-> Digital Telephone System
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 759, Message 14 of 14

shri@freal.cs.umass.edu writes:

> In article <telecom12.727.4@eecs.nwu.edu> jacksch@insom.eastern.com
> writes:

>> We have electronic key set telephones; the four wire ones which plug
>> into RJ-11 jacks and allow you to select from a set of lines, an
>> intercom, etc.  After playing around trying to build an acoustic ...

> How did it work?

Very well.

> Or am I missing some crucial wisdom about key telephones?

Yup ... it isn't a ring-and-tip pair, it's straight audio.  It isn't
connected to anything until you select a line using the keys on the
telephone.

> I have two lines at home ... now if only I could put together some
> similar $10 in parts and have the answering machine on one line answer
> calls on both lines, (while both lines are separate for all other
> purposes.)

You can buy one at Radio Shack, but it's a bit more than $10.


Take Care,

Eric Jacksch   jacksch@insom.eastern.com   Data/Fax: (416) 601-9112
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 92 14:16:23 -0700
From: henry@ads.com (Henry Mensch)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: BU Phone Rates Go Up -- Advice Sought
Reply-To: henry@ads.com
Organization: TELECOM Digest
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 757, Message 2 of 13

navsaria@bass.bu.edu (Dipesh Navsaria) wrote:

> I called New England Telephone and discovered that their measured
> service rate has _not_ changed ... but since I am a BU student, my
> dorm phone service is now more expensive.  (I have lived in the same
> room through the summer and into this academic year, and therefore
> have had the same phone number.)

The answer is to move into off-campus housing ... you'll save money on
your housing costs as well as your telephone bill.


# henry mensch / booz, allen & hamilton, inc.  / <henry@ads.com>
Date: Sat, 26 Sep 1992 05:10:25 GMT
From: dag@ossi.com (Darren Alex Griffiths)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Pac*Bell Phone Directory (Was USA to Ten Digits)
Organization: Open Systems Solutions Inc.
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 737, Message 4 of 6

carndt@zeus.calpoly.edu (Chris Arndt) writes:

> In article <telecom12.720.13@eecs.nwu.edu> varney@ihlpf.att.com (Alan
> L Varney) writes:

>> PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE: "1+" and "*67" are PREFIXes; the NXX codes are
>> called "central office codes" or just "office codes".  The term PREFIX
>> is used to imply that the digits are part of a dialing plan, but NOT
>> part of the telephone number.

> Then why does my brand new, just delivered Pac*Bell directory, list
> "Prefix Locations", and list all of the "NXX" numbers and the areas
> they are for?

Your brand new, just delivered Pac*Bell directory also has Hannibal
Lecter, of "Silence of the Lambs" fame, listed under the psychologists
section in the Yellow Pages.  I like to think that Dr. Lecter is not
living in San Francisco, particularly since his prefix is used for the
Mission District where I live.  At the same time, walking around
Mission and 17th Street after dark is quite an experience so the
addition of one more crazed cannibal may not be noticed.

Before anyone asks, I do have better things to do with my time than
read the Yellow Pages and, even though friends and co-workers may
disagree with my judgment, I feel no need to consult a psychologist
and I was not looking for one.  I came across the entry through a
friend who is definitely in need of medical assistance.  The number is
(415) 647-4960 (censor if you wish Pat) and of-course I couldn't
resist calling.  An answering machine picked up informing me that the
owner of the phone was going to be out of town until December.  I
suspect he will have a few messages when he returns :-).


   Cheers,

Darren Alex Griffiths        dag@nasty.ossi.com
Open Systems Solutions Inc.  (510) 652-6200 x139
Fujitsu Ltd.                 Fax: (510) 652-5532
6121 Hollis Street           Emeryville, CA 94608-2092
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 1992 23:14:56 GMT
From: klopfens@andy.bgsu.edu (Bruce Klopfenstein)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: MCC First Cities in Dallas
Organization: Bowling Green State University B.G., Oh.
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 753, Message 4 of 18

I'm told that at a panel at SIGGRAPH, Bruce Sidran from a company
called MCC First Cities described an effort to test a
video-to-the-home service.  Apparently, several communities are going
to be used as test sites for varied approaches to providing digital
telecommunications/ video to the home.

I'm interested in learning more about this project (and other projects
like it around the country) as well as anything about this particular
company.

Thanks for any help.


Bruce C. Klopfenstein              klopfens@andy.bgsu.edu
Department of Telecommunications   klopfenstein@bgsuopie.bitnet
322 West Hall                      klopfens@bgsuvax.UUCP
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 18:25:31 GMT
From: lars@spectrum.CMC.COM (Lars Poulsen)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Local Battery
Organization: CMC Network Systems (Rockwell DCD), Santa Barbara, CA, USA
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 747, Message 1 of 14

In article <telecom12.744.11@eecs.nwu.edu> Randy Gellens (MPA15C!RANDY@
TRENGA.tredydev.unisys.com) writes:

> In a local-battery phone, how was the battery charged?

Imagine, if you will, a five pound dry cell battery, about 9" high, by
7" wide, by 2.5" deep, rather oval when looked at from above.  The
battery would last for years and years, with normal usage.

When I was a kid, on a farm in Denmark, we had service from a manual
exchange. Good old-fashioned cordboard, with an operator, in whose
house the board was installed. Natural curiousity and an ear for
gossip (and the ability to mostly keep it to yourself) seemed to be
part of the requirements for the job. My mother once was talking to a
friend, who cautioned her not to tell any secrets "because Ellen at
the exchange is listening". "Oh no, she's not!!" came the outraged
comment from Ellen.

The telephone set had a coal grain microphone, and a hand crank for
signaling. You would crank both to start a call and to close it down.
The battery was on the wall under the desk, in a black plastic case.

Around 1960, KTAS (Copenhagen Telephone) went from operator-served to
"self-service" long distance service: When you needed a long-distance
call, you would mention the destination city, and wait for the next
operator, then repeat the procedure until you got to either the
destination, or (if the destination was in an automated area) to an
operator who could dial the call for you. It was quite interesting to
note how the same call could be routed differently depending on line
availability.

About 1963, everything went automatic. New wiring was installed
(underground instead of the old overhead cables) and new instruments
(Ericsson desk sets, the European equivalent of the 500 set) handed
out to everyone. We were quite excited about the high technology of
direct dial calls in our rural community. Of course, the drawback was
that we lost the operator-implemented "call forwarding" and "call
waiting" functions that we had previously enjoyed at no additional
charge!


Lars Poulsen, SMTS Software Engineer	Internet E-mail: lars@CMC.COM
CMC Network Products / Rockwell Int'l	Telephone: +1-805-968-4262	
Santa Barbara, CA 93117-3083		TeleFAX:   +1-805-968-8256
Date: Fri, 25 Sep 92 17:29:57 EDT
From: ers@cblpe.att.com (Eugene R Schroeder)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Stop the Presses, Call the Police!
Organization: AT&T
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 12, Issue 733, Message 7 of 13

In article <telecom12.730.9@eecs.nwu.edu> Carl Moore (VLD/VMB)
<cmoore@BRL.MIL> writes:

> To summarize: 650611 in the Netherlands (at Amsterdam?) got a lot of
> calls, and on many of them only the last 4 digits got through, causing
> many calls to reach police at the 0611 emergency number.

> What kind of exchange is it that strips some leading digits off and
> processes the remaining digits, within what is apparently only the
> local phone number?

My guess is that the switch was overloaded to the point that there was
significant dial tone delay, and the callers (like many people) didn't
check for dial tone before dialing, and thus the first few digits were
missed.


Gene