HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: brad@clarinet.com (Brad Templeton)
Subject: Re: capturing caller id data
Organization: ClariNet Communications Corp.
Distribution: usa
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1992 10:21:19 GMT

In article <SWARUP.92Apr13140352@hrothgar.linus.mitre.org> swarup@mitre.org writes:
>
>The system only requires you (the callee) to have special equipment
>(caller-ID requires this too).  Callers can use their normal
>touch-tone phone to get past your call screener. You could use the
>system meaningfully from day one.

Sort of.   People either have to remember a password, or people can lie.
This is no good.  If it's "enter your pass code" then people will forget
and find it very inconvenient to use.  If it's "enter your phone number"
then all the caller who wants in has to do is look up the number of
a known friend or relative.

>
>
>> And it eliminates the security aspect of caller-ID, which
>> would be usable to replace the "callback" feature many dialins use.
>
>If your phone blocks all calls except those with appropriate ID, you
>automatically have all the information caller-ID gives you. What
>additional "security aspect" are you talking about?

The caller ID packet comes from the telco, and can be trusted.  Packets
from the user are no good.   Magic codes typed with touch tones are
no different from passwords.  The whole *point* of callback (or the
use of caller-id to simulate callback security, though not perfectly) is
that it can't be compromised by stealing passwords.  To get in to the
system, you must *both* know the password and be present at an approved
number (or compromise the phone company.)
-- 
Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Sunnyvale, CA 408/296-0366
Xref: sparky misc.consumers:10407 rec.autos:11253
From: neilw@informix.com (Neil Williams)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,rec.autos
Subject: Re: Buy American parrots (was Re: 1991 Lincoln Continental.)
Date: 13 Apr 92 00:53:06 GMT
Organization: Informix Software, Inc.

In article <1992Apr08.222221.15247@stiatl.salestech.com> ges@stiatl.salestech.com (Gerald Sullivan) writes:
>gunter@uniwa.uwa.oz.au (Gunter Ahrendt) writes:
>
>>go and live in japan if you think so highly of them, don't you have any pride,
>>just how the hell do you expect the Americans to compete with them, lower all
>>the wages for the workers?
>
>Yes, if that is what it takes to increase productivity. 
>What gives an autoworker a right to $40,000/year (the average salary
>of striking Caterpillar workers). Millions would do the same job for
>1/2 of that. Why are these guys special? Most people in this country
>don't have the power to blackmail their employer into paying more than they
>are worth. 

...and how about that bill to make it illegal to fire striking workers???
Simply incredible that this is even a remote possibility.

These big unions (e.g. UAW) are just killing American industry.

--Neil
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,alt.privacy
From: brad@clarinet.com (Brad Templeton)
Subject: Re: capturing caller id data
Organization: ClariNet Communications Corp.
Distribution: usa
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 1992 20:23:06 GMT

In article <1992Apr15.234806.1298@crd.ge.com> volpe@bart.Inria.Fr (Christopher R Volpe) writes:
>Do you really need this kind of security? I would be very happy with
>a machine that picked up the line immediately and said:
>
>    Hi. This is my automatic call router. If this is a personal call,
>    press 1 to ring my personal line. If this is a telemarketer or some
>    other form of solicitation, press 2 to be connected to my answering 
>    machine and I will return your call if I am interested. Solicitors
>    pressing 1 at this point will be dealt with appropriately.
>
>Does any solicitor think he's going to get anywhere with you by
>pressing 1 and violating your protocol? Probably not. 

Yup.  Business phone solicitors are trained at getting past secretaries
that are told not to let salefolks's calls through.   They think it's an
art.    They have to, because very few secretaries are told to let cold
calls through.

Anyway, the main point here is that you're suggesting voice menuing for
everybody.

   YUK

I don't want to do something my computer can do.  CLID gives people the
*option*  (And we're talking CLID with free per-call blocking here, it is
optional) of having the computer forward some info in a secure fashion that
can be used.

And that means people I know don't get the voice menu, they get me, if I
am available.
-- 
Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Sunnyvale, CA 408/296-0366
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,alt.privacy
From: brad@clarinet.com (Brad Templeton)
Subject: Re: capturing caller id data
Organization: ClariNet Communications Corp.
Distribution: usa
Date: Thu, 09 Apr 1992 20:44:24 GMT

Caller ID as a display phone is a useless feature -- ignore the fact that this
is what you see in the ads right now.

The real value of caller id comes when connected to a smart answering
machine which can (depending on the time of day) either:

a) Put the call through immediately if it's from a number you like,

b) Put the call to an answering machine/call screener if it's a number
you don't know, anonymous call or number coded for this function.

c) Reject the call if it's a number you hate


In addition to recording the number on the answering machine tape etc., and
allowing you to quickly put people in the appropriate class during or just
after the phone call.

Note that option B can be more than just an answering machine:
	Press 1 to leave a mesasge.
	Press 2 if this is an emergency.  It is a violation of the law
		to misrepresent an emergency (*)
	Press 3 if this is a phone solicitation.

(*) Probably not yet, but it could be.
-- 
Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Sunnyvale, CA 408/296-0366
Xref: sparky misc.consumers:10520 rec.food.cooking:7557
From: mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,rec.food.cooking
Subject: Where to buy Seafood in Boston??
Date: 15 Apr 1992 16:00:24 GMT
Organization: Center for Reliable and High-Performance Computing, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Distribution: na
NNTP-Posting-Host: uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu

     My roommate is going to Boston this weekend to visit her So 
(yeah - rough life ain't it :^}).

     I would like her to bring home (to Illinois) some friends for
dinner (in the form of some lobsters and a few scallops).  

     She'll be staying in the vicinity of Orchestra Hall (Boston
Conservatory) and flying in and out of Logan, and will not have a car
(I've been to Boston -- I wouldn't want to drive a car in THAT town -
perish the thought).  

     So, I'm looking for a place in Boston, near the Conservatory (or
near a "T" stop) that sells FRESH - CHEAP - seafood that will package
it for travel (I know what the places at Logan charge -- I can almost
get it cheaper here).

ANY SUGGESTIONS?

e-mail quickly - her flight leaves tomorrow a.m.

THANKS!!!



--
These are facts, facts are the enemy of truth.
  -- Don Quixote, Man of La Mancha

  Mary Allison (mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu) Urbana, Illinois
Square Dancer, Cat Owned, Leaper, Founder QL Friends of Machiko
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Digital Answering Machines?
From: omf@tiamat.hacks.arizona.edu (Oscar Fowler)
Date: 8 APR 92 13:51:35    
Reply-To: omf@tiamat.hacks.arizona.edu
 <7APR92111037@tiamat.hacks.arizona.edu> <1992Apr8.035121.24662@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu>
Distribution: world,local
Organization: Sirius Cybernetics Corporation
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.4-a4  

In article <1992Apr8.035121.24662@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu>, bkwg0457@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Brent Whitlock) writes...
>OS/2 2.0 is supposed to run DOS, Windows, 16 bit and 32 bit OS/2 applications
>simultaneously.  Therefore, you should not have a problem.

Applications, yes - but no one said anything about DRIVERS...

Oscar M. Fowler - omf@smaug.hacks.arizona.edu

PARMESAN CHEESE: Great on pasta, not great on eggs ...
From: neilw@informix.com (Neil Williams)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: ----- Follow up -----
Date: 15 Apr 92 00:58:35 GMT
Organization: Informix Software, Inc.

In article <sfccdINNbni@matt.ksu.ksu.edu> lindab@matt.ksu.ksu.edu writes:
>
>    
>     I wish to thank everyone who have replied and given useful
>information and comments to my inquiry. 
>
>     In the last posting, I didn't mention what was my eye problem. 
>I am just nearsighted and don't have astigmatism.  The lenses I was
>given are 3-month disposables.  I have to take them out every night
>and use "opti-free" to wash them, but I don't use any enzymes. 
>Every three month, I'll get a new pair.  Some of guys mentioned a
>couple of brand names.  Do they mean much in terms of quality ?
>
>     Just to give you an idea where I am now, I went back to see
>the doctor again right after I posted the message, because I was
>getting a headache.  This time he told me that my left eye could do
>better so he changed the left lens to a higher power.  But I still
>couldn't (and can't) see things very clearly in a close distance. 
>He thought the cause was that the muscles of my eyes are adapted to
>short distances because my old glasses didn't keep up with the
>deterioration of my eyesight, so it may take at least ten days for
>my eyes to get used to these more powerful lenses.  Is this
>possible ?  

If all you have is nearsightedness, your doctor sounds like an
idiot.  All the optomotrists I've ever seen test each eye
individually, with a painfully long series of "which is better,
one (flip to new lens)... or two", until they determine exactly
what strength prescription each eye requires.

Then they order the lenses based on those tests.  None of this
trial and error crap your doctor is putting you through.  

Also, I've never heard of these 3 month disposables.  Protein
deposits can build up within a couple weeks, making your lenses
uncomfortable.  3 months is a looong time without enzymatic cleaning.

Try a different doctor.  Can't hurt, and it may help quite a bit
in this case.

--Neil
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,rec.autos
From: gunter@uniwa.uwa.oz.au (Gunter Ahrendt)
Subject: Re: 1991 Lincoln Continental.
Organization: University of Western Australia
Date: Tue, 7 Apr 1992 10:51:22 GMT

The thing you (oh stuff america, i only care about my pathetic self) people
miss is, well just look at all the west's unemployed, massive economic troubles
and debt's, so all you 'high-on-a-horse' self-centered fools are saying, stuff
the US worker, i have a job, i buy what i like, japs make it cheaper, so i'll
take that, sure they have no financial troubles, sure they earn less and can
thus make it cheaper, sure they have no unemployment by comparision, sure they
are real open to trade with the west...but hell what do you care, why don't you
go and live in japan if you think so highly of them, don't you have any pride,
just how the hell do you expect the Americans to compete with them, lower all
the wages for the workers?

This is really great, i love seeing all these selfish people, who care stuff
all about their own country, saying one one hand, "Gee, isn't the unemployment
situation bad...etc etc" and on the other, i'm gonna buy nothing but imports..

THINK.

maybe just maybe...you are so shortsighted and stubborn...you really don't
care.

Hey if all our economies get back on track, sure buy what you like, but when
times are tough like they are now, think about your country and your fellow
countrymen...not yourself.
From: jennie+@cs.cmu.edu (Jennifer Kay)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Casement Air Conditioners?
Date: 12 Apr 92 16:40:33 GMT
Article-I.D.: cs.1992Apr12.164033.193571
Distribution: na
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon

I'm starting to think about buying an air conditioner for the warm
months ahead, and I had a couple of questions

We have casement windows (the kind that slide from side to side not
up and down). Does anyone have any experience with casement style 
air conditioners? They appear to be a lot more expensive than normal
ones. We have put a regular one in the window in the past and filled in
the gap above in the window with plexiglass -- it works OK, but I think
a proper one would be better.

Anyone have any comments on casement air conditioners? Good brands? 
Things to stay away from? Information I should know?

Thanks,

-- Jennie
Xref: sparky misc.consumers:10545 alt.privacy:1051
From: edp@math.zko.dec.com (Eric Postpischil)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,alt.privacy
Subject: Re: capturing caller id data
Date: 16 Apr 92 12:22:43 GMT
Reply-To: edp@math.zko.dec.com (Eric Postpischil)
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation

In article <1992Apr15.080343.14353@dartvax.dartmouth.edu>,
Joe.Francis@dartmouth.edu (Joe Francis) writes:

>> By the way, you asked for explanation of how calling-line identification
>> would be used, and I explained clearly the advantages it would provide
>> to me.  You have not responded.
>
>Is he supposed to?  We already have enough people who are proud
>graduates of the "he who posts last wins" school of USENET writing.  If
>he asks a question, and you answer it, why is it a *bad thing* for the
>exchange to stop there?

Because he keeps going on with other people about how useless calling
line identification is, giving the appearance nobody's come up with
anything useful about it.  I intend to prevent that fraud from
occurring.  What is "mdd.comm.mot" anyway; is this guy paid by one of
the phone companies?


                                -- edp (Eric Postpischil)
                                "Always mount a scratch monkey."
                                edp@alien.enet.dec.com
From: tr@samadams.princeton.edu (Tom Reingold)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Question to formerly or currently Allstate insured
Date: 15 Apr 92 19:24:31 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: Noo Joizy, USA

Yes, I got a check and letter just like this.  And I recently cancelled
my Allstate policy too.  The amount was something like $36, though.
--
        Tom Reingold
        tr@samadams.princeton.edu  OR  ...!princeton!samadams!tr
        "Warning: Do not drive with Auto-Shade in place.  Remove
        from windshield before starting ignition."
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.legal
From: bkwg0457@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Brent Whitlock)
Subject: Re: Credit Rating & $$$ Collectors?
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 1992 16:29:14 GMT

crb2@Ra.MsState.Edu (Chad R. Berthelson) writes:

>... if anyone denies you credit because of a credit report then
>you can ask for a copy of the one they looked at and they are obligated
>to give it to you FREE.  If you buy your own it's gonna cost $10 - $20.

>So, go to the local Chevy dealer (in a couple of months) and try to finance a 
>match set of Corvette ZR-1's (I am assuming you can't afford that, who could)
>and when they deny you credit, ask for a copy of your report, they are legally
>obligated to give it to you free of charge.  If it has anything negative you
>have the right to ammend it (with a blurb accross the bottom) by writing the
>credit agency.  NOTE:  your ammendment won't 'fix' an error and is intended
>to mediate disputed claims.

>Chad

----------------

You can avoid this type of hassle and expense by simply contacting TRW and
ordering a FREE credit report from them starting May 1.  I believe Equifax and
TransUnion also offer free credit reports to consumers, based on information
in previous posts, but I am not as certain about that.  Perhaps someone else
can offer more definitive information on those two.  Here are the addresses:

From US News and World Report:
        
        Equifax Information Service Center
        Wildwood Plaza, 7200 Windy Hill Road
        Suite 500
        Marietta, GA  30067
        800-685-1111

        TRW Consumer Assistance Center
        P.O. Box 749029
        Dallas TX  75374
        214-235-1200

        TransUnion Consumer Relations Center
        25249 Country Club Boulevard
        P.O. Box 7000
        North Olmsted, OH  44070

Thanks to Kevin Junck for posting that information some time ago.

Brent Whitlock
whitlock@logos.vlsi.uiuc.edu
From: lstowell@pyrnova.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: ***WARNING: BE CAREFUL WHEN DEALING WITH ALLSTATE INSURANCE!***
Date: 9 Apr 92 19:49:06 GMT
Reply-To: lstowell@pyrnova.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Pyramid Technology Corp., Mountain View, CA

In article <1992Apr9.192825.8032@cbnewsl.cb.att.com> stank@cbnewsl.cb.att.com (Stan Krieger) writes:
>
>This is a perfect example of my posting a few days ago as to why auto
>insurance rates are so high. Cosmetic damage was done to the car, a low
>cost reasonable restoration was available, but the car owner wanted
>more.  The fact is that when we take our cars on the road, or leave
>them on the streets or public parking areas, we are taking a risk; we
>can't be so naive as to assume that damage won't be done to our cars,
>nor can we believe that we're entitled for perfect restoration as 
>opposed to fully functional restoration (and as I implied earlier,
>for less damage, such as a "ding" when a car door is opened into 
>another car, it's a jar of touch-up paint).
>
      You must believe in the tooth fairy and have an undisputed
      title to the Brooklyn bridge if you swallow THAT propaganda
      from the insurance companies so thoroughly.

      It is worth considering that the insurance companies don't
      just keep your premium payments in a savings account in order
      to pay claims.  

      They invest them in a variety of financial instruments....SOME
      of which turn out to be really poor investments.  Most of the
      insurance companies invested heavily in junk bonds and other 
      really scarey investments...and guess who picks up the bill
      for their financial misdeeds.  

      There is really little or no incentive for their portfolio
      managers to make sound investments...as most states allow the
      companies to pretend that their only source of income is from
      rate-payers when justifying their egregiously high rates.  

      Just because you are willing to drive around in a clunker with
      Bondo stuck all over it, not everyone is.  And SOME people
      trade cars frequently.  Cosmetic flaws are a major reason for
      reduced trade value (and subsequent lower used car
      prices)...and if you reduce the value of my property, I see no
      reason why you or your insurer should not restore it to its
      original quality.  

      SOME insurance companies financially punish their insured
      drivers who have a bad habit of ignoring other people's rights
      to have the value of their property undiminished.  Others just
      make it difficult for the injured party to collect...and
      Allstate is one of the worst.  

>Finally, to keep to the title of this posting, the "word" on Allstate
>as far back as I remember (late 1950's) was that "God help the person
>whose car was hit by someone insured by Allstate".  The Consumer Reports
>surveys confirm this.
   
     This is true, because Sears certainly isn't gonna.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: swisher@cs.utexas.edu (Janet M. Swisher)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Laundry Detergent recommendations
Date: 15 Apr 1992 00:01:08 -0500
Organization: CS Dept, University of Texas at Austin
Distribution: na
NNTP-Posting-Host: boogie.cs.utexas.edu
Keywords: perfume free, allergen free

My husband's highly-allergic family found that the only two detergents
they could use without any of them reacting were Tide and Dash.  

Your allergies may vary.


Xref: sparky misc.consumers:10292 rec.autos:11077
From: garyh@sco.COM (< Gary H >)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,rec.autos
Subject: Re: Attempted cheating by Sears Auto
Date: Thu, 09 Apr 92 23:15:53 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: The Santa Cruz Operation, Inc.


In article <5318@nosc.NOSC.MIL> koziarz@halibut.nosc.mil (Walter A. Koziarz) writes:
!In article <1992Apr8.121628.823@acsu.buffalo.edu> bphdarcy@ubvmsb.cc.buffalo.edu (SJ Roc D'Arcy, MBP) writes:
!
!well, you do, i hope, realize that the 'purchased in 1970-ish' drill was
!manufactured for Sears by Emerson Electric Corp. and that current Sears power
!tools are products of Ryobi...
!
!recall -- Emerson is an American company and that Ryobi is Japanese
!
!draw your own conclusions from this factual observation combined with the above
!anecdote...
!
!walt k.
!
!p.s. -- please don't take the above comment as an invitation to embark on
!another 'Japan-bashing' ritual... i tried to be calm and reasonable in
!presenting my comments (yes, this is an attempt at saying "don't blame me if
!another feud breaks out")


All that says is that American products USED to be good.... Maybe even better
than the japanese then..... Soooooooooo, when American products started to suck,
Sears switched to Ryobi.....  8-) ....

Gary
-- 
|^^^^^^|            _Yo_Man_____________________________
|      |          /            garyh@sco.com             \
|  _  _|        /             uunet!sco!garyh              \
| (o)(o)      /             425  Encinal Street              \
@      _)   /          Santa Cruz, California  95061          |
 | ,___|   /   W: [408] 457-0195 x7765 / Fax: [408] 429-1887 /
 |   /     \_______________________________________________/
/____\            The Santa Cruz Operation (SCO), Inc.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.legal
From: simona@panix.com (Simona Nass)
Subject: Re: Credit Rating & $$$ Collectors?
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1992 13:21:32 GMT
Organization: PANIX Public Access Unix, NYC

I'm not an attorney, but...

Surely he's asking those questions in case he has to collect on a judgment.
What can he lose by asking you to provide info. and make his job easier?-S.
-- 
Disclaimer: I am not an attorney, though I do have an opinion on everything.
     (     simona@panix.com    or    {apple,cmcl2}!panix!simona     )
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: eeng@tc.fluke.COM (Ed Eng)
Subject: NORDIC TRACK
Keywords: comments sought
Organization: John Fluke Mfg. Co., Inc., Everett, WA
Distribution: na
Date: Fri, 17 Apr 1992 13:43:29 GMT

I'm searching for any comments, good or bad, about Nordic Track cross country
skier (wood model) and Nordic Sport (graphite model).  I've already requested
the video (still waiting after 4 weeks) but I thought I'd request first hand
information.  Do they feel solid, sturdy (please specify model)?  How loud are
they?  How smooth are they?  Has anyone returned them after the free 30 day
trial and why?  I was leaning toward one of the lower end models.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: kevin@milton.u.washington.edu (Kevin Caskey)
Subject: Re: MCI
Keywords: cheaper?
Organization: University of Washington, Seattle
Distribution: usa
Date: Sat, 11 Apr 1992 18:51:54 GMT

In article <1992Apr11.024333.13848@cbnewse.cb.att.com> hemant@cbnewse.cb.att.com (hemant.b.bhatt) writes:
>    There is lots of discussion about AT&T/MCI/SPRINT telemarketing. I got
>call from MCI and SPRINT within last three months. I usually don't place a
<drivel deleted>
>corporation so it automatically costs more. I told NO TO SWITCH before 
>telemarketer even starts. Also BIG SAVERS that I know save pennies on long 
>distance calls but spend hundreds every month on things they don't really 
>need or can afford. Hay it makes them feel good to be penny wise ...... 

I am glad I did not follow Hemant's game plan. I use MCI. The combination
of Their call Europe plus F&F saves me over 20% from AT&T's best similar plan.
I checked my phone bill! Also as to the drivel about a big company, the bus.
section of last week's NYT explains why AT&T can not offer something like
F&F, the article contains some similar stuff.

Don't knock it until you have checked it out. If you have either friends or 
family, MCI could save you some money. I figure just on my wife's usuall
calls to her mom, we save between $100 and $200 a year.

If you don't use the telephone, Hemant, you don't need to worry. I have
no connect w/ any communications company, but I do like to talk for less.

Kevin at U dub



From: ehill@hprpcd.rose.hp.com (Eric Hill)
Date: Mon, 30 Mar 1992 20:10:30 GMT
Subject: Re: dishwasers
Organization: HP Roseville Site
Newsgroups: misc.consumers

If you have hard water do NOT get a GE.  I have one a it is a continueing battle
to keep it clear and working.

Eric
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,alt.activism