From editor@telecom-digest.org Mon Oct 28 22:36:16 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id g9T3aGn15157; Mon, 28 Oct 2002 22:36:16 -0500 (EST) Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 22:36:16 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200210290336.g9T3aGn15157@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #101 TELECOM Digest Mon, 28 Oct 2002 22:35:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 101 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: FTP Synchronization Software for Windows? (Clarence Dold) Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory (Mark Crispin) Wi-FI in Apartments; Airwave Saturation? (Jeff Smith) Re: Is there a Telephone Industry Magazine? (Rich Campbell) Re: Looking for Inexpensive Small Business PBX Solution (Charles P.) Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine (AES) Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine (S. Ewing) Silent Observer (Radek) More News Headlines of Interest 10/28/02 (Monty Solomon) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: dold@16.usenet.us.com Subject: Re: FTP Synchronization Software for Windows? Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 21:50:22 UTC Organization: a2i network Joey Lindstrom wrote: > Can anyone recommend some good FTP synchronization software for > Windows (98 currently, soon to be 2000)? This is for the Telecom > Digest Archives CD-ROM project -- I'd like the CD's that I burn on > behalf of Pat to be COMPLETELY up to date, but the archives are > absolutely humungous. :-) I'm looking for something that will, either > on demand or on a schedule, login to the massis machine (a *nix box), > burrow its way into each and every directory, get a listing of all the > files available, and then download anything either missing, new, or > changed since the last run (to my local hard drive). Not the question that you asked, but, I can't help myself ... What software are you using to burn the CD? Is it something that is RockRidge compatible, to maintain the long filenames that might be in the original Unix box, or is it windows-centric? CDs burned with Windows long file names are not recognizable on Unix boxes. Unix long file names often get munged beyond use by transporting them to Windows CD writers. You can save yourself from that with mkisofs, part of the free cdreader collection. I use mkisofs to create a proper CD image, and then burn that .iso to CD using EasyCDCreator, or RecordNow. ftp://ftp.fokus.gmd.de/pub/unix/cdrecord/alpha/win32/README.win32 ------------------------------ From: Mark Crispin Subject: Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory. For Chip Makers It's Prime Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 14:12:05 -0800 Organization: Networks and Distributed Computing On Mon, 28 Oct 2002, John Higdon wrote: > It may START to happen. They may WISH it would happen. But, ultimately, > it will not happen. How can I say this? Look at history. Every time > there is common ownership of content and the means of transmission, the > public turns its back. I'm trying to understand how this affects satellite TV subscribers. Our signal is already digital, and we're already getting it converted to analog for our TVs (and a much better picture than anything from the cable companies). Will satellite subscribers end up being the last stand for analog? I'm also trying (without success) to understand the point of copy-protecting TV signals. The miserable content and high prices of the premium movie channels (HBO, Showtime, Starz, etc.) long ago made DVDs a more cost-effective means of building a movie collection. I cancelled my subscriptions to HBO, etc. years ago when I still had cable. When I got my satellite service, they gave me Starz free for a few months, and I cancelled it as soon as the free trial ran out. > Latest example: satellite radio. It is failing > miserably. It has technical problems and lackluster programming. The > only people willing to shell out hundreds of dollars for specialized > receivers and $120 a year just to make it work are dedicated gadget > freaks. This won't sustain the business and it will ultimately fail. Satellite radio is attractive for RVers who travel in remote areas. There are still places in North America where there is either no radio at all. Elsewhere, you have two stations: the First Church of the Sacred Bleedin' Anus of Jeezus and National Public Radio ... come to think of it, that's "no radio at all" as well. However, the RVers aren't going to put up with crap programming. -- Mark -- http://staff.washington.edu/mrc Science does not emerge from voting, party politics, or public debate. ------------------------------ From: jeff.smith2@caramail.com (Jeff Smith) Subject: Wi-FI in Apartments; Airwave Saturation? Date: 28 Oct 2002 14:54:59 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ But considering that a lot of people live in apartment buildings, I was wondering at what point Wi-Fi would become a problem, and not be able to function. Imagine there are three apartments in a row, and every apartment has its own Wi-Fi network. And imagine it's the same deal on the floor just above these three apartments, and also the three apartments just below. For a total of nine Wi-Fi networks within a 300 foot radius. Would that work? Thanks for any info. Not because I have any plans, but just because I was wondering about this. ------------------------------ From: Rich Campbell Subject: Re: Is There a Telephone Industry Magazine? Organization: AT&T Broadband Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 22:58:25 GMT This looks like a data site to me that references VOIP and QoS. Rich wrote in message news:telecom22.98.10@telecom-digest.org: > Another good technical magazine is "Telecommunications." > at www.telecommagazine.com ------------------------------ From: Charles P. Subject: Re: Looking for Inexpensive Small Business PBX Solution Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 23:44:21 GMT Panasonic would be the way to go if you wanted to grow at all. Otherwise I would be interested to try one of the Voice Logic systems that sell on ebay for $100 to $150. They seem to do exactly what you want but I've never used one myself. Charles Carl Navarro wrote in message news:telecom22.100.9@telecom-digest.org: > On 25 Oct 2002 10:30:36 -0700, phrankster@hotmail.com (Frank Harris) > wrote: >> I'm looking for a very inexpensive PBX or other type of solution that >> can accomodate a small home business. I know next to nothing about >> PBX's, so I will need some well explained details. I would be willing >> to sacrifice some features to keep the cost down. I need something >> that can perform the following: >> We have one business line with an 800 number. We want to maintain only >> one phone line for incoming and outgoing calls. Minimally we need 2 >> phones, with the ability to expand. Would like to be able to just use >> any analog phone, or at least a fairly inexpensive digital phone. >> When the phone rings, I'd like the caller to be presented with a >> custom greeting. Tbey can have the option to either dial an extension >> or wait for the next available representative. If the extension is >> busy, give them the option to hold or leave a voice message. I'd like >> to be able to leave an alternative greeting for calls coming in before >> or afterhours (or whenever I deem the business closed for the day). >> While on hold or waiting for a rep, I'd like to have hold music >> playing with input from any external audio source (like a CD). >> I'd like to have a distinctive ring for calls coming in on the 800 >> line and the ability to do caller ID. >> I would appreciate any information that can be provided. > What is inexpensive to you? > Panasonic KXTD-308 will do what you want, but you're not exactly > "inexpensive" if you're talking a $300 budget. > If you really mean SINGLE line and 2 phones, there are some SOHO items > that will bridge to a single line and function with voice mail and > distinctive ring. Check eBay or the closeout houses for voice mail > products. A 9516 works nicely for the VM because it has different > mailboxes for distinctive ring. > You can also take your chances on an old Voice Logic product. It > might cost you about $150 to try one out. ------------------------------ From: AES Subject: Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 15:53:59 -0800 In article , David Vinograd wrote: > I have just purchased a multi function Fax, Scanner, Copier and > Printer. The answering system is in one room and the PC along with its > new printer is in an other. I do not wish to move either system nor > can I easily run cable between the two rooms. Can anyone suggest how I > can have the Fax system in automatic receive mode without interfering > with the answering machine. Perhaps what you want is the same as what's called "Answering Machine Mode" on my older Canon fax machine (fax + copier, but not printer) -- the phone line runs from the wall to the fax, then from a second jack on the fax to the combination phone/answering machine. (If you already know all the following, apologies.) In this mode when a call comes in -- voice or fax -- the fax machine itself never answers. Rather the call is answered either by a human picking up the phone or by the answering machine doing the same, while the fax machine, which is connected "across the line," only listens to what's coming in on the call once it's answered. If the fax machine then hears a fax tone coming from the other end it disconnects the phone + answering machine and picks up the call itself. Otherwise it just continues to eavesdrop passively on the human voices or the answering machine message until somebody hangs up. Virtue of this is that if you answer an incoming voice call the fax machine remains inert and doesn't start putting its own whistles back on the line, on top of your voice call. On the other hand if its an incoming fax call, both you and the fax machine hear the incoming fax whistle; the fax machine rather quickly takes over; and you hang up (you're also automatically disconnected in any case. One way or the other faxes always get received. Bottom line, however, is that the phone line must go from the wall *through* the fax machine to the phone/answering machine; they can't be plugged into the wall in different rooms. There may be more complex multi-ring schemes and gadgets that can accomplish the latter; and other messages will describe them. But are you sure you can't run the necessary phone cord from the fax/printer to the answering machine? Phone wires (just long lengths of ordinary phone cords) are cheap, small, rugged, safe, and can be of arbitrary length -- I've run long lengths of them under rugs, tacked into grooves in ceiling boards, draped across roofs, tacked to outside walls, etc, and never encountered any problems. ------------------------------ From: Shaun Ewing Subject: Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 13:18:02 +1100 David Vinograd wrote in message news:telecom22.100.1@telecom-digest.org... > People, > I have just purchased a multi function Fax, Scanner, Copier and > Printer. The answering system is in one room and the PC along with its > new printer is in an other. I do not wish to move either system nor > can I easily run cable between the two rooms. Can anyone suggest how I > can have the Fax system in automatic receive mode without interfering > with the answering machine. Check in your manual; my fax machine (Sharp) has a mode that allows it to listen in on a message being left on the AM and cut in if a fax tone is heard. There is a five page section of the manual dedicated to this feature -- an excerpt is as follows: "While you are out, all of your incoming calls will be answered by your answering machine and its outgoing message will play. During this time, your fax will quietly monitor the line. If your fax detects a fax transmission, it will take over the line and begin reception". The fax machine also allows you to begin receiving a fax by dialing a 3 digit code from any phone in the house (5**) - this saves having to receive a fax without having to be at the fax machine. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Is distinctive ringing available in the > UK? If it is, then your answer might be found there, assuming either > the fax or anwering machine can be trained to respond to different > style rings. PAT] Distinctive ring is a lifesaver. I've got it (called "Faxstream Duet" here in Australia) on my voice line. Before I'd have to have people ring me beforehand so I could turn on the fax, but now I just pay US$3.00 per month for another number; the fax machine detects calls on this number and answers with the fax tone whereas other calls ring through as normal. Shaun ------------------------------ From: web@zemodesign.com (Radek) Subject: Silent Observer Date: 28 Oct 2002 18:36:33 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ I'm looking for a silent observing unit SO-24 (for resonable price). Please e-mail walter@revtechonline or call Walter at 630-521-9000. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 01:36:56 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: More News Headlines of Interest 10/28/02 A TV House Divided By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK The future of television has finally arrived -- really. Now begins the haggling over who gets control, and negotiations with the highest stakes are taking place inside AOL Time Warner. Under fierce competition from satellite services, the Time Warner cable division is racing to sell new features that give viewers more control over what and when they watch. Its new digital services can let subscribers order any of an array of films and network programs whenever they want and even turn set-top boxes into personal digital video recorders that make it easy for viewers to fast-forward through commercials. Time Warner had begun offering the services in a number of cities the last several months, and this fall it is making movies and some network programs available on demand in New York, its biggest market. But as Time Warner Cable promotes the services -- especially the one that can skip commercials -- its plans are colliding with the interests of networks and studios, which own the rights to the most popular shows. Both live off programming schedules and advertising sales. At many, including AOL Time Warner's own Turner Broadcasting and Warner Brothers divisions, executives consider the idea of skipping the commercials to be a threat. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/28/technology/28HOUS.html EchoStar Agrees to Yield Frequencies to Save a Deal By SETH SCHIESEL In a last-ditch attempt to rescue its proposed acquisition of DirecTV, EchoStar Communications has tentatively agreed to transfer dozens of communications frequencies and three satellites to Cablevision, the cable-television company that is making a push into the satellite business, people close to the companies said yesterday. EchoStar and Cablevision have presented the plan to antitrust officials at the Justice Department as a way to potentially salvage EchoStar's proposed $25.8 billion acquisition of the Hughes Electronics division of General Motors, which includes DirecTV. Financial terms were unclear yesterday, but it appeared that Cablevision could receive the frequencies free. The Justice Department has been leaning against the Hughes deal because of concerns that it would combine the nation's two largest providers of satellite TV service. DirecTV is the No. 1 satellite television provider, with about 11 million customers. EchoStar's Dish Network is No. 2 with about 7.8 million subscribers. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/28/technology/28DISH.html Name That Tune, From Your Cellphone By DAVID F. GALLAGHER LONDON - European phone companies have bet billions on new wireless networks in the hope that consumers will pay for video and other fancy multimedia services. But a start-up company here, Shazam Entertainment, is attracting attention and customers with a music-searching service that runs on the most basic of cellphones. The service, available only in Britain for now, works like this: A person dials a four-digit number on a cellphone and points it at a source of recorded music, be it the sound system in a nightclub or a commercial on television. Shazam's computers filter out the background noise and compare the audio sample with a database of 1.6 million songs, a process that takes less than a second. The service then fires off a text message to the phone, identifying the song and the artist. Each call costs 50 pence, or about 75 cents. So far the name-that-tune service is simply that. There is no way to directly obtain the song in question, which company executives acknowledge is a drawback. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/28/technology/28SHAZ.html ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! 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Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #101 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Tue Oct 29 13:24:37 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id g9TIObG01485; Tue, 29 Oct 2002 13:24:37 -0500 (EST) Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 13:24:37 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200210291824.g9TIObG01485@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #102 TELECOM Digest Tue, 29 Oct 2002 13:25:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 102 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson FCC Toll-Free Proceeding (Judith Oppenheimer) Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory (John Higdon) Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory (Ron Chapman) Re: FTP Synchronization Software for Windows? (Joey Lindstrom) Re: FTP Synchronization Software for Windows? (Richard Gallagher) Looking For Silent Observing Unit (Radek) DMS Switch Line Card Questions (Kelly Daniels) Re: Notification (Anti-Spam) I DID NOTHING to You!!!! (Henry E Schaffer) New Telecom Classifieds Website (Steve Christie) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Reply-To: From: Judith Oppenheimer Subject: FCC Toll-Free Proceeding Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 00:07:36 -0500 Organization: JudithOppenheimer.com Jeff, sorry I missed your posting last month; 800 industry activity comes in hurry-up-and-wait spurts followed by silence, but hopefully the info below will bring you somewhat up to date. Judith DA 02-167 Released: January 18, 2002 COMMON CARRIER BUREAU INVITES INTERESTED PARTIES TO PARTICIPATE IN A FORUM TO DISCUSS TOLL-FREE NUMBER ADMINISTRATION CC Docket No. 95-155 NSD File No. L-02-00 Comments Due: January 31, 2002 In a public notice released November 15, 2001, the Common Carrier Bureau (Bureau) further extended the deadline for compliance with the DSMI Letter until the Bureau addressed the issues outstanding in the June 2001 Public Notice. In particular, the Bureau agreed that Database Service Management, Inc. (DSMI) and the industry needed additional direction from the Commission before proceeding to implement the changes contemplated in the DSMI Letter. In the November 15, 2001 public notice, the Bureau indicated its willingness to continue to discuss whether implementation of the directives in the DSMI Letter should occur. In a meeting with several industry members, the Bureau also committed to continuing discussions, and suggested that an industry forum to discuss the directives and other toll-free issues would be appropriate. Further, the Bureau believes that, although the current toll-free number administration system is an efficient means of providing access to toll-free numbers, the system has drawbacks, many of which are identified below. A forum discussing toll-free number administration will enable the Bureau to focus on the problems identified with the current toll-free system and how to resolve them. The following issues are proposed for discussion at the forum: . The current toll-free number administration system: . Warehousing of unactivated numbers by Responsible Organizations (RespOrgs), including disconnected numbers that should be returned to the database. . Transfer of toll-free numbers from one subscriber to another after the numbers are disconnected, rather than returning such numbers to the database. . Unauthorized disconnection of toll-free numbers, often followed by immediate reconnection to a different subscriber. . Brokering of toll-free numbers, which may result in direct transfers of toll-free numbers by RespOrgs. . Lack of adequate data collection procedures to track RespOrg activity. . The DSMI Letter: . Whether to implement the directives in the DSMI Letter. . Whether to implement, in the alternative, solutions proposed by industry members. . Whether to modify the Commission's toll-free administration rules to allow for transfer of toll-free numbers between subscribers in certain instances. . Whether the toll-free number administration system should be restructured. In the Fifth Report and Order, the Bureau indicated that it would determine whether restructuring the ownership and operation of the current system would be in the public interest. . Whether a fee-based system of toll-free administration should be established. We invite interested parties to file comment on the proposed agenda. We also invite parties interested in participating in the forum to contact Jennifer Gorny (202) 418-2320 or jgorny@fcc.gov by January 31, 2002. Forum participants may be requested to prepare written materials for discussion, and the final agenda and schedule for the forum will be released in the near future. All filings must reference NSD File No. L-02-00 and CC Docket No. 95-155. If filing paper copies, send an original and four copies to the Commission Secretary, Magalie Roman Salas, Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW, Suite TW-A325, Washington, D.C. 20554 and two copies to Carmell Weathers, Network Services Division, Portals II, 445 12th Street, S.W., Room 6-B153, Washington, D.C. 20554. Comments may be filed using the ECFS. Comments filed through the ECFS can be sent as an electronic file via the Internet to . If using this method, please reference the docket number, 95-155 in the Proceeding block. Generally, only one copy of an electronic submission must be filed. In completing the transmittal screen, commenters should include their full name, postal service mailing address, and the applicable docket or rulemaking number(s). Parties may also submit electronic comments by Internet e-mail. To get filing instructions for e-mail comments, commenters should send an e-mail to ecfs@fcc.gov, including "get form " in the body of the message. A sample form and directions will be sent in reply. After filing your comments electronically, please send an e-mail to Carmell Weathers, cweather@fcc.gov, indicating that comments have been filed. Interested parties who wish to file comments via messenger-delivery or hand-delivery are also notified that effective December 18, 2001, the Commission will only receive such deliveries weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., via its contractor, Vistronix, Inc., located at 236 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Suite 110, Washington, DC 20002. The Commission no longer accepts these filings at 9300 East Hampton Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. Please note that all hand deliveries must be bound with rubber bands or fasteners, and envelopes must be disposed of before entering the building. In addition, this is a reminder that as of October 18, 2001, the Commission no longer accepts hand-delivered or messenger-delivered filings at its headquarters at 445 12th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554. Other messenger-delivered documents, including documents sent by overnight mail (other than United States Postal Service (USPS) Express and Priority Mail), must be addressed to 9300 East Hampton Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. This location is open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. USPS First-Class, Express, and Priority Mail should be addressed to the Commission's headquarters at 445 12th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554. The following chart summarizes this information: TYPE OF DELIVERY PROPER DELIVERY ADDRESS Hand-delivered or messenger-delivered paper filings 236 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Suite 110, Washington, DC 20002 (Weekdays - 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.) Other messenger-delivered documents, including documents sent by overnight mail (this type excludes USPS Express and Priority Mail) 9300 East Hampton Drive, Capitol Heights, MD 20743 (Weekdays - 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.) USPS First-Class, Express, and Priority Mail 445 12th Street, SW Washington, DC 20554 This is a "permit but disclose" proceeding for purposes of the Commission's ex parte rules. As a "permit but disclose" proceeding, ex parte presentations will be governed by the procedures set forth in Section 1.1206 of the Commission's rules applicable to non-restricted proceedings. Parties making oral ex parte presentations are reminded that memoranda summarizing the presentation must contain a summary of the substance of the presentation and not merely a listing of the subjects discussed. More than a one or two sentence description of the views and arguments presented is generally required. Other rules pertaining to oral and written presentations are set forth in Section 1.1206(b) as well. For further information, contact Jennifer Gorny of the Common Carrier Bureau, Network Services Division, at (202) 418-2320 or jgorny@fcc.gov. The TTY number is (202) 418-0484. -FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION- **************************************************************** The roundtable took place, and now we're waiting for an NPRM to be issued. Documents leading up and into this activity: http://icbtollfree.com/txt/ATTrequest.pdf http://icbtollfree.com/txt/FCCseekscommentsonATTrequest.pdf http://icbtollfree.com/txt/6512662729.pdf http://icbtollfree.com/txt/6512662625.pdf http://icbtollfree.com/txt/6512662722.pdf http://icbtollfree.com/txt/6512662905.pdf http://icbtollfree.com/txt/6512663553.pdf http://www.fcc.gov/wcb/tapd/toll_free/AFTA.doc http://www.fcc.gov/wcb/tapd/toll_free/Sprint.doc http://www.fcc.gov/wcb/tapd/toll_free/WorldCom.doc http://www.fcc.gov/wcb/tapd/toll_free/Atis.pdf http://www.fcc.gov/wcb/tapd/toll_free/LS_comments.ppt http://www.fcc.gov/wcb/tapd/toll_free/NeustarComments.doc * *beware wolf in sheeps clothing; from Forbes article earlier this month: "Jeffrey Ganek sits on a digital Fort Knox, but he doesn't own the key." Jeffrey Ganek has a black book big enough to make Russell Crowe jealous. Ganek's privately held firm, a Lockheed castoff called Neustar, holds the exclusive government contract to keep electronic records of 160 million phone numbers in North America. Its database gets updated every time someone switches phone numbers and tracks the best routes when networks are clogged. Its computers continually broadcast these changes to some 4,000 local and long-distance carriers. After the World Trade Center collapse destroyed an AT&T switch, Neustar rerouted calls in less than 20 hours -- a task that would have taken 45 days to do by hand. The Sterling, Va.-based firm generated $100 million in revenue last year for such work. Ganek's little-known database could be a treasure trove of data as Microsoft and big rivals race to gain control of consumers' digital identities for Web commerce and services. Neustar could mine the information, repackage it and sell it to businesses that want easier ways to reach consumers. But Ganek is in an excruciating fix. He doesn't originate the data -- the phone companies do -- so he can't make a move without their blessing. "We have to maintain people's trust," he says. Neustar failed to show a profit last year and likely won't until 2003, but Ganek thinks he can easily double revenue if he can persuade telcos to let him mine their data and run a digital identity database. AT&T used to handle Neustar's duties, but new competition created by the Telecom Act of 1996 prompted a sudden need for an independent. Defense contractor Lockheed Martin beat out a spate of contenders, including Perot Systems, Nortel and IBM, for the right to manage the database through May 2006. In 1999 Ganek and other Lockheed executives bought the group for less than $100 million, with financing from Warburg Pincus, and renamed it Neustar. Warburg, Deutsche Bank and other investors own 77%; Neustar's 325 employees own the rest. Ganek raised another $54 million in 2001. The search was on for moneymaking ideas. One obvious one was helping long-distance carriers recoup lost revenue. Each year, WorldCom, AT&T and other providers can't bill for an estimated $1 billion worth of phone calls because they can't identify which local network the phone calls originated from -- a simple task made difficult by deregulation of phone service. Last February, with permission from carriers, Ganek began dipping into Neustar's registry to retrieve the originating phone numbers and pass that information along to carriers. Ganek collects a fee of nearly $1 per query; he thinks he can generate an extra $20 million in revenue by 2004. Neustar also snagged two contracts last year to dole out and manage Internet domain names under the new headings of dot-biz and dot-us, collecting $6 per address. Neustar has tallied a million new addresses so far. The biggest opportunity for Ganek: making phone numbers interchangeable with Internet Protocol addresses, the ten-digit numbers used to route e-mails, wireless data and streaming audio or video. The glue for this would be an emerging technology standard called electronic numbering, or Enum. With Neustar as gatekeeper, telcos could sell a service that would let businesses reach their customers via e-mail, cell phone, pager or PDA, even if they only had a home phone number to begin with. Consumers would have to grant permission on a Web site to allow this single point of contact. But Sears could use e-mail to remind customers who last bought stereos five years ago that their model is outdated. Or, in the event of an air bag recall, Fordwould be able to dial an Explorer owner's phone number and reach his up-to-date pager and e-mail as well. Running an Enum database would easily double Neustar's revenue. Trouble is, that pesky federal contract forbids Neustar from cranking the cash register without the blessing of the telcos and Internet service providers. Decisions on how to offer and how to price any of Neustar's digital identity services lie mostly with the carriers -- and the privacy advocates who will resist every step of the way. Judith Oppenheimer http://JudithOppenheimer.com http://ICBTollFreeNews.com http://WhoSells800.com 212 684-7210, 1 800 The Expert > -----Original Message----- > James Bryan Carpenter > Sent: Monday, October 28, 2002 9:36 PM > The FCC has announced some inquiry into toll free service. I asked > on the telecom digest if anyone knew what it was all about and did > not get any response (even from Judith). ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory. For Chip Makers It's Prime Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2002 21:41:24 -0800 In article , Mark Crispin wrote: > I'm trying to understand how this affects satellite TV subscribers. > Our signal is already digital, and we're already getting it converted > to analog for our TVs (and a much better picture than anything from > the cable companies). Will satellite subscribers end up being the > last stand for analog? As a DirecTV subscriber, I've wondered this very same thing. The NTSC signal at the rear of the receivers has nothing to do with the transport to the house ... which as you point out is already digital. Actually, it is "closed circuit" in essence, as opposed to broadcasting. Until and unless Echostar and Hughes are prepared to swap out everyone's boxes, NTSC is where satellite is at. > I'm also trying (without success) to understand the point of > copy-protecting TV signals. The miserable content and high prices of > the premium movie channels (HBO, Showtime, Starz, etc.) long ago made > DVDs a more cost-effective means of building a movie collection. I > cancelled my subscriptions to HBO, etc. years ago when I still had > cable. When I got my satellite service, they gave me Starz free for a > few months, and I cancelled it as soon as the free trial ran out. The copyright industry has no feeling for this at all. Near as I can figure, they are contending that should movies be broadcast in HDTV, thieving consumers will record them on professional digital tape, or on a video server and then immediately post them on a website for all the world to view. Why this is technically absurd I'll leave as an exercise to the reader. > Satellite radio is attractive for RVers who travel in remote areas. > There are still places in North America where there is either no radio at > all. Elsewhere, you have two stations: the First Church of the Sacred > Bleedin' Anus of Jeezus and National Public Radio ... come to think of it, > that's "no radio at all" as well. > However, the RVers aren't going to put up with crap programming. Then they should have had a company set up the satellite delivery system and had programming companies contract for channel space. As it is, the buzz on it is generally negative. Granted, those who have shelled out don't want to admit, even to themselves, that it isn't what they thought it might be, but ultimately interest in the services will die off. John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 05:33:23 -0500 From: Ron Chapman Subject: Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory. For Chip Makers It's Prime In article , Mark Crispin wrote: > On Mon, 28 Oct 2002, John Higdon wrote: >> It may START to happen. They may WISH it would happen. But, ultimately, >> it will not happen. How can I say this? Look at history. Every time >> there is common ownership of content and the means of transmission, the >> public turns its back. > I'm trying to understand how this affects satellite TV subscribers. > Our signal is already digital, and we're already getting it converted > to analog for our TVs (and a much better picture than anything from > the cable companies). Will satellite subscribers end up being the > last stand for analog? I don't believe so. I honestly believe that cable TV companies, in a similar vein, will NOT miss the opportunity to serve old codgers and Luddites like myself, who have multiple TV sets and VCRs and have absolutely no interest in changing them out just because. Time Warner will be happy to continue to provide me the same analog service they're doing now -- and may in fact try to charge me extra for the privilege. ------------------------------ From: Joey Lindstrom Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 09:03:36 -0700 Subject: Re: FTP Synchronization Software for Windows? Reply-To: joey@lairdsflooring.com On Mon, 28 Oct 2002 22:34:46 -0500 (EST), dold@16.usenet.us.com wrote: >> Can anyone recommend some good FTP synchronization software for >> Windows (98 currently, soon to be 2000)? This is for the Telecom >> Digest Archives CD-ROM project -- I'd like the CD's that I burn on >> behalf of Pat to be COMPLETELY up to date, but the archives are >> absolutely humungous. :-) I'm looking for something that will, either >> on demand or on a schedule, login to the massis machine (a *nix box), >> burrow its way into each and every directory, get a listing of all the >> files available, and then download anything either missing, new, or >> changed since the last run (to my local hard drive). > Not the question that you asked, but, I can't help myself ... What > software are you using to burn the CD? Is it something that is > RockRidge compatible, to maintain the long filenames that might be in > the original Unix box, or is it windows-centric? CDs burned with > Windows long file names are not recognizable on Unix boxes. Unix long > file names often get munged beyond use by transporting them to Windows > CD writers. You can save yourself from that with mkisofs, part of the > free cdreader collection. I use mkisofs to create a proper CD image, > and then burn that .iso to CD using EasyCDCreator, or RecordNow. Well this is interesting. I do realize that the Joliet filesystem, used on Windows platforms to allow long filenames up to 64 characters, was designed specifically and only for Windows platforms, and that this was a problem when making discs for other platforms. However, I'd also read that Joliet add-ons had become common for other platforms, including Linux and Mac. Was this incorrect? My burner software is Roxio Easy CD Creator 5, running on a Win98 box (soon to be Win2K). It does Joliet but it will also do ISO-9660, which means 30-character filenames, all upper case and more restrictions on what's allowable. The burner software automatically renames files that don't conform to something that does conform. By default, the discs I create are in Joliet format (unless the "Enhanced" version is requested - this is incompatible with Joliet) but ISO-9660 is definitely an available option. Prior to burning, I run a batchfile that creates a "00files.txt" file in each directory, listing the contents of that directory as originally named. If a particular filename becomes unrecognizable during the filename conversion, one can always consult the "00files.txt" file. The problem with this approach (as you point out) is this: what if somebody who uses Unix gets a disc created for Windows? When the Joliet filesystem is written to the disc, a second filesystem (ISO-9660 compatible) is also written, but this will use filenames in the old DOS "8 dot 3" format, and those names ARE badly munged. So, Pat: when you write up anything in regards to these discs, please ask that people SPECIFY which platform they'll be running it on. If they're using non-Windows, I need to know this so that I can create the discs properly for them. Joey Lindstrom - Laird's Flooring joey@lairdsflooring.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Alright, Joey, consider it asked. Dear Readers: Starting tomorrow (end of the month) I will *again* make my monthly pitch for financial assistance with the Digest, and I will be offering a CD Rom of the Telecom Archives going back from the beginning in 1981 through the present time. For a donation of $20-25 or more, as you find appropriate, and if you ask for it, as my gift to you, you will receive a copy of the 'new' CD. (The previous CD was issued back in 1995 or so.) Those of you who put in advance orders this past month should now be recieving your CDs on the mail. As Joey has requested, be sure to specify Windows, *nix, whatever. For FASTEST receipt (I can sure use fast turn around on the money this month!) and subsequent delivery, use PayPal via the clicker button at the very bottom of the 'home' page, http://telecom-digest.org or the identical clicker button on the 'donations' page, http://telecom-digest.org/donations/ .You can also send checks/money order as you wish at TELECOM, Post Office Box 50, Independence, KS 67301. You send what you think is appropriate; if it is $20-25 or more and you ask for the CD Rom, be certain to specify system type and include your address for shipping the CD. Ditto, on PayPal, fill in the advice box with those details. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Richard Gallagher Subject: Re: FTP Synchronization Software for Windows? Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 16:53:47 +0000 On Sun, 27 Oct 2002 13:40:03 -0600, Joey Lindstrom wrote: > Can anyone recommend some good FTP synchronization software for > Windows (98 currently, soon to be 2000)? This is for the Telecom > Digest Archives CD-ROM project -- I'd like the CD's that I burn on > behalf of Pat to be COMPLETELY up to date, but the archives are > absolutely humungous. :-) I'm looking for something that will, either > on demand or on a schedule, login to the massis machine (a *nix box), > burrow its way into each and every directory, get a listing of all the > files available, and then download anything either missing, new, or > changed since the last run (to my local hard drive). > "Free" would be preferred but a small shareware donation wouldn't > cause too much concern. GNU Wget should be able to do what you want. It was orginally for UNIX but a native Windows port has been made. It is a command line application that can be used to mirror sites via FTP or HTTP. See http://www.gnu.org/software/wget/wget.html for more information. Richard Gallagher ------------------------------ From: web@zemodesign.com (Radek) Subject: Looking For Silent Observing Unit Date: 29 Oct 2002 06:11:54 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ I am looking for resonable priced silent observing unit SO-24 or Melco 330B. Please e-mail or call walter@revtechonline.com Tel: 630-521-9000. ------------------------------ From: Kelly Daniels Reply-To: telco@teleport.com Organization: Kelly Daniels Subject: DMS Switch Line Card Questions Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 14:55:57 GMT Can anyone recall if the T214 and T216 Line Card used for Switching in the Analog Shelf of DMS 100, 200, 250 and 10 has Line Build-out Options, either by dip switches or software. Specifically I look to match impedance and then Transmission Level Points in the +4 to -22 range. Thank-you in advance. Kelly ------------------------------ From: hes@hes01.unity.ncsu.edu (Henry E Schaffer) Subject: Re: Notification (Anti-Spam) I DID NOTHING to you!!!!!!!!! Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 16:14:55 UTC Organization: North Carolina State University In article , That Larry wrote: > Ok, time to feed the spammers to the spambots...(c; > Current email spammers here are: > abuse@aol.com (Might as well feed directly) Last time I tried this it didn't work and apparently tosemail1@aol.com is the correct abuse address (stands for Terms of Service ...) henry schaffer hes@ncsu.edu ------------------------------ From: steven.christie1@ntlworld.com (Steve Christie) Subject: New Telecom Classifieds Website Date: 28 Oct 2002 21:51:32 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ I need your support promoting this new telecom classifieds website. It only takes a couple of minutes to place an ad. www.telecomclassifieds.net Thanks in advance. ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #102 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Wed Oct 30 01:54:51 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id g9U6spF22932; Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:54:51 -0500 (EST) Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:54:51 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200210300654.g9U6spF22932@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #103 TELECOM Digest Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:54:00 EST Volume 22 :Issue 103 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Want Bills by Snail Mail? It Might Cost You Money (Monty Solomon) Meridian 6x16 Installation Question (bingham) "News Headlines of Interest" Don't Have Table of Contents (Eric De Mund) Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory (Mark Crispin) AT&T 1411 (Art at ABE Computer Consultants) Lucent TMS or RCOS Software For 5ess (jdeyo@bellsouth.net) 51400 Telephone Test System (Paul Cook) Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor (Rick Wilson) Re: DMS Switch Line Card Questions (Boo Phatty) Re: Adding SMS to Web Site USA (Chris Kantarjiev) AOL Removes Wall Between AIM, ICQ Messaging Users (Monty Solomon) Samsung Says Winning U.S. Market For Pricey Phones (Monty Solomon) Internet Home Alliance Continues to Gain Momentum (Monty Solomon) EarthLink Reports Record Results for Third Quarter 2002 (Monty Solomon) How to Post Resume? (Richard J.Sprouse) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 13:29:10 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Want Bills by Snail Mail? It Might Cost You Money October 29, 2002 Want Bills by Snail Mail? It Might Cost You Money By JENNIFER BAYOT You may dread monthly bills in the mailbox, but consider them a perk. Some companies are charging for them. For years, businesses have cajoled customers to view their bills online, mostly by offering cash, gift certificates, sweepstakes prizes and other incentives in return. A tough economy, though, has led to an even more aggressive stance. In a move to cut administrative costs and save on paper and postage, some have started billing customers a few extra dollars a month for paper statements. Leading the charge are telecommunications companies like Primus and MetroPCS. Some lenders and insurance providers, like State Farm Insurance and USAA, are charging a few customers for monthly paper statements. Credit card issuers like American Express are adding paper fees to merchant accounts, and online services that initially mailed statements, like NetBank and Ameritrade, the online brokerage firm, have begun charging for them, setting a standard for some new businesses that want to do the same. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/29/technology/29BILL.html ------------------------------ From: bingham Subject: Meridian 6x16 Installation Question Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 13:49:01 -0500 Patrick, would you please post this for me? TIA. Respected Forum members, Need some help with the installation of a 6x16 that I have purchased for my home office. I have 3 analogue lines ready with RJ11 cords from the demarc to the KSU. DR5 is the installed software and there is a 25 Pair Amphenol Cable to a BIX block for the inside wire (using pins 1 to 16 for the sets). I've punched down the ISW and have a few compatiable sets at the jacks. Before I power this KSU up, what steps are involved from here? What pin would the music on hold be? Is there default settings on tone or pulse and the number of lines/sets? Your assistance is greatly appreciated. Bing bingham001 AT hotmail DOT com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 11:42:49 PST From: Eric De Mund Subject: "News Headlines of Interest" Don't Have Table of Contents Organization: Ixian Systems, Inc. Monty, Please consider breaking out the subject lines from your "News Headlines of Interest" and either putting them at the beginning of your posts, or, better yet, getting Pat to put them in his table of contents at the top of each Digest. (Or both, as I now realize that perhaps not everyone reads TELECOM Digest in digest form.) I do read your posts and find them informative. However, I read them a bit less than I skip over them, because I sometimes don't read past Pat's table of contents, and, when I do, I sometimes don't get past the first article in your posts as I prefer to not hunt for article subjects embedded in postings. You might have an arguable point if you were to call me lazy, but the concept of not having a table of contents doesn't scale well. For instance, I've considered collecting the telephony related articles I've come across during the week and feeding them to Pat for T.D. inclusion, and I'm sure other folks have, too. However, if each of us did that, yet failed to include our own table of contents, Pat's table of contents would have a growing number of items that read: News Headlines of Interest (Monty Solomon) More News Headlines of Interest (Monty Solomon) Telecom-Related Articles, NYT, Week Ending 2 Nov 2002 (Eric De Mund) Misc. Telecom-Related Articles, Week Ending 2 Nov 2002 (Eric De Mund) and so on. Ideally, in my view, readers would be greeted with: TELECOM Digest Mon, 28 Oct 2002 22:35:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 101 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson . . . Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine (S. Ewing) Silent Observer (Radek) More News Headlines of Interest (Monty Solomon) A TV House Divited (David D. Kirkpatrick, NYT) EchoStar Agrees to Yield Frequencies to Save a Deal (Seth Schiesel, NYT) Name That Tune, From Your Cellphone (David F. Gallagher, NYT) Returning to the idea of the importance of scaling well, even if no one else among the T.D. subscribers were to pick up this actually pretty community friendly behavior that you have, folks in other fora might. And for people that receive hundreds of emails per day, they'd find themselves greeted with several digests per day in which the table of contents at the tops of the digests contained a few subjects that were opaque. Just my 2c. Again, thanks for including these articles, Eric "We all know your idea is crazy. The question is, whether it is crazy enough." Niels Bohr, to a colleague Eric De Mund | Ixian Systems, Inc. | cell: (650) 303-4336 email: | 650 Castro St, #120-210 | fax: (240) 282-4443 http://www.ixian.com/ead/ | Mountain View, CA 94041 | .................... [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: How Monty's articles turn out here is NOT a thing that Monty is responsible for. Let me give you some back- ground. Monty's articles arrive here one by one with subject headers. I get between five and ten items per day from Monty and his news sources. I formerly had been listing them all and using them 'straight' as recieved. I would scatter them throughout an issue in various places. But a couple readers do not like Monty, to put it bluntly. They feel he is like a 'gofer' for big business interests. I do not agree with that assessment. The guys who complained about the way Monty's articles 'dominate the Digest' also tended to be the guys who complain about Judith Oppenheimer's occassional news items dealing with toll free numbers. She was too 'commercial'; Monty was too much into 'press releases'. She was too 'commercial' because people have to be subscribers (i.e. pay her) to read some of her items. They do not like Monty because 'so many of his items' are press releases for large companies, and you have to register with nytimes (for example) to read the full press release. Oh, and they do not like the guy who sends in the Canadian news I run every Monday; he prints stuff *his sponsors* give him to use, other than the news he digs up on his own. I have a problem also with this old, very obsolete Digest format I use here. It was invented by Jon Solomon or some of his wizard buddies back around 1980 and has worked very well ever since. We all know the net has not changed one iota since 1980. The basic rule is the top side (above the 78 dashes near the top) has to 'balance' with the number of 'From ' lines and subjects and dates below the 78 dashes. If that does not occur (and with all the manual editing I do, often times it does not without some research as to where I screwed up). Therefore Be It Resolved that if I run ten items (in one issue) from Monty either I will have ten subject/index lines at the top to go with ten 'From ' lines and sets of thirty dashes between his articles in the main part. OR, if I run all his items in one big 'article' and scrap all the 'From ' lines/dashes in the body then in the index at the start of each issue I have to likewise scrap all the index lines and create a new dummy index line for the whole thing, which I call 'News Headlines of Interest (date)'. But I still take a few of his things that I personally consider worth reading and isolate them and force them to the top of each issue as news items in their own right. I run Monty every day except Monday (Canadian news day) and when Judith sends in a copy of her newsletter, stuff anywhere between six and ten of his items in one of the large 'News Headlines of Interest (date)' articles. Judith does hers 'properly' as does the Canada guy; I do not need to fudge her stuff or his. With Monty on the other hand, the mail just keeps rolling in, every day a dozen or so short items. I hold his stuff back on Monday (Canada day) or when I get a newsletter from Judith. Other days of the week my choices are go 'one for one' with subject/index versus 'From '/posting/ thirty dashes. When I get such a flood of stuff from Monty that I have to run him twice in the same day in different issues (not that common) then when I diddle up the second batch (like one day in the past week), I diddle the second batch to be 'More News Headlines of Interest (date) in order to avoid having two identical subject headers which would give the search engines fits. As long as (date) changes, no such problems. And, to post to Usenet and the guys with 'exploder' addresses who depend on the above format staying the way it is due to their software, this very fragile (but old, obsolete) formula has to be maintained. So now, you guys tell me; instruct your old, obsolete moderator with his old, obsolete scripts; pick one of these choices: (1) Continue batching Monty, one general subject header, no index of items; (2) Individual itemization of Monty stuff; by default then six or ten items in each issue, indexing, some days it will appear that he has taken over an entire issue; Thus far the total is three votes for choice (1) -- mostly anonymous hate letters saying quit publishing Monty's 'news items' (I refuse to do that) or at the very least, batch it all as one big article. And one vote (Eric DeMund) for (2) who wants to go back to the previous system where I toss in a few of his items in every issue, and as a result get an index of them. Of course there is a third and fourth choice also: (3) Someone *please* write a new Digest script which allows 'out of balance conditions' between top and bottom parts; something that will be compatible with Usenet and the 'exploder' mailing lists downstream of me. Don't count on me to do it; my brains all leaked out during the aneurysm, I am too stupid to handle any of that stuff now. (4) Locate jsol (moderator emeritus, wherever he is hiding) and Tim B-L and after giving them both an Editor's Note bashing for only thinking 1980's when they created their inventions, then the old obsolete moderator and his old obsolete scripts along with jsol and Tim B-L can all go out in a blaze of glory. So Eric, don't criticize Monty, he has no control over it. I have to be the whipping boy. Can you program in C++ ? If so, write me a Digest script that will do the job these days. New occassions teach new duties and all that rot. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Mark Crispin Subject: Re: Digital TV Will Soon be Mandatory. For Chip Makers It's Prime Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 12:35:28 -0800 Organization: Networks and Distributed Computing On Mon, 28 Oct 2002, John Higdon wrote: > As a DirecTV subscriber Me too. > Actually, it is "closed circuit" in essence, as opposed to > broadcasting. Until and unless Echostar and Hughes are prepared to > swap out everyone's boxes, NTSC is where satellite is at. That's my point. The only reason to swap out a satellite box would be to deny NTSC access. It's one thing to stop offering NTSC to broadcast and cable users in order to make way for other uses of bandwidth (not that I approve; I just understand). It's quite another to break a consumer's closed circuit because Hollywood doesn't approve. > > Satellite radio is attractive for RVers who travel in remote areas. > Then they should have had a company set up the satellite delivery > system and had programming companies contract for channel space. As it > is, the buzz on it is generally negative. Which is one reason that most RVers remain skeptical. -- Mark -- http://staff.washington.edu/mrc Science does not emerge from voting, party politics, or public debate. ------------------------------ From: artgetridofspam@abeconsultants.com (Art at ABE Computer Consultants) Subject: AT&T 1411 Date: 29 Oct 2002 13:15:08 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ We have an older answering machine, an AT&T model 1411. Lost the instruction book. Question: How do you get messages remotely? Is the code a factory preset with no option to change? If it CAN be changed (maybe it has), how do you reset it to factory specs? Thanks, Art if replying e-mail, remove the obvious from the return address ------------------------------ From: jdeyo@bellsouth.net Subject: Lucent TMS or RCOS Software For 5ess Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 16:25:59 -0600 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Reply-To: Big.Daddy@supernews.net Anyone have a surplus or used edition of this software package that they would consider selling or trading for? mailto:jdeyo@bellsouth.net ------------------------------ Reply-To: Paul Cook From: Paul Cook Subject: 51400 Telephone Test System Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 14:44:10 -0800 Organization: Proctor & Associates, Inc. Sorry for the obvious commercial announcement, but time is short and I thought there may be someone on the list who could benefit from this. Proctor and Associates began manufacturing the 51400 Telephone Test System for GTE around 20 years ago. For many years, GTE specified this test set (which tests standard single line and coin phones) for their suppliers and refurbishers. We've seen a drop in demand over the past few years, and Proctor has recently ceased manufacturing this unit. The system has plug-in cards which can be removed for repair and calibration, and we have a bunch of those cards left over, in addition to manuals and spare parts. Until the end of our fiscal year (Oct 31) we are offering transmission test fixtures, hipot-ringer cards, and many other components for 70% off the regular price. Around November 1 the remaining stock will be destroyed. These are brand new products, not refurbished or used. We also have some miscellaneous parts and manuals. Contact me for a list of what is still available if you are interested. Proctor will still offer repair and calibration of this test set. This does not affect any other test system, such as the central office dialup test sets which are still in demand. Paul Cook - Applications Engineer pcook@proctorinc.com 425-881-7000, ext 566 fax: 425-885-3282 Proctor & Associates 15305 NE 95 St Redmond WA 98052-2517 www.proctorinc.com ------------------------------ From: Rick Wilson Subject: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 18:12:07 GMT Organization: EarthLink Inc. -- http://www.EarthLink.net SBC-Pacbell has stopped publishing local prefix information in their phone books. Could someone with a 1999 or 2000 phonebook for Los Altos/Mountain View/Sunnyvale CA please copy or scan the local prefix list and upload it here or elsewhere? It'll save a trip to the library. Thanks, RickW ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: DMS Switch Line Card Questions Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 18:26:56 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Tue, 29 Oct 2002 14:55:57 GMT, Two Buddha read a post from Kelly Daniels , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > Can anyone recall if the T214 and T216 Line Card used for Switching in > the Analog Shelf of DMS 100, 200, 250 and 10 has Line Build-out > Options, either by dip switches or software. Specifically I look to > match impedance and then Transmission Level Points in the +4 to -22 > range. > Thank-you in advance. > Kelly Why do you need to tweak LBO at the switch? Are you running cables a long long way from your equipment? If so, shouldn't you do that on the transmission side? ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 15:35:53 PST From: Chris Kantarjiev Subject: Re: Adding SMS to Web Site USA >> Who in the USA, UK, and Canada sells SMS messaging in bulk for >> small/medium sized web sites? We want to interface with their site, >> and allow our users to shoot off SMS messages. > I was under the impression that all of the SMS providers in the U.S. > had e-mail gateways, so with a modest sized map telling you which > prefix belongs to which carrier, you can just send mail to the > phone number at the appropriate domain. "all" ... not really. Several of the first tier carriers do, but they reserve the right to deploy broken smtp servers or impose long delays on the smtp path or drop your messages entirely -- especially if they don't have your source IP address on file. Failure is typically silent. And then you have to figure out which prefix goes to which carrier. This is tedious at best, if not just hard -- you can buy the appropriate CDs from Telcordia, but the data there is inconsistent at best, and only covers the NANP. Most of the carriers have gotten their act together to offer some sort of direct SMPP (typically) connection to a *few* vendors. They don't like doing this, because it's a lot over administrative overhead for them for what seems to be not much benefit to them. Unless you have the proven ability to generate a lot of traffic for their network, you will be ignored or, worse, strung along until you give up. >> Also, is the USA SMS integrated enough that a message can be sent to >> any mobile US phone with no problem? > US cell carriers charge for incoming SMS, either a monthly rate like > $3 for 100 messages, or a la carte at 10 cents/msg. That's why a lot > of us who have SMS capable phones on SMS capable networks don't have > SMS enabled. An implied "all" - which is not accurate. AT&T Wireless, for example, doesn't charge for incoming SMS. That's where I have my service; I can't speak for the details of other calling plans (they keep changing). There are a few companies that are aggregators for SMS delivery. I used to work for www.unimobile.com; they can provide you with an HTTP- or XMLRPC-based API across the web, with delivery to 98% of the text devices in the world, with delivery confirmation and other nifty features. They're also starting to be able to offer reasonable two-way features (very carrier dependent, unfortunately). (They also offer platform software for building wireless notification and query applications from scratch, though it doesn't sound as if the original poster was interested in that.) chris ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 22:57:36 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: AOL Removes Wall Between AIM, ICQ Messaging Users 29 Oct 2002, 5:40pm ET NEW YORK, Oct 29 (Reuters) - AOL Time Warner Inc. said it is testing ways for users of its popular AIM instant messaging service to chat with those using its ICQ service, largely due to the growth of ICQ in AOL Europe. The move marks the company's first step in letting the two largest messaging services communicate with each other. http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29351653 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 23:00:34 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Samsung Says Winning U.S. Market For Pricey Phones 29 Oct 2002, 4:53pm ET By Eric Auchard NEW YORK, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co., the world's No. 3 maker of mobile telephones, is capturing the bulk of the U.S. market for pricier phones and is poised to gain further share, officials said on Thursday. http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29349894 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 23:11:03 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Internet Home Alliance Continues to Gain Momentum; Eight New Internet Home Alliance Continues to Gain Momentum; Eight New Members Join - Oct 29, 2002 08:21 AM (BusinessWire) New Members include IBM, Motive Communications, SimpleDay, Symbol Technologies, Lutron, Premise Systems, Samsung and Sunbeam Internet Home Alliance, a cross-industry network of leading companies advancing the home technology market, continues to gain momentum as it announced today the addition of eight new members. New members include IBM (NYSE:IBM), which has joined as a Principal and board member; Motive Communications, SimpleDay Technologies and Symbol Technologies (NYSE:SBL), which have joined as Contributors; and Lutron Electronics, Premise Systems, a Lantronix, Inc. company, (NASDAQ:LTRX), Samsung (OTC:SSNNF.PK) and Sunbeam Products, Inc., which have joined as Associates. In addition, CompUSA and ADT Security Services have both increased their membership levels from Associate to Contributor status. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29336096 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 23:12:15 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: EarthLink Reports Record Results for Third Quarter 2002 EarthLink Reports Record Results for Third Quarter 2002 - Oct 29, 2002 07:29 AM (PR Newswire) - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29334500 ------------------------------ From: Sprouse Richard J. GS-12 609 ACOMS/SCOE" Subject: How to Post Resume? Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 14:43:01 -0500 J. Richard Sprouse 6502 Mill House Rd rsprouse@sc.rr.com Sumter, SC 29154 (803) 499-6944 TRAINING * GCCS System Administration (Unix), Unix/Solaris System Administration, Tactical Unix Administration * Designing Win2000 Networks, Microsoft MS1560 Network development, MS Exchange Server 5.5 Administration, MS MS689 WinNT 4, MS MS578 Networking , MS688 Internetworking; MS Exchange Servers; Internetworking Configurations; MS Network Design Concepts, Designing IP Networks * Advanced Cisco Router Config, Intro to Cisco Router Configuration, Cisco Internetworking, Configuration and Management of Cisco Routers, Principles of TCP/IP * Sidewinder Firewall System Administration * Acquisition Manager, Financial Management and planning, Civilian Supervisor * Airborne Command and Control Computer Communications * Conversational German language EXPERIENCE Air Force Engineering and Technical Services (Civil Service) 2001 to present (Tactical Networks) Shaw AFB, SC * UNIX System Administrator, Theater Battlefield Management Core System (TBMCS) (SUN servers & SunSparc's, Oracle, SQL and WindowsNT 4. I) * Select and load battle plans, graphics, maps, and databases on up to 27 servers comprising the closed TBMCS network. * Load and manage multiple databases * Assemble/repair/troubleshoot PC's * Provide network design/implementation/troubleshooting for MS systems and UNIX systems * Provide Operating Systems and Hardware Training Air Force Engineering and Technical Services (Civil Service) 1996 to 2001 Regional Enterprise Networks HQ USAFE, Ramstein Air Base, Germany * Did on-site technical network site-surveys and technical solutions * Did analysis of net systems, desktop to networks * Analysis, troubleshoot office(s), building(s), installation(s) for Local or Wide Are Networks (LANS or WANS) for applicability, functionality, security, and technical currency * Worked Test and Implementation of new hardware and/or software * Designed and assisted in installation of computers, routers, and servers * Created test and implementation plans, created and/or maintained documentation * Worked network accreditation, documented physical layouts * Conduct feasibility studies on off-the-shelf (COTS) software and/or equipment with cost analysis for purchase/rejection of contractor equipment and/or software * Conduct post-implementation reviews of equipment, software, and installation * Provided on-site instruction in electronic/software/application and/or system specific hardware/software * Assemble/repair/troubleshoot PC's and laptops. Air Force Engineering and Technical Services (Civil Service) 1991 to 1996 Worldwide Systems Program Manager HQ Air Combat Command, Langley AFB, Va. * Developed 3-5 year planning for worldwide logistical support of Program * Developed strategic program plans/implementation supporting 4 separate weapons systems worldwide * Wrote and established civilian position descriptions and funding (172 individuals) * Complied and produced Uniform Manning Document(s) for civilian and military contractor use for funding or elimination * Established policy/directives, activated plans/programs to provide instruction to mission requirements * Authorized civilian position hire or fire actions and review source selection documents for appropriate personnel hire. Authorized Civilian Personnel Office hiring action * Identified and funded support and training for in-field personnel * Provided liaison to State Department and office functions coordinating paperwork, passport, and overseas pay (100+ individuals) * Calculated and authorized overseas program pay * Provided second level supervision/management review (170+ individuals) * Worked with field Commanders to created briefings and presentations to HQ general staff to advise, review, and "sell" mission issues, goals, and funding USCINCLANT (Navy/Air Force (Civil Service) 1984 to 1991 Telecommunications Specialist Langley AFB, Va * Subject matter expert airborne computer telecommunications (including satellite * Evaluated and documented systems concepts, proposals, architectures, designs, developments, products, trends, standards, process improvements, and concepts for applicability to Airborne Command Post mission requirements * Provided overall and specific technical guidance, continuity, and direction impacting Command Post communications' policy, guidance, procedures, and systems * Evaluated program documentation and plans for systems operational test and evaluation * Developed, maintained, and reviewed procedural actions, requirements, planning and policy * Wrote Statements of Work (SOW) for contractor bids * Did source selection for system installation/modification * Wrote technical/operational/maintenance instructions for Official Technical Orders, program Concepts and Proof of Performance * Assisted in technical writing, text proof analysis, and validation of Technical Orders, Operational and/or Maintenance manuals * Project officer in communications systems architecture, integration, and interoperability * Participated in exercises and interoperability demonstrations to analyze performance and limitations of systems * Worked transition strategies migrating systems to State of the Art industry standards and emerging technologies * Used assessments and risk mitigation methods to recommend modifications/replacement/new capabilities * Did program reviews, management reviews, and analyzes new capabilities to determine applicability OTHER EXPERIENCE * Public Speaker * Commercial Radio Broadcasting On-Air Personality * Chief Engineer (50Kw AM/100Kw FM; up to 5 tower directional) * Design, build, install, troubleshoot commercial radio plants/studio * Owner/technician Radio-TV and 2-Way Radio commercial repair shop * Missile Guidance Systems Technician * Electronic Warfare technician * Solid State Instrument Landing Systems technician * High-Power HF Communication (Tactical) ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. 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All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #103 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Wed Oct 30 18:08:54 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id g9UN8sB09272; Wed, 30 Oct 2002 18:08:54 -0500 (EST) Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 18:08:54 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200210302308.g9UN8sB09272@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #104 TELECOM Digest Wed, 30 Oct 2002 18:08:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 104 Inside This SPECIAL Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson How Three Unlikely Sleuths Exposed Fraud at WorldCom (caryl chessman) SPECIAL ISSUE DEVOTED TO MCI/WORLDCOM FRAUD All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: caryl.chessman@eudoramail.com Subject: How Three Unlikely Sleuths Exposed Fraud at WorldCom Date: 30 Oct 2002 00:00:58 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ PAGE ONE Wednesday, October 30, 2002 How Three Unlikely Sleuths Exposed Fraud at WorldCom Firm's Own Employees Sniffed Out Cryptic Clues and Followed Hunches By SUSAN PULLIAM and DEBORAH SOLOMON Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL CLINTON, Miss. -- Sitting in his cubicle at WorldCom Inc. headquarters one afternoon in May, Gene Morse stared at an accounting entry for $500 million in computer expenses. He couldn't find any invoices or documentation to back up the stunning number. "Oh my God," he muttered to himself. The auditor immediately took his discovery to his boss, Cynthia Cooper, the company's vice president of internal audit. "Keep going," Mr. Morse says she told him. A series of obscure tips last spring had led Ms. Cooper and Mr. Morse to suspect that their employer was cooking its books. Armed with accounting skills and determination, Ms. Cooper and her team set off on their own to figure out whether their hunch was correct. Often working late at night to avoid detection by their bosses, they combed through hundreds of thousands of accounting entries, crashing the company's computers in the process. By June 23, they had unearthed $3.8 billion in misallocated expenses and phony accounting entries. It all added up to an accounting fraud, acknowledged by the company, that turned out to be the largest in corporate history. Their discoveries sent WorldCom into bankruptcy, left thousands of their colleagues without jobs and roiled the stock market. At a time when dishonesty at the top of U.S. companies is dominating public attention, Ms. Cooper and her team are a case of middle managers who took their commitment to financial reporting to extraordinary lengths. As she pursued the trail of fraud, Ms. Cooper time and again was obstructed by fellow employees, some of whom disapproved of WorldCom's accounting methods but were unwilling to contradict their bosses or thwart the company's goals. WorldCom is under investigation by the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Scott Sullivan, WorldCom's former chief financial officer and Ms. Cooper's boss, has been indicted. He has denied any wrongdoing. Four other officers have pleaded guilty and are cooperating with prosecutors. Federal investigators are still probing whether Bernard J. Ebbers, the company's former chief executive, knew about the accounting improprieties. Since the initial discoveries, WorldCom's accounting misdeeds have grown to $7 billion. Behind the tale of accounting chicanery lies the untold detective story of three young internal auditors, who temperamentally didn't fit into WorldCom's well-known cowboy culture. Ms. Cooper, 38 years old, headed a department of 24 auditors and support staffers, many of whom viewed her as quiet but strongwilled. She grew up in a modest neighborhood near WorldCom's headquarters and had spent nearly a decade working at the company, rising through its ranks. She declined to be interviewed for this story. Mr. Morse, 41, was known for his ability to use technology to ferret out information. The third member of the team was Glyn Smith, 34, a senior manager under Ms. Cooper. In his spare time he taught Sunday school, took photographs and bicycled. His mom had taught him and Ms. Cooper accounting at Clinton High School. Frightened that they would be fired if their superiors found out what they were up to, the gumshoes worked in secret. Even so, their initial discrete inquiries were stonewalled. Arthur Andersen, WorldCom's outside auditor, refused to respond to some of Ms. Cooper's questions and told her that the firm had approved some of the accounting methods she questioned. At another critical juncture in the trio's investigation, Mr. Sullivan, then the company's CFO, asked Ms. Cooper to delay her investigation until the following quarter. She refused. Ms. Cooper's first inkling that something big was amiss at WorldCom came in March 2002. John Stupka, the head of WorldCom's wireless business, paid her a visit. He was angry because he was about to lose $400 million he had specifically set aside in the third quarter of 2001, according to two people familiar with the meeting. His plan had been to use the money to make up for shortfalls if customers didn't pay their bills, a common occurrence in the wireless business. It was a well-accepted accounting device. But Mr. Sullivan decided instead to take the $400 million away from Mr. Stupka's division and use it to boost WorldCom's income. Mr. Stupka was unhappy because without the money, his unit would likely have to report a large loss in the next quarter. Mr. Stupka's group already had complained to two Arthur Andersen auditors, Melvin Dick and Kenny Avery. They had sided with Mr. Sullivan, according to federal investigators. But Mr. Stupka and Ms. Cooper thought the decision smelled funny, although not obviously improper. Under accounting rules, if a company knows it is not going to collect on a debt, it has to set up a reserve to cover it in order to avoid reflecting on its books too high a value for that business. That was exactly what Mr. Stupka had done. Mr. Stupka declined to comment. Ms. Cooper decided to raise the issue again with Andersen. But when she called the firm, Mr. Avery brushed her off and made it clear that he took orders only from Mr. Sullivan, according to the investigators. Mr. Avery and Mr. Dick declined to comment. Patrick Dorton, a spokesman for Andersen, said his firm thought that the $400 million wireless reserve was not necessary. "That was like putting a red flag in front of a bull," says Mr. Morse. "She came back to me and said, 'Go dig.'" Some internal auditors would have left it at that and moved on. After all, both the company's chief financial officer and its outside accountants had signed off on the decision. But that was not Ms. Cooper's style. One favorite pastime among the auditors who reported to her was applying the labels of the Myers-Briggs & Keirsey personality test to their fellow staffers. Ms. Cooper was categorized as an INTJ -- introspective, intuitive, a thinker and judgmental. "INTJs," according to the test criteria, are "natural leaders" and "strong-willed," representing less than 1% of the population. And so Ms. Cooper decided to appeal the decision. As head of auditing, it was her responsibility to bring sensitive issues to the audit committee of WorldCom's board. She brought the reserves question to the attention of the committee's head, Max Bobbitt. At a committee meeting at the company's Washington offices on March 6, she and Mr. Sullivan presented their cases, according to minutes from the meeting. Mr. Sullivan backed down, according to people familiar with his decision. The next day he tracked down Ms. Cooper. Unable to reach her immediately, Mr. Sullivan called her husband, a stay-at-home dad to their two daughters, to get her cellphone number. He finally caught up with her at the hair salon. In the future, she was not to interfere in Mr. Stupka's business, Mr. Sullivan warned, according to people familiar with the reserves question. The confrontations put Ms. Cooper in a sticky position. Mr. Sullivan was her immediate supervisor. Plus, her vague discomfort with the way WorldCom was handling its accounting led her into areas that were not normally her bailiwick. Although her department did a small amount of financial auditing, it primarily performed operational audits, consisting of measuring the performance of WorldCom's units and making sure the proper spending controls were in place. The bulk of the company's financial auditing was left to Arthur Andersen. But neither of those things dissuaded Ms. Cooper from following her nose to the root of the ill-defined problem. A Surprise Request On March 7, a day after Ms. Cooper had visited with the audit committee, the SEC surprised the company with a "Request for Information." While WorldCom's closest competitors, including AT&T Corp., were suffering from a telecom rout and losing money throughout 2001, WorldCom continued to report a profit. That had attracted the attention of regulators at the SEC, who thought WorldCom's numbers looked suspicious. But investigators had grown frustrated as they combed through public filings looking for evidence of wrongdoing, according to people familiar with the inquiry. So they asked to see data on everything from sales commissions to communications with analysts. Concerned about why the SEC was sniffing around, Ms. Cooper directed her group to start collecting information in order to comply with the request. She also was growing concerned about another looming problem. Andersen was under fire for its role in the Enron case, which soon would lead to the accounting firm's indictment. It was clear that WorldCom would have to retain new outside auditors. Ms. Cooper set off on an unusual course. Her own department would simply take on a role that no one at WorldCom had assigned it. The troubles at Enron and Andersen were enough to warrant a second look at the company's financials, she explained to Mr. Morse one evening as they walked out to WorldCom's parking lot. Her plan: her department would start doing financial audits, looking at the reliability and integrity of the financial information the company was reporting publicly. It was a major decision, which would necessitate a lot more work for Ms. Cooper and her staffers. Still, Ms. Cooper took on financial auditing without asking permission from Mr. Sullivan, her boss, according to investigators and a person familiar with Ms. Cooper's decision. "We could see a strain in her face,'' recalls her mother, Patsy Ferrell, about that time period. "She didn't look happy. We knew she was working late and some of the other people were working late. We would call and say, 'Can we bring some sandwiches?' and her father would bring them sandwiches." A Curious E-Mail from Afar Several weeks later, Mr. Smith, a manager under Ms. Cooper, received a curious e-mail from Mark Abide, based in Richardson, Texas, who was in charge of keeping the books for the company's property, plants and equipment. Mr. Abide had attached to his May 21 e-mail a local newspaper article about a former employee in WorldCom's Texas office who had been fired after he raised questions about a minor accounting matter involving capital expenditures. "This is worth looking into from an audit perspective," Mr. Abide wrote. Mr. Smith, who declined to be interviewed, forwarded the e-mail to Ms. Cooper, according to investigators and a lawyer involved in the case. The e-mail piqued Ms. Cooper's interest. As part of their initial foray into financial auditing, Ms. Cooper and her team had already stumbled on to the issue of capital expenditures, a subject that would prove to be crucial to their quest. The team had run into an inexplicable $2 billion that the company said in public disclosures had been spent on capital expenditures during the first three quarters of 2001. But they found that the money had never been authorized for capital spending. Capital costs, such as equipment, property and other major purchases, can be depreciated over long periods of time. In many cases, companies spread those costs over years. Operating costs such as salaries, benefits and rent are subtracted from income on a quarterly basis, and so they have an immediate impact on profits. Ms. Cooper and her team were beginning to suspect what was up with the mysterious $2 billion entry: It might actually represent operating costs shifted to capital expenditure accounts -- a stealthy maneuver that would make the company look vastly more profitable. When Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith asked Sanjeev Sethi, a director of financial planning, about the curious adjustment, he told them it was "prepaid capacity," a term they had never heard before. Further inquires led them to understand that prepaid capacity was a capital expenditure. But when they asked what it meant, Mr. Sethi told them to ask David Myers, the company's controller, according to Mr. Morse and a person familiar with Ms. Cooper's situation. Mr. Sethi did not return phone calls. Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith opted instead to call Mr. Abide, who had pointed out a capital expenditures problem in his e-mail. When they asked him about "prepaid capacity,'' he too answered very cryptically, explaining that those entries had come from Buford Yates, WorldCom's director of general accounting. While perusing records looking for accounting irregularities later that same day, May 28, Mr. Morse made the big discovery of the $500 million in undocumented computer expenses. They also were logged as a capital expenditure. "This stinks," Mr. Morse recalls thinking to himself. He immediately went to Ms. Cooper to tell her what he'd found. She called a meeting of her department. "I knew it was a horrific thing and she did too, right off the bat," says Mr. Morse. Several days later, Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith met to try to make sense of their growing list of clues. Particularly puzzling were the cryptic comments made by Mr. Sethi and Mr. Abide. Finally the two auditors came up with a plan of action to test their sense that when it came to the booking of capital expenditures, something was very wrong at WorldCom. Ms. Cooper would send Mr. Smith an e-mail saying she wanted to know more about prepaid capacity as soon as possible, and asking how much harder they should press Mr. Sethi. They would copy Mr. Myers on the e-mail. Mr. Myers shot back an e-mail. Mr. Sethi should be working for him and did not have time to devote to Ms. Cooper's inquiries, he wrote. Ms. Cooper had been stonewalled yet again. A Secret Plan Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith didn't know it, but they had stumbled onto evidence that some executives were keeping two sets of numbers for the then-$36 billion company, one of them fraudulent. By 2000, WorldCom had started to rely on aggressive accounting to blur the true picture of its badly sagging business. A vicious price war in the long-distance market had ravaged profit margins in the consumer and business divisions. Mr. Sullivan had tried to respond by moving around reserves, according to his indictment. But by 2001 it wasn't enough to keep the company afloat. And so Mr. Sullivan began instructing Mr. Myers to take line costs, fees paid to lease portions of other companies' telephone networks, out of operating-expense accounts where they belonged and tuck them into capital accounts, according to Mr. Sullivan's indictment. It was a definite accounting no-no, but it meant that the costs did not hit the company's bottom line -- at least in the version of the books that were publicly scrutinized. Although some staffers objected, the scheme progressed for the next five quarters. Ms. Cooper, Mr. Smith and Mr. Morse didn't know this. They only knew that accounting entries had been hopscotching inexplicably around WorldCom's balance sheets and that nobody wanted to talk about it. To put all the pieces together, they would need to plumb the depths of WorldCom's computerized accounting systems. Full access to the computer system was a privilege that normally had to be granted by Mr. Sullivan. But Mr. Morse, a bit of a techie, had recently figured out a way around that problem. Without explaining what he was up to, Mr. Morse had asked Jerry Lilly, a senior manager in WorldCom's information technology department, for better access to the company's accounting journal entries. Mr. Lilly was testing a new software program and gave Mr. Morse permission to road test the system, too. The beauty of the new system, from Mr. Morse's perspective, was that it enabled him to scrutinize the debit and credit sides of transactions. By clicking on a number for an expense on a spreadsheet, he could follow it back to the original journal entry -- such as an invoice for a purchase or expense report submitted by an employee, to see how it had been justified. Sifting through the data for answers to still-vague questions about capital expenditures amounted to a frustrating task, Mr. Morse says. He combed through an account labeled "intercompany accounts receivables," which contained 350,000 transactions per month. But when he downloaded the giant set of data, he slowed down the servers that held the company's accounting data. That prompted the IT staff to begin deleting his requests because they were clogging and crashing the system. Mr. Morse began working at night, when there was less demand on the servers, to avoid having his work shut down by the IT department. During the day, he retreated to the audit library -- a windowless, 12-by-12 room piled with files from previous projects and tucked away in the audit department -- to avoid arousing suspicion. By the first week of June, Mr. Morse had turned up a total of $2 billion in questionable accounting entries, he says. The Sleuths Get Nervous Having found the evidence they were looking for, the sleuths were suddenly faced with how serious the implications of their endeavor really were. Mr. Morse grew increasingly concerned that others in the company would discover what he had learned and try to destroy the evidence, he says. With his own money, he went out and bought a CD burner and copied all the incriminating data onto a CD-Rom. He told no one outside of internal audit what he had found. Mr. Morse even kept his wife, Lynda, in the dark. Each night, he'd bring home documents he was studying. He instructed his wife not to touch his briefcase. His wife thought the usually gregarious father of three looked drained. Ms. Cooper had begun confiding in her parents, with whom she was especially close. Without going into detail, she told her mother that she was worried about what her team was finding, and that it was definitely a very big deal, according to a person close to Ms. Cooper. Meanwhile, Mr. Sullivan began to ask questions about what Ms. Cooper's team was up to. One day the finance chief approached Mr. Morse in the company cafeteria. When Mr. Morse saw him coming, he froze. The auditor had only spoken to Mr. Sullivan twice during his five-year tenure at WorldCom. "What are you working on?" Mr. Morse later recalled Mr. Sullivan demanding. Mr. Morse looked at his shoes. "International capital expenditures," he says he replied, referring to a separate, and less-threatening auditing project. He quickly walked away. Days later, on June 11, Ms. Cooper got an unexpected phone call from Mr. Sullivan. He told her that he would have some time later in the day, and invited her to come by and tell him what her department was up to, according to a person familiar with Ms. Cooper's situation. That afternoon, Ms. Cooper, Mr. Smith and another auditor arrived at Mr. Sullivan's office. They talked about pending promotions and other administrative matters, according to lawyers involved in the case. As the meeting was breaking up, Ms. Cooper turned to Mr. Smith and suggested that he tell Mr. Sullivan what he was working on. It was meant to seem like a casual comment. In fact, the two auditors had planned it out beforehand, so that they could gauge Mr. Sullivan's reaction, according to a person familiar with Ms. Cooper's situation. Mr. Smith briefly described the audit, without going into the explosive material they already had found. Mr. Sullivan urged them to delay the audit until after the third quarter, saying there were problems he planned to take care of with a write-down, according to several people familiar with the meeting. Ms. Cooper replied that no, the audit would continue. Mr. Sullivan didn't respond, and the meeting ended in a stalemate. Concerned now that Mr. Sullivan might try to cover up the accounting improprieties, Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith appealed to Mr. Bobbitt, the head of WorldCom's audit committee. Mr. Bobbitt had to travel to Mississippi from his home in Florida for a board meeting scheduled for June 14, so the day before he met with Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith at a Hampton Inn in Clinton. The two auditors told Mr. Bobbitt what they had found. He asked Ms. Cooper to contact KPMG, the company's new outside auditors, and brief them on what was happening. Mr. Bobbitt did not raise Ms. Cooper's suspicions at the board meeting the next day, according to a document WorldCom later submitted to the SEC. James Sharpe, Mr. Bobbitt's lawyer, declined to comment. Farrell Malone, the KPMG partner in charge of the WorldCom account, urged Ms. Cooper to make sure she was right. On June 17, Ms. Cooper's team began a series of informal confrontations meant to convince themselves that there was no legal explanation for the accounting entries. That morning, Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith went to the office of Betty Vinson, director of management reporting, and asked her for documentation to support the capital-expense-accounting entries. Ms. Vinson told the two that she had made many of the entries but did not have any support for them, according to an internal memo prepared by Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith. Ms. Vinson's lawyer did not return phone calls. Next they walked a few feet to Mr. Yates's office. He said he was not familiar with the entries and referred Ms. Cooper and Mr. Smith to Mr. Myers. The duo then paid a call on Mr. Myers. When confronted, he admitted that he knew the accounting treatment was wrong, according to the memo. Mr. Myers said that he could go back and construct support for the entries but that he wasn't going to do that. Ms. Cooper then asked if there were any accounting standards to support the way the expenses were treated, according to the memo, which was later made public by a Congressional committee. Mr. Myers answered that there were none. He said that the entries should not have been made, but that once it had started, it was hard to stop. Mr. Smith asked how Mr. Myers planned to explain it all to the SEC. Mr. Myers replied that he hoped it wouldn't come to that, according to the memo. An hour or so later, Ms. Cooper returned to her department to brief Mr. Morse and her other auditors. "They have no support," she told them, according to Mr. Morse. It was clear to Ms. Cooper's team that their findings would be devastating for the company, and the prospect of going before the board with their evidence was sobering. They worried about whether their revelations would result in layoffs and obsessed about whether they were jumping to unwarranted conclusions that their colleagues at WorldCom were committing fraud. Plus, they feared that they would somehow end up being blamed for the mess. Ms. Cooper's staffers began to notice that she was losing weight. Mr. Morse's wife noticed he was preoccupied and short tempered. During the third week in June, Mr. Smith called his mother, who was vacationing in Albuquerque, according to a person familiar with the conversation. Without providing specifics, he told her that he was about to take actions at WorldCom that were not going to make people happy. He asked his mother, Ms. Cooper's former high school accounting teacher, to remember him in her prayers and to pray for him to be strong. Ms. Cooper prepared for several meetings with the audit committee. At one, on June 20, Mr. Sullivan was scheduled to defend himself. One evening, as Ms. Cooper worked late with accountants from KPMG, she suddenly dropped her head into her arms on the conference-room table. Mr. Malone of KPMG led her onto a balcony, put his arm around her and showed her the sunset, according to a person familiar with the meeting. Ms. Cooper, Mr. Smith and Mr. Malone headed to Washington to brief the board's audit committee. At the meeting on Thursday, June 20, Mr. Malone described the transfer of line costs to capital accounts and told the audit committee that, in his view, the transfers didn't comply with generally accepted accounting principles, according to a document WorldCom later submitted to the SEC. Mr. Sullivan tried to give an explanation for the accounting adjustments but asked for more time to support the line-cost transfers. The committee gave Mr. Sullivan the weekend to explain himself. He got to work constructing what he called a white paper that argued that the accounting treatments he used were proper, according to the document. It didn't work. On June 24, the audit committee told Mr. Sullivan and Mr. Myers they would be terminated if they didn't resign before the board meeting the next day. Mr. Sullivan refused and was fired. Mr. Myers resigned. The next evening, WorldCom stunned Wall Street with an announcement that it had inflated profits by $3.8 billion over the previous five quarters. Afterward, Ms. Cooper drove to her parents' house, which was near WorldCom's headquarters. She sat down at the dining-room table without saying anything, says Ms. Ferrell, her mother. "She was deeply, deeply pained. She was grief stricken that it was true and that all these people would feel the consequences of having gone astray,'' Ms. Ferrell says. "We were all so proud of WorldCom and it's just been the saddest, most tragic thing.'' Mr. Morse worked late that night, and his wife phoned after she watched the news. The anchors were calling the company World-Con, she reported. Did he know anything about it? The SEC on June 26 slapped the company with a civil fraud suit, and trading of WorldCom's stock was halted. Ultimately the company was delisted by the Nasdaq Stock Market. Mr. Sullivan is preparing to go to trial. "We will demonstrate at the appropriate time that a number of the negative points that WorldCom's internal auditors have recently suggested about Mr. Sullivan are not accurate,'' says Irvin Nathan, a lawyer for Mr. Sullivan. "The fact is that he was always supportive of internal audit and was instrumental in the promotion of Cynthia Cooper and securing resources for her staff.'' Mr. Myers, Mr. Yates, Ms. Vinson and Troy Normand, the director of legal entity accounting, have all pleaded guilty to securities fraud and a variety of other charges. David Schertler, an attorney for Mr. Yates, says that while his client pleaded guilty, "all the evidence would suggest he was acting under the orders of supervisors.'' Ms. Cooper and her team have continued to work at WorldCom's Clinton headquarters and are responding to requests related to the various investigations of the company. Ms. Cooper, Mr. Smith and Mr. Morse have been interviewed by FBI agents in connection with the Justice Department's investigation. Some WorldCom employees have told the auditors that they wish they had left the accounting issues alone. HUNTING DOWN FRAUD March: A WorldCom executive complains to Cynthia Cooper, vice president of internal audit, that CFO Scott Sullivan has decided to use his unit's reserves to reduce expenses. March 6: Ms. Cooper raises issue with audit committee. Mr. Sullivan backs down. March 7: SEC issues request for documents. Ms. Cooper launches financial audit. May 28: An auditor uncovers $500 million in fraudulent computer expenses. June 11: Mr. Sullivan, the CFO, asks Ms. Cooper to delay her audit. She refuses. June 17: Ms. Cooper confronts other WorldCom officials about the increasing number of accounting problems her staff is discovering. June 20: She presents her findings to WorldCom's board. Four days later Mr. Sullivan is fired. June 25: WorldCom announces it has inflated its profits by $3.8 billion over the previous five quarters. http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,SB1035929943494003751,00.html ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. 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End of TELECOM Digest V22 #104 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Wed Oct 30 18:43:06 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id g9UNh6I10894; Wed, 30 Oct 2002 18:43:06 -0500 (EST) Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 18:43:06 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200210302343.g9UNh6I10894@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #105 TELECOM Digest Wed, 30 Oct 2002 18:43:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 105 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Monty's Posts was Re: "News Headlines of Interest" (Joey Lindstrom) Re: "News Headlines of Interest" Don't Have Table of Contents (Gail Hall) Re: "News Headlines of Interest" Don't Have Table of Contents (No Name) Re: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor (John David Galt) A Lack of Money Forces Computer Initiative to Close (Monty Solomon) Will Wi-Fi Take Over the Airwaves? (Monty Solomon) Wireless WarDrive: Wee Bit of Fun (Monty Solomon) Why Telemarketing Is Evil (Monty Solomon) Cell Phones Were Rebels' Downfall (Monty Solomon) Re: Want Bills by Snail Mail? It Might Cost You Money (Shaun Ewing) Re: DMS Switch Line Card Questions (Telco) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Joey Lindstrom Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 10:18:33 -0700 Subject: Monty's Posts was Re: "News Headlines of Interest" Reply-To: joey@lairdsflooring.com On Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:54:51 -0500 (EST), editor@telecom-digest.org wrote: > Thus far the total is three votes for choice (1) -- mostly anonymous hate > letters saying quit publishing Monty's 'news items' (I refuse to do > that) or at the very least, batch it all as one big article. > And one vote (Eric DeMund) for (2) who wants to go back to the > previous system where I toss in a few of his items in every issue, and > as a result get an index of them. Well, if this relative newcomer gets a vote, I vote for choice #2, though #1 (batching together) is also quite acceptable. I really don't understand why you're getting hate mail about Monty's posts. Indeed, I find them (or specifically the articles he's referring us to) to be among the most interesting things that I get from the TELECOM Digest (no slur intended against anyone here). The only complaint I'd make is that I have to launch a browser to see the balance of the articles that I want to read (a long, slow process on this creaky old laptop). This is offset by the fact that I can quickly skip over articles that do NOT interest me, as Monty has only quoted the first paragraph or two (plus by the fact that I understand why Monty does it that way: to avoid copyright problems). Y'know, there are frequently articles in the TELECOM Digest (and other mailing lists I subscribe to) that I'm not interested in, and skip over. I don't expect to be enthralled by every post I see, but it sure seems like a small minority of people here (based on your characterization of their feedback as hate mail) DO have such an expectation. And they should listen carefully to the wise, sage words of Denis Leary, whom I quoth thusly: "Life sucks. Get a helmet." If that doesn't do it for ya, then let's harken back to the 1980's and the age of FidoNet, an organization that had two simple rules: 1) Thou shalt not be excessively annoying. 2) Thou shalt not be too easily annoyed. I think the vast majority of people here would say that Monty doesn't come close to violating rule #1. Your hate-mail writers, on the other hand, most definitely violate rule #2. Pat, you're the moderator. I do appreciate that you ask us for input on issues like this and are prepared to act in a manner inconsistent with your initial feelings if that's what the majority wants -- how could we ask for a better moderator? But please don't let this VERY small minority boil your blood. Some people bitch just for the sake of bitching, and if you capitulate to them on this, they'll just find something new to bitch about - ad nauseum. So unless a good majority of folks here ask you to change how you deal with Monty's posts, I'd suggest you just shrug off the hatemail and leave things as they are. (This is not to characterize Eric de Mund's post as hatemail - it was reasonable and well-intentioned, and I do agree with his stated preference). Oh, and a shout out to Monty: keep 'em comin', homey. :-) (Sorry, I slipped into Jim Rome mode for a second there...) Joey Lindstrom - Laird's Flooring joey@lairdsflooring.com ------------------------------ From: Gail M. Hall Subject: Re: "News Headlines of Interest" Don't Have Table of Contents Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 17:11:56 -0500 Reply-To: gmhall@apk.net On Tue, 29 Oct 2002 11:42:49 PST, in comp.dcom.telecom, Pat, our moderator wrote: > So now, you guys tell me; instruct your old, obsolete moderator with > his old, obsolete scripts; pick one of these choices: > (1) Continue batching Monty, one general subject header, no index of items; > (2) Individual itemization of Monty stuff; by default then six or ten > items in each issue, indexing, some days it will appear that he > has taken over an entire issue; My first choice would be #2 so I can pick and choose based on the subject line. (I see you have already individualized his messages in this latest batch of articles in this newsgroup.) Second choice would be to continue the batching *IF* you can label each heading with some kind of standard string that I can search on, such as "Subject:" or "Headline:" at the beginning of the line for the title or headline for each item. That way I could use my Find feature in my reader to search for "Subject:" to jump from one article to the next. Or separate the news items with a very easily identifiable divider such as a row of characters, such as *** or ==== or ----, that is, a sort of "graphical" way of identifying the separations between items. I don't know about your editor, but I have used Agent's "signature" feature to include other strings I might want to insert into messages easily. Back when I used Procomm Plus to access a unix-based service, I had scripts to insert common phrases or addresses when I wanted to. > Thus far the total is three votes for choice (1) -- mostly anonymous hate > letters saying quit publishing Monty's 'news items' (I refuse to do > that) or at the very least, batch it all as one big article. I don't want to see you hated, but I did like it better when Monty's stuff came in separate messages. I read Telecom Digest via usenet, so it's kind of like broken digests. The Telecom Digest gets to usenet already separated, unlike Risks, which stays in digest form even in usenet. > And one vote (Eric DeMund) for (2) who wants to go back to the > previous system where I toss in a few of his items in every issue, and > as a result get an index of them. I wouldn't really need an index if I could figure out what search string would get me to the subject of each item within the message. Your other options are out of my league and would depend on someone else to perform the magic. Those of us who are retired and living on fixed incomes have to be a little more picky about spending gobs of money on the latest computers and software. So I'm not going to be the one to bug you to do everything with the latest technology. Thanks for asking for our input! Gail in Ohio USA ------------------------------ From: Name Withheld Subject: Re: "News Headlines of Interest" Don't Have Table of Contents Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 09:26:20 -0800 Not for publication under my name: Eric De Mund wrote: > So now, you guys tell me; instruct your old, obsolete moderator with > his old, obsolete scripts; pick one of these choices: > (1) Continue batching Monty, one general subject header, no index of items; > (2) Individual itemization of Monty stuff; by default then six or ten > items in each issue, indexing, some days it will appear that he > has taken over an entire issue; I'd prefer (2). Anyone who wants things batched can always subscribe by e-mail instead of reading the newsgroup anyway. ------------------------------ From: John David Galt Subject: Re: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 09:37:41 -0800 Organization: Diogenes the Cynic Hot-Tubbing Society Rick Wilson wrote: > SBC-Pacbell has stopped publishing local prefix information in their > phone books. Could someone with a 1999 or 2000 phonebook for Los > Altos/Mountain View/Sunnyvale CA please copy or scan the local prefix > list and upload it here or elsewhere? It'll save a trip to the > library. http://www.nanpa.com/nanp1/wsutlzd.zip lists the prefixes in each rate center. (There are similar files for other parts of North America, see http://www.nanpa.com/number_resource_info/co_code_assignments1.html ) Use your old PacBell book to determine which rate centers (zones) are local to your own. Then search the file for all prefixes in those rate centers, and you have your list. Note that the list will be much larger than the one in the phone book, because PacBell has always had a policy of not telling you if cellular prefixes, or prefixes of competing local carriers, are local to you. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 23:29:18 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: A Lack of Money Forces Computer Initiative to Close October 30, 2002 A Lack of Money Forces Computer Initiative to Close By JOHN SCHWARTZ When Stephen M. Case, then the chairman of America Online, and many other high-technology executives announced an initiative called PowerUP less than three years ago, they said that their donated millions would help bridge the "digital divide" between rich and poor. "We must take steps now so that in the Internet century, no children are left behind," Mr. Case said. But tomorrow , with nearly 1,000 community-based technology centers financed across the country, the national offices of PowerUp will close and the centers will be left to fend for -- and finance -- themselves. ... http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/30/technology/30POWE.html ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 00:15:46 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Will Wi-Fi take over the airwaves? Will Wi-Fi take over the airwaves? By Richard Shim Staff Writer, CNET News.com October 28, 2002, 12:28 PM PT As wireless home networking catches on, the climate is right for growth in the Wi-Fi market, according to a new study. Wi-Fi is a technology that allows devices located within a 300-foot radius to communicate without wires. Wi-Fi includes two different standards, 802.11b and 802.11a. Products using the 802.11b standard are already being accepted, and products using the emerging 802.11a standard are finding their way into the homes of early adopters, according to a study released Monday from In-Stat/MDR. The 802.11b standard allows data to be transferred at rates up to 11mbps and uses the 2.4GHz radio band. The 802.11a standard transmits data at up to 54mbps in the higher 5GHz frequency and is not compatible with 802.11b. The report projected annual worldwide shipments of Wi-Fi equipment to reach 33 million units in 2006, up from 6 million expected to ship this year. http://news.com.com/2100-1033-963574.html ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:21:04 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Wireless WarDrive: Wee Bit of Fun Wireless WarDrive: Wee Bit of Fun By Michelle Delio 02:00 AM Oct. 29, 2002 PST NEW YORK -- Finding a public restroom in Manhattan was the biggest challenge on Day 1 of the WorldWide WarDrive. Within a 40-block radius, the WarDrivers identified dozens of wide-open wireless networks. Among the spotted "private" business and home networks were those appearing to belong to a bank, a police station, several law firms and department stores, and a financial services firm. All of these networks appeared to be unprotected by even rudimentary security systems. Anyone with no ethics and just a bit of technical savvy could have logged in and accessed, at the very least, any of the information being transmitted across the network. http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,56062,00.html ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:23:49 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Why Telemarketing Is Evil Issue 10.11 - Nov 2002 CHEAT SHEET Why Telemarketing Is Evil Telemarketers may be relentless, exasperating, even unethical. But you have to give them this: They're good. With the help of technology -- everything from autodialing software to cheap overseas labor connected by fiber optics -- they've turned phone solicitation into a $270 billion industry. The key to the telephonic onslaught is predictive dialing, a breakthrough of the mid-'90s. These systems churn through huge databases of phone numbers, weeding out busy signals and out-of-service numbers, and routing answered calls to agents. They are mercilessly efficient: Out of an 8-hour day, agents can work the phones a staggering 7.2 hours. One loan company calling deadbeat borrowers boosted "promises to pay" by 129 percent. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.11/start.html ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:49:08 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Cell phones Were Rebels 'Downfall Cell phones were rebels' downfall Russians gather key information through hostages By Preston Mendenhall MSNBC MOSCOW, Oct. 26 - During their three-day siege of a Moscow theater, Chechen terrorists allowed hundreds of hostages to use personal cell phones to reassure their family members and relay new demands. What they didn't know, officials here say, was that Russia's security services were on the other end listening and gathering information crucial to ending the hostage crisis. SECURITY OFFICIALS HERE who helped plan the special operation that freed over 700 hostages but killed dozens in the process said Saturday that the relative freedom the rebels gave their hostages proved to be their downfall. One senior security source, who declined to be identified, said the FSB, a successor to the Soviet-era KGB, identified the dozens of phone calls made by hostages immediately after the attack as an important link to the inside of the theater. The FSB encouraged families of hostages to make themselves available around the clock at a special coordination center near the theater, where 24-hour support and information for the relatives were also provided. http://www.msnbc.com/news/826347.asp ------------------------------ From: Shaun Ewing Subject: Re: Want Bills by Snail Mail? It Might Cost You Money Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 01:56:41 +1100 Monty Solomon wrote in message news:telecom22.103.1@telecom-digest.org: > October 29, 2002 > Want Bills by Snail Mail? It Might Cost You Money > By JENNIFER BAYOT > You may dread monthly bills in the mailbox, but consider them a perk. > Some companies are charging for them. That's already happening here in Australia with a lot of companies. For example: * My cell phone provider charges AUD$2.50 per month if I want a paper bill. From memory they charge another $1 if you don't pay by automatic direct debit (credit card, etc). I currently receive my bill notification by email and view the bills online. * My previous Internet provider charged $2.50 per month if you wanted a paper bill instead of an email with a PDF attachment. When I changed to electronic billing they sent me a "thankyou pack" containing a hat, pens, stickers and two movie tickets. * My current Internet provider doesn't offer a paper billing option; the only option is an email invoice. * I also believe that Telstra (our biggest Telco) was starting to offer discounts and incentives if you received your bill electronically; however, since I'm not with them for my calls I'm not sure what came of this. I currently receive my landline phone bills (business & personal) in the mail and mailed statements for Visa card and bank accounts. Every other bill is handled electronically. The way the banks here are going with Internet banking; it probably won't be long before additional charges are incurred to receive a paper statement. --Shaun ------------------------------ From: Telco Subject: Re: DMS Switch Line Card Questions Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 15:46:11 GMT Organization: EarthLink Inc. -- http://www.EarthLink.net Hope you can help; the cable length is near it's distance, intra-office. On the 216, our measured return loss is within spec but marginal. On the 214 card, the return loss is well within spec. We are working with carrier to determine flaky response to equipment they bought, installed. The equipment they are working with works well in other offices. We are trying to determine impedance or dBm or bonding problem. If you recall good advice, I might just send a bigger straw for the beer. Thank-you, Kelly Boo Phatty wrote: > Today, Tue, 29 Oct 2002 14:55:57 GMT, Two Buddha read a post from > Kelly Daniels , and determined his interest in > BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: >> Can anyone recall if the T214 and T216 Line Card used for Switching in >> the Analog Shelf of DMS 100, 200, 250 and 10 has Line Build-out >> Options, either by dip switches or software. Specifically I look to >> match impedance and then Transmission Level Points in the +4 to -22 >> range. >> Thank-you in advance. >> Kelly > Why do you need to tweak LBO at the switch? Are you running cables a > long long way from your equipment? If so, shouldn't you do that on the > transmission side? ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #105 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Thu Oct 31 16:05:47 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id g9VL5l803886; Thu, 31 Oct 2002 16:05:47 -0500 (EST) Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 16:05:47 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200210312105.g9VL5l803886@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #106 TELECOM Digest Thu, 31 Oct 2002 16:06:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 106 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Airport Lounges, Unplugged (Monty Solomon) Qwest Communications Reports Third Quarter 2002 Results (Monty Solomon) AT&T PrePaid Internet Service Now Available At Walgreens (Monty Solomon) Leading Broadband Providers Are Ready for Microsoft's Xbox (M. Solomon) Echostar Moves Fail to Revive Hughes Deal; Source (Monty Solomon) Fight Shaping up for U.S. Walkie Talkie Service (Monty Solomon) Microsoft's Media Monopoly (Monty Solomon) Rooting Around Site With Intent? (Monty Solomon) FCC Ponders Flexible Use of Airwaves (Monty Solomon) The Latest Annoying Version Of Spam (Patrick Townson) Verizon Settles Spam Suit (Patrick Townson) Re: Wi-FI in Apartments; Airwave Saturation? (David Clayton) Re: Local Prefix List - Need a Favor (Greg Monti) Re: Tragedy of the Commons (fist) Re: Connecting FAX Machine to Existing Answering Machine (David Vinograd) Request For Assistance (MetroOrion@aol.com) Time to Ask For Help Once Again; Free CD Offer (Patrick Townson) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 20:15:17 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Airport Lounges, Unplugged T-Mobile debuts new wireless options By Jesse Drucker THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Oct. 30 - Cutting loose on the road is taking on new meaning. T-Mobile USA Inc., formerly VoiceStream Wireless, is partnering with American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines to let people get high-speed wireless Internet connections in nearly all of the airlines' domestic clubs over the coming year. OTHER CARRIERS, TOO, are expanding their wireless networks, using a technology known as Wi-Fi that can be 40 times faster than even the most current high-speed cellular networks. AT&T Wireless Services Inc. has rigged up virtually the entire Denver airport. Sprint Corp., meanwhile, is planning to roll out the service in several Wyndham Hotels around the country. For most people, this represents a big change in the way they get onto the Internet on the road. Typically, that involves finding a pay phone, tethering the laptop to the phone with a phone cord, and then enduring snail-like connection speeds. (Some cellular carriers now offer laptop cards that provide wireless Internet connections, but at comparatively slow speeds.) http://www.msnbc.com/news/828105.asp ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 20:23:38 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Qwest Communications Reports Third Quarter 2002 Results - Second Consecutive Quarter of Positive Free Cash Flow - Liquidity Concerns Addressed With Amended/New Credit Facilities and Pending Sale of QwestDex - Expects 2002 Revenue of Approximately $17.1 Billion and Adjusted EBITDA of Approximately $5.4 Billion - Net Loss of ($214) Million or ($0.13) Per Share, Compared to a Loss of ($142) Million or ($0.09) Per Share in the Third Quarter of 2001 Investors: Please see 'Note to Investors' below for definitions and explanations of certain matters. DENVER, Oct. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Qwest Communications International Inc. (NYSE:Q) today announced its financial results for the third quarter of 2002. On a reported basis, the company reported a net loss of ($214) million or ($0.13) per share, compared to a net loss of ($142) million or ($0.09) per share in the third quarter of 2001. The loss reflects after-tax non-operating items of $44 million, or $0.02 per share, due to adjustments of restructuring reserves, losses associated with the sale of certain assets and an adjustment to the company's deferred tax provision. http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29359542 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 21:19:55 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: AT&T PrePaid Internet Service Now Available At Walgreens MORRISTOWN, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 30, 2002--AT&T and Walgreens today announced that AT&T PrePaid Internet Service is now available in more than 3,900 of the drugstore chain's stores across the United States. AT&T PrePaid Internet Service is a flexible, pay-as-you-go Internet service powered by the company's award-winning AT&T Worldnet(R) Service. It comes with one e-mail account and is perfect for consumers who want to access the Web without a monthly fee, need a travel Internet service to complement their home or office connection or want a back-up service. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29364009 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 21:22:45 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Leading Broadband Providers Are Ready for Microsoft's Xbox Live 10 U.S. and Three Canadian Providers to Help Usher in New Era for Online Video Games Starting Nov. 15 REDMOND, Wash., Oct. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) today announced that 10 U.S. and three Canadian broadband service providers will be the first to support the Microsoft(R) "Xbox(TM) Compatible" program, making it easy for consumers to identify high-speed service plans that deliver great experiences for Xbox Live. Xbox Live, which launches in the United States and Canada on Nov. 15, is the ultimate online game arena that allows gamers to play games with each other, talk while they play using the Xbox Communicator headset, and download new content to keep games fresh. (Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO ) Representing nearly 80 percent of the combined U.S. and Canadian broadband markets by the end of the year, the current list of "Xbox Compatible" broadband service providers includes Bell Canada, BellSouth Corp., Charter Communications Inc., Comcast Corp., Cox Communications Inc., EarthLink Inc., MSN(R), Qwest Communications, Rogers Cable Inc., SBC Communications Inc., TELUS Corp., Time Warner Cable's Road Runner service and Verizon Communications. According to J Allard, general manager of the Xbox platform at Microsoft, while Xbox Live is designed to work well with most high-speed Internet services, the "Xbox Compatible" service providers are working with Microsoft to help ensure a great user experience on Xbox Live for customers. http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29366316 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 21:28:44 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Echostar Moves Fail to Revive Hughes Deal; Source - Oct 30, 2002 11:01 AM (Reuters) - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29366788 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 30 Oct 2002 21:32:25 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Fight Shaping up for U.S. Walkie Talkie Service Fight shaping up for U.S. walkie talkie service - Oct 30, 2002 11:56 AM (Reuters) - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29368035 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 00:48:20 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Microsoft's Media Monopoly Bill Gates wants to control the delivery of digital entertainment into your home. And according to a lawsuit brought by a pioneering software company, he's prepared to crush anything that gets in his way. First of two parts. By Farhad Manjoo Oct. 29, 2002 | Richard Lang looks out of his lawyer's office at the bright orange Coast Guard cutters clipping the San Francisco Bay. It's a chilly morning in the middle of October, and Lang, the CEO of a video software company called Burst.com, has spent the last hour talking about unfair competition in the software industry and about how he became a victim of Microsoft's vicious effort to dominate digital entertainment. But he's been distracted the whole time, pointing out the choppers and the sailboats. You get the sense that Lang is vaguely embarrassed to be here, that he would rather be out there on the bay, or somewhere else far away, working on ways to improve digital technology rather than explaining why he's suing the biggest company in the industry. Richard Lang is suing Microsoft because, he says, the company violated Burst.com's patents covering video delivery on the Internet and engaged in "unfair competition" to prevent Burst from gaining a foothold in the market. Lang says that in the late 1990s, as software companies battled each other for dominance in the emerging world of digital media on the Internet, Microsoft colluded with its main competitor, RealNetworks, in an effort to prevent Burst and other firms from entering the market. And then, after it had sufficiently weakened Burst, Microsoft "stole" its intellectual property, says Lang, incorporating in its latest Windows Media Player the video-streaming technology that Burst had developed -- and had shared with Microsoft under nondisclosure agreements -- during more than a decade of research. http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2002/10/29/microsoft_media_one/ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 01:01:56 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Rooting Around Site With Intent? By Michelle Delio 02:00 AM Oct. 30, 2002 PST The theory of security by obscurity may soon come under legal review. Intentia, a prominent, mid-sized enterprise software vendor, says it filed a complaint on Monday with Sweden's National Criminal Investigation Department. The company claims a reporter from Reuters news service "broke into Intentia's computer systems" to obtain Intentia's third quarter 2002 financial results. Reuters then published a news story revealing Intentia's quarterly results several hours before the company was scheduled to publicly announce the information. Both Intentia and Reuters agree the Reuters reporter obtained Intentia's financial statement directly from Intentia's website. But since Intentia did not provide an explicit link to the report, Intentia's lawyers consider Reuters' retrieval and early publication of the information a violation of intellectual property and computer system protection laws. Reuters believes that once Intentia placed its quarterly report on its website, the information could no longer be considered confidential or private. http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,56079,00.html [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: And I agree with Reuters. You cannot set something out on the sidewalk in front of your house and then sue people for looking at it and commenting on it. That's NOT how the World Wide Web was set up. That's NOT the way it works, and actions such as Intentia's lawsuit are a direct slap in the face at netizens everywhere. Someone should sit down with Intentia and teach them the basics of computer networking and web page design before turning them loose with computers and web pages. That's why I deep-link wherever I feel like it. I don't *claim* that its my work; I simply make fair use of the spectacles on display around the net. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 08:40:41 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: FCC Ponders Flexible Use of Airwaves By Reuters October 30, 2002, 9:37 PM PT The Federal Communications Commission is working to provide more flexibility for using the nation's existing commercial wireless airwaves as numerous new services proliferate, the agency's chief said Wednesday. FCC Chairman Michael Powell said the agency is exploring ways to overhaul government regulations of wireless licenses, including allowing license holders to offer a variety of services as well as expand the use of existing spectrum that may be underutilized. http://news.com.com/2100-1033-964017.html ------------------------------ From: Patrick Townson Subject: CBS News: The Latest Annoying Version Of Spam Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 12:01:46 -0600 Now, in the middle of a chat session using 'Messenger' software, pop up windows with spam. You may have seen them lately. Originally intended as a way for 'Messenger' systems technical administrators to advise users when the network had to be shut down for repairs (if they had at least a few seconds or longer to give a warning prior to a system crash), this technique is now being taken over by spammers as a way to get around your mail filters; your various screening mechanisms. Apparently it doesn't matter what the actual contents of the pop up window says: It could be a legitimate message, 'Messenger is going down now for technical work, back soon' or it could be sexual innuendo, or a misleadingly named http link to a virus (such as sexual innuendo in the form of a link [click here to see my naked pics, etc]) or a hacker trying to trick young guys and inexperienced users into 'changing their password' with 'official looking' announcements, etc. Here is a link to the entire report: http://cbsnews.cbs.com/stories/2002/10/18/tech/main526198.shtmlhttp://cbs news.cbs.com/stories/2002/10/18/tech/main526198.shtml ------------------------------ From: Patrick Townson Subject: CBS News: Verizon Settles Spam Suit Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 12:03:20 -0600 Now, a major spammer gets ordered off of Verizon and handed a huge fine to pay. A fellow up in the Detroit area, long considered a major spammer on the net gets caught in the act. Here is that story to read in full: http://cbsnews.cbs.com/stories/2002/10/29/tech/main527365.shtmlhttp://cbs news.cbs.com/stories/2002/10/29/tech/main527365.shtml ------------------------------ From: David Clayton Subject: Re: Wi-FI in Apartments; Airwave Saturation? Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 17:06:49 +1100 Organization: Customer of Connect.com.au Pty. Ltd. Reply-To: dcstar@acslink.net.au jeff.smith2@caramail.com (Jeff Smith) contributed the following: > But considering that a lot of people live in apartment buildings, I > was wondering at what point Wi-Fi would become a problem, and not be > able to function. > Imagine there are three apartments in a row, and every apartment has > its own Wi-Fi network. And imagine it's the same deal on the floor > just above these three apartments, and also the three apartments just > below. > For a total of nine Wi-Fi networks within a 300 foot radius. Would > that work? > Thanks for any info. Not because I have any plans, but just because I > was wondering about this. I have set up "Wi-Fi" in commercial buildings and found that the signal will quite happily travel through one or two modern plasterboard walls but not the concrete floors, so I assume if you have substantial walls and floors in the apartments you won't have too much trouble. We found we could get reasonable "horizontal" connectivity but nothing much vertically in a new building. When we installed one in an old "heritage" building with wooden floors and bluestone walls we had the opposite, the signal could travel up and down but not through the thick walls. Regards, David Clayton, e-mail: dcstar@acslink.net.au Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Dilbert's words of wisdom #18: Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you with experience. ------------------------------ From: Greg Monti Subject: Re: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 01:29:19 -0500 On 29 Oct 2002, Rick Wilson wrote: > SBC-Pacbell has stopped publishing local prefix information in their > phone books. Could someone with a 1999 or 2000 phonebook for Los > Altos/Mountain View/Sunnyvale CA please copy or scan the local prefix > list and upload it here or elsewhere? This info now appears to be publicly available on the internet. Go to www.areacode-info.com , click on the green tab for Plans, then on Local Calling Areas. You can input virtually any area code-prefix pair, or any Rate Center name, in the US or Canada. It will return a page listing every rate center that is a local call from the one you input. Most displayed items are clickable links, so you can see the full prefix lists of all local rate centers, the CLLI codes of the switches, the serving company names and the LATA numbers. It's incredibly detailed, and is addictive for those with a mind for tidbits of data. Did you know that calls from Derby Line, Vermont (802-873), to Rock Island, Quebec (819-876) are local calls? Did you know that there are 4,633 prefixes in the New York metropolitan LATA? That the small suburban rate center of Brewster, NY, has 9 active prefixes served by 6 telephone companies? That the switch called LARLMDLRDS0 in Laurel, Maryland, serves 35 prefixes in four diffferent area codes in four different rate areas? That the local calling area from Barrow, AK, consists only of Barrow. Everything else is toll. From Los Altos, CA, the local calling areas includes, besides Los Altos, in Zone 1: Palo Alto, Mountain View, San Jose West DA, Saratoga, Sunnyvale, Woodside, and in Zone 2: Campbell, La Honda, Redwood City, San Carlos-Belmont and San Jose North DA. Whatever DA stands for. Greg Monti, New York, New York, USA gmonti@mindspring.com greg.monti@verizon.net [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In this context, DA refers to Directory Assistance. Many eons ago, DA was operator lingo for 'Does Not Answer'. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 19:59:39 +1100 From: fist Reply-To: fist@ozemail.com.au Organization: xx Subject: Re: Tragedy of the Commons Thor Iverson's explanation for the Tragedy of the Commons is quite incorrect (although I tend to agree with the thrust of his article). He explains the Tragedy concept by stating: > There's a concept in the physical world known as the "tragedy of the > commons." Build a useful public space, and people will come. But the > more people use it, the more the value of the space is degraded, > until it ultimately fails to fulfill the purpose for which it was > created. Thus, success leads inevitably to failure. It is not the overload of common facilities that the Tragedy refers to, but the way in which individuals can unfairly expoit the shared value of the commons to benefit themselves, and to the detriment of the others who play fair and share equally. This is a different problem entirely. The idea that (axiomatically) the more people who use a public space, the more its value is degraded might apply to some forms of common, but not to all. For instance, Metcalf's Law says the opposite -- that the value of networks rises with the number of users. And it seems to me that the value of the Internet has risen as the range of material it contains has expanded. Unfortunately, the junk level has also risen. But that is not the same as the Tragedy concept -- just a natural consequence of many people being dumb and stupid. Stewart Fist - writer and columnist See http://australianit.news.com.au (click on COLUMNS) http://www.abc.net.au/http/sfist/ (some archives) http://www.electric-words.com (main archives) 70 Middle Harbour Road, Lindfield, 2070, N.S.W, Australia Phone +61 2 9416 7458 Fax +61 2 9416 4582 ------------------------------ Reply-To: From: David Vinograd Subject: Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 11:25:15 -0000 People, Thank you for all the good advice. I have checked with BT and distinctive ring is available at 1.50/month and my system does support it. So I will order it today. David Vinograd mailto:Vinograd@multics.org Consultants in Networking & Security http://vinograd.multics.org/ Peaks Island Partnership Ltd 128 Richmond Hill 8 Garden Lane Richmond, TW10 6RN UK Peaks Island, ME 04108 US +44-(0)20-8-940-5723 207-766-5840 ------------------------------ From: MetroOrion@aol.com Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 06:55:28 EST Subject: Request For Assistance Good morning, I am quite new to computers. I believe I have all the facilities necessary to play FM radio stations. However, when I located your website through "FM radio stations" each time I entered a callsign, frequency or site I received the message that the information wasn't available. I am trying to tune in a Montreal music station (I believe it is 99.5) but the Montreal and the 99.5 didn't give results. I tried entering the closest city to where I live (Burlington VT) and again didn't get to an informative screen. Could you advise the step by step procedure to accessing the radio stations as it appears I am missing something here. Thanks. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: A couple of points here: when that page at airwaves.com was working it was only intended to be a lookup of details. Bill Pfieffer designed it to be a convenient 'hook' into the FCC's database of AM/FM radio stations searchable by frequency, call sign and geographic location. It was NOT intended to be a link to the various stations themselves. You still had to order up the audio files via the various web sites of the stations which offer the service. But ... (did you ever notice how 'but' always negates whatever the previous paragraphs or statements said?) the airwaves.com site has been out of order for quite awhile. Someone more experienced than I has to go in to the cgi-bin at iecc.com (which houses airwaves.com) and repair the link. If, in fact the FCC has not shut down access to the database entirely. It was a great service when it worked, while Bill Pfieffer was alive. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Patrick Townson Subject: Time to Ask For Help Once Again Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 13:00:00 CST We have come to the end of October and the start of November, so it is my turn to ask once again for financial assistance in the upkeep of this Digest. If you have not made any financial assistance lately, I hope you will consider this monthly appeal as a chance to participate financially as a partner in this reader-written net published e-journal. Whatever you feel is appropriate will be appreciated. Starting with this month, (November, 2002), I will be offering a CD of the entire Telecom Archives *and* your choice of various 'old time radio' shows with a telephone theme at no charge when you send a gift of at least $20-25 to the Digest. In addition to twenty plus years of telecom-related messages from the Digest and comp.dcom.telecom and the other special files and reports in the archives you will receive these 'oldtimeradiovault.com' items: 'Sorry, Wrong Number' (three different adaptations including Agnes Morehead) from Suspense, Lux Radio Theatre, etc. 'Halls of Ivy' the 'Phone Problems' episode 'Family Theatre' the 'Man Who Bought the Phone Company' episode. 'Bell Telephone Hour' the guest on that show was Lily Pons. 'Life of Riley' the 'Telephone is Rationed' episode. In addition, if you put the CD in a regular CD player such as your radio, etc instead of the CD drive on your computer, you wil be able to listen to 'Sorry, Wrong Number' as it aired on the radio. This is the second, and updated CD of the Telecom Archives, produced by Joey Lindstrom, with a cast of thousands -- all of you -- in the Archives files. I think you will like it. With your gift to the Digest of $20-25 (or more, as you find appropriate) you get it free. If you choose to remit on line via PayPal, you may use your credit card. Go to http://telecom-digest.org/donations and click where appropriate. Be sure to include your mailing address for the CD, and Joey also needs to know if you want the *nix format or the Windows 9x/2000/XP version. Mention all that in the advice box. If you prefer to use snailmail, then send your check to TELECOM, Post Office Box 50, Independence, KS 67301-0050. You should get the CD in two or three weeks, but you will get an email acknowledgement long before that. Thanks VERY MUCH for your help, as usual. The Telecom Archives remains a free open resource on the net via ftp massis.lcs.mit.edu/telecom- archives/archives. Patrick Townson ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #106 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Fri Nov 1 00:07:15 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA157FT14768; Fri, 1 Nov 2002 00:07:15 -0500 (EST) Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 00:07:15 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211010507.gA157FT14768@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #107 TELECOM Digest Fri, 1 Nov 2002 00:06:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 107 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Feds Sue to Block Satellite Merger (Monty Solomon) Statement of EchoStar Communications Corporation CEO (Monty Solomon) Birth of the Digital New Deal: An Inventory of High-Tech (Monty Solomon) Telecom and Broadband Policy After the Market Meltdown (Monty Solomon) Report: Gov't Shares Personal Data (Monty Solomon) GAO: Government Agencies Adhering To Privacy Laws (Monty Solomon) Judge to Issue Microsoft Rulings (Monty Solomon) Re: Monty's Posts was Re: "News Headlines of Interest" (Boo Phatty) Canadian/US Local Calling Area Website (Mark J Cuccia) Re: CBS News: The Latest Annoying Version Of Spam (Jason) Re: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor (Stanley Cline) Re: Request For Assistance (John R. Levine) Telemarketer Integrated Credit Solutions Declares War (Crispin) That 'DA' Acronym used in California Ratecenter Names (Mark J Cuccia) "Advertising Corrupts?" (AES) FA: HP Broadband/Protocol Analyzer (Harlan Labs) Time to Ask For Help Once Again (Patrick Townson) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 17:16:28 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Feds Sue to Block Satellite Merger Feds Sue to Block Satellite Merger - Oct 31, 2002 11:58 AM (AP Online) By ROBERT GEHRKE Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The Justice Department will file a lawsuit Thursday to block a merger between EchoStar Communications Corp. and Hughes Electronics Corp. that would have created the nation's largest pay-television service, according to a law enforcement official. The department's opposition comes despite concessions EchoStar offered last week to bolster a rival company and avoid concerns about a potential monopoly. The lawsuit is expected to be filed Thursday afternoon on behalf of the Justice Department, 23 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, arguing the deal would reduce competition and hurt subscribers, according to Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29394474 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 17:18:20 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Statement of EchoStar Communications Corporation CEO Statement of EchoStar Communications Corporation CEO - Oct 31, 2002 01:27 PM (BusinessWire) LITTLETON, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 31, 2002--In response to the announcement by U.S. Department of Justice and State Attorneys General, EchoStar Chairman and CEO, Charles Ergen, issued the following statement: "I would like to personally thank all those, including our customers, consumers, legislators, employees and numerous others, who during the past year have supported this historic merger proposal. We also thank the regulatory officials at the Department of Justice, FCC and the states who worked diligently to analyze this complex merger and gave us the opportunity to express our views. We continue to believe passionately that the merger of EchoStar and Hughes is the best chance to stop rising cable prices and to bring enhanced services to all Americans, especially those consumers living in rural America. We are obviously disappointed that at this time we have not been able to convince regulatory officials to share our vision. EchoStar will continue to explore all possible means to be allowed to compete against the cable giants and for more choice for all consumers." - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29396585 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 17:37:37 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Birth of the Digital New Deal: An Inventory of High-Tech Cato Policy Analysis No. 457 October 28, 2002 Birth of the Digital New Deal An Inventory of High-Tech Pork-Barrel Spending by Adam Thierer, Clyde Wayne Crews Jr and Thomas Pearson Executive Summary Congressional spending sprees are nothing new in Washington. But now, new spending initiatives are cropping up that cover telecommunications services, the Internet, and the high technology sector in general. Although federal legislative activity on this front is not a formally unified effort, the combined effect is tantamount to the creation of what might be called a "Digital New Deal." Just as policymakers proposed a litany of New Deal programs and spending initiatives during the Great Depression era, lawmakers today are devising many new federal programs aimed at solving the supposed emergencies or disasters that will befall the telecommunications industry without government assistance. The recent troubles of the dot-com and telecommunications sectors have only added fuel to the fire of interventionism. http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-457es.html ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 17:44:20 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Telecom and Broadband Policy After the Market Meltdown Telecom and Broadband Policy After the Market Meltdown The Cato Institute's Sixth Annual Technology & Society Conference Thursday, November 14, 2002 8:00 a.m.-2:30 p.m. This conference will explore recent developments in the telecommunications sector and feature a set of balanced debates over the future of both wireline and wireless public policy. http://www.cato.org/events/techconf02/index.html ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 18:08:22 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Report: Gov't Shares Personal Data Report: Gov't Shares Personal Data Wednesday, October 30, 2002 5:58 p.m. EST By D. IAN HOPPER AP Technology Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - Student aid applicants, check the fine print. That information you put on your application to the U.S. Department of Education is being shared with the Pentagon, Justice Department and other agencies -- even private companies like debt collectors. A report released Wednesday by congressional investigators found government agencies frequently share information gleaned from various federal applications -- sometimes without the applicant's knowledge of where it might go. And it's legal. The information sharing ranges from passport application data - which can be shared with foreign governments -- to details on farm loan applications. The law requires that agencies that receive the applicant's form must disclose how they use the information. Even though the agencies must tell applicants how their information will be used, they are usually left with a Hobson's choice: Either provide the information and watch it shared throughout the government and elsewhere, or don't apply and forego the student aid, passport or other service. http://news.lycos.com/news/story.asp?section=Politics&storyId=555964 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 18:12:50 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: GAO: Government Agencies Adhering To Privacy Laws GAO: Government Agencies Adhering To Privacy Laws by Eric Chabrow, InformationWeek Wednesday, October 30, 2002 6:33 p.m. EST A General Accounting Office study of four agencies issued Wednesday found that they generally adhere to government privacy laws. The General Accounting Office report, Information Management: Selected Agencies' Handling Of Personal Information, addresses the flow of management information at four federal departments: Agriculture, Education, Labor, and State. The information examined includes names, phone numbers, addresses, Social Security numbers, financial and legal data, and demographic information. The GAO says the information is provided to the government by the public for a specific purpose -- to receive benefits, obtain services or loans, or participate in a specific federal program. The report found that agencies' handling of information varies and that a wide range of government personnel have access to the information, but by and large, the agencies follow current privacy laws. http://news.lycos.com/news/story.asp?section=Politics&storyId=556059 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 18:28:52 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Judge to Issue Microsoft Rulings Judge to Issue Microsoft Rulings - Oct 31, 2002 05:43 PM (AP Online) By TED BRIDIS Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The federal judge overseeing the Microsoft Corp. antitrust trial will deliver her long-awaited rulings in the case on Friday after financial markets close, deciding whether to approve a controversial settlement between the software maker and the Justice Department. In a brief e-mail sent to reporters covering the trial, the court indicated U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly will announce her ``opinions,'' suggesting she also will announce whether she endorses harsher penalties against Microsoft sought by nine state attorneys general dissatisfied with the Justice Department's settlement. The e-mail notice did not indicate what the rulings would say. Many trial observers - even Microsoft supporters - have said the length of time Kollar-Kotelly took to reach her decision might suggest she was leaning toward rejecting the settlement. Antitrust experts had predicted the judge would simultaneously announce her decisions on both the U.S. settlement and the effort by the nine states seeking additional remedies against Microsoft. The company was found to have violated U.S. antitrust laws for illegally maintaining its monopoly over computer software operating systems. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29401899 ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: Monty's Posts was Re: "News Headlines of Interest" Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 18:17:01 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Wed, 30 Oct 2002 10:18:33 -0700, Two Buddha read a post from Joey Lindstrom , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > On Wed, 30 Oct 2002 01:54:51 -0500 (EST), editor@telecom-digest.org > wrote: >> Thus far the total is three votes for choice (1) -- mostly anonymous hate >> letters saying quit publishing Monty's 'news items' (I refuse to do >> that) or at the very least, batch it all as one big article. >> And one vote (Eric DeMund) for (2) who wants to go back to the >> previous system where I toss in a few of his items in every issue, and >> as a result get an index of them. > Well, if this relative newcomer gets a vote, I vote for choice #2, > though #1 (batching together) is also quite acceptable. > I really don't understand why you're getting hate mail about Monty's > posts. Indeed, I find them (or specifically the articles he's > referring us to) to be among the most interesting things that I get > from the TELECOM Digest (no slur intended against anyone here). The > only complaint I'd make is that I have to launch a browser to see the > balance of the articles that I want to read (a long, slow process on > this creaky old laptop). This is offset by the fact that I can > quickly skip over articles that do NOT interest me, as Monty has only > quoted the first paragraph or two (plus by the fact that I understand > why Monty does it that way: to avoid copyright problems). Well I've known Monty since he did some work for a company I worked at on a Mac TCP stack and all I can say is I read EVERY post Monty makes. Can't say the same about the others. Sorry! :D ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 17:23:20 CST From: Mark J Cuccia Subject: Canadian/US Local Calling Area Website Greg Monti wrote (regarding Local/EAS calling area information): > This info now appears to be publicly available on the internet. Go to > www.areacode-info.com , click on the green tab for Plans, then on > Local Calling Areas. You can input virtually any area code-prefix pair, > or any Rate Center name, in the US or Canada. It will return a page > listing every rate center that is a local call from the one you input. > Most displayed items are clickable links, so you can see the full prefix > lists of all local rate centers, the CLLI codes of the switches, the > serving company names and the LATA numbers. > It's incredibly detailed, and is addictive for those with a mind for > tidbits of data. > Did you know that calls from Derby Line, Vermont (802-873), to Rock > Island, Quebec (819-876) are local calls? Did you know that there are > 4,633 prefixes in the New York metropolitan LATA? That the small > suburban rate center of Brewster, NY, has 9 active prefixes served by > 6 telephone companies? That the switch called LARLMDLRDS0 in Laurel MD > serves 35 prefixes in four diffferent area codes in four different rate > areas? That the local calling area from Barrow AK consists only of > Barrow. Everything else is toll. The "deep-linked" URL for the Local (EAS) Calling Area Search, at John and Eric's AreaCode-Info.Com website is: http://www.areacode-info.com/!plans/lca-chow.htm This is actually a "mirror" to Ray Chow (of Hamilton ON Canada) and his Canadian Exchanges and Local Calling Areas website. The AreaCode-Info.Com site *DOES* credit Ray, with the following text from Ray's US/Canada Local Calling Area/Guide search page: "Local Calling Guide courtesy Ray Chow" "This site is an extension to the original local calling guide, which covered Canada and some nearby US states (Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont). You may search the database by NPA/NXX, rate center (exchange) name, or province/state. You may also check for local calling changes within a specified time period. This site contains local calling and NPA/NXX information for Canada plus most parts of the USA (with more being added). Check back regularly for updates." The URL for the search page at Ray's site: http://members.dandy.net/~czg/search.html The URLs for Ray Chow's Original Canada (and US) Exchanges and Local Calling Areas website pages: http://www.hwcn.org/Information/NEST/technol/communic/lca/ This is the main page for his site... http://www.hwcn.org/Information/NEST/technol/communic/lca/other.html is a page of links to various telcos/carriers/etc. http://www.hwcn.org/Information/NEST/technol/communic/lca/saq.html is a page of "Seldom Asked Questions", which includes details on US/Canada border town pairs which have local/EAS (free) calling between them, or local/EAS (free) calling between border towns along province/territorial boundaries within Canada, etc. The pages at www.hwcn.org are also "mirrored" at: www.freenet.hamilton.on.ca the remaining parts of the URL, beginning with "/Information/NESTG/ ..." are the same. Ray gets most of the information for his site from (online) telco tariffs filed with the CRTC, FCC, State Regulatory agencies, etc. and other public sources. Mark J. Cuccia New Orleans LA ------------------------------ From: Jason Subject: Re: CBS News: The Latest Annoying Version Of Spam Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 17:56:04 -0800 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Reply-To: JRednkFrnd@yahoo.com You want to try that HTML link again? On Thu, 31 Oct 2002 12:01:46 -0600, Patrick Townson wrote: > Now, in the middle of a chat session using 'Messenger' software, pop up > windows with spam. You may have seen them lately. Originally intended > as a way for 'Messenger' systems technical administrators to advise > users when the network had to be shut down for repairs (if they had at > least a few seconds or longer to give a warning prior to a system > crash), this technique is now being taken over by spammers as a way > to get around your mail filters; your various screening mechanisms. > Apparently it doesn't matter what the actual contents of the pop up > window says: It could be a legitimate message, 'Messenger is going > down now for technical work, back soon' or it could be sexual > innuendo, or a misleadingly named http link to a virus (such as sexual > innuendo in the form of a link [click here to see my naked pics, etc]) > or a hacker trying to trick young guys and inexperienced users into > 'changing their password' with 'official looking' announcements, etc. > Here is a link to the entire report: > http://cbsnews.cbs.com/stories/2002/10/18/tech/main526198.shtml It appears to me to have gotten repeated in there twice for some reason. http://cbsnews.cbs.com/stories/2002/10/18/tech/main526198.shtml should be correct. If that also fails, then try going to cbsnews.cbs.com home page and searching from there. Sorry about that. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Stanley Cline Subject: Re: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 22:38:35 -0500 Organization: Roamer1 Communications Reply-To: sc1-news@roamer1.org On Thu, 31 Oct 2002 01:29:19 -0500, Greg Monti wrote: > This info now appears to be publicly available on the internet. Go to It always has been (for the most part), via a combination of LEC tariffs (all the RBOCs and most larger independents, and many smaller ones too, have tariffs online) and the NANPA assignment files. Of course, those two aren't easy to use as the areacode-info site ... ;) > Redwood City, San Carlos-Belmont and San Jose North DA. Whatever DA > stands for. In California telco parlance, "DA" = "District Area", more or less a way of splitting larger (and sometimes smaller) communities into multiple rate centers without using community names, similar to the "zones" in other large cities such as NYC and Chicago. Some cities have numbered DA's (e.g., Los Angeles DA 10) while others, such as Pasadena, have named DA's (Pasadena La Caņada DA, which is basically the northwestern part of the city limits. Then there are a few cities split between PacBell and Verizon where the Verizon part is in a nearby city's rate center, including a a very small piece of the city of Pasadena (basically north of the 210 and east of Sierra Madre Villa Ave) that's part of Verizon's Sierra Madre rate center, and a rather part of the city of Torrance (including the Del Amo Mall area) that's in Verizon's Redondo (Beach) rate center. I don't know of very many instances of incorporated municipalities split between ILECs like this outside of California! Stanley Cline -- sc1 at roamer1 dot org -- http://www.roamer1.org/ "Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. There might be a law against it by that time." -/usr/games/fortune ------------------------------ Date: 31 Oct 2002 21:19:03 -0500 From: johnl@iecc.com (John R. Levine) Subject: Re: Request For Assistance Organization: I.E.C.C., Trumansburg NY USA > However, when I located your website through "FM radio stations" > each time I entered a callsign, frequency or site I received the > message that the information wasn't available. The FM station lookup hasn't worked for several years, because the FCC stopped making the underlying file available. The last time I checked, the FCC had replaced the file with a similar lookup service somewhere on www.fcc.gov. John R. Levine, IECC, POB 727, Trumansburg NY 14886 +1 607 387 6869 johnl@iecc.com Village Trustee and Sewer Commissioner http://iecc.com/johnl Member, Provisional board, Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial E-mail [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: John, do you know off hand if this is a 'simple' change of address, where the 'hooks' from Bill Pfieffer's airwaves script will work as before, if only they know the new address for the right place to look, or is the operation at the new location entirely different, forcing Pfieffer's script to have to be rewitten? I would like to get it restarted. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Mark Crispin Subject: Telemarketer Integrated Credit Solutions Declares War on Consumer Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 13:18:52 -0800 Organization: Networks and Distributed Computing Florida based telemarketer Integrated Credit Solutions called me four times today at 12:27, 12:33, 12:48, and 12:50; or at least the CNID was their 727-532-9155 number. The first call was some woman complaining about being called repeatedly and asking if my name was Michael. The remaining three were some sort of prerecorded system; I only listened to it briefly but it babbled about weather report and "you have selected blackjack". The last three calls were recorded by Call Trace, and I'm looking to press misdemeanor harassment charges. As near as I can tell, this is retaliation for my complaining about them. -- Mark -- http://staff.washington.edu/mrc Science does not emerge from voting, party politics, or public debate. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 15:36:12 CST From: Mark J Cuccia Subject: That 'DA' Acronym used in California Ratecenter Names Greg Monti wrote, regarding local/EAS calling arrangements: > From Los Altos, CA, the local calling areas includes, besides Los > Altos, in Zone 1: Palo Alto, Mountain View, San Jose West DA, > Saratoga, Sunnyvale, Woodside, and in Zone 2: Campbell, La Honda, > Redwood City, San Carlos-Belmont and San Jose North DA. Whatever DA > stands for. and Pat responds: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In this context, DA refers to Directory > Assistance. Many eons ago, DA was operator lingo for 'Does Not Answer'. NO ... in this context, when used as part of a Ratecenter *NAME*, 'DA' does NOT means Directory Assistance, but rather Directory *AREA*, i.e., the geographic region covered by a particular telephone directory published by Pacific (Bell) Telephone or General Telephone of California; Actually, now referred to as SBC-Pacific Bell, or VeriZon (formerly GTE). Note how "San Jose" is "split" ... as "San Jose West D(irectory) A(rea)" and "San Jose North North D(irectory) A(rea)". Mark J. Cuccia New Orleans LA ------------------------------ From: AES Subject: Advertising Corrupts? Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 13:52:50 -0800 "Power corrupts. Absolutely power corrupts absolutely." --Lord Acton (1834-1902) (Actual original quote slightly more verbose) "Advertising support corrupts. Total dependence on advertising support corrupts totally." -- Modern equivalent. Applies (unfortunately) to magazines, newspapers, radio, TV, all other forms of journalism, organizations, web sites, and the Internet ------------------------------ From: Harlan Labs Subject: FA: HP Broadband/Protocol Analyzer Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 22:39:17 GMT Organization: Allegiance Internet - Greenbelt, MD For auction on eBay: HP E4200A Broadband Tester/Protocol Analyzer Item # 1783492213 http://www.harlanlabs.com/ebayred.html Harlan Labs in San Diego since 1966 eBay rating: +203 Our Test Equipment website: http://www.harlanlabs.com ------------------------------ From: Patrick Townson Subject: Time to Ask For Help Once Again Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 13:00:00 CST We have come to the end of October and the start of November, so it is my turn to ask once again for financial assistance in the upkeep of this Digest. If you have not made any financial assistance lately, I hope you will consider this monthly appeal as a chance to participate financially as a partner in this reader-written net published e-journal. Whatever you feel is appropriate will be appreciated. Starting with this month, (November, 2002), I will be offering a CD of the entire Telecom Archives *and* your choice of various 'old time radio' shows with a telephone theme at no charge when you send a gift of at least $20-25 to the Digest. In addition to twenty plus years of telecom-related messages from the Digest and comp.dcom.telecom and the other special files and reports in the archives you will receive these 'oldtimeradiovault.com' items: 'Sorry, Wrong Number' (three different adaptations including Agnes Morehead) from Suspense, Lux Radio Theatre, etc. 'Halls of Ivy' the 'Phone Problems' episode 'Family Theatre' the 'Man Who Bought the Phone Company' episode. 'Bell Telephone Hour' the guest on that show was Lily Pons. 'Life of Riley' the 'Telephone is Rationed' episode. In addition, if you put the CD in a regular CD player such as your radio, etc instead of the CD drive on your computer, you wil be able to listen to 'Sorry, Wrong Number' as it aired on the radio. This is the second, and updated CD of the Telecom Archives, produced by Joey Lindstrom, with a cast of thousands -- all of you -- in the Archives files. I think you will like it. With your gift to the Digest of $20-25 (or more, as you find appropriate) you get it free. If you choose to remit on line via PayPal, you may use your credit card. Go to http://telecom-digest.org/donations and click where appropriate. Be sure to include your mailing address for the CD, and Joey also needs to know if you want the *nix format or the Windows 9x/2000/XP version. Mention all that in the advice box. If you prefer to use snailmail, then send your check to TELECOM, Post Office Box 50, Independence, KS 67301-0050. You should get the CD in two or three weeks, but you will get an email acknowledgement long before that. Thanks VERY MUCH for your help, as usual. The Telecom Archives remains a free open resource on the net via ftp massis.lcs.mit.edu/telecom- archives/archives. Patrick Townson ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #107 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Fri Nov 1 23:19:26 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA24JQ423713; Fri, 1 Nov 2002 23:19:26 -0500 (EST) Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 23:19:26 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211020419.gA24JQ423713@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #108 TELECOM Digest Fri, 1 Nov 2002 23:20:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 108 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson ICB HeadsUp Headlines (Judith Oppenheimer) Verizon Policy Regards Prisons (James Keeton) VR-MAD Broadband Multimedia Access Platform (DJohn4077) Re: GAO: Government Agencies Adhering To Privacy Laws (Paul Wallich) Help - Forwarding SMS from BSC to MSC (YW Chin) New 400 amp @-48VDC Ferroresonant Rectifier FOR SALE (Richard Whitney) Re: That 'DA' Acronym Used in California Ratecenter Names (REC Networks) Re: Tragedy of the Commons (jbl) Time to Ask For Your Assistance Once Again (Patrick Townson) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Reply-To: From: Judith Oppenheimer Subject: ICB HeadsUp Headlines Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 19:34:28 -0500 Organization: JudithOppenheimer.com ICB HeadsUp Headlines for the period ending November 1, 2002 from http://ICBTollFreeNews.com - Covering the Political, Legal and Marketing Arenas of 800, ENUM and Dot Com. Business 1-800 Needs are served at http://WhoSells800.com, where user policy advocacy meets sales agency, to protect and promote your interests. All that, and low rates too. We've revised and revitalized our website! While updating the website News regularly, we've taken time off from emailing headlines in order to redesign the site to serve you more effectively. ICB is now more intuitive, and more accessible. You'll find it easier to access ICB news and archives (5800 articles and growing!) encompassing 800, DNS and ENUM: -- Politics, Regulatory and Legal Issues -- Industry Standards and Practices -- Insider Insights and Tips -- Editorial Commentary -- Trade and Marketer News -- Market Applications and Market Research NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED Visit http://ICBTollFreeNews.com - and enjoy! Current and Newsworthy Headlines SHANGHAI'ED In an effort to increase awareness about ICANN, the Markle and Ford foundations sponsored a group of Key Public Participants (KPP) from around the world to attend the ICANN meeting in Shanghai. These participants blogged regularly from the various meetings; their reports represent the voices both of insiders and outsiders. Continued here: http://www.icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5795 PATENT AWARDED FOR TOLL FREE CALL INFO CAPTURE AND REPORTING In addition to capturing and reporting on call information and advertising effectiveness from toll free numbers, the patent covers other features, such as the ability to send alert notifications to clients in response to a "triggering event." Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5794 STANFORD CYBERLAW CLINIC TO DEFEND DOMAIN NAME OWNERS The clinic docket currently includes cases regarding fan fiction, anonymous speech, the right to publish information about computer vulnerabilities, open access to broadband Internet services, Internet radio, and digital libraries. CIS Director and attorney Jennifer S. Franck teaches the clinic. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5793 NEUSTAR NABS BIG FISH NeuStar, Inc. and the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) plan to accept .CN domain name registrations through registrars located outside of China beginning in December. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5792 DOMAIN NAME THEFT, FRAUD AND REGULATIONS There is abundant evidence that there are inadequate procedures in place to ward off domain name theft. Having retrieved a few stolen domain names myself, I can attest to the truths in Prof. Rod Dixon's CircleID article discussing Domain Name Theft, Fraud And Regulations. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5791 ITU CONFIRMS ITS STAKE IN DNS MANAGEMENT No matter the presence of Chairman Cerf at the Plenipotentiary Conference, RESOLUTION 102 ignores ICANN entirely. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5790 WILL THE REAL INTERNET PLEASE STAND UP ... A Quest to Define the Internet, by Robert Cannon Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5786 ENUM PAPER: REVIEW OF MAPPING AND POLITICS Paper: ENUM-Mapping the E.164 Number Space into the DNS by Geoff Huston, Telstra, IPJ. Not bad, as these things go. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5785 NEUSTAR WANTS TO BE IN THE DATABASE COMMODITY BUSINESS (LIKE YOU KNOW WHO) Neustar could mine the database information, repackage it and sell it to businesses that want easier ways to reach consumers. But Ganek is in an excruciating fix. He doesn't originate the data -- the phone companies do -- so he can't make a move without their blessing. "We have to maintain people's trust," he says. But apparently he doesn't want to: he thinks he can easily double revenue if he can persuade telcos to let him mine their data and run a digital identity database. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5780 FCC SEEKS COMMENT ON PAYPHONE DIAL-AROUND COMPENSATION RATE APCC asserts that substantial changes to market conditions since the Commission adopted the Third Report and Order justifies an increase to the $0.24 rate. The RBOC Coalition also requests that the Commission establish a new per-call payphone compensation rate, increasing the rate to $0.49. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5781 855 NUMBER RESERVATIONS TO BE QUIETLY RELEASED Unofficially, FCC staff indicated it would be appropriate for RespOrgs to release 855 reservations, since the Commission is planning to open a proceeding that will address, among other issues, the first-come, first-serve aspect of the toll-free system. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5782 ITU STILL KNOCKING, BUT ICANN SAYS GO AWAY Some people, especially those at ICANN and the US government, think that the ITU is about as cuddly as a boa constrictor or maybe viper. And ICANN's fear and suspicion of the ITU is so great that ICANN decided to pay GAC insiders money to run meetings rather than take the risk that the ITU would provide those services for free. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5779 THE END OF AN ERA: RIP AFTERNIC.COM Should one need further evidence that the bottom has dropped out of the domain speculator market, and that much of the domain name market is looking more than a little ragged, one need look no further than the recent steep decline and now imminent death of domain reseller auction site Afternic.com. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5778 VICTORY FOR ICANN, RENEWS MOU Announcing the renewed MOU, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications & Information Nancy J. Victory said: "The Department is frankly disappointed that ICANN's progress on the MOU tasks thus far has moved so slowly ... ICANN should be a technical coordination body whose policy-making role is limited ... ICANN should not be the government of the Internet." Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5775 HOW TO CHANGE YOUR DOMAIN REGISTRAR We get asked often enough, so hopefully this exchange will answer some of your questions. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5769 USING WHOIS POLICY TO SNAG GOOD DOMAIN NAMES ...or "How to Get Any Domain Name You Want in Fifteen Days" Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5767 ABSURD, AND MORE IMPORTANT, DESTABILIZING. ICANN's recent saber-rattling at VeriSign over seventeen instances of inaccurate whois data is absurd in the face of ICANN's own refusal -- in some cases for years -- to update ccTLD managers' contact and nameserver information (threatening impact to millions of domain names) unless the ccTLDs submit to a one-sided contract with ICANN. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5766 HOW TO MAKE YOURSELF REACHABLE IN FIVE PLACES AT ONCE The New York Times gives advice on websites (including ICB-sponsored WhoSells800.com) that can help you stay in touch with the rest of the world. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5765 ICANN GAMES IN A LABOR RELATIONS CONTEXT ICANN's attempts to create artificial substitutes for actual at-large bodies are very much akin to the egregious "company union" practices that were banned ... Such "company unions" replaced the actuality of participation with company-run (analogous to ICANN-"coordinated") bodies. It was no surprise that such company unions turned into toadies that slavishly followed the corporate diktat. ICANN's sequence of AL*Cs is no different. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5756 TRADE GROUP FORMED TO PROTECT AND PROMOTE TOLL FREE INDUSTRY INTERESTS A new trade association, the 1-800 American Free Trade Association (1-800 AFTA) has been formed to represent the interests of the toll-free number services industry. The founding members envision that the organization will speak with a collective voice before the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as well as working to define industry standards and practices. Continued here: http://icbtollfree.com/article_free.cfm?articleId=5754 EVERY 3.6 SECONDS SOMEONE DIES FROM HUNGER http://www.hungersite.com/ There is No Registration Required to read http://ICBTollFreeNews.com online. However, if you are new to ICB, please join our mail list at http://ICBTollFreeNews.com if you wish to receive email news and information. Click here: http://icbtollfree.com/Login.cfm?NextURL=account.cfm If you wish to unsubscribe from this email newsletter. Copyright C 2002 ICB, Inc. All rights reserved. ------------------------------ From: Keeton, James Subject: Verizon Policy Regards Prisons Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 10:58:20 -0600 I have a unique situation and will try to be brief - We provide inmate healthcare for jails and prison. We have a frame circuit through Cable and Wireless that was installed about 2 years ago. In a few cases, the demarc had to be extended. Verizon was used to extend the demarc. We now have frame through Sprint and placed the order for the demarc to be extended. It was not done. Now Sprint has tried to get Verizon to go back and complete the demarc extension. Verizon will not do it unless the correctional facility is locked down. This is a new condition that we have never had to meet. Furthermore, since we are a separate company, we must abide by the rules and regulations of the correctional facility. Verizon is adamant about the lockdown procedure and has said it has been in place for many years. Yet we never have that stipulation placed on any other correctional facilities we have in Verizon territory. We are adamant that we have no control over lockdown. An escort must be provided for any visitor to the facility. We have attempted to cross connect the extension from Cable and Wireless to Sprint, but have not been successful. Has anyone else ever run into either of these situations? Any thoughts on a remedy for either? James Keeton ------------------------------ From: djohn4077@aol.com (DJohn4077) Date: 01 Nov 2002 15:47:54 GMT Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com Subject: VR-MAD Broadband Multimedia Access Platform My partners and I are developing a new type of multimedia device targeted at broadband users. This past March I left a management position at ADTRAN (www.adtran.com) to pursue this project full time. Since that time we have completed the business plan and our first patent submissions. We are currently looking for seed funding to launch the product development effort. I would be interested in networking with anyone who might have an interest in any of the following areas: - Developing partnerships (product development, marketing, etc) - Establishing OEM relationships (DSL, cable modem, computer peripheral markets, media content providers, etc.) - Providing components & PCB design resources (802.11,Bluetooth,Firewire, 3D chip-sets, embedded Java, etc.) - Funding & capital equipment resources - Potential employees - Intellectual property resources for key technologies - 3rd party ASIC development resources - Semiconductor foundry services - Java applications and APIs that might be integrated into our product Additional information can be found on our web site at: http://EpicenterTech.net/vrmad3d (product description & general info) http://EpicenterTech.net/resume (my technical background) An executive summary is available by request. A complete business plan and presentation foils are available to qualified investors or potential partners. If you have any feedback regarding the product or any of the areas mentioned above, please contact me directly using, e-mail, phone, or video conference (www.ivisit.com). If you know of competing technologies I'd like to hear about them too ... Thanks for your time! Dan Johnson - Epicenter Technologies Cell Phone: (256) 679-5691 E-mail: danj@EpicenterTech.net, djohn4077@aol.com http://EpicenterTech.net/vrmad3d AOL Instant Messenger: djohn4077 Ivisit Conferencing: business/conferencing/Epicenter (www.ivisit.com) ------------------------------ From: Paul Wallich Subject: Re: GAO: Government Agencies Adhering To Privacy Laws Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 09:32:16 -0500 Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and UNIX, NYC In article , Monty Solomon wrote: > GAO: Government Agencies Adhering To Privacy Laws > by Eric Chabrow, InformationWeek > Wednesday, October 30, 2002 6:33 p.m. EST > A General Accounting Office study of four agencies issued Wednesday > found that they generally adhere to government privacy laws. > The General Accounting Office report, Information Management: > Selected Agencies' Handling Of Personal Information, addresses the > flow of management information at four federal departments: > Agriculture, Education, Labor, and State. The information examined > includes names, phone numbers, addresses, Social Security numbers, > financial and legal data, and demographic information. The GAO says > the information is provided to the government by the public for a > specific purpose -- to receive benefits, obtain services or loans, or > participate in a specific federal program. > The report found that agencies' handling of information varies and > that a wide range of government personnel have access to the > information, but by and large, the agencies follow current privacy > laws. > http://news.lycos.com/news/story.asp?section=Politics&storyId=556059 That's an interesting spin on the story, which was reported in most other media that I saw as "Government agencies commit widespread privacy breaches." Many of the breaches (including wholesale delivery of information to private contractors) are probably legal, but the notion that following the law "by and large" is OK seems odd. Your typical serial killer obeys the law in the vast majority of interactions with other people ... paul ------------------------------ From: yeewee64@hotmail.com (YW Chin) Subject: Help - Forwarding SMS from BSC to MSC Date: 31 Oct 2002 22:53:39 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Does anyone know how an SMS is being forwarded from BSC to MSC? What's the protocol being used at SS7 Application Layer? I understand that communication between MSC,HLR,VLR etc uses GSM-MAP (GSM 09.02), but I have no idea how an SMS is being relayed from BSC to MSC. I'm exploring the possibility of triggering an MSC to forward an SMS to SMSC. Thanks in advance! yw ------------------------------ From: tmusser@whitney-richardson.com (RICHARDWHITNEY) Subject: New 400 Amp @-48VDC Ferroresonant Rectifier FOR SALE Date: 1 Nov 2002 13:29:46 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ I run a commercial collection agency in the New Orleans area. We collect for a company that manufactured this item. We repossessed for our client the equipment listed above and have been charged with selling it. It has not been installed and is in it's original crate. It was supposed to go to a company in Mexico, but they never took possession in Texas and we had to get it from a border warehouse. The price is $3k, buyer pays freight from New Orleans, LA. The original invoice was $11k. Spec docs and photos are available. Contact me at: Richard D. Whitney, Jr. Whitney & Richardson, Inc. 150 Pintail Street Saint Rose, LA 70087 504-443-4000 Fax 504-443-3000 ------------------------------ From: REC Networks Subject: Re: That 'DA' Acronym used in California Ratecenter Names Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 18:50:22 -0700 In California, the acronym DA in reference to rate centers means [D]istrict [A]rea. Los Angeles has 14 of them DA 1 through DA 14. Other exchanges use names: Burbank has Burbank and Sun Valley Comption has Compton and Gardena District Areas are used for rating toll calls within (I think) 40 miles. If you look at the tariffs, you will notice that exchanges with DAs have V&H coordinates for toll rating, one for under 40 miles and one for over 40 miles. > NO ... in this context, when used as part of a Ratecenter *NAME*, > 'DA' does NOT means Directory Assistance, but rather Directory *AREA*, > i.e., the geographic region covered by a particular telephone directory > published by Pacific (Bell) Telephone or General Telephone of California; > Actually, now referred to as SBC-Pacific Bell, or VeriZon (formerly GTE). > Note how "San Jose" is "split" ... as "San Jose West D(irectory) > A(rea)" and "San Jose North North D(irectory) A(rea)". REC Networks www.recnet.com ------------------------------ From: jbl Subject: Re: Tragedy of the Commons Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 09:52:46 -0700 Organization: On the desert Reply-To: jbl@spamblocked.com In , fist wrote: > Unfortunately, the junk level has also risen. But that is not the > same as the Tragedy concept -- just a natural consequence of many > people being dumb and stupid. This reminds me next of Sturgeon's Law. It came up in reference to the written word, nevertheless ... The story is something like this: Science fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon was asked on some talk show to comment on the remark someone had made that "90% of science fiction is crap." He replied, "90% of everything is crap." Nets: levin/at/bbn.com | "Earn more sessions by sleeving." or jbl/at/levin.mv.com| or levinjb/at/gte.net | ARS: KD1ON | -- Roxanne Kowalski ------------------------------ From: Patrick Townson Subject: Time to Ask For Help Once Again Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 13:00:00 CST We have come to the end of October and the start of November, so it is my turn to ask once again for financial assistance in the upkeep of this Digest. If you have not made any financial assistance lately, I hope you will consider this monthly appeal as a chance to participate financially as a partner in this reader-written net published e-journal. Whatever you feel is appropriate will be appreciated. Starting with this month, (November, 2002), I will be offering a CD of the entire Telecom Archives *and* your choice of various 'old time radio' shows with a telephone theme at no charge when you send a gift of at least $20-25 to the Digest. In addition to twenty plus years of telecom-related messages from the Digest and comp.dcom.telecom and the other special files and reports in the archives you will receive these 'oldtimeradiovault.com' items: 'Sorry, Wrong Number' (three different adaptations including Agnes Morehead) from Suspense, Lux Radio Theatre, etc. 'Halls of Ivy' the 'Phone Problems' episode 'Family Theatre' the 'Man Who Bought the Phone Company' episode. 'Bell Telephone Hour' the guest on that show was Lily Pons. 'Life of Riley' the 'Telephone is Rationed' episode. In addition, if you put the CD in a regular CD player such as your radio, etc instead of the CD drive on your computer, you wil be able to listen to 'Sorry, Wrong Number' as it aired on the radio. This is the second, and updated CD of the Telecom Archives, produced by Joey Lindstrom, with a cast of thousands -- all of you -- in the Archives files. I think you will like it. With your gift to the Digest of $20-25 (or more, as you find appropriate) you get it free. If you choose to remit on line via PayPal, you may use your credit card. Go to http://telecom-digest.org/donations and click where appropriate. Be sure to include your mailing address for the CD, and Joey also needs to know if you want the *nix format or the Windows 9x/2000/XP version. Mention all that in the advice box. If you prefer to use snailmail, then send your check to TELECOM, Post Office Box 50, Independence, KS 67301-0050. You should get the CD in two or three weeks, but you will get an email acknowledgement long before that. Thanks VERY MUCH for your help, as usual. The Telecom Archives remains a free open resource on the net via ftp massis.lcs.mit.edu/telecom- archives/archives. Patrick Townson ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #108 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Sat Nov 2 20:47:18 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA31lIB07776; Sat, 2 Nov 2002 20:47:18 -0500 (EST) Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2002 20:47:18 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211030147.gA31lIB07776@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #109 TELECOM Digest Sat, 2 Nov 2002 20:47:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 109 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as a Boston TV Station (Solomon) 000-000-0000 Caller ID (Monty Solomon) To the Liberal Arts, He Adds Computer Science (Monty Solomon) Making the Web Child-Safe (Monty Solomon) Wireless ISPs Burning For "Hot Spots" (Monty Solomon) Judge OKs Most Microsoft Provisions (Monty Solomon) Re: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor (John R. Levine) Re: CBS News: Verizon Settles Spam Suit (Scott Dorsey) Re: Request For Assistance (Scott Dorsey) Re: Request For Assistance (John R. Levine) Re: Verizon Policy Regards Prisons (Dave Phelps) Re: Advertising Corrupts? (Mark Brader) Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee) (Boo Phatty) My Vote on Monty-Batching (Name Withheld) Call These Folks if You Want to Send Commercial Email (David B. Horvath) Last Laugh! Look What SpamAssassin Calls ***SPAM*** (Patrick Townson) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2002 04:03:41 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as a Boston-Area TV Station November 1, 2002, 5:49 PM EST LINDENWOLD, N.J. -- A digital culprit traveling unlikely distances by atmospheric phenomena, confounding law enforcement. Sounds like science fiction, but it's not. It's a phenomenon called "tropospheric ducting," and what it is is a problem for Camden County's police dispatch network, which handles emergency response in all but six county towns. In scientific terms, the phenomenon occurs when layers of vast temperature variation form in the troposphere _ the atmosphere's lowest segment _ creating a "duct," which can trap radio waves and carry them hundreds of miles beyond their normal reach. Communications officials said the dispatch center uses the same digital frequency as a Boston-area television station, WCVB. Camden officials blame the Federal Communications Commission for poorly planning signal frequency use. http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-nj--crossedsignals1101nov01,0,227876.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or television station use the same range of frequencies? Police, operating in VHF are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the police are usually around 450-470 megs. What TV stations are around there? None. How could this be an FCC problem? PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2002 10:39:16 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: 000-000-0000 Caller ID We are in the midst of a close election for governor in Massachusetts and we have received several automated endorsement calls where the Caller ID/Name was 000-000-0000/Unknown. I assume this was done to get around ACR (anonymous call rejection). Has anyone else here seen this? Is that legal? Does it comply with FCC regulations? Thanks, Monty [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: *Anything* politicians do is legal. Didn't you ever notice how the Senate and the House of Reps always exempt themselves from laws that others have to obey? Many/most/all FCC regs pertaining to telemarketing specifically do not apply to political campaigns. I am sure it must be legal. Politiciansn ever break the law, do they? (Unless, of course the fellow politico they are complaining about belongs to the opposite party. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 20:51:11 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: To the Liberal Arts, He Adds Computer Science To the Liberal Arts, He Adds Computer Science By STEVE LOHR PRINCETON, N.J. -- TALL and slender with a flowing beard, dressed in a gray sweater and jeans, Brian Kernighan works his audience with a fast patter and a ready smile. The challenge he has set for himself is to demystify computing for a classroom full of liberal arts undergraduates at Princeton. It so happens that Mr. Kernighan, 60, is a renowned computer scientist, a member of the Bell Labs team of the late 1960's and 70's that developed and nurtured the Unix operating system and the C programming language, innovations with a far-reaching impact on computing. He is also a best-selling author of technical books on programming that have sold millions of copies and been translated into more than 20 languages. None of that really matters in this course, "Computers in Our World." The students are headed toward degrees in politics, history, English, art history, psychology and economics. Unlike many college students in the dot-com boom years of the late 90's, they have no plans to make a killing, or even a living, in the technology business. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/31/technology/circuits/31prof.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 21:02:04 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Making the Web Child-Safe Making the Web Child-Safe By KATIE HAFNER SEO needs help with her geometry homework. Zara wonders aloud whether a pair of khakis are appropriate garb for a visit to Western Michigan University. Dig asks if anyone has ever heard of "Fydor something Russian." Globe asks if anyone saw "Trigger Happy" on Comedy Central. Zimmy laments her glitchy copy of a Sims game. It's just another happy-go-lucky day at KidFu, a Web site for children 8 to 14 that could easily qualify as the Pleasantville of cyberspace. Within KidFu, as tight a virtual community as you are likely to find these days, there are no suggestive instant messages, no suspicious requests for e-mail addresses. In fact, one of the many rules adopted with safety in mind is a prohibition against sharing e-mail addresses in general. KidFu is one of the most recent attempts to address a concern raised since the Web first took off as a popular medium almost a decade ago: the need for an online environment where children feel completely out of harm's way. As the Web has become an electronic playhouse, potentially exposing youngsters to vulgarity and even danger, such efforts have given rise to new sites, new software and even new laws. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/31/technology/circuits/31safe.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 21:08:38 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Wireless ISPs Burning For "Hot Spots" By Ben Charny Staff Writer, CNET News.com October 30, 2002, 3:02 PM PT The nation's oldest "hot spot" network plans to give away Wi-Fi equipment starting Friday, in an aggressive push to increase the number of urban areas that offer wireless Web access. National hot spot network Surf And Sip will offer the equipment free to anyone buying DirecTV DSL (digital subscriber line) service, said Rick Ehrlinspiel, chief executive of Surf And Sip. DirecTV has been supplying Surf And Sip hot spots with broadband access for about 18 months. The coffee shops, restaurants or bookstores most likely to sign up will become part of Surf And Sip's hot spot network, where time online is sold in hourly, weekly or monthly chunks, he said. The business owner must pay for DSL service but will get half of the revenue from any wireless Web wandering. http://news.com.com/2100-1033-963965.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 18:06:48 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Judge OKs Most Microsoft Provisions By D. IAN HOPPER AP Technology WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal judge on Friday approved most of the provisions of an antitrust settlement between Microsoft Corp. and the Justice Department, largely setting aside concerns by some states that the sanctions were too light on the software giant. The sanctions are to last for at least five years unless extended by the court, the judge said. The approved settlement requires Microsoft to disclose some sensitive technology to its rivals months earlier than the company and the Justice Department had proposed. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29420716 ------------------------------ Date: 1 Nov 2002 08:44:54 -0500 From: johnl@iecc.com (John R. Levine) Subject: Re: Local Prefix List -- Need a Favor Organization: I.E.C.C., Trumansburg NY USA > I don't know of very many instances of incorporated municipalities > split between ILECs like this outside of California! It happens all the time here in New York. There are at least five split towns within 20 miles of here, since exchange boundaries bear little relation to municipal boundaries. They tend to match up better with school district boundaries (which have nothing to do with city, town, village, or county boundaries.) John R. Levine, IECC, POB 727, Trumansburg NY 14886 +1 607 387 6869 johnl@iecc.com Village Trustee and Sewer Commissioner http://iecc.com/johnl Member, Provisional board, Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial E-mail ------------------------------ From: kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) Subject: Re: CBS News: Verizon Settles Spam Suit Date: 1 Nov 2002 11:06:45 -0500 Organization: Former users of Netcom shell (1989-2000) In article , Patrick Townson wrote: > Now, a major spammer gets ordered off of Verizon and handed a huge fine > to pay. A fellow up in the Detroit area, long considered a major spammer > on the net gets caught in the act. > Here is that story to read in full: > http://cbsnews.cbs.com/stories/2002/10/29/tech/main527365.shtml Ralsky has always admitted spamming, he is proud of spamming, and he supports spam. You have to give him credit for some degree of honesty about his own activity. All that this action does is forbid him from sending to Verizon customers, which strikes me a pretty mild slap on the wrist for someone who is undoubtedly the most notorious largescale spammer in the country. --scott -- "C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis." ------------------------------ From: kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) Subject: Re: Request For Assistance Date: 1 Nov 2002 11:12:11 -0500 Organization: Former users of Netcom shell (1989-2000) In article , wrote: > I am quite new to computers. I believe I have all the facilities > necessary to play FM radio stations. However, when I located your > website through "FM radio stations" each time I entered a callsign, > frequency or site I received the message that the information wasn't > available. I am trying to tune in a Montreal music station (I believe > it is 99.5) but the Montreal and the 99.5 didn't give results. I > tried entering the closest city to where I live (Burlington VT) and > again didn't get to an informative screen. I am not sure what you are trying to do, but I can tell you that 99.5 FM in Montreal is CJPX-FM Radio-classique, which is basically all the information you will get from Bill's Database. I do not think that they have an AM outlet so they are probably not audible in the US. CFRB-AM comes in very nicely on a summer's night here in Virginia, though. --scott "C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis." ------------------------------ Date: 1 Nov 2002 08:41:45 -0500 From: johnl@iecc.com (John R. Levine) Subject: Re: Request For Assistance Organization: I.E.C.C., Trumansburg NY USA > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: John, do you know off hand if this is a > 'simple' change of address, where the 'hooks' from Bill Pfieffer's > airwaves script will work as before, No, if it were I'd have changed it. The file that the FCC used to provide is gone. John R. Levine, IECC, POB 727, Trumansburg NY 14886 +1 607 387 6869 johnl@iecc.com Village Trustee and Sewer Commissioner http://iecc.com/johnl Member, Provisional board, Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial E-mail ------------------------------ From: Dave Phelps Subject: Re: Verizon Policy Regards Prisons Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 23:03:37 -0600 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com In article , James.Keeton@asgr.com says: > I have a unique situation and will try to be brief - > We provide inmate healthcare for jails and prison. We have a frame > circuit through Cable and Wireless that was installed about 2 years > ago. In a few cases, the demarc had to be extended. Verizon was used > to extend the demarc. > We now have frame through Sprint and placed the order for the demarc > to be extended. It was not done. Now Sprint has tried to get Verizon > to go back and complete the demarc extension. Verizon will not do it > unless the correctional facility is locked down. This is a new > condition that we have never had to meet. Furthermore, since we are a > separate company, we must abide by the rules and regulations of the > correctional facility. > Verizon is adamant about the lockdown procedure and has said it has > been in place for many years. Yet we never have that stipulation > placed on any other correctional facilities we have in Verizon > territory. > We are adamant that we have no control over lockdown. An escort must > be provided for any visitor to the facility. > We have attempted to cross connect the extension from Cable and > Wireless to Sprint, but have not been successful. > Has anyone else ever run into either of these situations? Any > thoughts on a remedy for either? Why do you want Verizon to do it? Why not have any vendor do it? Like the prison's vendor? Or do you want the smartjack at the equipment? Dave Phelps Phone Masters Ltd. deadspam=tippenring ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Advertising Corrupts? Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 01:03:57 EST From: msb@vex.net (Mark Brader) A.E. Siegman misquotes: > "Power corrupts. Absolutely power corrupts absolutely." > --Lord Acton (1834-1902) > (Actual original quote slightly more verbose) Not just "slightly more verbose", but significantly different. Acton's actual words were: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolutely power corrupts absolutely." Mark Brader "They have computers, and they may have Toronto other weapons of mass destruction." msb@vex.net -- Janet Reno, 1998 ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee/Telecom) Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 14:16:27 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Hello folks. Does anyone know where to apply for FEMA essential personell access cards i.e. ID that allows you to be on the street and in a disaster area? For instance, VZ E-911 personnel carry old CD cards that allow them access to/from the E911 center during blizzards or declared emergencies, etc. I'm probably not calling it the right thing, but I would appreciate a pointer. FEMA's website is very light on information of this kind. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 13:18:29 -0600 From: Name Withheld Subject: My Vote on Monty Batching Dear Mr. Townson, I tried to post the following message to comp.dcom.telecom, but the first time I tried to post, I forgot to add the request to withhold my name and email address. I then tried to re-post, but the post didn't go through. If you do include my post in your digest, please withhold my name and email address, or else please do not publish my post. I don't want to get any spam. Thank you very much. Not for publication under my name: >> So now, you guys tell me; instruct your old, obsolete moderator with >> his old, obsolete scripts; pick one of these choices: >> (1) Continue batching Monty, one general subject header no index of items; >> (2) Individual itemization of Monty stuff; by default then six or ten >> items in each issue, indexing, some days it will appear that he >> has taken over an entire issue; > I'd prefer (2). Anyone who wants things batched can always subscribe by > e-mail instead of reading the newsgroup anyway. My vote goes to (1), which for me makes reading the newsgroup a nicer experience. I can explore any of Mr. Solomon's articles from one page, or simply click to the next post. Thanks for asking. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 19:21:21 EST From: dhorvath@cobs.com (David B. Horvath, CCP) Subject: Call These Folks if You Want to Send Commercial Email > Reach 10 million propects [sic] before close of business. We will email > your ad to them! ... > Call us today at 800-270-5212 and ask for sales. - David ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 22:42:44 -0500 (EST) From: TELECOM Digest Editor Subject: Last Laugh! Look What SpamAssasin Calls ***SPAM*** SPAM: -------------------- Start SpamAssassin results ---------------------- SPAM: This mail is probably spam. The original message has been altered SPAM: so you can recognise or block similar unwanted mail in future. SPAM: See http://spamassassin.org/tag/ for more details. SPAM: SPAM: Content analysis details: (7.30 hits, 5 required) SPAM: TO_MALFORMED (-0.8 points) To: has a malformed address SPAM: FROM_MALFORMED (2.2 points) From: has a malformed address SPAM: SUBJ_MISSING (0.4 points) Subject: is empty or missing SPAM: NO_COST (2.7 points) BODY: No such thing as a free lunch (3) SPAM: CLICK_BELOW (0.3 points) BODY: Asks you to click below SPAM: SPAM_PHRASE_05_08 (0.7 points) BODY: Spam phrases score is 05 to 08 (medium) SPAM: [score: 6] SPAM: FROM_AND_TO_SAME_5 (1.8 points) From and To are same (5) SPAM: SPAM: -------------------- End of SpamAssassin results --------------------- From: Patrick Townson Subject: Time to Ask For Help Once Again Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 13:00:00 CST We have come to the end of October and the start of November, so it is my turn to ask once again for financial assistance in the upkeep of this Digest. If you have not made any financial assistance lately, I hope you will consider this monthly appeal as a chance to participate financially as a partner in this reader-written net published e-journal. Whatever you feel is appropriate will be appreciated. Starting with this month, (November, 2002), I will be offering a CD of the entire Telecom Archives *and* your choice of various 'old time radio' shows with a telephone theme at no charge when you send a gift of at least $20-25 to the Digest. In addition to twenty plus years of telecom-related messages from the Digest and comp.dcom.telecom and the other special files and reports in the archives you will receive these 'oldtimeradiovault.com' items: 'Sorry, Wrong Number' (three different adaptations including Agnes Morehead) from Suspense, Lux Radio Theatre, etc. 'Halls of Ivy' the 'Phone Problems' episode 'Family Theatre' the 'Man Who Bought the Phone Company' episode. 'Bell Telephone Hour' the guest on that show was Lily Pons. 'Life of Riley' the 'Telephone is Rationed' episode. In addition, if you put the CD in a regular CD player such as your radio, etc instead of the CD drive on your computer, you wil be able to listen to 'Sorry, Wrong Number' as it aired on the radio. This is the second, and updated CD of the Telecom Archives, produced by Joey Lindstrom, with a cast of thousands -- all of you -- in the Archives files. I think you will like it. With your gift to the Digest of $20-25 (or more, as you find appropriate) you get it free. If you choose to remit on line via PayPal, you may use your credit card. Go to http://telecom-digest.org/donations and click where appropriate. Be sure to include your mailing address for the CD, and Joey also needs to know if you want the *nix format or the Windows 9x/2000/XP version. Mention all that in the advice box. If you prefer to use snailmail, then send your check to TELECOM, Post Office Box 50, Independence, KS 67301-0050. You should get the CD in two or three weeks, but you will get an email acknowledgement long before that. Thanks VERY MUCH for your help, as usual. The Telecom Archives remains a free open resource on the net via ftp massis.lcs.mit.edu/telecom- archives/archives. Patrick Townson ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #109 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Sun Nov 3 14:43:45 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA3JhjK16743; Sun, 3 Nov 2002 14:43:45 -0500 (EST) Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 14:43:45 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211031943.gA3JhjK16743@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #110 TELECOM Digest Sun, 3 Nov 2002 14:44:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 110 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Ameritech Problem Question (Gil Knops) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (Maniac) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (REC Nets) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (Ed Ellers) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (Goldstein) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (Albino) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (R. Weller) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (M. Jervis) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (Boo Phatty) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (joe@obilivan.net) New Telecom Classifieds (Steve Christie) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: miamijunge@yahoo.com (Gil Knops) Subject: Ameritech Problem Question Date: 2 Nov 2002 20:00:35 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ A few years ago, I lived in Chicago at the time I was using Modem/phone ISP, because I was not settled. I lived on Irving Park West and upon getting my phone connection I was made aware of extra charges that could apply, if one called outside a certain radius of ones area. Therefore, I asked and relied on Ameritech to confirm that the numbers for my ISP would be within that radius, so I would not incur any extra charges on my phone bill. My internet is today (with DSL) and was back then with phone always online 24/7. I then moved to the Rosemont area and notified the phone company of my change of address. I was assigned a new phone number and I also told them that I needed the corresponding ISP number that would be in my area. The way it worked was that I would ask them if out of a set of phone numbers that I had, which one of those would be within my area. I recall that the person who I spoke with, was very unfriendly and very short. It almost seemed like she had no desire to do anything for me. I didn't think any of it until a month later I received my new phone bill. As it turn out, the number which I had dialed into, which I asked to be verified and the nice operator at Ameritech okayed, turned out to be outside the area and Ameritech slapped me with a 4000 dollar phone bill. I disputed this but Ameritech was unhelpful. They apologized for the error in part of the agent but told me that in the end effect the call was made and that I needed to pay the phone bill. I was utterly upset because no matter who I spoke with, Ameritech didn't withdraw from its position. I still, to this day cannot understand, that if I did the right thing in calling, changing my ISP dialup number and relying on information from Ameritech that I could get screwed over like this. Today this is reflected on my credit history. I have a bad debt of almost 5000 dollars. Is there anything that I can do? Can I take them to court for this? What am I to do with a messed up company like that? ------------------------------ From: xkmfdmx@aol.compactdisk (Maniac) Date: 03 Nov 2002 10:51:01 GMT Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or television > station use the same range of frequencies? Police, operating in VHF > are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the police are usually around > 450-470 megs. What TV stations are around there? None. How could this > be an FCC problem? PAT] Here's how: WCVB TV near Boston is on Channel 5. If you inspect the frequency allocations carefully, you'll notice that not all of the TV band is in the UHF part of the spectrum. It's actually divided into 4 bands, 3 of them in the VHF and one in the UHF. Channel 5 is from 76 to 82 Mhz (6Mhz bandwidth per television channel is standard) They could be using a lower frequency radio system, but note that the second harmonic of 76Mhz is 152Mhz. I think they're getting trophospheric ducting of the second harmonic. Which makes it not really the FCC's fault. ------------------------------ From: REC Networks Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 08:39:59 -0700 > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or television > station use the same range of frequencies? Police, operating in VHF > are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the police are usually around > 450-470 megs. What TV stations are around there? None. How could this > be an FCC problem? PAT] In major US cities, some television channels (470-512MHz, Ch. 14 to 20) are used for land mobile. In Los Angeles, 470-476 (Ch. 14), 482-488 (Ch. 16) and 506-512 (Ch. 20) are used by land mobile. That's why scanners tune up to 512 MHz. This is sometimes referred to the UHF-T Band. It's not an FCC problem, it's a way of handling land mobile spectrum congestion in the major metros. REC Networks www.recnet.com ------------------------------ From: Ed Ellers Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 00:14:42 -0500 PAT, the TELECOM Digest Editor, noted: > Tell me what police and/or television station use the same range of > frequencies? Police, operating in VHF are usually around 150-155 > megs. On UHF the police are usually around 450-470 megs. What TV > stations are around there? None. How could this be an FCC problem? What's happening is that, because the VHF and UHF (450-470 MHz) bands were so crowded, the FCC started allowing public safety radio systems to use the 470-512 MHz band -- TV channels 14-20 -- in some major cities in the 1970s. (This was before the 806-890 MHz band, which used to be used for TV channels 70-83 albeit rarely, became widely used for land mobile radio and cellular phone systems.) The rule is that only one TV channel can be diverted to this use in each city, and it has to be a channel that *would* otherwise be suitable for TV broadcasting in that city -- one which would not significantly interfere with TV stations in other cities. (For example, channel 14 is used in Chicago.) Scanning receivers have had this so-called "T band" since the late 1970s. The problem is that this was done before the FCC squeezed digital TV broadcasting into the same UHF band used for analog TV (and, to a lesser extent, into the VHF TV bands). A lot of DTV stations are much closer to existing analog stations on the same channel than is allowed between two analog transmitters; this was believed to be acceptable because DTV stations use relatively low power (and because their RF waveform is "stealthy" -- it appears as random noise, not a discernible pattern, when superimposed on an analog TV signal). However, it's now becoming clear that propagation conditions exist in some places that cause DTV signals to arrive on top of analog stations to a far greater extent than had been predicted. This is the first incident I've heard of involving land mobile, but after what's been happening with DTV-to-NTSC interference it's not much of a surprise. A similar situation occurred when TV stations started going on the air in great numbers in the late 1940s, and that situation was so bad that the FCC stopped granting new TV construction permits in 1948 (they allowed existing permitees to build and operate their stations), until a new allocation plan could be developed (which took until 1952). ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 23:19:28 -0500 From: Fred Goldstein Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV At 08:47 PM 11/2/2002 -0500, Moderator Pat wrote: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or television > station use the same range of frequencies? Police, operating in VHF > are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the police are usually around > 450-470 megs. What TV stations are around there? None. How could this > be an FCC problem? PAT] Au contraire ... Police do operate on UHF TV frequencies. When the UHF public safety band was becoming crowded in the 1970s, the FCC adopted a plan to permit those services to share the TV spectrum. Each major market typically has two low-UHF channels (14-20, I think), that are not used for TV anywhere nearby, set aside for public safety use. Thus Channel 20 is available to the police in the Philadelphia market. These rules are the same ones, btw, that the FCC has proposed for its 700 MHz auctions. The way they're phasing out analog TV is to auction off Channels 60-69 first, 52-59 later. (The 60-69 auction was scheduled for over two years ago but repeatedly postponed.) Auction winners are allowed to use their frequencies on the same basis (TV protection criteria) as public service sharing of the low channels. The idea is that once analog TV is turned off (planned for 2007 to 2010), all TV stations will be in the "core" allocations which end at Channel 51, so those restrictions are temporary. Public safety gets some of the 52-69 space too so maybe they'll phase out sharing. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 23:49:14 -0500 From: Name Withheld Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV Feel free to put this in the Digest -- I do ask my email be stripped. Anyway ... > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or television > station use the same range of frequencies? Police, operating in VHF > are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the police are usually around > 450-470 megs. What TV stations are around there? None. How could this > be an FCC problem? PAT] Actually, in this case, there *is* a legitimate beef. The two channels assigned, at least according to the FCC Databases, are at channel 5 (76-82 MHz) and channel 20 for digital (506-512 MHz). Now, according to what I was able to pull up on the FCC's General Menu Reports (http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/reports/index.cfm) Lindenwold actually has quite a number of frequencies smack dab in the middle of channel 20: KUZ646CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD500.3125 KUZ647CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD500.3625 WII555CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD507.2125 WIK280CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD511.7625 WIK697CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD510.9125 WQT36CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD503.3125 Actually, there seem to be quite a number of frequencies in Camden County that lie right in channels 14-21: WPMV796ATLANTIC COAST COMMUNICATIONS INCYGWATERFORD TWP471.6625 KUZ646CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD500.3125 KUZ647CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD500.3625 WIF361CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWCAMDEN500.5625 WIK575HOMAN COMMUNICATIONS INCYKWATERFORD WORKS500.7625 KXG831PORT AUTHORITY TRANSIT CORPPWCAMDEN500.8125 WPMG470GLOUCESTER, TOWNSHIP OFPWLAUREL SPRINGS501 WIE946CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWPINE HILL501.1375 WPRG746NEW JERSEY, STATE OFPWCAMDEN501.425 WPUG936KEES II, ROBERT EIGVOORHEES501.4625 WIL833GIBBSBORO, BOROUGH OFPWGIBBSBORO501.7875 WIL232HOMAN COMMUNICATIONS INCYGWATERFORD WORKSWORKS501.8875 WIL713HOMAN COMMUNICATIONS INCYGWATERFORD WORKS501.9625 KXC300HOMAN COMMUNICATIONS INCYGWATERFORD WORKS502.0375 WIG412WILLIAM BOWMAN ASSOCIATES INCORPORATEDIGVOORHEES502.2625 KNQ490HOMAN COMMUNICATIONS INCYGWATERFORD WORKS502.4125 KNKE600Metrocall USA, Inc.CDCAMDEN503.0375 WQT36CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD503.3125 KQ7799CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWMB503.3125 WPPH421NEW JERSEY, STATE OFPWMB503.95 WPIP981FIDELCOMM SERVICE CO INCIGPENNSAUKEN505.0125 WIL505GLOUCESTER, TOWNSHIP OFPWLAUREL SPRINGS506.8875 WIK941GLOUCESTER, TOWNSHIP OFPWLAUREL SPRINGS506.9375 WIK700CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWAUDUBON507.1125 WIK699CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLAUREL SPRINGS507.1625 WII555CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD507.2125 KTR803MERCHANTVILLE, BOROUGH OFPWMERCHANTVILLE507.4125 WIL465Barrington Boro Police DepartmentPWBARRINGTON507.4625 WIK701CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWBARRINGTON507.5125 WIK857CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWBERLIN507.5625 WIK698CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWCAMDEN507.9375 KNBB284CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWVOORHEES508.7125 WIK314WINSLOW, TOWNSHIP OFPWBRADDOCK508.9125 WIK697CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD510.9125 WIK280CAMDEN, COUNTY OFPWLINDENWOLD511.7625 (To translate the codes here, PW means public works/safety frequencies like police/fire/ambulance services, YG is business trunked, YK is another business trunked designation, CD is cellular-related frequencies, and IG is conventional business pool.) As far as I can tell, at least for the police frequencies none of them seem to be trunked or digital, rather, they're using (relatively standard) 20K0F3E, read: 20 kilohertz bandwidth FM mono audio (don't you just love ITU designations?). http://www.maxpages.com/frequencies/Camden_County also notes on the relative frequency of 500MHz frequencies (pun intended) due to the sheer amount of frequencies used (they've had to get one of the special FCC exemptions that lets police frequencies be used on non-used TV channels; there is a similar expansion going on now in the 700MHz band in areas that are out of 800MHz frequencies for use in trunked radio systems, such as the NYC/NJ area). (And to think that my armchair hobby of scanner listening would come in handy on a telecoms list... :) -wtf (nyar!) ------------------------------ From: Robert Weller Subject: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 19:31:56 -0800 On Sat, 2 Nov 2002 20:47:18 EST Monty Solomon reported that: > LINDENWOLD, N.J. -- A digital culprit traveling unlikely distances > by atmospheric phenomena, confounding law enforcement. Sounds like > science fiction, but it's not. > It's a phenomenon called "tropospheric ducting," and what it is is a > problem for Camden County's police dispatch network, which handles > emergency response in all but six county towns. > In scientific terms, the phenomenon occurs when layers of vast > temperature variation form in the troposphere _ the atmosphere's > lowest segment _ creating a "duct," which can trap radio waves and > carry them hundreds of miles beyond their normal reach. > Communications officials said the dispatch center uses the same > digital frequency as a Boston-area television station, WCVB. Camden > officials blame the Federal Communications Commission for poorly > planning signal frequency use. > > > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or > television station use the same range of frequencies? Police, > operating in VHF are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the > police are usually around 450-470 megs. What TV stations are > around there? None. How could this be an FCC problem? PAT] Actually, the frequencies ARE identical. According to the FCC's website: WCVB-DT (Digital Television) operates on channel 20 (506-512 MHz). Camden County's WNBB284 operates on 508.7125, 508.7375, 511.7125, and 511.7375 MHz. All of Camdens WNBB284 operations lie within DTV Channel 20. It is not unusual for public safety organizations to operated on UHF television frequencies. LA County fought for years to get Channel 16 alloted to their sheriff's department instead of television broadcasting. Use by non-broadcasters of one or more of the lower UHF channels is routinely authorized by the FCC so long as certain mileage separation criteria are met. In this case, it seems that those criteria were insufficient to prevent interference. Bob Weller ------------------------------ From: Marcus Jervis Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as a Boston TV Station Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 02:42:06 +0000 > LINDENWOLD, N.J. -- A digital culprit traveling unlikely distances by > atmospheric phenomena, confounding law enforcement. Sounds like > science fiction, but it's not. (snip) > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or television > station use the same range of frequencies? Police, operating in VHF > are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the police are usually around > 450-470 megs. What TV stations are around there? None. How could this > be an FCC problem? PAT] Public safety services have outgrown their allocations in that spectrum. And a lot of it is now up around 800 or 900 Mhz in trunked radio systems. Land Mobile services have shared UHF TV channels 14-20 for many years. This is because there were lots of unused UHF TV channels, and one TV channel can hold many narrow-band FM 2-way radio channels. Since the coverage areas are local, it made sense to assign a channel to a TV station in one area and a public safety agency in another since TV stations (prior to the new digital service) weren't using all the available channels in every area. In this case, some narrow 2-way radio channels within TV channel 20 (506-512 MHz) were assigned to public safety in Camden. Since it was 270 miles from the nearest TV station on channel 20, it was thought to be safe. But now they are dealing with an unusual propagagion mode (tropospheric ducting, which they probably won't experience in the winter) and the digital TV signal from one area is interfering with public safety communications in another. ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 01:15:07 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Sat, 2 Nov 2002 10:39:16 -0500, Two Buddha read a post from Monty Solomon , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > We are in the midst of a close election for governor in Massachusetts > and we have received several automated endorsement calls where the > Caller ID/Name was 000-000-0000/Unknown. I assume this was done to > get around ACR (anonymous call rejection). > Has anyone else here seen this? > Is that legal? Does it comply with FCC regulations? I believe that some providers plug in 000's in the CNAM database instead of blank which generates "Caller ID Unavailable", ACR won't block either. Marketing companies deliberatly request this and it *should* be illegal. It's not. I checked into this this morning. It's legal. Perhaps a letter writing campaign to the FCC or the DTE/MA may help. I think it's a poor circumvention of ACR. I don't remember, but I believe in MA we PAY for ACR setup so this is "stealing" in my mind. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yes, it is stealing. Southwestern Bell charges for ACR also, then makes absolutely no effort to force callers to identify themselves or their company (or in many cases political organizations.) To SWB Telco, apparently 'Name Withheld', 'Notyur Biz' and 'Ben Dover' (when that last one is not verified as an actual person's name) are all legitmate ways to bypass caller-ID and the stupid sub- scribers who feel they are too busy to have to listen to political spiels or telemarketers. Yeah, it amounts to stealing what we paid for. PAT] ------------------------------ From: joe@obilivan.net Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 14:21:07 GMT Organization: Cox Communications Since the FCC never bothered to rule on PBXes and Caller ID (which they reserved in their 1995 decision) spoofing of calling party number on the PBX DOD trunks is likely a non-issue with the FCC, so long as it is not being done for criminal purposes. Your solution is easy: ignore a call from such a ridiculous number. Monty Solomon wrote: > We are in the midst of a close election for governor in Massachusetts > and we have received several automated endorsement calls where the > Caller ID/Name was 000-000-0000/Unknown. I assume this was done to > get around ACR (anonymous call rejection). > Has anyone else here seen this? > Is that legal? Does it comply with FCC regulations? > Thanks, > Monty > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: *Anything* politicians do is > legal. Didn't you ever notice how the Senate and the House of Reps > always exempt themselves from laws that others have to obey? > Many/most/all FCC regs pertaining to telemarketing specifically do not > apply to political campaigns. I am sure it must be legal. Politicians > never break the law, do they? (Unless, of course the fellow politico > they are complaining about belongs to the opposite party. PAT] [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: All crooks, every last one of them. Of course people who like being humored, condescended and pandered to will be sure to go out and vote this Tuesday. Don't you hate the old saying, 'if you fail to vote then you have no right to complain', as if voting had any real connection to the way the bureaucrats in this country run things. PAT] ------------------------------ From: steven.christie1@ntlworld.com (Steve Christie) Subject: New Telecom Classifieds Date: 3 Nov 2002 09:25:17 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ This is a new website which I hope will become a useful resource to the global telecom industry. I would appreciate it if you would take the time to visit the website and place free ads. Thanks for your precious time. http://www.telecomclassifieds.net ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. 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End of TELECOM Digest V22 #110 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Mon Nov 4 12:45:23 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA4HjNq04314; Mon, 4 Nov 2002 12:45:23 -0500 (EST) Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 12:45:23 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211041745.gA4HjNq04314@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #111 TELECOM Digest Mon, 4 Nov 2002 12:45:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 111 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Telecom Update (Canada) #356, November 4, 2002 (Angus TeleManagement) The Need For Internet Access Standards in Hotels (Darryl Smith) Re: My Vote on Monty Batching (jbl) Re: CBS News: Verizon Settles Spam Suit (John Higdon) Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee) (D Farmer) Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee) (JustinTime) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (tonypo1@cox.net) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (John Higdon) Re: No Reverse DNS? Then Get a New ISP (Dr. Joel M. Hoffman) Re: Advertising Corrupts? (Geoffrey Welsh) Re: Advertising Corrupts? (jbl) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 10:54:51 -0500 From: Angus TeleManagement Group Subject: Telecom Update (Canada) #356, November 4, 2002 ************************************************************ TELECOM UPDATE ************************************************************ published weekly by Angus TeleManagement Group http://www.angustel.ca Number 356: November 4, 2002 Publication of Telecom Update is made possible by generous financial support from: ** BELL CANADA: http://www.bell.ca ** CISCO SYSTEMS CANADA: http://www.cisco.com/ca/letstalk ** CYGCOM INTEGRATED TECHNOLOGIES: http://www.cygcom.com ** ERICSSON CANADA: http://www.ericsson.ca ** JUNIPER NETWORKS: http://www.juniper.net ** PRIMUS CANADA: http://www.primustel.ca ** Q9 NETWORKS: http://www.Q9.com ** TELUS: http://www.telus.com ************************************************************ IN THIS ISSUE: ** TELUS Reports $107 Million Loss ** Nortel Upgrades IP PBX ** 100 Mbps for $1,000 ** Antenna Tower Policy Review Planned ** CRTC Cuts Competitor Rates Again ** CRTC Orders Competitor Access to Telco OSS ** Telemarketers and Internet Registry Charged ** Manitoba Asks for Law on 9-1-1 Abuse ** Bell Seeks Delay in Montreal Overlay ** OECD Praises Canadian Telecom Regulation ** Study Hails Internet's Benefits to Small Business ** Northern, Telebec Provide Digital Wireless ** SkyWave Plans U.S. Expansion ** Mitec Laying Off 150 ** Profits Increase at MTS ** Alcatel Sales Down 37% ** Telecom Audits Find Savings, Boost Service ============================================================ TELUS REPORTS $107 MILLION LOSS: Telus Corporation lost $107.4 million in the three months ended September 30, compared to last year's gain of $28.9 million before extraordinary items. Total revenues were $1.76 Billion, down 3.1%. Capital spending in the quarter was $230 million, down from $403 million. ** By the end of October, Telus had eliminated 4,000 jobs, closed 33 retail stores and 11 call centres. The original goal of 6,000 employee reductions has been raised to 6,500. ** Wireline revenues in Bell Canada territory were $136 Million, up 30%, with EBITDA loss of $23 million. ** Telus Mobility had net revenue of $493.9 million, up 12.4%. At the end of the quarter it had 2.9 million subscribers, up 18.5% from last year. NORTEL UPGRADES IP PBX: Release 2 of Nortel Networks' Succession CSE 1000, announced October 29, adds support for Meridian digital phones and increases the maximum number of IP devices from 640 to over 10,000. ** Nortel also announced a new release of CallPilot unified messaging, and a Baystack Ethernet switch that provides in-line power. 100 MBPS FOR $1,000: Cogent Communications, the Washington- based ISP that bought Shared Technologies of Canada in February (see Telecom Update #321), says it will offer 100 Mbps dedicated Internet access in Toronto's central business district for $1,000 a month. ANTENNA TOWER POLICY REVIEW PLANNED: Industry Canada will conduct a "national consultation review" of its antenna tower policy in 2003. Issues to be examined include tower siting rules, procedures for local consultation, and tower sharing. Procedures for public participation have not yet been announced. http://www.ic.gc.ca/cmb/Welcomeic.nsf/261ce500dfcd7259852564820068dc6d/85256a220056c2a485256c63004e3fb9!OpenDocument CRTC CUTS COMPETITOR RATES AGAIN: For the second time in five weeks, the CRTC has ordered Aliant, Bell Canada, MTS, and SaskTel to cut the interim Access Tandem rates they charge competitors. The new cuts, ranging from 3% (Bell) to 75% (Aliant New Brunswick), result from costing errors the four companies reported on October 4. http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/ENG/Orders/2002/o2002-412.htm CRTC ORDERS COMPETITOR ACCESS TO TELCO OSS: CRTC Telecom Decision 2002-68, clarifies the delivery intervals telcos must meet when providing unbundled loops to competitors, and directs the CRTC Interconnection Steering Committee (CISC) to report in six months on how competitors can get access to telco Operational Support Systems. http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/ENG/Decisions/2002/dt2002-68.htm TELEMARKETERS AND INTERNET REGISTRY CHARGED: Last week the Competition Bureau laid charges in two telecom-related cases: ** Four directors of First Capital Consumers Group, a Toronto-area telemarketing company, are charged with defrauding "close to 100,000 American consumers." The Bureau says the operation grossed US$20 million by collecting processing fees for credit cards that were never delivered. ** The Internet Registry of Canada and its principals are charged with deceptive marketing for mailing domain registration solicitations that appeared to be invoices from the federal government. One of the people charged, James Tetaka, was also recently charged in the Yellowbusiness.ca case. (see Telecom Update #284 and #335) MANITOBA ASKS FOR LAW ON 9-1-1 ABUSE: Manitoba's Minister of Justice says he has written the federal Justice Minister calling for a new law against abuse of 9-1-1 emergency systems. BELL SEEKS DELAY IN MONTREAL OVERLAY: Bell Canada wants to delay introduction of the new 438 Area Code overlay in the 514 area from February 2004 to September 2005. Citing reductions in the forecast demand for new prefixes, the telco has formally asked the NPA 514 Relief Committee to recommend the change to the CRTC. OECD PRAISES CANADIAN TELECOM REGULATION: The Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development says Canada's telecom sector is more competitive than most OECD countries, largely due to Canada's regulatory environment which is "innovative and forward-looking". http://www.crtc.gc.ca/ENG/NEWS/RELEASES/2002/r021029.htm STUDY HAILS INTERNET'S BENEFITS TO SMALL BUSINESS: "Net Impact Study Canada," a study sponsored by the Canadian e-Business Initiative, states that Small and Medium Enterprises in Canada are achieving profit increases "of as much as 150%" by using the Internet to enhance business processes. http://www.cebi.ca/410/net_impact.pdf NORTHERN, TELEBEC PROVIDE DIGITAL WIRELESS: NorTel Mobility, a unit of Northern Telephone, is extending digital cellular service to Kapuskasing and Engelhart, Ontario, as part of a $6-million program to provide digital service in Northern and Telebec territory. SKYWAVE PLANS U.S. EXPANSION: Ottawa-based SkyWave, which provides satellite-based vehicle tracking, has secured $19 million in financing, which it will use to improve network infrastructure and expand its sales effort outside Canada. MITEC LAYING OFF 150: Montreal-based Mitec Telecom, which makes wireless network products, will eliminate 150 jobs worldwide as part of its moves to "survive the current telecommunications turmoil." (See Telecom Update #351) ** Rajiv Pancholy, former President of Microcell Connexions, has been named President and CEO, replacing Myer Bentob, who resigned September 12. PROFITS INCREASE AT MTS: Manitoba Telecom reports third-quarter net income of $22.6 million, 55% higher than the same period last year. MTS attributes a 16% decline in total revenue to accounting changes related to Bell West. ** Bell West had revenue of $85.3 million, double the level of a year ago, and an EBITDA loss of $19.1 million. ALCATEL SALES DOWN 37%: Alcatel had worldwide third quarter revenue of 3.51 billion euros, down 17% from the previous quarter and 38% from the same period a year ago. Net loss: 1.35 billion euros. TELECOM AUDITS FIND SAVINGS, BOOST SERVICE: Do you have the right telecom services and equipment for your business needs? How do your telecom costs compare to other organizations? Are you getting the service quality and support you should expect? ** To discuss how an Angus Dortmans telecom audit can help you improve service and cut costs, call Henry Dortmans at 905-686-5050 ext 300, or e-mail dortmans@angustel.ca ============================================================ HOW TO SUBMIT ITEMS FOR TELECOM UPDATE E-MAIL: editors@angustel.ca FAX: 905-686-2655 MAIL: TELECOM UPDATE Angus TeleManagement Group 8 Old Kingston Road Ajax, Ontario Canada L1T 2Z7 =========================================================== HOW TO SUBSCRIBE (OR UNSUBSCRIBE) TELECOM UPDATE is provided in electronic form only. There are two formats available: 1. The fully-formatted edition is posted on the World Wide Web on the first business day of the week at http://www.angustel.ca 2. The e-mail edition is distributed free of charge. To subscribe, send an e-mail message to: TelecomUpdate@add.postmastergeneral.com To stop receiving the e-mail edition, send an e-mail message to: TelecomUpdate@remove.postmastergeneral.com Sending e-mail to these addresses will automatically add or remove the sender's e-mail address from the list. Leave subject line and message area blank. We do not give Telecom Update subscribers' e-mail addresses to any third party. For more information, see http://www.angustel.ca/update/privacy.html. =========================================================== COPYRIGHT AND CONDITIONS OF USE: All contents copyright 2002 Angus TeleManagement Group Inc. All rights reserved. For further information, including permission to reprint or reproduce, please e-mail rosita@angustel.ca or phone 905-686-5050 ext 500. The information and data included has been obtained from sources which we believe to be reliable, but Angus TeleManagement makes no warranties or representations whatsoever regarding accuracy, completeness, or adequacy. Opinions expressed are based on interpretation of available information, and are subject to change. If expert advice on the subject matter is required, the services of a competent professional should be obtained. ------------------------------ From: Darryl Smith Subject: The Need For Internet Access Standards in Hotels Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 13:48:56 +1100 G'Day ... I live in Australia ... At the moment my mother is in California attempting to telecommute on a holiday ... Attempting is the correct word. Hotel #1 - Quality Inn - Palo Alto: Her laptop power cable was broken - Radio Shack sold her a new one for $3 instead of a new power adapter for $80. Good Work Radio Shack In the meantime the lobby has FREE internet access!!! www.web2mail.com helps out. Plugs her laptop into the ethernet in the room. Can get email. Can't send. No web access. Work out that DNS is not working. Get her from Australia to set up to use fixed DNS rather than get the DNS from the network. [Windows 98 BTW]. This fixes most of the problem. Outgoing email still does not work. Finds that she is really on Pac Bell DSL from the hotel. Set the SMTP address to whatever I found was their mail address (found from Google, not the hotel), and all works. Internet is fantastic. Phone has bad 60 Hz mains buzz on it. Hotel #2 - Days Inn Park South - Anaheim: Plus in laptop and has lots of trouble connecting to the net dialup - using budgetdialup.com. Finds two problems over international calls. She forgot to set the SMTP host on the email back. The main problem is that the line is so bad that she cannot stay connected for more than 3 minutes. No web access in the hotel. Dialing using area code did not work. So I had already told her to not use area code. This is stupid. Oh, no socket on the phone for a data connection either. Hotel #3 - Marriot South East - Denver: Ethernet, USB and Dialup available in the room (at 9.95/day). Speed is 128k maximum. No instructions on outgoing mail server. Turns out anything. They steal outgoing connections to the mail server and make them go though their server. Not bad, except if you log in to your home server to send mail -- like a friend. Hotel #4 - Holliday Inn - Hollywood: No dialin numbers in the same area code -- and outside the area code are TOLL. Put a USB wireless card high in the window and get a low strength connection. Have to find the SMTP address myself to use ... [This was my trip, not my mother's]. It should not be this hard to get internet access from hotels ... There needs to be standards ... Or at least INSTRUCTIONS. Darryl Smith, VK2TDS POBox 169 Ingleburn NSW 2565 Australia Mobile Number 0412 929 634 [+61 4 12 929 634 International] Darryl@radio-active.net.au | www.radio-active.net.au ------------------------------ From: jbl Subject: Re: My Vote on Monty Batching Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 19:23:23 -0700 Organization: On the desert Reply-To: jbl@spamblocked.com In , Name Withheld wrote: >> So now, you guys tell me; instruct your old, obsolete moderator with >> his old, obsolete scripts; pick one of these choices: >> (1) Continue batching Monty, one general subject header no index of items; >> (2) Individual itemization of Monty stuff; by default then six or ten >> items in each issue, indexing, some days it will appear that he >> has taken over an entire issue; > I'd prefer (2). Anyone who wants things batched can always subscribe by > e-mail instead of reading the newsgroup anyway. > My vote goes to (1), which for me makes reading the newsgroup a nicer > experience. And sign up my vote for (2); I read this on Usenet, and it's easier to pick out the individual articles by subject lines and only download the "interesting" ones. JBL ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: CBS News: Verizon Settles Spam Suit Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 18:27:51 -0800 In article , kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) wrote: > Ralsky has always admitted spamming, he is proud of spamming, and he > supports spam. You have to give him credit for some degree of honesty > about his own activity. Spammers, especially "big-time" ones who cash in on spamming, should be very nervous right now. Due to the sheer volume, which has grown much faster than the net itself, spammers will begin to see significant reductions in response to email advertising. Why? People are fed up. They toss anything and everything that looks like an advertisement ... regardless of what it might be for. Recently, the DMA even expressed concern about the proliferation of spam. In essence, the spammers are doing themselves in. John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 ------------------------------ From: Dale Farmer Subject: Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee/Telecom) Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 00:16:36 -0500 Organization: Furry green fuzz in the back of the refrigerator Boo Phatty wrote: > Hello folks. Does anyone know where to apply for FEMA essential > personell access cards i.e. ID that allows you to be on the street and > in a disaster area? > For instance, VZ E-911 personnel carry old CD cards that allow them > access to/from the E911 center during blizzards or declared > emergencies, etc. > I'm probably not calling it the right thing, but I would appreciate a > pointer. FEMA's website is very light on information of this kind. You apply to your state emergency management agency. They are the ones that actually issue them. They do have agreements with hospitals, the phone company, cities and so on to have the appropriate logos and authorizations placed on the employees regular ID badges. This allows them to save a lot of money not issuing separate badges to all those folks. You had better have a good reason to have that badge. Saving your company a pile of money because you have to shut a process down or something like that will not cut it. You have to be part of something that will restore damaged public utilities, medical aid, or other emergency type services. --Dale ------------------------------ From: a_user2000@yahoo.com (Justin Time) Subject: Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee/Telecom) Date: 4 Nov 2002 07:42:09 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Boo Phatty wrote in message news:: > Hello folks. Does anyone know where to apply for FEMA essential > personell access cards i.e. ID that allows you to be on the street and > in a disaster area? > For instance, VZ E-911 personnel carry old CD cards that allow them > access to/from the E911 center during blizzards or declared > emergencies, etc. > I'm probably not calling it the right thing, but I would appreciate a > pointer. FEMA's website is very light on information of this kind. Try applying through your local Emergency Management Agency. They would probably have the approval rights to any request. Your local agency is the senior agency in any disaster unless it has been declared a federal site, and then the local cards are usually accepted unless there are some real exceptions. ------------------------------ From: tonypo1@cox.net Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: The Ace Tomatoe and Cement Company Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 00:35:30 GMT In article , TELECOM Digest Editor noted in response to boo@phatty.nl: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yes, it is stealing. Southwestern Bell > charges for ACR also, then makes absolutely no effort to force callers > to identify themselves or their company (or in many cases political > organizations.) To SWB Telco, apparently 'Name Withheld', 'Notyur Biz' > and 'Ben Dover' (when that last one is not verified as an actual person's > name) are all legitmate ways to bypass caller-ID and the stupid sub- > scribers who feel they are too busy to have to listen to political > spiels or telemarketers. Yeah, it amounts to stealing what we paid > for. PAT] I find it interesting that in MA and KS you pay for ACR. Here in RI we don't pay a dime for it. Just pick up the phone, punch *77 to enable, *87 to disable and it works. It's a major pain calling home from my office. Seems our G3i doesn't like the * codes and so we have to punch 9+1182+phone number. Except it doesn't always work. I've already defined a different ARS trunk group with lines that are un-blocked but admin hasn't issued the request to have those specific lines unblocked. When it is complete I can dial 9+ for blocked, 8+ for unblocked. I also get the 000-000-0000 calls. It's time to start leaning on our legislators to give more enforcement options to utilities commissions. As for stealing, anyone who calls me is stealing from me - it's taking up my time. If it's a telemarketer I have a legitimate beef as the time could otherwise be used for something more productive. Tony ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 17:10:09 -0800 In article , Boo Phatty wrote: > I believe that some providers plug in 000's in the CNAM database > instead of blank which generates "Caller ID Unavailable", ACR won't > block either. One has to wonder why anyone would take a call with this in the display. I sure wouldn't. > Marketing companies deliberatly request this and it *should* be > illegal. It's not. Actually, they can program their switches to send whatever number they like. > I checked into this this morning. It's legal. Perhaps a letter writing > campaign to the FCC or the DTE/MA may help. I think it's a poor > circumvention of ACR. I don't remember, but I believe in MA we PAY for > ACR setup so this is "stealing" in my mind. Anonymous Call Rejection is for anonymous calls. This is not; it is a "misconfigured" call. Nothing forces you to answer it. If someone transmits a fake CID that looks legitimate, then you might have a case. In article , joe@obilivan.net wrote: > Since the FCC never bothered to rule on PBXes and Caller ID (which they > reserved in their 1995 decision) spoofing of calling party number on the > PBX DOD trunks is likely a non-issue with the FCC, so long as it is not > being done for criminal purposes. That is indeed the case. There are so many exceptions and circumstances regarding PBX programming that it would require an entire section of rulemaking ... and for what? It is a non-problem. John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 ------------------------------ Subject: Re: No Reverse DNS? Then Get a New ISP Organization: Excelsior Computer Services From: joel@exc.com (Dr. Joel M. Hoffman) Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 18:06:07 GMT > If your ISP won't let you set up real reverse DNS names, then get > a new ISP. I can't even get *BUSINESS* DSL (fixed IP) with reverse DNS. ------------------------------ From: Geoffrey Welsh Subject: Re: Advertising Corrupts? Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 14:24:50 -0500 Power corrupts. Absolute power is kind of neat. ------------------------------ From: jbl Subject: Re: Advertising Corrupts? Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 19:21:05 -0700 Organization: On the desert Reply-To: jbl@spamblocked.com In , msb@vex.net (Mark Brader) wrote: > A.E. Siegman misquotes: >> "Power corrupts. Absolutely power corrupts absolutely." >> --Lord Acton (1834-1902) >> (Actual original quote slightly more verbose) > Not just "slightly more verbose", but significantly different. > Acton's actual words were: > "Power tends to corrupt, and absolutely power corrupts absolutely." You both seem to have a minor error, according to sources I've found (which is in fact what I expected): It is: "Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely." You're welcome. ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. 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All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #111 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Mon Nov 4 21:34:38 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA52YcL24800; Mon, 4 Nov 2002 21:34:38 -0500 (EST) Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 21:34:38 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211050234.gA52YcL24800@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #112 TELECOM Digest Mon, 4 Nov 2002 21:35:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 112 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Connecting FAX Machine to Existing Answering Machine (Jay Hennigan) Re: Ameritech Problem Question (Ed Ellers) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as a Boston-Area (John Stahl) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (Maniac) Call Flow Extract (McLellan) Bell South PP Locations (JJG/CMG & Associates) VoIP Test Equipment (Andrew) Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee) (Boo Phatty) More U.S. Homes Have Outhouses Than Tivos (Monty Solomon) TV Tower To Be Built In Times Square To Replace Antenna (Monty Solomon) Distributed TiVo Code Cracking (Monty Solomon) The Big Picture (Monty Solomon) Hollywood Squares (Monty Solomon) Bottleneck Breakers (Monty Solomon) Antenna System Is Said to Expand Wireless Internet Use (Monty Solomon) Marketers Try to Turn Web Pirates Into Customers (Monty Solomon) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (Boo Phatty) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (John Higdon) Last Laugh! SpamAssassin Strikes Again (Joey Lindstrom) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Jay Hennigan Subject: Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine Organization: Disgruntled Postal Workers Against Gun Control Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 08:05:40 GMT On Mon, 28 Oct 2002 15:53:59 -0800, AES wrote: > Perhaps what you want is the same as what's called "Answering Machine > Mode" on my older Canon fax machine (fax + copier, but not printer) -- > the phone line runs from the wall to the fax, then from a second jack > on the fax to the combination phone/answering machine. (If you > already know all the following, apologies.) > In this mode when a call comes in -- voice or fax -- the fax machine > itself never answers. Rather the call is answered either by a human > picking up the phone or by the answering machine doing the same, while > the fax machine, which is connected "across the line," only listens to > what's coming in on the call once it's answered. > If the fax machine then hears a fax tone coming from the other end it > disconnects the phone + answering machine and picks up the call > itself. Otherwise it just continues to eavesdrop passively on the > human voices or the answering machine message until somebody hangs up. > Virtue of this is that if you answer an incoming voice call the fax > machine remains inert and doesn't start putting its own whistles back > on the line, on top of your voice call. > On the other hand if its an incoming fax call, both you and the fax > machine hear the incoming fax whistle; the fax machine rather quickly > takes over; and you hang up (you're also automatically disconnected in > any case. One way or the other faxes always get received. > Bottom line, however, is that the phone line must go from the wall > *through* the fax machine to the phone/answering machine; they can't > be plugged into the wall in different rooms. There may be more > complex multi-ring schemes and gadgets that can accomplish the latter; > and other messages will describe them. I don't see why this is necessary if it works as you describe. If the fax in this mode and the answering machine are both just bridged on the line and a fax call comes in, the answering machine will pick up. The fax is there silently listening for fax tone, bridged. If it hears fax tone, it goes off-hook. The answering machine senses the drop in voltage and disconnects, just as it would if an extension were lifted off-hook. If a human answers, the same thing happens, and the human hangs up when he hears the sound of modems mating. If the fax has such a mode, try it just in parallel and see if it works. Jay Hennigan - CCIE #7880 - Network Administration - jay@west.net NetLojix Communications, Inc. - http://www.netlojix.com/ WestNet: Connecting you to the planet. 805 884-6323 ------------------------------ From: Ed Ellers Subject: Re: Ameritech Problem Question Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 08:19:06 -0500 Gil Knops wrote: > I still, to this day cannot understand, that if I did the right > thing in calling, changing my ISP dialup number and relying on > information from Ameritech that I could get screwed over like this. > Today this is reflected on my credit history. I have a bad debt of > almost 5000 dollars. Is there anything that I can do? Can I take > them to court for this? What am I to do with a messed up company > like that?" Only thing I can suggest is complaining to your state's regulatory commission; even that may not do much good (much less going to court) without some evidence that an Ameritech employee advised you that that was a local number for you. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Why do you suppose it is that most telco service reps (the only employees you can ever speak to, after all) *never* give their full names, and often times only use phone names? Do you think the company finds it easier to do that, then hide the person after they do a major screw-up like this rather than attempt to train the rep to give intelligent/accurate answers? PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 08:53:32 -0500 From: John Stahl Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as a Boston-Area In the HAM (Licensed Radio Amateur) "world" we have learned about strange weather influenced conditions called "inversion" which has great effect the propagation of higher frequency radio waves. HAM's have long used repeaters to extend the distances we can communicate, especially on the144 MHz to148 MHz band and the 440 MHz to MHz band. These weather conditions sometimes bring in signals from very far away than would normally be possible. Perhaps this type of weather inversion caused the reported interference between the long-distance separated TV and police radios, as reported by others, evidentially on the same frequency. John Stahl Telecom/Data Consultant Aljon Enterprises ------------------------------ From: xkmfdmx@aol.compactdisk (Maniac) Date: 03 Nov 2002 21:41:15 GMT Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV > Here's how: WCVB TV near Boston is on Channel 5. If you inspect the > frequency allocations carefully, you'll notice t disregard ... I didn't do my homework carefully enough. The other guys are right, they are on the same frequency. ------------------------------ From: barry_mclellan@yahoo.com (McLellan) Subject: Call Flow Extract Date: 4 Nov 2002 05:58:08 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Have any of you tried the Call Flow Extract from www.utilcall.com? This program will download all of your switch call flows into an html document linking all of your vdns, vectors, announcemets etc. It also prints out a text file that you can use for revision tracking. If you have downloaded it, let me know how you made out. I have a couple of questions I would like to ask someone who has ran this. Thanks, Barry ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 11:21:12 -0500 Subject: Bellsouth PP Locations From: "JJG/CMG & Associates Tel: 716-754-2096" Hello Patrick! I have a question regarding how to find out where all the Bellsouth PP locations are. Is there a list available to the public ? Any input is greatly appreciated! John Guncsaga ------------------------------ From: ablack@taqua.com (Andrew) Subject: VoIP Test Equipment Date: 4 Nov 2002 13:05:19 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Does anyone know of some good "end-to-end" VoIP testing equipment vendors that I can get in touch with? (SIP protocol analysis, packet extraction and bulk generator, round trip delay and voice quality measurements.) ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee/Telecom) Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 20:19:00 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Sun, 03 Nov 2002 00:16:36 -0500, Two Buddha read a post from Dale Farmer , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > Boo Phatty wrote: >> Hello folks. Does anyone know where to apply for FEMA essential >> personell access cards i.e. ID that allows you to be on the street and >> in a disaster area? >> For instance, VZ E-911 personnel carry old CD cards that allow them >> access to/from the E911 center during blizzards or declared >> emergencies, etc. >> I'm probably not calling it the right thing, but I would appreciate a >> pointer. FEMA's website is very light on information of this kind. > You apply to your state emergency management agency. They are the > ones that actually issue them. They do have agreements with > hospitals, the phone company, cities and so on to have the appropriate > logos and authorizations placed on the employees regular ID badges. > This allows them to save a lot of money not issuing separate badges to > all those folks. You had better have a good reason to have that > badge. Saving your company a pile of money because you have to shut a > process down or something like that will not cut it. You have to be > part of something that will restore damaged public utilities, medical > aid, or other emergency type services. > --Dale Thanks, that helps. I do have a reason, other than money, and it is utilities related. Do you know what they would call the program? Thanks in advance. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 15:48:52 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: More U.S. Homes have Outhouses than Tivos / Analysts Mull Future MORE U.S. HOMES HAVE OUTHOUSES THAN TIVOS Analysts Mull Future Potential of PVR Ad-Zapping Technology November 04, 2002 QwikFIND ID: AAO17C By Bradley Johnson NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Who will win the battle of TiVo vs. ReplayTV? The answer could be: None of the above. While TiVo and Replay users enthuse about their personal video recorders, sales figures are not encouraging. PVR is a technology in search of a business model. Tom Edwards, senior analyst at researcher NPDTechworld, questions the future of standalone PVRs. Yet as an embedded technology, the PVR could be on its way to mainstream adoption, with broad implications for TV and advertising. Mr. Edwards sees good potential building the technology into other devices, such as cable set-top boxes, TVs, DVDs and satellite receivers. http://www.adage.com/news.cms?newsId=36471 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 15:39:05 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: TV Tower To Be Built In Times Square To Replace Antenna TV Tower To Be Built In Times Square To Replace Antenna Lost On 9/11 NOVEMBER 01, 2002 A new television tower could soon be going up in Times Square as a backup for stations that lost their antenna in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 22:49:58 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Distributed TiVo Code Cracking Distributed TiVo Code Cracking Posted by michael on Saturday November 02, @04:48AM from the wait-for-the-video dept. Twostep writes "With the newest version of the TiVo software (Version 3.2), TiVo has once again changed the secret password to enter "backdoor" mode, which lets advanced users enable hidden features. Unlike last time, people were not able to quickly find the new code, so a distributed computing project was started to find the backdoor codes. You can read about it Here, grab the Linux or Windows clients and pitch in some CPU time for a good cause." http://slashdot.org/articles/02/11/01/2329254.shtml?tid=129 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 00:37:05 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: The Big Picture The Big Picture Everything you need to know in HDTV. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2002/1111/141.html What's On Pros and cons for channel surfers. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2002/1111/144.html What's Coming More glorious displays, beefier DVDs. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2002/1111/146.html What's Tricky Wires, remotes and how to tweak the set. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2002/1111/148.html ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 00:34:43 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Hollywood Squares Hollywood Squares Dorothy Pomerantz, 11.11.02 Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner got rich off the Internet bubble and survived the crash. Now comes something really scary: They're gambling their loot in Hollywood. For internet billionaire Mark Cuban and his longtime partner, Todd Wagner, their September deal with CBS for a nine-episode remake of the cheesy old show Star Search seemed like yet another masterstroke of fortuitous timing. "CBS and billionaire Mark Cuban are on a talent hunt," the Hollywood Reporter swooned, noting how the deal was struck at the height of popularity of Fox's latter-day hit American Idol. It was just the latest addition to a Hollywood portfolio the two Internet tycoons have quietly been assembling for the past year. They own the rights to Star Search through the Rysher Entertainment film library, which they acquired from Cox Broadcasting for an undisclosed sum believed to be less than $300 million. Their new company, 2929 Productions, will produce the show, and they have taken a stake in a management company that will launch a Star Search road show nationwide. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2002/1111/050a.html ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 00:45:28 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Bottleneck Breakers Bottleneck Breakers Scott Woolley, 11.11.02 Efforts to wire U.S. homes with high-speed Internet access are foundering. New technology could help -- if only carriers could afford to buy it. The much-hyped broadband revolution is sputtering. Five years after cable companies and local phone giants first teased consumers with dreams of fat pipes beaming the Internet, on-demand video and hundreds of other services into the home, just 15% of U.S. households have signed up. In Canada, with lower prices and higher data speeds, usage is almost twice as high. A big reason for the disappointment: price. The U.S. has among the highest broadband prices in the industrialized world. Even in notoriously expensive Japan, monthly bills are about $28 compared with $40 to $50 in the U.S. Two years ago Americans were using broadband at 20 times the rate of the Japanese; now Japan has pulled virtually even and soon will eclipse us. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2002/1111/106.html ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 01:41:26 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Antenna System Is Said to Expand Wireless Internet Use Antenna System Is Said to Expand Wireless Internet Use By JOHN MARKOFF SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 3 - A start-up company plans to announce new antenna technology on Monday that it says can expand the limits of a popular wireless Internet format, providing access to hundreds or even thousands of portable computer users at distances of more than 2,000 feet within buildings and about four miles outdoors. The antenna uses the 802.11 technical standard, also known as Wi-Fi, which is currently limited to providing wireless Internet access to several dozen users within a few hundred feet of the transmitter. Wi-Fi is increasingly common in offices, airports, places like Starbucks shops and even in a growing number of households. Executives for the start-up company, Vivato, based here, said they expected their technology to be especially suited to office buildings because it would enable so many more people to use a single Wi-Fi Internet connection simultaneously. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/04/technology/04WIRE.html ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 01:43:43 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Marketers Try to Turn Web Pirates Into Customers Marketers Try to Turn Web Pirates Into Customers By AMY HARMON A growing group of online marketers have a new name for the millions of people who use Internet file-trading software to steal music: "customers." The ranks of these marketers include independent bands with little to lose and established companies like Microsoft. What they have in common is that they are starting to view the masses of Internet pirates as a possible source of revenue. They have begun to experiment with promoting their wares on file-trading services, which are typically used to obtain unauthorized copies of music, movies or software. Some entertainment industry officials condemn those marketing efforts as giving support to services that encourage the theft of other people's intellectual property. But the organizations promoting file-traders see it as a way to lure people away from piracy by providing them with authorized material to download - and, in some cases, asking them to pay for it. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/04/technology/04TUNE.html ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 20:17:46 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Sun, 03 Nov 2002 17:10:09 -0800, Two Buddha read a post from John Higdon , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > In article , Boo Phatty > wrote: >> I believe that some providers plug in 000's in the CNAM database >> instead of blank which generates "Caller ID Unavailable", ACR won't >> block either. > One has to wonder why anyone would take a call with this in the display. > I sure wouldn't. >> Marketing companies deliberatly request this and it *should* be >> illegal. It's not. > Actually, they can program their switches to send whatever number they > like. Correct. It *could* be the BTN on the switch side sending it, but in my experience, it's the carrier populating the CNAM ID with Zeros or not at all >> I checked into this this morning. It's legal. Perhaps a letter writing >> campaign to the FCC or the DTE/MA may help. I think it's a poor >> circumvention of ACR. I don't remember, but I believe in MA we PAY for >> ACR setup so this is "stealing" in my mind. > Anonymous Call Rejection is for anonymous calls. This is not; it is a > "misconfigured" call. Nothing forces you to answer it. If someone > transmits a fake CID that looks legitimate, then you might have a > case. > In article , joe@obilivan.net > wrote: >> Since the FCC never bothered to rule on PBXes and Caller ID (which they >> reserved in their 1995 decision) spoofing of calling party number on the >> PBX DOD trunks is likely a non-issue with the FCC, so long as it is not >> being done for criminal purposes. > That is indeed the case. There are so many exceptions and circumstances > regarding PBX programming that it would require an entire section of > rulemaking ... and for what? It is a non-problem. > John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS > +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 Today, Mon, 04 Nov 2002 00:35:30 GMT, Two Buddha read a post from tonypo1@cox.net, and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh, and: > In article , TELECOM Digest Editor > noted in response to boo@phatty.nl: >> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yes, it is stealing. Southwestern Bell >> charges for ACR also, then makes absolutely no effort to force callers >> to identify themselves or their company (or in many cases political >> organizations.) To SWB Telco, apparently 'Name Withheld', 'Notyur Biz' >> and 'Ben Dover' (when that last one is not verified as an actual person's >> name) are all legitmate ways to bypass caller-ID and the stupid sub- >> scribers who feel they are too busy to have to listen to political >> spiels or telemarketers. Yeah, it amounts to stealing what we paid >> for. PAT] > I find it interesting that in MA and KS you pay for ACR. Here in RI we > don't pay a dime for it. Just pick up the phone, punch *77 to enable, > *87 to disable and it works. It's a keymap problem i.e. you're not passing the codes to the line. Some PBX's can have their keymaps reprogrammed, some can't and force you to buy adjunct equipment to do such a thing. Like Siemens. :( > It's a major pain calling home from my office. Seems our G3i doesn't > like the * codes and so we have to punch 9+1182+phone number. Except it > doesn't always work. I've already defined a different ARS trunk group > with lines that are un-blocked but admin hasn't issued the request to > have those specific lines unblocked. When it is complete I can dial 9+ > for blocked, 8+ for unblocked. > I also get the 000-000-0000 calls. It's time to start leaning on our > legislators to give more enforcement options to utilities commissions. > As for stealing, anyone who calls me is stealing from me - it's taking > up my time. If it's a telemarketer I have a legitimate beef as the time > could otherwise be used for something more productive. ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 10:04:31 -0800 In article , tonypo1@cox.net wrote: > I also get the 000-000-0000 calls. It's time to start leaning on our > legislators to give more enforcement options to utilities commissions. Would you make it a crime to misconfigure a PBX? Isn't that a little draconian? John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: For a **DELIBERATE** misconfiguration, yes. Just as it is not a serious crime at all to overdraw your bank account and have a check or two bounce now and then, but it is a crime to continually and repeatedly write checks on an account where there is no money. That crosses the line from an accident to willful fraud. I would say 'accidental misconfigurations' of PBX could be treated as civil violations, let's say a $500 fine for each complaint against you until you get it resolved. This is equivilent to stores which accept your check as payment then have it bounce 'accidentally' because of your error. In Kansas and many other states, the store is allowed to collect a civil penalty up to three times the value of the check. That's the law's way of saying do your math a little better in the future. They're not interested in putting you in jail; just in getting it cleared. Deliberate or willful miscongurations of a PBX would be treated like any sort of willful behavior. If you wrote dozens of checks from a check book you 'happened to find' laying around somewhere, or opened an account with no money and started writing checks, that is deliberate and willful behavior. That's a crime. So should be the willful or deliberate misconfiguration of a PBX. What is deliberate behavior versus accidental behavior? That's for a judge to figure out if it goes that far. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Joey Lindstrom Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 12:14:43 -0700 Subject: Last Laugh! SpamAssassin Strikes Again Reply-To: joey@lairdsflooring.com On Sat, 2 Nov 2002 20:47:18 -0500 (EST), editor@telecom-digest.org wrote: > Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 22:42:44 -0500 (EST) > From: TELECOM Digest Editor > Subject: Last Laugh! Look What SpamAssasin Calls ***SPAM*** > SPAM: ----------------- Start SpamAssassin results ---------------------- > SPAM: This mail is probably spam. The original message has been altered > SPAM: so you can recognise or block similar unwanted mail in future. > SPAM: See http://spamassassin.org/tag/ for more details. > SPAM: Content analysis details: (7.30 hits, 5 required) > SPAM: TO_MALFORMED (-0.8 points) To: has a malformed address > SPAM: FROM_MALFORMED (2.2 points) From: has a malformed address > SPAM: SUBJ_MISSING (0.4 points) Subject: is empty or missing > SPAM: NO_COST (2.7 points) BODY: No such thing as a free lunch (3) > SPAM: CLICK_BELOW (0.3 points) BODY: Asks you to click below > SPAM: SPAM_PHRASE_05_08 (0.7 points) BODY: Spam phrases score is 05 to 08 (medium) > SPAM: [score: 6] > SPAM: FROM_AND_TO_SAME_5 (1.8 points) From and To are same (5) > SPAM: > SPAM: -------------------- End of SpamAssassin results -------------------- > From: Patrick Townson > Subject: Time to Ask For Help Once Again > Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 13:00:00 CST Well, after my rant about .info addresses not being automatically spam itself being flagged as spam, I feel MUCH MUCH better that you too got nailed. :-) Joey Lindstrom - Laird's Flooring joey@lairdsflooring.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yeah, but you see, the Computer has been taught what to do about mail from .info addresses ... into the bit bucket with you, as a Spammer! Not so from the traditional address blocks i.e. .edu, .com, .org,..net, .'various-countries'. It really should not have picked on me; I am one of the good guys. PAT] ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. 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All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #112 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Tue Nov 5 13:47:08 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA5Il8X04198; Tue, 5 Nov 2002 13:47:08 -0500 (EST) Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 13:47:08 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211051847.gA5Il8X04198@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #113 TELECOM Digest Tue, 5 Nov 2002 13:47:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 113 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service (Monty Solomon) AOL Loses Court Ruling on Internet Privacy Issue (Monty Solomon) Bravo Sale Seen Fueling More Cable Network Deals (Monty Solomon) AOL Latin America Reports Reduced Losses For 3rd Qtr 2002 (Monty Solomon) Nokia iGMLC Privacy Manager (Monty Solomon) SBC Internet Assurance and Security Center (IASC) (Monty Solomon) SpamCop (Monty Solomon) Online Job Listing an ID Theft Scam (Monty Solomon) The Two-Network Universe (Monty Solomon) Wi-Fi That Follows You Around (Monty Solomon) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (joe@obilivan.net) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (tonypo1@cox.net) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (Mark Crispin) Re: VoIP Test Equipment (Chip G) Re: Ameritech Problem Question (Steven J. Sobol) Re: Antenna System Is Said to Expand Wireless Internet (Marcus Jervis) Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine (AES) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 10:35:05 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service; #121 VoiceDial Service Now Available to Millions of Customers Across the Country - Nov 5, 2002 09:06 AM (BusinessWire) REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 5, 2002--Beginning today, millions of AT&T Wireless (NYSE:AWE) customers can enjoy the convenience of using their voices to dial the phone numbers of family, friends, and business associates. The new #121 VoiceDial service is the latest enhancement to the voice-activated services available from AT&T Wireless. #121 VoiceDial allows customers to store multiple numbers for as many as five hundred contacts enabling them to reach people whether at work, at home or on the go. After signing-up for the service, customers simply go to www.attwireless.com/voicedial to enter their contacts into a personalized address book, or they can dial "#121" on their wireless phones to add contact information right through their phones. In the coming months, the service will allow customers to import contact lists from popular desktop applications like Microsoft Outlook(R) and Lotus Notes(R). The new service also allows customers to call a number simply by saying the number, such as "Call 999-555-1212." - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29463459 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 23:23:51 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: AOL Loses Court Ruling on Internet Privacy Issue By Reshma Kapadia NEW YORK, Nov 4 (Reuters) - A Virginia Supreme Court ruled against America Online in its efforts to protect the identity of one of its 35 million subscribers by asking the court to quash a subpoena calling for the member's name in an issue that goes to the heart of the anonymity of the Internet. The ruling against the world's largest Internet service provider, based in Dulles, Virginia, was the latest in the evolution of privacy laws as they pertain to the Internet and identities of Web surfers, privacy experts said. "The law is very unsettled and still being written. Any decision by the highest court of any state -- particularly the one where AOL resides -- is significant," said David Sobel, general counsel at Electronic Privacy Information Center. The Virginia Supreme Court sided with a lower California court's ruling that supported Nam Tai Electronics Inc.'s (NASDAQ:NTAI) request to subpoena the identity of an AOL user as part of a complaint that alleged libel, trade libel and violations of California's unfair business practice statutes. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29455330 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 23:30:54 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Bravo Sale Seen Fueling More Cable Network Deals By Jeffrey Goldfarb NEW YORK, Nov 4 (Reuters) - As viewers flip around the ever-expanding line-up of stations to watch, cable executives are also likely to keep changing channels -- by selling them. NBC's $1.25 billion acquisition of the arts channel Bravo from Cablevision Systems Corp. (NYSE:CVC) on Monday could prompt further sales as cable providers ponder an attractive market in which to sell their valuable networks to pay off the whopping debt they have incurred to improve their systems. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29452765 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 23:33:02 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: AOL Latin America Reports Reduced Losses For Third Quarter 2002 FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 4, 2002-- Targeted Marketing to Higher Value Members and Operating Efficiencies Contribute to Reduced Losses; AOL Puerto Rico Posts Second Consecutive Quarter of Profitability America Online Latin America, Inc. (NASDAQ-SCM: AOLA) today reported narrowed per-share losses for the third quarter ended September 30, 2002, and reaffirmed that the Company expects current funding to allow it to finance operations into the fourth quarter of 2003. These results mark AOL Latin America's ninth straight quarter of narrowed per-share losses. The Company's third quarter net loss applicable to common stockholders narrowed by more than 45% to $39.9 million, or $0.59 per class A common share, basic and diluted, compared with a loss of $73.7 million, or $1.10 per share, for the quarter ended September 30, 2001, and nearly 11% from a loss of $44.6 million, or $0.66 per share, in the second quarter ended June 30, 2002. The Company's third quarter net loss before dividends on preferred stock was $35.2 million, or $0.10 per share, on a pro forma fully diluted basis, improving from a loss of $69.1 million, or $0.21 per share, on the same basis a year ago, and a loss of $39.9 million, or $0.12 per share last quarter. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29450039 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 23:45:30 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Nokia iGMLC Privacy Manager Nokia Introduces New Solutions for Operators and Enterprises; Focus on Privacy, Presence, Mobile Web Services and Security Tools - Nov 4, 2002 12:08 PM (BusinessWire) HELSINKI, Finland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 4, 2002--Nokia today introduced tools for managing subscriber privacy, mobile Web service interfaces and presence management enabling operators to enhance the service offering for their subscribers with new mobile applications and content. In addition, Nokia launched three new mobile enhancements and two mobile security tools for enterprises. For more information please see the related press releases at: http://press.nokia.com/pressreleases.html New Nokia solutions for operator markets The Nokia iGMLC Privacy Manager, as part of the Nokia mPosition solution for mobile location services, gives mobile subscribers full control over their privacy settings by providing location information about a subscriber only if the subscriber has agreed. Subscribers can feel assured that they retain the "ownership" of their location information as it is used by the operator only with permission. Furthermore the subscriber will be able to create his or her own privacy manager settings by defining by whom, when and where the subscriber can be located. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29444541 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 23:48:37 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: SBC Internet Assurance and Security Center (IASC) SBC Launches Research And Development Test Bed To Develop New Layers Of Internet Security - Nov 4, 2002 09:03 AM (BusinessWire) AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 4, 2002-- Vice-Chairman of President's Critical Infrastructure Protection Board Endorses Effort To Protect Internet Users, Networks From Rising Tide of Security Violations SBC Communications Inc. (NYSE:SBC) today announced the formation of an Internet security test bed designed to uncover new and innovative ways to expand the scope and effectiveness of cyber-security technology. The project, known as the Internet Assurance and Security Center (IASC), will be designed and managed by SBC Technology Resources Inc., SBC's research and development center based in Austin. SBC is launching the IASC program in response to the rising tide of Internet security violations, such as viruses, worms and denial-of- service attacks. The CERT Coordination Center, an organization that documents security vulnerabilities, says Internet security violations more than double each year. According to cyber-security experts, the recent Bugbear virus is the most severe widespread attack to occur in 2002. Less than one week after it first appeared, the virus had grown exponentially, affecting millions of users around the world. Howard Schmidt, Vice Chairman of President Bush's Critical Infrastructure Protection Board, met with SBC officials last month to review plans for the IASC and other security efforts being implemented by the company. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29439955 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 00:59:34 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: SpamCop Politech incorrectly blocked by SpamCop -- for the third time Mon, 4 Nov 2002 10:20:56 -0500 (EST) http://www.politechbot.com/p-04121.html Ray Everett-Church on systemic problems with SpamCop Mon, 4 Nov 2002 15:53:51 -0500 (EST) http://www.politechbot.com/p-04126.html Paul Levy on why SpamCop is liable for its overbroad "spam" lists Mon, 4 Nov 2002 22:55:57 -0500 (EST) http://www.politechbot.com/p-04128.html Why not to use SpamCop -- some first-hand accounts Mon, 4 Nov 2002 23:20:27 -0500 (EST) http://www.politechbot.com/p-04129.html ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 01:29:52 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Online job listing an ID theft scam 'Background check' used to steal full slate of personal info By Bob Sullivan MSNBC Nov. 4 - It was just the job lead Jim needed: a marketing manager position with Arthur Gallagher, a leading international insurance broker. And only days after Jim responded to the job posting on Monster.com, a human resources director sent along a promising e-mail. We're interested in you, the note said. The salary is negotiable, the clients big. In fact, the clients are so valuable and sensitive that you'll have to submit to a background check as part of the interview process. Eager for work, Jim complied - and sent off just about every key to his digital identity, including his age, height, weight, Social Security number, bank account numbers, even his mother's maiden name. IT WAS ALL JUST an elaborate identity theft scam designed to prey on the most vulnerable potential victims -- the increasing ranks of the unemployed. http://www.msnbc.com/news/830411.asp ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 01:44:17 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: The Two-Network Universe TELEVISION The Two-Network Universe; NBC and CBS have 19 of the top 20 rated TV shows. FORTUNE Monday, November 11, 2002 By Marc Gunther Remember when people forecast a 500-channel universe? They guessed low: Nielsen currently tracks 561 national, regional, and local networks that compete for the attention of America's TV viewers. But just two of them -- NBC and CBS -- tower over the rest as never before. Three weeks into the 2002-03 TV season, NBC and CBS are the only networks averaging more than ten million viewers in prime time. (CBS has 13.2 million; NBC, 12.3 million.) In a business driven by hits, they have nine of the top ten rated shows, and 19 of the top 20. They command premium prices from advertisers. And they are the only two broadcast networks making money. http://www.fortune.com/indexw.jhtml?channel=artcol.jhtml&doc_id=210090 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 02:08:38 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Wi-Fi That Follows You Around By Paul Boutin 02:00 AM Nov. 04, 2002 PT San Francisco -- Vivato, a startup company packed with industry veterans including Wi-Fi Forum founder Phil Belanger, will announce new base station technology that can provide wide area coverage for existing Wi-Fi laptops and other computers. Using a computer-controlled antenna array, Vivato's prototype bases can reach large groups of users on existing laptops and other computers, with an operating range up to 7 kilometers outdoors, the company claims. In a recent demo, Vivato employees demonstrated working wireless coverage inside a five-story building in San Francisco from a single base station across the street. The base transmits around 30 milliwatts of radiation, less than many consumer base stations. The key element is the antenna -- more specifically, an electronically steered, planar-phased array of hundreds of antennas connected to a high-speed processor running Linux. http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,56166,00.html ------------------------------ From: joe@obilivan.net Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 01:55:00 GMT Organization: Cox Communications Well put, John. John Higdon wrote: > In article , Boo Phatty > wrote: >> I believe that some providers plug in 000's in the CNAM database >> instead of blank which generates "Caller ID Unavailable", ACR won't >> block either. > One has to wonder why anyone would take a call with this in the display. > I sure wouldn't. >> Marketing companies deliberatly request this and it *should* be >> illegal. It's not. > Actually, they can program their switches to send whatever number they > like. >> I checked into this this morning. It's legal. Perhaps a letter writing >> campaign to the FCC or the DTE/MA may help. I think it's a poor >> circumvention of ACR. I don't remember, but I believe in MA we PAY for >> ACR setup so this is "stealing" in my mind. > Anonymous Call Rejection is for anonymous calls. This is not; it is a > "misconfigured" call. Nothing forces you to answer it. If someone > transmits a fake CID that looks legitimate, then you might have a > case. > In article , joe@obilivan.net > wrote: >> Since the FCC never bothered to rule on PBXes and Caller ID (which they >> reserved in their 1995 decision) spoofing of calling party number on the >> PBX DOD trunks is likely a non-issue with the FCC, so long as it is not >> being done for criminal purposes. > That is indeed the case. There are so many exceptions and circumstances > regarding PBX programming that it would require an entire section of > rulemaking ... and for what? It is a non-problem. > John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS > +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 ------------------------------ From: tonypo1@cox.net Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: The Ace Tomatoe and Cement Company Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 03:22:05 GMT In article , no- spam@amadeus.kome.com says: > In article , tonypo1@cox.net wrote: >> I also get the 000-000-0000 calls. It's time to start leaning on our >> legislators to give more enforcement options to utilities commissions. > Would you make it a crime to misconfigure a PBX? Isn't that a little > draconian? No, the way I'd set it up is you get one warning. If you repeatedly send false CLID information then the penalties kick in per occurence. Make it something on the order of $25 per reported incident. Not enough to bankrupt but enough of an accounting problem to be a real pain in the butt for telemarketers who think they can get around things like ACR. Tony ------------------------------ From: Mark Crispin Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 20:28:46 -0800 Organization: Networks and Distributed Computing On Mon, 4 Nov 2002, John Higdon wrote: > Would you make it a crime to misconfigure a PBX? Yes, I would. > Isn't that a little draconian? No, not at all. If PBX owners want the luxury of running their own little telco, they should expect to be accountable. If they can not or will not, then they should buy individual phone lines from the telco. If PBX owners can not (or will not) clean up their act, there are quite a few more steps that can (and should) be taken. -- Mark -- http://staff.washington.edu/mrc Science does not emerge from voting, party politics, or public debate. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Exactly ... and I might go one step further. Telcos like SWB are infamous for selling services they cannot or do not back up; like Privacy Manager. I would require the telcos to put manual entries in their database of those 'special' names a lot of telemarketers/others like to use; names such as 'Name Unavailable', 'Name Withheld', etc. Not all of us have a caller ID box right in front of our faces all the time when a phone rings, so we cannot always go looking for an ID box before deciding whether we should ignore the 'obviously bogus' call. PAT ------------------------------ From: Chip G Subject: Re: VoIP Test Equipment Organization: AT&T Broadband Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 15:02:04 GMT Avaya has several network analysis capabilities to ensure that networks are "VoIP ready". The last time I talked with them they called them CIRS and NANO. I believe these were all service based (as opposed to equipment that they would sell to you). Perhaps if you talk to them about the service you can get them to tell you what equipment/software they use. Hope this helps, Chip Andrew wrote in message news:telecom22.112.7@telecom-digest.org: > Does anyone know of some good "end-to-end" VoIP testing equipment > vendors that I can get in touch with? (SIP protocol analysis, packet > extraction and bulk generator, round trip delay and voice quality > measurements.) ------------------------------ From: sjsobol@JustThe.net (Steven J. Sobol) Subject: Re: Ameritech Problem Question Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 02:54:12 -0000 Organization: JustThe.net LLC Ed Ellers wrote: > Gil Knops wrote: >> I still, to this day cannot understand, that if I did the right >> thing in calling, changing my ISP dialup number and relying on >> information from Ameritech that I could get screwed over like this. >> Today this is reflected on my credit history. I have a bad debt of >> almost 5000 dollars. Is there anything that I can do? Can I take >> them to court for this? What am I to do with a messed up company >> like that?" > Only thing I can suggest is complaining to your state's regulatory > commission; even that may not do much good (much less going to court) > without some evidence that an Ameritech employee advised you that that > was a local number for you. I don't know which state the OP is in, since I somehow missed the original post, but Ohio's PUC is really good about following through on Ameritech cases. I believe they have a couple people specifically assigned to handle SouthWorstern Beast AmeriBlech complaints (and that should surprise no one). > the person after they do a major screw-up like this rather than > attempt to train the rep to give intelligent/accurate answers? PAT] That assumes intelligent/accurate management! Steve Sobol, CTO JustThe.net LLC, Mentor On The Lake, OH http://JustTheNetLLC.com/ (check out the new site!) 888.480.4NET (4638) Just another deer caught in the headlights on the Information Superhighway [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: If you recall, years ago when you had a really serious complaint you could make a 'management complaint' or an appeal to the Chairman's Office. You would nearly always get your way as a result. No longer ... :( where before they had one or two highly placed flunkies who sat outside the chairman's office with instructions to 'do what it takes to get rid of those complainers'. They were author- orized to write off anything and everything. As the general public became aware of this technique, and saw how easily telco management could be bullied and intimidated the public began using it a lot. Now I think they have wised up, and not caring as much about their pristine reputation as the old Bell System did, they have started getting tougher and meaner. There are almost as many reps assigned now to management complaints and commission complaints as there are to general business office matters. And whoever said (quote) "most state commissions are only flunkies in telco's employ themselves, but with a wee bit more authority to resolve the most egregarious matters" was quite correct. To our original correspondent: Yeah, tell the commission. They'll say how sorry they are to hear of your complaint; they'll actually phone the service rep (they deal with as a commission) and relay it to her again. After that service rep tells the commission she will look into the 'problem' the commission employee will call you back and hasten to assure you that telco 'has assured us they are going to resolve it' then she will wash her hands and be done with the matter (and you). And that is the last you will hear of it until a collection agency somewhere comes demanding their money. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Marcus Jervis Subject: Re: Antenna System Is Said to Expand Wireless Internet Use Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 03:15:58 +0000 > SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 3 - A start-up company plans to announce new > antenna technology on Monday that it says can expand the limits of a > popular wireless Internet format, providing access to hundreds or > even thousands of portable computer users at distances of more than > 2,000 feet within buildings and about four miles outdoors. > The antenna uses the 802.11 technical standard, also known as Wi-Fi, > which is currently limited to providing wireless Internet access to > several dozen users within a few hundred feet of the transmitter. > Wi-Fi is increasingly common in offices, airports, places like > Starbucks shops and even in a growing number of households. How do Wi-Fi networks expand to 2,000 feet, or even four miles, and still use Part 15 devices? Don't Part 15 regulations for license-free devices limit you to using the radiator that is part of the registered device? If you attach an outside antenna with gain to a Part 15 device, then it isn't really a legally license-free device anymore, is it? Will folks who put up big outside networks with lots of range from each node really be able to continue to do this legally? And doesn't the whole concept of a Part 15 license-free service demand that the devices be low power and radiate over a small area, or else everyone starts interfering with everyone else? ------------------------------ From: AES Newspost Subject: Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine Date: Mon, 04 Nov 2002 20:06:32 -0800 In article , Jay Hennigan wrote: >> Bottom line, however, is that the phone line must go from the wall >> *through* the fax machine to the phone/answering machine; they can't >> be plugged into the wall in different rooms. > I don't see why this is necessary if it works as you describe. If the > fax in this mode and the answering machine are both just bridged on > the line and a fax call comes in, the answering machine will pick up. > The fax is there silently listening for fax tone, bridged. If it > hears fax tone, it goes off-hook. > The answering machine senses the drop in voltage and disconnects, just > as it would if an extension were lifted off-hook. If a human answers, > the same thing happens, and the human hangs up when he hears the sound > of modems mating. > If the fax has such a mode, try it just in parallel and see if it works. The reason I wrote such a lengthy description is that I have tried it in parallel, and it doesn't work. You must go _thru_ the fax, then to the answering machine, for it work properly. Your reply makes me realize, however, that while I think I have properly described what the fax machine does (functionally), I may not in fact fully understand how it does it (internally). In the bridged situation, however, is it not the case that when the answering machine "picks up", the drop in voltage has already occurred as a result of the answering machine's having answered? So, although the fax, hearing the fax tone, can start taking in electrons and trying to process them, it has no way to tell the answering machine to stop playing it's annoying message (which may screw up the fax transmission?). "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts absolutely." Lord Acton (1834-1902) (slightly modified) "Dependence on advertising tends to corrupt. Total dependence on advertising corrupts totally." -- Modern equivalent. ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. 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End of TELECOM Digest V22 #113 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Wed Nov 6 18:28:56 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA6NSuE22385; Wed, 6 Nov 2002 18:28:56 -0500 (EST) Date: Wed, 6 Nov 2002 18:28:56 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211062328.gA6NSuE22385@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #114 TELECOM Digest Wed, 6 Nov 2002 18:29:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 114 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Towns & Townships - Summary (Neal McLain) Wasting Bandwidth (Joey Lindstrom) Looking For Problem Stories Dealing With Altigen Phones (AltigenSucks) Philips and Cingular Wireless Demonstrate Single Antenna (Monty Solomon) Re: AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service (Joseph) Re: VoIP Test Equipment (Phil McKerracher) Doing Error Correction (Matt) Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to Existing Answering Machine (Gail M. Hall) Meridian M2616 Work as Home Phone? (Dao) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 11:05:31 -0600 From: Neal McLain Reply-To: nmclain@annsgarden.com Organization: Ann's Garden Subject: Towns & Townships - Summary Thanks to everybody who commented on the Towns and Townships series, and a special thanks to PAT for his kind words. Following is a summary of the comments I received: Garrett Wollman wrote: > In article you write: >> state. Many heavily-urbanized townships provide a full >> range of municipal services, and are virtually >> indistinguishable from incorporated cities (e.g. Town >> of Stoughton, MA; Hamilton Township, NJ; Upper Darby >> Township, PA). > Actually, in Vermont, they are not just 'virtually' > indistinguishable: incorporated towns are *legally* > indistinguishable from cities. The only difference > between the two forms is that a town operates under > a legal instrument (a charter enacted by the state > legislature) calling it a 'town', whereas a city's > charter calls it a 'city'. > It is similar in Massachusetts, except that the Massachusetts > constitution restricts the forms of government permissible in > towns and cities: a town must have a 'town meeting' or > 'representative town meeting' form of government, whereas a > city must have a council government (with or without an > elected mayor). State law sets out a few 'model plans' for > city government which most cities have. City and > 'representative town meeting' forms of government are > relatively new in Massachusetts; originally 'town meeting' > was the only form of local government. In the early nineteenth > century, as many towns attained populations too large to support > direct democracy, the other forms were introduced as reforms > which could be voluntary adopted by communities at need. My point is that 'heavily urbanized' townships are 'virtually indistinguishable' from cities precisely because they *are* heavily urbanized. Compare, for example, Town of Stoughton with City of Brockton: the average person driving from one to the other probably wouldn't notice much difference (I didn't the first time I drove through there several years ago). By contrast, towns that are primarily rural are definitely distinguishable from cities even if their governmental structures are the same. Compare, for example, Town of Windsor (Berkshire County) with either Stoughton or Brockton. > In some cases, the communities were so attached to the 'town' > moniker that they kept it even after re-chartering as cities; > hence, special legislation calls those towns out as 'the City > called 'The Town of Watertown'' etc. Thanks for the clarification. I wasn't aware of the "City called The Town of Watertown" terminology for cities calling themselves towns, so I expected that Watertown would just be called "Town of Watertown." According to the Commonwealth's official county/township map at , Watertown is described as one of a group of Massachusetts cities that "although they have city forms of government, these communities officially refer to themselves as towns." Hence, "Town of Watertown." Mark Brader wrote: > That was quite the essay by Neal McLain. Much appreciated. > I would love to see a similar description of Canada's provinces; > I think there would be some similarities. I agree: I'd love to see a similar description for Canada. I suspect that we could trace Canada's county subdivision system back to England too. I'd also like to see an explanation of the subdivisions within England itself. I understand that England's counties grew out of the original shires, but the system of subdivisions within counties is a maze I've never been able to figure out. And how do the subdivision systems of England compare with Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and, for that matter, the rest of Ireland? The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition (on-line version) offers some information, but it's certainly not comprehensive. . > Two comments: >> There are "governmental townships" (properly called "civil >> townships," but often called "towns") in just about every >> state in the northeast, the Midwest, and the Great Plains. ... >> The combination of civil townships and incorporated >> municipalities forms a continuous web covering the entire >> state and every county within it ... > The above applies to Ontario, except for the terminology. Here, > a "town" is a type of incorporated municipality (intermediate > between a city and a village); a "township" is a civil township. >> BOROUGH: >> - In New York, one of five former counties that have been >> incorporated into the City of New York: >> Bronx County (Bronx Borough) >> Kings County (Brooklyn Borough) >> New York County (Manhattan Borough) >> Queens County (Queens Borough)s >> Richmond County (Richmond Borough) >> Richmond County is coextensive with, and commonly >> known as, Staten Island. > They are still officially counties as well as boroughs (just as > San Francisco is officially a "city and county"). Richmond > County is still the correct name, but the corresponding borough > was renamed Staten Island in 1975. I won't > get into "Bronx" vs. "the Bronx" here. Thanks for pointing this out. I guess this is the bane of writers everywhere: check, double-check, triple-check, but stupid errors still creep in. I also omitted Philadelphia. The City of Philadelphia and the County of Philadelphia were consolidated in 1854, but whether that makes Philadelphia an "independent city" or a "consolidated city-county" still isn't clear to me. David W. Tamkin wrote: > Thank you very much for your articles on townships and local > government structures. You wrote in what became > in comp.dcom.telecom: >> VILLAGE. An incorporated municipality identified as a >> "village" under state law. In popular culture, villages are >> usually thought of as small communities (certainly smaller >> than cities), but this distinction is largely cultural rather >> than legal. In Illinois, many large Chicago suburbs are >> incorporated as villages: Village of Skokie; Village of >> Hinsdale; Village of Oak Park. In terms of population, the >> Village of Niles, Illinois is larger than the City of Niles, >> Michigan. [19] > While some of our larger suburbs are villages, some of the > smaller ones are cities. Rolling Meadows, Berwyn, and Prospect > Heights are three cities each outpopulated by two or more > bordering villages. > My understanding as a lifelong Illinoisan is that, under our > state law, a village is an incorporated municipality whose > legislative body (commonly called the village board) is elected > at-large, while a city is divided geo-graphically into wards, > each of which elects an alderman to the city council. > Converting from village to city requires reincorporating under > a new charter (for example, Chicago was incorporated as a > village in 1833 and reincorporated as a city in 1837). > Other than reincorporating a village as a city, Illinois has > no provision for dissolving a municipal government. Some > municipalities have dwindled in population to the point where > there is nothing to govern and it's an annoyance to keep up the > form (there are examples where a village is down to two > residents). Thank you for this explanation. Gregory Edwards wrote: > This was an interesting series of articles. > I think California "The Bear Republic" should also be > listed as a country before joining the US. I have been > to several of the battle sites for the Califorina War > of Independence. My research indicates that "The Bear Republic" (or "The California Republic") was not an official national government. In a subsequent message, Greg added: > I'm not sure what an official national goverment was then > (now it is being on the ARRL DX list, right?). I'd say it means being listed in the current edition of the CIA's "World Factbook": . > As I remember Califorina was independent for a little while > before joining the US (the people wanted to, even the head of > the Mexican goverment in Califorina, a General Vallejo), but > they had to do something until Congress acted. As I understand it, six significant events led to the admission of California as a state: - May 13, 1846: After continuing disputes with Mexico over the location of the boundary between Texas and Mexico, the U.S. Congress declared war on Mexico. [1,2] - June 14, 1846: A group of "thirty rough-hewn American settlers" captured Colonel Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo at his "casa grande" in Sonoma, hoisted the "Bear Flag" over the casa, and proclaimed California to be the "California Republic." [3] - July 9, 1846: U.S. Naval forces took over Sonoma and replaced the Bear Flag with the U.S. flag, thus establishing the United States Government's dominion over California. [3] - February 2, 1848: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo formally ended U.S.-Mexican War. Mexico ceded to the United States the lands that would become parts of Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming. [2,3] - September 1849: "Forty-eight prominent Californians" (including Vallejo, presumably no longer a colonel) met in Monterey to draft a state (or territorial) constitution for California. [3] - September 9, 1850: California was admitted to the U.S. as a state, bypassing over the territorial stage. [3] If we accept the proposition that "thirty rough-hewn American settlers" constitutes an official national government, then Greg is correct in stating that "Califorina (sic) was independent for a little while before joining the US": it was the independent "California Republic" for about three weeks in 1846. But from 1846 to 1850, California was under the control of the United States government, even though it was neither a state nor a territory. So I don't think we can say that it was "independent" during this period. An upcoming video history of the U.S.-Mexican War: "Shaping of America: U.S. History to 1877 - Moving Westward" PBSYOU (DirecTV 377; Dish Network 9402) Saturday, November 9, 11:30 am EDT/8:30 am PDT. References: [1] "The U.S.-Mexican War (1846-1848)." Web Site produced for PBS Online by KERA, Dallas/Fort Worth. . [2] "Shaping of America: U.S. History to 1877 - Moving Westward," Program #118. Dallas County Community College District. [3] James J. Rawls: "California History Online." (c)2000 California Historical Society. All rights reserved. . Two particularly relevant pages are: Al Gillis wrote: > I, too, enjoyed "Towns and Townships". > Thanks to Neal for the excellent effort and to Pat for > pushing it to the top! > Al :) :) :) :) :) Neal McLain nmclain@annsgarden.com ------------------------------ From: Joey Lindstrom Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 13:25:03 -0700 Subject: Wasting Bandwidth Reply-To: joey@lairdsflooring.com On Tue, 5 Nov 2002 13:47:08 EST, joe@obilivan.net wrote: > Well put, John. > John Higdon wrote: This reminds me of an early Dilbert strip. He receives an email from the sysadmin of the company network. It's a broadcast email to all users of the system. It says "Please refrain from frivolous email, it bogs down the network". Dilbert agrees with this sentiment, so he writes an email: "I agree!" and sends it to the sysadmin ... with a CC: to every user on the network. Recently we've had a bit of a debate on how exactly to position Monty Solomon's (sp?) posts -- either all together as a single post, or as one separate post for each one. The debate revolved around what method made it easiest to read what one wants and skip what one does not want, the idea being people wanted a quick and easy way to NOT DOWNLOAD (and thus not waste bandwidth) on articles they neither want nor need. We never got around to debating how to not download messages which simply say "Well put!" and then follow up with four pages of unnecessary quotes. I guess it's time for a new debate. I for one am glad that Pat does not censor this forum, but I'm starting to wonder if we need to ask him to set up a garbage filter. An increasing number of people seem to be doing this these days, and each time it happens, it makes the sender look like a backward grade-six student. C'mon folks ... a bit more care, please? If you're going to take the time and trouble to post something here (and thus take OUR time and trouble to read it), at least try to add something to the conversation. We don't have to agree with what you say, but as long as you actually say something, and don't simply regurgitate everything the last twelve people have said, we'll be happy. :-) Joey Lindstrom - Laird's Flooring joey@lairdsflooring.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Actually Joey, I *do* run a garbage dump here. You might be amazed (or maybe you would not be) at how many lines beginning '>' I whack out of the posts here. An old rule in the days of Usenet was never submit a message where you have more lines of original text than you have of reply text. In other words, 50/50 ratio at best, preferably much less original text than reply. I do cut out huge amounts of repitious text. Probably not as much as I should ... (: PAT] ------------------------------ From: altigensucks@yahoo.com (AltigenSucks) Subject: Looking for Problem Stories Dealing With Altigen Phone Systems Date: 5 Nov 2002 09:37:54 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Please send your negative stories to altigensucks@yahoo.com. I have had nothing but problems with this marginal phone system since I installed it and I am looking at starting a web page concerning this company. Any thing you supply me will be kept confidential if you request it. This system looks so good on the outside but is such a POS on the inside. Buyer beware. A.S. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 15:08:28 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Philips and Cingular Wireless Demonstrate Single Antenna Philips and Cingular Wireless Demonstrate Single Antenna Interference Cancellation Technology to Increase GSM Voice Capacity, Improve Voice Quality, and Speed Data Downloads - Nov 5, 2002 01:00 PM (BusinessWire) SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 5, 2002-- Cingular Wireless Completes Successful Trial Of Philips' New Interference Cancellation Chips for GSM/GPRS Mobile Handsets Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE:PHG)(AEX:PHI) and Cingular Wireless today reached an industry first with a successful commercial network field trial of single antenna interference cancellation (SAIC) chips for next generation GSM/GPRS mobile phones. This new semiconductor technology improves voice quality, decreases download times for data and increases the number of calls supported on the network for greater all-around efficiency. The technology will be part of Philips' cellular semiconductor baseband and system solutions offered to cellular handset manufacturers globally. The Cingular trials were conducted on cellular prototypes from Philips. Philips' technology enables mobile handsets to remove interference from undesired signals while efficiently focussing on the signals from the most appropriate base station. It provides network operators with shorter download times over GPRS data channels and offers more robust GSM communications, including Adaptive Multi-Rate (AMR) speech channels which translate into higher spectral efficiency allowing operators to carry more calls per base station. As a result, network capacity can be increased and service quality improved for cellular subscribers. The first trial of this technology was performed in Georgia, in North America by Cingular Wireless, a leader in mobile voice and data communications. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29468661 ------------------------------ From: Joseph Subject: Re: AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 13:36:05 -0800 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Reply-To: joeofseattle@yahoo.com On Tue, 5 Nov 2002 10:35:05 -0500, Monty Solomon wrote: > AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service; #121 > VoiceDial Service Now Available to Millions of Customers Across > the Country > - Nov 5, 2002 09:06 AM (BusinessWire) Why is this news? Sprint PCS has had this service for quite some time already. Replies are seldom read. Please reply in the group ------------------------------ From: Phil McKerracher Subject: Re: VoIP Test Equipment Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 22:49:26 GMT Organization: blueyonder (post doesn't reflect views of blueyonder) Andrew wrote in message news:telecom22.112.7@telecom-digest.org: > Does anyone know of some good "end-to-end" VoIP testing equipment > vendors that I can get in touch with? (SIP protocol analysis, packet > extraction and bulk generator, round trip delay and voice quality > measurements.) No, but I know a man who does. E-mail me for details (return address is valid). Phil McKerracher www.mckerracher.org ------------------------------ From: cheetah@cs.ucsb.edu (Matt) Subject: Doing Error Correction Date: 5 Nov 2002 14:52:49 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ I am transmitting a small group of data in a highly noisy environment. I have about 10 bits I need tranmitted reliably, and can send up to 32 bits of data to get it done. I have looked into using Reed-Solomon forward-error correcting, but due to the block-coding nature it doesn't work well with bit data. Does anyone have any tips on a good way to transmit a small amount of bit data reliably through possibly very heavy noise? Thanks. ------------------------------ From: Gail M. Hall Subject: Re: Connecting a FAX Machine to an Existing Answering Machine Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 19:13:35 -0500 Reply-To: gmhall@apk.net On Mon, 04 Nov 2002 20:06:32 -0800, in comp.dcom.telecom, you (AES Newspost ) wrote: > In article , Jay Hennigan > wrote: >>> Bottom line, however, is that the phone line must go from the wall >>> *through* the fax machine to the phone/answering machine; they can't >>> be plugged into the wall in different rooms. >> I don't see why this is necessary if it works as you describe. If the >> fax in this mode and the answering machine are both just bridged on >> the line and a fax call comes in, the answering machine will pick up. >> The fax is there silently listening for fax tone, bridged. If it >> hears fax tone, it goes off-hook. >> The answering machine senses the drop in voltage and disconnects, just >> as it would if an extension were lifted off-hook. If a human answers, >> the same thing happens, and the human hangs up when he hears the sound >> of modems mating. >> If the fax has such a mode, try it just in parallel and see if it works. > The reason I wrote such a lengthy description is that I have tried it > in parallel, and it doesn't work. You must go _thru_ the fax, then to > the answering machine, for it work properly. I think it depends on the fax machine. I have an old Sharp fax machine that has three modes. One is called "manual" where it is up to me to pick up and press a button to receive the fax. You use this when you plan to use the fax for both voice and fax but have no answering machine. Another mode is automatic pickup which answers the phone on the first ring and immediately gives out its fax sounds to let the other fax machine know it can send. The third mode is for when you have an answering machine attached to the fax machine. You set the answering machine to pick up right away and the fax machine "listens" for a fax tone from the other end. You set up your answering machine to answer immediately and play a message telling the person, "If you want to send a fax, press SEND now. If you want to leave a voice message, wait for the beep." If the fax machine does not hear the fax tone from the other end, it just sits there and does not interrupt anything. If the fax machine hears a fax tone, it acts like someone has picked up, which tells the answering machine to stop playing the message. I thought the user's manual explained the setup very well. > Your reply makes me realize, however, that while I think I have > properly described what the fax machine does (functionally), I may not > in fact fully understand how it does it (internally). I, too, don't know the technicalities, but if other fax machines work like mine does, this is a pretty good guide. The real case may depend on the make and model of the individual fax machine, so the best course is to look up in the manual how to set things up. If a fax machine does not have the "answering machine" feature, you need another gadget that can detect the difference between a fax tone and a voice call. I think most of those gadgets require you to have subscribed to "distinctive ring," which costs extra where I live. I think there are some fax machines that contain an answering machine within them so you don't have to have a stand-alone answering machine. I haven't shopped for fax machines lately, so don't know if they still make those. > In the bridged situation, however, is it not the case that when the > answering machine "picks up", the drop in voltage has already occurred > as a result of the answering machine's having answered? > So, although the fax, hearing the fax tone, can start taking in > electrons and trying to process them, it has no way to tell the > answering machine to stop playing it's annoying message (which may > screw up the fax transmission?). Somehow, the fax machine in its innards has a way of telling the answering machine that "someone" has picked up the phone or not, and stops giving out the message if it doesn't "hear" that "someone" picked up the phone. As long as there is no fax tone, the fax machine doesn't do anything but listen. Any answering machine that doesn't detect when someone picks up the phone and stops the message should be returned so you can get one that works the way it should. I think you might have a problem if you have an extension somewhere else in the house. I have an answering machine now that sometimes doesn't detect that someone answered the other extension, and I have to click the off-hook/on-hook button a couple times to stop the message from playing. I also discovered that my fax machine would not work on my phone line that has extensions. I don't know why, but it just wouldn't. Gail in Ohio USA ------------------------------ From: navarram@bellsouth.net (Dao) Subject: Meridian M2616 Work as Home Phone? Date: 5 Nov 2002 16:16:54 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ I have a Meridian M2616 that my company gave to me as a parting gift. I tried plugging it in to my phone line at home, but it doesn't work. Do these phones require a special line/adapter? Is there a way to make it work at home? Thanks in advancE! [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: If the Meridian M2616 is a digital phone then it will not work at all on a home phone line. It would work on a 'special line', i.e. a digital line, but I do not think there is such a thing as a 'special adapter' to use with it. Someone who might know better can correct me on this. PAT] ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #114 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Thu Nov 7 02:12:50 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA77Cou09738; Thu, 7 Nov 2002 02:12:50 -0500 (EST) Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 02:12:50 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211070712.gA77Cou09738@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #115 TELECOM Digest Thu, 7 Nov 2002 02:13:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 115 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: SpamCop (vs. Politech) (Danny Burstein) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (John Higdon) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (John David Galt) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (Dave Phelps) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (Ed Ellers) Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV (Zed**3) Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee) (D Farmer) Court to Clarify Definition of Fraud in Charitable Fund-Raising (Solomon) You Have Triggered a Spam Filter (tippenring@deadspam.com) Wholesale Air-Time (Kamal) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: danny burstein Subject: Re: SpamCop (vs. politech) Date: Wed, 6 Nov 2002 00:30:49 UTC Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and UNIX, NYC In Monty Solomon writes: > Politech incorrectly blocked by SpamCop -- for the third time > Mon, 4 Nov 2002 10:20:56 -0500 (EST) > http://www.politechbot.com/p-04121.html (similar urls clipped for space ) While I count myself among Declan's fans, I have to side with SpamCop in this case. To quote from the cited url (http://www.politechbot.com/p-04121.html): Now SpamCop lists Politech on its spammer-list because some other servers also hosted at Rackspace.com are alleged spammers. While SpamCop could have done a better job of explaining this process, it's a pretty clear and very strong, and effective, method of dealing with spam friendly companies. I personally have received plenty of spam that utilizes Rackspace.com's services. As have many other people. Since their business model seems to be to take money from these parasites, many filtering groups have simply cut them off completely. Bit by bit, they'll find themselves in an ever shrinking intranet. Spammers, and spam facilitaters, have NO intrinsic right to my mailbox. And their trick of hosting "legitimate" services has long since lost any credibilty. To once again use my favorite analogy, they're equivalent to a supermarket that leaves rotting meat strewn across the aisles. As word gets out, fewer and fewer shoppers go there. The store may also have some of the best melt-in-your-mouth chocolate, in sealed containers (hence safe), but the store traffic just isn't there. Accordingly, the distributer ships and sells less product. The real complaint shouldn't be with the newspaper reporting the rotten meat, nor with the Department of Health. The chocolate distributer has the choice of: a) trucking their product to other stores b) leaning on the supermarket to clean up their act. Similarly, Declan's complaint shouldn't be with the spam filter groups, but should be with the spam friendly internet provider. Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key dannyb@panix.com [to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded] ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 13:42:13 -0800 In article , Mark Crispin wrote: > No, not at all. If PBX owners want the luxury of running their own > little telco, they should expect to be accountable. If they can not > or will not, then they should buy individual phone lines from the > telco. > If PBX owners can not (or will not) clean up their act, there are quite a > few more steps that can (and should) be taken. I don't want to rain on everyone's parade, but the matter is moot. The new wave of telemarketers do this: They order a bank of residential lines in someone's home. They connect a PC to the lines and to a VPN. The thing sits in a closet making thousands of automated junk calls a day in the metro area in which it lives. It gets residential rates (and in CA that means free local calling). The lines have CID unblocked, so the name of the person who ordered the lines and the number of the line making the call are visible. No ACR or even Privacy Manager will stop those calls. I just got a "refinance your mortgage" call from a telemarketing machine that identified as "Jack Mortenson" at 408 226-0706. So I (and now you) know the guy's name and number. So what? What the hell can we do about it? Oh, yeah ... call the phone company. "I work out of my home." End of investigation. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Exactly ... and I might go one step > further. Telcos like SWB are infamous for selling services they cannot > or do not back up; like Privacy Manager. I would require the telcos > to put manual entries in their database of those 'special' names a lot > of telemarketers/others like to use; names such as 'Name Unavailable', > 'Name Withheld', etc. Not all of us have a caller ID box right in front > of our faces all the time when a phone rings, so we cannot always go > looking for an ID box before deciding whether we should ignore the > 'obviously bogus' call. PAT Sorry. Useless. How about "Jack Mortenson"? Go ahead; call his number. You'll find it busy; his machine is busily bothering people all around the southern part of the SFBA. For all I know, the machine is actually owned and operated by someone in New York ... and controlled from there. And there isn't a damn thing we can do about it. In article , tonypo1@cox.net wrote: > No, the way I'd set it up is you get one warning. If you repeatedly send > false CLID information then the penalties kick in per occurence. What is "false"? What number must be displayed? The billing number of the PRI? Some number derived from a DID bank served on the switch? What if the switch is part of a national network and reachable by numbers all over the country? Some CIDs are set dynamically based upon auth and employee codes. What restrictions would you impose and how would you define them? Enterprize telephony is not some little simplistic one-to-one relationship designed for the convenience of the terminally stupid. If a call shows up as some impossible or un-recognizable number, let it go to VM and be done with it. We don't need more (and simplistically stupid) laws hamstringing telecommunications. > Make it > something on the order of $25 per reported incident. Not enough to > bankrupt but enough of an accounting problem to be a real pain in the > butt for telemarketers who think they can get around things like ACR. What about the telemarketers that call with correct CID showing? How are you going to stop them? Any idiot that will answer "000-000-0000" will certainly answer a call from "Jack Mortenson" at 408 226-0706. John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I want to review just one of John's points above, i.e.'there is nothing anyone can do about it.' Oh yes there is. You can make life hell for Mr. Mortenson. Does Jack have any other listed directory (published) numbers at his premises? He must have one or two, unless he goes in the closet to make calls. I need not explain to readers here what could happen in those cases. And you say he is in business for himself, working from home? Then I would assume he has the required licenses for his business from the city and state government. And he is in the mortgage financing business? Then he would have the required permits from the commissioner of banking for California, right? Now let's say enough people file complaints that Jack has called them after that have told 'him' not to continue calling. Maybe one or two of them sue him for harassment, etc. Oh, listen now to Jack as he squeals: not me! I just rented out my closet to that company in New York to install/operate their computer. Or maybe the telemarketer goes out of business leaving a large bill due to the local telco, who retaliates by cutting off all Jack's phones (even his personal non-pub line; the one he actually uses) until he (*Jack*) pays the entire bill. A very problematic situation, John. I dunno about you, but I for one would be most reluctant to allow *anyone* (telemarketer or otherwise) to have a telephone on my premises which they controlled remotely and had listed in *my name*. Maybe they could get you to do it; I'd be afraid of the reputation the company had which then in turn got rubbed off on me by virtue of my name on someone's caller-ID. I am afraid even now, assuming that you gave the correct number for Jack Mortenson 408-226-0706, that some readers here in the SF Bay area might get abusive toward Jack and his privacy. As to the second part of your message 'what makes up a real number', I would say a REAL honest-to-God number is one that can be dialed into and an answer received (not just all zeros or one that is forever busied-out or one that rings open from now until the Kingdom Comes.) You might have to call at all sorts of odd hours, but that's part of the fun ... in other words John, a 'real' number for caller-id purposes is a number which allows someone some recourse to the person who called them. PAT] ------------------------------ From: John David Galt Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 16:37:57 -0800 Organization: Diogenes the Cynic Hot-Tubbing Society Patrick Townson wrote: > I would say 'accidental misconfigurations' of PBX could be treated as > civil violations, let's say a $500 fine for each complaint against you > until you get it resolved. This is equivilent to stores which accept > your check as payment then have it bounce 'accidentally' because of your > error. In Kansas and many other states, the store is allowed to collect > a civil penalty up to three times the value of the check. That's the > law's way of saying do your math a little better in the future. They're > not interested in putting you in jail; just in getting it cleared. > Deliberate or willful miscongurations of a PBX would be treated like > any sort of willful behavior. If you wrote dozens of checks from a > check book you 'happened to find' laying around somewhere, or opened > an account with no money and started writing checks, that is deliberate > and willful behavior. That's a crime. So should be the willful or > deliberate misconfiguration of a PBX. > What is deliberate behavior versus accidental behavior? That's for a > judge to figure out if it goes that far. PAT] I'm all for it. (How does one go about formally requesting the FCC to make a rule like this, anyway? Does it require an attorney?) But there's a small problem -- how do we catch violators? Unless they happen to call someone who gets ANI on their line, ISTM that the only people in a position to discover the caller's identity is his own LEC, which is unlikely to want to cooperate. "Who will bell the cat?" > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Exactly ... and I might go one step > further. Telcos like SWB are infamous for selling services they cannot > or do not back up; like Privacy Manager. I would require the telcos > to put manual entries in their database of those 'special' names a lot > of telemarketers/others like to use; names such as 'Name Unavailable', > 'Name Withheld', etc. Not all of us have a caller ID box right in front > of our faces all the time when a phone rings, so we cannot always go > looking for an ID box before deciding whether we should ignore the > 'obviously bogus' call. PAT While we're at it, telcos should not be allowed to let callers evade PM simply by calling you via the operator. Their willingness to do this is advertised in the phone book as part of the instructions for using PM. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I am tempted to say if they want to pay the outrageous surcharge given for operator-assisted calls these days, I would probably listen to them for a couple minutes before saying 'no' and hanging up. But you are correct; calls attempting to avoid privacy manager should be handled the same way calls to the operator to avoid 900 blocks on lines are handled. Did you ever call a 900 number from a line you knew was blocked just to see how it was handled? The intercept recording says 'calls to that number are not allowed from the phone you are using, **and the operator will not be able to complete your call for you either.**' . If in fact some dumb operator actually tries it, she can bubble all she likes on her keyboard terminal, the equipment simply will not release the call. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Dave Phelps Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 23:43:07 -0600 Pat said... > I would require the telcos > to put manual entries in their database of those 'special' names a lot > of telemarketers/others like to use; names such as 'Name Unavailable', > 'Name Withheld', etc. CID name is not provided by the PBX making the call, even with PRI. CID name lookups are performed by the CO serving the subscriber receiving the call. The only information a PBX can send is a phone number, and only with ISDN-PRI. Dave Phelps Phone Masters Ltd. deadspam=tippenring [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: That is true, however telcos which offer 'privacy manager' service (or like Southwestern Bell try to defraud people into signing up for it) maintain a database **on their end** which they have to dip when deciding whether or not a call is to be treated before being passed on to the subscriber. So, do all the reverse lookups you like matching names and numbers. If the recipient telco does a reverse lookup and gets back something like 'name unavailable', or 'private name' or etc, then recipient telco can jolly well manually edit their database to include those ficticious entries. ------------------------------ From: Ed Ellers Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 19:45:33 -0500 John Stahl wrote: > In the HAM (Licensed Radio Amateur) "world" we have learned about strange > weather influenced conditions called "inversion" which has great > effect "in the propagation of higher frequency radio waves." > These weather conditions sometimes bring in signals from very far away > than would normally be possible. Perhaps this type of weather inversion > caused the reported interference between the long-distance separated TV > and police radios, as reported by others, evidentially on the same > frequency. TV engineer Doug Lung has a good column on this subject at http://www.tvtechnology.com/features/On-RF/f-DL-signals.shtml, with links to some other useful information including a fact sheet on VHF and UHF propagation prepared by the BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/reception/factsheets/docs/reception_weather.pdf if you just want to skip to the good stuff). ------------------------------ From: gc@radix.net (Zed**3) Subject: Re: What's the Frequency, Camden? The Same as Boston-Area TV Date: 6 Nov 2002 16:46:36 GMT Organization: Spontaneous > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Tell me what police and/or television > station use the same range of frequencies? Police, operating in VHF > are usually around 150-155 megs. On UHF the police are usually around > 450-470 megs. What TV stations are around there? None. How could this > be an FCC problem? PAT] There are several possibilities. In several large metropolitan areas some of the lower UHF TV channels in the range 470-512MHz have been assigned to private land mobile services, including police and fire. WCVB is on channel 5, so that is not likely the problem. Another possibility is that it is not the TV broadcast station itself that is causing the problem, but a studio to transmitter link (STL) that could be in the 450-470MHz range. There is a lack of technical details in the online article. ------------------------------ From: Dale Farmer Subject: Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee/Telecom) Date: Tue, 05 Nov 2002 21:46:38 -0500 Organization: Furry green fuzz in the back of the refrigerator Boo Phatty wrote: > Today, Sun, 03 Nov 2002 00:16:36 -0500, Two Buddha read a post from > Dale Farmer , and determined his interest in > BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: >> Boo Phatty wrote: >>> Hello folks. Does anyone know where to apply for FEMA essential >>> personell access cards i.e. ID that allows you to be on the street and >>> in a disaster area? >>> For instance, VZ E-911 personnel carry old CD cards that allow them >>> access to/from the E911 center during blizzards or declared >>> emergencies, etc. >>> I'm probably not calling it the right thing, but I would appreciate a >>> pointer. FEMA's website is very light on information of this kind. >> You apply to your state emergency management agency. They are the >> ones that actually issue them. They do have agreements with >> hospitals, the phone company, cities and so on to have the appropriate >> logos and authorizations placed on the employees regular ID badges. >> This allows them to save a lot of money not issuing separate badges to >> all those folks. You had better have a good reason to have that >> badge. Saving your company a pile of money because you have to shut a >> process down or something like that will not cut it. You have to be >> part of something that will restore damaged public utilities, medical >> aid, or other emergency type services. >> --Dale > Thanks, that helps. I do have a reason, other than money, and it is > utilities related. > Do you know what they would call the program? Thanks in advance. Well, here in the People's Commonwealth of Taxachusetts, it is called the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency. ( MEMA) Their office is about thirty feet underground in a bunker in Framingham. That about runs out my direct knowledge on the subject. --Dale ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 Nov 2002 22:57:54 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Court to Clarify Definition of Fraud in Charitable Fund-Raising Court to Clarify Definition of Fraud in Charitable Fund-Raising By LINDA GREENHOUSE WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 - Urged by a group of states to remove a constitutional obstacle to prosecuting fraud by professional fund-raisers, the Supreme Court agreed today to clarify the boundary that separates charitable solicitation from consumer fraud. The case was brought to the court by the Illinois attorney general's office, which for 10 years has tried to pursue a consumer fraud action against a telemarketing company that keeps 85 percent of the money it raises on behalf of a Vietnam War veterans' charity. The state's complaint against Telemarketing Associates Inc. was dismissed last year by the Illinois Supreme Court on the ground that charitable solicitation is a form of speech that is protected by the First Amendment. A trio of decisions by the United States Supreme Court in the 1980's established that principle and held that state regulators were constitutionally barred from designating a particular percentage of receipts that had to reach a charity in order for the fund-raising to be considered legitimate. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/05/national/05SCOT.html ------------------------------ From: tippenring@deadspam.com Subject: You Have Triggered a Spam Filter Date: Wed, 6 Nov 2002 05:43:31 GMT This is an automatic response: the recipient has not received your message. If you were trying to make a personal contact with the intended recipient, you have probably replied to a Usenet posting which has a spam-protected reply email address. Somewhere in that posting (probably in the .signature at the end) there will be instructions on how to mail the real address of its poster. Sorry for the inconvenience! Blame the spammers for causing people to go to these lengths. On the other hand, if you were trying to send spam (unsolicited bulk email) to this address, understand that it is utterly unwelcome, and has been utterly ignored, too. The recipient of your spam wishes your business all the success it deserves, given its current marketing strategy. Which is to say, none at all. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Well, tell me something tippingring; did the above come to you as a result of my mail to you, or something you attempted to send to me? All I got was the above, under your name. Spammers certainly have made a mess of the net and email; no doubt about it. PAT] ------------------------------ From: ecofriend@yahoo.com (Kamal) Subject: Wholesale Air-Time Date: 6 Nov 2002 08:30:26 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ If you live in the Marin County area and are thinking about switching from Verizon to Wholesale Air-Time, don't. I was told that I would be getting a substantial savings if I switched but it is actually costing me more than Verizon did. Ask all your questions before verifying your social security number with the account verification person. Anything discussed and promised to you after that is worthless. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It sounds a lot like the early days of MCI. In the 1970's, MCI reps would arrogantly contact telco customers of AT&T (the only game in town in those days) and as soon as the customer answered the phone would begin chattering about how much you would save on your monthly bill by going with them. If you said no, thank you, I am not interested, their response was to look incredulous and say, 'you are not interested in reducing your long distance bill by 25 percent' (or whatever amount the rep made up.) They always aimed for the president of the company or the highest person they could reach. The idea was to reach the highest possible employee so the person *would* be interested in saving money for the company but very likely know little or nothing about the mechanics of the company phone system. They knew if they could get him to sign off on it, then they could use the highly placed executive to do their dirty work for them shoving it down the throats of all the underlings who *actually worked* with the phone system day by day. And if they could not shake you off your 'not interested' posture with their incredulous looks and insinuations that 'you must be crazy not to want to save big money using our network then they would write you off and demand to 'let me speak to your supervisor or someone who knows what he is talking about.' Those were crazy times in the industry. PAT] ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #115 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Thu Nov 7 22:03:38 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA833c925825; Thu, 7 Nov 2002 22:03:38 -0500 (EST) Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 22:03:38 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211080303.gA833c925825@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #116 TELECOM Digest Thu, 7 Nov 2002 22:04:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 116 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service (J on Phone) Types of Broadband Jobs? (TI) Where is a Flat Rate For WAP Over GPRS? (freDZiK) Re: Wasting Bandwidth (Joseph) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (Linc Madison) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (John Higdon) Re: Townships, etc (Bill Levant) Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee) (Boo Phatty) New Motorola C332 and Motorola V70 Offer Customization (Monty Solomon) Motorola and Cingular Wireless Collaborate to Offer Product (M. Solomon) FCC Won't Review AOL, Comcast, AT&T Internet Deal (Monty Solomon) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: 617@volcanomail.com (J on the phone) Subject: Re: AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service Date: 6 Nov 2002 20:48:52 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Joseph wrote (quoting Monty): >> AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Service; #121 >> VoiceDial Service Now Available to Millions of Customers Across >> the Country >> - Nov 5, 2002 09:06 AM (BusinessWire) > Why is this news? Sprint PCS has had this service for quite some time > already. It's news because it is a new feature to AT&T, much as SprintPCS would put out a press release if they added a full national plan or maybe even a customer service department. ------------------------------ From: anglomont@yahoo.com (TI) Subject: Types of Broadband Jobs? Date: 6 Nov 2002 20:57:11 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Can somebody please list the jobs for engineers in Cable TV/internet company, and which are the most attractive (lucrative) ones, I suppose dealing with billing? Thanks ------------------------------ From: freDZiK Subject: Where is a Flat Rate For WAP Over GPRS? Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2002 09:22:40 +0100 Organization: news.onet.pl Where is a flat rate for WAP over GPRS? I'm looking for countries where there is a monthly flat rate for WAP instead rate per kilobyte. ------------------------------ From: Joseph Subject: Re: Wasting Bandwidth Date: Wed, 06 Nov 2002 17:49:35 -0800 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Reply-To: joeofseattle@yahoo.com On Tue, 05 Nov 2002 13:25:03 -0700, Joey Lindstrom wrote: And Pat [commented]: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Actually Joey, I *do* run a garbage > dump here. You might be amazed (or maybe you would not be) at how > many lines beginning '>' I whack out of the posts here. An old rule > in the days of Usenet was never submit a message where you have more > lines of original text than you have of reply text. In other words, > 50/50 ratio at best, preferably much less original text than reply. > I do cut out huge amounts of repitious text. Probably not as much as > I should ... (: PAT] I lay much of the blame on this behaviour squarely at the feet of the man from Redmond Mr. Gates. Many people use the Outlook Express email program that has come bundled with Internet Explorer. As many know Internet Explorer is somewhat cemented to the Windows 98 operating system (as well as others?) People use OE because it's there and it's standard. Microsoft has like many times before made their own standard which doesn't go along with the standards that have been in use for years. I've in the past used OE for a while, but ultimately cannot use it as it seems like it won't let me do a line by line reply. It's either dump the original article after your reply or nothing at all. Many people will reply to a message and simply dump the entire original article back at you. I've learned by my mistake of asking people to snip their quote back, but for the most part it does no good or those who do the offence don't think I'm referring to them and they get all testy if you bring it to their attention. ------------------------------ From: Linc Madison Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2002 01:08:58 -0800 Organization: LincMad.com Consulting Reply-To: Telecom@LincMad.com In article , John Higdon wrote: > I don't want to rain on everyone's parade, but the matter [of > telemarketers presenting 000-000-0000 as caller ID] is moot. The new > wave of telemarketers do this: > They order a bank of residential lines in someone's home. They > connect a PC to the lines and to a VPN. The thing sits in a closet > making thousands of automated junk calls a day in the metro area in > which it lives. It gets residential rates (and in CA that means free > local calling). The lines have CID unblocked, so the name of the > person who ordered the lines and the number of the line making the > call are visible. No ACR or even Privacy Manager will stop those > calls. This practice is already illegal on several counts. First of all, these calls are all in direct violation of 47 USC 227. It is illegal for a telemarketing machine to cold-call you, period. (Unfortunately, political campaigns are exempt, as I'm sure most of us know from the last few days.) In any case, John, I simply don't believe that this is "the new wave" of telemarketing. The economics just don't fit, to put a telemarketing box in a closet everywhere they want to pester people, compared to having a single operation with dirt-cheap bulk long-distance rates. > I just got a "refinance your mortgage" call from a telemarketing > machine that identified as "Jack Mortenson" at 408 226-0706. So I > (and now you) know the guy's name and number. So what? What the hell > can we do about it? > Oh, yeah ... call the phone company. "I work out of my home." End of > investigation. It is improper to use a residential line in the way you describe. The telco is losing major revenue (higher monthly charges plus per-minute charges for local calls) from having the line incorrectly tariffed. The telco has much more incentive to investigate than to brush off the complaint. > How about "Jack Mortenson"? Go ahead; call his number. You'll find it > busy; his machine is busily bothering people all around the southern > part of the SFBA. For all I know, the machine is actually owned and > operated by someone in New York ... and controlled from there. > And there isn't a damn thing we can do about it. Jack Mortenson is local to you. File in small claims court under 47 USC 227. You'll win an easy $1,500 for your trouble (well, easy to win the judgment; collecting is another matter, but at least you can also compel the phone company to put him out of that particular business). Alternately, make it a class action suit and subpoena the call records. Even if you only file for $500 per call, you could quickly scare "Jack Mortenson" into rolling over on his "business partners." www dot LincMad dot com / Telecom at LincMad dot com Linc Madison * San Francisco, California ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2002 00:08:52 -0800 In article , > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: > I want to review just one of John's points above, i.e.'there is > nothing anyone can do about it.' Oh yes there is. You can make life > hell for Mr. Mortenson. Does Jack have any other listed directory > (published) numbers at his premises? The San Jose directory lists eight Mortensons. Only one (initials "E.S." with no address) bears a phone number served from the same wire center as the telemarketing number. Obviously, I cannot just assume that there is any connection. Dead end. > He must have one or two, unless he goes in the closet to make > calls. I need not explain to readers here what could happen in those > cases. And you say he is in business for himself, working from home? > Then I would assume he has the required licenses for his business > from the city and state government. And he is in the mortgage > financing business? Then he would have the required permits from the > commissioner of banking for California, right? The problem is, we have no idea whether he is in the mortgage business, the telemarketing business, or the "rent out his closet" business. A good PI might be able to uncover all this, but the returns are too low to pursue any of this. My point in bringing all this up was simply to point out that it is an un-winable war. We, the terminally irritated, get ACR and Privacy Manager and the slime start using legitimate caller-ID. All the mechanisms in place that protect our privacy protect the privacy of slimeballs. > I dunno about you, but I for one would be most reluctant to allow > *anyone* (telemarketer or otherwise) to have a telephone on my > premises which they controlled remotely and had listed in *my name*. I dare say! > Maybe they could get you to do it; I'd be afraid of the reputation > the company had which then in turn got rubbed off on me by virtue of > my name on someone's caller-ID. I don't think so. > I am afraid even now, assuming that you gave the correct number for > Jack Mortenson 408-226-0706, that some readers here in the SF Bay > area might get abusive toward Jack and his privacy. One can only hope, but all they will get is a busy signal, as the war dialer pursues its mission. We have no assurance that Jack even used his real name when he took out phone service with SBC. When I see this stuff, I just think we are losing the war. Sorry to be such a defeatist. > As to the second part of your message 'what makes up a real number', I > would say a REAL honest-to-God number is one that can be dialed into > and an answer received (not just all zeros or one that is forever > busied-out or one that rings open from now until the Kingdom Comes.) > You might have to call at all sorts of odd hours, but that's part of > the fun ... in other words John, a 'real' number for caller-id purposes > is a number which allows someone some recourse to the person who > called them. I'm pretty sure I have "Jack's" real number. But if his war dialer is on it constantly, it is useless to have. John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: What about at 4 AM Pacific, or 7 AM Eastern? And as to the 'nature of his business', what did 'his' representative disucss with you? That's the nature of his business, for the purpose of having business, banking licenses, etc. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Wlevant@aol.com Date: Wed, 6 Nov 2002 19:58:34 EST Subject: Re: Townships, etc Philadelphia is considered a "consolidated city-county". Legally, there is still actually a Philadelphia County, and some of the city "row officers" are technically county officers, such as the Sheriff of Philadelphia County (that's his correct title). Baltimore, MD, on the other hand, is considered an independent city. Functionally, there appears to be is little difference...in an independent city, SOMEONE has to do what county officers would otherwise do. Bill [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: And, Independence, Kansas (population 8842) is the county seat of Montgomery County, Kansas (population 31,000 in the county.) PAT] ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: Obtaining FEMA Essential Personell ID (Utility Employee/Telecom) Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2002 07:55:18 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Tue, 05 Nov 2002 21:46:38 -0500, Two Buddha read a post from Dale Farmer , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > Boo Phatty wrote: >> Today, Sun, 03 Nov 2002 00:16:36 -0500, Two Buddha read a post from >> Dale Farmer , and determined his interest in >> BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: >>> Boo Phatty wrote: >>>> Hello folks. Does anyone know where to apply for FEMA essential >>>> personell access cards i.e. ID that allows you to be on the street and >>>> in a disaster area? >>>> For instance, VZ E-911 personnel carry old CD cards that allow them >>>> access to/from the E911 center during blizzards or declared >>>> emergencies, etc. >>>> I'm probably not calling it the right thing, but I would appreciate a >>>> pointer. FEMA's website is very light on information of this kind. >>> You apply to your state emergency management agency. They are the >>> ones that actually issue them. They do have agreements with >>> hospitals, the phone company, cities and so on to have the appropriate >>> logos and authorizations placed on the employees regular ID badges. >>> This allows them to save a lot of money not issuing separate badges to >>> all those folks. You had better have a good reason to have that >>> badge. Saving your company a pile of money because you have to shut a >>> process down or something like that will not cut it. You have to be >>> part of something that will restore damaged public utilities, medical >>> aid, or other emergency type services. >>> --Dale >> Thanks, that helps. I do have a reason, other than money, and it is >> utilities related. >> Do you know what they would call the program? Thanks in advance. > Well, here in the People's Commonwealth of Taxachusetts, it is called > the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency. ( MEMA) Their > office is about thirty feet underground in a bunker in Framingham. > That about runs out my direct knowledge on the subject. Thanks Dale. I'm aware of MEMA, I'm in MA. I'm going to call today. I'll post my results. -BP ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 21:24:31 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: New Motorola C332 and Motorola V70 Offer Customization New Motorola C332 and Motorola V70 Offer Customization and High-Style to T-Mobile Customers New Motorola C332 Available From T-Mobile Packs Innovative Customization Features Into a Compact, Affordable Package LIBERTYVILLE, Ill., Nov. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Motorola, Inc. (NYSE:MOT) today announced the nationwide availability of two Motorola mobile phones, the Motorola C332 and the Motorola V70, through T-Mobile USA, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom (NYSE:DT). Motorola design teams worked to create a unique look and form factor for the model C332 -- white housing with brightly colored side bands -- that exudes spontaneous fun. With the ability to change front and back covers, download screensavers and wallpaper, download MegaTones(TM) -- ring tone alerts that sound like actual musical chords, the Motorola C332 provides consumers the ability to Get More(SM) mobile personalization with their T-Mobile service. Equipped with an 'always on' connection to T-Mobile's nationwide all digital GPRS high-speed data network -- the largest in the country, covering more than 210 million people in 8,000 cities -- consumers now have the opportunity to quickly and easily create new "themes" for their Motorola C332 phone by downloading custom features anytime the mood hits them. Wish you were braving the winter on a tropical island? Snap on a festive-color cover, download a lounge chair and palm tree beach scene as your screensaver, and compose the sound of the waves - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29484826 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 21:25:31 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Motorola and Cingular Wireless Collaborate to Offer Products Motorola and Cingular Wireless Collaborate to Offer Innovative New Handsets Cingular Exclusive Provider of the Customized Motorola C331, and the Tri-Band PDA Motorola A388 LIBERTYVILLE, Ill. and ATLANTA, Nov. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Motorola, Inc. (NYSE:MOT) and Cingular Wireless today announced the arrival of two new handsets, demonstrating the companies' commitment to providing consumers with innovative devices designed to enable self-expression. The new handsets are the Motorola C331, co-designed by the companies and offered exclusively to consumers in all Cingular markets nationwide; and the Motorola A388, available in select Cingular GSM markets. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29485062 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 Nov 2002 23:44:10 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: FCC Won't Review AOL, Comcast, AT&T Internet Deal FCC won't review AOL, Comcast, AT&T Internet deal - Nov 6, 2002 06:20 PM (Reuters) By Jeremy Pelofsky WASHINGTON, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ:CMCSK) on Wednesday came closer to winning approval for its acquisition of rival cable operator AT&T Broadband after regulators declined to review a private deal for them to offer subscribers a selection of high-speed Internet service providers. The Federal Communications Commission refused to force the two companies to turn over a copy of their deal with AOL Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:AOL), a request made by consumer groups and EarthLink Inc. (NASDAQ:ELNK) who fear the agreement would harm competition and may include unfair financial terms. The issues raised by EarthLink and consumer groups "relate to business relationships between all unaffiliated ISPs and all cable operators, not only the applicants and AOL," the FCC said in denying the request. Democrat Commissioner Michael Copps dissented from the decision. The FCC does not directly oversee the Internet but since it uses the cable platform, some have argued that such transmission gives the agency jurisdiction. The FCC has other proceedings open to determine its purview over the service. The FCC staff has recommended that Comcast, the No. 3 U.S. cable operator, be allowed to buy AT&T Broadband, the No. 1 operator and a unit of AT&T Corp. (NYSE:T), for $33.6 billion, which would create a pay-television giant with almost 22 million subscribers. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29502026 ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. Contact information: Patrick Townson/TELECOM Digest Post Office Box 50 Independence, KS 67301 Phone: 620-870-9697 Fax 1: 775-255-9970 Fax 2: 775-306-8390 Fax 3: 775-642-0603 Fax 4: 530-309-7234 Email: editor@telecom-digest.org Subscribe: telecom-subscribe@telecom-digest.org Unsubscribe:telecom-unsubscribe@telecom-digest.org This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the second oldest e-zine/ mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Anonymous FTP: mirror.lcs.mit.edu/telecom-archives/archives (or use our mirror site: ftp.epix.net/pub/telecom-archives) Email <==> FTP: telecom-archives@telecom-digest.org Send a simple, one line note to that automated address for a help file on how to use the automatic retrieval system for archives files. You can get desired files in email. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from * * Judith Oppenheimer, President of ICB Inc. and purveyor of accurate * * 800 & Dot Com News, Intelligence, Analysis, and Consulting. * * http://ICBTollFree.com, http://1800TheExpert.com * * Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing * * views of Judith Oppenheimer or ICB Inc. * ************************************************************************* ICB Toll Free News. Contact information is not sold, rented or leased. Access to Premium (P) links requires upgrade to a paid subscription. One click a day feeds a person a meal. Go to http://www.thehungersite.com Only subscribers or registered users of ICB Toll Free News web site will be able to access all or some of the full text of URLs provided. LEGAL STUFF: TELECOM Digest (sm) is owned by Patrick Townson. Copyright 2000 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #116 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Fri Nov 8 21:56:02 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gA92u2816974; Fri, 8 Nov 2002 21:56:02 -0500 (EST) Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 21:56:02 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211090256.gA92u2816974@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #117 TELECOM Digest Fri, 8 Nov 2002 21:56:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 117 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Help Hooking Up Pay Phone (Slideman) QUALCOMM Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2002 Results (Monty Solomon) Viacom Keeps Watchful Eye on UK Broadcasters (Monty Solomon) US Says it Won't Oversee Added Microsoft Sanctions (Monty Solomon) Court to Set Rule on Rulings Release (Monty Solomon) Accesspoints Disclose Wep Keys, Password and Mac Filter (Monty Solomon) Qualcomm Monoculture is 'Killing American Wireless' (Monty Solomon) Why Does my Typing Appear on my Neighbour's PC? (Monty Solomon) Consumers, Digital Technology, and Copyrights (Monty Solomon) Outlook Express (Joey Lindstrom) Cross Connect Bay solution in Telcos? (PStreicher) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (J. Debert) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (John Higdon) SPCS, was Re: AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing (S. Sobol) Re: Meridian M2616 Work as Home Phone? (Chuck Till) Re: SpamCop (Tom Betz) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Slideman Subject: Help Hooking up Pay Phone Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 13:37:01 -0500 Pat, I have a Western Electric pay phone that I wish to use in my game room at home. I can't seem to get to work. Can you help with some info on how to hook it up. Could it be not working because I have DSL line in the house? I am thanking you in advance for help that you can be. Slideman [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: A payphone (older, Western Electric at least) *should* work like a regular phone line. That is, the red and green wires should be attached to the line like any other phone. If you have a DSL line, then you will need a filter where the phone attaches to the incoming wires, just as you do on the other phones in your house. That filter keeps the 'hash' out of the line. On your DSL line, you do make voice calls as well don't you? I know I do on mine. That filter is needed at each termination on the line. You won't be able to collect money on that phone unless you get an incoming line from telco set up as a coin service line. Depending on *how old* the 'old payphone' from Western Electric is, you may need to wire the ground open all the time. Very, very old coin phones had cloth straight wires in the handset. Go up a generation or so, the handset wire was curly-twisted, but made with rubber/plastic coating on the wires. Move ahead a little and the handset cord became 'armored' or made with a thick wire cord in the handset. Then in the late sixties came trapdoors for the coin returns and a spring loaded button you had to push to get bent coins (and slugs) returned. The reason for the trapdoors on coin returns was because so many bratty children would use a bent coat hanger up the return slot to get their coins back after the <'dong'> had been registered audibly with the operator. And the cloth cord metamorphesed into rubber cord then armored cable to keep the same bratty children from sticking bent safety pins in them and short circuiting the ground; another technique for free dialtone. Then, as part of their overall 'making the system over from the ground up' philosophy in the 1970's, telco started giving dialtone first on payphones. Bratty children with bent coat hangers in those days sort of reminds me of how women used to give themselves abortions, when abortion doctors were all, under the law, illegal. Stick the coat hanger in the hole, and hopefully something would come out. We kids used to hope it would be the nickles and dimes we had just fed to the operator who had not yet gotten around to 'collecting' them, i.e. reversing the polarity in such a way that the collection table dropped to the right (coin return chute) rather than the left (bottomless pit where money stayed when it was collected.) Now you did not say how old was 'old', but if the phone is very old, you may need to 'trip' the ground onto the line momentarily to get a dial tone. (Help me out people; are there any longer 'ground-start' style lines instead the more usual 'loop-start' lines?) With the latter, which is almost everyone, when a phone goes off hook and the 'loop' is completed back to the central office, you get your dial tone. With the former, 'ground-start' style lines, ground has to be temporarily (like, for one second) applied to one side of the line. With your DSL, you have loop-start. But if the 'finger' at the side of the place where the coins fell in is set to spring out of the way for a second or two to let the coins fall in to the collection table below (and at the same apply ground for one second), you might want to snip the wires at that point and 'jump' them around the finger that slides up and down, to assure continuous audio since ground is no longer an issue. Or, did you plan to charge a nickle or dime for each call? Do you have the keys (the one for the coin collector at least) in the event you want to get the coin box open? See if these steps help you at all, and write back with more questions as needed. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 21:43:35 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: QUALCOMM Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2002 Results Q4 GAAP Revenues $874 Million, EPS $0.23 - FY2002 $3.0 Billion, EPS $0.44 Q4 Pro Forma Revenues $840 Million, EPS $0.31 - FY2002 $2.9 Billion, EPS $0.98 QUALCOMM's fourth quarter fiscal 2002 earnings conference call will be broadcast live on November 7, 2002 beginning at 2:30 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on the Company's web site at: www.qualcomm.com . This conference call may contain forward-looking financial information. The taped audio replay will be available for five business days. To listen to the replay, U.S. callers may dial (800) 633-8284 and international callers may dial (402) 977-9140. Both U.S. and international callers should use reservation number 20898587. SAN DIEGO, Nov. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) today announced its fourth quarter and fiscal 2002 results ended September 29, 2002. GAAP reported revenues were $874 million (34 percent increase) in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2002 compared to $651 million in the year ago quarter. GAAP reported earnings were $190 million or $0.23 per share in the fourth quarter compared to a loss of $75 million or $0.10 loss per share in the year ago quarter. GAAP reported revenues were $3.0 billion (13 percent increase) in fiscal 2002 compared to $2.7 billion in fiscal 2001. GAAP reported earnings were $360 million or $0.44 per share in fiscal 2002 compared to a loss of $578 million or $0.76 loss per share in fiscal 2001. Pro forma revenues were $840 million (29 percent increase) in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2002 compared to $651 million in the year ago quarter. Pro forma earnings were $250 million or $0.31 per share (63 percent increase) in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2002 compared to $155 million or $0.19 per share in the year ago quarter.(1) Pro forma revenues were $2.9 billion (9 percent increase) in fiscal 2002 compared to $2.7 billion in fiscal 2001. Pro forma earnings were $794 million or $0.98 per share (11 percent increase) in fiscal 2002 compared to $710 million or $0.88 per share in fiscal 2001 (see PRO FORMA CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS table). The increase in revenues in the fourth quarter and fiscal 2002 compared to the year ago quarter and fiscal 2001 was primarily related to increasing demand for CDMA products across all major regions of CDMA deployment. http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29523463 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 21:49:13 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Viacom Keeps Watchful Eye on UK Broadcasters By Merissa Marr, European media correspondent LONDON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Viacom Inc. could be a speculator for ailing British broadcasters as the stranglehold of market regulation eases, but the entertainment giant is not plotting an imminent swoop, Chief Executive Sumner Redstone said on Thursday. In light of upcoming changes to Britain's media ownership laws that will finally allow U.S. media companies to swallow up UK broadcasters, Redstone said Viacom (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA.B) wanted to expand internationally and was "intrigued" by the UK deregulation. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29522232 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 21:51:22 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: US Says it Won't Oversee Added Microsoft Sanctions By Peter Kaplan WASHINGTON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - It will be up to state prosecutors to enforce antitrust sanctions against Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) that go beyond the company's settlement with the Justice Department, the department's chief antitrust enforcer said on Thursday. The department's antitrust division won't be responsible for overseeing a handful of additional restrictions that a federal judge added to her landmark antitrust ruling at the behest of some state attorneys general, U.S. antitrust chief Charles James said after a speech on Thursday. The ruling handed down last week by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly endorsed Microsoft's antitrust settlement with the U.S. government and nine states. In it, Kollar-Kotelly rejected nearly all the demands for stronger sanctions by a group of nine other states seeking tougher sanctions against the company. At issue are a handful of additions the judge made at the behest of the dissenting states. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29523825 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 21:53:06 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Court to Set Rule on Rulings Release By TED BRIDIS Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The court that approved the Microsoft Corp. antitrust settlement last week will set new procedures for publishing sensitive rulings on its Internet site, after mistakenly disclosing the Microsoft decision nearly 90 minutes before financial markets closed. An internal investigation this week confirmed that court employees posted the Microsoft rulings to a location on the court's Web site they believed was inaccessible to the public, said Scheldon Snook, the administrative assistant to Thomas F. Hogan, the chief U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia. But anyone with a Web browser could read the documents without a password. Technicians could have made that location effectively invisible to visitors with a simple change to their computer software. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29526242 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 22:15:56 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Accesspoints Disclose Wep Keys, Password and Mac Filter Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 14:43:25 +0100 (CET) From: Tom Knienieder Subject: Accesspoints disclose wep keys, password and mac filter (fwd) KHAMSIN Security News KSN Reference: 2002-11-01 0001 ULO Title ----- Accesspoints disclose wep keys, password and mac filter Date ---- 2002-11-01 Description: ------------ GlobalSunTech develops Wireless Access Points for OEM customers like Linksys, D-Link and others. Capturing the traffic of a WISECOM GL2422AP-0T during the setup phase showed a security problem. Sending a broadcast packet to UDP port 27155 containing the string "gstsearch" causes the accesspoint to return wep keys, mac filter and admin password. This happens on the WLAN Side and on the LAN Side. Systems Affected Vulnerable, tested, OEM Version from GlobalSunTech: WISECOM GL2422AP-0T Possibly vulnerable, not tested, OEM Version from GlobalSunTech: D-Link DWL-900AP+ B1 version 2.1 and 2.2 ALLOY GL-2422AP-S EUSSO GL2422-AP LINKSYS WAP11-V2.2 http://online.securityfocus.com/archive/1/298432 ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 22:32:56 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Qualcomm Monoculture is 'Killing American Wireless' By Andrew Orlowski in San Francisco Posted: 06/11/2002 at 23:42 GMT There's a huge reality gap if you follow wireless on this continent. Proponents of the CDMA phone system used by the large American networks (and rejected by most of the rest of the world) spend much time boasting about the system's "technical superiority". At the same time, the handsets and services here lag far behind those on offer even in developing countries. Yesterday's technology abounds: awful, antiquated phones are the norm. You just can't get the coolest toys here unless you opt for one of the GSM networks and when you do, as in California, you're effectively locking yourself into a local monopoly. Now, apart from a lunatic fringe of right-wing publications and enthusiasts, everybody knows this awful truth. Amps and hertz don't matter as much to the ordinary consumer as much as better handsets and better services, and more choice. A case in point: Bluetooth is a standard feature on many new GSM/GPRS phones but the first CDMA 1X phone has yet to be launched. We were astonished to learn, after speaking to representatives from Samsung and Kyocera which are launching interesting PalmOS-based smartphones that the industry is waiting on Bluetooth-capable chipsets from Qualcomm. What, just the one supplier? The following explanation comes from an experienced wireless professional who prefers to remain anonymous. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/39/27975.html ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 22:35:15 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Why Does my Typing Appear on my Neighbour's PC? By Drew Cullen Posted: 06/11/2002 at 16:18 GMT HP's wireless keyboards can transmit data to other computers in faraway buildings. No this is not a feature but an astonishing security flaw, discovered by two neighbours in Stavanger, southern Norway. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/54/27971.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 08:32:04 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Consumers, Digital Technology, and Copyrights Consumers' Research Magazine Consumer Alert Column September 2002 by James Plummer As computer-processing power and the bandwidths of Internet connections continue to expand exponentially, Hollywood has become increasingly nervous. DVD recorders are falling in price, and consumers on peer-to-peer (P2P) file-trading networks have taken the next step and started downloading copyrighted video as well as audio. The big media conglomerates are turning to Congress to codify a complicated Digital Rights Management (DRM) scheme that would allow the studies to hack into the computers of illicit file-trading consumers, and are leaning on the Justice Department to prosecute traders of unauthorized copies of copyrighted material on P2P networks. http://www.consumeralert.org/pubs/research/CRSep02.htm ------------------------------ From: Joey Lindstrom Date: Fri, 08 Nov 2002 08:40:15 -0700 Subject: Outlook Express Reply-To: joey@lairdsflooring.com On Thu, 7 Nov 2002 22:03:38 EST, Joseph wrote: > I lay much of the blame on this behaviour squarely at the feet of the > man from Redmond Mr. Gates. Many people use the Outlook Express email > program that has come bundled with Internet Explorer. As many know > Internet Explorer is somewhat cemented to the Windows 98 operating > system (as well as others?) People use OE because it's there and it's > standard. Microsoft has like many times before made their own > standard which doesn't go along with the standards that have been in > use for years. I've in the past used OE for a while, but ultimately > cannot use it as it seems like it won't let me do a line by line > reply. It's either dump the original article after your reply or > nothing at all. Many people will reply to a message and simply dump > the entire original article back at you. I've learned by my mistake > of asking people to snip their quote back, but for the most part it > does no good or those who do the offence don't think I'm referring to > them and they get all testy if you bring it to their attention. Your points about Outlook Express are well taken (and I think you'd be hard pressed to find any OE fans here). Similarly, the full version of Outlook has this nasty habit of defaulting to HTML or Rich Text on all outgoing messages and most people don't have a clue how to fix it. I run a mailing list which is not moderated -- a Digest goes out every day at 6pm without my intervention. Some of the people posting to it wind up sending these "double-posts" from Outlook -- it sends two copies of the message, one in plain text and the other in HTML. Looks like a dog's breakfast when it lands in my mailbox. So far I've not found a decent plug-in to my mail server that will let me filter this stuff out in a reliable way. But I think there's a difference here. The mailing list I operate is a "fan" thing, for fans of a particular musician (Gary Numan). So it's at least understandable that some person who happens to be a Numan fan gets his/her first computer, finds my mailing list, subscribes, and then pisses us all off with his/her first post to it -- they had no idea. THIS forum, though, is not one that would attract new-to-computers and/or new-to-the-net people -- at least, very few. The folks here have been around the block more than a few times -- you need only read a few editions of the Digest to have this confirmed quite forcefully. So I tend to expect a higher standard from the folks here (myself included), in terms of knowledge of what their computer systems and email applications are doing. Am I wrong for doing so? Joey Lindstrom - Laird's Flooring joey@lairdsflooring.com ------------------------------ From: pstreicher@aol.com (PStreicher) Date: 08 Nov 2002 07:04:21 GMT Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com Subject: Cross Connect Bay Solution in Telcos? Help! Has anyone in the industry came up with a solution to the mess that has taken over the ccb bays in the central offices? I work for Verizon and have a terrible time trying to trace jumpers for troubleshooting problems these last few years. The problems all started when they began installing DSX cross connect panels into new bays that cross connected into the older cross connect bays. These newer DSX bays use four wires with a larger gauge wire that has now overtaken the space and is falling out of the older ccb bays. Wires are so tightly bundled now that when someone takes out an order of hi-cap they cut the wires instead of pulling them out. You can imagine what this could look like in a few years. These ccb bays are the spinal column of the telcom industry. Any failure in them would me disaster to the central offices in areas affected by them. Any info would be appreciated. ------------------------------ From: j debert Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2002 20:06:27 -0800 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com [SNIPPP!!!] Sometimes we get such numbers, which have _always_ turned out to be telespammers. We have also received calls from San Jose, 408-278, sequentially from a block of 18 numbers with different nonexistent personal and business names attached. Of course, Pa Bell says no one can change or falsify CID info. jd These people indicated that they love to spam. Let's return the love: mailto:info@jeyassociates.com | mailto:jeyassoc@pathcom.com mailto:admin@hrpromo.com | mailto:info@mbcfoods.com mailto:sales@friedredchicken.com | mailto:William@Kubicek.net ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Thu, 07 Nov 2002 21:21:57 -0800 In article , Linc Madison wrote: > This practice is already illegal on several counts. First of all, > these calls are all in direct violation of 47 USC 227. It is illegal > for a telemarketing machine to cold-call you, period. (Unfortunately, > political campaigns are exempt, as I'm sure most of us know from the > last few days.) No one appears to be enforcing this. The last time I tried, everyone said it was in someone else's jurisdiction. > It is improper to use a residential line in the way you describe. The > telco is losing major revenue (higher monthly charges plus per-minute > charges for local calls) from having the line incorrectly > tariffed. The telco has much more incentive to investigate than to > brush off the complaint. But unfortunately, for the past couple of years, telco appears to no longer care. The last two times I tried turning someone in with this, I got "they are simply working at home". > Jack Mortenson is local to you. File in small claims court under 47 USC > 227. You'll win an easy $1,500 for your trouble (well, easy to win the > judgment; collecting is another matter, but at least you can also > compel the phone company to put him out of that particular business). > Alternately, make it a class action suit and subpoena the call records. > Even if you only file for $500 per call, you could quickly scare "Jack > Mortenson" into rolling over on his "business partners." At this point, SBC is completely uncooperative and refuses to give me any information on "Jack". In order to do anything to or about "Jack", I need his real name and address, and I'm not quite sure where to get that. Telco is much better at keeping records private than they used to be. John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Don't worry about telco record keeping. Just start suing and let them figure it out. Don't worry, they will, when it is time to come to court. Start with using *57 on his calls. That instigates a trace, with information on the trace forwarded to the police. Keep your own diary on the calls, as well, listing times, content of the discussions, etc. If telco does not produce records to the police so that you can follow up with a police complaint, then your next step would be to talk to the FCC or California commission regards telco's apparent lack of concern. Warning: police will not serve as your private detective agency or collection agency. *If* telco hands a printout to police then YOU be prepared to move forward with it criminally. All you need to do in your diary or journal of the whole thing is note the phone number which was identified by telco as 408-xxx-xxxx and a person who uses the alias name 'Jack Mortenson'. HE is the one who called you unsolicited at various hours, HE is the one who refused to quit calling even though you requested it. HE is the one you are suing for his willful behavior. Just play the straight man role through the whole thing. I know this last part may be hard for you John, but do not talk smart to the police or the phone company. They are the experts; their system works for them, right? Just play the straight man and wounded victim throughout. Let us know how you make out and how much you can collect from 'Jack' or his associates. PAT] ------------------------------ From: sjsobol@JustThe.net (Steven J. Sobol) Subject: SPCS, was Re: AT&T Wireless Launches Voice-Activated Dialing Date: Fri, 08 Nov 2002 03:38:02 -0000 Organization: JustThe.net LLC From 'J on the phone' <617@volcanomail.com>: > It's news because it is a new feature to AT&T, much as SprintPCS would > put out a press release if they added a full national plan or maybe > even a customer service department. Offtopic for this thread, but there was a recent article in the Kansas City Star about how the new SPCS CEO is trying to turn around the abysmal reputation they have for customer lack-of-service. I'm on VZW here, wife's on SPCS; SPCS's northeast Ohio network is solid and call quality is great -- my number one issue with SPCS is lack of customer service, diametrically opposite to VZW, whose sales reps and Ohio call center staff* are just absolutely fantastic. I am hoping that SPCS will do an about-face. Eliminating the 15-25 minute hold times will do a lot to make me happy. SPCS needs to visit Columbus and talk to the people at VZW's call center to find out what real customer service reps do for a living. **SJS *Customer service for the Cleveland-Akron-Canton-Ashtabula-Dover-New Philly network is handled by the VZW call center in Dublin, Ohio, just outside Columbus. Aside from the (very) occasional clueless goober, I've had lots of good experiences with the people I've talked to down there. The retail store I generally visit is in Mentor, Ohio, across from Great Lakes Mall. The people there are very helpful. Steve Sobol, CTO JustThe.net LLC, Mentor On The Lake, OH http://JustTheNetLLC.com/ (check out the new site!) 888.480.4NET (4638) A practicing member of the Geek Orthodox religion! ------------------------------ From: ctill@nc.rr.com (Chuck Till) Subject: Re: Meridian M2616 Work as Home Phone? Date: Fri, 08 Nov 2002 04:59:44 GMT Organization: Road Runner - NC > I have a Meridian M2616 that my company gave to me as a parting > gift. I tried plugging it in to my phone line at home, but it doesn't > work. Is there a way to make it work at home? No. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I used to work, years ago, for a department store in downtown Chicago part time, looking after their phone system. One day, someone simply liberated (stole) a digital phone from a desk; more than likely to *try* and use at home. Some of you may remember also when I was the bus agent in Skokie, Illinois. We had six-button, five-line *analogue* phones. Greyhound got mad one day at us for having those 'old fashioned phones' and sent us three brand new digital phones, and put in an order for Illinois Bell to come and install them. The phone guy came out and saw them, and made a terrible stink, assuring all of us 'that type' of phone will not work on these lines. He (phone man) took them away with him and came back with the same style/brand of phones, that were analogue, and put those in. So my answer to your question above is a three letter word: N-O-E. Will not work. End of discussion. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Tom Betz Subject: Re: SpamCop Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 06:21:53 UTC Organization: XOme Quoth Monty Solomon in news:telecom22.113.7@telecom- digest.org: > Politech incorrectly blocked by SpamCop -- for the third time > Mon, 4 Nov 2002 10:20:56 -0500 (EST) > http://www.politechbot.com/p-04121.html > Ray Everett-Church on systemic problems with SpamCop > Mon, 4 Nov 2002 15:53:51 -0500 (EST) > http://www.politechbot.com/p-04126.html > Paul Levy on why SpamCop is liable for its overbroad "spam" lists > Mon, 4 Nov 2002 22:55:57 -0500 (EST) > http://www.politechbot.com/p-04128.html > Why not to use SpamCop -- some first-hand accounts > Mon, 4 Nov 2002 23:20:27 -0500 (EST) > http://www.politechbot.com/p-04129.html Note that poor Declan refused to publish any e-mail he received explaining why people SHOULD use Spamcop. Like this one, for example: On 4 Nov 2002 at 9:37, Declan McCulloch wrote: > SpamCop lists Politech on its spammer-list because some other servers also > hosted at Rackspace.com are alleged spammers. "alleged" my left foot. Rackspace is notorious for hosting spammers long-term and with impunity until their checks start to bounce. Recently, the volume of spam emanating from Rackspace has increased by leaps and bounds, making Spamcop list the space whence the spam originates for longer periods of time. The problem is not with Spamcop, the problem is with Rackspace. Spamcop's automated system is working just fine. I use bl.spamcop.net to great effect, but I've whitelisted cluebot.com so that I get what I want from it. However, as long as cluebot.com is living in a spammer-infested neighborhood, I don't WANT cluebot de-listed. If you don't like the results of Rackspace's lax management, it seems to me that you have you have four realistic choices: 1) Leave Rackspace. 2) As you become aware of them, petition the owners of all the servers bouncing your e-mail because of the Spamcop listing (you ARE paying attention to your bounce messages, aren't you?) to whitelist cluebot.com. 3) Arrange for some non-spammy provider to act as a smarthost for cluebot.com (and maybe bill Rackspace for what it costs you, as they aren't providing you with the connectivity you contracted for). 4) Lump it. After all, bl.spamcop.net is only used by Spamcop customers and people who (like me) have decided to use it despite Julian's warning that it is experimental and will catch non-spam. All who use it have the option to whitelist and to use it to divert e-mail into holding folders instead of deleting it. Well, I guess there is a fifth choice: 5) Whine to everyone who will listen about how unfair Spamcop is. But of course, we all know you're above that, aren't you Declan? [ end my friendly note to him ] While he didn't pass it along to other Politech subscribers, he did reply with "Sod off." ------------------------------ 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 networks such as Compuserve and America On Line, and other forums. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Patrick Townson. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. 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All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. In addition, gifts from Mike Sandman, Chicago's Telecom Expert have enabled me to replace some obsolete computer equipment and enter the 21st century sort of on schedule. His mail order telephone parts/supplies service based in the Chicago area has been widely recognized by Digest readers as a reliable and very inexpensive source of telecom-related equipment. Please request a free catalog today at http://www.sandman.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, 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. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. 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. End of TELECOM Digest V22 #117 ****************************** From editor@telecom-digest.org Sat Nov 9 19:42:47 2002 Received: from localhost (localhost [[UNIX: localhost]]) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.3nb1/8.11.3) id gAA0gl111484; Sat, 9 Nov 2002 19:42:47 -0500 (EST) Date: Sat, 9 Nov 2002 19:42:47 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200211100042.gAA0gl111484@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V22 #118 TELECOM Digest Sat, 9 Nov 2002 19:43:00 EST Volume 22 : Issue 118 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson FCC Rules Against Consumer Groups (Monty Solomon) FCC Eases the Way for 3G Wireless (Monty Solomon) PCS Vision(SM) From Sprint Recognized as One of the World's (M. Solomon) Delay Sought on Comcast-AT&T Merger (Monty Solomon) SONICblue and TiVo Drop Patent Infringement Suits (Monty Solomon) More on SpamCop (Monty Solomon) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (John Higdon) Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID (Boo Phatty) Re: Help Hooking up Pay Phone (Boo Phatty) Known Origin of Predictive Dialer (Mark Smigel) Panasonic KX-TD816 Fax Hookup (Jeremy Marks) Re: Cross Connect Bay Solution in Telcos? (Boo Phatty) Panasonic KX-TD816 (Jeremy Marks) Read This For Me: UNIVERSIDAD DE SALAMANCA (General / Cursos de ) Business Directory: Harvesting Auction Email Adresses (David B. Horvath) Qualcomm Finally Mixes Network Cocktail (Monty Solomon) Cybersecurity Bill Nears House Vote (Monty Solomon) The FBI's Cybercrime Crackdown (Monty Solomon) Cable Company Pleads Guilty to Trying To Defraud Pentagon (Monty Solomon) Ma Bell Redux (Monty Solomon) Pentagon Plans a Computer System That Would Spy on You (Monty Solomon) Europeans Outlaw Net Hate Speech (Monty Solomon) Third Former Drexel U Student Being Investigated (Monty Solomon) Feds Enter Breeders' Cup Wage Probe (Monty Solomon) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. WE DO NOT PERMIT NAME/EMAIL ADDRESS HARVESTING FROM THIS JOURNAL. 'SALTED' EMAIL ADDRESSES APPEAR HEREIN TO VERIFY THIS. YOU GET SUED IN SMALL CLAIMS COURT IF YOU GET CAUGHT SPAMMING OR SENDING VIRUSES. DON'T DO IT. See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 20:35:15 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: FCC Rules Against Consumer Groups By Roy Mark The Federal Communications Commission will not require Comcast to publicly reveal details of its Internet service provider deal with AOL Time Warner as part of the FCC review of the proposed Comcast-AT&T Broadband merger. ISPs and consumer groups wanted the AOL TW agreement to be opened to public comment as part of the FCC's review of the merger. They claimed the contract is material to the merger process and may "reflect new concerns about competition and the free flow of information" on Comcast's broadband network, as well as creating a "dangerous precedent against openness and nondiscrimination" on the Internet as a whole. http://dc.internet.com/news/article.php/1496521 ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 20:59:43 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: FCC Eases the Way for 3G Wireless By Michael Grebb 02:00 AM Nov. 08, 2002 PT WASHINGTON -- This may go down as the week the federal government took a hard look at its spectrum policy and decided to get medieval on its you-know-what. On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission created a new stomping ground for so-called "advanced wireless services," including next-generation (3G) services such as broadband wireless Internet access. Advanced wireless services sound specific enough, but trying to pinpoint what those services entail is a murky affair. Specifically, the FCC ordered that about 90 MHz of spectrum (in two 45-MHz swaths) now used by government and commercial players, be designated for everything from boring old voice calls to futuristic Dick Tracy-style wireless wristwatches. http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,56268,00.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 22:23:47 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: PCS Vision(SM) From Sprint Recognized as One of the World's Most PCS Vision(SM) From Sprint Recognized as One of the World's Most Innovative Technologies by Popular Science New Service Recognized in 'Best of What's New' Issue OVERLAND PARK, Kan. and NEW YORK, Nov. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Less than six months after its nationwide launch, PCS Vision(SM) from Sprint has been touted as one of the most outstanding technologies by Popular Science Magazine. The issue will be on newsstands November 12. Sprint (NYSE:FON, PCS) operates the largest all-digital, all-PCS nationwide network, and launched its enhanced wireless service earlier this year. (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20001013/SPRINTLOGO ) PCS Vision includes services that allow customers to browse the Internet wirelessly at speeds comparable to a home computer's dial-up connection; check personal and corporate e-mail; download polyphonic ringers and full-color, graphically-rich games and screen savers; and take and receive pictures with the PCS Vision Camera(SM) on select Vision-enabled PCS Phones. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29534401 ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 22:30:28 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Delay Sought on Comcast-AT&T Merger By BILL BERGSTROM AP Business Writer PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Consumer groups urged federal regulators Friday to delay final approval of the merger between Comcast and AT&T Broadband, which the organizations say would limit customers' TV viewing and Internet access choices. Comcast said in a response to the Federal Communications Commission that the opponents' ``empty assertions plainly afford no basis for further delaying the merger review process.'' FCC approval is one of the final hurdles for the deal, which could close as early as next week after an exchange of $11.8 billion in AT&T bonds for AT&T Comcast notes is completed. The bond exchange is part of the transfer of $20 billion worth of debt from AT&T to the new company. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29545856 ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 22:32:36 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: SONICblue and TiVo Drop Patent Infringement Suits SONICblue and TiVo Drop Patent Infringement Suits - Nov 8, 2002 06:05 PM (BusinessWire) - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=29546666 Sonicblue, TiVo settle patent spat By Richard Shim Staff Writer, CNET News.com November 8, 2002, 4:24 PM PT http://news.com.com/2100-1040-965166.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 23:10:56 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: More on SpamCop SpamCop's Julian Haight replies to Politech, and other defenses Tue, 5 Nov 2002 04:01:47 -0500 (EST) http://www.politechbot.com/p-04132.html SpamCop reportedly backs down, removes Politech from blacklist? Thu, 7 Nov 2002 03:37:18 -0500 (EST) http://www.politechbot.com/p-04136.html UK.COM, the slightly silly but popular para-TLD, disappeared briefly from the Net this week. The reason, as ever in DNSland, was a combination of overearnestness and mild incompetence that slowly escalated until it hit Verisign, home of *fantastic* incompetence. It started with spamcop and rfc-ignorant.org deciding they'd seen spam from a *.uk.com domain - and therefore, uk.com were responsible. http://www.ntk.net/2002/11/08/#HARD_NEWS ------------------------------ From: John Higdon Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Organization: Green Hills and Cows Date: Fri, 08 Nov 2002 19:16:41 -0800 In article , j debert wrote: > We have also received calls from San Jose, 408-278, sequentially from > a block of 18 numbers with different nonexistent personal and business > names attached. 408-278 is out of the downtown office and is generally reserved for DID blocks. It would be easy to find an entire swath of out-of-service numbers in that prefix to be used for phony CID. > Of course, Pa Bell says no one can change or falsify CID info. That is exactly the line I got when I had to beat them over the head to fix major security holes in their VM system. I had to literally demonstrate to them how easy it was to penetrate the VM boxes of customers. Then ... I got treated like a criminal. Actually, it was quite an amusing adventure that even got written up in Wired Magazine. John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS +1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407 [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: John, would you care to write this story up for TELECOM Digest also; or perhaps get an okay from Wired to use their account? I don't think most readers here know the details as well as some people. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: 000-000-0000 Caller ID Date: Sat, 09 Nov 2002 01:45:16 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Thu, 07 Nov 2002 20:06:27 -0800, Two Buddha read a post from j debert , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > [SNIPPP!!!] > Sometimes we get such numbers, which have _always_ turned out to be > telespammers. > We have also received calls from San Jose, 408-278, sequentially from > a block of 18 numbers with different nonexistent personal and business > names attached. > Of course, Pa Bell says no one can change or falsify CID info. Really? Then how come fraudsters can pulse false numbers from the phones on some cell networks after reprogramming the phones? How come 000's come up? They aren't falsifying, it's the telcos that are not completing the CNAM entries and they are plugging in 000's instead of leaving it blank. But leaving them blank, at the request of the TM'ers is bad too. It's the telcos. <--- They settle call center bills weekly so they don't get screwed. Cash wires. Some daily even. Call centers are a big source of revenue, and fraud. ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: Help Hooking up Pay Phone Date: Sat, 09 Nov 2002 13:18:09 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, Fri, 8 Nov 2002 13:37:01 -0500, Two Buddha read a post from Slideman , and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > Pat, > I have a Western Electric pay phone that I wish to use in my game > room at home. I can't seem to get to work. Can you help with some info > on how to hook it up. Could it be not working because I have DSL line > in the house? I am thanking you in advance for help that you can be. You need a filter on the line connected to the DSL service. It acts like an A/D converter. All analog devices will need this filter i.e. phone, fax, etc. ------------------------------ From: mjsmigel@hotmail.com (Mark Smigel) Subject: Known Origin of Predictive Dialer Date: 9 Nov 2002 13:30:54 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ At our business location we've been getting many calls (6x daily) from a predictive dialer. What's unusual is it has an actual number on the CID: 631-673-2300, but no CID name. Having dealt with predictive dialers before, this is almost certainly what it is. The line hangs up immediately at the end of our greeting (almost exactly as we speak the last word). We've gotten telemarketing calls before, so I am positive this is what it is. Calling the number back, the line seems to reset itself (hangs up). Is there any way of finding out who this is, contacting their telco, or putting a block on them? We would use SWBT's block, but it doesn't allow you to enter anything outside the local calling area. We're in area code 405, Oklahoma City area. Thanks, MJ [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Do the same thing I suggested to John H. yesterday: do *57 following the call, and keep a diary of the calls as they come in. Just put them down as 'ring my phone but then don't speak.' That is against the law also, if it happens repeatedly as it seems to be in your case. Nearly everywhere has a law against using a telephone to harass people; i.e. causing it to ring repeatedly, etc. When/if you get back a report from SWBT via the police, file the requested complaint. Let's put those predictive dialers out of business once and for all. Remember, always be the straight man, the injured party. PAT] ------------------------------ From: jmarks@futurenetaz.com (Jeremy Marks) Subject: Panasonic KX-TD816 Fax Hookup Date: 8 Nov 2002 20:22:13 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ I have a Panasonic KX-TD816 phone system and just added an HP Officejet D135 fax/printer/scanner all-in-one unit. I have all the programming software and cables, but I do not know how to change the settings -- or what setting -- so that my fax will send via the system. Theoretically ... we have two phone lines into the system. I want to have line number two as the fax line. All calls to line number 2 automatically get answered by the fax. Line number 1 and 2 can both be accessed via the phone system (phones). Where do I connect the fax to (the back of the phone)? Any and all help is greatly appreciated. Thanks, Jeremy ------------------------------ From: Boo Phatty Subject: Re: Cross Connect Bay Solution in Telcos? Date: Sat, 09 Nov 2002 01:46:39 -0500 Organization: Darth Vader Enterprises, LLC Today, 08 Nov 2002 07:04:21 GMT, Two Buddha read a post from pstreicher@aol.com (PStreicher), and determined his interest in BURP. Where's my beer? Oh and: > Help! Has anyone in the industry came up with a solution to the mess > that has taken over the ccb bays in the central offices? I work for > Verizon and have a terrible time trying to trace jumpers for > troubleshooting problems these last few years. The problems all > started when they began installing DSX cross connect panels into new > bays that cross connected into the older cross connect bays. These > newer DSX bays use four wires with a larger gauge wire that has now > overtaken the space and is falling out of the older ccb bays. Wires > are so tightly bundled now that when someone takes out an order of > hi-cap they cut the wires instead of pulling them out. You can imagine > what this could look like in a few years. These ccb bays are the > spinal column of the telcom industry. Any failure in them would me > disaster to the central offices in areas affected by them. Any info > would be appreciated. Yeah, it's called using the factory bays with the 10" cable managers and the .01 amp tracer lights. ------------------------------ From: jmarks@futurenet-consulting.com (Jeremy Marks) Subject: Panasonic KX-TD816 Organization: Futurenet Reply-To: jmarks@futurenet-consulting.com Date: Sat, 09 Nov 2002 15:22:37 GMT I have installed my first Panasonic KX-TD 816 phone system for my in-laws and all is working perfectly ... except they added a fax machine into the fold last night. Their system is configured with two telephone lines going into the system. Line #2 is their fax line, but should be in the system so they can make outgoing calls on it if line#1 is busy. All calls to line #2 should go directly to the fax machine. Here are my questions: Do I plug the fax machine into the back of their display phone to get dial-tone? What programming areas and changes do I need to address to route the calls on line #2 directly to the fax? Are there any other items that need to be changed? Thanks for your help. Jeremy ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 09 Nov 2002 17:23:41 +0100 From: General / Cursos de Subject: UNIVERSIDAD DE SALAMANCA [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: So tell me guys ... did the Digest get spammed once again with this message that follows? Read it to me, please. PAT] Estimado/a Sr./a.: Entre los dias 7 y 24 de enero de 2003, celebraremos en nuestra Universidad la XII Edicion de los CURSOS DE POSTGRADO EN DERECHO. En esta edicion hemos programado 19 especialidades que seran impartidas por mas de 170 profesores y conferenciantes, seleccionados entre los expertos mas relevantes del panorama juridico. Mas de 1000 horas de clase, conferencias, actividades culturales... todo ello en el incomparable marco que ofrece el Centro Europeo de ensenanza superior mas prestigioso y antiguo de habla hispana: la UNIVERSIDAD DE SALAMANCA. Podra consultar todos los detalles de esta convocatoria (programas academicos, inscripcion, alojamiento, desplazamiento.....) en nuestra pagina de internet: http://www.postgrado.org/ Si desea que le ampliemos la informacion no dude en ponerse en contacto con nosotros. Agradeciendo su atencion e interes, reciba un cordial saludo. JUAN CARLOS FERRE OLIVE Director-Gerente --------------------------------------------- Si no desea volver a recibir informacion de esta institucion envienos un mensaje con la palabra "BORRAR" --------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------- Las tildes y otros signos de puntuacion han sido suprimidos deliberadamente para evitar errores de transmision --------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------- Roberto Pelazas Manso UNIVERSIDAD DE SALAMANCA FUNDACION GENERAL Direccion de Altos Estudios C/ Cardenal Pla y Deniel, 22 37008 - SALAMANCA (ESPAŅA) Tel: +34 923 294 679 Fax: +34 923 294 702 E-Mail: postgrado@usal.es Internet: http://www.postgrado.org --------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 08 Nov 2002 20:44:57 -0500 (EST) From: dhorvath@cobs.com (David B. Horvath, CCP) Subject: For the Business Directory: Harvest Auction Email Addresses TELECOM-L REMOVE DISCLAIMER Call if you're interested in email harvesting software or any other applications these folks might have for sale. > I am selling some great auction software. This > software will actually pick up email addresses > from the most popular auction site on the > internet. Depending on the speed of your computer , > you can pick up from 2,000 - 40,000 email > addresses for auction users in less than 6 hours > evertime you start it and you can even run > multiple instances of this software. I am selling > this software very cheap . Please email me your > contact info if you are genuinely interested or > call me toll-free 877-359-2698 . I also have many > other aplications that I am selling. And another place is offering a great deal on Cell phones. I had to go to their web page for their contact information: WELCOME TO GOZING - CALL US AT 800- 240- 4209 - David ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 23:24:39 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Qualcomm Finally Mixes Network Cocktail By Ben Charny Staff Writer, CNET News.com November 8, 2002, 3:31 PM PT Equipment that lets wireless carriers using GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) networks convert to Qualcomm's rival technology is set for its first trial, a company executive said Friday. Sanjay Jha, a Qualcomm senior vice president, said the trial will test the operation of the technology, known as GSM1x, and not whether there is a market for it. The tests will involve a few hundred customers and begins early next year. GSM1x was created as a way for GSM carriers to add Qualcomm's 1x cell phone technology to their networks. Short for CDMA20001xrtt, 1x is built on the CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) standard and promises to double voice calling capacity and create a wireless Web with download speeds of 40kbps to 60kbps (kilobits per second). http://news.com.com/2100-1033-965147.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 23:29:55 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Cybersecurity Bill Nears House Vote By Declan McCullagh Staff Writer, CNET News.com November 8, 2002, 4:31 PM PT American universities may receive a nearly $1 billion windfall next week, when Congress is expected to approve a massive new spending program for computer security. On Tuesday, the House is scheduled to vote on a bill that would spend approximately $900 million over the next five years to recruit graduate students and faculty members in computer security and create research centers at colleges and universities. The measure, which already has been approved by the Senate, also requires the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to create checklists for government agencies to help them with common computer security woes. Agencies are not required to abide by the checklist, but they must report whether it was followed. http://news.com.com/2100-1023-965164.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2002 23:34:53 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: The FBI's Cybercrime Crackdown By Simson Garfinkel November 7, 2002 In contrast to the teenage hackers of yore, today's perpetrators -- virtually all of them adults -- mount extremely sophisticated attacks. They don't brag, and they don't leave obvious tracks. To protect the classified information stored on her desktop computer, Special Agent Nenette Day uses one of the most powerful tools on the planet -- an air gap. Day points to an IBM ThinkPad resting on the table behind her desk. "That computer is hooked up to the Internet," she says. "But if you break into it, have a good time: there's no secret work on it." Two meters away on her desk sits Day's other computer -- a gray-and-chrome minitower emblazoned with a red sticker proclaiming that its hard drive is classified SECRET. "This," she says protectively, "holds my e-mail." Day readily talks about the ThinkPad, describing how she got it as part of a big purchase by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) a few years ago and explaining that it's now somewhat out-of-date. And she happily shows off a collectible action figure -- still in its display box -- a colleague brought back from Belgium. It's a "cyberagent" with a gun in one hand and a laptop computer in the other. But if you let your eyes drift back to that red sticker and try to copy the bold, black words printed on it, Day will throw you out of her office. Day belongs to the FBI's Boston Computer Crime Squad, one of 16 such units located throughout the United States. Each is composed of about 15 agents who investigate all manner of assaults on computers and networks -- everything from lone-hacker to cyberterrorist attacks -- with a dose of international espionage thrown in for good measure. Crimes range from Web site defacements and break-ins to so-called denial-of-service attacks, which prevent legitimate users from accessing targeted networks. http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/19909.html ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 9 Nov 2002 00:29:49 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Cable Company Pleads Guilty to Trying to Defraud Pentagon By Catherine Wilson, Associated Press, 11/7/2002 21:46 MIAMI (AP) A cable company pleaded guilty Thursday and agreed to pay $22 million in penalties for trying to defraud the Pentagon during military base closings and plotting to launder illegal profits from another fraud. Americable International Inc., a family-owned company based in Miami, and two subsidiaries admitted conspiring to overcharge the military for cable equipment as bases were shut down in the 1990s. Americable prepared $8 million in fake invoices as part of a process set up by the Pentagon to lessen the financial impact of closings on the company, but no payments were ever made. In a separate scam, the company acknowledged undercounting its customer base by at least 23 percent when paying cable networks for programming. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 9 Nov 2002 00:59:42 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Ma Bell Redux Christopher O'Leary (christopher.oleary@thomsonmedia.com) Oct 28, 2002 Former telecom analyst Jack Grubman's 1990s' prediction that AT&T Corp. would soon be overtaken by rivals like WorldCom Group Inc. and Qwest Communications International Inc. hasn't turned out quite the way he expected. But what has? The notorious Grubman, whose former employer Citigroup/Salomon Smith Barney is being investigated for forcing the analyst to change his tune to win AT&T's investment banking busines, is no longer the telecom kingmaker. Instead, Grubman is fending off dozens of lawsuits from disgruntled investors, WorldCom is bankrupt and fraud-ridden, and other long-distance market competitors, particularly Qwest, are on shaky financial footing. Meanwhile, AT&T is looking better-placed to regain the Ma Bell crown it wore for nearly a century. And those bankers who win its business are likely to be the telecom investment banking gurus of the future, much as Salomon was in recent years through its association with WorldCom and others. To be sure, the type of absolute power and market share once held by the former phone monopoly is no longer attainable. AT&T will have to grapple with its equally ambitious local-service rivals-known in the industry as "arbocks," vernacular for RBOCs or regional Bell operating companies-in order to win local-service market share while maintaining its stronghold in long distance. But if bets are placed on a national champion with a major market in both local and long-distance service, few are underrating AT&T this time around. "AT&T is in a terrific position," says Davis Terry, head of telecom investment banking for UBS Warburg. Meanwhile, AT&T is cleaning up from its own binges, greatly reducing its debt load by selling an ill-considered venture into cable television to Comcast Corp. http://www.iddmagazine.com/idd/NYTSStories/1031550763770.html ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 9 Nov 2002 12:03:59 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Pentagon Plans a Computer System That Would Peek at Personal Data By JOHN MARKOFF The Pentagon is constructing a computer system that could create a vast electronic dragnet, searching for personal information as part of the hunt for terrorists around the globe - including the United States. As the director of the effort, Vice Adm. John M. Poindexter, has described the system in Pentagon documents and in speeches, it will provide intelligence analysts and law enforcement officials with instant access to information from Internet mail and calling records to credit card and banking transactions and travel documents, without a search warrant. Historically, military and intelligence agencies have not been permitted to spy on Americans without extraordinary legal authorization. But Admiral Poindexter, the former national security adviser in the Reagan administration, has argued that the government needs broad new powers to process, store and mine billions of minute details of electronic life in the United States. Admiral Poindexter, who has described the plan in public documents and speeches but declined to be interviewed, has said that the government needs to "break down the stovepipes" that separate commercial and government databases, allowing teams of intelligence agency analysts to hunt for hidden patterns of activity with powerful computers. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/09/politics/09COMP.html ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 9 Nov 2002 12:40:22 -0500 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Europeans Outlaw Net Hate Speech By Julia Scheeres 02:00 AM Nov. 09, 2002 PT The Council of Europe has adopted a measure that would criminalize Internet hate speech, including hyperlinks to pages that contain offensive content. The provision, which was passed by the council's decision-making body (the Committee of Ministers), updates the European Convention on Cybercrime. Specifically, the amendment bans "any written material, any image or any other representation of ideas or the