TELECOM Digest     Mon, 21 May 2007 16:38:00 EDT    Volume 26 : Issue 141

Inside This Issue:                             Editor: Patrick A. Townson

    MySpace to Share Sex Offender Data (Margaret Lillard, AP)
    Short Range Wi-Fi Meets Citywide Limits (Anick Jesdanun, AP)
    Judge Defended Over "What is Web Site?" Comment (Mark Trevelyan, Reuters)
    Airlines, the Internet, and "Advertorials" (AES)
    CommunicationsDirect News Daily Update (communicationsdirect_daily)
    Alltel Deal Represents Largest U.S. Telecom LBO (USTelecom dailyLead)
    Re: Clean Technology Bigger than Internet Claims Bill Joy (ranck@vt.edu)
    Re: Clean Technology Bigger than Internet Claims Bill Joy (Lisa Hancock)
    Re: Telephone Dialing in Old Movies (John Levine)
    Re: Telephone Dialing in Old Movies (Timothy Lange)
    Re: AT&T Steps up Cingular Rebranding (Lisa Hancock)

====== 26 years of TELECOM Digest -- Founded August 21, 1981 ======
Telecom and VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Digest for the
Internet.  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.

               ===========================

Addresses herein are not to be added to any mailing list, nor to be
sold or given away without explicit written consent.  Chain letters,
viruses, porn, spam, and miscellaneous junk are definitely unwelcome.

We must fight spam for the same reason we fight crime: not because we
are naive enough to believe that we will ever stamp it out, but because
we do not want the kind of world that results when no one stands
against crime.   Geoffrey Welsh

               ===========================

See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details
and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest, and why not
support Net Freedom Now http://www.freepress.net/netfreedom . 

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

Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 13:42:37 -0500
From: Margaret Lillard, AP  <ap@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: MySpace to Share Sex Offender Data


By MARGARET LILLARD, Associated Press Writer

Faced with legal demands from state attorneys general, MySpace.com
said Monday it will release data on registered sex offenders it has
identified and removed from the popular social networking Web site.

The company, citing federal privacy laws, initially rebuffed a demand
from North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper and colleagues in
seven other states who last week asked for data on how many registered
sex offenders are using the site and where they live.

MySpace agreed Monday to provide the information to all states after
some members of the group filed subpoenas or took other legal actions
to demand it. The company said last week such efforts were required
under the federal Electronic Communications Privacy Act before it
could legally release the data.

"Different states are going about it different ways," said Noelle
Talley, spokeswoman for Cooper, who filed a "civil investigative
demand" for the information.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal used a subpoena that
"compels this information right away -- within hours, not weeks,
without delay -- because it is vital to protecting children," he
said.

"Many of these sex offenders may have violated their parole or
probation by contacting or soliciting children on MySpace," Blumenthal
said.

MySpace obtained the data from Sentinel Tech Holding Corp., which the
company partnered with in December to build a database with
information on sex offenders in the United States.

"We developed 'Sentinel Safe' from scratch because there was no means
to weed them out and get them off of our site," said Mike Angus,
MySpace's executive vice president and general counsel.

Angus said the company, owned by media conglomerate News Corp., had
always planned to share information on sex offenders it identified and
has already removed about 7,000 profiles, out of a total of about 180
million.

"This is no different than an offline community," he said. "We're
trying to keep it safe."

Angus said the company had also made arrangements to allow law
enforcement to use the Sentinel software directly.

Cooper, Blumenthal and attorneys general in Georgia, Idaho,
Mississippi, New Hampshire, Ohio and Pennsylvania asked for the
Sentinel data last week.

Social networking sites such as MySpace allow users to create online
profiles with photos, music and personal information, and lets them
send messages to one another and, in many cases, browse other
profiles.

Cooper said the information from Sentinel could potentially be used to
look for parole violations or help in investigations. He said
lawmakers in North Carolina are considering legislation that would
further restrict access to social networking Web sites, including one
that would require parents' permission for minors to set up a profile.

Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann said sharing the information is a good
first step toward enacting those kinds of protections.

"MySpace needs to do more, including implementing an effective age
verification system that will make the site considerably safer," he
said.

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood said his office will subpoena
the records as well.

"I think once we find out the content of the messages -- of course, it 
will depend on how long they retain that information -- we may very well 
find that some of the messages included illegal enticement of a child," 
he said.

Associated Press writer Pat Eaton-Robb in Hartford, Conn., contributed 
to this report.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily. And, discuss this and other topics in our forum at
http://telecom-digest.org/forum (or)
http://telecom-digest.org/chat/index.html

For more news and headlines, please go to:
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/AP.html

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

Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 13:45:58 -0500
From: Anick Jesdanun, AP <ap@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Short Range Wi-Fi Meets Citywide Limits


By ANICK JESDANUN, AP Internet Writer

Adam DuVander likes to surf the Internet from his laptop wherever he 
happens to be -- at home, a coffee shop or a neighborhood park. He has 
been able to do so in recent years thanks to wireless hotspots set up by 
networking activists in Portland, Ore.

So when Portland announced it would try to blanket the entire city with 
similar Wi-Fi technology, the Web programmer and blogger got excited -- 
until he tried using it.

"For me ubiquitous access means I don't have to base my life around
wherever my office is," DuVander said. "I tried it out as soon as I
could and found that it wasn't for me. The quality of the connection
is not up to my standards."

Blame physics and the use of a short-range technology designed for
smaller quarters, not citywide deployments.

Simply put, signals don't travel far or penetrate building walls well.

That's fine for a coffee shop. The equipment is indoors, as are its
users. That's also fine for a park. There are enough users
concentrated there to justify installing a lot of wireless antennas.

But it wouldn't be economical to place an access point inside every home 
and on every street lamp.

Portland's contractor, MetroFi Inc., is putting roughly 25 access
points per square mile, so that users would generally be no farther
than 500 feet from the nearest one, said Logan Kleier, the city's
manager for the Unwired Portland project.

Cutting that distance in half, to 250 feet, would require about four
times as many access points, because they need to be installed in all
four directions.

"The network cost gets completely out of whack," he said. "The
business model breaks in its entirety."

Network operators, meanwhile, are recommending signal boosters for as
much as $150 to get indoor coverage. Many people in Portland and
elsewhere plan to stick with their existing DSL or cable provider
instead.

An emerging technology called WiMax -- promising much longer ranges --
might be able to blanket a larger area more easily than Wi-Fi can.
Sprint Nextel Corp. already has announced plans to offer WiMax service
in several cities by next year, with initial deployments this year in
Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.

But Wi-Fi still has its advantages. It's been around longer so the
technology is stable and equipment relatively cheap.

And although Wi-Fi continues to evolve -- an industry group will soon 
start certifying products under its emerging, faster "n" flavor -- 
devices made tomorrow will likely work with networks built today. On the 
network side, some equipment can be upgraded by pushing new software 
remotely, said Esme Vos, an expert on municipal Wi-Fi systems.

Regardless of the specific wireless technology, though, wired services
remain a better choice over wireless for many basic needs. Wired
networks are generally faster and have fewer security risks. Prices
for DSL, in particular, have dropped.

Wireless networks are good as backups during emergencies and away from
home, but "it's very hard to have a wireless network compete as a
primary connection," said Dave Burstein, editor of the industry
newsletter DSL Prime. "Where you have a choice, DSL or cable compared
to wireless, you are going to go for DSL or cable unless it's
ridiculously overpriced."

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily. And, discuss this and other topics in our forum at
http://telecom-digest.org/forum (or)
http://telecom-digest.org/chat/index.html

For more news and headlines, please go to:
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/AP.html  (or)
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/technews.html

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

Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 13:16:33 -0500
From: Mark Trevelyan <reuters@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Judge Defended Over "What is Web Site?" Comment


By Mark Trevelyan

A British judge who said he didn't really understand the term "Web
site" is fully computer literate and was merely trying to clarify
complex evidence for the benefit of the court, the judiciary said on
Friday.

The remark by Judge Peter Openshaw during a trial on Wednesday made
headlines around the world.

"The trouble is I don't understand the language. I don't really
understand what a Web site is," he told a London court during the
trial of three men accused of inciting terrorism via the Internet.

In a statement, the Judicial Communications Office did not dispute
that Openshaw had been accurately quoted. But it said the remark by
the judge, now in his fifth week presiding over the trial, had been
taken out of context.

"Trial judges always seek to ensure that everyone in court is able to
follow all of the proceedings. They will regularly ask questions --
not for their own benefit -- but on behalf of all those following a
case, in the interests of justice," it said.

The judge's comment came as a prosecutor was questioning a witness
about links posted to various sites by users of an alleged militant
Islamist forum on the Web.

"Mr Justice Openshaw was simply clarifying the evidence presented, in
an easily understandable form for all those in court," the statement
said.

"Mr Justice Openshaw is entirely computer literate and indeed has
taken notes on his own computer in court for many years," it added.

Reuters stands by its story. As reported earlier, prosecutor Mark
Ellison responded to the judge by explaining the terms 'Web site' and
'forum' during exchanges in which Openshaw acknowledged: "I haven't
quite grasped the concepts."

Anticipating further testimony from a computer expert, the judge
told Ellison: "Will you ask him to keep it simple, we've got to start 
from basics."

Three men are on trial in the London court on a number of charges
including inciting another person to commit an act of terrorism. 
Violent Islamist material posted on the Internet, including beheadings
of Western soldiers, is central to the case.

Copyright 2007 Reuters Limited.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily. And, discuss this and other topics in our forum at
http://telecom-digest.org/forum (or)
http://telecom-digest.org/chat/index.html

For more news and headlines, please go to:
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/newstoday.html

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

From: AES <siegman@stanford.edu>
Subject:  Airlines, the Internet, and "Advertorials"
Date:  Mon, 21 May 2007 10:28:47 -0700
Organization:  Stanford University


I've appended below an unsolicited email I just received, having to do
with air travel and at least indirectly, with the Internet, because:

*  I really can't tell:  Is this is a Nigerian-type spam/scam? -- or 
   is it for real?

*  And beyond that, which would be worse:  for it to be just a scam?
   -- or for it to be something that really goes on in our world?  Is
   this how those utterly stupid and banal items that you hear on the
   audio or video Business Channels on airplanes are really created?

*  Is there an uglier, more dishonest word than "advertorial"?
   (in the 3rd paragraph down)  

=============================
To:  [me]
From: Patricia Chi <pc@skyradioandvideo.com>
Subject: Radio Interview with [me]
Date: Sun, 20 May 2007 01:32:05 -0700

Time Sensitive Material
[my name]
[my phone]


Hello:

I am writing on behalf of Sky Radio Network, the nation's leading
in-flight media company, in regards to our upcoming "America's
Innovators and Entrepreneurs" talk radio show on American Airlines.

This special on-going radio series spotlights compelling profiles of
innovators and entrepreneurs -- from the small business owner to the
large enterprise CEO -- the people that make up the backbone of
business in America and are rarely heard from.  This show will feature
stories of hope, ideas and success stories in ways you've never heard
before.

I would like to personally invite you to participate in our radio
program, which airs worldwide on American Airlines for a full month
reaching 4.2 million business and leisure travelers.  This special
advertorial opportunity requires a small production fee (see
participation costs and details below).

Our guests to date include:

Anthony Ambrose, General Manager, Intel
Craig Ellins, CEO, DigitalFX
Tom Cates, President, Brookeside
Stephan Brant, Managing VP, Hitachi Consulting
Debbie Grodon, President & CEO, Snappy Auctions
Al Knapp, President & CEO, Ethanex Energy
Joy Flora, President, Merry Maids

To hear some of our current and past interviews, click on
http://www.skyradionet.com

Our production team will produce a dynamic one-on-one interview.  Our
writers will script everything in advance with your final editorial
control.  Your interview will air in a continuous loop on 29,000
American Airlines flights during the entire month of September 2007.

Since we're on deadline, we're offering our last two spots on our
September 2007 edition for only $3,995 (normally $6,995).  Please note
we must record your interview by June 8th and because of our tight
deadline, we need a commitment to secure your spot no later than noon
PST on Wednesday, May 23nd.

Your participation includes:

1. Production and placement of a three-minute interview/profile
to air worldwide on "The Business and Technology Report" on
29,000 American flights reaching 4.2 million in September 2007.
**American Airlines is the world's largest airline and flies to
more destinations than any other airline.
Media kit: http://www.skyradionet.com/mediakitaa.cfm
FAQ: http://www.skyradionet.com/faq

2. Sky Radio's "America's Innovators and Entrepreneurs" program
listing in American Attractions (350,000 monthly copies).
** American Attractions has the greatest number of readers
and largest circulation of any in-flight publication.

3. Rebroadcast of interview on http://www.skyradionet.com
with link to your site for 1 year.

4. Digital audio file of interview for promotional and marketing
purposes.

5. "As heard on American Airlines" logo for airing of interview
on your website.

6. All turnkey production including scripting, recording, editing,
mastering and delivery.

Please contact me as soon as possible to reserve your spot, as
space is very limited.  In the meantime, I encourage you to visit
our website to gain a better understanding of who we are and
the caliber of clients we represent.

Look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,

Patricia Chi
Producer
Sky Radio Network
12155 Riverside Drive
Valley Village, CA 91607
818.754.6687 Office
310-594-9609 Mobile
818.301.2099 Fax
pc@skyradioandvideo.com
www.skyradionet.com

Producers of the #1 Talk Shows in the Sky and on the Web

Sky Radio Network is an independent producer contracted to place
business and lifestyles talk radio programming for four major domestic
carriers. If you'd like to call for a reference, please contact the
Executive Producer, Elizabeth Montgomery at 818-762-6800 ext. 11 or
email em@skyradioandvideo.com.  If you want to be take off our
invitation list, please reply to this email stating your intent.


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Personally, I do not think this is a 
Nigerian type scam/spam. Now spam it probably is, but I do not think
it is Nigerian in nature. Nigeria always seems to be offering
something for nothing, i.e.  'help me by spending this X million
dollars which was left in our bank'. But, thanks for passing along
this example of just what a miserable place the internet has become in
recent years (actually, about 10-15 years, since Al Gore invented it.)

I'll tell you what I *despise* about the net these days: the huge
number of agressive viruses which are sent out which clog up my
computer making it almost unuseable from one day to the next. I had
one such item this past weekend which made my system almost entirely
unuseable. I do not know _who_ sent it, but I got one of those
miserable pop-ups, and quite a few pop-unders telling me I have lots
of viruses; I think there were a couple dozen listed. If I clicked
somewhere, it promised me a 'free scan' to get rid of them. So, like
the damn fool I am, I clicked on what _I thought_ would dismiss the
pop-up; instead it brought me more and more 'pop-ups' of the same
kind.  Try as I might, running every virus remover I have here did not
get rid of it; its name is 'Dr. Anti-Spam'  and at first did not even
show up in the 'Add/Remove programs' list on the control page.
Finally my friend and expert consultant in Canada told me to try one
he sent here called 'f-spyaxe.zip' which I unpacked, loaded and ran.
That sort of half-heartedly got rid of it, but left remnants of it.
So many remnants, in fact, that when I got up Sunday, the remnants
were cluttering my screen. Then my friend said try Rogue Remover,
which is an open source thing specifically designed to clean out one's
computer good and properly. (I had to spend about a half-hour cleaning
out the pop-ups [as more and more of them kept showing up] before I
could get to and read his email about Rogue Remover.) Once I downloaded
RR it went to work immediatly, bashing one bogus file after another
which this thing (Dr. Anti-Spy) had given me. I asked my Canadian
friend, "if these people are trying to win over friends and get you to
buy their anti-virus protection why did they do it this way?"  My
friend replied that, "you did not have all those nasty viruses they
claimed; that was just to scare you; all they want to do is get your
$39.95 payment, not get you rid of viruses."  It turns out I had no
viruses except for one: theirs.  Apparently this is a common technique
these days, to make claims about viruses to those of us not too
familiar with the topic (or actual forensics of same) and then get
money for removing them. Nasty, nasty, nasty! 

And when I frankly say to people that 'computers and the internet are
not fun any longer' ( I *used to be* one of the biggest supporters of
same) my friends all tell me I am just a 'sourpuss and a bitter old
man', and they ask me why if I feel that way, do I keep on doing this
work. I tell them I do not know what else to do with my life. I do
know I would like to find out who sent me that 'Dr. Anti-Spy' thing;
I would make a referral to the alleged Iraq terrorists to find them
(and ALL virus writers/distributors) and behead everyone of them.  PAT  

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

Subject: CommunicationsDirect News Daily Update 
From: communicationsdirect <communications@communicationsdirectnews.com>
Reply-To: communicationsdirect_daily-owner@communicationsdirectnews.com
Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 08:42:39 EDT


********************************
PricewaterhouseCoopers Presents
The CommunicationsDirect Daily Update
For May 21, 2007
********************************

Alltel Goes Private for US$25 bil. from TPG and Goldman Sachs
http://communicationsdirectnews.com/do.php/120/24475?11228

     After extended speculation, Alltel has finally announced an
     agreement to sell to private equity players TPG and Goldman Sachs
     Capital Partners for a US$27.5 billion ...

New Mobile Portability Rules Come Into Force in France
http://communicationsdirectnews.com/do.php/130/24470?11228

     French mobile operators have stated their preparedness to roll
     out 10-day mobile portability today, in line with the deadline
     set by the French telecoms regulator, ARCEP. In a statement on
     Friday (18 May), France Telecom's Orange said it was prepared
     for the change and has completed a trial of its systems. Under
     the new ...

U.K.'s Dethroned Virgin Strikes Back At BT With DSL/IPTV
http://communicationsdirectnews.com/do.php/120/24459?11228

     U.K. cable operator Virgin Media, which just lost the honor of
     being the largest broadband provider in the U.K. to BT has struck
     back with a deal with Cable & Wireless that turns it into an xDSL
     and IPTV provider and doubles its potential geographic market.
     Virgin and C&W said they have signed a pact that names ...

Avis Car Rental to Offer Wireless Internet Gear
http://communicationsdirectnews.com/do.php/120/24454?11228

     NEW YORK - Avis Rent A Car System is offering customers a wireless
     Internet service to use in its rented cars, hotel rooms and other
     places a traveler might go.    The new Avis Connect service, priced
     at $10.95 per day, can transmit a Wi-Fi signal to multiple laptops
     and other mobile devices at the same time.  The service is
     provided ...

Your feedback on our e-letter is always welcome. Send email to:
CommunicationsDirect Editor <telecom_direct_editor@us.pwc.com>

Copyright (C) 2007 PricewaterhouseCoopers.

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

Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 12:47:51 CDT
From: USTelecom dailyLead <ustelecom@dailylead.com>
Subject: Alltel Deal Represents Largest U.S. Telecom LBO


USTelecom dailyLead
May 21, 2007
http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/gWkEfDtusXrWyuCibuddCtbK

TODAY'S HEADLINES

NEWS OF THE DAY
* Alltel deal represents largest U.S. telecom LBO
BUSINESS & INDUSTRY WATCH
* AT&T begins final phaseout of Cingular name
* Siemens goes out of the fold for new CEO
* Qwest seeks to offer video service in Portland, Ore.
USTELECOM SPOTLIGHT
* Get the answers at NXTcomm!
HOT TOPICS
* AT&T executive: U-Verse, wireless ads have $1 billion potential
* Verizon Business buys Cybertrust
* Siemens ordered to pay $51 million, former managers convicted
* Embarq turns 1
* IPTV offers opportunity for broadband providers
TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
* PC World picks top 20 products of the year
* Gear vendors ready new products
* Online ad deals mark tipping point in market
* Interactive Intelligence introduces mobile-IP client
IP DOWNLOAD
* Argonne drops VoIP, offers lessons for future implementation
REGULATORY & LEGISLATIVE
* China warns: Start taking TD-SCDMA seriously
EDITOR'S NOTE
* New Feature: SmartBrief at work, home and on the road

Follow the link below to read quick summaries of these stories and others.
http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/gWkEfDtusXrWyuCibuddCtbK

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

From: ranck@vt.edu
Subject: Re: Clean Technology Bigger than Internet Claims Bill Joy
Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 15:33:49 UTC
Organization: Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA


Dave Garland <dave.garland@wizinfo.com> wrote:

> It was a dark and stormy night when Wesrock@aol.com wrote:

>> There is no place in the world where public passenger transportation
>> does not require a subsidy; in most cases, outright operation by a
>> governmental entity.

>> Also, rail transit systems are tremendously expensive to build in
>> established cities.

> All true.  But exactly the same is true of automobile-centered
> transportation.  User fees (gas tax and tolls) pay for only a small
> fraction of the cost of construction, maintenance, and operation of
> highways, roads, streets.  And for the total cost, you need to add on
> top of that the cost to users for purchase, maintenance, and operation
> of the vehicles.

You know, I keep hearing this about road use taxes not fully paying
for road construction and upkeep, but then I hear equally emphatic
folks saying that so much of the revenue is used to support "mass
transit" that it *could* pay for the roads if it didn't have that
burden.  No one, on either side, seems to be citing sources for this
received wisdom.  Do you have any?  Preferably without agenda, though
I know that will be hard to find.  Everbody has an agenda.

I'm curious where the truth lies (pun fully intended ;-))

Bill Ranck
Blacksburg, Va.

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

From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Re: Clean Technology Bigger than Internet Claims Bill Joy
Date: 21 May 2007 10:14:45 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com


On May 17, 8:20 pm, Wesr...@aol.com wrote:

> There is no place in the world where public passenger transportation
> does not require a subsidy; in most cases, outright operation by a
> governmental entity.

Highways (and airways) require a general subsidy too, but it is
unknown because it is indirect and buried in other accounts:

Highways and airports take up enormous amounts of land.  Land is
taxable, but when a highway or airport grows, that land is taken off
the tax base.  That's quite a nice subsidy.  When transit was provided
by private companies, they had to pay very high property taxes where
their competition paid nothing.

Highways require extensive public safety services -- police, fire,
rescue -- that is generally paid by local residents, not the users of
the highway.  On serious accidents, quite a few public safety
responders and their equipment are tied up assisting in cleanup and
rescue.

Highways and airports were built with tax free safe bonds which
accordingly paid low interest.  Transit systems were built with
private bonds that had to pay a much higher interest rate.  The Fed
picked up the difference since the bonds were income-tax free.  Note
that to this day many psgr rail facilities are still on private land
that is taxed.

Until about a few decades ago, private passenger trains were tightly
regulated and forced by the government to run unnecessary services or
charge fares too low to cover expenses.  This hurt the system.  When
such systems became public there was substantial rebuilding necesary.

Passenger train carriers have been hit hard with modern day
requirements, such as PCB and asbestos abatement of their inherited
infrastructure and handicapped accessibility reconstruction.  All of
that is very expensive.

> Also, rail transit systems are tremendously expensive to build in
> established cities.

As are highways.  The Big Dig in Boston cost $25 billion.

Transit lines have the advantage of being about to snake around things
and be underground, something impractical for most highways.

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

Date: 21 May 2007 14:15:12 -0000
From: John Levine <johnl@iecc.com>
Subject: Re: Telephone Dialing in Old Movies


> When I lived in Gadsden, Alabama in the late sixties, they had a five
> digit plan.  The two exchanges there are 546 and 547.  You could dial
> 68820 (which was our telephone number at home).  Or 72550 (one I made
> up just now) and actually reach 546-8820 and 547-2550.

> I sincerely doubt that that plan is still in place (I just don't know
> either way).

It can't be.  When the NANP ran out of N0X area codes and added NNX
codes, the most complex part of the transition was fixing everyone's
dial plans to 7D/1+10D or 10D/1+10D or just 1+10D.  

Places with short dialing always used 1+whatever for toll calls, 1+7D
for nearby and 1+10D for the rest of the country.  Back then 1+N0
meant that it was a seven digit call, 1+NN meant ten digits, but that
no longer works, and the alternative, timeouts, isn't considered
usable.  So they went to consistent 7D (or with overlays 10D) local
dialing.

Technically it'd be possible to have short dialing for local calls and
1+10D for everything else, sort of like the way a PBX uses 9+whatever
for calls outside the PBX, but I gather the telcos agreed that would
be too confusing and didn't do that.

R's,

John

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

From: Timothy Lange <tim@purdue.edu>
Subject:  Re: Telephone Dialing in Old Movies
Date:  Mon, 21 May 2007 15:07:29 -0400
Organization: Purdue University


Not just old movies, when I started here at Purdue we had two
'exchanges' serving campus, the 749- and the 494-.  If your number
started with 749 then anyone on campus could call you dialing only the
last four digits.  If you had a 494 number then the last five had to
be used.  The exchange was/is on campus, but run by GTE (now Verizon).

Tim

[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Ah, so you must be a newcomer around 
West Lafayette, then.  Back in the 1950-60's, Lafayette and West 
Lafayette had just gone dial and to reach Purdue University there were
two ways to do it:  From any phone in the Lafayette or West Lafayette
area one dialed '90' from any (off campus) phone to reach the Purdue
operator, or you dialed '92' plus five digits if you knew the
extension you wanted. Furthermore, because the town was GTE rather
than Bell System, with the advent of 'area codes' the area was not in 
the (logical) 317 area code. Instead, (in Chicago area at least) to 
reach someone on Purdue campus we dialed the long distance operator
('211' in those days) and asked our operator for 'Lafayette 90' or
'Lafayette 92-xxxxx', or Lafayette seven whatever digits for a non-
campus place. 

When I went to West Lafayette once in 1956-57 or thereabouts for a
debate tournament I promised my mother I would call home when I was
there. I went into the student union at Purdue to use a payphone and
when I dialed the operator to ask for Chicago, Area Code 312, xxx-xxxx
the operator rudely cut me off after hearing the 'area code 312' part
of my request to inform me, "We do not go by area codes here, just the
number in Chicago is all."  Inward must have been really busy that
day, because I heard ringing (of the inward operator) at least 25
times for close to five minutes when the Lafayette operator cut the
connection and said to me, "I am sorry sir, but Chicago is not
answering right now ... would you try again later, please."  PAT] 

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

From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Re: AT&T Steps up Cingular Rebranding Ahead of iPhone
Date: 21 May 2007 12:10:37 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com


On May 21, 7:09 am, Reuters News Wire <reut...@telecom-digest.org>
wrote: 

> Top U.S. phone company AT&T Inc. said it will step up its rebranding
> campaign at Cingular wireless stores, seeking to raise AT&T's
> profile ahead of the launch of Apple Inc.'s iPhone.

I hope they know what they're doing.  As mentioned before, I thought
Cingular's repuation as a carrier was superior to that of AT&T these
days.

> AT&T, however, said it will keep the exterior signs of most of the
> stores unchanged for now, showing it would take time to dismantle the
> well-recognized wireless brand.

Federated Department stores, which owns Macy's has converted all the
department stores it owns to Macy's.  In some cases this may have been
foolish as it killed off highly respected and beloved local names and
popular store house brands.  They renamed a popular store brand candy
and lost business.

I used to shop at Bamberger's which was changed to a Macy's.
Actually, Macy's owned Bamberger's since the 1930s, but let it run
independently out of its Newark HQ.  I liked it as an independent
store, but don't like it as a Macy's.

It's funny how we were so damn passionate to break up the national
Bell System, yet we welcome these other business merger concentrations
such as in department stores, discount stores, supermarkets, banks,
and telephone companies.

> The company has said it will keep an eye on consumer
> surveys to assess the public's recognition of AT&T as a wireless
> provider.

Frankly, I don't trust them.  I think such companies, particularly in
the wireless business, are very "disconnected" from their consumers.
Their sales staffs appear to be on commission and are out to sell!
sell! sell!, not caring if the customer is happy or well served; they
want to make their commission now.  I suspect there have very high
turnover among their sales staff so there is little continuity or true
support.  In my own recent shopping adventure, I got many conflicting
answers* from sales kiosks, the web, and telephone people.  That
shouldn't be.

"Customer Service" is often used as a way to sell callers even more
features, not necessarily _serve_ the customers.  Free advice is not
profitable.  Everything focuses on profit, Sell!  Sell!  Sell!.
Providing high quality service -- going that extra mile to minimize
cutoffs or noisy connections -- is a low priority.

(anyone with a different opinion on wireless businesses)?

public replies, please.

*I was told I'd get a one year contract.  The unit arrived with a 2
year contract.  When I called they said (not making this up):  "yes,
we we set you up with a 1 year contract but when we sent it out it
became a 2 year contract."


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In Chicago, I think Macy's bought out
Marshall Field and Company, a well known store and changed its name. 
And yes, I agree with you on Cingular vrs. AT&T brand names, although
I do not care that much for Cingular either. I suggest a plague on 
both their houses!  PAT]

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


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