For your convenience in reading: Subject lines are printed in RED and Moderator replies when issued appear in BROWN.
Previous Issue (just one)
TD Extra News


TELECOM Digest     Thu, 31 Mar 2005 22:20:00 EST    Volume 24 : Issue 139

Inside This Issue:                             Editor: Patrick A. Townson

    Obituary: Schiavo Dies After Feeding Tube Removed (Lisa Minter)
    Re: Cell Phone Jammer For Sale MONIX MGB-1S (T. Sean Weintz)
    Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards (Chris Farrar)
    Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards (Dale Farmer)
    Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards (DevilsPGD)
    Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards (Barry Margolin)
    Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards (T. Sean Weintz)
    Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards (Mark Atwood)
    Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards (John Hines)
    Re: Fax Station ID (Rich Greenberg)
    Re: Fax Station ID (Robert Bonomi)
    Re: GSM-900 (Robert Bonomi)
    Re: GSM-900 (Joseph)
    Re: Time for the Recording Industry to Face the Music (Dave Garland)
    Re: Science and Society: Anatomy of a Techno-Myth (Thomas A. Horsley)
    Re: Science and Society: Anatomy of a Techno-Myth (T. Sean Weintz)
    Re: Verizon, Voicewing and Portability (Robert Bonomi)
    Re: Secret Service DNA - "Distributed Networking Attack" (John McHarry)
    New Sponsor on Board at Digest Web Site (TELECOM Digest Editor)

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.  

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

Date: 31 Mar 2005 11:54:41 -0800
From: Lisa Minter <lisa_minter2001@yahoo.com>
Subject: Obituary: Schiavo Dies After Feeding Tube Removed


By MIKE SCHNEIDER, Associated Press Writer

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - Terri Schiavo, the severely brain-damaged woman
who spent 15 years connected to a feeding tube in an epic legal and
medical battle that went all the way to the White House and Congress,
died Thursday, 13 days after the tube was removed. She was 41.

Schiavo died at 9:05 a.m. at the Pinellas Park hospice where she lay
for years while her husband and her parents fought over her in what
was easily the longest, most bitter and most heavily litigated
right-to-die dispute in U.S. history.

The feud between the parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, and their
son-in-law continued even after her death: The Schindlers' advisers
complained that Schiavo's brother and sister had been at her bedside a
few minutes before the end came, but were not there at the moment of
her death because Michael Schiavo would not let them in the room.

"And so his heartless cruelty continues until this very last moment,"
said the Rev. Frank Pavone, a Roman Catholic priest. He added: "This
is not only a death, with all the sadness that brings, but this is a
killing, and for that we not only grieve that Terri has passed but we
grieve that our nation has allowed such an atrocity as this and we
pray that it will never happen again."

Michael Schiavo's attorney, George Felos, announced the death but had
no immediate comment beyond that. Michael Schiavo's whereabouts were
not immediately known.

"She's got all of her dignity back. She's now in heaven, she's now
with God, and she's walking with grace," Michael Schiavo's brother,
Scott Schiavo, said at his Levittown, Pa., home.

Outside the hospice, a small group of activists sang hymns, raising
their hands to the sky and closing their eyes. After the tube that
supplied a nutrient solution was disconnected, protesters had streamed
into Pinellas Park to keep vigil outside her hospice, with many
arrested as they tried to bring her food and water.

Dawn Kozsey, 47, a musician who was among those outside Schiavo's
hospice, wept. "Words cannot express the rage I feel," she said. "Is
my heart broken for this? Yes."

Schiavo suffered severe brain damage in 1990 after her heart stopped
because of a chemical imbalance that was believed to have been brought
on by an eating disorder. Court-appointed doctors ruled she was in a
persistent vegetative state, with no real consciousness or chance of
recovery.

She left no written instructions, but her husband argued that his wife
told him long ago she would not want to be kept alive
artificially. His in-laws disputed that, saying that would have gone
against her Roman Catholic faith, and they contended she could get
better with treatment. They said she laughed, cried, responded to them
and tried to talk.

Over and over, Pinellas County Circuit Judge George W. Greer said that
Michael Schiavo had convinced him that Terri Schiavo would not have
wanted to be kept alive under such conditions. The feeding tube was
removed with the judge's approval March 18 the third time food
and water were cut off during the seven-year legal battle.

Florida lawmakers, Congress, President Bush and his brother Gov. Jeb
Bush tried to intervene on behalf of her parents, but state and
federal courts at all levels repeatedly ruled in favor of her husband.

The case focused national attention on living wills, prompting perhaps
thousands of Americans to discuss their end-of-life wishes with their
loved ones and put their instructions in writing. The dispute also
stirred a furious debate over the proper role of government in such
life-and-death decisions. And it led to allegations that Republicans
in Congress were pandering to the religious right and violating their
own political principles of limited government and states' rights.

In Washington, the president said he was saddened by the death.

"The essence of civilization is that the strong have a duty to protect
the weak," Bush said. "In cases where there are serious doubts and
questions, the presumption should be in favor of life."

In Rome, Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, head of the Vatican office for
sainthood, called the removal of the feeding tube "an attack against
God."

An autopsy is planned, with both sides hoping it will shed more light
on the extent of her brain injuries and whether she was abused by her
husband, as the Schindlers have argued. In what was the source of yet
another dispute between the husband and his in-laws, Michael Schiavo
will get custody of the body and plans to have her cremated and bury
the ashes in the Schiavo family plot in Pennsylvania.

A funeral Mass, sought by the Schindlers, was tentatively scheduled
for Tuesday or Wednesday.

Gov. Jeb Bush said that millions of people around the world will be
"deeply grieved" by her death but that the debate over her fate could
help others grapple with end-of-life issues.

"After an extraordinarily difficult and tragic journey, Terri Schiavo
is at rest," he said. "I remain convinced, however, that Terri's death
is a window through which we can see the many issues left unresolved
in our families and in our society. For that, we can be thankful for
all that the life of Terri Schiavo has taught us."

Although several right-to-die cases have been fought in the courts
across the nation in recent years, none had been this public,
drawn-out and bitter.

Six times, the Court declined to intervene. As Schiavo's life ebbed
away earlier this month, Congress rushed through a bill to allow the
federal courts to take up the case. President Bush signed it March
21. But the federal courts refused to intervene.

Described by her family as a shy woman who loved animals, music and
basketball, Terri Schindler grew up in Pennsylvania and battled a
weight problem in her youth.

"And then when she lost all the weight, she really became quite
beautiful on the outside as well. What was inside she allowed to shine
out at that point," a friend, Diane Meyer, said in 2003.

She met Michael Schiavo, pronounced SHY-voh, at Bucks County Community
College near Philadelphia in 1982. She worked for a short time for the
Bell Telephone Company in Pennsylvania. They wed two years
later. After they moved to Florida, she worked in an insurance agency.

But recurring battles with weight led to the eating disorder that was
blamed for her collapse at 26. Doctors said she suffered severe brain
damage when her heart stopped beating because of a potassium
imbalance. Her brain was deprived of oxygen for 10 minutes before she
was revived, doctors estimated, while waiting for an ambulance and
in transit to emergency care.

Because Terri Schiavo did not leave written wishes on her care,
Florida law gave preference to Michael Schiavo over her parents. But
the law also recognizes parents as having crucial opinions in the care
of an incapacitated person.

A court-appointed physician testified her brain damage was so severe
that there was no hope she would ever have any cognitive abilities.

Still, her parents, who visited her nearly every day, reported their
daughter responded to their voices. Video showing the dark-haired
woman appearing to interact with her family was televised
nationally. But the court-appointed doctor said the noises and facial
expressions were reflexes.

Both sides accused each other of being motivated by greed over a
$1 million medical malpractice award from doctors who failed to
diagnose the chemical imbalance.

However, that money, which Michael Schiavo received in 1993, has all
but evaporated, spent on his wife's care and the court fight. Just
$40,000 to $50,000 remained as of mid-March.

Michael Schiavo's lawyers suggested the Schindlers wanted to get some
of the money. And the Schindlers questioned their son-in-law's
sincerity, saying he never mentioned his wife's wishes until winning
the malpractice case.

The parents tried to have Michael Schiavo removed as his wife's
guardian because he lives with another woman and has two children with
her. Michael Schiavo refused to divorce his wife, saying he feared the
Schindlers would ignore her desire to die.

Schiavo lived in her brain-damaged state longer than two other young
women whose cases brought right-to-die issues to the forefront of
public attention.

Karen Quinlan lived for more than a decade in a vegetative state
brought on by alcohol and drugs in 1975 when she was 21; New Jersey
courts let her parents take her off a respirator a year after her
injury. Nancy Cruzan, who was 25 when a 1983 car crash placed her in a
vegetative state, lived nearly eight years before the U.S. Supreme
Court ruled that her parents could withdraw her feeding tube. 

Schiavo's feeding tube was briefly removed in 2001. It was reinserted
after two days when a court intervened. In October 2003, the tube was
removed again, but Gov. Jeb Bush rushed Terri's Law through the
Legislature, allowing the state to have the feeding tube reinserted
after six days. The Florida Supreme Court later struck down
the law as unconstitutional interference in the judicial system by the
executive branch.  

Nearly two weeks ago, the tube was removed for a third and final time.

Associated Press reporters Allen Breed, Vickie Chachere, Mark Long,
Mitch Stacy and Ron Word contributed to this story.

This message to TELECOM Digest was prompted by friends of Terri Shiavo
 from her college days at Bucks Community College.  

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 . Hundreds of new articles daily.

*** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material the
use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This Internet discussion group is making it available without
profit to group members who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the
understanding of literary, educational, political, and economic
issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. I
believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material
as provided for in section 107 of the U.S.  Copyright Law. If you wish
to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go
beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright
owner, in this instance, the Associated Press.

For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

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

From: T. Sean Weintz <strap@hanh-ct.org>
Subject: Re: Cell Phone Jammer For Sale MONIX MGB-1S
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 21:28:23 -0500
Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com


Robert Bonomi wrote:

> On some systems, with some cards, you can over-ride the built-in
> Ethernet address, and tell it to use an Ethernet address you specify.
> This is not an option under MS-Windows.

Talk about ignorance in action! ;-) (hey, you said it first <G>)

IT IS an option in Windows, if you have a card and driver that support 
it. MOST modern ethernet cards and drivers will allow this under 
Windows. In fact it's been years since I have encountered one that did 
NOT support assigning your own mac address under windows.

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

Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 17:04:38 -0500
From: Chris Farrar <cfarrar1307@rogers.com>
Subject: Re: Blackboards vrs. Whiteboards


hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote about Subject: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards
on Date: 30 Mar 2005 10:25:59 -0800

> I heard my school district will modernize and replace the classic
> "blackboard" (or greenboard) with modern 'whiteboards'.  I can't help
> but wonder if this is a dumb idea.

> AFAIK, blackboards last forever.  Lots of old schools still have their
> original ones.  In contrast, whiteboards seem sensitve to nicks and
> scrapes.

> I believe black/greenboards cost less than whiteboards.

> But most significantly is the chalk vs. marker.

> Chalk is much cheaper than markers.  Markers always run out quickly.
> Someone forgets and uses the wrong kind permanently staining the
> whiteboard.

> Lastly, markers have that weird chemical smell.

> Seems to me there's nothing wrong with blackboards and nothing to be
> gained by whiteboards.

> Thoughts anyone?

Well, blackboards do generate chalk dust.  And the way kids seem to
have alergies to almost everything under the sun, and parents that
will file contingency lawsuits if someone looks at their kids funny, I
wonder if it is to head off lawsiuts that the chalk dust is causing
Johnny's asthma to act up.

Chris

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

From: Dale Farmer <dale@cybercom.net>
Organization: The  fuzz in the back of the fridge. 
Subject: Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 22:51:51 GMT


hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

> I heard my school district will modernize and replace the classic
> "blackboard" (or greenboard) with modern 'whiteboards'.  I can't help
> but wonder if this is a dumb idea.

> AFAIK, blackboards last forever.  Lots of old schools still have their
> original ones.  In contrast, whiteboards seem sensitve to nicks and
> scrapes.

> I believe black/greenboards cost less than whiteboards.

> But most significantly is the chalk vs. marker.

> Chalk is much cheaper than markers.  Markers always run out quickly.
> Someone forgets and uses the wrong kind permanently staining the
> whiteboard.

> Lastly, markers have that weird chemical smell.

> Seems to me there's nothing wrong with blackboards and nothing to be
> gained by whiteboards.

> Thoughts anyone?

That this has nothing to do with telecom.   So I'll leave it at that.

    --Dale

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

From: DevilsPGD <ihatespam@crazyhat.net>
Subject: Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 17:13:15 -0700
Organization: Disorganized


In message <telecom24.137.12@telecom-digest.org> hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
wrote:

> I heard my school district will modernize and replace the classic
> "blackboard" (or greenboard) with modern 'whiteboards'.  I can't help
> but wonder if this is a dumb idea.

> AFAIK, blackboards last forever.  Lots of old schools still have their
> original ones.  In contrast, whiteboards seem sensitve to nicks and
> scrapes.

> I believe black/greenboards cost less than whiteboards.

> But most significantly is the chalk vs. marker.

> Chalk is much cheaper than markers.  Markers always run out quickly.
> Someone forgets and uses the wrong kind permanently staining the
> whiteboard.

> Lastly, markers have that weird chemical smell.

> Seems to me there's nothing wrong with blackboards and nothing to be
> gained by whiteboards.

> Thoughts anyone?

I'll take a whiteboard over a blackboard for readability any day.

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

From: Barry Margolin <barmar@alum.mit.edu>
Subject: Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards
Organization: Symantec
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 20:28:58 -0500


In article <telecom24.137.12@telecom-digest.org>, hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com 
wrote:

> Seems to me there's nothing wrong with blackboards and nothing to be
> gained by whiteboards.

This web site mentions chalk dust as a common trigger of asthma attacks 
in children:

http://kidshealth.org/kid/health_problems/allergy/asthma.html

A google search shows a number of other pages mentioning similar 
connections.


Barry Margolin, barmar@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA

*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***

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

From: T. Sean Weintz <strap@hanh-ct.org>
Subject: Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 21:35:16 -0500
Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com


Hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

> I believe black/greenboards cost less than whiteboards.

I would expect a good quality, real slate blackboard (the kind I had
in all my classrooms growing up) is considerably MORE than a
whiteboard.

> But most significantly is the chalk vs. marker.

Yes.

> Chalk is much cheaper than markers.  

YES!

> Markers always run out quickly.
> Someone forgets and uses the wrong kind permanently staining the
> whiteboard.

Yup. However I have seen some good enameled white boards that DON'T
stain very easily -- "permanent" marker wipes right off with a little
alcohol.

> Lastly, markers have that weird chemical smell.

And teenagers can sniff them ... Happens when you give them glue,
paint, correction fluid ... It will happen with markers.

> Seems to me there's nothing wrong with blackboards and nothing to be
> gained by whiteboards.

Initially they may be cheaper to install new. It's a losing
proposition fiscally when you look at the cost of markers vs. chalk
and the cost of replacing damaged white boards.

> Thoughts anyone?

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

Subject: Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards
From: Mark Atwood <mark@atwood.name>
Organization: EasyNews, UseNet made Easy!
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 08:22:40 GMT


hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com writes:

> Chalk is much cheaper than markers.  Markers always run out quickly.
> Someone forgets and uses the wrong kind permanently staining the
> whiteboard.

> Lastly, markers have that weird chemical smell.  Seems to me there's
> nothing  wrong  with  blackboards   and  nothing  to  be  gained  by
> whiteboards.  Thoughts anyone?

Chalk dust is hell on electronics.

Mark Atwood       |  When you do things right, people won't be sure
mark@atwood.name  |  you've done anything at all.
http://mark.atwood.name/  http://www.livejournal.com/users/fallenpegasus


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: The fact that so many classrooms are
now also equipped with computers and other electronics may have played
some role in the decision.    PAT] 

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

From: John Hines <jbhines@newsguy.com>
Subject: Re: Blackboards vs. Whiteboards
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 10:15:12 -0600
Organization: www.jhines.org
Reply-To: john@jhines.org


hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

> Lastly, markers have that weird chemical smell.

Blackboards are always dusty if they get used.

White reflects light, so it would brighten up a room.

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

From: richgr@panix.com (Rich Greenberg)
Subject: Re: Fax Station ID
Date: 30 Mar 2005 16:32:28 -0500
Organization: Organized?  Me?


In article <telecom24.137.6@telecom-digest.org>,
 <NOTvalid@surplus4actors.INFO> wrote:

> John Schmerold wrote:

>> Anyone know if it's a law or regulation that requires faxes to include
>> station identification at top of every page sent ?

> Yes ... but

> Only if made after a certain year.

> My 4800bps fax card from my XT which I still use is exempt.

Time to upgrade.  Adding the ID is not the responsibity of the modem,
but of the fax software that drives the modem.  Winfax in my case.
Newer faxes do 14.4 kbaud faxes.


Rich Greenberg Marietta, GA, USA richgr atsign panix.com    + 1 770 321 6507
Eastern time.  N6LRT  I speak for myself & my dogs only.   VM'er since CP-67
Canines:Val, Red & Shasta (RIP),Red, husky                   Owner:Chinook-L
Atlanta Siberian Husky Rescue. www.panix.com/~richgr/  Asst Owner:Sibernet-L

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

From: bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi)
Subject: Re: Fax Station ID
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 02:01:37 -0000
Organization: Widgets, Inc.


In article <telecom24.137.6@telecom-digest.org>,
 <NOTvalid@surplus4actors.INFO> wrote:

> John Schmerold wrote:

>> Anyone know if it's a law or regulation that requires faxes to include
>> station identification at top of every page sent ?

> Yes ... but

> Only if made after a certain year.

> My 4800bps fax card from my XT which I still use is exempt.

Sorry, John, but you are *wrong*.

You, "the person" sending the fax are *still* required to place the
identification information at the top/bottom of every page, or on the
first page.

You are correct that _equipment_ manufactured before 20 Dec 1992 does
not have to do this 'automatically', HOWEVER, just because you are
using such equipment you are _not_ exempt from the requirement of 47
USC 227 (d) (1).

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

From: bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi)
Subject: Re: GSM-900
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 02:50:32 -0000
Organization: Widgets, Inc.


In article <telecom24.137.20@telecom-digest.org>, Jason
<cheanglong@gmail.com> wrote:

> Thank you all for the explanation. It really helps.

> But may I know for a transmitter and a receiver, will the transmitting
> frequency be different than the receiving frequency?  I know there are
> such cases. But why they make it this way?  

So they can both work _at_the_same_time_.   duh!

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

From: Joseph <JoeOfSeattle@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: GSM-900
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 19:02:30 -0800
Reply-To: JoeOfSeattle@yahoo.com


On 30 Mar 2005 05:04:16 -0800, Jason <cheanglong@gmail.com> wrote:

> But may I know for a trasnmitter and a receiver, will the trasnmitting
> frequency be different than the receiving frequency?  I know there are
> such cases. But why they make it this way?  

Transmitting and receiving frequencies are different.

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

From: Dave Garland <dave.garland@wizinfo.com>
Subject: Re: Time for the Recording Industry to Face the Music
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 16:00:38 -0600
Organization: Wizard Information


It was a dark and stormy night when hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

> Well then, what would be an appropriate royalty for musicians and
> price for CDs?  Well-known recording artists seem to be living quite
> well. 

Actually, most musicians make their money from concerts and maybe
merchandising.  "Few musicians ever actually receive royalties from
their record sales on major labels", even including name bands like the
Backstreet Boys (NYT article reprinted at
http://knowyourmusic.com/index.asp?LogID=131 ), and individuals like
Janis Ian, who said "in 37 years as a recording artist, I've created 25+
albums for major labels, and never once received a royalty check that
didn't show I owed _them_ money" (
http://www.janisian.com/article-internet_debacle.html ) and David Byrne
( http://www.boingboing.net/2005/03/28/david_byrne_launches.html ).

Royalties get paid on "profits", and the recording industry is as
ingenious as Hollywood in creative accounting practices that ensure
there never will be anything labelled a profit.  The economics for a
hypothetical successful band are described in an entertainment column:
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/story/60991p-57008c.html

Of course, none of that is to say that the record companies aren't
entitled to make some money.  But it's misleading to suggest that shared
music steals food from the tables of the creators of the music.

(Sorry, stretch as I may, the only ObTelecom I can think of is "and the
recording companies use _telephones_ in plotting their nefarious deeds"
:-D )

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

Subject: Re: Science and Society: Anatomy of a Techno-Myth -- Economist.com
From: tom.horsley@att.net (Thomas A. Horsley)
Organization: AT&T Worldnet
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 22:40:11 GMT


> I don't think the scare of using cell phones while pumping gas ever
> got too far.  It'd be a very easy thing to check -- what were the
> causes of gas station fires and technically could a cell phone cause
> that?  As an all-electronic device, cell phones normally don't
> generate sparks.

There is certainly no evidence that cellphones can start gas station
fires (and a lot of evidence against it from MythBusters episodes to
research by the peteroleum safety institute), nevertheless every gas
station I go to has an official looking sign near the pumps telling
you not to use cellphones :-).  

-- >>==>> The *Best* political site  <URL:http://www.vote-smart.org/>
   >>==+ email: Tom.Horsley@worldnet.att.net icbm: Delray Beach, FL |
   <URL:http://home.att.net/~Tom.Horsley> Free Software and Politics
   <<==+

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

From: T. Sean Weintz <strap@hanh-ct.org>
Subject: Re: Science and Society: Anatomy of a Techno-Myth -- Economist.com
Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 21:37:21 -0500
Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com


hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:

> You don't need to be a scientist to see through this crap, only some
> common sense and some careful thinking is needed.

Both (common sense and careful thinking) are in woefully short supply
in this area.

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

From: bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi)
Subject: Re: Verizon, Voicewing and Portability
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 02:45:40 -0000
Organization: Widgets, Inc.


In article <telecom24.137.13@telecom-digest.org>, Robert Bonomi
<bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com> wrote:

[[..  munch  ..]]

> *IF* you have a _reliable_ cable TV provider, they may offer Internet 
> access, and could be worth checking out.  If, like many places, the cable
> TV service is subject to frequent short-duration outages, you should take 
> into consideration what effect similar outages will have on your Internet
> use.

> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In the nearly two years since I decided
> to ditch Southwestern Bell (for everything) and go with CableOne for
> my high speed internet, I do not think there has been five minutes of
> downtime. Well, there was one time I decided to move a television set
> into my computer room so I could watch television while working on the
> Digest, and in the process of hooking up a splitter to the cable line
> and attaching a television/radio combination to the cable which (at
> that point in my system) had just been the internet, I got a splitter
> installed incorrectly. I had that same day installed a Cisco router
> for the computers, and between the ill-advised television/radio on the
> cable line in my computer room and the Cisco router, the Motorola SB-4220
> Surfboard Cable Modem (supplied by CableOne) somehow lost track of what
> it was doing. But the tech guy at CableOne very graciously got me back
> on line in about 10 minutes once I decided to call them and ask for help.
> Cable only rarely goes off line, I have found. PAT]

A lot depends on where you are, and who your cable provider is.  "Big city"
cable tends to be -less- reliable than smaller-town installation.  Probably
because bigger cities tended to get wired earlier.  Older, more problematic,
infrastructure.

Cable TV here -- metro Chicago -- has short-duration outages (i.e.,
3-15 seconds or so) several times a week, *on*average*.  It looks like
an amplifier somewhere power-cycles.  I _don't_ know about the
Internet service, but the "reliability" of the TV failures does not
inspire confidence.

My folks, in another state, have 'cable Internet' -- they don't have
any choice, being a couple of thousand feet too far away from the
C.O. for DSL.  A few weeks ago, the cable company did an over-night
'upgrade' of the head-end equipment.  It was FIVE DAYS before my folks
Internet connection worked again.  Getting the problem resolved took:
more than TWELVE HOURS (cumulative) sitting on hold, waiting to speak
to a customer-service rep, _and_ *THREE* on-site visits by the cable
co. techs, Ultimate determination, it _was_ a problem in the new
head-end gear; the site visits didn't accomplish anything, except to
establish that what my folks were reporting was the _exact_ truth.
*sigh*.

Cable may be a good choice for some.  A lot depends on the provider.
Unfortunately, in most locales, you have as much choice for a cable
provider as you have for an ILEC.

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

From: John McHarry <jmcharry@comcast.net>
Subject: Re: Secret Service DNA - "Distributed Networking Attack"
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 04:09:52 GMT
Organization: EarthLink Inc. -- http://www.EarthLink.net


Since this is their job, at least it is an efficient use of public
money, but it does give one an idea about how subtle security can be
when challenged by an adversary with intelligence and resources.

I worked for a short period for an entity that dealt in national
security, although I never got more than peripherally involved. The
one thing that struck me immediately was that we weren't up against
kids or crooks, but people as smart and patriotic as ourselves.

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

From: TELECOM Digest Editor <ptownson@telecom-digest.org>
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 20:55:00 CST
Subject: New Sponsor Comes on Board With Digest Web Site


I am pleased to welcome AllSlots.com, an online casino service
as a new sponsor for one year, effective April 1, 2005. If you
enjoy online wagering, casino-style, from the privacy of your home
computer, you may wish to check out 
http://www.allslots.com/online-casinos.php . And, my thanks for their
support.      


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, Yahoo Groups, 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: 620-402-0134
                        Fax 1: 775-255-9970
                        Fax 2: 530-309-7234
                        Fax 3: 208-692-5145         
                        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 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.

One click a day feeds a person a meal.  Go to http://www.thehungersite.com

Copyright 2004 ICB, Inc. and TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved.
Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA.

              ************************

DIRECTORY ASSISTANCE JUST 65 CENTS ONE OR TWO INQUIRIES CHARGED TO
YOUR CREDIT CARD!  REAL TIME, UP TO DATE! SPONSORED BY TELECOM DIGEST
AND EASY411.COM   SIGN UP AT http://www.easy411.com/telecomdigest !

              ************************

Visit http://www.mstm.okstate.edu and take the next step in your
career with a Master of Science in Telecommunications Management
(MSTM) degree from Oklahoma State University (OSU). This 35
credit-hour interdisciplinary program is designed to give you the
skills necessary to manage telecommunications networks, including
data, video, and voice networks.

The MSTM degree draws on the expertise of the OSU's College
of Business Administration; the College of Arts and Sciences; and the
College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology. The program has
state-of-the-art lab facilities on the Stillwater and Tulsa campus
offering hands-on learning to enhance the program curriculum.  Classes
are available in Stillwater, Tulsa, or through distance learning.

Please contact Jay Boyington for additional information at
405-744-9000, mstm-osu@okstate.edu, or visit the MSTM web site at
http://www.mstm.okstate.edu

              ************************

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

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 fifty 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 V24 #139
******************************

Return to Archives**Older Issues