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TELECOM Digest     Tue, 24 May 2005 02:27:00 EDT    Volume 24 : Issue 229

Inside This Issue:                             Editor: Patrick A. Townson

    Talk America to Acquire LDMI Telecommunications (Jack Decker)
    Common Sense Moves Could Protect Privacy (Monty Solomon)
    Verizon Wireless Ringback Tones Reach New England (Monty Solomon)
    Mapquest Founder Launches Google Competitor (Jim Elder)
    Foghorn Sounds (Choreboy)
    IPTV (ryzinho@yahoo.com)
    Looking for a Model 15 or 19 (moody1951@aol.com)
    Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use? (Tony P.)
    Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use? (John C. Fowler)
    Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use? (Robert Bonomi)
    Re: Tie Lines was Re: Foreign Exchange Lines Still in Use? (D Gibson)
    Re: Tie Lines was Re: Foreign Exchange Lines Still in Use? (mc)
    Re: Tie Lines was Re: Foreign Exchange Lines Still in Use? (Robt Bonomi)
    Re: Packet8 DTMF Tones Sound "Clipped" (Clark W. Griswold, Jr.)
    Re: Packet8 DTMF Tones Sound "Clipped" (Ken Abrams)
    Re: Cingular / sms.ac Ripoff Alert (John Levine)
    Re: Switch Identification (Tim@Backhome.org)
    Re: Why Does it Take So Long? (AES)
    Re: Corporate Identify -- Verizon vs. "Bell Telephone" (Al Gillis)

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.  

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

From: Jack Decker <jack-yahoogroups@withheld_on_request>
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 23:24:59 -0400
Subject: Talk America to Acquire LDMI Telecommunications


http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050523006013&newsLang=en

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. & NEW HOPE, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 23, 2005--Talk
America (NASDAQ:TALK):

HIGHLIGHTS:

    --  Creates leading midwest integrated communications provider
        (ICP)
    --  Accelerates Talk America's entry into the business market
    --  Broad product suite for the residential and business markets
    --  Combination expected to generate significant operating
        efficiencies
    --  VOIP business product rollout in fourth quarter 2005
    --  Increased Talk America guidance for 2005

Talk America (NASDAQ:TALK) announced today that it has entered into an
agreement to acquire LDMI Telecommunications, a leading facilities-
based communications provider serving business and residential
customers primarily in Michigan and Ohio. The acquisition of LDMI,
when completed, will provide Talk America with a leadership position
in the small and medium sized commercial marketplace and will expand
its networking footprint.

Ed Meyercord, Chief Executive Officer and President of Talk America,
commented, "LDMI is an outstanding company with an excellent reputation
in our core market. The LDMI team has developed a highly competitive
T-1 product set and built strong distribution and operational
capabilities. LDMI is resource rich with a talented and experienced
team of telecom professionals who will be instrumental in executing
our market expansion strategy. Across the board, this will be a great
fit with our company."

Pat O'Leary, Chief Executive Officer and President of LDMI, said, "we
are delighted to be joining with Talk America, they are executing
their networking plan seamlessly and have tremendous back office
resources. The combination creates a formidable competitor in the
Midwest committed to customer satisfaction."

ESTABLISHED PLAYER IN THE BUSINESS MARKET

LDMI, a privately held company established in 1992, currently provides
service on over 131,000 voice equivalent lines and 27,000 data
equivalent lines, primarily in Michigan and Ohio, supported by
networking infrastructure in 83 end offices. LDMI purchased networking
assets in 2003 and, in anticipation of regulatory changes, transformed
itself into a facilities-based ICP. LDMI has over 2,300 T-1 customers
and delivers a full suite of voice and data offerings, including
specialized services such as virtual private networks, hosted
applications and security services. The company has built a loyal
customer base which includes "Smart-T" customers who receive
integrated voice and data services that are dynamically allocated for
efficient bandwidth utilization. The company also serves larger
customers, such as AC Delco, a division of General Motors, with more
sophisticated service offerings.

STRONG FINANCIAL POSITION AND OPERATING EFFICIENCIES

The combination of LDMI and Talk America will create a financially
strong company with no debt, significant cash flow and a platform for
continued market expansion. Talk America's financial flexibility gives
it the opportunity to selectively invest in new markets and to grow
through future acquisitions.

In 2004, LDMI's total revenues were $120.7 million and its EBITDA was
$5.9 million. Talk America expects LDMI to generate EBITDA of $8
million in 2005 and $14 million in 2006, including the impact of
merger related synergies. The transaction will also bring savings on
capital expenditures of at least $4 million through 2006.

LDMI currently has approximately 158,000 voice and data equivalent
lines of which 118,000 are in Michigan and 40,000 are in
Ohio. Mr. Meyercord continued, "LDMI's traffic is driven primarily by
business customers, and should yield significant networking
efficiencies when combined with our base of primarily residential
customers."

VOIP BUSINESS PRODUCT ROLLOUT IN THE FOURTH QUARTER 2005

It is expected that, when the acquisition is completed, the combined
companies will leverage Talk America's soft switching platform to roll
out VOIP business services in the fourth quarter 2005. Talk America
will utilize its Metaswitch to broaden LDMI's T-1 product suite and
enable the company to expand into new geographic territories and
increase its addressable market.

TRANSACTION EXPECTED TO CLOSE IN THE THIRD QUARTER 2005

At the closing of the transaction, in exchange for all of the stock of
LDMI, Talk America will pay $24 million in cash and issue 1.8 million
shares of its common stock, with an estimated value of $16 million
based on the closing price as of May 20, 2005. As of April 30, 2005,
LDMI had total debt, net of cash, of $8.1 million. The purchase price
for LDMI's equity together with LDMI's current debt, net of cash,
totals $48 million and represents a 3.4x multiple of LDMI's expected
2006 EBITDA, including the impact of merger related synergies. The
cash portion of the purchase price, as well as the repayment of LDMI's
debt at closing, will be funded out of cash on hand.

The LDMI acquisition transaction has been approved by the board of
directors and the stockholders of LDMI and is subject to the receipt
of certain regulatory approvals, which both companies expect to
receive. The shares of common stock will be issued only to the holders
of LDMI's preferred stock and will not be registered under the
Securities Act of 1933. Talk America has agreed to file a registration
statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission as promptly as
reasonably practicable after the closing to permit resales of common
stock by such holders. The companies expect that the transaction will
close in the third quarter 2005.

FINANCIAL GUIDANCE

Talk America has increased its financial and operating guidance for
the full year 2005 to reflect the strength of its core business
operations. Talk America has also provided financial and operating
guidance that includes projected results for LDMI, assuming that its
acquisition of LDMI is completed as of July 31, 2005.


                             2005
            ---------------------------------------------
Metrics                  Talk Previous Talk Revised  Talk and LDMI (3)
-------------------------------------- ------------- -----------------
Voice Lines on Network       175k          190k            255k
Data Lines on Network         --            40k             70k
Total Revenue            $380-$390 mm  $385-$395 mm    $430-$440 mm
EBITDA (1)                $73-$77 mm    $78-$82 mm      $83-$87 mm
Capital Expenditures (2)  $43-$47 mm    $43-$47 mm      $48-$52 mm

    (1) Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and
        Amortization (EBITDA) is defined as operating income (loss)
        plus depreciation and amortization.

    (2) Includes capitalized software.

    (3) Based on July 31, 2005 closing date.

CONFERENCE CALL

Talk America and LDMI management will host a conference call to
discuss the acquisition of LDMI at 8:30 a.m. ET on May 24, 2005. The
call can be accessed by dialing the following: US 800-720-9457,
International, 303-957-1279. A replay of the call will be available
through 7:00 p.m. ET on May 31, 2005 by dialing the following: US
800-633-8284, International 402-977-9140. The reservation number for
the replay is 21248125.

ABOUT TALK AMERICA

Talk America is a leading competitive communications provider that
offers phone services and high speed internet access to both
residential and business customers. Talk America delivers value in the
form of savings, simplicity and quality service to its customers
through its leading edge network and award-winning back office. For
further information, visit us online at: http://www.talkamerica.com.

Please Note: The statements contained herein regarding the
consummation of the acquisition of LDMI, the future results of LDMI
and the effects and results of the acquisition on the business and
results of operations of Talk America should be, and certain other of
the statements contained herein may be considered forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of
1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such
statements are identified by the use of forward-looking words or
phrases, including, but not limited to, "estimates," "expects,"
"expected," "anticipates," "anticipated," "forecast," "guidance," and
"targets". These forward-looking statements are based on our current
expectations. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in
such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no
assurance that such expectations will prove to have been
correct. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertaintie s
and our actual results could differ materially from our
expectations. In addition to those factors discussed in the
foregoing, important factors that could cause such actual results to
differ materially include, among others, the non-completion of the
LDMI acquisition or our inability to integrate effectively and as
anticipated the business of LDMI upon the completion of the
acquisition, dependence on the availability and functionality of
local exchange carriers' networks as they relate to the unbundled
network element platform, failure to establish and deploy our own
local network as we plan to do or to operate it in a profitable
manner, increased price competition for long distance and local
services, failure of the marketing of the bundle of local and long
distance services and long distance services under our direct
marketing channels to a smaller marketing footprint, attrition in the
number of end users, failure to manage our collection management
systems and credit control s for customers, interruption in our
network and information systems, failure to provide adequate customer
service, and changes in government policy, regulation and enforcement
and/or adverse judicial or administrative interpretations and rulings
relating to regulations and enforcement, including, but not limited
to, the continued availability of the unbundled network element
platform of the local exchange carriers network and unbundled network
element pricing methodology.

For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause
actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking
statements, see the discussions contained in our Annual Report on Form
10-K for the year-ended December 31, 2004, filed March 16, 2005, as
amended by our Form 10-K/A filed March 30, 2005, and any subsequent
filings. We undertake no obligation to update our forward-looking
statements.
	
Contacts
	
Talk America
Jeff Schwartz, 215-862-1097
jschwartz@talk.com


How to Distribute VoIP Throughout a Home:
http://michigantelephone.mi.org/distribute.html

If you live in Michigan, subscribe to the MI-Telecom group:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MI-Telecom/

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

Date: Tue, 24 May 2005 00:19:26 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
Subject: Common Sense Moves Could Protect Privacy


By ELLEN SIMON AP Technology Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stealing Social Security numbers and other sensitive
data isn't always a cloak-and-dagger, ultra-sophisticated operation:
It's often a low-tech job made easier by carelessness and flimsy
safeguards.

Plenty of inexpensive measures can protect data from the large-scale
theft that big banks, data merchants and other companies have recently
disclosed.

But "security and privacy, for a lot of large organizations, are an
afterthought, not a priority," said Evan Hendricks, who publishes the
newsletter "Privacy Times."

Consider the latest headache for some large banks:

Wachovia Corp., and Bank of America Corp. say they have notified more
than 100,000 customers that their accounts and personal information
may be at risk after former bank employees allegedly sold account
numbers and balances to a man who then sold them to data collection
agencies. Nine people have been arrested in New Jersey in the case.

Or consider MCI Inc.'s privacy problem:

An MCI laptop containing the names and Social Security numbers of
16,500 current and former MCI Inc. employees was stolen last month
from the car of an MCI financial analyst in Colorado. The car was
parked in the analyst's home garage. The computer was
password-protected; the company would not comment on whether the data
was encrypted.

Encryption, which is relatively inexpensive, would make all those 
records all but impossible to access.

      - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=49378767

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

Date: Tue, 24 May 2005 01:26:15 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
Subject: Verizon Wireless Ringback Tones Reach New England


Greet Wireless Callers With a Song Instead of a Ring; Numerous Artists
              and Music Genres Available

WOBURN, Mass., May 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon Wireless, the first
national carrier to launch Ringback Tones, today announced the arrival
of its Ringback Tones service in New England.  Verizon Wireless
customers throughout the region can now find the perfect Ringback Tone
to replace the standard ring callers hear while they wait for their
call to be answered.

     - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=49371499

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

From: Jim Elder <jim@eldercommunications.com>
Subject: Mapquest Founder Launches Google Competitor
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 17:25:18 -0400


Patrick,

Mapquest founder Perry Evans has launched a new company, Local Matters
which combines three well-established companies in Internet search and
voice-based directory assistance (DA). The new company which was
formally launched today has 40 customers worldwide so its already a
leading global provider of advanced search and content solutions to
existing media publishers and DA service providers.

Local Matters has the technology and industry relationships to be a
leader in the high-growth markets for Internet local search, enhanced
directory assistance and mobile local search. Today local search
represents about 25% of all online searches and can be expected to
grow significantly. Local Matters will be able to help yellow pages
publishers and DA providers offer content-rich and feature-rich local
search portals and enhanced DA services to leverage this growth.

Perry Evans is available for an interview to provide more information
on the company, where he sees the industry going and how Local Matters
will help both consumers and local businesses realize more benefit
from local search.

If you'd like to talk to Perry or get more information on Local
Matters, please contact Reid Wegley at 303-494-2636,
reid.wegley@104degreeswest.com

A press release on the launch is embedded below and also attached to
this note.


Jim Elder
Phone: 203-431-3573
Fax: 203-894-1241
Cellphone: 203-470-8659
e-mail: jim@eldercommunications.com

News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, please contact:
Reid Wegley

104 West Partners
Tel: 303-494-2636
reid.wegley@104degreeswest.com

APTAS, ISx AND YP SOLUTIONS MERGE INTO
LOCAL MATTERS TO FOCUS ON LOCAL SEARCH

Combined Company Creates Global Leader in Enabling Companies to
Augment Local Search, Mobile Search and Enhanced Directory Services

DENVER, Colo. May 23, 2005 Aptas, ISx and YP Solutions today announced
that the three companies have merged to become, Local Matters, Inc., a
new company providing telephone directory publishers, mobile and
directory assistance service providers with strategic technology
solutions in Local Search.

With the merger, Local Matters becomes the largest global provider of
advanced search and content solutions to existing media publishers and
directory assistance service providers, serving more than 40 companies
in 18 countries worldwide. The company will leverage established
legacies of technology innovation and content transformation
experience to enable publishers to build more productive relationships
between local advertisers and consumers through new local search
capabilities.

"Local Matters is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the
high-growth markets for Internet local search, enhanced directory
assistance services, and the burgeoning mobile local search
opportunity stemming from the convergence of Internet, voice and
mobile services," said Perry Evans, CEO and founder of Aptas who will
now serve as CEO of Local Matters. "The combined entity offers
significantly greater scale and resources to market and strengthen its
base of industry innovation centered on leveraging traditional
publishing business advantages and developing thriving local
marketplace services."

In addition to Mr. Evans, who previously founded MapQuest and Jabber,
Local Matter s is piloted by a seasoned management team. Don Jones,
president of YP Solutions will serve as president of Local Matters,
and Ed Downs, CEO of ISx will continue to serve as CEO of ISx, which
will operate as a subsidiary of Local Matters. Aptas executives
Jeannette McClennan, chief marketing and products officer, and Susan
Dalton, senior vice president of Engineering and Operations, will
assume similar positions for Local Matters.

In addition to local search platforms, content transformation
services, and enhanced directory assistance, Local Matters is also
embarking on a specialized and highly targeted research program,
called Local Matters Lab.

The Lab will create a research environment to conduct development
projects in conjunction with customers and partners in local search,
directory services, content enhancement and applications for mobile
devices. This research will be led by a cross-disciplinary team who
collaborate with industry experts, business professionals and
customers to discover compelling new solutions that work for both
consumers and advertisers.

About Local Matters:

LMI was recently formed through the combination of three leading
participants in the local search market: Aptas, Inc. ("Aptas"),
Information Services Extended, Inc. ("ISx") and YP Web Partners, LLC
("YP Solutions").  This transaction combined two leading providers of
Internet local search solutions with a leading provider of voice-based
local search solutions.

Local Matters, Inc. (LMI), with more than 40 customers in 18 countries
is the largest global provider of advanced search and content
solutions to incumbent media publishers and directory assistance
service providers.  Local Matters is uniquely positioned to take
advantage of the high growth markets for Internet local search and
enhanced directory assistance services and the burgeoning mobile local
search opportunity stemming from the convergence of Internet, voice
and mobile services. Local Matters is committed to enabling its
customers to offer content and feature-rich local search portals and
Enhanced Directory Services that are well differentiated from
traditionalInternet search portals.

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

From: Choreboy <choreboyREMOVE@localnet.com>
Subject: Foghorn Sounds
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 21:44:51 -0400
Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com


I've been trying to call a number on a Qwest exchange.  Sometimes it
rings and nobody answers.  Sometimes I get a busy signal.  Most often
I get a signal that comes in two pulses like a busy signal, but it's a
base tone like a foghorn. What kind of equipment would make a signal
like that?

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

From: ryzinho@yahoo.com <ryzinho@yahoo.com>
Subject: IPTV
Date: 23 May 2005 16:21:18 -0700


Does anyone have any experience with IPTV?  I'm having some problems
with my cable provider and would like another television option.  I'm
wondering if IPTV still has "wrinkles" to iron out (I hated having to
wait to switch channels with satellite), and if it's even available
yet.  Thanks.

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

From: moody1951@aol.com
Subject: Looking for a Model 15 or 19
Date: 23 May 2005 17:41:20 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com


Looking for a Model 15 or 19 in good cosmetic condition and operating
order.

reg (Mobile, AL )

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

From: Tony P. <kd1s@nospamplease.cox.reallynospam.net>
Subject: Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use?
Organization: ATCC
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 17:24:04 -0400


In article <telecom24.228.13@telecom-digest.org>, hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com 
says:

> Robert Bonomi wrote:

>> Autovon used "standard" Touch-tone phones.  Ones with *all* the
>> buttons, including the 4th column of 4.

> It wasn't that way at my father's installation, an army arsenal
> and research center.

> [BTW, a "standard" Touch-Tone phones does not have the fourth column.
> Further, plenty of Touch Tone phones introduced in the early years had
> only 10 buttons, not 12.  We had such a set at home.]

It was very easy to modify the 12 button phones to use all 16
tones. You just used a push button toggle to swap the 3rd column to
4th column mode.

And even those 10 button phones could be made to emit all 16 tones
because both the 10 and 12 button pads share the same rows/columns of
frequencies.

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

Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 15:51:15 PDT
From: John C. Fowler <johnfpublic@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use?


> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: As Robert knows, those four
> additional touch tone keys were known as A,B,C, and D. I forget the
> exact meaning of each, but my question is, did anyone with 'regular'
> service but with an Autovon phone ever try pressing those keys in 
> a regular call?  I did a couple times, and the immediate result was 
> a 'fast busy' signal; the call would not complete.  PAT]

Way back in TELECOM Digest Volume 12 Issues 627 and 628 (and a couple
of others in the vicinity), several readers commented on what the
A/B/C/D tones did on their various telephone lines.  The only reason I
remember is that I was one of the ones who commented.  The general
consensus was, it depends on your switch.  In my case, a friend and I
had found that, on our switch, after activating three-way calling and
getting a dial tone, pressing C immediately terminated the second dial
tone and bridged the original two parties back together again.  Other
people reported a few other oddities.  Nobody reported anything too
mind-blowing (didn't reach anyone who answered the phone,
'Yes, Mister President!' or the like).

John C. Fowler, johnfpublic@yahoo.com


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I wonder if I should hunt down those
two issues from the archives (off hand, sounds like 1993 or 1994) and
print them again ....?   PAT]

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

From: bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi)
Subject: Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use?
Date: Tue, 24 May 2005 02:23:47 -0000
Organization: Widgets, Inc.


In article <telecom24.228.13@telecom-digest.org>,
<hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com> wrote:

> Robert Bonomi wrote:

>> Autovon used "standard" Touch-tone phones.  Ones with *all* the
>> buttons, including the 4th column of 4.

> It wasn't that way at my father's installation, an army arsenal
> and research center.

> [BTW, a "standard" Touch-Tone phones does not have the fourth column.

BTW The Touch-Tone (aka DTMF) _standard_ specifies a grid of four
"low" tones, and four "high" tones.

AUTOVON phones WERE 'standard' in that they used the frequencies that
were in the specification and *only* those things that were in the
standard.

They were 'unusual' in that they used *all* the dual-tone pairs
specified in the standard.  There was nothing not compliant with the
standard about them.

> Further, plenty of Touch Tone phones introduced in the early years had
> only 10 buttons, not 12.  We had such a set at home.]

If you want to get technical about it, the 12 button (and 10 button)
phones are, strictly speaking, "subset implementations" of the full
standard.

The fact that subset implementations are more frequently encountered
than the full implementation is irrelevant to the fact that the full
implementation *is* a standard implementation.

> Anyway, my father's installation was all rotary dial served by a cord
> switchboard dial (SxS) PBX accomodating several thousand extensions.

> The Autovon lines came in on trunks that were no different than the
> city trunks and were handled the same way.  There were no special
> signals for priority calls or ways for priority handling.

Which proves that that facility was not AUTOVON-enabled, since MLPP
(via the 4th-column touch-tones) was part of the design spec. of
AUTOVON, from "day one".

This was possibly the Army's SCAN. predecessor to AUTOVON.

Or maybe "limited functionality" tie lines to a 'real' AUTOVON
facility.

> As mentioned, telephones were plain rotary.

> To reach Autovon they dialed 8 then the Autovon number.  For their
> purposes, Autovon was merely a switching tie network to other govt
> installations.

The features and capabilities of AUTOVON, as of its activation in late
1963, are well documented in the literature.  Specifically including
'command and control' capabilities using (DTMF-based) MLPP
classification of calls, automatic call pre-emption based on that
'priority', and DID/DOD.

> All incoming calls went through the PBX where the operators connected
> it to the desired extension.  Because of the high volume of
> extensions, an extension itself didn't have an appearance, rather a
> dial trunk did.  That is, if you wanted extension 7182, the operator
> plugged in the 7 row and dialed 182.  I've seen other cord
> switchboards serving very large PBX set up in a similar fashion.

OK, that clarifies things.  That base was *not* on AUTOVON, nor it's
predecessor SCAN.  They had _limited-functionality_ tie-lines to a
SCAN or AUTOVON facility.

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

Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 16:32:10 -0600
From: Daryl Gibson <daryl.gibson@gmail.com>
Reply-To: Daryl Gibson <daryl.gibson@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Tie Lines (was Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use?


> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: City of Chicago used DC power (rather
> than AC) -- at least in the downtown area -- until sometime around
> 1930. That's at least one reason why there were so many WUTCO clocks
> everywhere, instead of 'regular' wall clocks. Clocks cannot run on
> direct current; they require alternating current at 60 cycles.

I imagine the battery powering most wall clocks used nowadays would be
surprised by that statement (if it could think, of course).

Clocks may have used the 60 hz cycle as a timing mechanism, of course,
where a modern clock may use something else that oscillates, such as a
quartz crystal.

Daryl


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: But you see, Daryl, in the little wall
clocks with a battery in them, the battery does _not_ drive the
escapement in the clock. The battery merely feeds a little motor which
_winds up_ the spring which forces the escapement to work, which is
how the old Western Union clocks operated as well. If you take the
wall clock down from its place, hold it very quietly for a few minutes
and listen, typically after every three or four -- maybe in some cases
ten minutes, you'll hear a little 'whirring' sound which lasts for
a couple seconds as the spring gets re-wound which in turn drives
the escapement gear, causing it to repeatedly try to force its way
past the two 'fingers' which alternatly jump up and down, trying 
to resist the pressure. You could as easily remove the battery totally
then stand there and every five minutes or so use some tiny little
tool to wind the spring by hand. In a _true_ electrical clock, where
a motor inside spins continually there is no escapement; no reason
to ever so slightly retard the gears. Putting it the other way around,
if you removed the battery, then carefully lifed the 'fingers' and
the pendulum out of the way, even with the battery gone, you'd see
the hands on the clock spin around rapidly until such time as all 
the tension in the spring was gone. For true electric clocks, they
require AC current at 60 cycles, or else they would speed up or
slow down eratically as the current fluctuated. The old Western Union
clocks would rewind their mainspring hourly; the little more modern
clocks currently in use have _much_ smaller mainsprings and escape-
ment wheels; the battery has to refresh them as stated above; between
3-5 minutes up to 10 minutes as needed. PAT]

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

From: mc <mc_no_spam@uga.edu>
Subject: Re: Tie Lines was Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use?
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 21:41:29 -0400
Organization: Speed Factory (http://www.speedfactory.net)


> For street fire alarms, the city used call boxes.  When the lever was
> pulled, a clockwork would generate a coded signal denoting the
> firebox.  These were removed a few years ago.  As kids, we were taught
> to know where the nearest callbox was to our homes and to wait there
> to direct the arriving firemen to the fire.  They date from a time
> people didn't have phones or speak English, and lasted a lot longer
> than they needed to given universal telephone service.

A local firefighter told me Athens, Georgia, removed its call boxes a
few years ago because they were getting almost nothing but false
alarms.  This is probably a nationwide problem.

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

From: bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi)
Subject: Re: Tie Lines was Re: Foreign Exchange (FX) Lines Still in Use?
Date: Tue, 24 May 2005 02:52:16 -0000
Organization: Widgets, Inc.


In article <telecom24.228.14@telecom-digest.org>,

> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: City of Chicago used DC power (rather
> than AC) -- at least in the downtown area -- until sometime around 
> 1930. That's at least one reason why there were so many WUTCO clocks
> everywhere, instead of 'regular' wall clocks. Clocks cannot run on
> direct current; they require alternating current at 60 cycles. 

I wonder what they did in territory where the generated A.C. power was 
at 25 cycles.

Or how a battery-operated clock works.  <grin>

The design _is_ significantly different, because you don't have the
'frequency standard' of the A.C. power to stabilize the timing, 

A D.C. powered clock has to employ some other form of a 'regulator'
mechanism, rather than relying on the power-line.  This is typically a
pendulum, or a 'balance wheel', controlling an 'escapement' mechanism.
Basically identical to that of a wind-up clock, just using the
power-line to keep the mainspring wound up.

A.C. powered designs _are_ 'simpler'.  And *MUCH* easier to ensure
that multiple clocks keep the same 'rate' of time -- they all link
back to the same *single* timing source, the power utility.  With
D.C. clocks, you have to adjust the 'regulation' on each one,
independently.  Politely described as a pain in the nether portions of
the anatomy.  :)


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I will confine my remarks to only your
comment on 'how a battery operated clock works' <with a big grin
right back at you>. See my earlier message to Daryl. Wall clocks for
example, use the battery to wind the mainspring only. If this were
not so, then as the battery ran down, the clock would run slower and
slower wouldn't it?  Most wall clocks keep on running as long as the
battery has the necessary 'juice' to continue winding the spring, and
you may note that when the battery begins to get weak, the spring
takes a couple seconds longer to wind, but wind it does, and that
is what keeps the clock hands moving, _not_ the battery. Truely, when
the 'battery runs out' the clock also within a minute or two will
stop, but the two events are not connected. You could reach in the
back of the battery operated wall clock and rewind the spring by
hand. And a true electrical clock does not have to be mounted in a
level way; you lay it upside down on the floor for all anyone cared;
if plugged in it would continue to run correctly. But try that with
a battery/spring wound clock (not having it hung level on a flat
surface.)  PAT]

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

From: Clark W. Griswold, Jr. <spamtrap100@comcast.net>
Subject: Re: Packet8 DTMF Tones Sound "Clipped"
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 17:58:50 -0600
Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com


slippymississippi@yahoo.com wrote:

> I hooked up a line analyzer and listened to the call, and all
> I'm hearing on my end is a "blip blip blip" as he repeatedly presses
> the key to save the message.  The DTMF tone basically sounds like it
> was clipped at just a few milliseconds

I seem to recall that the old Bell System spec for tone duration was
20ms, or 1/5th of a second. Some switches allowed you to go as fast as
10ms, which put the speed in speedial. :)

Don't know how P8 generates tones, but is it possible they are right
at the lower spec limit and your system isn't capable of decoding at
that rate?

OTOH, since P8 needs to generate the tones, its possible they aren't
under certain circumstances. Again, back some years DTMF tones (MF
actually) were suppressed in some circumstances as a fraud control
measure when inband signalling was used. No one should be doing that
now, but ...

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

From: Ken Abrams <k_abrams@[REMOVETHIS] sbcglobal.net>
Subject: Re: Packet8 DTMF Tones Sound "Clipped"
Organization: SBC http://yahoo.sbc.com
Date: Tue, 24 May 2005 01:22:01 GMT


<slippymississippi@yahoo.com> wrote

> One of my customers is using the Packet8 Virtual Office, and when my
> computer calls him to deliver the messages, he cannot navigate via
> DTMF.  I hooked up a line analyzer and listened to the call, and all
> I'm hearing on my end is a "blip blip blip" as he repeatedly presses
> the key to save the message.  The DTMF tone basically sounds like it
> was clipped at just a few milliseconds ... in fact, I really cannot
> discern if it's still a dual frequency tone or not.

I have no knowledge of Packet8 so this is just a wild guess.  Based on
your description, it sounds like the DTMF pad (phone) in use is
polarity sensitive and the battery to the phone is reversed on an
incoming call, thereby disabling the generation of DTMF tones.  Simply
replacing the phone might solve the problem.  The "original"
touch-tone phones were all polarity sensitive; AFAIK, none of the
modern ones are.

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

Date: 24 May 2005 01:00:58 -0000
From: John Levine <johnl@iecc.com>
Subject: Re: Cingular / sms.ac Ripoff Alert
Organization: I.E.C.C., Trumansburg NY USA


> Regarding whois look-up below;

> 575 Eighth Avenue, 11th Floor New York NY 10018 US below would be near
> 36 Street. That is near where spammer to my wife's account is located,
> but when you go there, they deny connection.

That's register.com, the domain registrar.  They're the largest
registrar in the world and I doubt they have more than the vaguest
idea who or where sms.ac is.

> SMS.AC (DOM-18363)
> SMS Inc. 7770 Regents Road Suite 113-405 San Diego CA 92122 US

Yes, sms.ac is actually in San Diego.

R's,

John

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

From: Tim@Backhome.org
Subject: Re: Switch Identification
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 18:11:02 -0700
Organization: Cox Communications


Justin Time wrote:

> Ever thought of asking the cable provider what type of switch they use
> to provision their voice services?  That to me would be the most
> logical first step.  Much easier than attempting to guess what
> generated a tone.  But then asking the provider is just too simple.

> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Yes, but would you get someone who knew
> what they were talking about? _That_ to me is always the big question
> when dealing with CSRs. Sounds good, but can you believe them?  PAT]

When I had wireline from my cable provider, and asked them, they refused
to provide me with any information about their switch.

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

From: AES <siegman@stanford.edu>
Subject: Re: Why Does it Take So Long?
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 19:20:58 -0700
Organization: Stanford University


In article <telecom24.228.11@telecom-digest.org>, mc
 <mc_no_spam@uga.edu> wrote:

> In the magazine industry there is an old and mostly obsolete tradition
> of starting every subscription at the beginning of a volume (i.e., a
> year or half-year).  Scholarly journals still normally do this.  I
> don't know if that is what happened to you.

Thanks.  Don't know if Harpers and NY Review of Books count as
scholarly journals, but I'll look at the first arrivals to see.

(On the other hand when I ordered a subscription to Couloir a month
into their annual subscription period last year and very clearly asked
to get the initial issue that had already (just) been distributed, it
never happened, and I could never get a response from them about
this.)

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

From: Al Gillis <alg@aracnet.com>
Subject: Re: Corporate Identify -- Verizon vs. "Bell Telephone"
Date: Mon, 23 May 2005 19:57:12 -0700
Organization: http://extra.newsguy.com


<GooJa@post.com> wrote in message
news:telecom24.228.2@telecom-digest.org:

(Much snippage occurs here...)

> The various mergers and corporate name changes that have taken place
> over the last 20 years among the Bell companies have not, for the most
> part, changed the legal name of the operating company within each
> state.  All of the Bell Atlantic companies use the Bell Atlantic name
> to do business, but the state operating companies all have individual
> names, auch as Bell Telephone Co. of Pa.  I think some of them have
> changed their names, however.  Most likely the reason for the old name
> appearing on the modern literature is a state PUC or statutory
> requirement that the actual name of the operating company be provided
> on marketing documents.  This would be the name that appears on the
> tariff, as well.

On a slow day a few years ago I was looking at some US West (now
Qwest) tariffs at the Oregon PUC.  Most of the documents had wording
that went something like "...Pacifc Northwest Bell, dba US West...",
with dba standing for "doing business as".  I don't know this for
sure, but I'm guessing changing the name of a big company might be
really expensive but using another name for the business might be as
easy as filing a form with a state's corporation commission.  This
same syndrome afflicts many railroads; One road buys another, paints
new logos all over everything but retains the old name on deeds to
properties, operating authorities and the like.  In addition to being
expensive this tactic might shield the new owner from misdeeds of the
former company.  Who knows?

Al

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


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