TELECOM Digest     Wed, 6 Jul 2005 15:10:00 EDT    Volume 24 : Issue 310

Inside This Issue:                            Editor: Patrick A. Townson

    Hackers Make Way For Criminals (Lisa Minter)
    Non-Bell ESS? (Lisa Hancock)
    SDH Interoperability (doma970@yahoo.com)
    Cellcos, was Re: DO NOT! DO NOT Use Cingular Go Phone (Danny Burstein)
    Bell Usage of IBM Computers For Switching (Lisa Hancock)
    Mouse to Offer Mobile Phone Service (Telecom dailyLead from USTA)
    Re: Cable TV vs. UHF (was RE: DSL Speed) (Garrett Wollman)
    Re: VoIP Phone Home? (Marc Popek)
    Re: Ombudsman on N. Korea Food story (jmeissen@aracnet.com)
    Re: Supplemental Grounding Electrodes (Joe Morris)
    Re: Don't Let Data Theft Happen to You (Lisa Hancock)
    Last Laugh! Western Union and Useless Telephones (Jim Haynes)

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: Lisa Minter <lisa_minter2001@yahoo.com>
Subject: Hackers Make Way For Criminals 
Date: Tue, 5 Jul 2005 23:53:19 -0500


By Lucas van Grinsven, European Technology Correspondent

Spotty teenage hackers who set off global email viruses are being
replaced by serious online crooks whose stealth attacks don't make
headlines but cause more damage, security software makers said on
Tuesday.

"Two years ago we stayed up all night, concerned about a great
mass-mailing worm," said Mario Juarez, a product manager at the
security business unit of U.S.-based Microsoft.

"Today, we worry not about a virus that will take every machine down,
but that may attack one machine or a set of machines," he said in an
interview at a Microsoft Tech Ed developers conference.

"What you see more of are a variety of attacks that are carried out to
make money, such as stealing credit card details or threatening a Web
site with a denial of service attack unless it pays them money."

He spoke on the same day a 19-year old German man admitted in court he
had written the Sasser computer worm.

In 2004 the worm knocked out an estimated one million computer systems
among home users and companies by spreading on the ubiquitous
Microsoft Windows operating system.

The U.S. computer giant has since had to close many open back doors in
its software and fix other security holes. After issuing a series of
patches, it claims its software is a lot safer now. More improvements
are planned.

"Today in Outlook Express, if you click on a link, the virus program
won't execute," said Detlef Eckert, senior director for trustworthy
computing at Microsoft's European organization, referring to
Microsoft's email software.

What helps is that consumers are better informed about viruses and
worms and have become reluctant to open email attachments that may
unleash a harmful computer program.

SOPHISTICATED ATTACKS

But the targeted robberies of individuals or small groups of people
are more sophisticated than the mass-mailing worms that created only
modest damage.

Some new viruses now infect Web sites and can then enter personal
computers that are well protected, Eckert said.

"Very often, these customers don't know they are at risk, or even that
they are being attacked," he said.

Other software security experts said there were fewer scares over
mass-mailing worms this year but instead there was a sharp increase in
the number of "Trojans" that can quietly obtain bank account details
and passwords.

"We've seen many more Trojans. The more organized groups are aiming at
targeted victims. And if you're an organized crime group, you don't
want the headlines. You may be a lot more successful without them,"
said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for British
anti-virus firm Sophos.

Cluley said it was too early to cry victory over mass-mailing viruses
and the trend of real criminals hitting on select groups of users
meant that Microsoft programs were no longer the default target.

Until now, teenage hackers aimed at Microsoft programs not only
because they had security holes, but also because they run on 95
percent of all computers and were the best chance for a global spread
of a virus.

However, if the main aim is to steal money, the criminal hackers would
focus on the weakest link, which in the future may well be
non-Microsoft programs, Cluley said.

The computer security experts do not expect there will ever be
perfectly safe computers. The attraction of more online financial
transactions was too appealing for criminals.

"The first lock attracted a lock picker," Juarez said.

Copyright 2005 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.

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

From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Non-Bell ESS?
Date: 6 Jul 2005 10:59:05 -0700


The Bell System put its first test call through a laboratory
Electronic Switching System in 1958 and had a prototype system in
public service in the early 1960s.

Would anyone know when other telephone companies, either in the
U.S. or abroad, developed and implemented their own ESS?  For
instance, when did Automatic Electric put one in service?


[public replies, please]

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

From: doma970@yahoo.com
Subject: SDH Interoperability
Date: 6 Jul 2005 00:21:10 -0700


Hi All,

My question is regarding the inter-operability of SDH Systems from
different vendors.

Here is the scenario:

1) Case 1:
Nortel ADM -------Nortel Regenerator -------- Huawei ADM

2) Case 2:
Nortel ADM -------Huawei Regenerator -------- Huawei ADM

In both cases, the SDH signal is STM-16.

Finally, is inter-operability the same thing as shown in the above
cases or it points to a different layer of inter-working?

Thanks to all.

Doma

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

From: Danny Burstein <dannyb@panix.com>
Subject: Cellcos, was Re: DO NOT! DO NOT Use Cingular Go Phone
Date: Wed, 6 Jul 2005 04:08:17 UTC
Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and UNIX, NYC


In <telecom24.309.5@telecom-digest.org> Steve Sobol <sjsobol@JustThe.net> writes:

> A friend who owns an ISP here made an interesting point. Cingular,
> Verizon Wireless, Sprint PCS, Alltel ... all of those wireless
> services are owned by wireline companies (in Verizon's case, only 55%
> because the company that owns the other 45% is not a wireline
> carrier).

Cough, cough. T-mobile is a horse of a different color. It started off
as a bunch of more-or-less self standing cellcos in the US who were
eventually bought up/merged into Voicestream (Western Wireless), which
had a hefty amount of Asian capital behind it.

They were then picked up by the German/European phone and
communication giant, Deutsche Telekom.

So while they're owned by a telco, it's in a very, very, different
situation than the others.

Disclaimer: I'm not only a customer, I'm also a shareholder.

_____________________________________________________
Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key
		     dannyb@panix.com 
[to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded]

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

From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Bell Usage of IBM Computers For Switching
Date: 6 Jul 2005 08:17:47 -0700


In reading histories of IBM and the Bell System, my impression is that
the companies were pretty distant from each other even though both
were developing very similar technologies.  Early on, both Bell and
IBM were developing ever better ways of using relays to "think" in
sophisticated ways, then using electronic components.  (IBM obviously
did go to Bell Labs to learn about the transistor).

While Bell used IBM machines in commercial (billing/ accounting)
applications, even there Univac and other makes were used too.  In the
labs, it seemed mostly PDP computers were preferred.

Anyway, the Bell Labs history says Bell did make use of the IBM
System/7 as part of the switching network.  The S/7 was a process
controller machine, kind of a sideline of IBM's normal business line.
Anyway, Bell used the S/7 to replace AMA (long distance message
accounting) machines.  Even here the S/7 was eventually replaced with
a PDP machine.

Would anyone know if there was some sort of hostility between Bell and
IBM in the 1950s and 1960s?  Or, am I just missing that there was a
lot of collaboration?

Perhaps the lab histories of both companies prefers to focus on the
company's own developments and ignore those elsewhere.  The IBM
history does give credit to semi-conductor makers.  I sense Bell
wanted to build everything it used for itself rather than buy finished
products in the market.

(I presume both histories referenced below are authoritative sources.
If anyone feels the Bell history is inaccurate, please do comment.)

I do note that the Bell history said they intended for very long
product lifespans, so anything they made had to be able to withstand
many years of service.  I believe they didn't change this philosophy
until the 1970s when rapidly changing electronics kept making
components obsolete quickly.  On the other hand, it seemed IBM
recognized this in the 1950s. IBM's tab line remained unchanged for a
great many years but their computers changed about every five years.

I also wonder if the commercial computer components of the 1960s (ie
System/360 SLT chips and core memory) were adequate for the speed
demanded by electronic switching.  The Bell history suggests Bell had
to develop its own gear because it needed faster speed and memory
available in the commercial world on a cost- efficient basis.  I
believe an ESS of 1965 had quite a bit of memory and would compare to
the largest commercial computers of that day.

References:  History of Engineering & Science in the Bell System,
Vol 2, switching, 1925-1975.
IBM's System 360 and early S/370.
IBM's Early computers.

[public replies please]

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

Date: Wed, 6 Jul 2005 12:32:19 EDT
From: Telecom dailyLead from USTA <usta@dailylead.com>
Subject: Mouse to Offer Mobile Phone Service


Telecom dailyLead from USTA
July 6, 2005
http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=22874&l=2017006

		TODAY'S HEADLINES
	
NEWS OF THE DAY
* Mouse to offer mobile phone service
BUSINESS & INDUSTRY WATCH
* Adelphia sells long-distance business to Pioneer
* Amdocs acquires vendor DST Innovis
* Q-and-A with Alcatel's Mike Quigley
* Report: Base station market to grow
USTA SPOTLIGHT 
* Register now for tomorrow's USTelecom Webinar: The Post-Brand X World
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES
* Napster, Dell target colleges with legal music downloads
* The next frontier: 100 Mpbs?
REGULATORY & LEGISLATIVE
* Nextel Partners sues Nextel

Follow the link below to read quick summaries of these stories and others.
http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=22874&l=2017006

Legal and Privacy information at
http://www.dailylead.com/about/privacy_legal.jsp

SmartBrief, Inc.
1100 H ST NW, Suite 1000
Washington, DC 20005

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

From: wollman@khavrinen.csail.mit.edu (Garrett Wollman)
Subject: Re: Cable TV vs. UHF (was Re: DSL Speed)
Date: Wed, 6 Jul 2005 17:27:21 UTC
Organization: MIT Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory


In article <telecom24.309.1@telecom-digest.org>,
<nmclain@annsgarden.com> wrote:

> One UHF station obviously could not have provided anywhere near this
> level of service.  And I can't imagine that three network-affiliate
> stations would have been able to survive financially.

> Of course, it might have been possible to build three translator
> stations to retransmit the signals of three distant network stations,
> provided that some financial-support mechanism could be established.

By the early 1980s, Rutland had full-power service from Vermont ETV
(now called something different) on WVER, channel 28, and translator
service from Burlington's WCAX-TV (3, CBS) and WVNY/WEZF-TV (22, ABC).
I don't believe WIRI/WPTZ (5 North Pole, N.Y., NBC) ever had
translators in Vermont, although WCFE-TV (57 Plattsburgh, PBS) did.

The Albany stations were late movers to the VHF dial; the Capital
District's only original V was General Electric's WRGB (4
Schenectady), which moved to channel 6 in the Great VHF Shuffle of the
early 1950s.  The ancestor of today's WTEN (10 Albany) was a network
of three "full-power" UHFs: WROW-TV/WCDA (41 Albany), WCDB (29
Hagaman), and WCDC (19 North Adams, Mass.); WCDA moved to channel 10,
WCDB was shut off, and WCDC has remained on Mount Greylock to serve
areas shadowed from the main channel 10 site in the Helderbergs.
Today's WNYT (13 Albany) began as WTRI (35 Troy), sister to WTRY (980
Troy).

Garrett A. Wollman    | As the Constitution endures, persons in every
wollman@csail.mit.edu | generation can invoke its principles in their own
Opinions not those    | search for greater freedom.
of MIT or CSAIL.      | - A. Kennedy, Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003)

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

From: Marc Popek <LVMarc@Att.Net>
Subject: Re: VoIP Phone Home?
Date: Wed, 06 Jul 2005 07:39:44 GMT
Organization: AT&T Worldnet


Mostly the cost difference and the convenience.

Marc

Fred Atkinson <fatkinson@mishmash.com> wrote in message
news:telecom24.309.2@telecom-digest.org:

> On Mon, 04 Jul 2005 22:32:28 GMT, Marc Popek <LVMarc@att.net> wrote:

>> And some wish to have a VOIP and a PSTN local presence. Why into use
>> a PSTN /VOIP automatic switch so that you can mange both services
>> from a single handset, answering machine etc?

> Why not just get a two-line RJ-14 type telephone?

> Fred

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

From: jmeissen@aracnet.com
Subject: Re: Ombudsman on N. Korea Food story
Date: 6 Jul 2005 08:57:35 GMT
Organization: http://extra.newsguy.com


In article <telecom24.308.13@telecom-digest.org>,
<jmeissen@aracnet.com> wrote:

> In article <telecom24.307.14@telecom-digest.org>, Justa Lurker
> <JustaLurker@att.net> wrote:

>> No one is stopping you (or anyone else) from leaving.  So if you are
>> so unhappy and dissatisfied here in the USA as you seem to be based
>> upon your constant snide comments and whining, then by all means I
>> suggest you move to some other country more to your liking.

> I would point out that the right of dissent is at the core of our
> country. 

Interesting. I just watched this week's edition of NOW (pbs.org).  I
couldn't have said it any better:

"That is, in fact, the manifestation of dissent that defines democracy."

The video of the interview with Milton Glaser isn't available yet, but
it should be soon, and I highly recommend it.

http://www.pbs.org/now/

There are three things I tell my kids over and over:
  Think Logically
  Act Intelligently
  Question Authority

John Meissen                                    jmeissen@aracnet.com

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

From: Joe Morris <jcmorris@mitre.org>
Subject: Re: Supplemental Grounding Electrodes
Date: Wed, 6 Jul 2005 12:07:07 UTC
Organization: The MITRE Organization


John Hines <jbhines@newsguy.com> writes:

> The biggest effect on building grounding systems has been the decrease
> in reliance on metal plumbing, due to the usage of plastic piping.

 ... which was officially recognized in the 1993 revision of the NEC.
Article 250-81 permits grounding through interior metal water piping
from a point more than five feet beyond the point of entrance into the
building.  An exception exists [*] "provided there is qualified
maintenance and the entire length of the pipe is exposed."

[*] from the 1999 edition, which is all I have conveniently at hand.

> I got my books from http://codecheck.com which are more user friendly
> than the actual code books, which are more like legalese.

It ain't cheap, but a good reference is the NFPA's "National Electric
Code Handbook".  The base code book (also published by NFPA) would put
a lawyer to sleep, but the _Handbook_ quotes the entire Code with
interspersed commentary and illustrations.

Joe Morris

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

From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Re: Don't Let Data Theft Happen to You
Date: 6 Jul 2005 11:10:42 -0700


Wesrock@aol.com wrote:

>> -- Avoid letting your cards out of your sight. Do not let store
>> clerks take your card away on the pretext that there's a "problem."

> Apparently you would not be able to use your credit or debit card in a
> restaurant then, since they require you give them the card to swipe at
> a location out of your sight.

These days, my basic feeling is to use plain old cash as much as
possible.  I agree --avoid any card entry that is not done in
immediate presence.

I did have to do that recently since I treated a group of people at a
restaurant and I didn't have with me the cash necessary to cover the
full dinner.  But that was an unusual occurence.  Normally I try to
have a reasonable amount of cash on hand.

I notice a lot of people using credit cards to pay for rather modest
purchases, such as a pizza dinner or convenience store purchase.  I
think this is foolish since every transaction increases one's exposure
to loss.  If I have no transactions at all during the month, then
there's no statement mailed out and altogether less chance for a
theft.

I remain angry at the government for their slow reaction to all of
this.  It isn't anything new, and much of existing law already covers
such thefts.  The newspapers reported that police wouldn't bother
going after crooks unless the theft amount is over a rather high limit
which effectively gives crooks a green light.

The bad part about this theft is that the actual theft loss may be
minor but the damage is great.  It's like someone smashing your car
windshield (very expensive to fix) to steal a box of cookies from the
front seat.

It used to be when one worked at a bank they had a background check
and were fingerprinted.  I wonder if that's still done, especially for
the 'back office boiler room' people who handle all the phone calls
for credit card issuers and credit data banks.

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

Subject: Last Laugh! Western Union's Comment About Useless Phones
Reply-To: jhaynes@alumni.uark.edu
Organization: University of Arkansas Alumni
From: haynes@alumni.uark.edu (Jim Haynes)
Date: Wed, 06 Jul 2005 18:02:09 GMT


After playing a few rounds of telephone tag, you come to realize that
the Western Union leaders were entirely correct in their 1880
assessment -- telephones are worthless.

jhhaynes at earthlink dot net


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: For a really good time, combine
telephone tag with references to numbers not in service. Here is an
example: The bank which holds my mother's mortgage called me today
about something. Before I could reach the phone, voice mail came on
and took the lady's message, to call 800-something and at the prompt
enter extension-something. I did that (checked it twice to be certain)
and after entering the extension an _intercept_ recording came on,
which stated 'the number you dialed, area code 270 something has been
changed, the new number is area code 270 something else.' So I tried
calling 'something else' on my nickle and got another voice mail 
saying the person was not at her desk and leave a message or press
zero to be transferred to someone who could help. On my first try, I
did the 'press zero option' and reached something called the 'general
voicemail in-box'. I called back via the 800 number to assure I was
hearing it all correctly, got intercepted again to hang up and redial
the area 270 number, dialed it, got the voicemail again, and left a
message, yet to be returned. But then, I have not yet taken a break
to go sit in the bathroom or otherwise get tied up on an important
phone call; I am certain when one of those conditions apply, the lady
will probably call back for another round of phone tag. 

Then I got still another call this morning from 866-660-6940 which
I answered before they had a chance to hang up this time; but I just
got dead air. I dialed it back, got a recorded announcement so weak
I could not understand any of it, except the final two lines which 
were a bit louder, asking me to 'input your telephone number'; so I
just input some bogus number (enough to satisfy their system) and
waited again. After about a minute, their system responded and said
'someone will be with you shortly ... please wait'  but I just hung up. 
WUTCO was correct: these damn devices are mostly useless.  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)

RSS Syndication of TELECOM Digest: http://telecom-digest.org/rss.html
  For syndication examples see http://www.feedrollpro.com/syndicate.php?id=308
    and also http://feeds.feedburner.com/TelecomDigest

*************************************************************************
*   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 #310
******************************