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
Add this Digest to your personal
or 
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
Add this Digest to your personal
or
TELECOM Digest Fri, 23 Sep 2005 22:45:00 EDT Volume 24 : Issue 434
Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson
Cellular-News for Friday 23rd September 2005 (Cellular-News)
BT Settles With Ofcom (USTelecom dailyLead)
Telecom Update #498, September 23, 2005 (Angus TeleManagement Group)
Best-Laid Evacuation Plans Not Good Enough in Texas (Erin McClam)
Rita Causes Fresh Floods, More Damage in New Orleans (Allen Breed)
Bell System Phone Label Code? (Allen Newman)
Getting Rid of 'Legal' Spam? (hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com)
Induction Coil Lamps (hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com)
Re: Roaming Charges (Tony P.)
Re: Roaming Charges (Isaiah Beard)
Re: Roaming Charges (J Kelly)
Re: Louisiana Official Caught Ripping Off Donations (DevilsPGD)
Re: Vonage Urged to Consider Sale, Float, According to FT (John Levine)
Re: Motorola Bag Phone (David L)
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.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Cellular-News for Friday 23rd September 2005
Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 07:53:13 -0500
From: Cellular-News <dailydigest@cellular-news.com>
Cellular-News - http://www.cellular-news.com
Aircom to Provide Handset Validation Services
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14170.php
Aircom International, a provider of mobile network OSS, planning,
optimisation solutions, has recently launched its new Handset
Validation Services unit. Headed by Pietro Macchiarella, the unit
provides telecom organisat...
Thai Operator Improves its Call Centers
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14171.php
Avaya says that it has successfully designed and deployed the Avaya
Call Centre solution in a US$4 million contract with Thailand's
AIS. Avaya was tasked to deliver the full scope of service, from
solution design and imp...
Enhanced IP Service Capabilities for 3G Cellular Operators
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14172.php
Hughes Network Systems has announced that a new system release with
VLAN and IP services support has been successfully deployed by
cellular operators in Europe and North America utilizing its 26-28 GHz
AIReach point-to- ...
Orange Orders 3G Kit
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14173.php
Orange Slovensko, a major Slovakian mobile operator, is upgrading its
wireless network to 3G with Nortel solutions to meet increasing demand
for mobile broadband services. Nortel has been chosen to upgrade the
operator's...
Telefonica Moviles Mexico Converges Internal Voice and Data Traffic
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14174.php
Telefonica Moviles Mexico has deployed a packet voice backbone network
from Nortel designed to significantly increase internal network
capacity and support future delivery of sophisticated mobile data
services. Telefonic...
6 million photos sent on Telia mobiles this summer
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14175.php
This summer people in Sweden have sent a record number of MMS
messages. During June-August, 6.1 million MMS messages were sent
through Telia's mobile network, an increase of 56%, compared with the
same period last year. ...
3G Growth is Accelerating - report
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14176.php
Yankee Group reports that mobile operators are seeing 3G customer
growth after a sluggish start. As the 3G handset range continues to
improve and usage charges are further reduced, 3G will become a more
attractive altern...
DirecTV In Talks With Companies Mulling Wireless Service
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14160.php
DirecTV Group Inc. (DTV), the country's largest satellite TV provider,
is in talks with a number of telecommunications providers about
possibly adding a wireless service, Chief Executive Chase Carey said
Tuesday. ...
Nokia Sets Up Mobile Services Devt Center In Taiwan
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14161.php
Finnish telecommunications equipment maker Nokia Oyj (NOK) Thursday
said it has launched a number of programs to develop its mobile
services in Taiwan. ...
Ericsson To Expand Avea's GSM Network In Turkey
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14162.php
Telefon AB LM Ericsson (ERICY) said Thursday it has signed a contract
with Turkish mobile operator Avea for the expansion of its global
system for mobile communication, GSM, radio and core networks. ...
O2 Mobile TV Trial Goes Live, Teams Up With Arqiva, Nokia
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14163.php
O2 said Thursday that its mobile TV trial will go live in Oxford from
next week and last for six months. ...
Bouygues Telecom Submitted Bid For Tunisie Telecom
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14164.php
Bouygues Telecom, the mobile telephone division of French construction
company Bouygues SA, Thursday said it has submitted a bid for a 35%
stake in Tunisia's largest carrier, Tunisie Telecom. ...
O2 German, UK JVs Now Have Nearly 1.2 Million Customers
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14165.php
O2 said Thursday that its German and U.K. joint venture companies now
have nearly 1.2 million customers between them, with Tchibo mobil
having acquired around 435,000 pre-pay subscribers in its first year
of operation an...
Sprint Nextel Integration Ahead Of Plan
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14166.php
Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) is ahead of plan on its post-merger
integration and the combined business will cost less to operate than
the company initially expected. ...
Nortel Gets CTI Movil Pact: Value Not Disclosed
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14167.php
America Movil S.A. de C.V.'s (AMX) CTI Movil subsidiary will use
Nortel Networks Corp. (NT) wireless broadband solutions to expand its
GSM wireless network in Argentina. ...
Lebanon Police Hold Cell-phone Traders Over Hariri Probe
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14168.php
BEIRUT (AP)--Lebanese police have arrested four mobile-phone dealers
on charges of withholding information relevant to the inquiry into
former prime minister Rafik Hariri's assassination, court officials
said T...
Sprint Sees Hiccup In 3Q Subscriber Growth
http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14169.php
Sprint Nextel Corp.'s (S) focus on rolling out its combined brand in
September hurt the company's subscriber growth in the months ahead of
the launch. ...
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 13:27:02 EDT
From: USTelecom dailyLead <ustelecom@dailylead.com>
Subject: BT Settles With Ofcom
USTelecom dailyLead
September 23, 2005
http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=24861&l=2017006
TODAY'S HEADLINES
NEWS OF THE DAY
* BT settles with Ofcom
BUSINESS & INDUSTRY WATCH
* Verizon begins TV service in Texas
* Telstra postpones report on strategic review
* Symantec to acquire WholeSecurity
USTELECOM SPOTLIGHT
* New! Voice Over IP Crash Course by Steven Shepard
TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
* Gotta stay connected
VOIP DOWNLOAD
* Level 3 exec says VoIP marketing falls short
* Net2Phone tests mobile/Wi-Fi convergence technology
* VoIP bloggers hold sway
REGULATORY & LEGISLATIVE
* Senate panel introduces emergency communications bill
* FCC chief calls for better first-responder network
* Telecoms discuss response to Katrina
Follow the link below to read quick summaries of these stories and others.
http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=24861&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
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 11:04:14 -0700
Subject: Telecom Update #498, September 23, 2005
From: Angus TeleManagement Group <jriddell@angustel.ca>
Reply-To: Angus TeleManagement Group <jriddell@angustel.ca>
************************************************************
TELECOM UPDATE
************************************************************
published weekly by Angus TeleManagement Group
http://www.angustel.ca
Number 498: September 23, 2005
Publication of Telecom Update is made possible by generous
financial support from:
** AVAYA: http://www.avaya.ca/en/
** BELL CANADA: http://www.bell.ca
** CISCO SYSTEMS CANADA: http://www.cisco.com/ca/
** ERICSSON: http://www.ericsson.ca
** MITEL NETWORKS: http://www.mitel.com/
** NEC UNIFIED SOLUTIONS: http://www.necunifiedsolutions.com
** ROGERS TELECOM: http://www.rogers.com/solutions
** VONAGE CANADA: http://www.vonage.ca
************************************************************
IN THIS ISSUE:
** Videotron to Resell Rogers' Cellular
** Industry Minister Wants More Broadband Money
** Local Forbearance Hearing Starts Monday
** Montreal Airport to Go IP
** Infosat Offers Business Broadband
** Telus Sends Service Calls Offshore
** CRTC Extends Comment Period on Bell VoIP Tariff
** Bell Wants Local High-Speed Circuits Deregulated
** Bell Refuses to Collect Alternate Directory Bills
** Sault Utelco, Ontera Join for Networking
** Globalstar Adds Northern Gateway
** Avaya Buys Ottawa Peer-to-Peer Developer
** Cisco Offers Small-Business Bundle
** Virttel Launches Secure VoIP in U.S.
** Mosey Joins Orano Board
** Anguses to Keynote Telemanagement Live
============================================================
VIDEOTRON TO RESELL ROGERS' CELLULAR: Videotron plans to offer
wireless phone service next year, reselling Rogers Wireless voice and
data services. The cableco says it will be the only provider in its
service area to offer "true one-stop" TV, Internet, phone, and
wireless customer service.
INDUSTRY MINISTER WANTS MORE BROADBAND MONEY: Industry Minister David
Emerson said this week that he wants the next federal budget to
include increased funding for projects that extend broadband to
unserved areas. Speaking to the Empire Club in Toronto, he said:
"Without Internet access today, people and communities simply cannot
get into the game. They're not able to get into the economic
mainstream."
** On September 15, Ottawa's Strategic Infrastructure Fund
and the government of Newfoundland and Labrador each
donated $5 million to a project that will extend broadband
to 68 schools and 103 communities in rural and remote
regions of Newfoundland and Labrador.
LOCAL FORBEARANCE HEARING STARTS MONDAY: As part of the CRTC
proceeding on deregulating the incumbent telephone companies' local
phone service, the Commission is holding a public hearing in Gatineau
next week. The hearing will be broadcast live on the Web, starting at
9:30 am on Monday, September 26.
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/process/2005/sep26_t.htm
MONTREAL AIRPORT TO GO IP: Old buzz-phrases never die! In the early
eighties, every magazine featured articles hyping the soon-to-arrive
"office of the future." This week Bell Canada and Cisco announced the
"airport of the future" -- a contract to provide Montreal-Trudeau
airport with Wi-Fi, IP telephony, digital signage, information kiosks,
and Internet-equipped business centres. The announcement did not say
when the future will arrive.
INFOSAT OFFERS BUSINESS BROADBAND: Infosat Communications, a Telesat
subsidiary, now offers business-grade Internet access at 1 Mbps
anywhere in Canada, using Telesat's new Anik F2 satellite, for
$89.95/month.
TELUS SENDS SERVICE CALLS OFFSHORE: On Wednesday, Telus informed the
Telecommunications Workers Union that "for the duration of the labour
disruption" it will route "some customer care and operator services
calls" to its call centre in the Philippines, and that Telus Mobility
will route "some client care calls" to a call centre outsourcer in
India.
** On Tuesday, Vancouver City Council called on the federal
Minister of Labour "to appoint an Industrial Inquiry
Commission to look into the causes of the dispute and to
make non-binding recommendations to facilitate its
resolution."
CRTC EXTENDS COMMENT PERIOD ON BELL VoIP TARIFF: The CRTC has given
interested parties until September 28 to comment on Bell Canada's
application to price its access-dependent "Digital Voice" VoIP service
differently in Ontario and Quebec, and has ordered Bell to place its
Tariff Notice 6900 on the public record. (See Telecom Update #496)
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/ENG/Notices/2005/pt2005-13-1.htm
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/8740/eng/2005/b2_6900.htm
BELL WANTS LOCAL HIGH-SPEED CIRCUITS DEREGULATED: Bell Canada has
re-filed its February 2005 application for deregulation of its
high-speed intra-exchange digital services in exchanges where at least
one fibre-based competitor is providing high-speed service to at least
one customer. Initial comments on this application were due this week.
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/PartVII/eng/2005/8640/c12_200507618.htm#2h
BELL REFUSES TO COLLECT ALTERNATE DIRECTORY BILLS: At this morning's
expedited hearing of a dispute between Bell Canada and YP Corp, an
Internet-based directory services provider, Bell told the Commission
that it should not be required to provide billing and collection
services to YP Corp, even though it does so for its former affiliate,
Yellow Pages Group. The Commission will issue a decision by October
5.
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/process/2005/sep23.htm
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/PartVII/eng/2005/8622/y2_200508731.htm
SAULT UTELCO, ONTERA JOIN FOR NETWORKING: PUC Telecom, a utility-based
telecom carrier in Sault Ste. Marie, has formed a joint venture with
Ontera (formerly O.N.Telcom) to help utilize the utelco's growing
municipal fibre network. Ontera will provide back-office and
provisioning services.
GLOBALSTAR ADDS NORTHERN GATEWAY: Globalstar LLC, an international
satellite phone provider, has begun construction of a new gateway near
Anchorage, Alaska, which will extend its coverage in Yukon, North West
Territories, and northwest B.C.
AVAYA BUYS OTTAWA PEER-TO-PEER DEVELOPER: Avaya has bought
Ottawa-based Nimcat Networks, a developer of small-business
peer-to-peer IP telephony software, for $46 million. Nimcat's software
operates on the IP phone, eliminating the need for a PBX or key
system.
CISCO OFFERS SMALL-BUSINESS BUNDLE: Cisco Systems has introduced a
bundled offering of voice and data services for businesses with 20 to
250 employees. Business Communications Solution includes a router
equipped with call control and messaging software, plus Cisco's
Catalyst Express 500 switch.
VIRTTEL LAUNCHES SECURE VoIP IN U.S.: Virttel, an IP services provider
based in Smiths Falls, Ontario, has extended its encrypted Internet
telephony and data offerings to the U.S. In Canada, Virttel's IP-based
local/long distance service costs $26.95 (residential) and $69.95
(business).
MOSEY JOINS ORANO BOARD: Terry Mosey, recently retired Bell Canada
EVP, has joined the Board of the Optical Regional Advanced Network of
Ontario, the organization that owns and operates ORION, the province's
leading-edge research and education telecom network.
ANGUSES TO KEYNOTE TELEMANAGEMENT LIVE: On October 18, Ian and Lis
Angus, co-editors of Telecom Update, will present an exclusive keynote
report on "Telecom Transformation: Profits, Pitfalls and Payoffs in
the Next Wave of Network Change," at the Telemanagement Live
conference in Toronto.
** Telecom Update subscribers who register online now
will receive a $200 discount on an All Access pass,
including all sessions and meals and a ticket to the
Telecommunications Hall of Fame Dinner. To qualify,
register at www.telemanagementlive.com and enter AMBP95
in the "promotional code" field.
============================================================
HOW TO SUBMIT ITEMS FOR TELECOM UPDATE
E-mail ianangus@angustel.ca and jriddell@angustel.ca
===========================================================
HOW TO SUBSCRIBE (OR UNSUBSCRIBE)
TELECOM UPDATE is provided in electronic form only. There
are two formats available:
1. The fully-formatted edition is posted on the
World Wide Web late Friday afternoon each week
at www.angustel.ca
2. The e-mail edition is distributed free of charge.
To subscribe, send an e-mail message to:
join-telecom_update@nova.sparklist.com
To stop receiving the e-mail edition, send
an e-mail message to:
leave-telecom_update@nova.sparklist.com
Sending e-mail to these addresses will automatically add
or remove the sender's e-mail address from the list. Leave
subject line and message area blank.
We do not give Telecom Update subscribers' e-mail
addresses to any third party. For more information,
see http://www.angustel.ca/update/privacy.html.
===========================================================
COPYRIGHT AND CONDITIONS OF USE: All contents copyright 2005 Angus
TeleManagement Group Inc. All rights reserved. For further
information, including permission to reprint or reproduce, please
e-mail jriddell@angustel.ca.
The information and data included has been obtained from sources which
we believe to be reliable, but Angus TeleManagement makes no
warranties or representations whatsoever regarding accuracy,
completeness, or adequacy. Opinions expressed are based on
interpretation of available information, and are subject to change. If
expert advice on the subject matter is required, the services of a
competent professional should be obtained.
============================================================
------------------------------
From: Erin McClam <ap@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Best-Laid Plans Not Good Enough in Texas
Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 19:43:35 -0500
By ERIN McCLAM, AP National Writer
It was envisioned as the anti-Katrina plan: Texas officials sketched a
staggered, orderly evacuation plan for Hurricane Rita and urged people
to get out days ahead of time. Busses will leave at these times from
these places, police officers will change road lanes at certain times,
etc. Everything was going to work nearly perfect.
But tangles still arrived even before the storm's first bands. As
everyone waited for the hurricane yet to arrive, panicked drivers ran
out of gas, a spectacular, a deadly bus fire clogged traffic, and
freeways were red rivers of taillights that stretched to the horizon.
In an age of terrorist danger and with memories of the nightmare in
New Orleans still fresh, the Texas exodus raises a troubling question:
Can any American city empty itself safely and quickly?
Thousands of drivers remained stranded Friday to the north and west of
Houston. Many were stuck in extreme heat, out of gas -- as gas trucks,
rumored to be on the way, or at least buses to evacuate motorists,
never came.
They were frustrated, angry and growing desperate, scattered and
stranded across a broad swath of the state as the monster storm bore
down.
"It's been terrible, believe me," said Rosa Castro, who had driven
more than 17 hours by Friday. Her sister behind the wheel, seven
children in tow, the car was idling on less than an eighth of a tank
of gas.
Castro was hoping to get gas from a lone Shell station that had opened
north of Houston. But her car was at the end of a miles-long line.
"I wondered why so many people in Katrina didn't move in time, and now
I'm in the same situation," she said. "All I have is cash, clothes and
God."
Houston is a landlocked city, an hour's drive from the Gulf of Mexico.
Besides Houston's 4 million people fleeing, as many as 2 million were
trying to get out through Houston from the coastal side.
In Galveston County along the Gulf, authorities set up three
evacuation zones, beginning Wednesday evening and staggered at
eight-hour intervals, with the most outlying areas to be the first to
leave. But people in all three zones left early anyway, further
snarling traffic.
From Houston, the main roads out of town -- Interstate 10 to San
Antonio, I-45 to Dallas, and U.S. Highway 290 to Austin -- were turned
into one-way thoroughfares only Thursday, and even then the one-way
flow began well outside Houston.
"There were some weaknesses," Texas Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee , a
Democrat, acknowledged to KTRK-TV on Friday. "We could have fixed some
of the elements ... a fuel truck that works, a mechanical system that
works, and opening the contraflow," the term emergency officials use
for routing all lanes in one direction.
Later in the day, Jackson Lee told The Associated Press the state
should have asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency for
supplies. "I'm marching people all over looking for gasoline," she
said.
Republican Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Friday decision to order one-way
flow came after the storm, originally on a track south of Houston,
changed course and headed toward Houston instead.
"It's not perfect," he said. "I wish I could wave a magic wand and
somehow transport people magically from Houston, Texas, to Dallas or
other points, but that's not the fact when you have the type of
congestion that you see in the state of Texas on a daily basis."
He added: "I think when you look behind later, it will be almost
miraculous that this many people were moved out of harm's way."
State emergency management coordinator Jack Colley said 2.5 million to
2.7 million Texans had already been moved out of harm's way, and the
governor said 25 buses would canvass Beaumont, looking for people
still trying to get out.
By midday Friday, lanes were restored to normal traffic. County Judge
Robert Eckels said traffic had cleared and authorities needed lanes in
both directions for emergencies. Still, many remained stranded beyond
Houston's suburbs.
Before the late 1990s, emergency management officials were in charge
of evacuations, and transportation engineers had little interest.
But those engineers have devoted great energy to the problem since
Hurricane Georges forced an evacuation of New Orleans in 1998, and
Hurricane Floyd an evacuation of the Carolinas in 1999.
Rita and her hellish predecessor, Katrina, come in the new age of
terror, as authorities try to draw up plans for clearing out cities in
the event of deadly strikes with unconventional weapons.
Still, experts say the massive coastal zone that needs to be cleared
of people before a major hurricane is far larger than the area to be
evacuated after an industrial accident or a terror attack. And in this
case, there have been a couple days advance notice. What happens when
a terrorist attack gives people an hour's warning or less?
In the event of a nuclear accident, federal rules require the
evacuation of a 10-mile radius around the plant. After a so-called
"dirty bomb" nuclear detonation or the release of chemical or
biological weapons, only the region immediately downwind of the
release point would have to be cleared.
"Natural disasters just dwarf anything that's manmade," said Reuben B.
Goldblatt, a partner at traffic engineering firm KLD Associates in
Commack, N.Y.
Brian Wolshon, a professor of civil engineering at Louisiana State
University, said Texas officials "will probably see there were things
they could have done better."
But he added: "It's not economically or environmentally feasible to
build enough roads to evacuate a city the size of Houston in a short
time and with no congestion. It's just not going to happen."
It was a point all too clear to Bruce French, who left his home in
Clear Lake, Texas, early Thursday, and ran out of gas just past
Conroe, far short of his destination of Dallas. On Friday morning, he
was stranded, waiting for fuel.
"They're giving $10 worth of gas if you're on empty and $5 if you have
some," he said. "That's not going to get you very far."
EDITOR'S NOTE - Associated Press writers Kristen Hays in Houston, Liz Austin
in Austin and Suzanne Gamboa in Washington, National Writer Matt Crenson in
New York and photographer Paul Sancya contributed to this story.
Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.
NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.
More headlines and news at http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/AP.html
------------------------------
From: Allen G. Breed <ap@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Rita Causes Fresh Floods, Disasters in New Orleans
Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 19:48:59 -0500
By ALLEN G. BREED, Associated Press Writer
Hurricane Rita's wind-driven storm surge topped one of New Orleans'
battered levees and poked holes in another Friday, sending water
gushing into already-devastated neighborhoods just days after they had
been pumped dry.
An initial surge of water cascaded over a patched levee protecting the
impoverished Ninth Ward, flooding the abandoned neighborhood with at
least 6 feet of water. As Army Corps of Engineers employees watched
with disgusted looks, their 'temporary, emergency repairs' smashed by
the latest hurricane.
"Our worst fears came true," said Maj. Barry Guidry, a National
Guardsman on duty at the broken levee.
Leaks beneath another levee that was repaired with rock and gravel
after Hurricane Katrina flooded homes with at least a half-foot of
water. Meanwhile, wind-whipped waves pushed water from Lake
Pontchartrain over a seawall and rain runoff with no outlet pooled in
city streets.
Evacuees from the misery-stricken city learned of the new flooding
with despair.
"It's like looking at a murder," Quentrell Jefferson of the Ninth Ward
said as he watched the news at a church in Lafayette, 125 miles west
of New Orleans. "The first time is bad. After that, you numb up."
The flooding came as Rita began lashing the Gulf Coast with rain and
wind, and up to 500,000 people in southwestern Louisiana headed
north. Some who fought hours of gridlock to get out of Texas were
frustrated to find they had to keep going to stay out of the storm,
which was expected to make landfall early Saturday.
Lake Charles, not far from Rita's predicted path along the
Texas-Louisiana line, was a virtual ghost town, as were the coastal
parishes. Before nightfall, squalls were flattening sugar cane fields
and knocking over trees near New Iberia, about 110 miles west of New
Orleans.
There were fears the storm would stall after coming ashore, dumping as
much as 25 inches of rain over the next several days.
In New Orleans, water poured through gaps in the Industrial Canal
levee, which engineers had tried to repair after Katrina's floodwaters
left 80 percent of the city under water. The rushing water covered
piles of rubble and mud-caked cars in the Ninth Ward, rising swiftly
to the top of first-floor windows. It spilled east into St. Bernard
Parish, where ducks swam down Judge Perez Drive.
The storm surge was both stronger and earlier than expected,
apparently coming through waterways southeast of the city, said
Col. Richard Wagenaar, the Army Corps of Engineers' district chief in
New Orleans. Water poured over piles of gravel and sandbags in the
damaged Industrial Canal levee despite efforts to build it up.
"We believed the 8-foot elevation was sufficient" to protect the Ninth
Ward, Wagenaar said.
Farther north, water 6 to 8 inches deep was streaming into homes south
of Lake Pontchartrain, spouting from beneath two gravel-and-rock
patches on the London Avenue Canal levee. Corps engineers said they
expected the leaks.
"It's a rock levee," said Richard Pinner, who is supervising the
levee's repair for the corps.
Officials with the corps said other levees around the city appeared
secure. The problems would set back repairs at least three weeks,
Wagenaar said, but June is still the target for getting the levees
back to pre-Katrina strength.
In New Orleans, forecasters said the hurricane could bring 4 to 8
inches of rain, enough to put the patched levees at more risk. An
added fear was that another strong storm surge would push water
through the walls in other places. Still, the city may have escaped
worse damage because it was not in the direct path of Hurricane Rita,
said Tim Destri of the National Weather Service in Slidell.
"It's a combination of wind-driven water and tides," he said. "It's
not the sudden storm surge of the hurricane."
The water level in Lake Ponchartrain -- about 4.5 above sea level on
Friday afternoon - likely will not rise much more but will remain high
enough to pose a continued danger to the "flimsy" repairs, said Paul
Kemp, a storm-surge expert at Louisiana State University.
The additional flooding brought by Hurricane Rita also would
complicate the search for the dead left by Hurricane Katrina.
"It's going to make it a lot tougher," said Richard Dier, a FEMA group
supervisor who oversees hundreds of people searching for bodies. "We'd
like to start where we left off, but my men don't submerge or go into
houses with deep water. It makes searching almost impossible ..."
The search-and-recovery effort was called off Friday morning as the
storm approached. On Friday, Katrina's death toll stand at 841 in
Louisiana and 1,078 across the Gulf Coast.
A mandatory evacuation order was in effect for the part of New Orleans
on the east bank of the Mississippi River, including the Ninth Ward. A
spokeswoman for Mayor Ray Nagin said officials believed the
neighborhood had been cleared of residents.
Mark Madary, a St. Bernard Parish councilman, said houses that were
under 12 feet of water after Katrina would probably get an additional
3 feet. He accused the Army Corps of Engineers of not rebuilding the
levee properly.
"Everybody's home's been crushed, and let's hope their dreams aren't,"
he said.
___
EDITOR'S NOTE - Allen G. Breed is the AP's Southeast regional writer.
Associated Press writers Mary Foster, Adam Nossiter and Michelle Roberts in
New Orleans, Brett Martel in Lake Charles, Julia Silverman in Lafayette,
La., and Janet McConnaughey in Baton Rouge, La., contributed to this report.
Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.
NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.
------------------------------
From: Allen Newman <anewmanagn@excite.com>
Subject: Bell System Phone Label Code?
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 18:41:08 -0500
On the number cards/labels affixed to latter-decades' Bell System
phones, there was a letter M stamped like this:
-----------------------------
| AREA |
| CODE M 555-4321 |
| 595 |
-----------------------------
What did the M mean?
------------------------------
From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Getting Rid of "Legal" Spam?
Date: 22 Sep 2005 12:05:40 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Several years ago I signed up for the big PC Expo show in New York
City. I included my real email address.
Since then I have received many advertisements for subsequent
technology shows and from various vendors. Early on I sent in a
request to remove my name; that request was ignored.
The promotors of PC Expo are not some "fly by night" basement outfit,
they are supposedly a legitimate organization. But I am angry that
they released my email (which was required) to outsiders and that I
continue to get spam from them. The latest spam came from: ITD
Holdings <dnina@itdholdings.com>
Any suggestions?
Thanks.
[public replies please]
------------------------------
From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com
Subject: Induction Coil Lamps
Date: 22 Sep 2005 13:28:38 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Induction coils have been used in telephones almost since the
beginning. Now they are being used as a light source for highway
signs.
The coil is at the center, surrounded by a electron-ion-plasma
material and inert gas. The globe is coated with phosphors. The coil
creates UV radiation that makes the globe glow. Lifespan is claimed
to be 27 years and used for backlit traffic signs.
http://www.quixtraffic.com
------------------------------
From: Tony P. <kd1s@nospamplease.cox.reallynospam.net>
Subject: Re: Roaming Charges
Organization: ATCC
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 16:57:22 -0400
In article <telecom24.432.10@telecom-digest.org>, JoeOfSeattle@yahoo.com
says.:
> On Tue, 20 Sep 2005 23:52:16 GMT, Ken Abrams <k_abrams@[REMOVETHIS]
> sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>> If this was 7 years ago, I'm guessing it was analog service; it
>> certainly was not GSM. I'd be interested to see what happens on some
>> of those calls today using GSM service.
> Quite the contrary. GSM service was functional as early as January of
> 1996 for VoiceStream which is now T-Mobile. The first GSM network in
> the USA was turned on in 1995. That's at least 10 years ago.
That was OmniPoint which got sucked up by VoiceStream which then got
sucked up by Deutch Telecom now know as T-Mobile.
------------------------------
From: Isaiah Beard <sacredpoet@sacredpoet.com>
Subject: Re: Roaming Charges
Date: Fri, 23 Sep 2005 13:51:43 -0400
Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com
Joseph wrote:
> Quite the contrary. GSM service was functional as early as January of
> 1996 for VoiceStream which is now T-Mobile.
While that is true, I do remember looking at a Nationwide GSM map
provided by VoiceStream, and NONE of the GSM systems that one could
roam on at the time were adjacent to each other. All were very
distant from each other, in major metropolitan areas (and a couple of
second-tier locations where PCS spectrum was cheap back in the
day). So, unless you made a call in El Paso, Texas on the VoiceStream
network, and then instantaneously transported to, say, New York City
on the Omnipoint network, there was no chance you were going to be
able to test intercarrier handoffs. As such, I would bet real money
that no intercarrier call handoffs were set up between the GSM
carriers back in '96 ... it just wasn't physically possible to do until
much alter, when the networks expanded.
Now, AMPS providers there were plenty of in '96. Some did do roaming
handoffs, and some didn't. It all depended on how amicable the
relationship was between the neighboring cellular companies.
E-mail fudged to thwart spammers.
Transpose the c's and a's in my e-mail address to reply.
------------------------------
From: J Kelly <jkelly@*newsguy.com>
Subject: Re: Roaming Charges
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 10:41:07 -0500
Organization: http://newsguy.com
Reply-To: jkelly@*newsguy.com
On Tue, 20 Sep 2005 23:52:16 GMT, Ken Abrams <k_abrams@[REMOVETHIS]
sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> J Kelly <jkelly@*newsguy.com> wrote:
>> On 16 Sep 2005 05:33:58 -0000, John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> wrote:
>>>> This raises a question I thought of recently, but had not bothered to
>>>> ask anyone about. Suppose I start a cell call in local but move to a
>>>> roaming tower during the call? Does the call get charged as roaming
>>>> or not?
>>> I doubt you'd get a handoff in a situation like that. It'd drop the
>>> call and you'd call back.
>> I worked for a small cellular carrier about 7 years ago. I would
>> routinely test handoffs from our network to the network adjacent to
>> us.
> If this was 7 years ago, I'm guessing it was analog service; it
> certainly was not GSM. I'd be interested to see what happens on some
> of those calls today using GSM service. Often things touted as "new
> and improved" aren't. That's my impression of GSM, at least the way
> it is being implemented now. While it is hard for a user to tell when
> a call is handed off to another site, I don't think I have ever had a
> successful hand-off with GSM. I have, however, had a LOT of calls
> dropped when moving ... sometimes just a few feet.
It was analog. I've used GSM (we got GSM here in 1997, btw). Worked
great. Never handed off between networks with it (there is no other
network to hand to) but routinely would drive 50+ miles on the same
call and not drop. And I know that CDMA can hand off, either soft or
hard. I'm guessing here, but it probably has to do a hard handoff
between networks (or other MTSOs on the same network) while a soft
handoff can occur between sites on the same MTSO.
------------------------------
From: DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net>
Subject: Re: Louisiana Official Caught Ripping Off Donations
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 16:51:25 -0600
Organization: Disorganized
In message <telecom24.433.7@telecom-digest.org> DevilsPGD
<spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote:
> In message <telecom24.432.3@telecom-digest.org> Associated Press News
> Wire <ap@telecom-digest.org> wrote:
>> Police found cases of food, clothing and tools intended for hurricane
>> victims at the home of the chief administrative officer for a New
>> Orleans suburb, authorities said Wednesday.
>> Officers searched Cedric Floyd's home because of complaints that city
>> workers were helping themselves to donations for hurricane
>> victims. Floyd, who runs the day-to-day operations in the suburb of
>> Kenner, was in charge of distributing the goods.
>> Police plan to seek a charge of committing an illegal act as a public
>> official against Floyd, and more charges against other city workers
>> are possible, police Capt. Steve Caraway said.
> That seems like an odd reaction. Perhaps he should be airdropped just
> ahead of Rita and we'll call it even?
> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: If we wish to be consistent here, we
> need to remember all the looting in general which took place over
> several days there. And the 'city workers' who were helping themselves
> to the lately-given donations, etc were not doing much different,
> except perhaps it is okay to loot a store with merchandise for sale at
> a profit, but not okay to loot merchandise intended for give-away to
> the victims. Also recall, many of the city workers involved were also
> themselves victims and were entitled to the same help as the other
> victims were receiving. My thought would be since the city workers
> were staying on the job trying to assist the other victims, perhaps
> some 'professional courtesy' reciprocation should be allowed
> (i.e. they get first pick of the donations, etc just as they are
> getting the first pick of the temporary mobile homes as they become
> available.) Just don't get greedy about it or make a big issue of
> showing the other victims what is happening. PAT]
I'd add most of the looters who stole anything other then basic
essentials to the list.
However, in my mind there is a large difference between "looting to stay
alive" vs "looting from emergency supplies intended to keep others
alive".
If they were simply taking what was allocated to them as fellow
victims, the police wouldn't be involved.
[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: That is what I guess they will have to
try and detirmine; if the emphasis should be on the 'victims taking
needed food, etc' _or_ common variety looter. No one down there has
had things very easy in the past month. PAT]
------------------------------
Date: 22 Sep 2005 22:08:54 -0000
From: John Levine <johnl@iecc.com>
Subject: Re: Vonage Urged to Consider Sale, Float, According to Financial Times
Organization: I.E.C.C., Trumansburg NY USA
In article <telecom24.433.1@telecom-digest.org> you write:
> Vonage Holdings Corp., which provides residential phone services over
> the Internet, is being urged to consider a sale while it presses ahead
> with plans for a public float, the Financial Times reported on
> Thursday.
That's very peculiar. I read today's FT all the way through (it's not
that big) and I found no mention of Vonage at all, much less a feature
about it.
[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: In separate email I said to John there
is sometimes a problem with news items by the time they reach me here
being 'out of synch' by a day or so, and he might try 'Thursday' to
actually be Wednesday or Friday. He then replied: PAT]
On Fri, 2005-09-23 at 13:35 -0400, TELECOM Digest Editor wrote:
>> no mention in FT
> Did we check the proper FT on the specified date?
It said "Thursday" so I looked in detail at yesterday's paper. I flipped
through the Weds paper, and I'll look and see if by some chance it's in
today's when I pick it up.
[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I also suggest using the link inside
the article on line _at the source_ and seeing if it comes up with a
different date sometimes as well. PAT]
------------------------------
From: David L <davlindi@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Motorola Bag phone
Date: 23 Sep 2005 15:23:55 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Test calls can usually be made by calling 411, although cellcos are
starting to be less friendly to incoming analog calls from unactivated
handsets differently as of late, since they take up so much
bandwith. I recently was unable to get an analog call to connect to
the network to test in N. CA or a credit card call in an emergency.
Using 411 or perhaps 922 (which also might connect to 911 in a few
areas like N.VA) is a much better choice, since you won't be taking up
an emergency call operators time, that they could be used responding
to a real emergency.
922 may be either be a 911 test number number OR the telco system may
be programed to forward any calls which appear to be an attempt to
call 911 Calling 922 from a Verizon GPS enabled phone, even an
unactivated one, will allow the toweer to send the GPS coords to the
handset's GPSONE debug screen in many areas. As long as it's an urban
area with AGPS enabled on the network, and calls don't get forwared to
911, there is a good chance the GPS coords will appear in one of the
GPS ONE menu screens.
**Calls from activated VZW phones to 922 WILL GET BILLED AS 411 CALLS!
So, if you want to play with the GPS function use an unactived phone
or be prepared to deal with VZW CS. Likely the billing system is
already set up for some GIN GPS pay service, which will use the built
in GPS.
My usual advice of keeping a bag phone in the trunk for free,
emergency 911 calls from a three watt high powered phone, may have
some practical limitations when trying access the network for Credit
Card calls. Allthough 911 calls will have priority, cellular
operators are cutting back analog bandwidth and users have reported
trouble in completing calls even with paid analog plans.
Unless one is in the middle of Nowhere where the extra power of a 3
watt analog phone might be an advantage to connecting to an old analog
cell tower, I would recommend carrying a dualmode A/D
handset. Probably something like an older Verizon 800mhz
dualmode/trimode model would be a good choice for the those who have
no phone, or those using a GSM phone, planning on going into rural
areas. GSM is lacking coverage in the mountains and out west
especially. So carrying a CDMA/analog (3 watt analog in some
areas)phone has a good chance for connecting to any existing tower,
for an Emergency call, or credit card call, in case of a car
breakdown.
Unless one knows they are in or traveling to a CDMA 1900mhz area, a
dualmode should be fine. There are a few 1900mhz areas.
As of about Aug 1st, no cellular handset will be allowed to be
activated unless it has AGPS built in, on VZW. Existing phones are
excepted, but once taken off the network, they will not be able to be
activated back on. Verizon Wireless is enforcing this new policy,
AFAIK, 100%. Since it's an FCC ruling dealing with GPS phase in, I
suspect other carriers will follow suite, once they get their
activation databases to comply.
Dave Lind
Davlindi@hotmail.com
------------------------------
TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly to telecomm-
unications 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 #434
******************************
| |