From editor@telecom-digest.org Sat Jan 24 13:28:58 2004 Received: (from ptownson@localhost) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.6p2/8.11.3) id i0OISvQ05522; Sat, 24 Jan 2004 13:28:58 -0500 (EST) Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 13:28:58 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200401241828.i0OISvQ05522@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V23 #36 TELECOM Digest Sat, 24 Jan 2004 13:29:00 EST Volume 23 : Issue 36 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Consumed: The Treo 600 (Monty Solomon) Study: Ethernet in the City Cuts Carrier Costs (Monty Solomon) Time Is Right For Home Network Appliances, Gadgets (Monty Solomon) A Wireless Deal Could Trouble Gear Makers (Monty Solomon) Dead Cellphone? No Wall Plug? No Worries (Monty Solomon) E-mail Scam Taps Antiterrorist Push, Says FDIC (Monty Solomon) Protect Yourself From Deceptive (Spoofed), Malicious Web Sites (Solomon) 'Exploding' Cell Phone Battery Recalled (Monty Solomon) Legal Battle Over Chat-Room STDs (Monty Solomon) Microsoft Announces Additional Improvements to Protocol (Monty Solomon) Microsoft Settles With Teen Over Web Site (Monty Solomon) Overseas Toll Free Numbers (Michael Quinn) Global Leaders and Thought Leadership in Telecom (Alan Burkitt-Gray) 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 is 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: Monty Solomon Subject: Consumed: The Treo 600 Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 23:00:02 -0500 The Treo 600 By ROB WALKER January 25, 2004 As the editor of Gizmodo, a Web log that traffics in the latest news about gadgets from cellphones to laptops, Peter Rojas is bombarded with e-mail from people who want to hear (or spread) the latest gossip about this or that device or innovation. But the anticipation around one particular gizmo stood out over the past year: a so-called smart phone known as the Treo 600, made by PalmOne. The buzz started in June, months before the phone became available in the United States, when a certain photograph was posted on online message boards. The photo of company executives at a press conference had been blown up to highlight a prototype of the device that one of them was holding. "People were going crazy," Rojas says. It's startling that anybody could be excited by the appearance of yet another cellphone -- particularly one that costs around $500. But the Treo 600 is a kind of Swiss Army knife of gadgetry: it's a phone; it's a text-messaging device with a full (if teensy) keyboard; it's a personal digital assistant; it has a camera; and you can use it to surf the Web. It weighs about six ounces. Advertising Age named it the No. 1 'must-have' product for 2004. In a December online poll by M.I.T.'s Technology Review magazine meant to gauge the gift cravings of its readers, smart phones like the new Treo trailed only the iPod. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/25/magazine/25CONSUMED.html http://www.bargainpda.com/price/default.asp?productID=1161&brandName=Palm&productName=Treo+610&display=priceDetail http://www.bargainpda.com/default.asp?newsID=1854&showComments=true ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: Study: Ethernet in the City Cuts Carrier Costs Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 23:15:47 -0500 By Marguerite Reardon Staff Writer, CNET News.com Telephone companies could cut their operating costs by 23 percent a year by using Ethernet services in their metropolitan area networks instead of traditional telecommunications services, according to a new study. The study, scheduled to be released Monday, found that carriers could reduce their operational costs by 18 percent during the first year of a three-year network implementation. The potential savings rise to 20 percent in the second year and roughly 24 percent in the third year, according to the study, which was commissioned by the Metro Ethernet Forum, a marketing group made up of equipment vendors and service providers. PointEast Research, which conducted the survey, compiled results based on interviews and data provided by 36 European and North American carriers, including British Telecom, BellSouth, SBC Communications, France Telecom, and Time Warner Telecom. http://news.com.com/2100-1037-5146740.html ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: Time Is Right For Home Network Appliances, Gadgets Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 23:41:53 -0500 By Leslie Walker LAS VEGAS It wasn't Microsoft's data wristwatch, nor the high-tech toilet, nor even the Web-connected bread maker on display here that got me thinking about how the Internet is insinuating itself into the mundane parts of our lives. It was the Internet alarm clock. For years I have wanted to wake up to a bedside clock that displays news headlines and a local weather forecast. When my eyes first open, I don't want music or radio chatter. A brief buzzing sound and short text newscast would ease me out of bed just fine. So I was intrigued at the Consumer Electronics Show last week to see that Salton Inc. has put the digital command post for its new line of networked home appliances inside a clock radio with a CD player and small display screen. You program the $499 clock from a Web page to show your favorite news, sports and stock quotes. You can also use it to remotely turn on the $99 Salton coffee pot in your kitchen, say, using the same radio frequency as cordless phones. Salton calls its stainless steel clock a "home hub." It was one of many master control systems on display here designed to give people a unified way to manage the explosion of new digital devices being hooked up to home networks. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A18243-2004Jan14.html ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: A Wireless Deal Could Trouble Gear Makers Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 00:21:56 -0500 By BARNABY J. FEDER The announcement this week that AT&T Wireless, the nation's third-largest cellular company, is for sale adds uncertainty to growth projections for wireless equipment suppliers at an especially sensitive moment for investors, according to industry analysts. Increased demand for wireless networking equipment helped companies like Lucent Technologies ,Motorola ,Nortel Networks and Nokia achieve solid earnings and revenue growth for the last quarter of 2003 and sent stock prices soaring. But some fund managers are worrying that the stocks have climbed so far, so quickly that they will tumble at the slightest disappointment. Indeed, share prices for the major companies in the sector, except Nokia, which reported earnings on Thursday, have already retreated from 52-week highs achieved in recent days. The many unknowns contributing to the uncertainty include who will buy AT&T Wireless, which is based in Redmond, Wash., and when the deal could be completed. Some analysts are not yet convinced that any deal will be struck. The major equipment companies declined to comment on the potential impact of a deal, or did not return calls seeking comment. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/24/technology/24gear.html ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: Dead Cellphone? No Wall Plug? No Worries Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 10:50:54 -0500 By WALTER S. MOSSBERG Cellphones aren't just phones anymore -- they're e-mail machines, cameras, game consoles and more. But all of these new functions just put more stress on one of the phones' main weaknesses -- short-lived batteries. Unless you bulk up your slender phone with a huge extra-size battery, using all the new services can drain power quickly and force you to find a wall plug or car cigarette lighter. But there are several portable chargers on the market that claim to stave off the dreaded dead battery, without requiring you to plug into an electrical outlet. This week, my assistant Katie Boehret and I tested three of these devices. They range in price from about $6 to $25, and each uses a different method for producing a charge. None replace the phone's battery itself. They replenish the phone's own battery, essentially simulating what happens when you plug in a standard wall charger. http://ptech.wsj.com/archive/solution-20040114.html ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: E-mail Scam Taps Antiterrorist Push, says FDIC Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 11:21:01 -0500 By Robert Lemos Staff Writer, CNET News.com The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the national insurer of U.S. bank accounts, warned Americans on Friday that a convincing e-mail scam is making the rounds. The fraudulent e-mail claims to be from the FDIC and informs recipients that their bank account has been denied insurance as a result of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security into "suspected violations of the Patriot Act." The USA PATRIOT Act, which was passed after the Sept. 11 attacks, gives broad powers to law enforcement to combat terrorism. http://news.com.com/2100-7349-5146716.html ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: Protect Yourself From Deceptive (Spoofed), Malicious Web Sites Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 11:56:58 -0500 Microsoft Knowledge Base Article - 833786 Steps that you can take to help identify and to help protect yourself from deceptive (spoofed) Web sites and malicious hyperlinks SUMMARY When you point to a hyperlink in Microsoft Internet Explorer, Microsoft Outlook Express, or Microsoft Outlook, the address of the Web site typically appears in the Status bar at the bottom of the window. After you click a link that opens in Internet Explorer, the address of the Web site typically appears in the Internet Explorer Address bar, and the title of the Web page typically appears in the Title bar of the window. However, a malicious user could create a link to a deceptive (spoofed) Web site that displays the address, or URL, to a legitimate Web site in the Status bar, Address bar, and Title bar. This article describes steps that you can take to help mitigate this issue and to help you to identify a deceptive (spoofed) Web site or URL. http://support.microsoft.com/?id=833786 ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: 'Exploding' Cell Phone Battery Recalled Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 12:01:46 -0500 By Ben Charny Staff Writer, CNET News.com The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued its first-ever recall of a cell phone battery on Friday, sparking new concern about the safety of a gadget in the hands, pockets and purses of 155 million Americans. The voluntary recall affects Kyocera Wireless model 7135 smart phones sold between September and December, bought either online or in stores belonging to Verizon Wireless, Arkansas-based Alltel or Chicago-based US Cellular. The handsets use batteries manufactured by Coslight International Group of Hong Kong, and have a serial number on the underside that begins "-05". San Diego-based Kyocera said on Friday that it is trying to reach all 40,000 people who bought the cell phone in order to arrange for delivery of a free replacement. On four occasions, the batteries in the Kyocera phones have short-circuited and heated up enough to trigger a built-in safety mechanism that vents superheated gases in order to avoid an explosion, according to the safety commission. On Dec. 6, a Philadelphia-area man suffered second-degree burns on his leg when the spare cell phone battery in his pocket vented, it said. In the three other instances, the batteries were connected to the Kyocera 7135, but the phones were not being held or close to a person when they vented, according to Kyocera. http://news.com.com/2100-1039-5146534.html ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: Legal Battle Over Chat-Room STDs Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 12:05:27 -0500 By Randy Dotinga Frustrated by America Online's refusal to interfere with its huge network of chat rooms, public health officials are considering legal action to force AOL and certain websites to warn members about outbreaks of sexually transmitted diseases among gay men who use their services. http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,62005,00.html [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I would like to ask Mr. Dotinga *why* are the 'public heath officials' picking on gay guys about this? One cannot get AIDS or other venereal deseases by chatting on a computer, however if people choose to arrange a meeting after a chat room discussion, that is another thing, but not just gay gays. AOL nor any other ISP can do anything about people arranging to meet personally at a later time. That's a purely personal decision, and just limited to gay guys. Why did Mr. Dotinga and wired.com report something like this? PAT] ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: Microsoft Announces Additional Improvements to Protocol Licensing Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 20:12:56 -0500 Changes Include Simplified Terms and New Cost Structure REDMOND, Wash., Jan. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) today announced that it will make additional changes to its Communications Protocol Licensing Program that will further improve the program and make licensing easier and more attractive. The changes respond to feedback and suggestions made by the government and industry through the consent decree compliance process. The new licensing terms will be posted on the Microsoft Communications Protocol Program (MCPP) Web site. The changes, which are part of the company's ongoing effort to improve the program, include shortening and simplifying the license agreement, making approximately 20 protocols available without charge, making other protocols used to perform particular tasks available for a fixed fee or fixed fee per unit, and changing the evaluation program to provide prospective licensees with samples of the technical documentation with no confidentiality restrictions. Microsoft established the MCPP in accordance with the final judgment in its antitrust case with the Department of Justice and a number of State Attorneys General as part of its overall compliance responsibilities under the final judgment. Under the program, third-party developers can obtain licenses to protocol technology developed by Microsoft as part of its Windows(R) family of client and server operating systems. Developers can implement Microsoft's protocol technology in their own server products to improve interoperability with Windows. The MCPP was released in August 2002. To date, 11 companies have taken licenses to implement Microsoft's protocols in their products. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=40291257 ------------------------------ From: Monty Solomon Subject: Microsoft Settles With Teen Over Web Site Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 20:18:41 -0500 SEATTLE, Jan 23 (Reuters) - In the end, it paid to be Mike Rowe. The 17-year-old Canadian teenager who caught the attention of Microsoft Corp.'s (NASDAQ:MSFT) lawyers by registering www.mikerowesoft.com, agreed on Friday to give up his Web site in exchange from some perks from the world's largest software maker. - http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=40301045 ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2004 13:57:13 -0500 From: Michael Quinn Organization: Booz Allen Hamilton Subject: Overseas Toll Free Numbers Some of the Military departments recently instituted a worldwide community services help line. One of the items that caught my eye in the advisory was access from overseas via an "OCONUS (Outside the CONtintal US) universal free phone at 800-5404-xxxx (with appropriate country specific toll free access codes)". Note the number is 11 digits, not 10 like here in the US. I've heard of intra-country toll free numbers, but not this. Anyone know how this works, or what a country-specific-toll-free-code consists of? Does the user still pay for a local call, and the toll-free number owner picks up the balance of the overseas call cost? This is a nice service, especially for those in isolated locations away from the US. By the way, thanks for all of the responses and suggestions on my query about wireless home networks from last week. I learned a lot; I have more research to do, but will be very security conscious if I choose to go that route. Regards, Mike Quinn Springfield VA ------------------------------ From: Alan Burkitt-Gray Subject: Global Leaders and Thought Leadership in Telecommunications Date: Sat, 24 Jan 2004 15:47:19 -0000 I'd be grateful if I ask for Digest readers' help and advice with a project we're working on at *Global Telecoms Business magazine*. Who are the thought leaders in the telecommunications industry in 2004? We want to identify some of the key people who are making and will make most impact on the industry with their strategies, their imagination and their thought leadership. All I want from list members are a couple of names of the people we should be considering. They will already have, or will shortly acquire, world standing in the industry. In September 2004 the team here at *Global Telecoms Business* magazine in London will be producing a publication looking at the key figures in the industry throughout the world and the pressing issues that are facing them. We will profile these top people and their ideas, alongside some analytical chapters and articles looking at the industry's challenges for the next five or ten years. We already have our draft list of the 50 or so people we think are saying the things that are giving the industry sleepless nights, the people who must be listened to by all those who are serious about doing business in telecoms in the future. We will pick the final list on the merits of the individuals and the contributions they are making, or will make, to the industry. It will be a real guide to the future. But I bet I've missed some people, especially those whose main impact is yet to be felt. They might just now be introducing radical ideas into incumbents; they might be running competitive providers which are poised for expansion; they might be in start-ups with extraordinary ideas. On the other hand, they might be financiers or investors with plans to restructure the industry; or lawmakers or regulators who are about to change the competitive framework. They might be working with a supplier of software or hardware or for a content provider with a service or product that will turn the industry on its head. They might be in a university or corporate lab and be about to move into their first Apple-style garage. Send me a couple of names, off list, with details of where I can find them (organization, email address, phone number, whatever you can) and a few words about why you think we should consider them for our list of global leaders in thought leadership in the telecoms industry. Many thanks, Alan Burkitt-Gray Editor, Global Telecoms Business Euromoney Institutional Investor plc, Nestor House, Playhouse Yard, London EC4V 5EX, UK tel +44 20 7779 8518 fax +44 20 7779 8248 e-mail aburkitt@euromoneyplc.com http://www.globaltelecomsbusiness.com ------------------------------ 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'. 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End of TELECOM Digest V23 #36 *****************************