From editor@telecom-digest.org Tue Oct 12 01:45:33 2004 Received: (from ptownson@localhost) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.6p3/8.11.6) id i9C5jX908605; Tue, 12 Oct 2004 01:45:33 -0400 (EDT) Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 01:45:33 -0400 (EDT) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200410120545.i9C5jX908605@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 #483 TELECOM Digest Tue, 12 Oct 2004 01:45:00 EDT Volume 23 : Issue 483 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Cellphone Industry Turns to Unmined Territory: Seniors (Marcus D. Falco) Digital TV Effort Sends Wrong Signal, Group Says (Monty Solomon) Howard Stern and the Future of Media Censorship (Monty Solomon) Help Wanted in Dulles, Virginia - Telecom Unix Engineer (Paula Cao) REN Boosters from England? (Ted Koppel) Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response = T911 (Tony P.) Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response = T911 (Gary Novosielski) Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response (Wesrock@aol.com) Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response = T911 (Clarence Dold) Re: Fairness Doctrine (was Anti-Kerry Film Slated to Air) (John McHarry) Re: Why There's no DNS or Comparable Distributed Naming (Barry Margolin) Re: Why There's no DNS or Comparable Distributed Naming (William Warren) Re: Why There's no DNS or Comparable Distributed Naming (Tony P.) Re: Two Way Radio Service (jdj) Re: Two Way Radio Service (Gary Novosielski) Re: Wireless and Wi-fi Definitions (Tony P.) Re: Congress Close to Establishing Rules for Driver's Licenses (Tony P.) Re: Monthly Bill Fatigue (Amin) Re: Deutsche Telekom AG Executives Reported To FBI! (David B. Horvath) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. =========================== Addresses herein are not to be added to any mailing list, nor to be sold or given away without explicit written consent. Chain letters, viruses, porn, spam, and miscellaneous junk are definitely unwelcome. We must fight spam for the same reason we fight crime: not because we are naive enough to believe that we will ever stamp it out, but because we do not want the kind of world that results when no one stands against crime. Geoffrey Welsh =========================== See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 21:02:19 -0400 From: Marcus Didius Falco Subject: Cellphone Industry Turns to Unmined Territory: Seniors From the New York Times -- http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/11/technology/11cell.html?oref=login By MATT RICHTEL Having equipped most adults and half of all teenagers with cellphones, the mobile phone industry is turning its attention to the last untapped demographic -- people over 65. But its dreams of collecting monthly subscription fees from grandparents talking to their grandchildren, retirees calling friends from their recreational vehicles or patients checking in with their doctors may exact a hefty and unexpected price. The mobile phone industry has roused the interest of AARP, the powerful lobby and advocacy group for older Americans. And AARP is not happy with what it has heard from its members: complaints about incomprehensible service contracts, confusing bills and dead zones that are not clearly marked on coverage maps. They are the same concerns that have been expressed for years by other consumer advocates, who now have a new champion in the 35-million-member AARP. We're hoping "to make the industry stand up and say, 'We've got to fix what's going on here,'" said Susan Weinstock, national coordinator, economic and utility issues, with AARP. The group has already prompted the introduction of legislation in New York State that would provide more flexibility in canceling cellphone contracts, and it plans similar efforts in other states. AARP's campaign, which includes lobbying Congress, the Federal Communications Commission and state legislatures, and talk of running its own cellphone service, has caught the cellphone industry off guard and ill tempered. Consumer advocates say AARP's aggressiveness also reflects its own internal dynamics, that AARP is focusing on such a universally and easily agreed upon position to unite a membership angered and torn by the turmoil of last year's divisive Medicare fight. The cellphone industry has argued that it has done a good job of serving the needs of older customers and that what is best for people on fixed incomes is an industry free from taxation and regulation and thus, theoretically, able to offer lower prices. Late in September, the two groups met for the first time to discuss common ground and their differences. "For whatever reason, the AARP has been coming after us," said Steve Largent, president and chief executive of the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association. He is also a former congressman and a member of the National Football League Hall of Fame. "It is very troubling." In the middle of the debate are people like Silvio Scocca, 77, a retired import-export broker in San Francisco. Mr. Scocca and millions of other senior citizens are an alluring lot for the mobile phone industry, which has virtually tapped out the rest of the adult market. While about 80 percent of people 19 to 65 own mobile phones and more than 45 percent of those 10 to 18 do, only 39 percent of people 65 and older use them, according to the Yankee Group, a research firm. Moreover, older people who do use phones spend less money for fewer minutes each month than Americans under 65, the firm says. "There are only so many 18-year-olds to market to," said Jeff Nelson, a spokesman for Verizon Wireless. "The senior population is a clear opportunity for growth." But first marketers must overcome the concerns of Mr. Scocca and his peers, who say the phones are too small, too hard to hear and cost too much. Mr. Scocca ought to know. Two years ago, he bought service from AT&T Wireless. But he canceled it in May after the phone sat mostly unused on his kitchen table, though he spent $32 a month for service. "It shouldn't be so perplexing to use," Mr. Scocca said, as he waited for lunch to be served at a Y.M.C.A. in San Francisco recently. The feeling is not universal. Some customers, like Charles R. Temple, 77, said that they had adapted to the wireless era just fine. Mr. Temple, a retired book publisher who still writes and publishes newsletters in San Francisco, said he used his phone every day. Besides, he said, "It's good to have in case you faint, or stumble or get in trouble." To create more converts, analysts said, the big phone makers are developing phones that will be easier to see and hear -- and that will reverse the trend toward miniaturization. If so, they would be mimicking efforts in Korea and Japan, where the higher penetration among older people has led to development of more elderly-friendly gadgets, said Peggy Johnson, a division president for Qualcomm, a company that makes software and computer chips used in cellphones worldwide. In Korea, Ms. Johnson noted, the phone maker LG recently introduced a phone that allows people to measure their glucose levels. In Japan and Korea, she said, phone makers have added tracking features that let loved ones know their whereabouts. Carriers in the United States are putting pressure on phone makers to be sensitive to the needs of older users, said Alan D. Ferber, vice president for marketing for U.S. Cellular, which has 4.5 million subscribers. Last year, in the hope of attracting more older customers, the photos in U.S. Cellular brochures started to include older people using cellphones. So, too, did those at Sprint; one of its brochures, from November 2003, had a picture of a white-haired woman playing with a young girl. Mr. Ferber said the older demographic was not only growing, but becoming more technology savvy as baby boomers aged. "The senior of today is primarily a safety user," he said. "The senior of tomorrow has been a wireless user for 15 or 20 years." It also is a group with a powerful lobbying arm in AARP, which, Ms. Weinstock said, had begun letter and phone campaigns at the state legislative level. Its first significant effort prompted legislators to introduce a measure two months ago in New York State that would permit people to cancel their wireless phone contracts within 15 days after receiving the first bill. The idea, Ms. Weinstock said, is to permit older people to see the full cost of their bill after taxes and surcharges have been added. She would like to take the proposal next to Pennsylvania and Illinois. The group is also lobbying Congress to require the cellphone companies to ask consumers before including their names and phone numbers in a wireless telephone directory. The industry has said it plans to use such an "opt-in" process, but consumer groups want it to be required by law, not done voluntarily by cellphone carriers. AARP believes that if the opt-in process is not made law, the cellphone industry could ultimately decide unilaterally to put names in a cellphone directory, thus, AARP says, jeopardizing consumer privacy. In addition, Ms. Weinstock said AARP wanted companies to publish more precise maps of their coverage areas. That way, she said, people who use a phone infrequently or for emergencies only will not be surprised to find it does not work as expected. In each of the last five years, AARP has asked members what service or product they would most like AARP to provide, and cellphone service was the No. 1 answer. The organization is considering marketing its own branded plan, by reselling access to the network of a major phone carrier. In the meantime, AARP plans to try to make the existing companies more responsive to older customers' needs. "I don't see how the industry is not going to have to stand up and take notice," Ms. Weinstock said. Gene Kimmelman, executive director of Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports magazine, said AARP had another motive - getting its own membership to take notice. He said that the lobbying group angered a lot of its members last year during a brutal fight over the future of Medicare. AARP is taking on telecommunications issues in a way it hasn't in many years, he said. "AARP is trying to get more in tune with its members' day-to-day needs," Mr. Kimmelman said. "This is an obvious issue where they can tap into resentment and confusion over cellphones -- and score a lot of points with members." Ms. Weinstock disputed that the internal dynamics were driving the matter. She did say that the emphasis on telecommunications was not new on the state level, though the AARP was putting in new effort at the federal level. "We took up the wireless issue because it's a big issue and consumers are unhappy about it," she said. Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. This Internet discussion group is making it available without profit to group members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of literary, educational, political, and economic issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. I believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 18:54:01 -0400 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Digital TV Effort Sends Wrong Signal, Group Says Consumer advocates say the FCC shouldn't promote costly new sets. The agency says it's educating viewers. By Alex Pham Times Staff Writer Sofa spuds deserve better. So says a coalition of consumer advocates and academics that Thursday blasted a federal campaign that the group complained encouraged Americans to acquire an expensive breed of digital boob tubes. "Do you really believe that with all the troubles facing our nation, the federal government should be on a crusade to encourage people to buy costly new television sets?" the Commercial Alert coalition wrote to federal lawmakers. Portland, Ore.-based Commercial Alert charged that "television is a major public health problem" and called on Congress to pull funding for the Federal Communications Commission campaign, called "DTV: Get It!" http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-dtv8oct08,1,5124387.story ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 14:34:12 -0400 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Howard Stern and the Future of Media Censorship by Adam Thierer Radio "shock jock" Howard Stern is bolting to satellite radio, signing a five-year deal with SIRIUS beginning in 2006. His transition from broadcast to satellite radio signals a tectonic shift in the center of media power away from traditional providers to new types of outlets and technologies. That much everyone has probably already figured out. What's more interesting, however, is what all this means for the future of media regulation by Washington lawmakers. Consider for a moment just how bad this past year has been for media. http://www.cato.org/tech/tk/041011-tk.html ------------------------------ From: paula@coretechsinc.com (Paula Cao) Subject: Help Wanted in Dulles, Virginia - Telecom Unix Test Engineer Date: 11 Oct 2004 16:06:33 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com I have a Senior Test Engineer position located in Dulles, VA with a very well known, and established organization. Below is the job description. This is a fulltime; contract position for 6 months and the client is looking for someone right away. If you feel you are a fit, or know someone who might be, please respond with the following: 1) Resume 2) Hourly rate (please be specific) 3) Availability to interview and start 4) Special circumstances If you have any questions or would like more info, please feel free to contact me. VOIP Senior Test Engineer The VOIP Senior Test Engineer (STE) will develop and implement test strategies, test plans/cases for Next Generation Telephony Network applications/infrastructure (e.g., routing, service brokering). Technical o Must have extensive test experience with expertise in SIP and other VOIP protocols such as H.323, MGCP, MEGACO. Preferred knowledge of TRIP, TGREP and other VOIP protocols. o SS7 testing knowledge and SS7 simulator tools is desirable o Experience with tools such as: MGTS, EAST/Hammer, SIP phones, Ethereal/TCP Dump, o Experience designing and performing interoperability test of VOIP protocols. Testing experience on Softswitch is a plus. o Network technologies - Must have in depth understanding and trouble shooting skills of TCP/IP networks (e.g., routing tables, host/network configuration issues) Cisco certification is a plus. o Must have UNIX/LINUX experience, including shell scripting o Relational database experience (Oracle preferred) Planning / Team Work / Communication o Excellent communication skills o Thorough understanding of test processes and ability to estimate task duration. o Ability to work as part of a team or lead a team following established guidelines o Excellent trouble-shooting skills is a MUST Education BS/MS in Computer Science/Electrical Engineering Paula Cao Sr. Technical Recruiter 916-442-6900 x12 toll free: 1-800-484-6022 (Access Code 4802) Office paula@coretechsinc.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 17:14:26 -0400 From: Ted Koppel Subject: REN Boosters From England? A quick browse through Google shows a number of sources selling REN Boosters (or REN amplifiers) for about a third of what Viking does, or around £38 (roughly $60). Granted, these contraptions take line current of 240 volts, but assuming that could be handled with a transformer, is the rest of the technology the same? That is, would a British REN amplifier function on a line in the US? ------------------------------ From: Tony P. Subject: Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response = T911 Organization: ATCC Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 02:28:02 GMT In article , hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com says: > Rick Merrill wrote: >> Dont' try that in Massachusetts: MA law requires that the police pay a >> visit to ANY 911 or E911 call no matter what! They can be mighty >> "testy" about it. - RM > That surprises me. In my state they normally send someone out too, > but not "no matter what". As soon as they answered I said it was to > test the line and they were glad to cooperate, after all, they don't > want mismatches. > Their automatic dispatch rule is more if they get a call where there's > no one responding on the other end, and that makes sense. In Rhode Island E-911 dispatches emergency services if a call is received with no response or is a hang-up. I'll have to check the general laws regarding testing of E-911 data. ------------------------------ From: Gary Novosielski Subject: Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response = T911 Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 02:32:52 GMT Lisa Hancock wrote: > That surprises me. In my state they normally send someone out too, > but not "no matter what". As soon as they answered I said it was to > test the line and they were glad to cooperate, after all, they don't > want mismatches. I've done the same thing here in New Jersey. I dialed 911, and when the op answered, I said "This a test. There is no emergency, but if you're not busy I'd like to check the address you have on file for this line." They were very cooperative, and were happy to read back the address. And, I'm very glad I did this, because only one of my two lines had the correct address! The line that I've had since I moved here 20-some years ago was right, but a secondary line I bought for fax / business / overflow use, and which had been in operation for over a year, still had an incorrect address in the next town, presumably that of the former owner of that number. This was a few years ago, and I don't remember exactly how I got it fixed, but I remember that the 911 op knew what to do about it. I can't recall if they were able to take care of it themselves, or whether they advised me to contact my local telco to have it fixed. In any case, I did what they said, and it was fixed in a few days. I don't remember what gave me the idea to check it, but since that time I've heard some radio and print "advice column" authors recommend that everyone check their 911 address at least once if they have never done so, and after having any new line installed, changing carriers, or other Murphy's-Law windows of opportunity. Of course this should only be done during low-volume times, not during the regular meeting hours of the Saturday Night Knife and Gun Club, as the E.R. folks fondly call it. A calm Sunday morning during nice weather should be a good time. I can't imagine why any local authority would demand that the cops respond to every 911 call, unless the caller did not respond. After all, someone dialing 911 might be requesting a police officer, a fire truck, an ambulance, or some other specialized response. Let us hope that common sense is actually more common than such a thought-free policy would suggest. I'd like more verification before believing that this is actually the policy in Massachusetts. ------------------------------ From: Wesrock@aol.com Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 20:16:26 EDT Subject: Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response In a message dated Mon, 11 Oct 2004 14:30:50 GMT, Pat Townson < ptownson@massis.lcs.mit.edu> writes in a footnote to a post by Tony P. < kd1s@nospamplease.verizon.reallynospam.net>: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: But the 'established environments' can > use the 272-1111 number can't they, since I imagine most everyone > knows it. And since most every police department, I think, still has > those old numbers around, why don't they at least adjust their so- > called PSAP to ring in on those old numbers, like Independence has > done. I have lived in the same suburb of Oklahoma City for more than 40 years, and at my present address for 36 years, and I'm still not sure what the listed number (the only number before 911) for the police department is. I couldn't come up with the fire department number on a bet. And if I go three or four blocks to the north, or four or five blocks to the south, or west a couple of blocks to the freeway, I'm in Oklahoma City. I couldn't tell you those numbers either. The only time I have had occasion to call 911 from a cell phone it came in to the Oklahoma City PSAP, and I was in Oklahoma City at the time, so that was all right. The one time I called 911 from my home telephone the PSAP operator for my suburb (the Police Department dispatcher) verified my address (from the E-911 records) and asked if that was where the emergency was (My car was on fire in my driveway.) Wes Leatherock wesrock@aol.com ------------------------------ From: dold@XReXX911XA.usenet.us.com Subject: Re: 911 Address Display Delays Police Response = T911 Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 17:56:02 UTC Organization: a2i network Jeff nor Lisa wrote: > Rick Merrill wrote: >> Dont' try that in Massachusetts: MA law requires that the police pay a >> visit to ANY 911 or E911 call no matter what! They can be mighty >> "testy" about it. - RM > That surprises me. In my state they normally send someone out too, > but not "no matter what". As soon as they answered I said it was to > test the line and they were glad to cooperate, after all, they don't > want mismatches. When I ventured into the CLEC biz, one of the rules was that E-911 was required to be tested on every installation. The E-911 rules allow for one test call to establish proper routing and identification on each line. I think the techs just tested one line, since they were all mapped to the same location, but each installation was supposed to get a test call. Clarence A Dold - Hidden Valley (Lake County) CA USA 38.8-122.5 ------------------------------ From: John McHarry Subject: Re: Fairness Doctrine (was Anti-Kerry Film Slated to Air ...) Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 00:44:23 GMT Organization: EarthLink Inc. -- http://www.EarthLink.net > Pat wrote: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: When I said 'the law' I meant anything > if not the actual law still has the force and equivilent of the law, > which is true of FCC regulations. But I had forgotten about President > Ray Guns veto of that perfectly good, very impartial law. Why oh why > do we always have to get such winners (see my tongue in cheek) in the > highest office in the land? The *only decent* person we have had in > that office in the past 25 years was Jimmy Carter. And lest some > readers think I favor John Kerry, I *do not* and don't intend to vote > for him either. I intend to vote my conscience this time around > instead of just voting for the lesser of two evils: Kerry. I will vote > for Mr. Badnarik. Oh, I know he won't win, but I am tired of playing > the games they toss at us every four years. If Badnarik even *came close* > to winning, the Secret Service or the FBI or someone would assassinate > him. But he gets my vote, because I want to make a point. PAT] You will do as you see fit, but I remember refusing to vote for Hubert Humphrey in 1968. (Dump the Hump!) So many of us sat out that election or voted for marginal candidates, Richard Nixon was elected, although not by much. Whatever point we made was not worth the cost, in my opinion. ------------------------------ From: Barry Margolin Subject: Re: Why There's no DNS or Comparable Distributed Naming Service Organization: Symantec Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 17:08:44 -0400 In article , ariel.burbaickij@gmail.com (Ariel Burbaickij) wrote: > I know that Internet didn't have DNS from the very beginning -- it > made fairly decent progress till today, though, if you noticed ;-). I > am not talking abount DNS on phones (actually it does exist in the > form of ENUM and related project and naming scheme for e164 set also > exists for sure). I am talking about DNS for pointcodes, i.e. for > switches (phone switches just to avoid any misunderstanding). There > is no dns-like efforts for this and for reasons unknown to me, ITU > standards that normally tend to foreseen each and everything scenarion > and are so heavily packaged with required features do not even mention > this possibility. I think it's longstanding philosophical difference between the Internet designers and telcos. The design of the Internet has always been based on smart end-nodes using a dumb network infrastructure. Even so-called "thin clients" have mostly been full-fledged computers; the simplest ones are appliances with embedded computers. Furthermore, there's no central control; it's a "network of networks", with all of them potentially equal (although this has evolved into somewhat of a hierarchy), so databases like DNS needed to be distributed. The telephone network design, on the other hand, was based on a smart network with centralized control. This derives from the days of telephone monopolies like AT&T. Although the network has been opened up to competition, the techology has been slow to fully adapt to this model. Barry Margolin, barmar@alum.mit.edu Arlington, MA *** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me *** ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Why There's no DNS or Comparable Distributed Naming Service From: William Warren Organization: Comcast Online Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 02:07:43 GMT On 11 Oct 2004 02:19:00 -0700, Ariel Burbaickij wrote: >>> Could someone explain to me why there is no such service as DNS/whois >>> towards it in SS7 network? After all, we have exactly same concerns >>> here (distributed and independent administration of different subsets >>> of address space, mapping must be often provided between pointcodes >>> (numerical address) and its current owner), so why it was decided not >>> to do it this way but instead some arcane lists are distributed by ITU >>> exclusively? [large snip] I don't think it's needed in the way the Internet uses the term: DNS is essential for the internet because the number of separate nodes has grown too large for any one node to handle, so there has to be a lookup mechanism to spread the workload, and that's DNS. Central Offices don't need a dns-like service because: A. STPs already perform an equivalent function: there are few enough exchanges that each one can keep a basic routing table in memory and pass off any unknown npa/nxx codes to an STP for resolution. The STP routes the original SS7 traffic on behalf of the CO, unlike a DNS which returns a routable (IP) address to the requesting node. B. They don't require human-friendly names C. Phone companies are very conservative and won't change a system that they're comfortable with. HTH. William -- (Filter noise from my address for direct replies) Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/ ------------------------------ From: Tony P. Subject: Re: Why There's no DNS or Comparable Distributed Naming Service Organization: ATCC Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 02:30:33 GMT In article , ariel.burbaickij@gmail.com says: > DevilsPGD wrote in message > news:: >> Ariel.Burbaickij@web.de wrote: >>> Could someone explain to me why there is no such service as DNS/whois >>> towards it in SS7 network? After all, we have exactly same concerns >>> here (distributed and independent administration of different subsets >>> of address space, mapping must be often provided between pointcodes >>> (numerical address) and its current owner), so why it was decided not >>> to do it this way but instead some arcane lists are distributed by ITU >>> exclusively? >> The internet didn't start out with DNS either -- Or BGP even, >> everybody distributed routing tables and changes manually. >> As neat as DNS on phones would be, it would be extremely difficult to >> implement at this stage, and with LNP becoming a reality in the US >> (and possibly elsewhere as time goes on) it's less important (from an >> end user point of view.) > I know that Internet didn't have DNS from the very beginning -- it > made fairly decent progress till today, though, if you noticed ;-). I > am not talking abount DNS on phones (actually it does exist in the > form of ENUM and related project and naming scheme for e164 set also > exists for sure). I am talking about DNS for pointcodes, i.e. for > switches (phone switches just to avoid any misunderstanding). There > is no dns-like efforts for this and for reasons unknown to me, ITU > standards that normally tend to foreseen each and everything scenarion > and are so heavily packaged with required features do not even mention > this possibility. LNP is as close to DNS as the phone system gets. I've been around the net since the transfers of host files and I can tell you DNS was a god send. It also evolved fairly quickly. ------------------------------ From: jdj Subject: Re: Two Way Radio Service Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 16:06:45 -0700 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com On Mon, 11 Oct 2004 09:01:14 -0700, Geller wrote: > Hey guys ... > Is there any two-way radio service provider.? > Can any one give me the list of service providers.?? > S.Geller > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I can think of many 'two way radio > service providers'. Why don't you begin by being a bit more > precise as to your intended application. PAT] Indeed. Two way radio is not the same as cellular, telephone, etc. One does not pay a fee just to use two way radio. There is no subscription plan, no free minutes, no talk plan, etc., and you buy the radios you want, typically at full price. If someone is selling you a contract for "two way radio", I suggest you run. Fast. ------------------------------ From: Gary Novosielski Subject: Re: Two Way Radio Service Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 02:41:51 GMT Geller wrote: > Is there any two-way radio service provider.? > Can any one give me the list of service providers.?? I'm a little confused. If you have a pair of two-way radios, and are appropriately licensed where applicable, you just turn them on and use them. There's no "provider" involved. But you can send me money every month if you like. ------------------------------ From: Tony P. Subject: Re: Wireless and Wi-fi Definitions Organization: ATCC Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 02:19:58 GMT In article , johnl@iecc.com says: >> Do wi-fi and wireless technology mean the same thing? > Not really. WiFi is one popular wireless communication scheme known > as 802.11b. (Some people also throw in its successor 802.11a.) You forgot 802.11g and the upcoming 802.11f. ------------------------------ From: Tony P. Subject: Re: Congress Close to Establishing Rules for Driver's Licenses Organization: ATCC Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 02:25:30 GMT In article , monty@roscom.com says: > By MATTHEW L. WALD > WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 - Following a recommendation of the Sept. 11 > commission, the House and Senate are moving toward setting rules for > the states that would standardize the documentation required to obtain > a driver's license, and the data the license would have to contain. > Critics say the plan would create a national identification card. But > advocates say it would make it harder for terrorists to operate, as > well as reduce the highway death toll by helping states identify > applicants whose licenses had been revoked in other states. > The Senate version of the intelligence bill includes an amendment, > passed by unanimous consent on Oct. 1, that would let the secretary of > homeland security decide what documents a state would have to require > before issuing a driver's license, and would also specify the data > that the license would have to include for it to meet federal > standards. The secretary could require the license to include > fingerprints or eye prints. The provision would allow the Homeland > Security Department to require use of the license, or an equivalent > card issued by motor vehicle bureaus to nondrivers for identification > purposes, for access to planes, trains and other modes of > transportation. > http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/11/politics/11identity.html?ex=1255147200&en=e92e51cb9a7fe19e&ei=5090 The State of Rhode Island just recently upgraded it's licensing system but it's still based on flat text files. In any case, the folks at DMV chose face print ... while all of us then on the TAC told them they should be using ten-print or fingerprints. Ten-print is guaranteed to be one of the requirements, I can assure you of that. ------------------------------ From: Amin Subject: Re: Monthly Bill Fatigue Organization: SBC http://yahoo.sbc.com Date: Tue, 12 Oct 2004 03:39:02 GMT [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I am not certain what Amin is trying to say. Perhaps a reader can interpret the message. PAT] I had been a country. Almost every business puts the telephone set in the front of the store. Everyone is able to make free local call everywhere. Why do they charge a lot only the local pay phone in the US? Monty Solomon wrote in message news:telecom23.481.5@telecom-digest.org: > Service Add-Ons Nibble at Incomes > By Christopher Stern > Washington Post Staff Writer > Satellite radio. Cell phone. High-speed Internet service. Matt Botwin, > a Washington consultant, has it all -- and the bills that go with his > growing bundle of technology. > With each new service, more of Botwin's monthly income is spoken for. > A generation ago, mortgages, utilities and newspaper subscriptions > made up a short list of payments due each month. Now Americans pay an > average of 12 bills a month, including fees for a broad range of > services such as television programming, home security-system > monitoring and online gaming Web sites. And each individual bill may > increase as consumers add incremental improvements such as Internet > access to their cell phones and premium channels to their satellite > radio service. > Botwin figures that he spends at least $250 a month on his > subscription services. "I'm not happy about it. It's a lot," Botwin > said. But he also feels that his digital devices and services are > necessities. The Sirius satellite radio is indispensable for his > frequent drives to New York and Philadelphia. "It's like any luxury. > I didn't think I needed a microwave [oven], but I'm sure glad I have > it now." > Economists and academics are beginning to grow concerned about > Americans' willingness to cede a regular chunk of their monthly > paychecks to new conveniences and services, saying it is taking a > serious bite out of discretionary spending, a key driver of the > nation's economy. They also worry that new services are contributing > to a growing divide between consumers who have the means to secure > special treatment, such as access to free-rolling highway lanes, while > others are stuck in bumper-to-bumper standstills. > http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A19377-2004Oct9.html ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2004 14:31:06 -0400 Subject: Re: Deutsche Telekom AG Executives Reported To FBI For Abuse! From: Name and email address withheld Please remove my email address *and* name before posting! On 11 Oct 2004 07:33:47 -0700, freespeechstore@aol.com (Freespeechstore) posted: > freespeechstore@aol.com (Freespeechstore) wrote in message > news:<20041008112744.01575.00002304@mb-m28.aol.com>: >> It appears that this ISP has serious problems as posted here and at >> http://freespeechstore.com >> Cut & paste the URL below to get more on these abusers: > http://freespeechstore.com/public/Sub_Public5/2205_Deutsche_Telekom_AG_E xecutives_Reported_To_FBI_For_Abuse!.htm > http://freespeechstore.com/public/Sub_Public5/2208_Why_viruses_spread__a nd_why_you_could_be_sued_for_it.htm > http://freespeechstore.com/public/Sub_Public5/2207_Listing_of_ISP_Server _Abuse_(LISA)..Probes__Viruses__Bogus_Inquiries__etc..htm Oh no, not *this* guy again! Freespeechstore requires you to pay to read this guy's rants. He had a bunch of nasty stuff to say about me one time: I got spam to several different accounts advertising the freespeechstore.com site. I checked it out and signed up with a disposable account. When I got more spam at other accounts (not the one signed up), I reported it via spamcop.net. In response, he complains to the ISP that hosts my domain, my employer (since I surfed his site from work and he logs IP addresses), and spamcop. In addition, he posted a rant "watch out for ... at domain ..." *and* spammed several of my accounts with an announcement about it. Fortunately, my employer threw his complaint in the bit bucket as did my ISP. Spamcop wrote back a nasty note to him because he spammed them and is well known on the abuse discussion groups. I later got a call from some company in the guy's home town that did a home inspection for a prospective buyer of the guy's house. They gave the house a bad grade (the buyer was paying them); the buyer used the report as a reason not to complete the sale. He attacked the company on the web page, police reports, etc., etc., etc. It seems that if you don't immediately agree with this guy's actions, you're committing abuse. Now, I believe in freedom of (truthful) expression. But when you have to pay to read that expression, any "invitation" is, by definition, SPAM. Normally, I sign these things and include my name in postings, but have asked PAT to exclude that information because I've already had seriously negative interaction with this guy. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: As you requested, your identity was deleted. I've received various mails from this fellow before, but had not used his stuff; never even really looked at his site. But this time, after publishing his note, I decided to go look at the links he provided. I would have expected to get at least something to read, but all of his links shown above point to a page where (as you noted) he tries to sell the 'speeches' others have made. I was not all that impressed with his site. 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. 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