From editor@telecom-digest.org Tue Dec 21 01:11:00 2004 Received: (from ptownson@localhost) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.6p3/8.11.6) id iBL6Ax429280; Tue, 21 Dec 2004 01:11:00 -0500 (EST) Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2004 01:11:00 -0500 (EST) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200412210611.iBL6Ax429280@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 #610 TELECOM Digest Tue, 21 Dec 2004 01:11:00 EST Volume 23 : Issue 610 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Cell Phone Company Records the Tower Handling Call (phoner@company.com) TV Over Phones Attracts Billions in Investment (Telecom dailyLead) DIrectv Not Honoring Tivo lifetime Service (googlenospam@netcrafting) Motorola MD481 Cordless (Weston Fire 22) PSAPs Sound E911 Call For Help (Lisa Minter) Vonage(R) Canada and Galaxy Broadband Bring VoIP Phone Service (Minter) System Would Allow 911 Checks (Jack Decker) Re: Speaking of Giving up Landline For Cellphone (Neal McLain) Re: Speaking of Giving up Landline For Cellphone (LB@notmine.com) Re: Speaking of Giving up Landline For Cellphone (John Stahl) Re: Speaking of Giving up Landline For Cellphone (Joseph) Re: Airborne Cell-Phone Ban Likely to Remain For Now (Steve Sobol) Re: Airborne Cell-Phone Ban Likely to Remain For Now (Joseph) Re: Is 'Transitional Fair Use' The Wave Of The Future? (Wesrock@aol.com) Re: Cable TV Advertising (was 'Transitional Fair Use') (Barry Margolin) Re: New Treo 650 Is Better Than Ever; Rivals Offer Alternatives (Drew) 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: Cell Phone Company Records the Tower Handling Call From: phoner@company.com Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 22:06:01 GMT Cell phone companies record the tower that handles each call, and then keep that info for at least a short time. That came out in the recent arson case in Maryland. The suspect claimed that he was at home. However, he had a cellphone call during his alibi time. His provider's records showed that the cell tower handling his call wasn't near his house. This had to have been a routine log since the suspect wasn't yet a suspect at the time of the call. (Putting my tinfoil hat on:) I have a theory that the location of every cellphone that is turned on is being routinely recorded, say every minute, and saved for later data mining. I have no direct evidence. However, this is technically feasible, and is a logical (to me) extension of what we know was done decades ago. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 14:27:08 -0500 (EST) From: Telecom dailyLead from USTA Subject: TV Over Phones Attracts Billions in Investment Telecom dailyLead from USTA December 20, 2004 http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=18221&l=2017006 TODAY'S HEADLINES NEWS OF THE DAY * TV over phones attracts billions in investment BUSINESS & INDUSTRY WATCH * Analysis: Wireless consolidation may have its benefits * Analysis: Investors cheer telecom rebound * CNET Special Report: The year in broadband * Comcast upgrade leads to new services in Colorado USTA SPOTLIGHT * Telecom Crash Course -- The must-have book for telecom professionals EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES * Sprint offers streaming music via mobile phones * Yahoo! expands mobile offering REGULATORY & LEGISLATIVE * Opinion: FCC took wrong approach in last week's competition ruling * Iowa ISP wins $1B in spam damages Follow the link below to read quick summaries of these stories and others. http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=18221&l=2017006 ------------------------------ From: googlenospam@netcrafting.com Subject: DIrectv Not Honoring Tivo Lifetime Service Date: 20 Dec 2004 11:58:39 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com I thought Google readers would like to know this. When I bought my Sony Directv w/Tivo satellite receiver three years ago, I also bought the Tivo lifetime subscription for $249.00. It is still in use and is my only Tivo unit. From 11/2001 to 10/2004, my monthly satellite service was provided by Pegasus. This happened because we were in an area that Directv chose to have them service. Directv took over Pegasus this fall. My most recent billing from Directv is showing a new monthly fee of $4.99 for Tivo service. When I called Directv, they said, "Sorry, but we're not honoring the lifetime Tivo subscriptions purchased when the customer was serviced by Pegasus.". This is a really bad deal. I called Tivo and they were of no help. Directv billed me for the lifetime subscription on 12/6/2001 and I paid THEM for it. I'm on hold waiting to talk to a Directv customer service supervisor right now. I'll continue this paragraph after I speak with them ... Just hung up with Kathy at Directv and they said, "Sorry, but that's the way it is." I cannot believe this is happening. I thought a lifetime subscription lasted the lifetime of the Tivo unit? This is not the case for folks who were serviced by Pegasus. Beware if you buy a lifetime Tivo on Ebay that was owned by a customer who got their satellite service from Pegasus. Signed, Angry customer in Northern MN. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Someone committed fraud on you. When you purchase (or otherwise take over) an existing business, then you take over not only the assets of the existing business, but the *liabilities* as well, unless the people going *out* of business specifically publish a notice to the effect otherwise, which is to afford *you* - the holder of that asset (by virtue of your lifetime subscription in this case) -- the opportunity to collect on it from the original owner of the business. Did DirectTV publish a notice saying 'not responsible for debts of Pegasus' or did Peegasus publish a notice saying 'going out of business, etc'. Did Pegasus file a petition in bankruptcy? If so, did they list *all* of their liabilities, including 'lifetime' (prepaid) subscriptions? You definitly were defrauded, but collecting on it may be a challenge and cost more than it is worth. Your legal complaint is with Pegasus, assuming that DirectTV had no knowledge of any such 'lifetime subscritions' outstanding through Pegasus. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Weston Fire 22 Subject: Motorola MD481 Cordless Date: 20 Dec 2004 17:06:42 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com I got a MD481 cordless phone the other day, after charging overnight, yada, yada, I went to use the phone today. Any number I call, local or long distance, I get a message from the telco saying the call couldn't be completed, etc. Just to check things out, I switched to pulse dialing and it works fine. So, tone dialing doesn't work, pulse dialing does. I proceeded to call Motorola support (and waited 30 minutes on hold) and was promptly told,"Sir, this is a digital phone and you need to call your phone comapny and make sure you have a digital phone line and not an analog phone line. If the phone company says you have a digital line, then call us back." Huh?? Never before have I heard such a thing. Sure the phone says digital on it, but so do my other two cordless phones (though not Motorola's). So did the support guy just not know what was wrong and decided to send me on a chase and hope he didn't get me when I called back? Any insight would be appreciated. Bruce ------------------------------ From: Lisa Minter Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 12:15:47 -0500 Subject: PSAPs Sound E911 Call For Help http://www.americasnetwork.com/americasnetwork/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=140090 PSAPs Sound E911 Call For Help Emergency responders in rural areas still are struggling for more money to handle advancing VoIP-based communications as they continue to work through lingering wireless E911 Phase II location-based services issues. For the time being, public safety answering points (PSAPs) will get some relief. After it looked as though PSAPs would get left out in the cold this year, senators stepped up to the plate at the last minute and approved a bill to create a centralized national E911 coordinating office run jointly by the U.S. Commerce Department and the Department of Transportation. It also will authorize $250 million in matching grants for states, local governments and tribal organizations to improve their 911 communications systems, hire and train more personnel, as well as purchase equipment. And for those states that divert E911 surcharge fees, the initiative makes them ineligible for the matching grants; a bi-annual report to Congress on E911 progress will identify those states. Full story at: http://www.americasnetwork.com/americasnetwork/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=140090 ------------------------------ From: Lisa Minter Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 11:55:00 -0500 Subject: Vonage(R) Canada and Galaxy Broadband bring VoIP phone service Jack Decker note: News from our neighbors to the north, east, and (if you are in Downtown Detroit) south. Maybe something like this could be used to provide phone service to the East Lake area, and other parts of northern Michigan that are presently unserved! Of course if Vonage will work over satellite broadband (albeit with noticeable latency - you can't repeal the laws of physics nor exceed the speed of light) then it's probable that other VoIP companys' service would also, and I am hopeful that at least one of the commercial VoIP providers will be able to offer numbers in the Upper Peninsula real soon now (and it's not Vonage). http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/December2004/20/c7153.html Vonage(R) Canada and Galaxy Broadband bring VoIP phone service to isolated Canadians Remote oil drilling rigs, lighthouses, and fishing lodges connect to the outside world with innovative satellite broadband and Internet telephone service MISSISSAUGA, ON, Dec. 20 /CNW/ - Vonage Canada, the country's leading provider of broadband phone service, today announced a partnership with Galaxy Broadband Communications, a leading provider of two-way high-speed Internet access via satellite, to offer Canadians in remote locations a more affordable, reliable and potentially life-saving link to the world. Galaxy Broadband provides broadband Internet access through its network of satellites to remote logging camps, oil drilling rigs, fly-in fishing and hunting lodges and any Canadian who is otherwise disconnected because of location. The agreement with Vonage Canada will allow those isolated work locations or homes to connect Vonage's broadband phone service to the high-speed network, ensuring reliable communications to company headquarters, family and friends. "Our customers are traditionally beyond the reach of land-based, high-speed Internet access," said Rick Hodgkinson, president and CEO of Galaxy Broadband. "Communications is often very spotty with our remote customers, with little or no cellular phone coverage, where people literally have to climb the nearest hilltops to try and get a signal. Reliable connections are critical to many remote operations like drilling rigs in the middle of nowhere, in case of emergency or other safety considerations. Vonage's service piggybacks on Galaxy's high-speed connection so remote workers and homeowners have an instant, reliable link to the outside world, and at a significantly less cost than cellular or satellite telephone service." Galaxy Broadband tested nearly 10 VoIP services in 2004, selecting Vonage because of its reliability and call quality. Galaxy will make the Vonage service available to its 400 certified reseller partners across Canada. Remote Canadian homeowners, branch operations and small business owners can choose an area code from 14 major centres in six provinces, including Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Halifax. Customers can also obtain a secondary "virtual" number from any available area code in Canada and the U.S. served by Vonage. International virtual numbers are also available from Mexico and U.K. Broadband phone service, or VoIP, works by turning voice calls into data packets and sending them over the Internet. When the data packs approach their destination, they are reassembled, and delivered in the form of a traditional call. "Voice over IP brings communications to people who would otherwise be disconnected from the world," said Bill Rainey, president, Vonage Canada. "The simplicity of Vonage's service allows any remote homeowner or business with high-speed access to bridge the distance gap and take advantage of this breakthrough technology that is changing the way Canadians make and receive phone calls." Vonage Canada's partnership with Galaxy is another step in its strategy of widening its distribution channel with Canadian resellers whose customers are looking for an affordable, full-featured phone service that leverages the power and ubiquity of the Internet. About Vonage(R) Canada Vonage Canada is redefining communications by offering consumers and small businesses an affordable alternative to traditional telephone service. The fastest growing telephony company in North America, Vonage's service area encompasses more than 2000 active rate centers in over 125 North American markets, including six Canadian provinces. Vonage is sold directly through http://www.vonage.ca and retail partners such as STAPLES Business Depot and RadioShack Canada. With more than 350,000 lines in service within North America, Vonage continues to add more than 30,000 lines per month to its network. More than 10 million calls per week are made using Vonage, the easy-to-use, feature-rich, flat-rate phone service. Vonage Canada is headquartered in Mississauga, ON. For more information about Vonage's products and services, please visit http://www.vonage.ca or call 1-877-272-0528. Vonage Canada is a trademark of Vonage Holdings Corp. About Galaxy Broadband With more than 25 years experience, Galaxy Broadband Communications Inc. specializes in providing satellite-based Internet solutions for consumers and businesses throughout Canada. For more information about high-speed Internet virtually anywhere in Canada, visit http://www.galaxybroadband.ca or call 1-877-463-9728. For further information: Duane MacDonald for Vonage Canada, (416) 924-5700 x4043; Patti Jordan, Vonage Canada, (416) 907-6157, patti.jordan@vonage.com ------------------------------ From: Lisa Minter Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 12:49:18 -0500 Subject: System Would Allow 911 Checks http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/local_18928007.shtml Verification service not yet available in Wisconsin By Duke Behnke Post-Crescent staff writer A national company with expertise in emergency communications has developed an automated system that would enable telephone customers to verify the accuracy of their 911 information. The system, however, is not available through SBC Wisconsin, the telephone company that manages 911 databases in Outagamie, Waupaca and Winnebago counties. "We have not tested this technology, and it currently is not available in any Wisconsin community," SBC spokesman Howard Riefs said this past week. "Its very much in its infancy." Intrado Inc. of Longmont, Colo., unveiled 911Plus Info Check in November as a means for telephone customers to self-validate their 911 information, which public service agencies use to dispatch emergency personnel. Earlier this year, The Post-Crescent found that telecommunicators in the four counties around Appleton uncover an average of 200 data errors each year, ranging from a wrong digit in a house number to missing information and wrong communities. Some result in emergency crews being dispatched to the wrong address. The newspaper began investigating the issue in January after paramedics mistakenly were sent to a Menasha address while a Neenah man died of a heart attack at his home. With the new system, telephone customers call a special number and follow a few steps for security and privacy protection to hear the 911 address on record for their phone number. If the information is wrong, callers can report the inaccuracy through the system. Full story at: http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/local_18928007.shtml ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 17:18:16 -0600 From: Neal McLain Subject: Re: Giving up Landline For Cellphone Thomas A. Horsley wrote: > Is there any kind of gadget available to interface with a > cellphone (perhaps via the headset connection) that would allow > you to plug your cellphone into it when you are at home, and > have it provide your own little local phone system over your > old phone wires so that you could use any phone in the house to > make a call on the cellphone and have all the phones in the > house ring when the cellphone rings? Try "cellsocket" < http://www.cellsocket.com/ >. For the past few weeks, I've been trying, without much success, to get one of these things to work in rural Brazoria County, Texas. I've encountered two problems: low signal from AT&T Wireless and the cellsocket's inability to complete some calls. In an attempt to overcome the low-signal problem, I installed an outdoor omnidirectional antenna (Mike Sandman's "indoor cellular antenna" < http://www.sandman.com/pouches.html > mounted on the roof of a single-story building surrounded by lots of trees). The antenna is connected to the cellsocket by about 16 feet of cable. According to Sandman, this antenna is supposed to provide 3 dB. gain, but it hasn't helped in my situation. Maybe the cable loss negates the antenna's gain. For test purposes, I connected a standard 2500-type touch-tone desk phone to the cellsocket's RJ-11 jack. When I make a call from this phone, I'm supposed to be able to dial 1-NXX-NXX-XXXX-#, where the "#" serves as "SEND." Most of the time, this seems to work, but sometimes the call doesn't go through: immediately after I press "#", it dumps the call I get dialtone again. I haven't been able to figure out why this happens. Perhaps the low-signal problem is causing (or contributing to) it, so I don't blame the cellsocket. I discussed this problem with cellsocket's technician (a marginally-helpful guy named Roosevelt), who suggested that I contact the cellsocket manufacturer, WHP Wireless, Inc. At that point, I gave up on the whole idea, and signed up with Vonage. The antenna is still on the roof, but I'll haul it down one of these days. Further lessons I learned from all this effort: - Tellular makes a "cellular fixed wireless" device < http://www.telular.com/products/index.asp >. But apparently, it doesn't just interface with a cellphone; it *replaces* the cellphone. Which, I assume, means you'd need a separate cell access line just for it. - Mike Sandman's website describes a "Cellular POTS adapter" < http://www.sandman.com/pouches.html >. It doesn't exist: Sandman's website is WAY out of date. I originally planned to use one of these adapters in conjunction with the rooftop antenna; unfortunately, I had already installed the antenna on the roof when I found out that the adapter isn't available. Which is why I ended up using a cellsocket instead. (And yes, I did grump at Mike Sandman about his obsolete website, but he still hasn't fixed it.) - Sandman's antenna doesn't mate directly with the cellsocket's input connector (of course), so I had to buy an adapter cable (SMA-male-to-FME-male). Fortunately, HamStop.com < http://www.hamstop.com/ > had one for 5.95, including shipping. - The cellsocket only fits certain kinds of cellphones, so I had to buy a new one. I bought a used Motorola 120T on eBay, only to discover that AT&T wouldn't authorize it because it was on their "lost or stolen" list. So then I managed to return that phone to the seller, and bought another one. Then I spent a half-hour on the phone with AT&T getting my cellphone number moved from my old old phone to my new old phone. AT&T's CSR was a bit perplexed that anybody would actually buy an old 120T, but she proceeded cheerfully anyway. As things stand now, I have a Motorola 120T cellphone, Sandman's antenna, a cellsocket, an SMA-FME adapter, a big hole in the hall wall, two holes in the roof, and a pending order with Vonage. And nothing to show for it. Maybe the cellsocket would work if AT&T's signal were stronger ... Neal McLain [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: AT&T's signal strength is a serious problem in many rural areas. They seem to have a bad habit of *not* releasing your phone from one of their towers until the signal strength gets to be so awful they have no choice but to let you go, then they have cut some deal with (some one or another) of the Cell One carriers to take you. I originally got an AT&T Wireless phone (the old Nokia 5165, still my phone of choice) when I was staying in the Chicago area, on the '630' area code. I brought that phone all the way to Kansas with me, and only rarely did it ever switch to 'roam' as the bus I was riding on came down I-55 and then US Highway 54 through Missouri. But the screen display would often times change from 'AT&T' to 'AT&T Extended Area'. Once the bus got into Tulsa the signal perked up again; then coming north out of Tulsa on the Jefferson Lines bus it gradually pooped out again, and eventually the screen display changed to 'extended area'. Here in Independence, the phone always says 'extended area', and I am told it gets its signal through Dobson's operation, an antenna farm over in Liberty, Kansas, which is west and south of town a little. Dobson has the Cellular One franchise here, but his 'antenna farm' in Liberty, KS has not only Cell One, but also Cingular and other tenants renting space through him. AT&T closed their dealership here in Independence and sold their local customer base to Cingular a few years ago. I still have a Nokia 5165 but on Cingular now. (I rarely bother to use the AT&T Wireless phone, which I have on prepaid service. I take the two phones, hold them side by side, the Cingular phone **always** gets better reception; I think because AT&T insists on 'serving me' from Dobson's place in Liberty; while Cingular *used to* use Dobson as well, but now have their own towers around town. PAT] ------------------------------ From: LB@notmine.com Subject: Re: Speaking of Giving up Landline For Cellphone Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 18:00:22 -0500 Organization: Optimum Online John Levine wrote: > In article you write: >> Is there any kind of gadget available to interface with a cellphone >> (perhaps via the headset connection) that would allow you to plug your >> cellphone into it when you are at home, and have it provide your own >> little local phone system over your old phone wires so that you could >> use any phone in the house to make a call on the cellphone and have >> all the phones in the house ring when the cellphone rings? > Mike Sandman sells devices that do just that, at > http://www.sandman.com/pouches.html (It's on the same page as cell > phone belt pouches.) > Regards, > John R. Levine, IECC, POB 727, Trumansburg NY 14886 +1 607 330 5711 > johnl@iecc.com, Mayor, http://johnlevine.com, > Member, Provisional board, Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial E-mail > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I have one of those devices from Mike. > Mine is called 'cell socket' and my cellular phone sits right inside > the device. It charges the phone battery, and allows the phone to be > used from any regular phone which plugs in with a modular connector. > I can use it with a 'total com' PBXtra box by plugging the Cell Socket > into one of the 'dial 9' level ports on the PBXtra (which Mike also > offers in his catalog). From any phone, dial 9 and get dialtone from > the cell phone (via cell socket). Or when cell phone (via cell socket) > rings, the phone attached to PBXtra as the default for incoming calls > will ring as well, or a common audible will ring and dialing *7 from > any phone allows it to be answered. I put my Vonage phone in another > port on the PBXtra as well to do the same thing with it, then the > remaining five ports (of the eight ports on PBXtra) allow me to answer > any phone (landline, Vonage or cell phone) from any phone in my > house, or transfer any call to any other extension. > These devices (PBXtra units) are great for people who have a large > house (but a small amount of phone traffic) but want the flexibilty > of all phones at all locations, and they are fully programmable by > the user. For example, I have my one landline phone as dial 9 for > outgoing calls, my Vonage line as dial 8 for outgoing calls, and > my cell phone on the cell socket as dial 7 for outgoing calls. The > common audible tells me when any of them have an incoming call, and > *7 allows me to answer whatever line is ringing. You definitly need > to check Mike Sandman's catalog if you have not recently. Look at > http://www.sandman.com . One disadvantage is no caller ID available > on it. PAT] Very Interesting. Does it matter where one places the adapter? My cell phone only get decent reception while at one end of the house. LB [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I have one of Mike's external 3-db gain antennas also, and it sits by a window in my bedroom, feeding the cell socket device. The PBXtra unit on the other hand is in my computer area at the other end of my house. What I would suggest you do is put the cellsocket adapter at whatever place in your house you get the best cellular reception, then run a pair to wherever the PBXtra is located. In other words, cell socket output *not* to a phone, but to the *input* of the PBXtra, then run the pairs used by the PBXtra to wherever. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 18:56:04 -0500 From: John Stahl Subject: Re.: Speaking of Giving up Landline For Cell phone Try this location (URL) for a review of several cell-phone-to-landline-phone-adapters: http://www.phonelabs.com/news_08.asp The author indicates that there are several manufacturers of these gadgets which you can connect through a non-active landline installation (i.e., a home or business line telephone system which you have disconnected from the incoming line at the NID but is still wired to RJ-11 type outlets to which you can attach standard landline type phones) and drop your cell phone into (these gadgets vary by the make of cell phone) when you come home. These gadgets then allow you to receive/make telephone calls by using your attached landline phones all through the (inserted) cell phone. Most I've heard not only allow make/receive calls but charge the cell phone battery. These type of gadgets would seem to be most popular with senior citizens as they are more used to using "standard" type phone sets rather than the smaller cell phones (obviously only usable when the cell is dropped into them when you are home.) Hope this info helps you. John Stahl Aljon Enterprises Telecom/Data Consultant [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Oh yeah ... keep the cell socket (or other cell phone adapter) just like the Vonage (or other VOIP adapter) **away** -- totally separate -- from the landline phone central office incoming pairs. Just like VOIP adapters, cell phone adapters get easily offended and tend to fry when telco voltage gets on the line. PAT] ------------------------------ From: Joseph Subject: Re: Speaking of Giving up Landline For Cellphone Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 10:15:02 -0800 Reply-To: JoeOfSeattle@yahoo.com On Sun, 19 Dec 2004 13:41:50 GMT, tom.horsley@att.net (Thomas A. Horsley) wrote: > Is there any kind of gadget available to interface with a cellphone > (perhaps via the headset connection) that would allow you to plug your > cellphone into it when you are at home, and have it provide your own > little local phone system over your old phone wires so that you could > use any phone in the house to make a call on the cellphone and have > all the phones in the house ring when the cellphone rings? I don't know if this is what you're talking about but there are at least two "docking" solutions. CellSocket has a unit where you put your phone into a docking station and you can then use regular wireline phones in your house to make and receive calls. There's also another called "Dock-N-Talk" which works similarly and also has Bluetooth connectivity so more phones are compatible. ------------------------------ From: Steve Sobol Subject: Re: USATODAY.com - Airborne Cell-Phone Ban Likely to Remain For Now Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 13:16:09 -0800 Organization: Glorb Internet Services, http://www.glorb.com Mark Crispin wrote: >> You're really lucky that someone hasn't slugged you yet for your >> obnoxious behavior. > In case you weren't aware, assault is a felony, punishable with fines > and jail time. I am also quite capable of self-defense from criminal > attack. > You need to learn to restrain your violent impulses. When you grow > up, you will learn that you can not solve your problems with violence. Wow. I'm impressed. I've never seen someone take a post as far out of context as you somehow managed to. I guess the second paragraph of your response would have been appropriate if Joseph was actually threatening to hurt you. Of course, he wasn't. He was just commenting that you're lucky that your obnoxious behavior hasn't caused a fight yet, and I agree. (Yes, abusive cell users are also obnoxious.) JustThe.net Internet & New Media Services, http://JustThe.net/ Steven J. Sobol, Geek In Charge / 888.480.4NET (4638) / sjsobol@JustThe.net PGP Key available from your friendly local key server (0xE3AE35ED) Apple Valley, California Nothing scares me anymore. I have three kids. ------------------------------ From: Joseph Subject: Re: USATODAY.com - Airborne Cell-Phone Ban Likely to Remain For Now Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 19:32:01 -0800 Reply-To: JoeOfSeattle@yahoo.com On Sun, 19 Dec 2004 22:03:54 -0800, Mark Crispin wrote: > In case you weren't aware, assault is a felony, punishable with fines > and jail time. I am also quite capable of self-defense from criminal > attack. Well, if you are obnoxious enough they may not care and decide they don't want you messing with their personal conversations. ------------------------------ From: Wesrock@aol.com Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 20:04:20 EST Subject: Re: Is 'Transitional Fair Use' The Wave Of The Future? In a message dated Mon, 20 Dec 2004 11:58:26 -0500, BobGoudreau@withheld on request writes: > When my family first got cable TV in the summer of 1982 (almost 9 > years before the Kuwait war), I remember that it included two separate > 24-hour news stations. One was CNN, which was already starting to make > its mark, though not yet as famous as the aforementioned war would > eventually make it. The other was its new sister station called > "CNN2", which had been launched at the beginning of that same year, > and wouldn't be renamed to "CNN Headline News" until the following > year. It was clear from the start that CNN2's role in life was to be a > summary-serving companion for its big brother. It's true that there > was a single anchor at a time, but its content came (as it still does) > from CNN. Of course, some of that content was (and is) purchased from > other news sources, including local news teams, but even back then, > CNN did have correspondents of its own. Two personal experiences come to mind: A Continental Airlines flight skidded off the runway leaving the airport in Denver. My sister had been on the flight of that number on her way back from Oklahoma City to Denver. She called me to tell me (a) it skidded off on departure (for Billings, I believe), and not on arrival, and so she was safe (b) the actual aircraft had been changed in Denver so even though it was the same flight number it was not the aircraft she was on. As soon as she told me about the crash, I reached over to the TV and turned it on CNN. It had a live feed of the crash scene from some local station in Denver, just as I expected it would (news events of that sort are where CNN shines; CNN Headline News rarely runs such live feeds but included the story in its regular report). At the time of the Oklahoma City bombing (when I was sitting at the same computer in the same place as I am writing this) there was confusion for some time as to what had happened. Within a few minutes CNN was picking up from all three network affiliates in Oklahoma City and were switching among them to present as coherent report as could be provided at those earlier minutes as hours. I finally just watched CNN where I could see all the local reports with some continuity rather than trying to switch between local stations. Wes Leatherock wesrock@aol.com wleathus@yahoo.com ------------------------------ From: Barry Margolin Subject: Re: Cable TV Advertising (was 'Transitional Fair Use'...) Organization: Symantec Date: Mon, 20 Dec 2004 21:40:48 -0500 In article , Neal McLain wrote: > So you're telling me that back in the late 40s and early 50s > ("... when cable television was first getting underway"), "they" > expected that the cable industry would create commercial-free "premium > channels ... just for pay cable distribution"? And, by implication, > that a technology would exist for distributing these channels > nationwide at reasonable cost? I don't know what people were saying about cable TV in the 40's and 50's. I'm talking about what happened in the 70's when cable-only channels like HBO first started to appear. I believe that prior to that, cable TV was just a way of providing TV service to communities that had environmental difficulties receiving broadcast TV (e.g. mountainous terrain blocking the signals). Since you had to pay extra for these "premium" channels, there was an expectation that this would obviate the need for commercials. Barry Margolin, barmar@alum.mit.edu Arlington, MA *** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me *** ------------------------------ From: dixie_drew@yahoo.com Subject: Re: New Treo 650 Is Better Than Ever, But Rivals Offer Alternatives Date: 20 Dec 2004 14:32:08 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com I just got a Treo 650 for $40! I'm so excited that I signed up for two more. Check it out: http://www.power2source.com/index.php?ref_id=642 Owen P. Epstein wrote: > Monty Solomon wrote in message > news:: >> New Treo 650 Is Better Than Ever, But Rivals Offer Some Alternatives >> By WALTER S. MOSSBERG >> PalmOne's Treo smart phone has been the best combination of phone, PDA >> and e-mail device on the market. It had a few key flaws, though, so >> the company has now released a new, improved model, the Treo 650, to >> be sold by Sprint starting next month. >> But the rest of the industry is catching on to the idea of making a >> phone that, like the Treo, actually has a full keyboard for banging >> out e-mails. So the competition will be tougher for the new Treo than >> it was for its predecessor. >> Over the last week, I've been testing the new Treo 650, and comparing >> it with two other PDA phones that have now morphed into models with >> keyboards. One is the Microsoft-based Pocket PC phone. The other is >> the Sony Ericsson P910 smart phone, based on the Symbian operating >> system. I concentrated on the new keyboards in these two competitors >> because that's their main new feature. I have already reviewed another >> major Treo competitor, the new BlackBerry 7100t, sold by T-Mobile. >> My verdict: The Treo is better than ever, but the two newest keyboard >> phones, like the new BlackBerry, will give some new options to mobile >> e-mail users who prefer different designs and different software. >> http://ptech.wsj.com/archive/ptech-20041028.html > Well you just may be on to something but the market for Palm Treo is > really hopping. What other PDA gives the same brilliance as the Treo? > Thx, > Owen Epstein ------------------------------ 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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