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The Telecom Digest for November 5, 2012
Volume 31 : Issue 258 : "text" Format
====== 31 years of TELECOM Digest -- Founded August 21, 1981 ======
|
Telecom and VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Digest for the
Internet. All contents here are copyrighted by Bill Horne 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 that person, or email address
owner.
Addresses herein are not to be added to any mailing list, nor to be
sold or given away without the explicit written consent of the owner of
that address. 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, and other stuff of interest.
|
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 07:29:33 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: APPLE-SA-2012-11-01-1 iOS 6.0.1
Message-ID: <p06240828ccb95e9af5b9@[10.0.1.11]>
APPLE-SA-2012-11-01-1 iOS 6.0.1
iOS 6.0.1 is now available and addresses the following:
- - -
Kernel
Available for: iPhone 3GS and later,
iPod touch (4th generation) and later, iPad 2 and later
Impact: Maliciously crafted or compromised iOS applications may be
able to determine addresses in the kernel
Description: An information disclosure issue existed in the handling
of APIs related to kernel extensions. Responses containing an
OSBundleMachOHeaders key may have included kernel addresses, which
may aid in bypassing address space layout randomization protection.
This issue was addressed by unsliding the addresses before returning
them.
CVE-ID
CVE-2012-3749 : Mark Dowd of Azimuth Security, Eric Monti of Square,
and additional anonymous researchers
- - -
Passcode Lock
Available for: iPhone 3GS and later,
iPod touch (4th generation) and later, iPad 2 and later
Impact: A person with physical access to the device may be able to
access Passbook passes without entering a passcode
Description: A state management issue existed in the handling of
Passbook passes at the lock screen. This issue was addressed through
improved handling of Passbook passes.
CVE-ID
CVE-2012-3750 : Anton Tsviatkou
- - -
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 3GS and later,
iPod touch (4th generation) and later, iPad 2 and later
Impact: Visiting a maliciously crafted website may lead to an
unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution
Description: A time of check to time of use issue existed in the
handling of JavaScript arrays. This issue was addressed through
additional validation of JavaScript arrays.
CVE-ID
CVE-2012-3748 : Joost Pol and Daan Keuper of Certified Secure working
with HP TippingPoint's Zero Day Initiative
- - -
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 3GS and later,
iPod touch (4th generation) and later, iPad 2 and later
Impact: Visiting a maliciously crafted website may lead to an
unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution
Description: A use after free issue existed in the handling of SVG
images. This issue was addressed through improved memory handling.
CVE-ID
CVE-2012-5112 : Pinkie Pie working with Google's Pwnium 2 contest
Installation note:
This update is available through iTunes and Software Update on your
iOS device, and will not appear in your computer's Software Update
application, or in the Apple Downloads site. Make sure you have an
Internet connection and have installed the latest version of iTunes
from www.apple.com/itunes/
iTunes and Software Update on the device will automatically check
Apple's update server on its weekly schedule. When an update is
detected, it is downloaded and the option to be installed is presented
to the user when the iOS device is docked. We recommend applying the
update immediately if possible. Selecting Don't Install will present
the option the next time you connect your iOS device.
The automatic update process may take up to a week depending on the
day that iTunes or the device checks for updates. You may manually
obtain the update via the Check for Updates button within iTunes, or
the Software Update on your device.
To check that the iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad has been updated:
* Navigate to Settings
* Select General
* Select About. The version after applying this update
will be "6.0.1".
Information will also be posted to the Apple Security Updates
web site:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2012 11:40:22 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: A Look inside Verizon's Flooded Communications Hub
Message-ID: <p06240829ccbae5d409f6@[10.0.1.11]>
A Look inside Verizon's Flooded Communications Hub
By ANTON TROIANOVSKI
November 1, 2012
Eleven years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Verizon Communications
Inc. is once again scrambling to repair severe damage to a key
switching facility inside its historic headquarters building in lower
Manhattan.
The massive facility for interconnecting key communications lines
sustained heavy damage after planes struck the Twin Towers more than
a decade ago. This time the enemy was water shoved ashore by
Hurricane Sandy.
The building is one of the worst hit of a number of facilities that
carriers were rushing to fix Wednesday. The Federal Communications
Commission said the number of cellphone tower outages dropped on the
second day after the storm made landfall, with just over a fifth of
the sites in storm-affected areas in the Northeast offline, down from
about a quarter on Tuesday.
Phone companies supplemented those efforts with extraordinary
measures to bolster service. Wireless carriers AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile
USA, for example, said they would switch each others' customers
between their networks depending on which was in better shape in a
particular area.
The steps came as cellphone users around the New York City area
reported more trouble keeping and completing calls as businesses
started to open back up and people tried to go about their workdays.
The FCC said pockets of serious damage remain that will take a long
time to repair.
The depth of the challenges facing telecom providers was on display
inside Verizon's facilities in lower Manhattan.
...
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204707104578091171538491386.html
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2012 22:11:00 -0700 (PDT)
From: HAncock4 <withheld@invalid.telecom-digest.org>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: 60 hz as a time standard
Message-ID: <e4865dd3-22a3-46d6-a94b-da5523d3f51c@b12g2000vbg.googlegroups.com>
On Nov 3, 2:44 pm, Bill Horne <b...@horneQRM.net> wrote:
> What annoys me is how the "alerts" are for things that don't matter,
> such as a "High wind advisory" in the middle of hurricane Sandy, or
> for floodwatches in areas forty miles away. You'd think they could get
> better control over which localities see which warnings.
In the recent storm we've been getting many robot calls from local
municipalities. However, municipal boundaries have no correlation to
telephone exchange boundaries. so a municipality sends calls out to
all landline phones which might be within their town. Some of the
alerts are rather cryptic; there is room for improvement.
I don't know how people who only have a cell phone get those
messages. We've never signed up for the municipal messages, and it
appears they simply dial all lines in sequence.
Our condo has made good use of the robo caller* in this recent storm,
including updates on when power would be restored** and other critical
utility issues (such as a sewage problem). The condo calls whatever
number(s) residents provide them. I get the calls at both home and
work which is helpful.
* Initially they used the robo caller to announce social events, but
many found that annoying, and it was also found to be more expensive
than distributing a notice the old fashioned way.
** A great many remain without power.
Date: Sat, 03 Nov 2012 18:29:02 -0700
From: Thad Floryan <thad@thadlabs.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Please comment on my new blog
Message-ID: <5095C4DE.6000103@thadlabs.com>
On 11/3/2012 11:33 AM, Bill Horne wrote
> [...]
> I guess I'm looking for the key to the "server room". I want to do
> something more than just-another-vaguely-familiar website, and I need
> to know if WordPress or Drupal can serve as a new kind of Java for web
> development, i.e., if I can use them to build commercial or other
> sites that aren't like the usual cookie-cutter affairs.
>
> I hope I'm writing clearly. Let me put this another way: is
> TOC-in-vertical-column-on-left|Content-middle|Breadcrumbs-at-top so
> ingrained in the typical user's mind that no further work needs to be
> done? If so, then I will accept that my question is moot. If not, then
> I need to know if Drupal or WordPress can take me beyond the usual
> layouts.
Two free (and different) eBooks about WordPress:
http://manuals.makeuseof.com.s3.amazonaws.com/for-mobile/WordPress_Guide_-_MakeUseOf.com.pdf
and
http://manuals.makeuseof.com.s3.amazonaws.com/for-mobile/MakeUseOf.com_-_WordPress.pdf
should get you started. :-)
Thad
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2012 11:40:22 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Minneapolis police pushing for more license plate data privacy
Message-ID: <p0624082accbae81a9293@[10.0.1.11]>
Minneapolis police pushing for more license plate data privacy
Under Minnesota state law, all license plate reader data is public by default.
by Cyrus Farivar
Nov 1 2012
Ars Technica
A Minneapolis municipal committee is now advocating on behalf of
local police for a change in Minnesota's state law concerning the
right to access data collected from license plate readers (LPRs). For
now, the city maintains a massive database collected from its 11 LPR
readers that hold each license plate number seen, along with the
corresponding GPS location data, date, and time for the previous 90
days.
...
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2012/11/minneapolis-police-pushing-for-more-license-plate-data-privacy/
***** Moderator's Note *****
Information about which license plate was seen where should be
public: it shows where the police were at that time, and thus gives
citizens information about which areas the police are patrolling.
Bill Horne
Moderator
Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2012 17:42:23 +0000 (UTC)
From: David Scheidt <dscheidt@panix.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Minneapolis police pushing for more license plate data privacy
Message-ID: <k769dv$qvj$2@reader1.panix.com>
Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> wrote:
:Minneapolis police pushing for more license plate data privacy
:Under Minnesota state law, all license plate reader data is public by default.
<snip>
:
:http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2012/11/minneapolis-police-pushing-for-more-license-plate-data-privacy/
:
:***** Moderator's Note *****
:Information about which license plate was seen where should be
:public: it shows where the police were at that time, and thus gives
:citizens information about which areas the police are patrolling.
Are the license plate readers mobile or fixed? If they're fixed, they
don't tell you anything about where the police are. Even if they're
mobile, they ony have 11 of them, and I'd bet they're in cars used for
traffic and parking enforcement, and not beat cars.
- -
sig 34
***** Moderator's Note *****
The article said that each picture includes latitude and longitude.
Bill Horne
Moderator
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 02:10:34 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: What Cellphone Carriers Say About Hurricane Recovery
Message-ID: <p06240822ccb9142c83a6@[10.0.1.11]>
What Cellphone Carriers Say About Hurricane Recovery
By BRIAN X. CHEN
NOVEMBER 1, 2012
6:12 p.m. | Updated Adding the latest statement from Sprint.
Three days into the aftermath of Sandy, wireless service is still
lacking in parts of New York City and other hard-hit areas, according
to people living in those areas. The carriers have been struggling to
keep their services running, mostly because of the loss of power. But
they say they have been making progress. Here's what they have to
report.
...
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/01/carriers-hurricane-sandy/
Date: Sat, 03 Nov 2012 21:04:22 -0400
From: Pete Cresswell <PeteCress@invalid.telecom-digest.org>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: DEAR APPLE: I'm Leaving You
Message-ID: <8afb9854o4h3chu3b194s0ui9qakm4b7r9@4ax.com>
Per Monty Solomon:
>Now, this is the point where I know I'm expected to say: "it's not
>you, it's me," but I can't, because the truth is: "it's not me, it's
>you". Now...
>
>
>http://www.businessinsider.com/dear-apple-im-leaving-you-2012-11
>
With me it was IOS6 and the changeover to digital dock.
Call me paranoid, but I perceived IOS6 and the digital dock as
indicative of a fundamental change in Apple thinking: foisting stuff
on the user to satisfy marketing without justifying it as an
improvement to (or even just maintenance of...) the quality of the
user experience.
Samsung Galaxy Note, Android 4. It's a technweenie's wet dream. Want
to get a file from my local network? Just browse the NAS box, copy,
and paste... or even read it directly like I would expect in the first
place...
Looking for freebie WiFi? Install any one of a half-dozen or more
apps that automagically scan for freebie WiFi spots and drop pins in a
map.
I can go on and on....
Having said that, IOS/Android still seems to be a classic case of two
very different approaches - each of which is suitable for a certain
kind of user.... But I'd opine that, right now, IOS is on the long
slide down...
--
Pete Cresswell
Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2012 07:28:23 -0800 (PST)
From: Wes Leatherock <wleathus@yahoo.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: 60 hz as a time standard
Message-ID: <1352042903.37620.YahooMailClassic@web111716.mail.gq1.yahoo.com>
--- On Sat, 11/3/12, Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net> wrote:
> What annoys me is how the "alerts" are for things that don't matter,
> such as a "High wind advisory" in the middle of hurricane Sandy, or
> for floodwatches in areas forty miles away. You'd think they could
> get better control over which localities see which warnings.
The ones in Oklahoma are usually identified by what counties are
affected. County lines, of course, are often pretty aribrary,
although perhaps not at the time the counties were created.
Wes Leatherock
wleathus@yahoo.com
wesrock@aol.com
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 01:49:27 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Apple Shake-Up Could Lead to Design Shift
Message-ID: <p0624081dccb90f455dad@[10.0.1.11]>
Apple Shake-Up Could Lead to Design Shift
By NICK WINGFIELD and NICK BILTON
October 31, 2012
Whether they realize it or not, all of those who swipe a finger down
from the top of the iPhone's screen to check for notifications are
bearing witness to a big sore point within Apple.
There, behind a list of text messages, missed phone calls and other
updates, is a gray background with the unmistakable texture of fine
linen.
Steven P. Jobs, the Apple chief executive who died a year ago, pushed
the company's software designers to use the linen texture liberally
in the software for the company's mobile devices. He did the same
with many other virtual doodads that mimic the appearance and
behavior of real-world things, like wooden shelves for organizing
newspapers and the page-flipping motion of a book, according to
people who worked with him but declined to be named to avoid Apple's
ire.
The management shake-up that Apple announced on Monday is likely to
mean that Apple will shift away from such visual tricks, which many
people within the company look down upon. As part of the changes, the
company fired Scott Forstall, the leader of Apple's mobile software
development and a disciple of Mr. Jobs. While Mr. Forstall's abrasive
style and resistance to collaboration with other parts of the company
were the main factors in his undoing, the change also represents the
departure of the most vocal and high-ranking proponent of the visual
design style favored by Mr. Jobs.
The executive who will now set the direction for the look of Apple's
software is Jonathan Ive, who has long been responsible for Apple's
minimalist hardware designs. Mr. Ive, despite his close relationship
with Mr. Jobs, has made his distaste for the visual ornamentation in
Apple's mobile software known within the company, according to
current and former Apple employees who asked not to be named
discussing internal matters.
This may seem like little more than an internal disagreement over
taste. But Apple venerates design like few other companies of its
size, and its customers have rewarded it handsomely as a result.
Apple's decisions can influence how millions of people use and think
about digital devices - not only its own but those made by other
companies that look to Apple as a standard-setter in design.
...
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/01/technology/apple-shake-up-could-mean-end-to-real-world-images-in-software.html
***** Moderator's Note *****
I hope, fervently, that other web and interface designers will abandon
"Paperwhite" or other "textured" effects: they are *VERY* hard to
read, especially for those of us whom are old enough to remember when
computer interface designers where proud of their jobs and worked hard
to make displays easier to understand.
The late Mr. Jobs was a marketer first and foremost, and he insisted
on novelty at the expense of usability. That's why I never favored
devices made by Apple: too much form and not enough function.
Bill Horne
Moderator
Date: Sat, 03 Nov 2012 18:44:52 -0700
From: Thad Floryan <thad@thadlabs.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: 60 hz as a time standard
Message-ID: <5095C894.5080904@thadlabs.com>
On 11/3/2012 11:44 AM, Bill Horne wrote:
> On Sat, Nov 03, 2012 at 01:07:42PM -0400, T wrote:
>
>> But the other thing that is rather annoying is the EBS tests. Now not
>> only the broadcast stations conduct EBS drills, but the cable providers
>> do it too.
>>
>> I've seen a number of times where EAS flashed across the display on the
>> front of my cable box while they were testing.
>
> What annoys me is how the "alerts" are for things that don't matter,
> such as a "High wind advisory" in the middle of hurricane Sandy, or
> for floodwatches in areas forty miles away. You'd think they could get
> better control over which localities see which warnings.
The system used by Silicon Valley [Santa Clara County [SCC]] "should"
work but I've never received any alerts even when a mass-murderer/
shooter was doing his thing 1/2 mile from my home. The system also
doesn't have any "test" mode so one can verify the information that
was entered will be used correctly for an alert. Here's the system
as implemented in Silicon Valley:
http://www.sccgov.org/sites/alertscc/Pages/home.aspx
I asked about the system previously in comp.dcom.telecom but my posting
never appeared. My original question was "How can they contact 100,000s
of people by landline and cellphone in 'just seconds'?".
Here's the system Silicon Valley has more-or-less implemented:
http://www.blackboard.com/Alert-Notification/Connect-Platform.aspx
and as far as I can tell it's totally dysfunctional -- a common problem
here in California nowadays.
Palo Alto was the last city in Silicon Valley to join the program after
abandoning their proprietary Community Alerting and Notification System
(CANS) -- that may have been a big misteak (sic) on Palo Alto's part.
Thad
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 01:51:54 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: How Hurricane Sandy Slapped the Sarcasm Out of Twitter
Message-ID: <p0624081eccb90fd67f95@[10.0.1.11]>
How Hurricane Sandy Slapped the Sarcasm Out of Twitter
By DAVID CARR
OCTOBER 31, 2012
Twitter is often a caldron of sarcasm, much of it funny, little of it
useful. But as a social medium based on short-burst communication,
Twitter can change during large events - users talk about "watching"
the spectacle unfold across their screens. It is, after all, a
real-time service, which means that you can "see" what is happening
as it happens.
As a media reporter, my Twitter feed has a strong Manhattan bias,
serving as a sandbox for media and technology types that I follow.
Under normal circumstances, we show up on Twitter to preen,
self-promote and crack wise about the latest celebrity scene. If that
New York cohort has a soul - insert your own joke here - you could
see into it on Twitter.
And then along came Hurricane Sandy. For most of Monday, people on
Twitter were watching an endless loop of hurricane coverage on
television and having some fun with it, which is the same thing that
happens when the Grammys or the Super Bowl is on. But as the storm
bore down, Twitter got busy and very, very serious.
It is hard to data-mine the torrent - some estimates suggested there
were three and a half million tweets with the hashtag #Sandy - but my
feed quickly moved from the prankish to the practical in a matter of
hours as landfall approached. I asked Simon Dumenco, who writes the
Media Guy column for Advertising Age and is well versed in the dark
arts of Twitter analytics, about the tonal shift via e-mail.
...
http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/31/how-sandy-slapped-the-snark-out-of-twitter/
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 01:39:04 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: When Hacking Was in Its Infancy
Message-ID: <p0624081accb90c99bd40@[10.0.1.11]>
When Hacking Was in Its Infancy
By JOHN MARKOFF
Published: October 29, 2012
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/30/science/peter-g-neumann-and-the-hacking-culture-of-the-50s.html
-or-
http://goo.gl/OsSAA
Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2012 07:23:16 -0800 (PST)
From: Wes Leatherock <wleathus@yahoo.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Did anyone else get a call from the Mitt Romney campaign?
Message-ID: <1352042596.10287.YahooMailClassic@web111705.mail.gq1.yahoo.com>
--- On Fri, 11/2/12, Michael <michael.muderick@gmail.com> wrote:
> I received a robocall from [the] Mitt [Romney presidential
> campaign]. What was different was that it started out "Hello
> Michael." It wasn't a synthesized voice....at least I don't think
> so. Did Mitt record whole bunches of names? Was it synthesized?
> Did the software detect whether a man or woman answered the phone?
> Just curious. Michael
I have received two or three calls which appear to be of Romney's
voice, each one preceded by a garbled introduction that I have not
been able to understand. Perhaps it's supposed to say "Hello, Wes."
Wes Leatherock
wleathus@yahoo.com
wesrock@aol.com
Date: Sun, 04 Nov 2012 10:38:49 -0500
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Fwd: An update to Verizon customers potentially affected by Hurricane Sandy
Message-ID: <50968C09.1080207@horne.net>
I'm passing along an email that I received from Verizon. It was sent
to the email address associated with my DSL line. I'm curious what
other readers think about the email, and I have these questions:
1. Why would Verizon send this? If I can read it, the odds are I have
service: if not, then it's useless.
2. Is this a PR effort? Is it really intended for the media?
3. Why does it annoy me so much? (Qualified psychiatrists only, please) ;-)
Bill
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Dear Valued Verizon Customer:
Our thoughts are with you as recovery efforts are underway for Hurricane
Sandy. We hope that you and your family are in a safe and secure
location. We want you to know that we are here to help you during this
very stressful time.
Due to some power outages that remain, we know a number of you are still
unable to use Verizon services in your home. If your power has been
restored, but you are still experiencing service issues, we are here for
you.
Please visit our storm support website at [URL removed] using your
smartphone, tablet, or PC.The site has tips for restoring your
service, directions on how to replace damaged equipment at no cost to
you, and other helpful information.
If you require further assistance, please visit us at [URL Removed] or
call [800 number removed] and select "Technical Assistance" option.
Our employees are working around the clock to help restore service. We
are in close touch with power companies, other service providers, and
local government officials to ensure proper coordination of restoral
efforts. The company is also working closely with public safety
officials to ensure emergency communications remain operational.
Please stay safe and thank you for being a Verizon customer.
Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2012 17:39:33 +0000 (UTC)
From: David Scheidt <dscheidt@panix.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Fwd: An update to Verizon customers potentially affected by Hurricane Sandy
Message-ID: <k7698l$qvj$1@reader1.panix.com>
Bill Horne <bill@horneqrm.net> wrote:
:I'm passing along an email that I received from Verizon. It was sent
:to the email address associated with my DSL line. I'm curious what
:other readers think about the email, and I have these questions:
:1. Why would Verizon send this? If I can read it, the odds are I have
: service: if not, then it's useless.
Not at all. I recently saw a statistic that just over half of americans
have some sort of smartphone, and you can find lots of places where
wireline service is out, but cellular is not. I suspect, but haven't
seen the data, that there's a correlation with having broadband service
and a smart phone, so even more than that will be able to see it. Even
someone vehmentlly opposed to smartphones can take their laptop somewhere
there's working wifi, or go to a library, or read it from their office,
or their mother-in-law's house.
:2. Is this a PR effort? Is it really intended for the media?
No doubt that part of their message is PR, even if it's not targeted
at the media. That's one of the reasons they sent it to everyone, and
not just those with outages.
--
sig 35
Date: Sun, 04 Nov 2012 14:04:06 -0600
From: Dave Garland <dave.garland@wizinfo.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Fwd: An update to Verizon customers potentially affected by Hurricane Sandy
Message-ID: <k76hnv$o9n$1@dont-email.me>
On 11/4/2012 9:38 AM, Bill Horne wrote:
> I'm passing along an email that I received from Verizon. It was sent
> to the email address associated with my DSL line. I'm curious what
> other readers think about the email, and I have these questions:
>
> 1. Why would Verizon send this? If I can read it, the odds are I have
> service: if not, then it's useless.
Your DSL is almost certainly not the only way to access your email.
You could be accessing your mail from another location (a public
library, or other wifi hotspot), or with a smartphone. I'm sure that
if my DSL (and consequently, VoIP) was out, I'd be reading my mail via
some other access point.
It's probably mostly a PR piece, and to say "stop bugging us, we're
working on it".
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2012 23:10:27 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Restoring wired service after Sandy may take 2 weeks, Verizon says
Message-ID: <p0624084cccbb8cd72f27@[10.0.1.11]>
Restoring wired service after Sandy may take 2 weeks, Verizon says
In the worst-hit areas, lack of power is preventing the carrier from
bringing back phone, Internet and video service
By Stephen Lawson
November 2, 2012
Computerworld
IDG News Service - Consumers in the areas hardest hit by Hurricane
Sandy may not get wired phone, Internet and video service back for as
long as two weeks, Verizon Communications warned on Friday, while the
FCC reported continued slow progress by carriers in restoring mobile
coverage.
The wired service outages could include the company's high-speed FiOS
fiber-optic service as well as data and voice services over copper
lines, Verizon spokesman Alberto Canal said. Verizon can't restore
many of its services in areas that still don't have commercial power,
he said. For safety reasons, the carrier's crews have to wait until
power cables are placed before bringing communications back, he said.
Friday's time estimate by Verizon, the incumbent wireline carrier
based in New York, was its longest yet. Though service is steadily
being restored, the deadly storm that made landfall late Monday with
ferocious winds, rain and floods has proved also to be a lingering
communications catastrophe for residents of some areas.
...
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9233232/Restoring_wired_service_after_Sandy_may_take_2_weeks_Verizon_says
Date: Sun, 04 Nov 2012 12:49:11 -0500
From: Pete Cresswell <PeteCress@invalid.telecom-digest.org>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Did anyone else get a call from the Mitt Romney campaign?
Message-ID: <mead98t68sv9bpvpcvbl2tnnukqp2td0pn@4ax.com>
Per Michael:
>I received a robocall from [the] Mitt [Romney presidential campaign].
>What was different was that it started out "Hello Michael." It wasn't
>a synthesized voice....at least I don't think so. Did Mitt record
>whole bunches of names? Was it synthesized? Did the software detect
>whether a man or woman answered the phone? Just curious. Michael
I'm surprised to hear than anybody let the call get that far
before hanging up.
Dunno exactly how many robocalls we get, but they certainly
outnumber legitimate calls by more than 5 to one - how much more
than 5:1 I can't say, but the ratio is pretty bad.
They've got tb really quick to get the first word past me. If
there's more than about a second's pause when I answer, I just
hang up.
- -
Pete Cresswell
***** Moderator's Note *****
Oh, please don't do that: if you don't like the calls, then all you
need to do is listen to the whole message. No matter how many trunks
they buy, their capacity is limited, and that means that if you tie
up a trunk and enough other voters do the same, then the system will
fail.
Plus, hanging up quickly marks you as "already decided", and that fact
goes into a database which is used to decide how assets will be
allocated to the "not yet committed" voters. By listening to the
entire message, you divert resources away from others, and so dilute
the efforts directed at undecided votes.
Bill Horne
Moderator
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2012 19:05:46 -0400
From: T <kd1s.nospam@cox.nospam.net>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Verizon Cleaning Up from Hurricane Sandy in Manhattan
Message-ID: <MPG.2aff6d583a518841989d2d@news.eternal-september.org>
The water came rushing through the lobby, crashing against doors,
shattering windows and scattering sandbags meant to stop it. Then, it
cascaded down the stairs and flooded the underground cable vault,
soaking tangled wires that deliver phone and Internet service to
customers across the region.
"It was churning like crazy. You can see the line here",. Chris
Levendos, Verizon's executive director of national operations, said
Saturday, pointing to a 4-foot-high water mark left on the lobby
wall. "It was finding all sorts of ways to get into the building".
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/03/verizon-sandy_n_
2069033.html#slide=more261027
-or-
http://goo.gl/I55Xv
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 01:39:04 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Killing the Computer to Save It
Message-ID: <p06240819ccb90c65b0ed@[10.0.1.11]>
PROFILES IN SCIENCE PETER G. NEUMANN
Killing the Computer to Save It
By JOHN MARKOFF
Published: October 29, 2012
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/30/science/rethinking-the-computer-at-80.html?pagewanted=all
***** Moderator's Note *****
The saddest part of reading about Dr. Neumann's early warnings is that
I wonder if we are condemned to make the same mistakes in the same
ways, again and again.
Bill Horne
Moderator
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 01:39:04 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Cyber Crime 3.0: Risks Multiply With Mobile, Cloud Computing
Message-ID: <p06240814ccb90b3f6c18@[10.0.1.11]>
CYBER CRIME 3.0: RISKS MULTIPLY WITH MOBILE, CLOUD COMPUTING
By Daniel Bastien
LES ECHOS/Worldcrunch
Published on 2012-10-29
Rest, in English:
http://www.worldcrunch.com/tech-science/cyber-crime-3.0-risks-multiply-with-mobile-cloud-computing/computer-security-digital-cloud-byod/c4s9937/
-or-
http://goo.gl/Srlgc
The original, in French:
http://www.lesechos.fr/entreprises-secteurs/enquete/0202307319061-les-nouveaux-defis-de-la-cybercriminalite-503112.php
-or-
http://goo.gl/ei1aE
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2012 01:39:04 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Teen Sex Risk Rises with Smartphone Use
Message-ID: <p06240811ccb90ad95421@[10.0.1.11]>
Teen Sex Risk Rises with Smartphone Use
By Rachael Rettner
SAN FRANCISCO -- Teens who own a smartphone may be at increased risk
for engaging in risky sex behavior, a new study suggests.
In the study, teens who had access to the Internet on their cellphones
were more than twice as likely to engage in sex with a person they met
online compared with those without access to the Internet on their
phones. Teens with smartphones were also more likely to be sexually
active in general, and more likely to say they had been approached for
sex online.
The results held even after the researchers accounted for factors that
could affect sexual behavior and cellphone use, such as age, gender,
race and sexual orientation.
..
http://news.yahoo.com/teen-sex-risk-rises-smartphone-211042292.html
http://www.apha.org/about/news/pressreleases/2012/smartphone+risk+annual+meeting.htm
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