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TELECOM Digest Tue, 24 Jan 95 14:34:00 CST Volume 15 : Issue 58
Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson
Universal International Freephone Numbers (John Carl Brown)
Chicago 630 Plan - Such As It Is (Greg Monti)
Wireless Lan FAQ For Campus Networks (Jim Williams)
Looking For ISDN in Burlington, Mass (Steve Samler)
Old Phone Number Format Question (Andrew C. Green)
GSM SIM Format - One Solution (Robert Lindh)
Re: Which Countries Have Competition (for FAQ Update)? (Eric
Tholome)
Re: Question on Call-Back Operators (Eric Tholome)
TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
From: John.Carl.Brown@att.com
Subject: Universal International Freephone Numbers
Organization: AT&T NSD, Holmdel, NJ
Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 18:17:02 GMT
I thought it would be helpful in the discussion of Universal
International
Freephone Numbering (UIFN) for people to see what has actually been
discussed at the ITU-T Study Group 2, and what is on the table now.
As background, I am one of the people representing AT&T in UIFN work
in the US and at Study Group 2 in the ITU-T.
I'd like to pass on two pieces of information. First, in response to:
J. Oppenheimer, Producer@Pipeline.com who wrote:
> Bottom line, we agree that there are better options that merit
serious
> consideration.
> So the question for U.S. 800 Subscribers to ask their U.S. carriers
> at the ITU is, why isn't this being discussed?!!!
I've included a time line we've kept as to what the format proposals
and discussions have been at the ITU-T Study Group 2 level. Most of
this will look familiar to those who have read this thread thus far.
After that is an extract from the current DRAFT recommendation E.169,
specifically dealing with the case of duplicate requests for the same
UIFN. As background, the procedures specify first-come, first-served.
At the start-up of UIFN assignments, a window of a specified number of
days is treated as the same time to allow applicants to get their
initial requests in and be treated as if they all arrived
simultaneously.
I'd also like to note that the U.S. standards process is an open
process. The State Department Study Group A coordinates the positions
and contributions going forward to ITU-T Study Group 2. An Ad Hoc
committee on Numbering meets more frequently to discuss the issues in
depth. We've had customer participation from associations and from
individual companies interested in this issue, and that participation
has been welcome and encouraged. We've also encouraged multi-national
customers to contact thier carriers in other countries to make their
views known.
Also, this process is a contribution driven process. Those with views
are most effective when documenting those views, and making specific
proposals as to positions or text to be deleted, added, or altered.
All contributions to the Ad Hoc or Study Group A meetings are
discussed.
I hope this is helpful.
John Carl Brown
---------------------------------------------
Universal International Freephone Numbering Timeline
Current study period June 1993 through May 1996
GENEVA - JUNE 1993
Study Group 2 (numbering experts group) accepted a liaison from Study
Group 1 (service description experts), recognizing the need for IFS to
have an easily recognizable universal global code, develop a numbering
plan for this Universal IFS Number. The following is an excerpt from
that liaison:
... a universal freephone number as a service feature of IFS.
This feature allows a customer to be assigned a specific IFS number
that would be the same throughout the world, while calls to this
number, if required, can be routed to different destination accesses
depending on country or point of origin.
... the legitimacy of this IFS service feature, noting increasing
customer demand for such a capability, and the significantly increased
use of the IFS that would result from the provision of a universal IFS
number.
Recognizing the current North American 800 Service code has world wide
customer identification, country code "800" was reserved as the
Universal Freephone indicator.
A list of attributes for the numbering plan includes, but is not
exclusive of: the plan should provide a substantial capacity, and
should be easily recognizable.
OTTAWA - OCTOBER 1993
Proposed Numbering Structures:
Source: PTT Netherlands
800 0YXXXXX To be issued by Administrations in countries with a 1
digit CC
800 1YXXXXX
800 0YYXXXX To be issued by Administrations in countries with a 2
digit CC
800 1YYXXXX
800 0YYYXXX To be issued by Administrations in countries with a 3
digit CC
800 1YYYXXX
Source: Telecom Denmark
800 ZYX XXXX Allocated by countries with a 1 digit CC
800 ZYY XXXX Allocated by countries with a 2 digit CC
800 ZYY YXXX Allocated by countries with a 3 digit CC
Source AT&T and MCI
800 YXXXXXX[X][X] A single numbering pool, of variable length where
Y=1-9,
and X = 0-9
Source US West and Ameritech
2 digit CC + 1 digit Actual CC (1 digit) <8 digit subscriber
number
" " Actual CC (2 digit) < 7 digit subscriber
number
" " Actual CC (3 digit) < 6 digit subscriber
number
Source: Norwegian Telecom
800 - (Administrator code) - Subscriber Number
Source: France Telecom
800 XXXXX or,
800 XXXXXX or,
800 XXXXXXX or, up to a maximum of
800 XXXXXXXX
All of the above proposals require the international prefix to precede
the call.
Results of these proposals categorized the numbering formats into
three
groups (fixed, variable/reusable, and variable non-reusable).
Further attributes agreed to: The numbers should be portable so the
customers can retain their number and change their service provider.
The plan should be stable and support growth.
MADRID - JANUARY 1994
The debate over the UFN format continued, discussing as many as seven
different formats. Preserving national freephone numbers within a UFN
as well as the administration of the numbers compounded the problem of
agreeing to any specific format. It was suggested at this meeting
that a neutral body administer these numbers, under consideration is
the ITU. All participants were asked to only consider two formats for
the next meeting; a variable six to eight digit length, or a fixed
eight digit length.
GENEVA - MARCH 1994
Source: AT&T
800 XXXXXXX (7 digits)
Existing customer's seven digit freephone subscriber numbers are
retained as the subscriber number of the UFNs for one year. After the
one year period all seven digit freephone subscriber numbers that are
not identified to be used as the subscriber number of UFNs for IFS
would be included in the UFN resource pool and available for
assignment.
Source: Remaining Representative:
800 XXXXXXXX (8 digits)
One representative (Sweden) conclusion for supporting eight digits:
Since the seven digit fixed format doesn't give all the countries
existing countries customers the ability to either retain or embed
their existing numbers in an equal and fair basis, and doesn't offer
any way of expanding the capacity, the only alternative left is the
eight digit fixed format.
A fixed format was agreed to with bracketed text for seven or eight
digits. Work will continue on administrative issues.
OSLO - JULY 1994
Approximately 30 countries presented a single contribution supporting
an eight digit fixed format. The US was the only representative
supporting a seven digit format. Acknowledging the need to continue
the work, the U.S., restated their support for seven digits but agreed
to work on the remaining portions of the document, assuming the format
would be eight digits in length.
Start up procedures, in particular conflict resolution procedures for
that time were debated. The representative from the U.K., offered
partitioning the subscriber number with specific leading digits:
800 1Z XXXXXX For further study
800 2Y XXXXXX 6 digit subscriber number migration space
800 3Y XXXXXX 6 digit subscriber number migration space
800 4 XXXXXXX 7 digit subscriber number migration space
800 5Y YYYYYY New 8 digit number
800 6Y YYYYYY " "
800 7Y YYYYYY " "
800 8Z ZZZZZZ For further study
800 9Z ZZZZZZ For further study
800 0Z ZZZZZZ For further study
WASHINGTON DC - OCTOBER 1994 (joint experts editing team)
To try to progress the work, a small group of representatives met to
edit the document. This will be presented to the next meeting in
Geneva, December 1994.
This document assumes a fixed eight digit subscriber number. The
numbers
will be assigned on a first come first served basis with no
preallocation
of space. Priority will be given to those subscribers who are
embedding
their existing freephone subscriber number. Embedding can be
requested by
adding trailing or leading filler digits. For example:
Subscriber A's 7 digit existing number is 234 5678
Embedding by adding leading filler digits: UIFN
requested could be 800 X2345678
Embedding by adding trailing filler digits: UIFN
requested could be 800 2345678X
When two or more applicants request the same number, the Registrar
will communicate with the applicants and notify them of the duplicate
request and attempt to resolve the duplicate request by having the
applicant(s) change their filler digits to eliminate the duplication.
GENEVA - DECEMBER 1994
The meeting agreed that the edited output of TD 1/2-127 (Washington
meeting) should be used to advance the work at the meeting and to
incorporate any points it thought as appropriate from E.IFSNUM. The
TSB had assigned temporary number E.169 to E.IFSNUM.
----------------------------------------------
end of timeline
Extract from draft recommendation E.169:
Annex A
A1 Duplicate Requests
1 The purpose of these procedures is to resolve UIFN conflicts, e.g.,
when more than one applicant applies for the same UIFN at the same
time.
1a) The registrar should advise only the involved applicants when
problems are identified, and provide advice to them and
cooperate in problem resolution.
1b) The registrar shall give priority to the applicants embedding
their
subscriber's existing entire national FSN [Freephone Subscriber
Number], this is known as priority assignment.
2 The specific procedures are:
2a) The applicant can only request and receive priority assignment
based
on the intent to embed the entire existing FSN. The embedding can
only be requested by adding trailing or leading filler digits to the
entire existing FSN, in the manner illustrated below.
For example:
Subscriber A 7-digit FSN is 234 5678
Embedding by adding leading filler digit: UIFN request 800 X2345678
Embedding by adding trailing filler digit: UIFN request 800 2345678X
Subscriber B 6-digit FSN is 654 321
Embedding by adding leading filler digits: UIFN request 800 XX654321
Embedding by adding trailing filler digits: UIFN request 800 654321XX
Embedding by adding one leading and one trailing digits:
UIFN request 800 X654321X
where X = 0-9
Similar principles apply for IFS subscribers with fewer than 6 digit
FSNs
2b) When two or more applicants request the same UIFN, and only one of
applicants request a priority assignment, the registrar will
assign the UIFN to the applicant which requested priority
assignment.
The registrar will then assign the stated alternative choices, or
solicit alternative choices, to the other applicants.
2c) When two or more applicants requesting the same UIFN based on
their
entire FSN, request priority assignment, the registrar will
communicate with the applicants and notify them of the duplicate
request and attempt to resolve the duplicate request by having the
applicant(s) change their filler digits to eliminate the duplication.
During this procedure, the registrar will inform the applicants that
they are in contention for their selected UIFN. Identities of other
applicants involved in the contention will only be divulged with
the consent of all the involved applicants, for the purpose of
resolving the contention.
2d) When two or more applicants requested the same UIFN, and none have
requested priority assignment, the registrar will communicate with
the applicants and notify them of the duplicate request and attempt
to resolve the duplicate request by having the applicant(s) choose
an alternate UIFN if applicable. During this procedure, the registrar
will inform the applicants that they are in contention for their
selected UIFN. Identities of other applicants involved in the
contention will only be divulged with the consent of all the involved
applicants, for the purpose of resolving the contention.
2e) Absent agreement to resolve the duplicate request with the
applicants
the registrar will, after 15 days, do a random selection to resolve
duplicate request. The applicants not receiving the number will be
assigned one of their alternate choices or the registrar will solicit
another choice, if not provided.
--------------------------------------------
End of E.169 extract.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 12:04:57 EST
From: Greg Monti <GMONTI@npr.org>
Subject: Chicago 630 Plan - Such As It Is
A story in the January 23, 1995, issue of {Communications Daily} says
that an Illinois Commerce Commission hearing examiner has "endorsed" a
·
plan to create the 630 area code to relieve 708. Presumably, the
endorsed plan is the overlay that has already been discussed because
the story notes that it wouldn't require existing customers to change
their telephone numbers.
The story then says, cryptically, that the plan also would "create
'permissive and mandatory dialing arrangements' that wouldn't
jeopardize new competitors". And that the City of Chicago "opposed
the stipulation on ground that eleven-digit rather than seven-digit
dialing requirement was 'onerous' and might predetermine similar fate
for 312 area code where customers are used to seven-digit intraLATA
calls."
---------------------
Monti interprets shakily: Isn't this a little late for "endorsements"
with the new code already created? Callers between the three
Chicagoland area codes will need to dial eleven digits to reach local
subscribers in the other two codes, which is the same as now.
Allowing seen digit dialing between 312 and 630 would require that the
prefix codes used in 630 not be usable in 312, which would exhaust 312
faster. Allowing seven digit dialing *within* your own area code may
be
-- or may not be -- permitted.
Others who'd like to try their hands at translating this story into
English are welcome to do so.
Greg Monti, Tech Mgr, FISPO, Distribution Division
National Public Radio Phone: +1 202 414-3343
635 Massachusetts Av NW Fax: +1 202 414-3036
Washington, DC 20001-3753 Internet: gmonti@npr.org
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 09:50:19 -0800
From: routers@halcyon.com
Subject: Wireless Lan FAQ For Campus Networks
1. What Bandwidth is available for campus area Wireless LANS?
Ans. 2Mbps
2. What distance's can they do?
Ans. From 3 miles to 10 miles (line of site)
3. Are they secure?
ANS. Spread Spectrum Radio technology is Proven and Secure.
Options are
available for Encryption ie 64 bit DES chip.
4. What type of management is available?
ANS. SNMP MTll compliant.
5. Do they reguire a FCC license?
ANS. No
6. For Large installations is there support for on site surveys and
installations?
ANS. Yes Airlan offers a S.W.A.T. Team of Professional field
engineers.
7. How about support after installation?
ANS. Toll free support is always available for all Airlan
products
8. Is this technology World Wide?
ANS. As of today it is available in The USA, Canada, and South
America.
9. Can this technology be used to connect inside of Buildings PC's,
Desk
Tops, and
Laptops, at the same 2Mbps?
ANS. Yes it supports all the above at 2Mbps, No matter what the
size
(5 doors, to 4 floors, to 5 miles or more.
10. What type of Lap Top adaptors are available?
ANS. Parallel/Pcmcia.
11. Does the inside technology support Roaming?
ANS. The Airlan Access point (Hub) creates a 50,000 Square foot
"cell"
area of connectivity, Access cell to Access cell maintains
a
seamless
connectivity to a network.
12. What networking operating Systems (NOS) is the Airlan compatable?
ANS. Airlan is compatable with all Major network operating
systems
(NOS)
including all versions of Netware and Netware-life,
Microsoft-Lan
Manager, 3 Com 3 Com+, Dec Pathworks, Banyan Vines, IBM Lan
Manager,
and Artsoft Lantastic
13. Can more that one Remote Bridge be connected to a single Host
Bridge?
ANS. Yes with a Omni attenna, You can connect more than one
Remote
Bridge
with an agregate of 1.544Mbps.
14. How difficult is the Airlan Bridge Plus to install?
ANS. Menu driven diagnostic Software for the installation and
alignment
of
attenna's make Airlan/Bridge/Plus easy to setup, and SNMP
makes it
easy to use.
15. How does the Airlan compare in cost to a T-1 circuit?
Ans. Airlan/Bridge/Plus costs less than a T-1 bridge, and
performs up to
40 X faster than leased lines.
For more information contact: Jim Williams
1-800-837-4180
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 13:00:03 EST
From: Steve Samler <steve@individual.com>
Subject: Looking for ISDN in Burlington, Mass
Does anyone have any information on ISDN from the Burlington (Mass)
CO. We've been told that since we are two miles from the switch, we
can't get ISDN. True? Anyone know when this might be available?
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 10:20:05 CST
From: Andrew C. Green <ACG@dlogics.com>
Subject: Old Phone Number Format Question
The following question appeared recently in the Old Time Radio Digest
mailing list, and seems tailor-made for an answer from this forum.
Anyone care to comment or reminisce?
Date: Mon, 23 Jan 1995 16:17:25 -0500
From: "Richard M. Weil" <richrw@pipeline.com>
To: otr@airwaves.chi.il.us
Subject: PaperMate Ball Point Pens
I was listening to a 1953 episode of The Hall Of Fantasy last night,
and there was an ad for Philco TVs being sold through a store called
CET in Rockford, Illinois. The main store was in Chicago. The pitchman
promised a FREE PaperMate Ball Point pen, without obligation, to
anyone who called the store to set up an appointment for a salesman to
visit your home to give you info about Philco TV's. The pitchman said
the new pen was "sweeping the nation", ... "a $1.59 value!"
For those interested, and maybe the offer still holds (hee hee), the
number for the store in Chicago was MOhawk 4-4100. The number for the
store in Rockford was curiously 8-22-47. I'm too young to know
anything about 5 digit phone numbers. Is that how it was back then in
small cities? I'd also be curious to know if anyone remembers this
store and if it's still around. (I could call directory assistance
myself, but this is more fun.)
I'd also like to know if a ball point pen was such a novelty that
you'd
let a salesman into your home for a free one, or was it the TV, or
both?
Andrew C. Green (312) 266-4431
Datalogics, Inc. Internet: acg@dlogics.com
441 W. Huron
Chicago, IL 60610-3498 FAX: (312) 266-4473
[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: CET = Central Electric Television. They
were
a big distributor of television sets in the 1950's here. Both
television
and 'throw away when used' ball-point pens were new and unusual items
in
those years. Pocket calculators had never been heard of. When I was in
high
school, 1956-60, the school gave us the 'option' of using ball-point
pens
instead of fountain pens, although the latter were preferred. Desks in
school classrooms had a little holder near the top for the bottle of
ink
used to fill the little rubber bladders inside fountain pens. The
schools
and all progessive educators of the era preferred that children use
fountain
pens, as it was believed they helped develop better penmanship.
Television sets were becoming more common by then; maybe a third to
half the households in the USA had one, mainly if the owner lived in a
large city where television stations could be received. A few people
had television sets as early as 1946-47. Our family got one in 1949;
it had a two or three inch screen that was totally round with a very
large magnifying glass attachment which hooked on the front of it. It
was in fact a Philco (for anyone interested, that was our friends at
Phillips) and stood in a large cabinet about four feet tall and two
feet wide. We got three channels on it, one being WGN Channel 9; and
there were two others.
MOHawk was a central office in Chicago from shortly after the turn of
the century. Now it is known as 312-664, and then as now serves the
near-north side of the central Chicago area. In addition to CET, which
was located on Chicago Avenue at Halsted Street (now for thirty plus
years the site of a housing complex operated by the Chicago Housing
Authority known as 'Cabrini-Green Homes'), other notable subscribers
on the MOHawk exchange included the Chicago Rapid Transit Company,
MOHawk-4-7200 for administrative offices, (7000 for transit
information)
which in 1947 became the Chicago Transit Authority. They still use
312-664-7200 for Transit Authority offices, but 836-7000 for general
transit information throughout northern Illinois in a consolidated
phone
room operated jointly by all the commuter railroads and local/suburban
bus lines. Since CRT Company had that number as of about 1921, I guess
that
makes 664-7200 one of the longest continuing subscribers on the same
number; 74 years of it now.
Five digit numbers were common in communities which had automatic
dialing
systems in those days but only one exchange in the community. Since
the
exchange name was always the same, it was assumed when dialing. In
your
example you parsed the number incorrectly. It was 8-2247, or to be
complete
about it, ROckford-8-2247. Gary, Indiana had the same kind of setup.
The
company town named after William Gary, president of US Steel at the
turn
of the century had several exchanges, but they were all TUrner, as in
TUrner 2,3,4,5,6 or 7. Therefore five-digit dialing (or five digit
asking
of the operator, prior to 1955) was allowed in the form of 2-xxxx
through
7-xxxx. Someone once asked who was Turner ... he was a vice-president
of
US Steel about the same time, and highly revered for his contributions
to
the civic life in Gary. In the early 1920's, the United States Supreme
Court required US Steel to divest itself of the Gary Municipal
Corporation.
But some things did not change; the town name was retained and the
phone
exchanges continued to be Turner. Today they are 219-882 ... 887.
Why yes ... ballpoint pens were quite a novelty in 1953, and the
better
quality ones were quite expensive, in the $7-10 range. 'Cheaper' ones,
like the free gifts from Central Electric Television ranged in price
from
a dollar to a dollar and a half. But don't worry, they made out like
bandits since the television sets sold for several hundred dollars
each;
three-inch round screens which looked like oscilliscopes. CET had as
a
commercial, a jolly man singing "Cee Eee Tee .... for television! (and
concluding) Mohawk four, four one hundred!" They've been out of
business
for about thirty years now. PAT]
------------------------------
From: etxlndh@eos99.ericsson.se (Robert Lindh)
Subject: GSM SIM Format - One Solution
Organization: Ericsson
Date: Tue, 24 Jan 1995 14:03:04 GMT
At least one GSM-operator here in Sweden (Europolitan) automatically
gives you 2 SIM-cards per subscription, one small and one full-size.
Originally, the incoming calls go to the cellular phone that have the
small card inserted. If you want to change that, you insert either
one of the cards in a cellular phone and use a code ("333") to switch
incoming calls from the card now receiving them to the other card.
------------------------------
From: tholome@dialup.francenet.fr (Eric Tholome)
Subject: Re: Which Countries Have Competition (for FAQ Update)?
Date: Mon, 23 Jan 1995 22:36:14 +0200
In article <telecom15.53.3@eecs.nwu.edu>, dleibold@gvc.com (Dave
Leibold) wrote:
> As the FAQ update is under way, one section dealt with the various
> countries that have introduced telecom competition in some form or
> other. I've heard of a European Community directive to the effect
that
> its member countries are to open up telecom markets by a given date.
> Competing local networks are also emerging (including UK, US
> developments).
Indeed, competition will be introduced no later than 1998 in most
European countries (except in countries that specifically asked for a
delay).
Actually, we need to be more precise: for instance, we tend to think
that the French public telecoms are still under a monopoly, which is
almost true, except for international and mobile communications, which
have long been open to competition (and there has indeed been
competition for quite some time).
I don't recall what exactly will be opened to competition in 1998. I
believe
the story says that all services will, but not infrastructures, though
many countries are willing to open *everything* to competition by
1998. Can
someone be more precise on this point? Otherwise, I'll have to look up
my
archives.
Hope this helps!
Eric Tholome
23, avenue du Centre tholome@dialup.francenet.fr
78180 Montigny le Bretonneux phone: +33 1 30 48 06 47
France fax: same number, call first!
------------------------------
From: tholome@dialup.francenet.fr (Eric Tholome)
Subject: Re: Question on Call-Back Operators
Date: Mon, 23 Jan 1995 22:36:10 +0200
Pat wrote:
> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Another problem you did not mention
is the
> cost of your call to the callback center. That call has to supervise
also,
> you see, and that costs you some amount of money. Add that to
whatever you
> pay for the callback part of the connection and let me know how much
less
> expensive it *really* is. Part of the gimmick that makes callback
services
> so inexpensive is that you usually do not have to pay for a call to
the
> USA. You dial your number and hang up without it answering; thus no
charge
> for that part of the call. Why do you think AT&T was so out of joint
on
> this for quite awhile? Hey, if people think they can pay for a
supervised
> call to the USA (and enter a password, eliminating random ringbacks)
and
> still get by cheaper than via straight calling through their PTT,
whoever
> it is, then let me know ... I may start a callback service of my
own.
Well, let me give you some figures:
France Telecom's rate to call the U.S.A. varies between $0.95 and
$1.27/minute depending on the time of the day.
My ATT calling card isn't much cheaper, especially because of the
$2.50
initial charge.
My callback operator does not require a minimum monthly charge, nor
does it impose a monthly fee. It charges $0.66/min at any time for the
same call.
You're right that I'm also charged $0.14 for my call to the callback
center. Moreover, my callback call is timed from the moment I get the
American dial tone (only if the call is answered), which adds another
$O.15 (approximately). Still, if the call lasts a minute or more
(which is almost always the case, even for calls that reach an
answering machine), my callback service is a good deal; a very good
deal.
I called an American friend last month and we stayed 70 minutes on the
phone. I saved around $25 thanks to my callback operator. Not bad,
right?
To be totally honest, I must add that my callback operator times the
call
in 30 second periods, whereas France Telecom uses circa 7.5 second
periods.
Who cares? The service is so much cheaper.
I'm looking forward to signing up for your new callback service (still
to come), which will have to beat mine! :-)
Eric Tholome
23, avenue du Centre tholome@dialup.francenet.fr
78180 Montigny le Bretonneux phone: +33 1 30 48 06 47
France fax: same number, call first!
------------------------------
End of TELECOM Digest V15 #58
*****************************