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· Subject: soc.culture.german, frequently answered questions (posted monthly)
Version: 1.1
Last-modified: 1993/03/24
**************************************
* *
* FAQ for SOC.CULTURE.GERMAN *
* *
**************************************
NEW: where to get the new german ZIP codes from (FTP!!! Mailserver)
CONTENTS
--------
1 Introduction
2 Mail Order
2.1 Bookstores
2.2 News Papers
2.3 Videotapes, Audiotapes
3 Addresses of Embassies/Consulates
4 Deutsche Welle (shortwave radio/sat. TV)
5 Goethe Institutes
6 E-mail to Germany
7 Misc. Addresses
8 How to write Umlaute in soc.culture.german
9 FTP sites of dictionaries
10 Soccer results (how to get them)
11 Transfering foreign degrees to germany
12 Questions and Answers
12.1 - What have I to take care off if I buy electronic equ. in the
US and bring it to germany
Different TV norms
12.2 - How about phones? Work American phones in Germany?
12.3 - zip-codes (Postleitzahlen)
12.4 - public phones in germany, US phonecards in germany.
1 INTRODUCTION
--------------
This posting contains answers to frequently answered questions in
soc.culture.german. The answers are neither complete nor tested by
me. All information in this faq is free and everybody should feel
encouraged to distribute it.
Please check first this posting before you ask a question in soc.
culture.german.
Input to this list is always welcome. Please refer to
ju8025@csc.albany.edu or ju8025@albnyvms.bitnet
if you have questions about the FAQ.
The FAQ was prepared by collecting different postings and e-mail
msgs.
Special thanks to:
Jennifer Dodd, jdodd@carson.u.washington.edu
Ed Lieser, ASTRO::LIESER@cs.hh.ab.com
David Weisberger, djweisbe@unix.amhers.edu
Kurt, godden@gmr.com
Eberhard Wegner, E.Wegner@gmd.de
Michael Griesser, m.griesser@ee.surrey.ac.uk
Frank Deis, DEIS@zodiac.rutgers.edu
Stephanie Schmitz, schmitzs@ibg.colorado.edu
Harald Giessen, Giessen@ccit.arizona.edu
Erika C. Linke, el08+@andrew.cmu.edu
Sacha Moufarrege, sache@aslan.en.open.de
Volker Soffel, volker@lcc1.nsc.com
William R. Palenske, fed!m1wrp99@uunet.UU.NET
Arno Laesecke, laesecke@central.bldrdoc.gov
and many others I forgot (sorry) ...
2 MAIL ORDER
------------
In this section, you will find addresses of mail order stores which sell
books or tapes either in German or about Germany (or both.) This list is
not necessarily based on the maintainer's personal experience. The
maintainer of this list is not responsible for the accuracy of this
information. As always, caveat emptor !
2.1 BOOK STORES
German Information Center
(see 2.2 Newspapers)
Der Buchwurm
(German Books, Music Tapes, CD's, Journals Subscriptions, etc.)
P.O. Box 268
Templeton, CA 93465
Tel (805) 238-2353
Fax (805) 238-9523
Mary S. Rosenberg, Inc.
1841 Broadway
New York, NY 10023
Tel: (212) 307-7733; Fax: (718) 857-7163
Mail order, but no credit cards! However, checks do not need
to clear your bank before they send merchandise.
Schoenhof's Foreign Books
76A Mount Auburn Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Tel: (617) 547-8855; Fax: (617) 547-8551
Accept Visa, MC, and Amex.
French, German, Italian, and Spanish books
Adler's Foreign Books, Inc.
915 Foster Street
Evanston, Illinois 60201
Tel: 1-800-ADLERS-1
Accepts major credit cards,
no current catalog!
International Book Import Service, Inc.
2995 Wall Triana Highway, Suite B4
Huntsville, Alabama 35824-1532
Continental Book Company
80-00 Cooper Avenue
Bldg. #29
Glendale, NY 11385
MAIL ORDER KAISER
Postfach 401209
W 8000 Muenchen 40
Germany
Tel: (089) 362001
Mail order bookstore in Germany
Delivery worldwide at German domestic prices.
Monthly newsletters.
ATS (Associated Technical Services)
855 Bloomfield Ave.
Glen Ridge, NJ 07028
Technical Dictionaries
2001
(Someone out there has the address? Please let me know.
They have tapes, too.)
Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft
Hindenburgstrasse 40
Postfach 11 15 53
W - 6100 Darmstadt 11
Germany
Telephone: +49 6151 33080
Fax: +49 6151 314128
2.2 Newspapers
Deutschland Informationen/The Week in Germany
The German Information Center
950 Third Ave.
New York NY
10022
phone: (212) 888-9840
"Deutschland Informationen," or its english version "The Week in
Germany," is a free 8 page flyer. It has articles excerpted from
various German newspapers, soccer results, and the $/DM exchange rate.
The German Information Center also distributes lots of other
information ( books, maps, .... ) for free. They are an especially
helpful resource for those who may have to make a school presentation
about Germany.
Der Spiegel
German Language Publications, Inc.
153 South Dean Street
Englewood NJ
07631
Published weekly, subscription price for the USA is $280
per annum
ZEIT
Distribution:
German News Company Inc.
220 E 86th St, NY
New York
10028-3098
USA phone: 212-288-5500
or:
Die Zeit
29 Coldwater Road P.O. Box 9868
Toronto, ON Englewood, NJ
M3B 1Y8 07631-1123
Canada USA
"Die Zeit" is available either via air mail or as international
edition via surface mail out of canada. The international
edition is much cheaper but contains less pages.
If you order it at the German News Company you have to call them
and to send them a check for $30 payable to German News Co. This
is a subscription for half a year.
The German Tribune
The German Tribune
c/o Mass Mailings, Inc.
540 West 24th Street
New York, NY
10011
in English, about $100 for one year.
Die Nordamerikanische Wochenpost
Die Nordamerikanische Wochenpost
1120 E. Long Lake Road
Troy, MI
48098
3 month trial subscription: $ 15, one year $42.95
This is a general interest newspaper. The front pages generally
deals with news from/about Germany. There are special pages for
regional, domestic-American, news of interest to German speakers.
E.g., Florida, New York, Chicago-Milwaukee, and Detroit. Additionally,
there's a special page for news from/about Austria. All the major
sections that you would expect in any newspaper are represented:
politics, sports, the economy, fashion, cartoons, features, editorials,
etc. There are also several short-stories and a serialized novel.
There's a list of German-language radio broadcasts for North
America ( US and Ontario, Canada. ) It also contains a list of
German-American associations.
Other Addresses
German News Co., Inc.
220 East 86th Street
New York, NY 100028
Tel: (212) 288-5500
GLP International
P.O. Box 9868
Englewood, New Jersey 07631-1123
Tel: (212) 736-7455 or (201) 871-1010
2.3 Tapes
VIDEO:
German Language Video Center
7625-27 Pendleton Pike
Indianapolis, Indiana 46226
Tel: (317) 547-1257
free catalog
(To convert videotapes (NTSC <-> PAL) see 10.2)
AUDIO:
The Olivia and Hill Press
P.O. Box 7396
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48107
Tel: (313) 663-0235; Fax: (313) 663-6590
Selection of German-language cassette recordings of novels, plays,
and radio plays. E.g. Duerrenmatt's "Der Richter und sein
Henker". Free catalog.
Schau ins Land
P.O. Box 158067
Nashville, TN 37215-8067
Tel: 1-800-824-0829
Monthly audio magazine of news, stories, music, etc. Comes
with a written transcription including a vocabulary glossary.
Approx. $120/yr. in U.S.
3. Addresses of Consulates/Embassies
The Consulates are very helpful in getting information about anything
concerning Germany (travel, politics, laws ....) They're very
thorough and supply lots of information in response to requests.
The German Information Center (see 2.2) is sponsored by them.
There is a list of all embassies/consulates in the US. You get
it from the Department of State. It's title is: "Foreign Consular
Offices in the United States". You find there the addresses, names of
the staff and phonenumbers. You might find the broschure in most public
libraries.
Consulate General of the
Federal Republic of Germany
One Union Square, Suite 2500
600 University Street
Seattle, WA 98101
The German Embassy
4645 Reservoir Road NW
Washington, DC 20007
Consulate General of the FRD
2100 Edison Plaza
660 Plaza Drive
Detroit, MI 48226-1849
(313) 962-6526; Fax: (313) 962-7345
Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany
460 Park Ave.
New York, NY
(212) 940-9200
Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany
6222 Wilshire Blvd. , Suite 500
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(213) 930-2703
4. Short-wave Radio / Sat. TV
The official German short-wave station is the "Deutsche Welle". It broadcasts
worldwide in a variety of languages. To get a monthly free schedule write to
Deutsche Welle
Postfach 100444
W 5000 Koeln 1
Germany
The "Deutsche Welle" also broadcasts TV using different satellites.
Europe: EUTELSAT II-F1 (13 deg. east)
Transponder 27, 11,163 GHz, vert. pol, 15-05 UTC, PAL.
Nord/South America: INTELSAT-K (21.4 deg. west)
Transponder H7, 11,605 Ghz,
North America: hor. pol.
South America: ver. pol.
15-05 UTC, NTSC M
North America: SATCOM C-4 (135 deg. W)
Transponder 5V, 3,8 GHz, pol. vert., 15-05 UTC, NTSC M
Look also for the Suedwestfunk (SWF3). It is a regional station which sends
at 7265 kHz in Europe.
Suedwestfunk
Postfach 820
W 7570 Baden-Baden
Consult the "World Radio and TV Handbook" for a complete listing of all
shortewave stations. The book is updated anually and can be found in many
libraries.
5. Goethe Institute
The various "Goethe Institutes" are funded by the German government to
provide an opportunity for persons outside Germany to become acquainted
with German culture. They offer exhibitions, movies, and German classes.
To get more information, call one of the following:
Ann Arbor (313) 996-8600
Atlanta (404) 892-2388
Boston (617) 262-6050
Chicago (312) 329-0915
Cincinnati (513) 721-2777
Houston (713) 528-2787
Los Angeles (213) 854-0993
New York (212) 439-8700
San Francisco (415) 391-0370
Seattle (206) 622-9694
St. Louis (314) 367-2452
Washington DC. (202) 319-0702
Montreal (514) 499-0159
Toronto (416) 924-3327
Vancouver (604) 732-3966
Kyoto 75/761218-889
Osaka 6/3413051-53
Tokyo 3/35843201 or 03-3584-3267
6. E-Mail to Germany:
If you look for an E-mail address in germany, give the address servers a
chance.
I will no longer include information about e-mail connections to Germany.
It's too difficult to acquire and maintain current and accurate information
about the various non-Internet networks etc. I don't live in Germany at the
moment and don't use German systems. How about some volunteers? I could
include their e-mail address in the faq; and people who have questions
about a given net could ask this contact person. It would be ideal if the
contact person uses the network on a regular basis and is, therefore,
up-to-date about gateways between internet/bitnet and such.
7. Misc. Addresses
Representative of German Industry and Trade
One Farragut Square South
Washington, DC. 20006
Tel: (202) 347-0247
Zentralstelle fuer Arbeitsvermittlung
Feuerbachstrasse 42-46
W 6000 Frankfurt/Main
Tel: (01149) 69-71110; Fax: (01149) 69-7111555
This is an important address for people who want to work in Germany.
Association for International Practical Training (AIPT)
217 American City Building
Columbia, MD 21044-3492
Tel: (301) 997-2200
Chamber of Commerce
The German - American
Chamber of Commerce
465 California Street, Suite 910
San Francisco, CA 94104
(415) 392-2262
German-American Chamber of Commerce
104 S. Michigan Ave. Suite 600
Chicago, IL 60603-5978
Tel: (312) 782-8557; (312) 641-6673
German-American Chamber of Commerce
909 Fannin Suite 3750
Suite 3418
Houston, TX 77010
Tel: (713) 658-8230
German-American Chamber of Commerce
3250 Wilshire Blvd.
Suite 1112
Los Angeles, CA 90010
Tel: (213) 381-2236; (213) 381-2237
German-American Chamber of Commerce
666 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10103
Tel: (212) 974-8830; (213) 582-7788
German-American Chamber of Commerce
Peachtree Center Harris Tower
233 Peachtree Street NE
Suite 2701
Atlanta, GA 30303
Tel: (404) 577-7228
This office has a listing of the German companies in the US along with
their address that you can purchase. The price varies according to how
detailed a list you wish to have.
8. How to write Umlauts
As you may have noted, there are various ways to write umlauts. There is
no generally accepted way to do this in soc.culture.german. Periodically,
therefore, you will observe hard-fought battles on this topic in this group.
Here the two most common methods:
TELEX-Version ae oe ue AE OE UE ss or sz
TEX -Version "a "o "u "A "O "O "s
Please ! if you have a German-style keyboard with umlauts, and if you're using
it to, say, post something in soc.culture.german, DON'T use the umlauts.
They probably won't get displayed correctly on terminals in, say, North
America.
9. Dictionaries
German word lists and German-English dictionaries are available via
FTP from the sites listed below with brief descriptions following the
filenames. N.b., this list includes only those sites which I believ are the
most current and complete.
FTP SITES:
At ftp.informatik.tu-muenchen.de in directory /pub/doc/dict :
-rw-r--r-- 1 gruner ftp 37070 Oct 19 1990 exercise.vok.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 hartl ftp 761528 Aug 21 1991 german-wordlist.Z
-rw-rw-r-- 1 stumpf ftp 761910 Oct 23 1991 german-wordlist.new.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 bartel staff 137591 May 13 1991 germanl.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 gruner ftp 55447 Oct 19 1990 idioms.vok.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 gruner ftp 11089 Oct 19 1990 technik.vok.Z
These files are mirrored at
ftp.uni-kl.de in directory /pub2/packages/doc.tum/dict
and, of particular interest for people west of the Atlantic,
arthur.cs.purdue.edu in directory /pub/pcert/dict/german/ftp.informatik.
tu-meunchen.de
* also:
* ftp.th-darmstadt.de /pub/dicts/german
*
At switek.uni-muenster.de in directory /pub/dict/german :
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 186 Aug 17 11:39
German-English-Computer.dict.README
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 45440 Aug 17 11:39
German-English-Computer.dict.v9.tar.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 1683 Aug 17 11:40 german-english.README
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 102912 Aug 17 11:39 german-english.tar.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 761910 Aug 17 11:44 german-wordlist.new.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 6703 Aug 17 11:40 german.README.1st
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 761919 Aug 17 11:58 german.ispell.Z
-rw-r--r-- 1 stephan all 137591 Aug 17 11:40 germanl.Z
A different version of german.english.tar.Z, called english-german.dic, is
available at
reseq.regent.e-technik.tu-muenchen.de
in the directory /physik.archive/mailserv.zdv.uni-tuebingen.de
FILE DESCRIPTIONS:
germanl : alphabetized list of ~ 27,000 German words
german-wordlist,
german-wordlist.new : alphabetized list of ~160,000 German words
idioms.vok : 2400 German idioms with English translations
technik.vok : 810 alphabetized German technical terms
with English translations
German-English-Computer.dict.v9 : several hundred computers terms in German and
English, alphabetized by English, some
with German explanations
german-english : several English-German and German-English
lists, including the .vok files
10. German soccer results
If you ask Thomas Hofmeister (hofmeist@zorro.informatik.uni-dortmund.de)
he will send you the most recent soccer results via e-mail.
11. Transfering german degrees
(Because this is only important for germans, I write this in german. There
are just to many special legal terms involved to do it in english ...)
!!! HIER FEHLEN MIR NOCH LITERATURHINWEISSE (GESETZESTEXTE) UND BEISPIELE !!!
!!! SPEZIELL DER ZWEITE TEIL (Bundeslaender ausser Bayern) BRAUCHT HILFE !!!
Hier einige wichtige Fakten welche man wissen sollte:
Fuer alle Bundeslaender:
- Es ist fuer deutsche Staatsbuerger VERBOTEN in Deutschland auslaendische
akademische Grade zu fuehren.
- Um einen auslaendischen akademischen Grad in seiner Originalform fuehren
zu duerfen bedarf es einer "Erlaubniss zum Fuehren ... "
- Diese Erlaubniss erteilt das Kultusministerium des Bundeslandes in welchem
man seinen ersten Wohnsitz angemeldet hat. Fuer Personen welche nicht in
Deutschland wohnen gibt es ein spezielles Bundesland welche diese Erlaubniss
erteilt (NRW ?)
- Die Erlaubniss kostet etwa 100-150 DM Bearbeitungsgebuehr. Die Bearbeitung
dauert etwa einen Monat.
- Die Erlaubniss besagt nichts ueber eine Gleichwertigkeit. Sie stellt
lediglich fest, dass man den Titel rechtmaessig erworben hat und gibt an,
in welcher Form man den Titel verwenden kann. Zum Beispiel wird aus einem
Master of Science welchen man an der State University of New York at Albany
erworben hat ein "Master of Science at State University of New York at
Albany". Gleichzeitig werden auch zulaessige Abkuerzungen mitgeteilt
(Bsp: M.S. (SUNYA)).
Fuer alle Bundeslaender ausser Bayern:
Es gibt noch den zweiten Weg (ausser in Bayern): Man kann einen im Ausland
erworbenen Titel als gleichwertig einem deutschen anerkennen lassen. Die
Bearbeitung ist dann im allgemeinen etwas aufwendiger (laenger, teurer).
Das Ergebniss ist, dass man sich dann statt Ph.D Dr. phil nennen darf (oder
auch Dr. rer. nat.). Die Details sind von Bundesland zu Bundesland sehr
verschieden. Diese Anerkennung kann auch abgelehnt werden.
12. Questions and Answers
12.1 American Electronics in Germany
If you wish to use domestic-American electronics in Germany you encounter
difficulties such as:
- German plugs have a different shape.
- The medium wave (AM) frequencies have different spacings (9kHz/10 kHz). This
might cause problems with digital receivers.
- The voltage / frequency in Germany is 220-240 V / 50 Hz and not 110 V /
60 Hz, as it is in the US. Improper voltage / frequency could result in
serious damage.
- TVs use the PAL norm. American televisions use the NTSC norm.
These two norms are incompatible. I.e., an American television
in Germany will not work and vice-versa.
Similarly, PAL format videotapes will not display properly using an NTSC
based VCR and vice-versa. There is a service in Raleigh, NC (see below)
where video conversion from any format to any other format can be made
(VHS, VHS-C and 8 mm types of cassettes) for a fee. This will allow playback
of videotapes made overseas using U.S. TV's and VCR's (PAL,
SECAM --> NTSC) and vice-versa (NTSC --> PAL, SECAM, etc....)
INTERNATIONAL VIDEO CONVERSION
520 Harvest Lane
Raleigh, NC 27606-2217
(919) 233-8689
Fees: $20.00 + $5.00 S&H
(Price of a High Grade Cassette Included, 2hrs or less)
Delivery: Mailed back the next day, express shipping at request.
Payment: Cheque, Cash or Money Order mailed with tape.
OR:
sasjrm@unx.sas.com does it for $5 per tape + $3 for the blank tape.
(formats: ntsc, pal, npal, mpal, secam, msecam)
OR:
Conversion Labs
2250 Monroe St #263
Santa Clara, CA 95050
(408) 985 2098
$20 / tape (up to 2h, each add. hour $ 10). Tape, S&H included.
mail only, next day shipping, overnight available. Check, cash,
money order.
NTSC (8mm, Hi8, VHS) -> PAL (VHS)
12.2 Facts about phones in Germany
THE LAW: The German phone system is operated by German Telekom. There are
no private long-distance/local phone companies. Every phone/fax/modem
you connect to a phone line needs to be approved by the German
telekom. Approved appliances have a special sticker with a
ZZF number on the back.
You may own a phone but you may not connect it to the public system
unless it has a ZFF number. You may not own radios or cordless
phones which are not approved.
German Telekom: Telekom is a state-owned company. It split from the
German mail (Bundespost) a couple of years ago. It tries to
act like a private company but doesn't quite measure-up
because it lacks competition and for various historical
reasons. Some things might change vis-a-vis German Telekom
with the advent of the E. E. C.
Pulse dial phones should work in Germany. Tone dial is not common and is unavail
in most areas. This is changing, however.
Cordless phones are a real problem. In Germany, cordless phones operate on
different frequencies than in most other countries. The frequencies many
foreign phones use are used by others (police, 911, radio, TV ...).
Therefore,
USE ONLY APPROVED CORDLESS PHONES !!! OR THEY _WILL_ GET YOU !!!
Problems are possible with Hong Kong/British pulse dial phones because
the pulses in Britain/Hong Kong are not exactly the same shape as in
Germany. But the phone system is very tolerant and with most of these
phones you can switch to the other system anyway (same for Modems).
The wall outlets for phones in Germany have a different shape than the usual
modular plug. There are adapters available in Germany (about 2.50-20 DM). These
adapters are no problems with phones.
12.3 The new german zip codes
Until end of june 1993:
every ZIP code has one letter and four digits. The letter is a "W" for former
west Germany and a "O" for east Germany.
You can get these ZIP codes via gopher at the infoserver of the RWTH Aachen.
The also have them as a file for FTP.
June 1993 and latter:
Beginning 7/1/93 all ZIP codes get changed. The ZIP codes have than 5 digits.
There is no easy way to convert the old to new ZIP codes. Diverse files with
new and old ZIP codes you find at ftp.uni-stuttgart.de (/info/allgemein/PLZ).
Get the README file out of this directory for more information.
Thomas Bullinger has writen a mailserver. To get a ZIP code send a mail
msg. to bulli@kodak.com. The subject line should be: #PLZ# name-of the town.
The name of the town has to be spelled in CAPS. Add your E-mail address to
the Subject.
example: To : bulli@kodak.com
Subj.: #PLZ# ELLWANGEN ju8025@csc.albany.edu
One city might now have more than one ZIP code. Big companies get there own
codes (like the US zip code system).
The German mail also maintains a toll free number (0130-55555) to ask for a
ZIP code. It is not possible to call this number from outside germany. (If
somebody knows how, please tell !!!).
The 4 digit ZIP codes will of course still work. But letters will take longer
if you use the old code.
12.4 Public Phones in Germany
Public phones in germany work more or less like everywhere with some special
exceptions:
In germany are now quite a lot of card-phones. But don't mix them up with
american style card-phones. German phone-card can be bougth at any post
- AT&T: 0130 0010
- MCI : 0130 0012
Ask these companies for details. The numbers starting with 0130 are toll free.
At public phones you might have to enter first 30 Pfennig (the minimum price
for a call). But you will get the money back.
At card-phones it is not possible to use money. If you have neither change
nor a phone card there are nice public phones at post offices. Some of them
have a (tiny)
--
Johannes Ullrich ju8025@csc.albany.edu
SUNY Albany ju8025@albnyvms.bitnet
Center for X-Ray Optics phone (518) 442 4496
************************ Have fun *********************************************