Aucbvax.2817
fa.telecom
utzoo!decvax!ucbvax!telecom
Wed Aug 26 01:29:46 1981
>From geoff Wed Aug 26 01:29:41 1981
>From JSol@RUTGERS Tue Aug 25 21:45:21 1981
Date: 26 Aug 1981 0025-EDT
From: Jonathan Alan Solomon <JSOL AT RUTGERS>
Subject: TELECOM Digest V1 #2
To: Telecom: ;
TELECOM AM Digest Wednesday, 26 Aug 1981 Volume 1 : Issue 2
Today's Topics: SJM Editorial on Dimension - Replies
International Direct Distance Dialing - How It's Done
----------------------------------------------------------------------
TRB@MIT-MC 08/25/81 09:15:05 Re: SJM Editorial on Dimension
We had a dimension at school about five years ago and here at
Bell Labs there are Dimensions all over the place. I believe
that the Dimension tries to implement good features. On the
other hand, the editorial writer just sees these features as an
invasion on his humanity. Just another case of the industrial
revolution doing its thing; we'll just have to wait for all the
old fashioned people to die, and all that.
My complaints about Dimension are not with its intent, but rather
its actions. Dimensions crash now and then, not nearly as often
as DEC hardware, but too often. Centrex never used to crash.
Dimensions here get fried by electrical storms and have other
problems. With the good old Centrex, I never had to worry about
how long I depressed the switchhook. With Dimension, this is a
major problem. Not only that, but our Dimensions (which are used
for data transmission, I have six handsets in my office, two each
for three people, one for talk, one for data) do not have the
call forwarding features enabled (so it seems). But I still have
to depress the switchhook for a full half second, though
depressing it for shorter never buys me any functionality. What
a pain in the ass. Also, many of the tie-lines are noisy, but
that probably isn't a Dimension problem.
So I, Bell System drone, have complaints about this Bell System
product, but unlike that editor, my complaints involve its action
rather than its intention.
Andy Tannenbaum
Bell Labs Whippany, NJ
------------------------------
From: Jonathan Alan Solomon <JSOL AT RUTGERS>
Subject: Dimension switching, ESS, delays, contests
The first day our town got ESS switching I was down at the phone store
ordering all the nifty features I could get my paws on. I was about 12
years old and my parents had to vouch for me, but they were "old
fashioned" so I had to settle for my own line (was I complaining?)
with the nifty features. It was easy for me to adjust to using ESS's
features, so when I was introduced to Dimension I was impressed at how
ESS's features were improved (Don't ya just LOVE those loud CLICKS and
BEEPS in your ear when a second call comes through?).
I also did not like having to hang up for a WHOLE 2 SECONDS before the
machinery would reset and allow me a fresh dialtone, what a royal pain
it was dialing up the radio station trying to be a contest winner ("be
the 9th caller at 555-2345 and win a free ticket to nowhere!"), but
that was only if the line was outside the ESS computer, because if it
was internal it would immediately know you didnt complete the call and
reset at a 1/2 second "click" of the "switchook". I won many contests
due to having my radio station contest line in one of the Accumulators
of 3-way calling. Thank goodness for user-changable codes, I was
driving the Phone company crazy changing the codes once a week or so!
My point (trying not to digress TOO much) is that the long delay
is not specific to Dimension, in fact it is an improvement over
ESS!
/Jsol
(Not-Working-For-Ma-Bell)
------------------------------
Date: 25 Aug 1981 1348-PDT (Tuesday)
From: Lauren at UCLA-SECURITY (Lauren Weinstein)
Subject: International Direct Distance Dialing
To: TELECOM at AI
The standard format for IDDD calls from the U.S. is:
011 -- IDDD access code
Country Code -- one to three digits
City/Regional Code (where required -- length varies widely)
Subscriber Number (varies VERY widely)
So, for example, a call to the speaking clock in Sydney would be:
011+66+2+2074+#
(where '#' does indeed avoid the necessity of waiting for incoming
register timeout on dialed digits.)
Also existing within the IDDD plan (though not fully implemented at
the subscriber level, apparently) is an alternate dialing sequence for
operator assistance in the terminating country. This would be the
sequence used for direct-dialed person-to-person and special calls, as
well as operator dialed calls. For this type of call, the access code
is 01 instead of 011, with the remainder of the sequence identical to
above. This is exactly analogous to intra-U.S. "EDDD" calls where 0
is used as the toll access instead of the more usual 1.
IDDD calls are completed in two stages. First, the local office (or
more usually, the local TSPS) connects over the domestic toll network
to an overseas gateway "sender". Once the sender is connected, the
office sends the actual destination address (country code, city code,
etc.) to the sender, which then completes the call via the
international "trunks". In the case of calls requiring operator
assistance in the destination country, the sender also sends a
"language digit" to the terminating country, so that an appropriate
operator can be selected. (In the case of English, the language digit
is 2.)
That's probably more than anyone really wanted to know.
--Lauren--
------------------------------
End of TELECOM Digest
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