TELECOM Digest     Thu, 22 Sep 2005 14:42:00 EDT    Volume 24 : Issue 433

Inside This Issue:                             Editor: Patrick A. Townson

    Vonage Urged to Consider Sale, Float (Reuters News Wire)
    Intel Sees Wimax Trials in Asia by End of 2005 (Jennifer Tan)
    Houston/Galveston Residents Urged to Flee as Rita Nears (Alicia Caldwell)
    Cellular-News for Thursday 22nd September 2005 (Cellular-News)
    Verizon Signs Disney for Television Service (US Telecom Daily Lead)
    Re: SBC Cutting Work Force; Blames Competition (tkrill)
    Re: Louisiana Official Caught Ripping Off Donations (DevilsPGD)
    Re: Roaming Charges (J Kelly)

Telecom and VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Digest for the
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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.  

----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Reuters News Wire <reuters@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Vonage Urged to Consider Sale, Float, According to Financial Times
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 11:34:10 -0500


Vonage Holdings Corp., which provides residential phone services over
the Internet, is being urged to consider a sale while it presses ahead
with plans for a public float, the Financial Times reported on
Thursday.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the Financial Times said UBS
and Deutsche Bank, the investment banks chosen by Vonage to underwrite
its stock market listing, have been suggesting the company pursue a
"parallel process."

This would involve seeking out or responding to expressions of
interest from potential buyers while moving forward with plans to
raise up to $600 million from a listing.

A takeover agreement struck last week for auction Web site EBay
Inc. to buy Internet phone-calling phenomenon Skype for up to $4.1
billion has lead to suggestions that Vonage could also fetch a
generous price in a sale.

Analysts have estimated that Vonage, which is based in New Jersey, is
worth between $1 billion and $1.5 billion, the newspaper said.

Vonage provides discounted local and long-distance phone services to
about 800,000 households, making it the largest U.S. Internet-based
phone company.

Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.

For other news of interest go to 
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/newstoday.html

------------------------------

From: Jennifer Tan <reuters@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Intel Sees Wimax Trials in Asia End of 2005
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 11:36:17 -0500


By Jennifer Tan

Intel Corp., the world's largest microchip maker, said on Thursday it
expected to implement trials of the emerging wireless broadband
technology called "WiMax" in Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines by
year-end.

Intel, which makes the microprocessor chips that function as the
brains of over 80 percent of the world's personal computers, has been
the driving force behind the deployment of WiMax, a wireless data
network that promises to blanket entire cities with high-speed
Internet links.

"The trials of the technology are starting now, and we see
(commercial) roll-out worldwide over the next two to three years,"
Sean Maloney, the head of Intel's mobility unit, told Reuters. "But
it's patchy -- some places will be faster than others."

Indonesia and Vietnam would be next in line to try out the technology
next year, he added.

Intel has carried out trials with 100 telecoms carriers globally, with
25 in the Asia Pacific region. It is also helping South Korea's top
fixed-line and broadband operator KT Corp. set up WiMax in its
domestic market.

South Korea is set to be the leader in WiMax, with commercial roll-out
seen in the first half of next year, Maloney added.

BANKING ON WIMAX

In a bid to grow beyond the PC box, Intel has spent millions investing
in emerging technologies like WiMax, touting it as the long-distance
broadband Internet sibling of Wi-Fi, the wireless computer standard
popularized in coffee bars and restaurants.

The company, which has been punished by investors for its close ties
to the highly cyclical PC market, can no longer count on computer
demand to expand at the same rapid clip as before.

Intel, which competes with smaller rival, Advanced Micro Devices Inc.,
also plans to build WiMax chips into laptop chipsets, just like it
started selling Wi-Fi chips as a part of its Centrino range of
notebook computers two years ago.

"WiMax will be one of those growth avenues, and everything to do with
mobile computing as well," Maloney said.

"Sales of notebooks, PCs and general computer infrastructure following
WiMax will benefit Intel -- if you enable more and more people to get
connected to the Internet, it's likely more people will end up buying
computers."

Maloney said Intel would usually work with the regulator or government
in each country, as well as some of the largest telecoms carriers and
Internet Service Providers (ISPs).

It is working with True Corp., which owns TA Orange PCL, Thailand's
third-largest mobile operator, and Telekom Malaysia, the country's
dominant phone company.

Leighton Phillips, director of Intel's Southeast Asia solutions group,
said the company was engaging with five government agencies and three
companies in Thailand, which would provide a critical mass to
implement wireless broadband services for the rural population.

Intel believes WiMax can facilitate better education, healthcare,
agricultural productivity and incomes, he added.

"About 65 to 70 percent of the community is rural suburban in
Southeast Asia -- about 300 million people, which is a little bit less
than the U.S., and for a government that's interested in economic
development, this is high on the agenda," he said.

Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.

Get aquainted with Telecom Digest Extra at http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra

------------------------------

From: Alicia A. Caldwell <ap@telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Houston/Galveston Residents Urged to Flee from Rita
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 11:26:00 -0500


By ALICIA A. CALDWELL, Associated Press Writer 11 minutes ago

Traffic came to a standstill and gas shortages were reported Thursday
as hundreds of thousands of people in the Houston metropolitan area
rushed to get out of the path of Hurricane Rita, a monster storm with
165 mph winds. As residents of the area tried to make phone calls to
family and friends to tell them about their arrival, they also found
the phone system nearly useless on Wednesday and Thursday.

More than 1.3 million residents in Texas and Louisiana were under
orders to evacuate to avoid a deadly repeat of Katrina.

The Category 5 storm weakened slightly Thursday morning, and
forecasters said it could lose more steam by the time it comes ashore
late Friday or early Saturday. But it could still be an extremely
dangerous hurricane -- one aimed straight at a section of coastline
with the nation's biggest concentration of oil refineries.

"Don't follow the example of Katrina and wait. No one will come and
get you during the storm," Harris County Judge Robert Eckels said in
Houston. Busses are leaving now, get on board or take your own cars.

In New Orleans, meanwhile, Rita's outer bands brought the first rain
to the city since Rita, raising fears that the patched-up levees could
give way and cause a new round of flooding. 

Highways leading inland out of Houston were clogged with
bumper-to-bumper traffic for up to 100 miles north of the city. Gas
stations were reported to be running out of gas. Shoppers emptied
grocery store shelves of spaghetti, tuna and other nonperishable
items. Hotels hundreds of miles inland filled up. Police officers
along the highways carried gasoline to help motorists who ran out.

To speed the evacuation out of the nation's fourth-largest city, Gov. Rick
Perry ordered a halt to all southbound traffic into Houston along Interstate
45 and took the unprecedented stop of directing the opening all eight lanes
to northbound traffic out of the city for 125 miles. I-45 is the primary
evacuation route north from Houston and Galveston.

Trazanna Moreno tried to leave Houston for the 225-mile trip to Dallas
on U.S. 90 but turned back after getting stuck in traffic.

"We ended up going six miles in two hours and 45 minutes," said
Moreno, whose neighborhood is not expected to flood. "It could be that
if we ended up stranded in the middle of nowhere that we'd be in a
worse position in a car dealing with hurricane-force winds than we
would in our house.

With traffic at a dead halt, fathers and sons got out of their cars
and played catch on freeway medians. Others stood next to their cars,
videotaping the scene, or walked between vehicles, chatting with
people along the way. Tow trucks tried to wend their way along the
shoulders, pulling stalled cars out of the way.

Hotels hours inland filled up, all the way to the Oklahoma and Arkansas
line.

John Decker, 47, decided to board up his home and hunker down because
he could not find a hotel room.

"I've been calling since yesterday morning all the way up to about 1
this morning. No vacancies anywhere," he said. "I checked all the way
from here to Del Rio to Eagle Pass. I called as far as Lufkin, San
Marcos, San Angelo.  The only place I didn't call was El Paso. By the
time you reach El Paso, it's almost time to turn back."

At 11 a.m. EDT, Rita was centered about 460 miles southeast of
Galveston and was moving at near 9 mph. It winds were 165 mph, down
slightly from 175 mph earlier in the day. Forecasters predicted it
would come ashore somewhere between the Houston-Galveston area and
western Louisiana. Baytown and Texas City were also braced for the
worst, as was Beaumont. 

Hurricane-force winds extended 85 miles from the center of the storm,
and even a slight rightward turn could prove devastating to the
Katrina-fractured levees protecting New Orleans. Engineers rushed to
fix the city's pumps and fortify its levees.

Forecasters said Rita could be the strongest hurricane on record ever
to hit Texas. Only three Category 5 hurricanes, the highest on the
scale, are known to have hit the U.S. mainland -- most recently,
Andrew, which smashed South Florida in 1992. Katrina was technically 
not as bad; it dropped to Category 4 when it actually landed. Experts
are divided in their opinions on whether Rita will also decrease in
ferocity a little when it reaches the shore. 

The U.S. mainland has never been hit by both a Category 4 and a
Category 5 in the same season. Katrina came ashore Aug. 29 as a
Category 4 hurricane, and until last week, Rita was a Category 2
storm for awhile, as an illustration of how these storms can both
build up in intensity and slack off within a few days at sea. 

Galveston, Corpus Christi and surrounding Nueces County, low-lying
parts of Houston, and mostly emptied-out New Orleans were under
mandatory evacuation orders as Rita swirled across the Gulf of Mexico,
drawing energy with terrifying efficiency from its warm waters.

"It's not worth staying here," said Celia Martinez as she and several
relatives finished packing up their homes and pets. "Life is more
important than things."

Along the Gulf Coast, federal, state and local officials heeded the
bitter lessons of Katrina: Hundreds of buses were dispatched to
evacuate the poor.  Hospital and nursing home patients were cleared
out. And truckloads of water, ice and ready-made meals, and rescue and
medical teams were put on standby.

"Now is not a time for warnings. Now is a time for action," Houston
Mayor Bill White said.

He added: "There is no good place to put a shelter that could take a
direct hit from a Category 5 hurricane. I don't want anybody out there
watching this and thinking that somebody is bound to open a local
school for me on Friday, not with a hurricane packing these kinds of
winds; consider New Orleans. (Mayor) Ragin thought their arena should 
hold up okay. Look how it got after two or three days. We are not even
going to try that approach. Just get out now! Buses are loading and
pulling out every few minutes."

Galveston was a virtual ghost town by late Wednesday. The coastal city
of 58,000 -- situated on an island 8 feet above sea level -- was
nearly wiped off the map in 1900 when an unnamed hurricane killed
between 6,000 and 12,000 in what is still the nation's deadliest
natural disaster.

City Manager Steve LeBlanc said the storm surge from Rita could reach
50 feet. Galveston is protected by a nearly 11-mile-long granite
seawall 17 feet tall.

"Not a good picture for us," LeBlanc said.

In Houston, the state's largest city and home to the highest
concentration of Katrina refugees, geography makes evacuation
particularly tricky. While many hurricane-prone cities are right on
the coast, Houston is 60 miles inland, so a coastal suburban area of 2
million people must evacuate through a metropolitan area of 4 million
people where the freeways are often clogged under the best of
circumstances.

Galveston Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas said buses used to take people and their
pets off the island were running in short supply Wednesday and warned that
stragglers could be left to fend for themselves. She warned, "Don't
miss the last bus; better get started now. No telling if we will have
any phone service next week if you then decide you want help."

Meanwhile, the death toll from Katrina passed the 1,000 mark Wednesday
in five Gulf Coast states. The body count in Louisiana alone was put
at nearly 800, with most of the corpses found in the receding
floodwaters of New Orleans.

Crude oil prices rose again on fears that Rita would destroy key oil
installations in Texas and the gulf. Hundreds of workers were
evacuated from offshore oil rigs. Texas, the heart of U.S. crude
production, accounts for 25 percent of the nation's total oil output.

Rita is the 17th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, making
this the fourth-busiest season since record-keeping started in
1851. The record is 21 tropical storms in 1933. The hurricane season
is not over until Nov.  30. 

Associated Press writers Deborah Hastings and Juan A. Lozano in Houston,
Lynn Brezosky in Corpus Christi and Pam Easton in Galveston contributed to
this report.

On the Net:
National Hurricane Center: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.

More AP News headlines at http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/AP.html

------------------------------

Subject: Cellular-News for Thursday 22nd September 2005
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 07:40:26 -0500
From: Cellular-News <dailydigest@cellular-news.com>


Cellular-News - http://www.cellular-news.com

  UK Mobile Content Market Worth Over US$1 Billion
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14147.php

A new report from MINTEL finds that the UK's mobile phone junkies set
to blow a massive US$1.3 billion on phone downloads this year alone,
some eighteen times the US$72 million spent in 2002....

  Court Rules SMS Spam is Illegal
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14148.php

An Arizona appellate court has ruled that sending automated SMS
adverts to mobile phones breaches an old 1991 federal law than bans
telecoms autodialers from making outbound calls to phones. The court
ruled that as the f...

  China Mobile Orders Mediation Platform
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14149.php

Intec has signed a contract with Beijing Mobile, a subsidiary of China
Mobile, to adopt its multi-service convergent mediation solution,
Inter-mediatE. Intec will partner with HP China to undertake system
integration for...

  TD-CDMA Used to Connect WiFi Hotspots on Trains
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14150.php

IPWireless has announced UMTS RailLink, a new network solution that
allows operators to offer high-speed broadband connectivity and WiFi
access even in the world's fastest trains. Passengers will be able to
use their WiF...

  Ericsson Wins Israeli 3G Contract
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14151.php

Israel's GSM network operator, Partner Communications, which trades
under the Orange brand name has announced that Ericsson has been
selected as the second vendor to supply it with 3G UMTS/HSDPA
infrastructure equipment....

  NEC Launch Worlds Thinnest Clamshell Phone
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14152.php

NEC has launched what it says is the world's thinnest fold-Type mobile
phone with mega-pixel camera on the Hong Kong market. Following this,
the ultra-thin model will also be introduced in Italy, Russia,
Australia and Ch...

  Crazy Frog Ringtones Firm Loses Legal Action
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14153.php

The company behind "that annoying thing" - namely the crazy frog
ringtone has lost a UK court action to prevent publication of a
negative statement about the company's advertising practices. The UK's
Advertising Standard...

  Mobile Music to Breakout Next Year
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14154.php

The convergence of digital music and mobile phones is likely to
develop at a steady pace according to a new report published by The
NPD Group. The report, which explores consumer demand for mobile
music, is based on a su...


  Calls for Tighter Controls on Phone Use While Driving
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14155.php

The USA's National Transportation Safety Board has urged individual
States to prohibit inexperienced teenaged drivers from using wireless
communications devices while they are learning to drive. The NTSB
notes that road ...

  T-Mobile Wins 20 Millionth Customer in the USA
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14156.php

T-Mobile USA has now has surpassed 20 million wireless customers,
having doubled its customer base during the past 10 quarters. The
company credits this achievement in part to the success it has had in
delivering on its ...

  Secrets on Mobiles Revealed When You're in the Bathroom
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14157.php

Two out of three people read their partner's SMS messages, almost nine
out of ten have flirted with someone by SMS, and 6% feel it is alright
to break up with someone by sending an SMS message. These are some of
the find...

  Battery Life Still a Concern for Mobile Phone Users
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14158.php

Two-thirds of mobile phone and PDA users rate 'two-days of battery
life during active use' as the most important feature of an ideal
converged device of the future, according to a new study by TNS. The
study, conducted a...

  Lawsuit Decision Threatens US Prepaid Wireless Market - report
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14159.php

Yankee Group says that the May 2005 decision against Boston
Communications Group (BCGI) and its codefendants, Cingular Wireless
and Western Wireless -- and the subsequent US$128 million awarded to
the plaintiff, Freedom Wi...

  Orange Launches New SPV To Lead Business Device Range
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14140.php

Orange, the mobile arm of France Telecom SA (FTE), Wednesday launched
its newest SPV handset, which will spearhead its mobile device range
for the business market. ...

  Nokia: Vodafone To Use Nokia 6680 In Japanese Lineup
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14141.php

Finland's Nokia Oyj (NOK) said Wednesday that the Nokia 6680 device
will be available through Vodafone K.K. in Japan. ...

  Hong Kong Telecom Regulator Seeks Views On Unified License
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14142.php

Hong Kong's telecommunications regulator  is seeking the public's view
on the introduction of a  unified license for fixed and mobile telecom
services,  as new  technologies point  toward convergence  of  the two
types of servi...

  EU Proposes Rules Requiring Telecoms Cos To Store Data
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14143.php

BRUSSELS (Dow Jones--The European Commission Wednesday proposed new
rules for telecommunications companies to store fixed line and
internet call data as part of tough new anti-terrorism measures. ...

  Nokia Says Sales Top 1 Billion Handsets
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14144.php

HELSINKI (AP)--Nokia Corp. (NOK), the world's largest mobile phone
maker, said Wednesday it has sold more than 1 billion handsets and
estimated that more than 2 billion people use mobile phones
worldwide. ...

  Qualcomm Boosts 4Q, FY05 View On Strong Demand
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14145.php

Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) boosted its fourth-quarter and fiscal 2005
guidance, based on strong market demand for its 3G Code Division
Multiple Access and other wireless technology. ...

  Siemens Statement On Com Unit Restructuring Thursday-IG Metall
  http://www.cellular-news.com/story/14146.php

German technology company Siemens AG (SI) is set to make a statement
Thursday after reaching an agreement with employee representatives on
the restructuring of the ailing telecommunications equipment unit, or
Com, IG Met...

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 13:24:28 EDT
From: USTelecom dailyLead <ustelecom@dailylead.com>
Subject: Verizon Signs Disney for TV Service


USTelecom dailyLead
September 22, 2005
http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=24823&l=2017006

		TODAY'S HEADLINES
	
NEWS OF THE DAY
* Verizon signs Disney for TV service
BUSINESS & INDUSTRY WATCH
* Study: Broadband penetration growth slows
* Alltel may spin off local phone business
* Vonage urged to consider sale
* Dell in wireless broadband deal with Cingular Wireless
* EarthLink gets into VoIP game
* Sprint moves business customers to IP network
* Sprint Nextel raises merger-savings projection
USTELECOM SPOTLIGHT
* Think TELECOM '05 is not for you?  Think Again.
TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
* Verizon tests fuel cell technology to cut power costs
* Microsoft lagging in search battle
* Intel sets WiMAX tests for three Asian countries
* Wireless TV is on the way
REGULATORY & LEGISLATIVE
* Judge approves WorldCom payout
* The tech docket
* Opinion: New emergency communications network should go beyond radio

Follow the link below to read quick summaries of these stories and others.
http://www.dailylead.com/latestIssue.jsp?i=24823&l=2017006

------------------------------

From: handle with care <tkrill@ameritech.net>
Subject: Re: SBC Cutting Work Force; Blames Competition
Date: 22 Sep 2005 09:57:39 -0700
Organization: http://groups.google.com


How do we get more people that work for SBC in the midwest and
Wisconsin to post?


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Begin by making sure they are aware
that this list exists, and encourage them to use it. I personally
have no love lost for SBC, but I certainly do not discriminate against
any SBC (or other telco) employee who wishes to post here. One
difficulty these days is there are _so many_ various lists and
discussion groups on telphony subjects around the net; no one could
begin (or would wish to) post in every single one of them. This is
not like fifteen or twenty years ago on the net, where there was but
a single discussion forum for telecom topics (comp.dcom.telecom) and
everyone used it. By all means, let them know I am still around
also, but do not spam to do it. PAT]

------------------------------

From: DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net>
Subject: Re: Louisiana Official Caught Ripping Off Donations
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 02:11:17 -0600
Organization: Disorganized


In message <telecom24.432.3@telecom-digest.org> Associated Press News
Wire <ap@telecom-digest.org>  wrote:

> Police found cases of food, clothing and tools intended for hurricane
> victims at the home of the chief administrative officer for a New
> Orleans suburb, authorities said Wednesday.

> Officers searched Cedric Floyd's home because of complaints that city
> workers were helping themselves to donations for hurricane
> victims. Floyd, who runs the day-to-day operations in the suburb of
> Kenner, was in charge of distributing the goods.

> Police plan to seek a charge of committing an illegal act as a public
> official against Floyd, and more charges against other city workers
> are possible, police Capt. Steve Caraway said.

That seems like an odd reaction.  Perhaps he should be airdropped just
ahead of Rita and we'll call it even?


[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: If we wish to be consistent here, we
need to remember all the looting in general which took place over 
several days there. And the 'city workers' who were helping themselves
to the lately-given donations, etc were not doing much different,
except perhaps it is okay to loot a store with merchandise for sale at
a profit, but not okay to loot merchandise intended for give-away to
the victims. Also recall, many of the city workers involved were also
themselves victims and were entitled to the same help as the other
victims were receiving. My thought would be since the city workers
were staying on the job trying to assist the other victims, perhaps
some 'professional courtesy' reciprocation should be allowed
(i.e. they get first pick of the donations, etc just as they are
getting the first pick of the temporary mobile homes as they become
available.) Just don't get greedy about it or make a big issue of
showing the other victims what is happening.  PAT]

------------------------------

From: J Kelly <jkelly@*newsguy.com>
Subject: Re: Roaming Charges
Date: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 10:41:07 -0500
Organization: http://newsguy.com
Reply-To: jkelly@*newsguy.com


On Tue, 20 Sep 2005 23:52:16 GMT, Ken Abrams <k_ab
rams@[REMOVETHIS] sbcglobal.net> wrote:

> J Kelly <jkelly@*newsguy.com> wrote:

>> On 16 Sep 2005 05:33:58 -0000, John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> wrote:

>>>> This raises a question I thought of recently, but had not bothered to
>>>> ask anyone about.  Suppose I start a cell call in local but move to a
>>>> roaming tower during the call?  Does the call get charged as roaming
>>>> or not?

>>> I doubt you'd get a handoff in a situation like that.  It'd drop the
>>> call and you'd call back.

>> I worked for a small cellular carrier about 7 years ago.  I would
>> routinely test handoffs from our network to the network adjacent to
>> us.

> If this was 7 years ago, I'm guessing it was analog service; it
> certainly was not GSM.  I'd be interested to see what happens on some
> of those calls today using GSM service.  Often things touted as "new
> and improved" aren't.  That's my impression of GSM, at least the way
> it is being implemented now.  While it is hard for a user to tell when
> a call is handed off to another site, I don't think I have ever had a
> successful hand-off with GSM.  I have, however, had a LOT of calls
> dropped when moving ... sometimes just a few feet.

It was analog.  I've used GSM (we got GSM here in 1997, btw).  Worked
great.  Never handed off between networks with it (there is no other
network to hand to) but routinely would drive 50+ miles on the same
call and not drop.  And I know that CDMA can hand off, either soft or
hard.  I'm guessing here, but it probably has to do a hard handoff
between networks (or other MTSOs on the same network) while a soft
handoff can occur between sites on the same MTSO.

------------------------------


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Visit http://www.mstm.okstate.edu and take the next step in your
career with a Master of Science in Telecommunications Management
(MSTM) degree from Oklahoma State University (OSU). This 35
credit-hour interdisciplinary program is designed to give you the
skills necessary to manage telecommunications networks, including
data, video, and voice networks.

The MSTM degree draws on the expertise of the OSU's College
of Business Administration; the College of Arts and Sciences; and the
College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology. The program has
state-of-the-art lab facilities on the Stillwater and Tulsa campus
offering hands-on learning to enhance the program curriculum.  Classes
are available in Stillwater, Tulsa, or through distance learning.

Please contact Jay Boyington for additional information at
405-744-9000, mstm-osu@okstate.edu, or visit the MSTM web site at
http://www.mstm.okstate.edu

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End of TELECOM Digest V24 #433
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