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TELECOM Digest Wed, 23 Nov 2005 01:41:00 EST Volume 24 : Issue 530 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Hollywood and BitTorrent Reach Agreement (Gary Gentile) CBS and Google in Talks About Video Search (Kenneth Li) Moving Up the Phone Chain (Dan Tynan) Ten to Avoid - The Worst Products of 2005 (Jim Louderbach) Disability Groups Call for Telecom Legislation (Nigel Allen) Media Services Registration With PBX (Hemal Shah) Re: Grandpa Gets Sued Over Grandson's Downloads From Net (Seth Breidbart) Re: Showdown with USA Over Internet Control (Seth Breidbart) Re: Tis (Almost) the Season to be Jolly (Lisa Hancock) Re: Spyware Maker Sues Detection Firm (Seth Breidbart) Telecom and VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Digest for the Internet. All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson 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 the recipients of the email. =========================== Addresses herein are not to be added to any mailing list, nor to be sold or given away without explicit written consent. 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; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Gary Gentile <ap@telecom-digest.org> Subject: Hollywood and BitTorrent Reach Agreement Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 23:06:36 -0600 By GARY GENTILE, AP Business Writer In a deal aimed at reducing illegal Internet traffic in pirated films, Hollywood reached an agreement Tuesday with the creator of the popular file-sharing software BitTorrent. The agreement requires 30-year-old software designer Bram Cohen to prevent his Web site, bittorrent.com, from locating pirated versions of popular movies, effectively frustrating people who search for illegal copies of films. BitTorrent must remove Web links leading to illegal content owned by the seven studios that are members of the Motion Picture Association of America. "BitTorrent Inc. discourages the use of its technology for distributing films without a license to do so," Cohen said in the statement. "As such, we are pleased to work with the film industry to remove unauthorized content from bittorrent.com's search engine." MPAA Chief Executive Dan Glickman declared, "They're leading the way for other companies by their example." The agreement represents the latest effort by the entertainment industry to discourage illegal Internet downloads. It also demonstrates Cohen's sensitivity toward Hollywood's piracy problems, making him potentially more attractive to studios for future deals related to movie downloads. Cohen disclosed in September his company had raised $8.75 million in venture funding to develop commercial distribution tools for media companies. The BitTorrent technology pioneered by Cohen -- and used by an estimated 45 million people -- assembles digital movies and other computer files from separate bits of data downloaded from other computer users across the Internet. Its decentralized nature makes downloading more efficient but also frustrates the entertainment industry's efforts to find and identify movie pirates. The agreement with Cohen would not prevent determined Internet users from finding movies or other materials using tools or Web sites other than Cohen's, but it removes one of the most convenient methods people have used. On the Net: BitTorrent: http://bittorrent.com Motion Picture Association: http://mpaa.org Associated Press Writer Ted Bridis in Washington contributed to this report. 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/newstoday.html ------------------------------ From: Kenneth Li & Michele Gershberg Subject: CBS in Talks With Google For Video Search Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 22:59:53 -0600 By Kenneth Li and Michele GershbergTue Nov 22, 2:36 PM ET U.S. television network CBS is in discussions with Internet media company Google Inc. for video search and on-demand video, CBS chairman Leslie Moonves said on Tuesday. Viacom-owned CBS, which is in the process of splitting itself apart from the faster growing MTV cable networks and Paramount film studios, is seeking other distribution outlets for its top ranked shows including the CSI franchise. "We're talking to them about a whole slew of things including video-on-demand, including video search," Moonves told Reuters in an interview regarding Google, ahead of Reuters's Media and Advertising Summit next week. Such talks are occurring across the media industry at a time when entertainment companies are wary of new technologies like the Internet and video games that appear to siphon off consumers of traditional media. Moonves, however, said he saw more opportunities on the Internet to boost CBS's reach and bottom line. CBS's discussions have not been restricted to Google and have also included talks with Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news), although no deals have yet been struck. "They need our content, we need their technology," he said, referring to broader discussions with Internet companies. "We argue about which is more important. I think ultimately my content, no matter how you get it, content is still the most important thing." In September, Viacom's UPN television network struck a deal with Google to offer exclusive video streams of its "Everybody Hates Chris" comedy show. The premier show was offered for four days at Google Video service. Google is just one of a handful of big Internet companies that seek to offer video programming on the Web. Yahoo is seeking to license more video for its service. But finding a way for media and Internet companies to work together has not been without snafus. Shortly after Google debuted its video search in June, copyrighted videos from random users crept onto the service, drawing the ire of the very media companies Google aimed to attract. Google removed the videos after a few days. Then there's digital video recording technology company TiVo Inc., whose early plans to let some of its customers send recorded videos directly to Apple Computer Inc.'s new iPod digital media player could set the stage for the next copyright fight. "There's some intellectual property questions about the situation," Moonves said about TiVo's plans. What's certain is big media needs to offer legitimate alternatives. "Video on the Internet is taking off like mad," said Josh Bernoff, an analyst at Forrester Research, which has reported that about 46 percent of online households were already watching videos. Eyeing how the music industry's slow reaction to new technology ravaged sales, U.S. television networks have been busier experimenting online, Moonves said. "They'd be better off moving as quickly as possible to embrace these technologies," Bernoff added about television networks. MORE VOD WITH LES More shows are expected to be offered to cable, satellite television and wireless services as well, Moonves said. CBS announced a one-year deal to let Comcast Corp. cable customers view episodes of some of its shows at the click of their remote for 99 cents earlier this month. Moonves, who is also co-chief operating officer of Viacom, said the company was in talks with satellite television operator DirecTV Group Inc. for similar deals, although he did not specify when, or if, any deal would be struck. "We've spoken with DirecTV, sure," he said. "I think you'll see more and more of those deals happening along the way, as well as you'll see more and more deals like ABC did with the iPod." Although Moonves did not address discussions with Apple's iTunes service, which began selling episodes of ABC's "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives" in October, sources have said the two are in discussions. Viacom's widely held class b shares rose 3 cents to $33.67 on the New York Stock Exchange in afternoon trading. Google shares rose $6.03, or 1.47 percent to $415.39 on Nasdaq. 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. ------------------------------ From: Dan Tynan <techtuesday@telecom-digest.org> Subject: Moving Up the Phone Chain Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 23:02:49 -0600 By Dan Tynan Once upon a time, you carried a cell phone because you wanted to talk to other people without being tethered to a land line. Now the notion of merely talking while you're walking seems almost quaint. Today's top cell phones are more like pocket-size computers -- you can send e-mail, surf the Web, manage your schedule, snap photos, play games, and a whole lot more for just a few pennies a minute. As a result, cell phones are no longer one-size-fits-all. They vary widely in features, functionality, and cost. So if you're thinking of swapping out your tired old mobile phone for a slick new cell, you've got to figure out exactly what type of phone user you really are. To help you choose, we've divided the world into five types of mobile mavens, each of whom needs a slightly different kind of phone. But before you dive in, here are a few things to keep in mind. Nearly all phones are exclusive to a particular carrier. For example, if you want the Blackberry 7520, you'll have to be a Nextel subscriber; Motorola Razr fans need to sign up with Cingular. (Notable exceptions: Aficionados of the Palm Treo 650 and Nokia N-Gage can order them from multiple carriers.) In addition, prices for the same phone can vary wildly depending on where you buy it and what kind of plan you get, says Allan Keiter, president of MyRatePlan.com. Getting a phone with a two-year plan can knock 50 percent or more off the unit's retail price, but also locks you into technology that will quickly feel outdated. On the other hand, if you're upgrading your phone without also upgrading your plan, don't expect any discounts. Prices for the same phone also vary depending on whether you buy directly from the wireless carrier, an independent dealer, or an online retailer. Sites like MyRatePlan.com, Phone Scoop, and Wirefly offer interactive guides that let you sort phones by features and find the cheapest sources for them. Keiter advises consumers to find a carrier that offers good coverage in the areas where they're likely to use the phone, pick the phone they want, and then choose from the plans available for each phone. Now, on to a healthy dose of self-reflection. What kind of phone user are you? The Family Guy (or Gal) Profile: You don't travel much, but you need to be reachable when you're away from the house. More important, you want to keep track of other family members -- like your spouse, kids, or aging parents -- so you will probably want multiple phones. In short, you're looking for a model that's like you: maybe not the most stylish or hippest thing on the block, but rock-solid, dependable, and affordable. The features you want: You probably don't need a Web-enabled phone or one that checks e-mail, but if you've got teenage kids you'll want one that at least offers text messaging (virtually all phones do these days). A press-to-talk (walkie-talkie) feature comes in handy if you need to reach the kids when they're playing down the street or you want to find them in a crowded mall without using up your minutes. If you're buying a phone for your parents -- or you're getting on in years yourself -- you may actually want a bigger model like the Nokia 6019i (through U.S. Cellular) or Audiovox SMT5600 (Cingular) with a screen that's easier to read and buttons that are easier to push. That argues against the more-expensive, though sexier, flip and slider models. Larger phones also tend to have slightly better reception, though your mileage may vary. Price range: $50 to $150 The plan for you: Look for a mobile-to-mobile plan that lets you call others on the same network for free. If you just want to use the phone in town, a local calling plan will probably give you more minutes for your money, but you can really rack up the charges if you use it on the road. The Restless Commuter Profile: You spend big chunks of each day waiting--for buses, cabs, trains; in grocery stores, hair salons, traffic. You're easily bored, but you don't want to carry six different devices in your pocket. What you want is a phone that doubles as an entertainment device. The features you want: The kind of phone you get depends on how you like to waste -- er, spend -- your free time. If you want to surf while you wait, a full Web browser is essential--and fairly easy to find on most phones. Java-based phones typically come with a handful of games and the ability to download more, but serious players will want to take a gander at Nokia's N-Gage (Cingular, T-Mobile), which is essentially a handheld game machine with a phone inside. You can even play against other nearby N-Gage users via a Bluetooth connection. Like to rock out? Motoro Cingular, comes with a miniature IPod able to store 100 tunes. Generic MP3 players and FM radios are starting to show up in a wide range of mobile phones, and there's a slew of cells such as the LG Electronics VX9800 and Audiovox 8940 (both from Verizon) coming down the pike that feature multiple channels of TV content (see "Moving Pictures"). Price range: $150 and up The plan for you: Look for a high-speed data plan for downloading games and Web surfing. Adding TV will generally run you another $10 a month. The Raving Fashionista Your profile: For you, style is substance. It doesn't matter what you say, as long as you look good saying it. And not only does your phone need to be sleek, small, and able to enhance your outfit, it also has to be fun to use. So when you're out at a rave, you want a phone that lets you send a text message, snap a picture, then e-mail it to a friend or post it to your mobile blog. The features you want: There's probably no cooler gadget anywhere than the Motorola Razr V3 (Cingular). Just a half-inch thick, the Razr's top flips up to reveal a crisp, 2.2-inch color screen and a flat keypad outlined in neon blue. With LG's MM535 multimedia phone, available from Sprint, the screen slides up to reveal the keypad, while the Sony Ericsson S710a (Cingular) offers a unique swivel design. All offer relatively high-res 1.3-megapixel cameras that can capture still images or video, as well as messaging and e-mail programs. Price range: $200 and up The plan for you: Look for a low-cost media plan that lets you send a fixed number of text and picture messages for a flat monthly rate. The Road Warrior Your profile: You're a busy executive who needs to stay in constant touch. You spend your life going from meeting to meeting and airport to airport, but the world will stop turning if you're away from your cell phone or e-mail for more than half an hour. You need a phone that lets you be all thumbs -- but in a good way. The features you want: For you, e-mail and messaging are more important than voice, so you've got to have a QWERTY keypad. This phone will do double duty as your personal data assistant, which means you'll need a sophisticated scheduler, a copious address book, a to-do list manager, full browser capabilities, and the ability to view and edit documents. You won't need a camera, but you will need to sync with your PC via a USB or Bluetooth connection, and because such phones are awkward to talk into, you'll probably want a wireless Bluetooth headset. Style? Forget about it. These devices are really more like laptop substitutes. In short, you're looking for units like the Treo 650 (available from Cingular, Sprint, or Verizon), Audiovox 6600 (Sprint or Verizon), BlackBerry 7100g (Cingular), Samsung i730 (Verizon), or the T-Mobile Sidekick II. Price range: $200 to $600 The plan for you: In addition to voice minutes, you'll want a heavy-duty high-speed data plan. They generally start at around $40 a month. Your profile: You don't just go on trips, you go on expeditions. For you, "crossing the pond" is like taking a puddle jumper. Even if you remain largely in the continental United States, you spend more time in hotels than your average bellhop. You need a phone designed for the long haul. The features you want: If you travel outside the United States, look for a GSM phone that switches between multiple frequencies, such as the 850-MHz band used in the United States and Canada, and the 900-, 1800-, and 1900-MHz bands used virtually everywhere else. T-Mobile's Motorola V330 and Cingular's HP iPaq 6510 both operate on all four frequencies. You'll likely go a long time before seeing an AC outlet, so you'll want a phone with longer battery life; for example, the Sony Ericsson S710a (Cingular) is rated at 420 minutes of talk time and 300 hours of standby. If you're constantly visiting new cities, or want people to be able to find you easily, consider a unit with a Global Positioning System transponder built in, such as the BlackBerry 7520 (Nextel), which can pinpoint your location on a map and provide driving directions. Price range: $200 to $600 The plan for you: GPS services generally add $10 to $15 to your monthly bill. And take a good long look at those overseas long-distance charges -- you could end up paying more than a buck a minute in some places. Award-winning journalist Dan Tynan writes the Gadget Freak column for PC World and TechSmart for Attache magazine. His new book,Computer Privacy Annoyances(O'Reilly Media 2005), may someday be available on your cell phone (but probably not). Copyright 2005 Yahoo Tech Tuesday 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. *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. This Internet discussion group is making it available without profit to group members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of literary, educational, political, and economic issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. I believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner, in this instance, Yahoo.com For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ------------------------------ From: Jim Louderback <pcmagazine@telecom-digest.org> Subject: Ten to Avoid -- The Worst Products of 2005 Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 23:04:19 -0600 by Jim Louderback It's the holiday season, time to pick up gifts for family and friends. We bring you the best stuff year-round, but often quality is in short supply this time of year. For you last-minute shoppers, here's my annual list of the ten worst products of the year-as scored and reviewed by PC Magazine Labs. These may all look shiny and sharp on the shelves, but each one is fundamentally flawed. You've been warned! 10. Oakley Thump: If you've overdone it with the eggnog, a $500 pair of sunglasses with a built-in MP3 player might seem a divine combination. It's not. The poorly fitting earbuds chafe, the glasses feel flimsy, and the style is dated. And what happens if you want to rock out at night? Unless you're buying for Bono, pick up an iPod shuffle and a pair of Revos for half the price. 9. Voodoo Doll D210: If you give someone this zippy breadbox-sized PC, they'll be sticking pins in your effigy all year-and you'll be out more than 3,000 smackeroos, too. Voodoo crammed two CPUs and two hard drives inside, but left out the keyboard, mouse, and monitor. If you buy one anyway, get a pair of industrial-strength ear protectors too, as it whines like a 747 taxiing for takeoff. 8. H2i SimplyTouch OpticalBar: Turn any monitor into a touch screen! That's the promise; the reality is different. The OpticalBar sits atop your monitor and tracks your finger as you touch special parts of the screen. Alas, it works more slowly than the midnight shift at an all-night diner, and often gets your order wrong, too. Opt for a tablet notebook instead. 7. ROKR E1: The Oakley Thump of the mobile phone set; at least it's a decent phone. The hype around "The First iTunes Phone" created unfulfillable expectations. It's not as polished as an iPod, and its oddly limited music storage makes a mediocre player even worse. Glacially slow music-transfer speeds put the final nail in this coffin. Sony Ericsson sells a much better MP3-phone combo, but I suggest a shuffle and a RAZR phone: Cheaper-and better, too. 6. Cinego D-1000: It slices! It dices! It projects your DVDs onto the wall! You might be tempted by this combination front-projector and DVD player, but stay away. Marred by a minuscule remote, nasty interface, and terrible video quality, it'll be quickly relegated to the garage or eBay. For budget home theater, hold out for HP's ep9010 combo, or pick up a cheaper projector and a DVD player for less. 5. PQI mPack P800 Media Player: Looking for a portable music and video player? The mPack looks attractive-you can record video and FM radio directly, and it even includes a CompactFlash slot. But playback is a problem. Even with the most recent flash update, fast-forward and rewind simply do not work, despite the manual's direction. The screen is terrible, the interface abysmal, and the physical buttons erratic. Apple's video iPod, the Creative Zen Vision, and anything from Archos deliver a better experience for less. 4. Dual XNAV3500P: Even alpha males can use a little GPS assistance now and then. This hybrid car and portable mapping system seems solid-until you start using it. Marred by an awful interface and a poor data-entry keypad, it failed our tests. Pick up a TomTom GO, or give an IOU for Garmin's amazing Nuvi, debuting here in January. 3. PepperPad: Following in the footsteps of the Audrey, Netpliance, and NIC, this is an Internet bubble failure five years too late. More expensive than a laptop, with a battery life measured in minutes, and a tiny 8- by 6-inch touch screen, this home Internet tablet has few redeeming features. Unless you're a fan of freaky keyboards, opt for a cheap tablet PC instead. 2. Sony S2 Sports Network Walkman NW-S23: Pity poor Sony. It invented the Walkman and then squabbled as Apple stole its lunch. This player finally supports MP3 files, yet it lacks so much else that it's hardly worth the price. With ergonomics straight from a Klingon warship, balky software, and a poor display, this one deserves a place in the remainder rack. Again, you're better off with a shuffle. And now, the moment you've all been waiting for ... the worst product of the year-and from a surprising source. 1. Samsung Digimax V700: Samsung can seemingly do no wrong these days. The company has supplanted Sony as the top electronics brand, exuding both quality and cool. We hope this terrible digital camera is an aberration, not a sign of things to come. With slow performance, lousy auto-exposure, and some shutter lag, this 7.1-megapixel camera never should have been released. Compact cameras from Canon, Sony and Nikon are far better-even if they do cost a bit more. Copyright 2005 Ziff Davis Inc. 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. *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. This Internet discussion group is making it available without profit to group members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of literary, educational, political, and economic issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. I believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner, in this instance, Ziff-Davis. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2005 17:46:11 -0500 From: Nigel Allen <ndallen@interlog.com> Subject: Disability Groups Call for Telecom Legislation The following press release was issued by the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) at http://www.nad.org I thought that the press release might be of interest to Telecom Digest's readers. Disability Groups Call for Telecom Legislation SILVER SPRING, Md., Nov. 22 -- The National Association of the Deaf (NAD), joined by other disability organizations listed at the end of this press release, called upon Congress to enact legislation mandating disability access to Internet-based products and services by the end of this Congress. The nation needs broadband, everywhere, now, and at affordable rates -- this is true for no one more than people with disabilities. Following up on testimony presented at last week's hearing before the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, given by NAD governmental affairs consultant Frank Bowe and delivered on behalf of 16 national, state and local organizations of, by, and for people with disabilities, Kelby Brick, NAD Director of Law and Advocacy, said: "People with disabilities use communications technologies every day that were not even in existence at the time our nation's communications laws were last amended. The 1996 Telecommunications Act did not contemplate instant messaging, email, video relay, peer-to-peer video or such handheld devices as the Firefly and the Tictalk. Although the 1996 Act contained disability provisions for access to telecommunications products and services, it was mainly limited to those used with the public switched telephone network, not the Internet. As a result, people with disabilities will only gain equal access to today's communications infrastructure and services if Congress acts to extend these protections to Internet-enabled products and services." Individuals are urged to contact their representatives in Congress by taking action at: http://www.nad.org/BroadbandBillAction Dr. Bowe testified on behalf of the Alliance for Public Technology, the American Association of People with Disabilities, the American Council of the Blind, the American Foundation for the Blind, the Association of Late-Deafened Adults, the California Coalition of Agencies Serving the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, Inc., Communication Services for the Deaf, the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Consumer Advocacy Network, the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Service Center Inc., Inclusive Technologies, the National Association of the Deaf, the Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons, Self Help for Hard of Hearing People, TDI/Telecommunications for the Deaf Inc., WGBH National Center for Accessible Media, and the World Institute on Disability. In his November 9, 2005 testimony, and in response to questions posed by Subcommittee Chair Fred Upton (Republican - MI), Dr. Bowe said that the disability community wants legislation sooner rather than later: "The Nation urgently needs a coherent broadband policy. Critical to these improvements are the disability consumer protections contained in the staff draft." Dr. Bowe further noted that communications manufacturers and service providers have had ten years to become familiar with the accessibility needs of Americans with disabilities. The House staff discussion draft would extend the same accessibility requirements to new Internet-enabled products and services. Because today's communications products and services make extensive use of software, and are rapidly upgraded, he said, the disability community believes that making these accessible to and useable by people with disabilities will be neither costly nor technologically demanding if done during the design stage. Dr. Bowe concluded his testimony by stating: "Critically important disability access provisions will come about only if Congress enacts an updated framework for telecommunications." Today, our organizations reiterate his words and call for immediate Congressional action to guarantee access to all of the exciting and innovative Internet-enabled products and services that are entering the marketplace, as well as many sure to follow in the coming years. The disability organizations below have joined in the request to the U.S. Congress: Alliance for Public Technology American Association of People with Disabilities American Foundation for the Blind Association of Late-Deafened Adults California Coalition of Agencies Serving the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Communication Services for the Deaf National Association of the Deaf National Council on Independent Living Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons Self Help for Hard of Hearing People TDI WGBH National Center for Accessible Media World Institute on Disability About the NAD The National Association of the Deaf (NAD), founded in 1880, safeguards the civil rights of deaf and hard of hearing Americans. As a national federation of state association, organizational and corporate affiliates, the advocacy work of the NAD encompasses a broad spectrum of areas including, but not limited to, accessibility, education, employment, healthcare, mental health, rehabilitation, technology, telecommunications, and transportation. The NAD website http://www.nad.org has a wealth of advocacy information and resources. ------------------------------ From: Hemal.Shah@MatrixTeleSol.com Subject: Media Services Registration with PBX Date: 22 Nov 2005 21:24:16 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com Hello everyone, I have a following query. (1) Is there any protocol available by which third party vendor's Media Server can Register with PBX/Switch? (2)How Media server inform PBX about the type of Media Services it uses? Thanking you in advance ... Hemal Shah ------------------------------ From: sethb@panix.com (Seth Breidbart) Subject: Re: Grandpa Gets Sued Over Grandson's Downloads From Net Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2005 01:20:23 UTC Organization: Society for the Promulgation of Cruelty to the Clueless In article <telecom24.502.2@telecom-digest.org>, David Clayton <dcstar@myrealbox.com> wrote: > On Wed, 02 Nov 2005 20:02:21 -0600, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal wrote: >> Illegal downloading costs the movie industry an estimated $5.4 billion a >> year, she said. > Yep, you can guarantee that every illegally downloaded movie/song etc. > directly results in lost revenue, because those naughty people would have > paid for it anyway ... not! And at full list price, disregarding the fact that they already had the DVD which they bought at a huge discount (because all DVDs sell well below list). Seth ------------------------------ From: sethb@panix.com (Seth Breidbart) Subject: Re: Showdown with USA Over Internet Control Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2005 02:11:41 UTC Organization: Society for the Promulgation of Cruelty to the Clueless > "This is such a sideshow debate," said Oxford University professor > Jonathan Zittrain. "If you couldn't find IBM at ibm.com, what would > you do? You would Google it, and there you'd be." And you would find Google how? > Some countries worry that the United States could use this system to > effectively "unplug" a nation from the Internet by redirecting its > country code. And some countries (or, more likely, the reporter) are idiots, because removing my domain's registration wouldn't unplug me at all. It would just make my stuff a little harder to find. (But anybody can register a .com, .net, .org, .info, .biz and many countries don't care who registers in their domains, either (e.g. .tv).) > Experts say that would be difficult to pull off because > it would require thousands of computer administrators across the globe > to cooperate. For a value of "thousands" closer to a dozen. Or, perhaps, one. > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It seems to me that the USA is being > sort of high and mighty on this matter. Just as the USA pays little or > no attention to what other countries want or do with their two-letter > TLDs such as .uk, .gr, and others, why would they now start worrying > about what a UN-controlled body said regards (for example) China being > the controller or Germany or UK? Wouldn't we still continue to do as > we pleased anyway? PAT] With .us we would. But what happens when such an international body decides to globalize censorship? Say, it decides you lose your domain if you host reporting that didn't come from a "licensed reporter"? Right now, such a country can possibly act against domains in its tld, and sites within its borders. Someone trying to remove a foreign .com domain for that will just get laughed at. Seth [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Well, to me it is sort of a toss-up. Which to you is more opressive? Tons of spam and scam and phishing each day via a coordinator (ICANN) who essentially turns a blind eye to the mess that the internet has become in the past decade, or some _other_ coordinator who *might or might not* attempt to exercise some censorship on a few web sites here and there. Might or might not ... but would most assuredly instruct registrars and ISPs under them to clamp down HARD on spammers, etc. I always laugh when I hear people complain that some other administrator would (gasp!) probably censor users and sites, all the while going ho-hum and shrugging their shoulders while scammers, scammers and phishermen have almost shut us down now, so fearful are many users to sign their real email addresses or participate in any real, meaningful way. I mean, even if it is true that ICANN is sort of backed into a corner with the contracts they have out on the net now, even asking them to give favorable consideration to eventually phase out their existing contracts in favor of differnet ones just gets a blank stare in return. Some of us would just as soon take our chances with someone else running things. That is why I feel the arguments about how 'some other organization in charge might be censors, etc' are so bogus. PAT] ------------------------------ From: hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com Subject: Re: Tis (Almost) the Season to be Jolly Date: 22 Nov 2005 13:47:34 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com TELECOM Digest Editor noted in response to hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com: > [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Neither Amoco Credit Card nor > Diners's Club (at least in those days) were union shops. ... > Typically, Amoco's procedure was to pay and treat the office workers > _as though they belonged to a union_ even though they did not. Wages > and benefits at the credit card office were quite good. Working conditions have changed a lot for such workers between 1970 and today; these include telco employees. Back in 1970 jobs such as a corporate credit card center, back office for a major bank or corporation, or the Bell System had the following advantages and disadvantages compared to other jobs in that era: Advantage: 1) Better working conditions: Often those jobs were downtown which was deemed a more presitigous and pleasant place to work. Often those jobs were in modern or modernized office buildings in air conditioned offices in pleasant surroundings with the latest tools. In contrast other clerical white collar jobs would be in industry, such as in a factory or warehouse. Often the office was not air conditioned (except for the big boss), and while perhaps the office was nicer than the shop floor, it still was an industrial atmosphere in an industrial neighborhood. That meant noise, dust, dirt, smells, and a 'tougher' atmosphere. Work hours and office life was more regimented, such as punching a time clock. 2) Stable employment: The large corporations and the phone company generally were rather stable and layoffs for back office employees were not as common as for industrial workers. The phone company particularly was known for stability (other than Western Electric which did have layoffs). An industrial employer could suddenly shut down for a while for a variety of reasons and office staff were out as well. 3) Better benefits: The large corps tended to give better benefits, such as an hour for lunch instead of a half hour, etc compared to a factory which might be strictly hourly. Disadvantage: 1) Boring work: The large corp back offices had highly repetitive work with little change. Not much chance for promotion. In contrast, working in an industrial site might have much more variety--you'd post checks in the morning but send out letters in the afternoon. 2) Low pay: Factories tended to pay more. This was offset by job insecurity and less benefits. For some people in the short term the higher factory pay won out. With the demise of the old Bell System and growth of powerful computers and phone lines, the traditional back office has been greatly changed. Much of that work is greatly centralized. For instance Bell in Phila had several neighborhood centers just within the city to handle service rep work. Now, all that work, not only for Phila but the whole state has been consolidated and moved out far away (WVa?). The back office is consolidated into massive call centers, highly regimented and less pleasant than in the past. Computers count your keystrokes, errors, and bathroom breaks and people are watched very closely. The old call centers expected production, but were resonably pleasant places. The new ones are much tougher. You sit at your cube and stare at your terminal and that's it. You do what the terminal says you do. Unions got too much power in the 1970s and priced themselves -- and the workers they represented -- out of job. But now the companies have too much power and the pendulum has swung the other way. I think these centralized "boiler rooms" need union representation -- modern unions looking out for modern issues. Sadly many of the old unions, while realizing they have to move into new industries, are still fighting the battles of the 1930s and they turn prospective members off with their rhetoric. (A union organizer came to us (white collar workers) and talked to us like we were still in 1875 coal mines like the Molly Maguires. Our working conditions were greatly improved beyond that.) In the old days there were companies like the old Bell System where a person could go and have a job for life and a pension without killing themselves in the process. They wouldn't get rich, but they'd have security. That's very important to some people. Sadly, today few such jobs exist. In the old days there were riskier jobs, such as in industry or in high tech start up companies. Workers in such places could get a lot more money but have no security. Today, we have the worst of both worlds -- no security with low pay and lousy benefits. ------------------------------ From: sethb@panix.com (Seth Breidbart) Subject: Re: Spyware Maker Sues Detection Firm Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2005 02:21:46 UTC Organization: Society for the Promulgation of Cruelty to the Clueless In article <telecom24.515.3@telecom-digest.org>, Jim Haynes <jhaynes@alumni.uark.edu> wrote: > From slashdot today, says RetroCoder, a spyware maker, is suing > Sunbelt Software, makers of an anti-spyware program. RetroCoder > claims that their end user license agreement forbids using the program > in "anti-spyware research" and therefore detecting it violates the > agreement. > Once again, the inmates are running the asylum. Only if RetroCoder _wins_ the lawsuit. 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