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The Telecom Digest for June 13, 2012
Volume 31 : Issue 143 : "text" Format
Messages in this Issue:
Re: Star 69 is a joke? (Justin Goldberg)
Re: Haverhill teen to serve year in jail for fatal texting crash; judge calls for people to keep eyes on road (Scott Dorsey)
Re: Star 69 is a joke? (Gordon Burditt)
Re: Star 69 is a joke? (HAncock4)
Romney's Ads Go Mobile (Monty Solomon)
Verizon Wireless overhauls service plans with new options (HAncock4)

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Date: Tue, 12 Jun 2012 00:14:12 -0400 From: Justin Goldberg <justgold79@gmail.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: Star 69 is a joke? Message-ID: <CAAU2BpYi4vvMGMHUOES2QK-2ci=xsiGU7j_AEN-wf_RsiqSU6g@mail.gmail.com> On 6/11/12, John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> wrote: >>Is star 69 a joke in the USA? Did they have to choose the one number >>between 1 and a hundred with a prurient meaning? > > My goodness, some people have dirty minds. > > That's what's known as a vertical service code. Most of the > possible *xx codes are assigned to various features, so something > was going to end up as number 69. > > > http://www.nanpa.com/number_resource_info/vsc_assignments.html > Just seemed kind of funny that it happened to be the "prank call" redial code. I didn't know there were that many codes. I thought they started at *67.
Date: 12 Jun 2012 09:49:30 -0400 From: kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: Haverhill teen to serve year in jail for fatal texting crash; judge calls for people to keep eyes on road Message-ID: <jr7hda$6s5$1@panix2.panix.com> John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> wrote: >Do you really think that, say, 50 years with frequent beatings would >be more of a deterrent to an absent minded teenager? My recollection >of my teen years is that one year and 50 years seemed equally close >to eternal. > >In a case like this, where he was negligent rather than malicious, a >long prison term would primarily ensure that we spend hundreds of >thousands of dollars to keep him in prison, and when he got out, he'd >have no skills other than for committing more crimes. True enough. However, if had been smoking crack while driving, say, and ran into a car and killed someone, he'd be getting ten to twenty. --scott -- "C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."
Date: Mon, 11 Jun 2012 21:37:15 -0500 From: gordonb.jo4ns@burditt.org (Gordon Burditt) To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: Star 69 is a joke? Message-ID: <_IOdnQHyou_GNkvSnZ2dnUVZ_rydnZ2d@posted.internetamerica> > Is star 69 a joke in the USA? Did they have to choose the one number > between 1 and a hundred with a prurient meaning? According to Wikipedia under "vertical service codes", they use about 30 of the codes. I also recall codes *1X and *2X being used for speed- dial numbers in one system (Houston, Texas landlines in the late 1970's). So no, they didn't pick one number out of 100 to use. > For those that don't know, *69 in the USA is the last-call-return > vertical service code. I'd like to see *86 used for Remote Telemarketer Destruct, but it's already taken for something else.
Date: Mon, 11 Jun 2012 18:54:59 -0700 (PDT) From: HAncock4 <withheld@invalid.telecom-digest.org> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: Star 69 is a joke? Message-ID: <31482eec-cc4a-4239-b998-aab6293cf14d@d17g2000vbv.googlegroups.com> On Jun 11, 7:21 pm, Wes Leatherock <wleat...@yahoo.com> wrote: > And it's 1169 from a rotary dial phone (actually 1169 will also work > from a T.T. phone.) Yes, most or all of the special codes allow "11" instead of "*" for use on rotary phones. These codes were developed long before Touch Tones phones became commonplace, so rotary signals had to be accomodated. I wonder how these services would work if developed for modern phones using a modern interface. For instance, I always thought flashing the hookswitch (such as for Call Waiting or 3-way calling) was not a good idea. Too quick a flash doesn't do anything, but too slow a flash will disconnect the call. Some modern phones today have a flash button which issue out a 7/10 sec cutoff to signal a 'flash'. In some service areas, one must be careful to hang up for at least two seconds when making multiple calls. (Some phones do this automatically). Otherwise, the system might think it's a flash and set up a 3-way call; charging you a fee in the process and leaving the other party connected. Not good if the second call needs to be private. Years ago placing a call through the operator meant the one could flash the operator if assistance was needed. I don't think that works anymore--trying to flash an operator who placed the call would only a result in a disconnect. But in TSP/TSPS days (and obviously in cord) the call would be returned to the operator. Per the 1940 film on the AT&T archives, flashing the operator in 1940 would result in her time-stamping the toll ticket to suspend timing. The ticket would be stamped again when the conversation resumed and an explanation noted on the ticket.
Date: Mon, 11 Jun 2012 22:19:56 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Romney's Ads Go Mobile Message-ID: <p06240803cbfc5763841d@[10.0.1.2]> Romney's Ads Go Mobile By AMY SCHATZ June 8, 2012 Political advertising is about to become a lot more common on some iPhones and iPads. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney's campaign said it is using Apple Inc.'s iAd mobile advertising service on an ad drive for the iPhone, iTouch and iPad devices. It is the first time a political candidate has used Apple's iAd service, which started in 2010, an Apple spokesman said. The effort is part of a broader strategy by the campaigns of both President Barack Obama and Mr. Romney to use mobile ad networks and website-based advertising to target their messages at likely swing-state voters. Ad networks from Apple, Google Inc. and others allow advertisers to target specific demographic segments such as women or age groups, as well as focus on specific geographic areas. ... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303296604577454760015016028.html
Date: Tue, 12 Jun 2012 07:01:52 -0700 (PDT) From: HAncock4 <withheld@invalid.telecom-digest.org> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Verizon Wireless overhauls service plans with new options Message-ID: <d9962074-ad24-44bd-9ede-55892bd4bca6@eh4g2000vbb.googlegroups.com> USA Today reported that - Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest wireless carrier, is dramatically overhauling its service plans, replacing the entire lineup with a new set that focuses on devices sharing a bucket of data. The new "Share Everything Plans," which will be sold starting June 28, include unlimited voice minutes and text, including video and picture messaging, as well as a single, capped data allotment for up to 10 devices. For new customers, these plans will replace its current tiered pricing plans that charge based on the amount of voice minutes and data consumed. for full article please see: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/story/2012-06-12/verizon-data-service-plans/55542720/1 -or- http://tinyurl.com/7sk3cx8
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