hrs1@cbnewsi.att.com (10/24/90)
I received today in the US mail a slick brochure advertizing the Working Assets Long Distance, an exclusive service of the Working Assets Funding Service. It is "a fiber-optic long distance service that helps you save forests, animals, rivers, and children - just by talking on the telephone." There is no added cost to the user -- over the rates of US Sprint. The pitch is that one percent of the charges will go to non-profit groups that defend the environment. Further quote " Now, helping our planet is not only cost-free, it's absurdly easy. There is nothing to lose. Just fill out the card..." which is addressed to Working Assets Long Distance. Then there is the small print, which says that signing the attached cards authorizes them to switch you to Sprint as the primary long distance carrier. Your local phone company may charge $5 to do this. To offset the charge, US Sprint will give you a 30 minute free calling credit at the night and weekend rate, after your third full month of service. This certainly is a novel way for Sprint to sell their services. Herman Silbiger Any opinions expressed in the above postings are my own.
kam@dlogics.COM (Kevin Mitchell) (10/25/90)
You CAN get to other telco's 611 via seven-digit service. I had some tremendous problems calling the only free Compuserve node in my area (after IBT restructured rates to remove unlimited Call-Pak, and 'reduce' [actually, increase by 600%] my phone bill). It was too noisy to even log in, and was in Centel-land. I called Illinois Bell and complained of a trunk or called-party problem (I could call any OTHER modem from home, I explained), and they gave me a 7-digit number that reached Centel repair service. In two days, the problem was fixed; a trunk cable running through O'Hare Airport had gotten wet. CIS couldn't help; when they called the node long distance, it didn't go through the bad wire, so they got no noise. Kevin A. Mitchell (312) 266-4485 Datalogics, Inc Internet: kam@dlogics.UUCP 441 W. Huron UUCP: ..!uunet!dlogics!kam Chicago, IL 60610 FAX: (312) 266-4473