djcl@uunet.uu.net (woody) (04/11/90)
Some inquiries have been made recently as to what numbers were used for
ANI (Automatic Number Identification) that can read your own phone number
back to you. These vary from place to place, but here are a few that I've
come across:
Ontario & Quebec, Bell Canada often has these on the 320 exchange, but
you have to dial 320.xxxx where only one xxxx will hit the jackpot.
Exception is in Toronto (area 416) where 997 is used instead (such as
997.8123 or 997.1699). In Alberta, just dialing 999 from some phones
in Edmonton will get the ANI. I have read that you just dial 958 in
New York.
Exchanges common to area codes:
- 958 and 959 are always reserved for testing purposes (not all area
codes necessarily use both)
- 555 is for directory assistance
- 950 is for long distance carrier access (to Sprint, AT&T, etc)
- 976 is the special charge announcements service
- 970 is found particularly in Canada as a test exchange. In 416, dialing
1 416 970.5xxx will get a recording identifying the toll office
(accessible from most exchanges). 1 416 970 9xxx gets a recording about
an "Inwats" (800) test and lists the Ontario 800 exchanges.
1 416 970 0xxx gets a tone suitable for tuning pianos.
- Other exchanges (such as 720 used for BC Tel's Partyline, or other
such NX0 exchange) can vary from place to place.
- 844 and 936 used to be reserved for time and weather, though these
have fallen into disuse and can be used for regular exchanges in
many places.
One guy told me about dialing 999.9999 from one exchange in Toronto
only to find that the phone went vary dead for most of a minute. 999
could be another test exchange here.