dave@uunet.uu.net (Dave Horsfall) (10/03/89)
In article <telecom-v09i0406m04@vector.dallas.tx.us>, sharon@asylum.UUCP (Sharon Fisher) writes: | | In article <telecom-v09i0399m07@vector.dallas.tx.us> john@zygot.ati.com | (John Higdon) writes: | >How do you know that they're long distance or local? | | Just a guess, really, but some of the calls sound real clear and some | have those "seashell up to your ear" sounds that I associate with long | distance calls. What? You mean that you don't get a sort of blip-blip-blip on long-distance calls in USA? I somehow assumed that was universal... As an aside, you can always tell when someone's just received a long distance call in Australia (I know - it's a long distance - sorry). RING RING! "Hel..." (hurried) <pause> "Hello?" (Carefully and distinctly) Dave Horsfall (VK2KFU), Alcatel STC Australia, dave@stcns3.stc.oz dave%stcns3.stc.oz.AU@uunet.UU.NET, ...munnari!stcns3.stc.oz.AU!dave [Moderator's Note: I must say, Dave, I have noticed that calls from here to Australia and New Zealand -- the latter particularly -- are extremely clear lately. I'm on the phone once or twice a week to Auckland with a client of our office and the call always goes through immediatly -- in a matter of seconds -- and is perfectly audible; almost like a call to somewhere here in Chicago. I carelessly dialed the call today, leaving off the '9' city code, and got a woman there who thought it rather incredible I was calling from the United States -- a wrong number, yet! South Pacific connections seem vastly improved. PT]
john@zygot.ati.com (John Higdon) (10/05/89)
In article <telecom-v09i0427m03@vector.dallas.tx.us>, munnari!stcns3.stc.ozau! dave@uunet.uu.net (Dave Horsfall) writes: > What? You mean that you don't get a sort of blip-blip-blip on > long-distance calls in USA? I somehow assumed that was universal... I wonder how many of the readers out there are really aware of the fact that the itemized billing that we have in the US and Canada is somewhat unusual in the world telephonic community. The usual system of billing calls elsewhere is with "metering pulses". Each pulse is worth so much money. On a local call, the pulses go by very slowly and on an international call the pulses come rapid-fire. As my sister in Japan once told me, the phone company just takes their money out of your bank account every month. There is no call detail and hence no billing disputes! John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395 john@zygot.ati.com | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !