telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) (06/11/89)
In two messages in the Digest today, Dean Riddlebarg and Gregg R. Siegfried discuss what they expect from [Telecom Digest], and what it has come to represent to them when they receive each issue. They both speak of the Digest as a *technical* publication, and while that was true in the beginning years, and remains true to some extent today, the Digest is, to me, more than just a dry recitation of technical data relating to telephony. When Jon Solomon founded the Digest, in August, 1981, it was an off-shoot of HUMAN NETS, and intended as a place where technical discussions not suitable for the entire HUMAN NETS audience could be conducted. And the Digest served its purpose very well, as anyone reading through the old issues in the archives will attest. A few of the original participants from those days are still on the mailing list today, as we near the end of eight years of e-publishing. But 1981 was a different time: While some folks had limited experience with alternate long distance carriers, and some were served by ESS offices, most Digest readers were being served by *THE* TELEPHONE COMPANY via those nice old reliable crossbar offices. New technology meant having touch tone and the ability to dial international calls direct for most users. The divestiture of *THE* TELEPHONE COMPANY a few years ago brought many changes to the scene, including politics and judge-bashing, to name just two. The technology began improving expotentially. Everyone began doing their own thing. Ma Bell, in her old age, was euthanized, or 'put to sleep' although it was not much of a mercy-killing to hear some people tell it. For better or worse, the telephone industry in America primarily, but around the world as well began changing dramatically. While [Telecom Digest]/comp.dcom.telecom still functions as a place on the net for technical discussions relating to telephony, the discussions can't stop there. For many, many decades, people were, well, just plain ignorant about how their telephone 'worked'. They knew how to use it, but had no idea what happened after that. They did not know how the rates came to be set; they had no knowledge of the philosophy which said long distance service should subsidize local service; if they had heard of Theodore Vail and his concept of Universal Service at all, it was only from something they had read somewhere once. What was unthinkable a decade ago is reality today: phones may be purchased for $9.95 in the local K-Mart or Walgreens. Install it yourself; wire your house as you like; select from all sorts of carriers and services not given the Imprimatuer of Ma Bell and her children. People are quickly finding out they must learn about their telephone the way they learned about their toaster, their television and their tape recorder. Suddenly phones became a consumer issue, and an important one at that. I think of [Telecom Digest]/comp.dcom.telecom as a forum for people to share their knowledge, questions and concerns about *modern telephony in the world today*, in all its aspects. Certainly the technical aspects are not to be overlooked, or given a brush off; but neither can the Digest ignore the increasingly large number of people who seek answers to (what may seem to the old-timers here) simple questions relating to everyday use of the phone and selection of services and carriers. You cannot separate the politics in the telephone industry from a mostly technical discussion and present a complete and accurate picture. You can't separate the consumer aspects and still have a complete and accurate point of view. And in fairness to the highly trained and competent telecom professionals who hang around this corner of the net every day, if it were not for your technical skills and achievements, the consumers, politicians and other end users would still be cranking a magneto and screaming into a mouthpiece. [Telecom Digest] tries to accomodate commentary on all aspects of phone service. Admittedly, some commentary is presented in better taste than others. If it is too far afield, I decline the message; and you should see -- just *see* -- some of the stuff I return to senders almost daily. Digest readership and participation has grown substantially since Jon Solomon was operating it. This is not a negative comment about jsol at all; the increased participation and message traffic would have come whether he was here or not. It had to, with the increasing awareness people have about their phone service, and the growing myriad of options and features now available. I think the best here in the Digest is yet to come, so please stick around, won't you, and share it with me. Patrick Townson