"Joseph_J._Gerber.henr801E"@Xerox.COM (12/05/88)
BRIAN: I AM NO EXPERT ON SWITCHED 56KBS BUT MY GROUP TESTED IT IN 1987 FROM ROCHESTER N.Y. TO CHICAGO AND SANTA ANA, CALIF. BASICALLY YOU NEED A DEDICATED 56KBS FROM YOUR SITE TO THE CLOSEST CO WHICH SUUPORTS SWITCHED 56KBS. THE SERVICE IS DIGITAL 56KBS A T1 IS NOT REQUIRED. FACILITY IS READILY AVAILABLE EXCEPT WHEN AT&T HAS MAJOR OUTAGE ALONG THE NETWORK. FOR EXAMPLE WE LOST ALL CKTS GOING WEST BECAUSE SOMEBODY DUG UP FIBER CABLE ALONG RIGHT AWAY OR AT&T LOSES REPEATER STATION ALONG ROUTE. THEN ALL TRAFFIC GOES ON PRIORTIY ROUTING W/ HOSPITALS, MILITARY, POLICE AND AT&T GETTING CAPACITY BEFORE US PAYING CUSTOMERS. AS A BACKUP CHANNEL WE OPTED FOR SATELLITE. IF YOU NEED EXCESS CAPACITY FROM TIME TO TIME I THINK IT'S FINE. IF YOU ARE LOKKING FOR CONTINGENCY CAPACITY DURING MAJOR CIRCUIT OUTAGES, FIND A DIFFERENT FACILITY AT&T RUN SWITCHED 56KBS ALONG SIDE EVERYTING ELSE, PROBABLY A MUXED T3.