gnu@hoptoad.UUCP.UUCP (05/12/87)
In article <813@bgsuvax.UUCP>, drich@bgsuvax.UUCP (Daniel Rich) writes: > A friend of mine has asked me to work on a telephone project for her > business, and I have run into a little snag. They want a system that will > call telephone numbers and play a message to the person who answers. Note that devices that call people to play recorded messages to strangers are regulated in many places. These are the infamous "junk phone call" machines. Now, if you're building an alarm system that will call the cops when somebody breaks in, that is different. Even if they are not regulated in your area, I recommend that you design the system such that: * If the person called gets disgusted and hangs up, you hang up also. On many exchanges their phone line will be unusable until you do. * There should be a person on the line at all times, listening, and able to speak if desired. Machines are just not able to handle all the responses that humans can make. * The recording it plays should start off by identifying who is calling, so that the customers can call the phone company or your company to complain about it if desired. There's no sense in running such a system if all it does is alienate your potential or current customers. -- Copyright 1987 John Gilmore; you may redistribute only if your recipients may. (This is an effort to bend Stargate to work with Usenet, not against it.) {sun,ptsfa,lll-crg,ihnp4,ucbvax}!hoptoad!gnu gnu@ingres.berkeley.edu
henry@utzoo.UUCP (05/17/87)
> Note that devices that call people to play recorded messages to strangers are > regulated in many places. These are the infamous "junk phone call" > machines. Now, if you're building an alarm system that will call the > cops when somebody breaks in, that is different. Yeah, the propagation delay of the s**t hitting the fan will be shorter because you will cut out the middleman. Alarm systems that automatically dial police or fire are also regulated or illegal in many places, because of the unacceptable false-alarm rate. Check before building. Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology {allegra,ihnp4,decvax,pyramid}!utzoo!henry