rex@mhuxh.UUCP (GODBY) (09/05/86)
Is it physically possible to use a US modem in the UK, given that it is capable of operating the CCITT V22 (1200 baud) standard? Please respond via electronic mail or to netnews. Rex Godby ..ihnp4!mhuxh!rex AT&T Bell Labs, Murray Hill, NJ 07974 Tel. (201) 582-3628
p40001@mcomp.UUCP (09/08/86)
> Is it physically possible to use a US modem in the UK, given that > it is capable of operating the CCITT V22 (1200 baud) standard? > Please respond via electronic mail or to netnews. > > Rex Godby ..ihnp4!mhuxh!rex The Bell 212 standard is compatible with CCITT V22, therefore US modems will work in the UK and the European continent. There are two problems to consider: 1. Phone companies in Europe do not use the modular connectors which are standard in the US, and you will therefore need an adapter cable with a US modular plug on the modem end and whichever connector is appropriate for the other country on the wall plug end. Britain now uses a modular connector slightly different from the one used in the US, other European countries use a variety of other connectors. In Britain, the best source for such adapters would be Radio Shack stores, known as Tandy stores over there. 2. Legal considerations: In almost all European countries, any equipment to be connected to the phone line has to be approved by the respective telecommunications authority. In Britain, this is British Telecom. The problem with that is as follows: a. It is a very complex and expensive process to get a modem approved, therefore it is unfeasible for a private individual to have his one personal modem processed in this way. b. Even if a US manufacturer goes to the effort to have his modem approved, that approval will extend only to those modems actually imported by this manufacturer. It does not extend to the manufacturer's modems sold in the US and imported to the UK by an enduser. Besides, Britain does not approve modems capable of operating in non-CCITT modes, and since all 1200 baud modems sold in the US are capable of operating at 300 baud Bell standard, they do not qualify for approval in any European country. (As an example: the British "Miracle Technologies" WS2000 modem can be switched to BELL standards by means of a rotary switch; however, on those WS2000 modems which are sold in Britain, the BELL positions of the rotary switch are disabled by a pin inserted in the switch's rotor, and a British Telecom sticker threatens legal action against those who would open the case and remove the pin.) Of course, you may not be very concerned with the legal considerations, not too many people are, and there are no doubt hundreds of US modems, of more specifically, Far-Eastern Bell standard modems, in use in Britain and other European countries. ----------------------------------------------------- Wolf N. Paul, 290 Dogwood, Plano, Tx. 75075 UUCP: convex!mcomp!p40001 or convex!p40001!doulos!wnp Phone: (214) 578-8023 W.U.ESL: 6283-2882
berger@clio.Uiuc.ARPA (09/12/86)
I believe it's illegal, even if it's physically possible.
kdale@bbncc-eur.arpa (Keith Dale) (09/15/86)
Sure, certain US modems can be used in the UK - the only catch is that they have to be "host nation approved" modems. We currently use Racal Milgo 1223 9.6 KB modems and RM 1222 (dial-up) 9.6's there, among others. I believe that the British TeleComm maintains a list of approved modems, although I don't know which department has it. BTW, recently in Turkey we found out that the RM 1222's were taboo, but RM 1223's were just peachy. Functionally equivalent, except for the dial-up capability, but the approval process was bureaucratically (irritatingly) precise. Keith M. Dale BBN Communications Corp.
kdale@bbncc-eur.arpa (Keith Dale) (09/15/86)
My apologies to Racal Milgo - the 1223 and 1222 are *1200* modems. Keith