Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!wuarchive!swbatl!texbell!vector!telecom-gateway From: john@zygot.ati.com (John Higdon) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: What Happens When a Phone Hangs Up? Message-ID: Date: 10 Oct 89 04:02:29 GMT Sender: news@vector.Dallas.TX.US Organization: Green Hills and Cows Lines: 73 Approved: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 438, message 1 of 7 In article , AI.CLIVE@mcc.com (Clive Dawson) writes: > I've had several years of trouble-free operation from my Panasonic > KX-T2425 phone answering machine. This changed about a month ago; > ... > Questions: (and some answers) > -- Is it possible that my machine has lost its ability to > detect a remote hang-up? Do Panasonic machines detect > remote hang-ups, or do they simply detect silence on the > line in order to decide whether/when to start/stop recording? Possibly, but more likely, your telco has installed a new switch, probably a DMS running a rotten generic that doesn't provide reliable CPC. This is that brief interruption in battery that lets key systems and answering machines know that the distant party has hung up. > -- Is it correct for the off-hook warning stuff to be triggered > under these circumstances? Is this the norm? It is possible that your CO now reverts to that off-hook stuff immediately after the distant party has disconnected. You might check it manually by having a friend hang up after calling you and seeing what happens. > -- Is the length of time before the off-hook warning triggers > a settable parameter in ESS switches? The current timeout > seems to be 30 seconds, which is precisely equal to the > maximum length of an outgoing message on many (Panasonic, at > least) answering machines. This means that the warning > starts just when the machine goes into record mode, checking > for sound on the line in order to decide whether somebody is > leaving a message. All of the Panasonic answering machines that I have encountered detect and utilized CPC. On my 1ESS lines, my old Panasonic would reset immediately, even if the caller hung up just a few seconds into the outgoing announcement (OGM, for you Panasonic afficianados). It must also be pointed out that the 1/1A ESS switches have the BEST CPC in telephony. It is immediate, solid (at least 600 ms), and totally realiable. > -- Would it be wishful thinking to believe I could convince > the Telco folks to lengthen this timeout period to, say, > 45 seconds or a minute? Oh yes, I'm afraid so. Those timeouts are "cast in stone" in the generic. While they can be adjusted in the field, I can't imagine a telco monkeying with them because a residential subscriber was inconvenienced in the operation of his answering machine. What you might complain about instead is the lack of reliable CPC. I know of people who have complained very loudly and have actually been rewarded with results in this area. The NT DMS is notorious for this problem but it is also correctable with the proper programming. > -- Do other people have this problem? You bet. > I suppose the obvious thing to try is to reduce the length of my > outgoing message. Maybe if I can get a few more seconds of silence > before the off-hook warning starts, the machine will properly conclude > that no message is forthcoming and hang up. That would be one band-aid solution. I would first start with your telco and find out if they have installed a DMS recently. If so, rag on them about CPC. If not, find out what it is (and then rag on them about CPC). John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395 john@zygot.ati.com | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !