Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!mailrus!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request From: john@bovine.ati.com (John Higdon) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: What Is This World Coming To? Message-ID: <12466@accuvax.nwu.edu> Date: 23 Sep 90 07:09:00 GMT Sender: news@accuvax.nwu.edu Reply-To: John Higdon Organization: Green Hills and Cows Lines: 41 Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 669, Message 2 of 9 On Sep 22 at 22:07, Lou Judice writes: > What exactly is this world coming to when we can no longer talk to > strangers, and/or can't wait two minutes to get to make a darned > telephone call? I would agree, but there was one time that I couldn't take it anymore and whipped out the phone anyway. To set the scene, you have to know something about the San Jose airport. Picture a sign that reads "San Jose Municipal Airport" and the "Municipal" is scratched out and the word "International" is scrawled above it. That describes the pretentions. OK, on with the story. I was scheduled to fly to Burbank (a minor flight) and the delays were mounting. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we regret to inform you [of another excuse for the flight being delayed]". So I went to the nearest Pac*Bell payphone to call my customer and announce my delay. It seems that all of the phones in the San Jose Cattle Airport are on some screwy carrier back to the CO on 95 Almaden Ave. And at that time, it was out of whack. Apparently the DTMF was being distorted to the point of unrecognition. It took several attempts to dial the call, and it was impossible to enter the calling card. The operator could barely understand me (from any payphone -- they were all the same) and so I gave up. On board the plane, we hit more delays and were informed that it would be at least twenty minutes before we would be in position to take off. That did it. Out came the cellular phone and a quick and easy call was made to my customer. Being fully aware of the RF ramifications, it was the least I could do to an airline that had really blown it. However, since we did eventually take off and arrive safely in Burbank, it apparently did them no harm. > Sorry, I just don't get it! Sometimes one can't help it. John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395 john@bovine.ati.com | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !