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From: BRUCE@ccavax.camb.com (Barton F. Bruce)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Use of Phones to Give Theatre Schedule Information
Message-ID: <14074@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 27 Oct 90 06:06:51 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 767, Message 8 of 8


In article <13914@accuvax.nwu.edu>, CAPEK%YKTVMT.BITNET (Peter 
G. Capek) writes:

> While trying to get the schedule from a local octoplex movie theatre
> recently, it occurred to me that it would be to the advantage of both
> the theatre operator and the local exchange carrier to allow multiple
> incoming calls "get through" to the theatre's recording at the same
> time.  

Many multi-line answering machines even back in the 'old' days had
either of two schemes. The cheaper one was to 'barge-in' if the
message was already playing, and let you hear at least one complete
version before cutting you off.

The slightly better version had a phased entry, and had the same
message playing maybe in four different phases. Your call got answered
only when the next available phase started and EVERYONE else starting
with you all heard the same signal from the same amplifier which came
out at some good level and went through a pad towards each line. If
the sound source failed, and between words, this kept everyone from
chatting to each other.

The modern digital, often PC based, machine can handle MANY lines,
understands Touch Tone, and could easily be setup to responsively give
anyone whatever individual information they needed, each with a unique
'playing' of the digital voice. The typical auto-attendant / voice
mail box would also make a GOOD theater machine, and I even think a
SMART local theater might also list the competing EXPENSIVE adjacent
big town theaters as a service and customers would always call them
for ALL movie info and would probably go to the local one mostly
anyway.

If you want CO grade stuff, DIGICEPT makes 'nice' machines that can do
HUNDREDS of lines even over MANY COs from a central machine. They can
take T1 trunking in, too. They have cards that do time and temperature
automatically.  I think they just got 'gobbled' by Audicron - a former
competitor. Cook, now gobbled by NTI, also used to make telco grade
announce machines.

For the local theater, the PC based solution should be fine.

Most COs and some PBXs have never busy numbers that anyone calling
connects to.  These are often used for volunteer fire (whistle blows -
everyone dials in to see where to go) and for hospital code 99 teams.
These are "all chat" lines, and that isn't what the theater needs.