Path: utzoo!telecom-request Date: Thu, 23 May 91 09:11:02 EDT From: Bruce Oneel Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: IDDD Calling Message-ID: Organization: TELECOM Digest Sender: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 11, Issue 393, Message 9 of 14 Lines: 34 [Text deleted about number of digits for international dialing.] My favorite one was in 1983 or so, I was tech support for a computer site at a US Military base in Germany. They didn't give the guy manuals so I called him two or three times a week. The first time I did it my supervisor mentioned that I'd have to talk to the "German" operator. I thought that Germany was direct dial so I just fired the number in and got some poor person who didn't speak English. I told him I was sorry in German and then was told by my supervisor that this military base had numbers that were one digit too long for Germany so AT&T just dropped the extra digit. So, I called the C&P operator. No, she said, Germany is direct dial and before I could protest, I was talking to this poor German again. Let's try again. Called the C&P operator, asked for an AT&T operator. Got one, explained problem, so she direct dialed before I could protest and now the German was getting a mite pissed. One more time ... local C&P operator, got an AT&T operator, got an AT&T international operator and explained my situation. Nope, Germany is direct dial and so I got a now sputtering German. Last time, C&P operator, AT&T operator, AT&T international operator, FDR international operator ... Correct Number!!! It only got slightly better each time I did it. Bruce [Moderator's Note: You are better off sometimes doing as I do in these cases: Ask the AT&T operator to connect you to a supervisor at the IOC. Don't bother explaining anything until you reach that point. PAT]