Path: utzoo!telecom-request Date: Mon, 27 May 91 09:29:03 +22323328 From: irvin@northstar105.dartmouth.edu Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: 9's in Telephone Numbers Reply-To: irvin@northstar.dartmouth.edu 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 402, Message 5 of 9 Lines: 30 In TELECOM Digest V11 #393, John Higdon writes: > irvin@northstar.dartmouth.edu writes: > > What is really strange (off the subject -- sorry Pat), is that any of > > these numbers gets a recording (in fact any unused number in the area) > > that says, "The number you have reached X-X-X X-X-X-X is being checked > > for trouble, please try your call again later." > When ever you hear the "being checked for trouble" message, that > simply means that telco is forwarding the number to the referral > machine and that nothing has yet been programmed in to the machine > itself. That part I did understand, what I was complaining about is their choice of default messages. "being checked for trouble" implies that this is a valid number but that the line is temporarily out-of-order. A better message would be "this line is not in service", or the old standby "this line has been disconnected, or is no longer in service". Here there is no possibility of confusing this with a working line. Tim [Moderator's Note: We also have one here which says, 'the number you dialed, XXX-XXXX yet be connected. Please try your call again later.' The 'may' and 'not' are run together like one word. PAT]