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From: plw@mgweed.UUCP (Pete Wilson)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Telecommunications and the Phone Company
Message-ID: <5546@mgweed.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 21-Dec-83 21:38:03 EST
Article-I.D.: mgweed.5546
Posted: Wed Dec 21 21:38:03 1983
Date-Received: Fri, 23-Dec-83 01:49:23 EST
Organization: AT&T Western Electric - Montgomery Illinois
Lines: 50


	I recently installed a computer system in the little town
of Sugar Grove, IL. The phone company in this area is Illinois
Bell Telephone (name is good until Jan 1, anyway). To allow outside
access to this system, I also installed a UDS212A/D modem. The phone
company was notified of the installation and given the FCC registration
number and ringer equivalency number. Fine. I tried dialing into this
system from my home in Aurora, IL, about 15 mi. distant. Lo, and behold
I get garbage characters every 30-45 seconds at 1200bps!! I know the
problem isn't in the modems because they work fine between two
Aurora exchanges.
	As a next step, I called 611 (repair service) and explained
the problem to them. Their answer was that they weren't obligated to
provide data quality service on a voice line. I explained that these
modems were designed to work on voice grade lines and they are used
all over the country to transmit and receive data on unconditioned
lines. Illinois Bell insisted that it's not their problem unless I
wanted to rent a conditioned line for data transmission.
	After my anger had cooled down somewhat, I started thinking
about the implications of this sort of attitude on the part of telephone
companies. There are businesses which are getting into the teletext and
videotex markets and incorporate 212 type modems into their products.
Can you imagine some consumer buying one of these products, finding
out it won't work, and then being informed they would have to rent a
special conditioned line in order to use it?!! This problem also extends
into the home terminal market as well. The phone company won't have to 
charge you for use of the modem, because they can soak you for a special
line!!!
	Actually the problem to which I'm referring can't be too wide-
spread, or there wouldn't be any market for 212 type modems. The problem
is in a digital trunk between the Sugar Grove central office and the
Aurora office. The synchronizing clocks drift out of phase and every
so often re-synchronize themselves. It is at this point that garbage
shows up in the data. By 'digital trunk', I mean that the main line
between the two offices carries a digitally multiplexed signal of voice
traffic and is demultiplexed at both ends.
	During regular voice communication and low-speed (<= 300bps)
data communication, the problem isn't noticeable. But due to the way
1200 bps data transmission is accomplished, the re-synchronizing clocks
mess up the data.
	The result of all this is that I will have to work at 300bps or
pay for a conditioned line to work at 1200bps. THAT MAKES ME ANGRY!!!!


					Pete Wilson
					Western Electric
					(AT&T Technologies,Inc.)
					Montgomery, IL
					...ihnp4!we13!mgweed!plw