Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!uccba!uceng!ndcheg!iuvax!purdue!gatech!uflorida!rex!ukma!rutgers!cmcl2!nrl-cmf!ames!amdcad!sun!pitstop!sundc!seismo!uunet!portal!cup.portal.com!David_W_Tamkin
From: David_W_Tamkin@cup.portal.com
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: PC Pursuit pricing amendment
Message-ID: <13334@cup.portal.com>
Date: 8 Jan 89 23:10:14 GMT
References: <8901050251.AA14569@nessus.telenet.com> <2384@isis.UUCP> <7400@chinet.chi.il.us>
Distribution: na
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 32

From Patrick Townson's article <7400@chinet.chi.il.us>:

> Telenet *DOES AND ALWAYS HAS* told you the length of time of your connection
> to a given place. Read the disconnect message when you disconnect from an
> outdial. On the right side is a string of figures indicating the number
> of days:hours:minutes:seconds the connection was up. Make a note of these
> in the same way you estimate during the month how much your telephone long
> distance bill is going to be.

Telenet provides that information solely when the DAF or outdialer to which
you have connected allows you to make a graceful exit back to the Telenet @
prompt.  You don't always get your connection time when a DAF locks up and
you must escape to the @ prompt and use the d command; and you can bet that
you'll never get it on occasions when Telenet locks up as well and you must
tell your modem to hang up!

Since at no time can you predict whether the host will behave well enough
during a call you are about to place to let you make it all the way to a
graceful exit back to Telenet, you have to have your own timekeeping to keep
track of your PCP usage once the hourly rates start.  And even then it is
anyone's guess how much time they'll tally when you cannot issue the @d
command.

Moreover, I would always compare my own timing of a PCP connection to the
length Telenet gives in the disconnection information, just to see how close
to reality they come and how frequently they overstate it.

The thing never to do is to shut your modem off lazily instead of issuing the
proper logout commands.

David_W_Tamkin@cup.portal.com   ... sun!portal!cup.portal.com!david_w_tamkin
Portal's management and its other customers do their own thinking; I do mine.