Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!sun-barr!texsun!texbell!vector!telecom-gateway From: anes.ucla.edu!denwa!bongo!julian@seas.ucla.edu (julian macassey) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Info please... Message-ID: Date: 6 Jun 89 20:28:08 GMT Sender: news@vector.Dallas.TX.US Organization: The Hole in the Wall Hollywood CA U.S.A. Lines: 39 Approved: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 189, message 4 of 6 In article , morris@jade.jpl.nasa.gov (Mike Morris) writes: > Stuff asking how calling party ID CLASS stuff will work deleted. > Lastly, can anybody explain why the local BOC is charging MONTHLY for > a number assignment? Background: Several years ago I had 818-445-6453 > as a second line in my parents house. After about a year, I lost my job, > and to cut expenses had the number disconnected. Several years later, > I inherited my parents house, and the number that we'd had since 1965. > When I moved in, I decide to put a 2nd number in the house for the computer > and the modem. When I tried to get my old number back, I was told it was > available, but it would be an extra charge PER MONTH. Knowing computer > systems, I know that assigning a specific phone number is no more work than > assigning a random one, but still I'd be willing to pay an extra $10 or so, > when placing the order. BUT NOT EVERY MONTH! > CAN ANYBODY EXPLAIN? Or is it just seen as another cash cow to be milked? Back in the "old" days, you could come up with a cutsey number, especially one that spelt something when you used the numbers on the tone pad and get the telco to assign it to you. So if you had a whore-house you could ask to be assigned 438-5243 which spells out GET-LAID. If the number was already assigned, you would have to do a deal with the owner of the number and get them to relinguish it - or to be high tech, call forward it to your old boring number. Well about 4 years ago Pacific Bell - Mike Morris's telco - figured out that they could rent these nifty numbers to people rather than giving them away. So if you request an unassigned number the cash registers clang at Pac-Bell. If you are a business, what's another $10.00 per month so your customers can dial (213) BAD FOOD and make a reservation at your restaurant? Yours -- Julian Macassey, n6are julian@bongo ucla-an!denwa!bongo!julian n6are@wb6ymh (Packet Radio) n6are.ampr.org [44.16.0.81] voice (213) 653-4495