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From: merlyn@iwarp.intel.com (Randal Schwartz)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: How Can 411 Be Flagrantly Abused?
Message-ID: <2121@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 12 Dec 89 20:23:40 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 9, Issue 571, message 3 of 11


In article <1966@accuvax.nwu.edu> somebody writes:
| I've spent most of this year in Washington state (Seattle), and much
| to my surprise, there's no such thing as 411 in this state!  When I
| first arrived, I tried it from a payphone (what did I know).  It
| didn't work, so I called the operator.  She said "Why would you dial
| 411?  Directory assistance is at 1-555-1212" She acted as if she had
| never heard of 411, and it definately doesn't work from any phone I've
| tried.  Also, no 611 (you have to go through the operator to get
| repair service).  (Reportedly, 611 will "read" you the number of the
| calling phone if you're in a GTE service area).

I've lived in the Pacific Northwest all my life, and had never *heard*
of 411 as the number for info until I began taking business trips to
the Bay Area two years ago.  And then, I had exactly the *opposite*
shock.

I was looking up a number, and couldn't find it, so I dialed "113"...
the info number for PNW Bell (now US West Telecom).  When it didn't
work, I asked a local, and they said "411", and gave me this blank
stare when I said I had tried "113", as if knowing "411" gives you
information was like knowing that "0" gives you operator!

I had never understood the line in Patty Labelle's song "Who's Zoomin'
Who?" that "getting the four-one-one on someone" meant getting
information.  Suddenly, it all dawned on me.

So, is the Pacific Northwest the *only* place in the country that
*doesn't* use 411?  (And we still don't!)

Thanks for the tip about 611 giving calling-number-ID.  Wow!  What
fun!  It works!  You mean you use that for "service"?  Geez.  We just
call the operator. :-)

Just another provincial local,
 

/== Randal L. Schwartz, Stonehenge Consulting Services (503)777-0095 ====\
| on contract to Intel's iWarp project, Hillsboro, Oregon, USA, Sol III  |
| merlyn@iwarp.intel.com ...!uunet!iwarp.intel.com!merlyn	         |
\== Cute Quote: "Welcome to Oregon... Home of the California Raisins!" ==/

[Moderator's Note: Hah! *He* thinks 611 gives calling-number-ID! Here
in Chicago we know it reaches the Illinois Bell Repair Service. And
for many years, 211 reached the Long Distance Operator for 90 percent
of the subscribers, while 811 reached Long Distance for the other 10
percent or so. And what we used to call Enterprise numbers *he*
probably called Zenith numbers.  Just a local yokel myself! :) PT]