Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request
From: shz@packard.att.com (Seth Zirin)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: How Can 411 Be Flagrantly Abused?
Message-ID: <2164@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 14 Dec 89 18:04:03 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 9, Issue 573, message 9 of 10


In article <2121@accuvax.nwu.edu> merlyn@iwarp.intel.com (Randal Schwartz) 
writes:

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

Nope.  My local loop connects me to a "Back Woods" telephone company
named "United Telephone of NJ" and they also use 555-1212 for DA.
They *just* upgraded to a "modern" switch from what surely must have
been an old crossbar.  I no longer hear 90 bazillion clicks before a
dial tone and my answering machine no longer records 60 seconds of
busy signal before IT drops incoming calls.  Calling home from
civilized areas of the global network no longer result in three and
sometimes four fast pulsed switching (routing?) sequences.

Now if only they could clear up the static I hear on my underground
line when the wind blows...

I recently made a local credit card call from one of United's
payphones and heard only "Thank you".  No "for using AT&T" or "for
using New Jersey Bell".  I'll probably have a coronary when the bill
comes...