Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request
From: jeffj@pedsga.UUCP (Jeff Jonas)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Caller ID
Message-ID: <2370@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 21 Dec 89 23:44:50 GMT
Sender: news@accuvax.nwu.edu
Organization: Concurrent Computer Corp. Tinton Falls, N.J.
Lines: 64
Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 9, Issue 589, message 2 of 7


In article <2229@accuvax.nwu.edu>, levitt@zorro9.fidonet.org (Ken Levitt) 
writes:

> 2.  Based in the ANI information and the time of day, the call would be
>     routed to one of the following:
 
>     a.  A real phone
>     b.  An answering machine
>     c.  A modem
>     d.  A FAX machine.

I like that idea!

Wouldn't it be nice if ALL fax machines could identify themselves
BEFORE anything picked up so the same line could share devices?  That
way, data calls (FAX, MODEM) would automatically route themselves to
devices WITHIN A TELEPHONE NUMBER.

This could be done if there were a user definable field after the
phone number in ANI.  As a human, I'd put my name there.  Machines
would put some standard ID there so all modems would recognize each
other.

Soliciters would be required (by their telemarketing license as well
as laws I'd like to see on the Federal/state level) to put some
message like "solicitor".  Now, you can know a little about the call
requested as well as the originating line number.  It could be used
like the "subject" line in articles.  This way, you could use this
information to help screen your calls.  All emergency calls (hospital,
police) could be identified by this user field, despite your never
seeing the number before.  Isn't this that you want - the ability to
prioritize your calls?

A cutsey feature could be programming each phone in your house to
transmit a different I.D.  That way, when I use the office phone, my
name appears on the callee's phone.  Other people in the household
have their names appear when they use their phones.  That way, a
recipient knows not just that the call is from the Jonas household,
but also can identify who the call is to or from!  No more picking up
the phone for others!

The closest thing I know to this is extensions within a telephone
number.  It hasn't been mentioned here lately, so I'll ask.  Isn't
there an ability to pre-dial numbers that get passed to the subscriber
(ex: dial the desired extension after the phone number without waiting
for the call to complete)?  If so, will this be made available to us
with the Caller-ID boxes, or will we need a full ISDN feed?  I thought
some 800 numbers had this, but that's for commercial users that will
pay big bucks for features.

Some people here on comp.dcom.telecom have premises equipment.  I
recall reading how they're used to manage several outgoing lines as
well as internal services (call holding, intercom).  What about some
support for multiple extensions (beyond call hunting)?


Jeffrey Jonas
jonas@cooper.cooper.edu

[yes, I know there are devices that discriminate between fax and voice
calls, but they introduce a delay that I find inexcusable.]