============================================================================ NorthWestern Syndicate Presents: THE SYNDICATE REPORT Issue No. 4 Written by The Sensei Copyright (C) Aug. 10 1986 ============================================================================ The Syndicate Report is stictly Bell orientated information. Without some background, reading in this material could cause a problem to understand. ============================================================================ PRIVACY OF COMMUNICATIONS: In this article, I've gathered forward rules operators (that have the ability to intercept a line) strict rules they must abide by. Operator Privacy Rules Are: - No transmission, either by voice, data, or other non-voice communi- cation, is to be tampered with or intruded upon. - No conversation between customers, or transmission of data or non- voice communication, should be listened to or monitored, nor should its existence be divulged, except as required in the proper management of the business. - No one should use, personally or for the benefit of others, infor- mation from any communication. - Communications arrangements with customers, and information about billing records, equipment, or cicuits, are not be disclosed to any unauthor- ized person. - If a law enforcement organization, or any other government authority, asks or by Company regulation -- the request should be referred immedicately to the Company's Security Division. NorthWestern Bell has a suposed "GOOD" reputation about privacy. So if you have the slightest suspection of your line being tampered with, inform your local Bell Representative (Any Operator). ============================================================================ Pacific Northwest Bell has embarked on a modernization program that will make it the first multi-state telephone company in the United States with all computerized switching offices. When the conversions are complete in 1988, PNB also will be the first multi-state telephone company in the United States to offer all of its company that handles the toll calls they place through 1-plus dialing. ============================================================================ SYNDICATE REPORT FAST MONEY/TIME SAVING TIP: Setting up a teleconference? Here's a time-saving tip: arrance it on the quarter hour. Most teleconferences are assembled on the hour and the most popular times are 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Teleconferences attendants are being overwhelmed at those times and conferees can spend excessive ammounts of time on hold. ============================================================================ FIBER OPTICS BREAKTHROUGH: The highcost of laser technology had been viewed as a major obstacle in the expansion of fiber optics technology to business and residential pre- mises. Scientists from AT&T Technology, however, have discovered a way to get around the need for a laser in every home or business. Instead of using a laser in each piece of fiber optics equipment, they've found that certain "photodetectors" can reflect laser light piped from switching offices and carry the transmission. ============================================================================ NEW UNIX DEVELOPMENT: The Centron/Centrex ECAP (Electronic Customer Access Program) System is an enhanced service availble to Centron and Centrex central office equipment users. Currently Centron/Centrex users must call a Business Office to have changes made to their equipment. The process is expensive and slow. The user is charged for each service order and the work may not be completed for several days. The new ECAP system allows the use to enter equipment changes directly to a Bell computer via a computer terminal. The computer then prints the orders to be worked. The work is completed within 24 hours and the user is charged on a monthly basis rather than on a per-serice basis. The ECAP system is a series on programs written in the "C" programming language to run a UNIX-based Plexus minicomputer. There are ECAP Plexus computer located in Omaha, St. Paul and Des Moines and soon to reach other designated areas. Each of is capable of handling up to 16 simultaneous users. The Unify Data Base Manager has been incorporated into the software to allow the user fast and easy access to their data base of line records which contain the feature for the individual telephone line. The ECAP system was developed for the Marketing Department by the UNIX Development Section of ISO. ============================================================================ DVX-DIGITAL VOICE EXCHANGE SYSTEM: Bell recently loaded on the NWB DVX system the FEATURE PACKAGE 5 which incorporates feature that meet existing and future users needs. Here are a few examples on the system: Personalized Greetings for the Message Center: The Messge Center Personalized Greeting is a greeting recorded by DVX users that is played when a caller is transferted to the Message Center. The greet- ing is played to inform the caller, in the user's own voice, that they are not available and leave a message after the tone. Personalized Greeting for the Extended Absence: Callers attempting to create and send messages to DVX users are notified via a pre-recorded greeting that the user in on extended absence. With FP 5, and Extended Absence Notification can now be personalized in the user's own voice to inform callers that they are not available for a user-specified length of time of up to one year. Users have the option to have their Extended Absense Greeting played instead on their Message Center Greeting. The greeting in active during the entire absence date has expired or that dat is cancelled by the user. Name Response: When callers reach a Message Center, they receive a DVX system administrator's recording of the user's name. With FP 5, individuals can record their own name response to be played instead on the system administrator's version during directory search, mailbox scan or when verifying a user's ID or message delivery. Enhanced Mailing List Capabilities: With FP 5, users can create, name, edit, review and delete their own mailing lists via telephone keypad. CLASS of Service: FP 5 allows a DVX system adminitrator to limit specific users services. (See Syndicate Report #3 on tracing/blocking calls.) Yet to come in the next few weeks is the capability to integrate with the Centrex here at any Bell Company. The features included here will be a stutter dial tone when you pick up the phone to indicate to you that a message or messages are waiting on DVX. Also, for those of you who utilize the Message Center function, the caller will no longer have to re-enter the called party's extension number and enables DVX to provide the caller with the name of the person being called. ============================================================================ If there is any question to the information in this file, contact the author. Now can be easily found on the Private Sector 20 Meg, 3/1200 baud system at (201) 366-4431 (2600 Magazine). ============================================================================ This concludes this Issue No. 4 presented by: The Syndicate Report The information in this file is copyrighted and all rights reserved. This file may, in whole or in part be copied, photocopied, reprinted, translated, recuded to any electronic medium or machine readable form or reproduction in any manner as long as no part or parts of information is tampered without prior consent in writing from The Sensei, NWS., Syndicate Report Aug. 10 1986. ============================================================================