... that AOL and Time-Warner had to make with the feds in order to merge. I don't believe any other cable companies out there are required to open access. I know that the ones here in Indianapolis aren't - with the exception of the local Brighthouse Networks franchise, which used to be a Time-Warner franchise.
A cockroach can survive just about anything; something has to be really nasty to kill one. Hell, that's why they'd use cockroaches in the first place; they'll come back alive, even after days of living in conditions that would kill an unprotected human.
I know, I know, it's part of the AOL Borg, and it's adware-rific these days. Still, $10 a month for 20 hours and $3 each extra hour is pretty damn cheap, especially if you just need it as a backup connection. You can dial into AOL/CompuServe access point in the world, and they have Web mail, too. It's what my parents use; they've had no major complaints, aside from very occasional problems dialing in. The details on the plan are at:
... and redirect it to your cell phone's number. Sure, you'll pay a lot per minute for calls on the toll-free number, but them's the breaks. You'd pay just as much for a "national area code" like you're talking about, I bet.
Heck, if your cell phone provider (or its parent telco) can provide toll-free numbers as well, they may give you a discount for having another service with them already (your cell phone plan). It wouldn't hurt to ask.
Yep - fractional reserve banking!
on
Cashless Society
·
· Score: 1
In the U.S. (and many other countries), banks are required only to keep a certain percentage of their accountholders' funds on hand, in reserve - as cash, usually. It's called a "fractional reserve," for obvious reasons. It's also one of the major reasons for things like:
- Argentina's recent economic crisis. People crammed into their banks to withdraw their savings. After a while, the banks closed; they simply ran out of reserves, and people lost their accounts. A fair amount of loans were being defaulted upon, too, so the banks weren't making any money from them that could add to reserves.
- The Great Depression. See Argentina. Even worse, most banking regulation didn't even exist then; the banks could do just about whatever they pleased, including loaning out as much of their accountholders' money as they could.
Better yet, it might be wise to bring back the days when cars were built almost entirely out of steel, not out of plastic and sheet metal like they are today. Those old cars could withstand collisions with just about anything short of a tractor/trailer (lorry for you Brits), and sometimes even then. You could actually walk away from a 20mph crash, instead of having to call for an ambulance.
If you can make a new car as crash-resistant as an old one, without using steel, that'll be great. If not... well, I care more about my safety than I do about miles per gallon. I agree that most people don't need gas guzzlers such as SUV's, but the sacrifice of auto safety on the altar of the environment has been going on for way too long.
I keep seeing stories on sites like BroadbandReports that much of Japan has cheap-ass DSL, fiber optic, and cable Internet services. It certainly helps that most of Japan's population is densely concentrated, but I guess you're not in one of those areas?
I would hope that the machine would require confirmation. If a voter knows he didn't pick what he "apparently picked," he'd hopefully tell the election officials right away.
Actually, that's probably a very good idea for a elevator with a shitload of floors. While a person's on the elevator, let him press only one floor button. Use fingerprint/retinal/DNA/whatever scans.
(Yes, I know the parent poster was joking. No, that does not mean some jackass wouldn't do it.);-)
I'm surprised, man. You're what, near Canandaigua? I thought their main transmitter was in South Bristol, which isn't that far away from you. Although, maybe when they were assimilated, it got moved... Have you tried their repeater at 95.5?
Universal Buzz broadcasts "live" shows (as in, recorded live). They've recorded shows by a whole bunch of different artists. The shows are picked up by several non-commercial and university stations, many of which have Internet feeds. It doesn't look like Universal Buzz has actually recorded a show in quite a while, but they have just about every show archived at their Web site. Check it out! Maybe, with the right support, they could get the ball rolling again and broadcast some independent artists.
most phone companies keep track of DSL lines based on your phone number (it's basically used as a database key)
Then, maybe the phone companies should use a different key, right?:-) Maybe a circuit number would work. I mean, do you have a phone number for your T-1 line? I didn't think so.
But, the cost of a DSL line (usually around $30/month not including the ISP cost) is based on the idea that you already have voice phone service, so some of the costs of providing DSL service (such as physical wire maintenance) are covered by the money you pay for voice phone service.
So, the phone company could just itemize such a cost, right? List it on the bill separately?
It should be possible for you to get a dry line (a phone line with no dialtone) and put DSL on that. This would be cheaper than phone service, but there would still be a charge for it. However, since demand for this is very small, phone companies have no incentive to offer it.
Actually, there would be a demand for it, at least from businesses, as long as SLA's reminiscent of dedicated lines were put in place. However, phone companies make serious scratch from (and have huge investments in) ISDN and dedicated service - scratch that they wouldn't make if people switched to dry-pair DSL service. So, most ILEC's don't provide it, and they don't have much incentive to build out their networks enough to provide it to people who can't get it (distance limitations, older SLC's, yadda). Some CLEC's (and ISP's using those CLEC's) provide dry-pair DSL wherever they can, but their SLA's don't have teeth; the ILEC's are still in charge of the physical copper pair, and there aren't any laws (like there are for tariffed voice and data lines) that require ILEC's to guarantee DSL service in terms of downtime, ability to get it, etc.
From what I understand (correct me if I'm wrong), remote terminals (DSL-ready ones, as well as older ones) don't act as switches or routers. Instead, voice and data traffic are backhauled (usually over fiber) to the local central office, and equipment in the CO does the switching and routing.
To the telcos, apparently, there's no point in having each RT act as a switch. Since each RT has precisely one backhaul (actually two for DSL-ready RTs - one for voice, one for data), all traffic must go over that backhaul anyway.
It's a fair chunk of change to install backhauls of any sort. I'm sure you've seen stats about this. Redundant backhauls would only multiply the costs.
If you wanted to install redundant backhauls, where would they go? A different CO? Then you'd have to rework the <I>entire</I> United States/Canada/Caribbean phone system. Each CO is assigned a set of prefixes, a prefix being the "555" in "555-XXXX"; COs could have dozens of prefixes assigned to them. Those assignments are static, and phone service providers use those unchanging assignments to figure out where to switch calls. So, if your RT had a redundant backhaul to another CO, and your main CO goes bye-bye, how would other phone providers know that they'd need to switch your incoming calls through that other CO? A massive amount of money would need to be spent to give the network such intelligence. (Note that I'm talking about voice traffic, not data traffic. I'm aware that a data network would be much more capable of re-routing traffic.)
Another thing is, how often do people or businesses whose lines go through the same RT, call/e-mail/ICQ/whatever each other? Well, <I>some</I> of us visit our neighbors occasionally:-) instead of ICQing them, and neighboring businesses don't do business with each other very often. Add to that the fact that most RTs can handle about 4000 copper lines, and many DSL-ready RTs (at least in SBC territory) actually handle only 1000 lines or so. There just isn't that much intra-RT traffic.
To make RT switches cost-effective, a fair amount of intra-RT traffic would have to exist, and/or you'd need to bust out the checkbook in a big way. Which would mean that you'd have to bust out your <I>own</I> checkbook, too. TANSTAAFL.
Slashdot Mirror
http://chris-low.dyndns.org:6969/torrents/PauschAc ademicsFieldGuideToEA.pdf.torrent?ADAA8F351E795039 6A6FC2B3D7AF1C785533D3BF
Been reading L. Neil Smith?
http://chris-low.dyndns.org:6969/torrents/BatmanBe ginsTeaser.mov.torrent?792AE52228894E56BD7A7266E0A BF8D4BE41D6EA
link
Nope. Said feature still works in my version of MSIE - the latest IE for XP, fully patched.
... that AOL and Time-Warner had to make with the feds in order to merge. I don't believe any other cable companies out there are required to open access. I know that the ones here in Indianapolis aren't - with the exception of the local Brighthouse Networks franchise, which used to be a Time-Warner franchise.
A cockroach can survive just about anything; something has to be really nasty to kill one. Hell, that's why they'd use cockroaches in the first place; they'll come back alive, even after days of living in conditions that would kill an unprotected human.
I know, I know, it's part of the AOL Borg, and it's adware-rific these days. Still, $10 a month for 20 hours and $3 each extra hour is pretty damn cheap, especially if you just need it as a backup connection. You can dial into AOL/CompuServe access point in the world, and they have Web mail, too. It's what my parents use; they've had no major complaints, aside from very occasional problems dialing in. The details on the plan are at:
http://www.compuserve.com/faq/faq1501.htm
... and redirect it to your cell phone's number. Sure, you'll pay a lot per minute for calls on the toll-free number, but them's the breaks. You'd pay just as much for a "national area code" like you're talking about, I bet.
Heck, if your cell phone provider (or its parent telco) can provide toll-free numbers as well, they may give you a discount for having another service with them already (your cell phone plan). It wouldn't hurt to ask.
In the U.S. (and many other countries), banks are required only to keep a certain percentage of their accountholders' funds on hand, in reserve - as cash, usually. It's called a "fractional reserve," for obvious reasons. It's also one of the major reasons for things like:
- Argentina's recent economic crisis. People crammed into their banks to withdraw their savings. After a while, the banks closed; they simply ran out of reserves, and people lost their accounts. A fair amount of loans were being defaulted upon, too, so the banks weren't making any money from them that could add to reserves.
- The Great Depression. See Argentina. Even worse, most banking regulation didn't even exist then; the banks could do just about whatever they pleased, including loaning out as much of their accountholders' money as they could.
... may have replaced that tool you mentioned in your point 4. Take a look: MBSA
:-)
Damn, I wish I could mod this guy up.
Better yet, it might be wise to bring back the days when cars were built almost entirely out of steel, not out of plastic and sheet metal like they are today. Those old cars could withstand collisions with just about anything short of a tractor/trailer (lorry for you Brits), and sometimes even then. You could actually walk away from a 20mph crash, instead of having to call for an ambulance.
If you can make a new car as crash-resistant as an old one, without using steel, that'll be great. If not... well, I care more about my safety than I do about miles per gallon. I agree that most people don't need gas guzzlers such as SUV's, but the sacrifice of auto safety on the altar of the environment has been going on for way too long.
"Utilizing magnetic schemas," that is. Your rant is funny as hell in general - and so damn true...
... take a look at this comment: http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=47296&cid= 4843032
I keep seeing stories on sites like BroadbandReports that much of Japan has cheap-ass DSL, fiber optic, and cable Internet services. It certainly helps that most of Japan's population is densely concentrated, but I guess you're not in one of those areas?
Maybe.
I would hope that the machine would require confirmation. If a voter knows he didn't pick what he "apparently picked," he'd hopefully tell the election officials right away.
Actually, that's probably a very good idea for a elevator with a shitload of floors. While a person's on the elevator, let him press only one floor button. Use fingerprint/retinal/DNA/whatever scans.
;-)
(Yes, I know the parent poster was joking. No, that does not mean some jackass wouldn't do it.)
I'm surprised, man. You're what, near Canandaigua? I thought their main transmitter was in South Bristol, which isn't that far away from you. Although, maybe when they were assimilated, it got moved... Have you tried their repeater at 95.5?
Universal Buzz broadcasts "live" shows (as in, recorded live). They've recorded shows by a whole bunch of different artists. The shows are picked up by several non-commercial and university stations, many of which have Internet feeds. It doesn't look like Universal Buzz has actually recorded a show in quite a while, but they have just about every show archived at their Web site. Check it out! Maybe, with the right support, they could get the ball rolling again and broadcast some independent artists.
most phone companies keep track of DSL lines based on your phone number (it's basically used as a database key)
:-) Maybe a circuit number would work. I mean, do you have a phone number for your T-1 line? I didn't think so.
Then, maybe the phone companies should use a different key, right?
But, the cost of a DSL line (usually around $30/month not including the ISP cost) is based on the idea that you already have voice phone service, so some of the costs of providing DSL service (such as physical wire maintenance) are covered by the money you pay for voice phone service.
So, the phone company could just itemize such a cost, right? List it on the bill separately?
It should be possible for you to get a dry line (a phone line with no dialtone) and put DSL on that. This would be cheaper than phone service, but there would still be a charge for it. However, since demand for this is very small, phone companies have no incentive to offer it.
Actually, there would be a demand for it, at least from businesses, as long as SLA's reminiscent of dedicated lines were put in place. However, phone companies make serious scratch from (and have huge investments in) ISDN and dedicated service - scratch that they wouldn't make if people switched to dry-pair DSL service. So, most ILEC's don't provide it, and they don't have much incentive to build out their networks enough to provide it to people who can't get it (distance limitations, older SLC's, yadda). Some CLEC's (and ISP's using those CLEC's) provide dry-pair DSL wherever they can, but their SLA's don't have teeth; the ILEC's are still in charge of the physical copper pair, and there aren't any laws (like there are for tariffed voice and data lines) that require ILEC's to guarantee DSL service in terms of downtime, ability to get it, etc.
To get added to Indiana's list, click here.
A description of the law can be seen here.
A little karma whoring going on:
Here is the junk fax law (47 USC 227). As jsmtng said, you could get at least $500 for each junk fax sent to you.
From what I understand (correct me if I'm wrong), remote terminals (DSL-ready ones, as well as older ones) don't act as switches or routers. Instead, voice and data traffic are backhauled (usually over fiber) to the local central office, and equipment in the CO does the switching and routing.
:-) instead of ICQing them, and neighboring businesses don't do business with each other very often. Add to that the fact that most RTs can handle about 4000 copper lines, and many DSL-ready RTs (at least in SBC territory) actually handle only 1000 lines or so. There just isn't that much intra-RT traffic.
To the telcos, apparently, there's no point in having each RT act as a switch. Since each RT has precisely one backhaul (actually two for DSL-ready RTs - one for voice, one for data), all traffic must go over that backhaul anyway.
It's a fair chunk of change to install backhauls of any sort. I'm sure you've seen stats about this. Redundant backhauls would only multiply the costs.
If you wanted to install redundant backhauls, where would they go? A different CO? Then you'd have to rework the <I>entire</I> United States/Canada/Caribbean phone system. Each CO is assigned a set of prefixes, a prefix being the "555" in "555-XXXX"; COs could have dozens of prefixes assigned to them. Those assignments are static, and phone service providers use those unchanging assignments to figure out where to switch calls. So, if your RT had a redundant backhaul to another CO, and your main CO goes bye-bye, how would other phone providers know that they'd need to switch your incoming calls through that other CO? A massive amount of money would need to be spent to give the network such intelligence. (Note that I'm talking about voice traffic, not data traffic. I'm aware that a data network would be much more capable of re-routing traffic.)
Another thing is, how often do people or businesses whose lines go through the same RT, call/e-mail/ICQ/whatever each other? Well, <I>some</I> of us visit our neighbors occasionally
To make RT switches cost-effective, a fair amount of intra-RT traffic would have to exist, and/or you'd need to bust out the checkbook in a big way. Which would mean that you'd have to bust out your <I>own</I> checkbook, too. TANSTAAFL.
My 2¢,
- <I>Chris</I>