TELECOM Digest Mon, 23 May 94 14:29:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 245 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Re: Help Needed on Call Initialization in GSM, TACS, AMPS (P. Allen Jensen) Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? (Arieh Cimet) Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? (Lynne Gregg) Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? (Mike Lyman) Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? (David S. Rose) Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? (K. Ketheesan) Re: Distribution of WATS Numbers in the Numbering Plan (John R. Levine) Re: CNID and ANI - Will They Become One and the Same? (John R. Levine) Re: Video Conference Bridges (Ari Ollikainen) Re: Video Conference Bridges (Alan Leon Varney) Re: Bulk Call Display (Paul Robinson) Re: Sprint "Combined Billing" Error (Robert M. Hamer) Book Review: "Netiquette" by Virgina Shea (K. M. Peterson) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. 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Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jensena@crl.com (P. Allen Jensen) Subject: Re: Help Needed on Call Initialization in GSM, TACS, AMPS Date: 23 May 1994 09:32:12 -0700 Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [login: guest] Nimal Senarath (ngs@ee.mu.OZ.AU) wrote: > I am a research student in Mobile communications attached to Networks > Group, EE Dept, Melbourne UNiversity, Australia. > I want to model Call INitialization in TDMA, FDMA systems for my > simulation work. I want to know exactly how the decision of initial > Base STATION selection is done (i.e. At the call origination). > We know that the mobile checks for the highest received pilot signal, > and connect to that base station if that is sufficient. However what I Actually, it's a bit more complex than just the highest pilot signal. The Radio Criteria named C1 used to select is defined as: C1 = (A - Max.(B,0)) Where A = Received Level Average - p1 B = p2 - Maximum RF power of the mobil station p1 is the RXLEV_ACCESS_MIN broadcast by the cell p2 is the MX_TXPWR_MAX_CCH broadcast by the cell Values are expressed in dB (this is for GSM900, GSM1800 differs, and this does not include things like reselect hysteresis, switch-on time, PLMN change, limited service mode, using a prefered PLMN list in the moble unit, etc...) The Received Level Average seems to be what you want to know about - How long does it measure it to compute an average and how many samples are taken as you say below ... > need is that how long mobile will measure this Signal Strength before > taking the decision and how often it measures this RSS values. (e.g. > It can be that average value of RSS over 0.5 seconds intervals may be > measured for about 'N' number of such intervals?; I assume measurements > at 0.5 intervals because that is the measurement interval used for > sending RSS values to the BS by the GSM system after the intitialization > process.) The minimum rate of measurement reporting in GSM is once per second. This is for all cells being measured. (the Mobile station builds a list of stations/frquencies to monitor ...) This can include up to six neighbour cells. In the TCH/F + SAACH case, there are 26 very short intervals (1ms) 24 small intervals (2ms) and one long interval (6ms) every 120ms. For more details - get the book: "The GSM System for Mobile Communications" by Michel Moule and Marie-Bernadette Pautet ISBN 2-9507190-0-7 ------------------------------ From: anl433!cimet@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com (Arieh Cimet) Subject: Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? Organization: Motorola Land Mobile Products Sector Date: Mon, 23 May 1994 16:20:34 GMT gregalex@cybernet.cse.fau.edu (Greg Alexander) writes: > Is it a pager -- or a digital message that appears when your phone is > in range? My interest is because I will often be in No service areas > (eg Asia Pacific -- Thailand, and non city areas of Australia). If its > a pager -- cool, I will still be contactable. If it relies on being in > the area -- good too (I will NEVER miss the message). Short Message is a paging with acknowledgement service, i.e. the system will attempt to deliver the messages until it receives an acknowledgement from the mobile. If a message is received while you are registered in the system then it is delivered right away (and it will be redelivered if there are any errors during transmission until an acknowledgement is received). If you are not in the system, then the messages are stored and the system database is marked so that the next time that you register in the system, all the messages waiting for you will be delivered (there is usually a scrolling mechanism in the phone). The operator may limit how many waiting messages you can have and for how long they will keep a message. I. Arieh Cimet e-mail: cimet@comm.mot.com Motorola ESMR Infrastructure phone: (708) 576-4565 1301 E. Algonquin Road fax: (708) 538-3472 Schaumburg, IL 60196 ------------------------------ From: Lynne Gregg Subject: Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? Date: Mon, 23 May 94 09:31:00 PDT From: gregalex@cybernet.cse.fau.edu (Greg Alexander) > I have spoken with several stores, service providers and > representatives of the actual phone makers themselves (Nokia) (in > Australia), and have got different stories from everyone as to how it > works. Is it a pager -- or a digital message that appears when your > phone is in range? My interest is because I will often be in No service > areas (eg Asia Pacific -- Thailand, and non city areas of Australia). > If its a pager -- cool, I will still be contactable. If it relies on being > in the area -- good too (I will NEVER miss the message). The messaging is delivered over the same cellular network to the phone. Yep, you must be within the coverage area in order to receive the page. It'll be great when the gaps are filled in coverage areas. Those days aren't too far off. Regards, Lynne ------------------------------ From: Michael_Lyman@sat.mot.com (Mike Lyman) Subject: Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? Reply-To: Michael_Lyman@sat.mot.com Organization: Motorola Inc. - Satellite Communications Date: Mon, 23 May 1994 16:06:50 GMT According to the way I interpret the meaning of "pager", I'd say GSM Short Message Service is a little of both paging facility and message storage/retrieval service. The GSM service specification for SMS makes it possible for a subscriber to receive messages up to 160 characters in length when that subscriber is currently registered in a system that supports SMS. Messages can be received either while the subscriber/phone is idle (not in an active call) or when the subscriber is involved in an active call. The big difference between SMS and a "pager" service is that SMS will, in principle go through most of the actions that normally take place for a regular GSM voice call (authentication, etc). Once a message is delivered to a subscribers' mobile phone, an acknowledgment is sent from the phone to confirm that the phone received the message. If the subscriber is not currently registered in a system or has the mobile unit turned off or << your reason for non-delivery here >> the message will be stored in a Short Message Service Center and a flag is set in that subscribers' database that will cause an indication on the subscribers' mobile unit that a message is waiting, once the subscribers' phone is available. The subscriber can then retrieve the message(s). If the mobile phone is equipped with a SIM card (Subscriber Information Module), then provision is made to store any SMS messages on the SIM. Messages sent to subscribers' via SMS are "secure". That is, the message is encrypted using a sophisticated algorithm. In addition, the originator of the message can be advised of the outcome of the SMS delivery. For a "normal" paging service, pages are sent to the subscriber's pager without any indications in return as to successful delivery (spray and pray service) although there is a movement afoot to provide "ack-back" paging services. I dont think there are any spec's or functional systems (are there ?). The description of SMS that I've given is from a "specifications" perspective and that actual implementation and operation may vary according to the subscriber unit/network equipment vendor. I believe the basic functional description will hold true. Michael Lyman Motorola S.E.D. ( Iridium ) Chandler, Az. lyman_m@sat.mot.com ------------------------------ From: dsr@delphi.com Subject: Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? Date: Mon, 23 May 94 02:28:28 -0500 Organization: Delphi (info@delphi.com email, 800-695-4005 voice) Greg Alexander writes: > Is it a pager -- or a digital message that appears when your phone is > in range? My interest is because I will often be in No service areas GSM, which is similar to the MIRS/ESRM technology in North America, is an integrated system. That is, one single system provides a variety of\ wireless connections. These include two-way voice, one-way acknowledgement alphanumeric messaging, two-way data and in some cases push-to-talk dispatch broadcast. The key here is that all these features are coming through the same system, using the same transmitters, switches and mobile receivers. Therefore the range/coverage on all the services will be exactly the same. If you're in range to get an alpha message, you will also be in range for a voice connection, and vice versa. (Actually, in practice there might some minor discrepancies in fringe areas, but the usual case will be true the vast majority of the time.) David S. Rose / Ex Machina, Inc. ------------------------------ From: ketheesa@enws204.eas.asu.edu (K. Ketheesan) Subject: Re: GSM "Short Messages"==Pager? Reply-To: ketheesa@enws204.eas.asu.edu Organization: Network Systems Lab, Arizona State University Date: Mon, 23 May 1994 12:15:24 GMT In article 3@eecs.nwu.edu, gregalex@cybernet.cse.fau.edu (Greg Alexander) writes: > Is it a pager -- or a digital message that appears when your phone is > in range? My interest is because I will often be in No service areas > (eg Asia Pacific -- Thailand, and non city areas of Australia). If its > a pager -- cool, I will still be contactable. If it relies on being in > the area -- good too (I will NEVER miss the message). My understanding is that in order to deliver SMS messages in GSM, signaling connection has to be established (if one is not already existing). So that implies that when you are outside the coverage area, you will not be able to send or receive SMS messages. K. Ketheesan Network Systems Lab Electrical Engineering Arizona State University K.Ketheesan@asu.edu Tempe, Arizona ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 23 May 94 14:20 EDT From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: Distribution of WATS Numbers in the Numbering Plan Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. TELECOM Digest Editor noted: > [When you dial an 800 number, your local telco makes a quick search > of the database and routes your call to the 'real' number to which the > 800 version is attached. PAT] It's probably more accurate to say that the telco looks up the 800 number and then hands it to the appropriate IXC who can do anything with it they want. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 23 May 94 07:56:00 EDT From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: CNID and ANI - Will They Become One and the Same? Organization: I.E.C.C., Cambridge, Mass. Is it too much to ask that people actually retrieve the FCC's CNID order rather than speculating about what it might say? You can FTP it in about 30 seconds if you're on a directly connected site. It's at: ftp://fcc.gov/pub/Orders/Common_Carrier/orcc4001.txt > With the FCC mandate for CNID service, is it not possible that the > telcos will use this to drop ANI? Considering that ANI is what they use to bill for toll calls, I would think that such a move is, to put it mildly, unlikely. > Also it has been mentioned that "911 service requires special trunk lines > and equipment". Clearly CNID does not and needs only a low-cost display. > Will this make local 911 response a possibility? The hard part about 911 isn't delivering the ANI. The hard part is creating a complete and reliable data base with accurate street addresses in which the number can be looked up. In Vermont, for example, there is an expensive multi-year program to assign a street and number to every address in the state (most of Vermont is small towns where a typical mailing address is Box 42, RFD 1, East Overshoe) largely to make it possible to create the 911 location database. Whether the number comes from ANI or CLID is a nit. > While we are at it, I would *suspect* that per-call blocking will be > the standard, per-line will be standard for unlisted subscribers, ... The FCC order specifically forbids providing per-line blocking to anyone. They say: "Thus, carriers may not offer per line blocking as a privacy protection mechanism on interstate calls." I think this is a terrible idea, for reasons I won't rehash again here. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, jlevine@delphi.com, 1037498@mcimail.com ------------------------------ From: ari@viipuri.nersc.gov (Ari Ollikainen) Subject: Re: Video Conference Bridges Date: 23 May 1994 02:40:07 GMT Organization: National Energy Research Supercomputer Center, Livermore CA In article teleconxiv@aol.com (TeleConXIV) writes: > In article , John McHarry digex.net> writes: > There are a number of companies making videoconferencing bridges. > first are the main codec manufacturers - CLI, PictureTel, VTEL, GPT, > BT, NEC. There are also companies like VideoServer. Most of today's > bridges are ITU/TSS H.320 (or some subset) compatible. Most of the > codec manufacturers have proprietary algorithms in their own multipoint > control units (MCU's). CTX. CTX+, SG-3, etc. Send e-mail if I can > give you more information (dboomstein@aol.com). BT's new MCU is made by VideoServer. CLI's MCU2 (proprietary + standards) is made by VideoServer. PictureTel's and VTEL's standards capable MCUs are internally developed. I hope the information you are offering via e-mail is more accurate ... Ari@ES.net Ari Ollikainen {VOX: 510 423-5962} Energy Sciences Network {FAX: 510 423-8744} National Energy Research Supercomputer Center Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory MailStop L-561, PO BOX 5509, Livermore, CA. 94551 ~~RECOM Technologies Inc.~~ ------------------------------ From: Alan.Leon.Varney@att.com Date: Mon, 23 May 1994 10:29:37 +0600 Subject: Re: Video Conference Bridges Organization: AT&T Network Systems > There are a number of companies making videoconferencing bridges. > first are the main codec manufacturers - CLI, PictureTel, VTEL, GPT, > BT, NEC. There are also companies like VideoServer. Most of today's > bridges are ITU/TSS H.320 (or some subset) compatible. AT&T Network Systems also makes a MultiPoint Control Unit, with H.series (Px64) compliance, interfacing with DS1-robbed-bit or National ISDN-PRI trunks. Bandwidths of 56/64/112/128 and 384 (H0 and multirate) are supported. Initial versions of the MultiPoint Model VS handle 24 ports in up to 12 conferences, and can be cascaded to support 46 endpoints. BONDing & 1.5 Mbps are not yet available. It's a new product, so John might not have it on his list. Al Varney ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 23 May 1994 11:42:12 EDT From: Paul Robinson Reply-To: Paul Robinson Subject: Re: Bulk Call Display Organization: Tansin A. Darcos & Company, Silver Spring, MD USA >> So what interface are they using to receive the Call Display data? > I believe there is just such a bulk interface available, called > something like SMDA (Service Message Desk Accounting?). I think you mean "SMDF" -- Simplified Message Desk Format. Some attendant console systems have the capability to use it in order to route calls automatically. I know the system we have at my other office has it as an option. Paul Robinson - Paul@TDR.COM ------------------------------ From: hamer@gandalf.rutgers.edu (Robert M. Hamer) Subject: Re: Sprint "Combined Billing" Error Date: 20 May 94 15:49:45 GMT Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. pheel@panix.com (Mike Pollock) writes: > Sprint recently changed me over from direct billing to "combined > billing" on my NYNEX local telephone bill. Simple, right? Wrong. One solution is simply to not pay the NYNEX bill, call Sprint, and tell them you don't want "combined billing." They didn't kick when I did that. If they did kick, tell them you'll feel free to change to another long distance company. You ought to be able to get rates similar to Sprint's from lots of places. Robert M. Hamer hamer@gandalf.rutgers.edu 908 932 3145 ------------------------------ From: kmp@tiac.net (K. M. Peterson) Subject: Book Review: "Netiquette" by Virginia Shea Date: 23 May 1994 15:16:20 GMT Organization: KMPeterson/Boston In article st014532@oregon.uoregon.edu (Rosemary Angela Mauro) writes: > I am currently engaged in putting on a presentation for a > telecommunications class at the U of Oregon. I need any information > you may have regarding netiquette,nethics and conventional terms used > on th intenet or email. Perhaps someone has an email address where I > could write for information. Would appreciate any response. There's a book out on it now!! A L B I O N B O O K S P R O U D L Y A N N O U N C E S T H E P U B L I C A T I O N O F N E T I Q U E T T E B Y V I R G I N I A S H E A -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= "Mandatory reading for new users of the Internet. It should be bundled with every modem..." -- from the foreword by Guy Kawasaki =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Netiquette / by Virginia Shea 160 pages / 6" X 9" / $19.95 Albion Books / info@albion.com ISBN 0-9637025-1-3 SPECIAL FEATURES * The first and only book of network etiquette * Authoritative essays on "Business Netiquette," "The Elements of Electronic Style," "The Art of the Flame," and "Love & Sex in Cyberspace." * Useful for every net user, from "newbie" to guru INTENDED AUDIENCE: The twenty-five million users of online services, corporate electronic mail systems, and the Internet. Of particular interest to new participants in online environments such as Prodigy, CompuServe, America Online, USENET news, and electronic mailing lists. BOOK INFORMATION: Cyberspace is booming. Each month, millions of people are discovering the power of the Internet, online services, and corporate email systems. With this power comes responsibility. People who wouldn't dream of burping at the end of dinner post offensive messages to international forums. Middle managers inadvertently send romantic email messages to the company-wide email alias. People at computer terminals forget that there are real live people on the other end of the wire. Topics are lost in noise, feelings are hurt, reputations are damaged, time and bandwidth are wasted. There's no longer an excuse. This book brings etiquette to the bustling frontiers of cyberspace. In a series of entertaining essays, the author establishes the do's and the don'ts of communicating online, from the Golden Rule to the art of the flame, from the elements of electronic style to virtual sex. Accessible to both network wizard and clueless newbie, this is the first book to offer the guidance that all users need to be perfectly polite online. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Virginia Shea has been a student of human nature all her life. She attended Princeton University and has worked in Silicon Valley since the mid-1980s. ABOUT ALBION BOOKS: Albion Books is a San Francisco-based company dedicated to publishing both high-quality bound books and free electronic texts. TO ORDER: The book is available from Computer Literacy Bookshops Inc. In the eastern U.S., call +1 703-734-7771. In the western U.S., call +1 408-435-0744. Or use the response form below to order directly from the publisher via mail or fax. To find out about ordering via email, query info@clbooks.com. For more information about this and other new books, contact Albion Books at info@albion.com. (Note I'm not affiliated with them, this is off the InterNIC Net-Happenings list...) K. M. Peterson email: KMP@TIAC.NET phone: +1 617 731 6177 voice +1 617 730 5969 fax ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #245 ****************************** -------------------------------------------------------------------------------