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Archive-name: uk-telecom/part1
Posting-Frequency: monthly Last-modified: Time-stamp: <96/06/16 14:53:00 jrg> Version: 2.11 See reader questions & answers on this topic! - Help others by sharing your knowledge
Frequently Asked Questions for uk.telecom
Part 1 - Questions and Contacts
Compiled/ Posted by James Grinter <jrg@blodwen.demon.co.uk>
These articles attempt to summarise answers to some of the more often
asked questions in the newsgroup uk.telecom.
This first part of the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) summarises the
questions, and gives places to go for further information.
See also below for details of the uk.telecom archive, or the find the
regular post to uk.telecom.
----
This post, and all other periodic postings to news.answers are
available for anonymous ftp in the periodic posting archive
ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/. [18.181.0.24], or via E-mail by sending a
message to <mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu> (send a message with "help" in
the body to get more information).
This is mirrored at <URL:ftp://sunsite.doc.ic.ac.uk/usenet/news.answers/>.
This FAQ is also available in a simple hypertext form on the World Wide
Web at <URL:http://www.gbnet.net/net/uk-telecom/>
Other FAQs are available on the World Wide Web at
<URL:http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/top.html>.
----
[Compilers Notes are in square brackets (like this)]
Comments / Contributions **always** welcomed with open arms either on
the newsgroup or via email :-) -- james.
Disclaimer:
This information has been culled from postings to
uk.telecom, mail and occasionally from files of the
comp.dcom.telecom archive. I give no guarantees of
its accuracy etc.. I also reserve the right to edit
postings for length and relevance.
**Please**, only use any prices as a guide - if you want
up-to-date pricing information contact the relevant
people. (many numbers are listed at the bottom of
this article)
Thanks:
My thanks to all those who participate in the uk.telecom
newsgroup.
**Special** thanks to the original compiler of this FAQ,
Christopher Samuel <chris@rivers.dra.hmg.gb> - his
name has moved to here so that people don't keep troubling
him with regards to this FAQ!
----
Subject: Part 2 - Telephone Service
Subject: What is uk.telecom ?
Subject: Phone numbers
Q: Why do we need another digit in the phone numbers?
Q: So who decided, and what were the choices?
Q: Who owns this numbering space ?
Q: I've heard someone mention about Mercury's 0500 service, what is it ?
Q: How can I phone American 1-800 (toll free) numbers from the UK ?
Q: How do I dial a number with a mnemonic in it ?
Q: What are BT Phonebase/ Electronic Yellow Pages/ TeleDirectory and
how do you get access to them?
Q: What defines a local call area?
Q: When did the National Code Change take place?
Q: When did the International access code change happen?
Q: I want a new line with a particular number, or want to renumber an
existing line to a particular number.
Q: What sort of dialling code is <x>?
Q: What codes are free to the caller?
Q: How should I correctly write my telephone number?
Q: What is a "DE block"?
Subject: Oftel
Q: Who or what are OFTEL? How do I contact them?
Q: Do OFTEL set any of BT's charges?
Q: How do I get a copy of 'Oftel News'?
Subject: ICSTIS
Q: Who or what are ICSTIS? How do I contact them? {*}
Subject: Mercury Communications Ltd
Q: Can you use a Mercury 131 account from any phone? {*}
Q: What is the Mercury beep, and can I get rid of it ?
Q: What do I get on Mercury's itemised bill using cost centres?
Q: Is it possible to access Mercury 131 from a BT Payphone?
Q: How can I dial 9 digit numbers quickly- the system waits a
while for the 10th digit?
Q: What is the Mercury 132 service? {*}
Q: Can I tell if Mercury 131/132 service is available in my area? {*}
Q: Can I use 132 service from multiple exchange lines? {*}
Q: How do I get Mercury's price list?
Subject: British Telecommuncations plc (BT)
Q: Why is there no 0345 access to PSS Dialplus ?
Q: What **are** these Network Services that people keep mentioning?
Are they a BT version of teletext or something? Do you have to
pay for them?
Q: When I use call waiting, and press R to get the dialling tone
so that I can get to the new caller, nothing happens i.e. no
dialling tone.
Q: How do I order BT's full price list ?
Q: How do I get a BT 'Midnight line'?
Q: Are calls made on Midnight lines **outside** the Midnight-6am
free period charged at normal dialled rates?
Q: Can I get a fully itemised bill from BT ?
Q: How can I get ISDN?
Q: What are the costs of ISDN connection and calls?
Q: What does an 0990 number offer you, and what is its cost? {*}
Subject: Caller ID/ Caller Identification (CLI/CLID)
Q: Is Caller ID available in the UK ?
Q: What PSTN phones support Caller ID?
Q: What ISDN phones support Caller ID, decoding and displaying it?
Q: I've seen a couple of ads in Exchange & Mart for Caller ID devices...
anyone know if these really work ?
Subject: Call barring
Q: Will BT provide a line with all outgoing calls disabled except
to Mercury?
Q: Is it possible to bar reverse charge calls on a line that
allows incoming calls?
Q: What are the newly announced plans for barring 0898 Adult
Entertainment premium-rate numbers? {*}
Subject: Engaged lines
Q: If someone's number is permanently engaged, what can you do?
Q: What can BT do about a phone off the hook?
Subject: Automatic announcements
Q: What are the meanings of the various automatic announcements? {*}
Q: What are those 'Doh dah dee' tones?
Subject: Chargecards
Q: I want to get a BT Chargecard, the problem seemed to be that
you need to be a current customer (have a phone) to be able to
get one. Is this so? If it is why is it so?
Q: Why can't I direct dial with my BT chargecard on Cellnet ?
Q: What itemisation do I get with a BT Chargecard?
Q: What service do you get with the Mercury Calling Card?
Q: What service do you get with BT's Chargecard
Subject: Other Telephone services
Q: What is AT&T Direct ?
Q: What is Flextel?
Q: What ways are there of calling the US cheaper than BT or Mercury?
Q: Who are ACC?
Subject: Facsimile/ FAX machines
Q: Where can I get a FAX switch from?
Q: What is the legal status of messages transmitted via Facsimile?
Subject: Radio Pagers
Q: What are recommended pager companies in the UK?
Subject: Cellular/ Mobile phones
Q: I was recently offered a "free" Cellphone with a product I
bought. While I accept that it may be a condition of accepting the
"free" phone that you also subscribe to their airtime, is it
actually _illegal_ not to purchase an agreement with the phone?
Q: Will calls from PSTN lines to mobile phones, in other
countries, work? What premium will I pay above the normal
charges?
Q: Will inbound access to UK mobiles work?
Q: Where can I get details of Cellnet, Vodafone, One2One, and Orange
coverage?
Q: Why do analogue cellphones have a 'soft' serial number,
enabling alteration?
Q: What do Cellnet Callback and Vodafone Messenger offer? Who do
I ring for help?
Q: What prompts the Cellnet callback or Vodafone Messenger
systems to call back?
Q: Who are the 'People's phone'?
Q: How can I check the status of a GSM or PCN phone's divert and
call waiting?
Q: What facilities are present in GSM and PCN handsets (like Orange and
One2One) to counter 'phone thieves?
Q: What are the functions possible with Hutchison's Voice messaging
service?
Q: What are the phone numbers for the GSM network SMS 'message
centres'.
Subject: Phone Call charges
Q: Why are some numbers charged for when they don't exist?
Q: What are the costs of running 0345 and 0800 number services?
Q: What are the current phone-call costs?
Q: What is an 'average' 'phone bill for the US, as a comparison?
Q: So how do the Americans price their 'phone calls then?
Q: What happens with the cost of calls which last over two or more
charge bands?
Subject: Other Telecoms info
Q: Where can I get an old style BT phone box from ?
Q: So tell me some more about these old phone boxes
----
Subject: Part 3 - Technical matters
Subject: How do phones work?
Q: Okay, so tell me this. How do phones work ?
Q: Where can I get technical information about UK telecommunication
systems?
Q: What do those wires do? [last update 27/3/95]
Q: Why a third wire for the bell?
Q: What's this about master sockets and lineboxes?
Q: My equipment (telephone, modem, computer...) has an RJ11 socket
for connecting the line cord. What are the connections?
Q: Does it matter if A and B are interchanged?
Q: Why that 470 kohm resistor in the master socket?
Subject: BABT
Q: Who or what are BABT? How do I contact them?
Subject: PSTN
Q: How can I simulate the PSTN?
Subject: PSDN
Q: What is the PSDN?
Subject: ISDN
Q: What is ISDN?
Q: What are the costs of ISDN connection and calls?
Q: Say I want to access my University computer from home, using an
ISDN connection, in order to get fast terminal access and file
transfer. What would I need to connect a PC to a Workstation
over this?
Q: What's the difference in equipment at the exchange switch between
an ISDN line and that for an analogue line?
Subject: Leased lines
Q: We ordered a 14.4k leased line, and BT are installing a 64k
line with convertor. Why, and surely it costs them the same?
Subject: Exchange features
Q: Is it possible to set up a three way call, then have one of the
other guys introduce another caller.. ad infinitum?
Q: How does Caller ID Work?
Q: I hear that PABXs with two or more incoming lines require a
maintainance contract.
Subject: Telephones
Q: Why does my pre-socket phone 'tinkle' in the night ?
Q: What is the difference between Timed Break Recall (the Recall button)
and flashing the hook?
Q: How does the BT Chargecard system work ? {*}
Subject: Modems
Q: I use Network Services to bar incoming calls, but when the
barring is inforce, the dialtone is different, and hence my modem
won't autodial. Is there a way round this?
Q: Can you use ordinary dial-up modems over a leased line?
Q: How can I use my analogue cellular phone with a computer modem?
Q: Can I use a modem with GSM/PCN? (otherwise known as "Can I get
free internet access on Mercury One-2-one?")
Q: I'm having a problem with my modem. Intermittently it fails to
connect.
Subject: Faxes
Q: How do FAX switchers work?
Subject: Answering machines
Q: How do I stop my answering machine recording the "Please
replace the handset & Try Again" message when someone hangs up
without leaving a message?
Subject: Radio Pagers
Q: Is it possible to use a computer and modem to send messages to
UK pagers?
Subject: Cellular/ Mobile phones
Q: What are the new digital phone networks capabilities for data
communications? [ie. Can I use my One2One/Orange phone?]
Q: What do One2One PCN aerials look like?
Q: How do mobile phones work in tunnels
Q: How does the network find the mobile phone?
Q: How does the network distinguish between 'switched off' and 'not
responding' when giving messages to the caller?
Subject: CT2 (Phonepoint, Hutchison Rabbit, etc)
Q: How do I unlock a Hutchison Rabbit handset?
Q: What are the little switches in a rabbit handset battery
compartment for?
Q: Where can I get batters for a Rabbit handset from? {*}
Subject: Telephone exchanges
Q: What types of exchange are there, and which can be digital ?
Q: What is the difference between a System X and System Y exchange ?
Q: What is the number that will dial my 'phone back to test the
ringing?
Q: When I called 175 from home there was a message telling me my
phone number, then when I hung up I was called back and offered a
mysterious menu. Anyone know how to work it?
Q: What do the various messages from the 175 tester on System X really
mean, eg. "Earth A, Battery B"?
Q: Is there a way I can pulse-dial a digital exchange number and then
tone dial from there?
Subject: International calls
Q: How do I get a guaranteed non-satellite circuit to the USA ?
Q: Is non-satellite link to the US helpful when using transfer protocols
such as XModem?
Subject: Phone numbers/ DTMF
Q: What are the frequencies for DTMF (Dual-tone multi-frequency) digits?
Q: How can I identify a 'phone number from a recording of the DTMF digits?
----
Subject: Where can I get further information from ?
ONLINE:
There are several other telecoms related newsgroups which I am aware
of . The two main ones are comp.dcom.telecom and
comp.dcom.telecom.tech but be warned, they tend to be dominated by US
specific items, and the first one is moderated as a gatewayed digest,
so articles MUST be submitted to the moderator for approval.
(Submissions: <telecom@eecs.nwu.edu>, requests to telecom-request at
same address). Look also at alt.dcom.telecom.
FTP/ Telnet/ Mail:
There is a uk.telecom archive at Imperial College in
<URL:ftp://sunsite.doc.ic.ac.uk/usenet/uk.telecom/>. It contains both an
archive of the group in volume92/, volume93/, etc with an index by
subject in the file Index, and a small collection of useful files in
the 'archive' directory, including some versions of the FAQ and the
network services posting. Some of the 'archive' directory is currently
a little out of date.
For anonymous FTP, the Usenet newsgroup comp.dcom.telecom has an archive
site at lcs.mit.edu [18.26.0.36], with a quite comprehensive suite of
files, including some UK specific stuff. This and the uk.telecom
archive is fully mirrored at <URL:ftp://ftp.funet.fi/pub/doc/telecom/>.
Adrian Savage's 'UK Telecom Information Source', with details
of UK telephone operator tariffs. <URL:http://pobox.com/%7Etis/>.
Telecoms information, including an on-line version of all the National FM
(i.e. not Local or AM) transmitters, derived from BBC and other
enigineering information. <URL:ftp://ftp.pipex.net/pub/telecom/>.
A list of UK STD area codes is available from
<URL:ftp://ftp.pipex.net/pub/areacode/>. [This list is not currently
being maintained]
A list of 0800 and 0500 numbers is available from
<URL:ftp://ftp.pipex.net/pub/telecom/> and from
<URL:ftp://ftp.demon.co.uk/pub/misc/0800num.txt> - a list in Freephone
number order and <URL:ftp://ftp.demon.co.uk/pub/misc/0800cat.txt> - a list
by Category.
Tim Clark, at Warwick University, has some useful collections of phone
information, including UK Telephone National Number Group codes
(NNGs), and 'Oftel Specified Numbering Scheme'. see
<URL:http://www.warwick.ac.uk/WWW/search/Phones/phone.html>.
Mailing lists:
Phone card collectors mailing list: subscribe with mail saying 'subscribe
phonecard-collectors Your Name' to <mailserver@lists.funet.fi>. Messages **to
the list** are sent to <phonecard-collectors@lists.funet.fi>.
iSDX managers mailing list: Requests for inclusion/deletion should be sent
to <majordomo@tadpole.co.uk> (message body 'subscribe isdx').
Submissions sent to <isdx@tadpole.co.uk> will be reflected to the list
members.
Orange users mailing list - subscribe with 'subscribe orange' or
'subscribe orange-digest' to <majordomo@mcc.ac.uk>, list is at
<orange@mcc.ac.uk>. An archive of the list is kept at
<URL:ftp://ftp.mcc.ac.uk/pub/mail-archives/orange/>.
Other WWW resources:
ITU archive, <URL:gopher://info.itu.ch:70/>, <URL:http://www.itu.ch/>.
OFTEL <URL:http://www.open.gov.uk/oftel/oftelwww/oftelhm.htm>
ICSTIS <URL:http://www.icstis.org.uk/>
UK ISDN FAQ <URL:http://www.multithread.co.uk/isdnfaq.htm>.
Telephone
charging <URL:http://www.gold.net/users/cdwf/phones/charging.html>
----
DIRECT CONTACT:
You could try BT, or Mercury direct, if you really want to.
[Thanks to Kevin Hopkins <pkh@cs.nott.ac.uk> for most of these numbers]
For BT enquiries the phone numbers are
BT Line Any Line
Residential General Enquiries 150 0800 800150
Residential Fault Reports 151 0800 800151
Business General Enquiries 152 0800 800152
Business Fault Reports 154 0800 800154
(and billing enquiries)
Iain Vallance's office (direct) (0171) 356 6666
Recorded advice line --- 0800 666700
(basic information and further BT contact points)
Welsh language advice line --- 0800 663388
Reporting Malicious calls --- 0800 661441
(to BT's specialist bureaux)
General BT enquiries --- 0800 212950
(Personnel, Schools' Liaison, Media etc)
Telephone preference service 0800 398893
BT news line --- 0800 500005
For Mercury enquiries the phone numbers are
General Enquiries 0500 500 194
Business 0500 700 101
Fault Reports
Residential 0500 500 193
Small Businesses 0500 700 103
Large Businesses 0500 424 193
Billing Enquiries 0500 500 196
Business 0500 700 102
Operator Service
for Disabled Customers 0500 500 195
Customer Relations 0500 500 197
YourCall Scheme 0500 200 930
Calling Card Info 0500 100 505
Telephone preference service 0500 398 893
For some of the other carriers and services
ACC 0800 160 111
AT&T (0171) 925 8000 (uk head office switchboard)
General enq. 0800 064 0001
'Direct' 0500 89 7801
Energis 0800 161600
Ionica (01223) 223000
Fax: (01223) 223100
ICSTIS (0171) 430 2228
0800 500 212 (complaints only)
MCI: 0800 89 0222
Sprint: 0800 89 0877
Swiftcall: (0171) 488 2001 (Visa/ MC required)
Mercury One2One 0500 500 121 (sales)
0958 121 121 (customer services)
956/ 0956 956 956 - Talking Guide Book
(C&W/ USWest owned company)
Orange plc 0800 286 286
0973 100 150 - customer service
(01454) 624 664
Cellnet/ Lifetime 616/ 321
FleXtel 0956 700 700 (sales)
Hutchison Pagers 0800 59 00 59
Vodafone directory enquiries (available from abroad, sometimes..)
+44 836 192 192
Cable information
Aberdeen Cable Aberdeen 01224 633633
Andover Cablevision Andover, 01264 332300
Anglia Cable Harlow, 01279 867867
Birmingham Cable Birmingham 0121 628 2828
Cable Corporation Windsor 01753 810707
Cable London North London 0171 911 0911
Cable Midlands Wolverhampton 0500 838485
Cable North West Liverpool 0500 500150
CableTel Surrey and Hants, West Central Scotland,
South Wales, Beds and Herts, Kirklees,
& Nothern Ireland 0800 602 603
Cablevision Bedfordshire South Bedfordshire 01582 401001
Cambridge Cable Cambridge 01223 567567
Coventry Cable Coventry 01203 505070
Diamond Cable Nottingham 0115 952 2222
Encom Tower Hamlets 0171 363 3000
Bell Cablemedia Watford 01923 464646
LCC Cable Leicester 0116 233 4000
Metro Cable Welwyn Garden City 01707 336844
Norwich Cablevision Norwich, Norfolk 01603 787892
Nynex Bromley, Derby, Solent, Sussex,
& Surrey, 0345 114455
Bolton & Blackburn 01204 365440
Peterborough Cablevision Peterborough 01733 230303
Swindon Cable Swindon, Wiltshire 01793 615601
Telecential Hemel Hempstead 01442 230444
Northants 01604 494949
Reading & Bracknell 01734 755155
United Artists Avon 01454 619666
0500 600150
Cotswolds 0500 532222
Croydon 0181 781 0555
Dundee 01382 22220
Edinburgh 0131 539 0000
Glenrothes 01592 630430
London South 0181 781 0555
South East 01268 470000
North East 0191 420 4000
Motherwell 01698 810827
Newcastle 0191 420 4000
Perth 01738 38794
Videotron Southampton 01703 315315
South & West London 0181 244 1111
Westminster Cable London 0171 935 4400
Yorkshire Cable Group Bradford 01274 828200
Mandarin Technology:
Another source of information are Mandarin Technology, who have told us
that they do try to help anyone needing more telecom-based information,
especially in the regulatory fields, and are equally happy to respond to
enquiries received by voice, fax or email.
Details (pinched from Richard Cox's .signature) {*}
Mandarin Technology, P.O. Box 111, Penarth, South Glamorgan, Wales: CF64 3YG
Telephone: 09733 111111; Fax: 09733 111100; VoiceMail: 09411 515151
E-mail address: richard@mandarin.com - PGP2.3 public key available on request
Wish List:
1) UK versions of comp.dcom.telecom archive files.
2) People emailing me with all those corrections to this info.
Thanks section:
This FAQ would not have been possible without contributions, help and
support from the following people
richard@mandarin.com (Richard Cox), keith@unipalm.co.uk (Keith
Mitchell), tjo@its.bt.co.uk (Tim Oldham), gta@uk.ac.st-andrews (Graham
Allan), jcs@zoo.bt.co.uk (John C Sager), cudac@warwick.ac.uk (Tim
Clark), syngen@dir.ulcc.ac.uk (Syngen Brown), brian@rtf.bt.co.uk
(Brian N Butterworth), malcolmr@sun.pcl.ac.uk (Malcolm Ray),
steveh@orbital.demon.co.uk (Stephen Hebditch), chris@visionware.co.uk
(Chris Davies), ags@uk.co.gec-mrc (Gavin Spittlehouse),
rf@cl.cam.ac.uk (Robin Fairbairns), ranald.mcintyre@almac.co.uk
(Ranald Mcintyre), mcneill@devon.co.uk (Keith McNeill),
mark@mozart.demon.co.uk (Mark Whalley), fisher@minster.york.ac.uk
(Tony Fisher), shakib.otaqui@almac.co.uk (Shakib Otaqui),
gdk@ipg.ph.kcl.ac.uk (Gary Kendall) roy@harlqn.co.uk (Roy Badami),
rogerb@eiffel.demon.co.uk (Roger Browne), pm@nowster.demon.co.uk (Paul
Martin), whiskerp@logica.co.uk (Peter Whisker),
dplumb@cix.compulink.co.uk (Dave Plumb), smckinty@sun.com (Steve
McKinty), kevinh@hasler.ascom.ch (Kevin H), ntitley@axion.bt.co.uk
(Nigel Titley), neil@pio.gid.co.uk (Neil Todd), grmd@lrts1.demon.co.uk
(Gareth R. M. Davies), zzatsjl@nessie.mcc.ac.uk (Janusz Lukasiak),
tjfs@tadtec.co.uk (Tim Steele), mcr@holly.demon.co.uk (Mark Rogers),
co94001@black.ox.ac.uk, lsg001@cck.coventry.ac.uk (Graham Wilson),
mzmijews@mgzcs.demon.co.uk (George Zmijewski), phil@muppett.bt.co.uk
(Phil Houseago), cook@gfms.bt.co.uk (Martin Cook),
rickp@sooty.demon.co.uk (Rick Payne), flavell@v2.ph.gla.ac.uk (Alan J
Flavell), kevin@parsley.demon.co.uk (Kevin Holley),
sdpage@anderson.co.uk (Stephen Page), Russell@anchorag.demon.co.uk
(Russell Whitworth), ianh@spuddy.mew.co.uk (Ian Hastie),
pcoathup@attmail.com (Phillip Coathup), frank@g3wtk.demon.co.uk (Frank
Erskine), parrot@spuddy.mew.co.uk (Jonathan Cohen),
chris@boots.demon.co.uk (Chris Boots), barry@dbconsult.demon.co.uk
(Barry Chatfield), TREG@acarr.demon.co.uk (Allan G Carr).
and all the readers/ posters to uk.telecom, especially those
who (unfortunately) come in for a lot of flak because of their employer's
sometimes odd actions. Keep posting!
[end of uk.telecom FAQ part 1/3]
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uk.telecom FAQ, Part 1/3 - Questions, and Contacts.
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