The LOD/H Technical Journal: File #12 of 12 Network News & Notes ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ISDN passes first real-world test (ComputerWorld, Nov. 24th, 1986) After at least five years development work and prototyping on vendors' premises, the first operational Integrated Services Digital Network involving customer premises equipment was successfully tested. In two initial tests, Arizona government officials transmitted both voice and data between their offices through a Northern Telecom, ISDN digital switch residing on Mountain Bell's Phoenix Central Office. The trial offers participating vendors the opportunity "to evaluate ISDN technology and determine customer benefits outside the research lab". Customer premises equipment used in the trial is still in the prototype phase, however. No time frames for introducing commercial offerings were discussed. In the first of two ISDN applications demonstrated at a news conference, Don Cline, Mountain Bell's Arizona VP and CEO, placed a five minute voice call at the Phoenix Civic Plaza to Arizona Secretary of State Rose Mofford and simultaneously transmitted a certificate commemorating the event. The transmissions were handled by Northern Telecom's Meridian digital telephone sets and workstations and passed through a Northern Telecom DMS-100 ISDN switch as Mountain Bell's Phoenix CO. In the second ISDN application an NCR PC was used to access and alter a driver's record residing on an Amdahl 5850 host in the Motor Vehicles Division from two blocks away. Sending both voice and data in digital form over the same twisted-pair telephone wiring is more reliable than analog communications and in the long run will save a lot of money. Workstations linked over an ISDN basic interface can be moved as easily as you can move telephones, as opposed to having to restring coaxial cable. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Long-awaited McDonald's ISDN trial to start in two weeks (ComputerWorld 12-1) During the second user-site ISDN trial, scheduled to begin Dec. 16, at least four rival communications equipment vendors will test whether their terminal interfaces conform closely enough to the telecommunications standard to communicate. McDonalds's Corp, agreed more than two years ago to participate in the trial, which is sponsored by Ameritech divested BOC Illinois Bell, because the fast-food giant wanted the emerging technology for its own use. Slated to continue at least through early 1988, the trial ISDN network will link a variety of workstations and hosts at McDonalds headquarters located in Oak Brook, Ill., through a Northern Telecom DMS-100 ISDN switch residing at Illinois Bell's CO. The company will start with 50 basic-rate digital subscriber lines and gradually ramp up to a projected 300 to 400 lines by the end of 1987. The basic interface defines two 64K bit/sec B channels and a separate 16K bit/sec D channel to carry data packets and signaling information. All the products used in the trial are designed to communicate with AT&T's 5ESS switch. While the basic ISDN interface is sufficiently well defined to permit different vendor's implementations to communicate, different vendors' CO switch products still retain software incompatibilities. The way terminal adapters communicate via ISDN is still defined by the CO switch, terminals can be modified to communicate with either AT&T's or Northern Telecom's ISDN switch, but you can't just unplug a terminal and move it from one switch to the other. Originally slated to be the first ISDN trail to begin operations, the project was delayed for approximately a month while AT&T finished implementing software on the 5ESS ISDN switch at Illinois Bell's CO. While the hardware used in AT&T's ISDN switch is commercial, the software is coming slowly. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Growth forces split in 305 area code Southern Bell announced that rapid growth will force them to split the 305 area code in two, with Broward, Dade, and Monroe counties remaining 305 and Palm Beach County to Orlando becoming 407. "If we didn't make the split we'd literally run out of phone numbers". The split is slated to take place in April 1988, making 407 Florida's fourth area code and the first new one in 23 years. ------ 617 currently with 533 exchanges will be splitting off into 508 in 1988. 303 will be split with Denver remaining 303 and 719 will cover Colorado Springs. This leaves the following NPA's open: 708, 903, 908, 909, 917 not including X10 where X is 4,6,7,8, and 9. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Secret Service Buys Telenet Network (Communications Week) US Sprint Communications Corp's Telenet Communications Corp subsidiary has signed a $35 million multiyear contract to build a private data network for the US Secret Service. The contract marks Telenet's first major private network coup in the highly competitive market of sensitive government communications. While telenet would not reveal the extensiveness of the network or its applications, the Secret Service acknowledges having 4,300 employees and about 100 locations in the United States. Data transmission plays a significant role in the Secret Service's mandate, which beyond guarding the president includes the investigation of counterfeiting, securities and electronic funds transfer violations and credit card fraud. Encryption or other security measures are expected to be employed in the new system, but telenet does not provide those functions. In addition to its public network, Telenet has sold about 70 private networks, about 100 hybrid networks using public and private capabilities, and many hundreds of virtual private networks. It will take more than a year to complete construction. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Social Security Net (Communications News) The US Social Security Administration will install new modems and diagnostic and control systems as part of a program to establish its Data Communications Utility Network, which covers 1500 offices in the US. The new network will handle interactive Social Security claims processing. Equipment for this phase is being provided by Racal-Milgo in an $11 million contract. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Allnet extends southward with big capacity purchase (Communications News) Through the purchase of capacity from three providers, Allnet Communications Corporation has added 4,000 miles of fiber-optic route to its network. In a $36 million deal, the company purchased capacity, in the southeastern US from Microtel, SouthernNet and Southland FiberNet. All three are members of the National Telecommunications Network. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern Cal to link 11,000 users on net (Communications News) The University of Southern California is in the process of establishing a $21.8 million University Communications Network that will link more than 11,000 users throughout 185 buildings. Voice and data will be transmitted over the network, which will use an AT&T System 85 PBX, a system of local-area networks, and an intercampus microwave network. Approximately 12 miles of fiber-optic cable will be used to link 21 USC schools. The system will include 10 Information System Networks and 504 Starlan networks. The telecommunications project is scheduled for completion in March of 1988. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Dallas to use Cell System (Communications News) The city of Dallas has begun a $2.9 million program to outfit personnel in various city departments with mobile cell roaming data communications systems. The network will consist of 545 Mobile Data International MDI 9031 mobile data terminals with the 8020 integral data radio, 20 6000 series hand-held portable data terminals, related base equipment and automatic zone transfer between six calls using 11 radio frequencies with frequent re-use. Full roaming between the cell sites will be handled on a transparent basis to the operator. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Singapore in Net Upgrade (Communications News) The Republic of Singapore will install two digital international gateway exchanges as part of a total network upgrade program. The Telecommunications Authority of Singapore and AT&T International will provide AT&T's 5ESS digital switch. The company said this is the first application of the 5ESS as an international switching point. The first switch will be handed to the authority in April of 1988 and the second in April of 1989. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- That's it for Network News & Notes, some of these articles may not be too interesting, but each has some significance as in interesting systems to hack, box, defeat or find more information about. If you know of any interesting news articles be sure to drop them in mail.   Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+