Monthly Service – Mar 28 thru Apr 27
Call Plan Unlimited 13.82
Non-Published Service 4.95
Caller Identification 7.50
Calling Name Display 2.00

Fuck, why is my phone bill twice what it should be simply so solicitors can't bug the shit out of me? Why should I have to pay so goddamn much?
That's a 1A, Ameritech, and I know for a fact it's been there since January 30, 1982. Why do I have to pay for a service that has been long since subsidized? It's not like you have to pay Western Electric for software updates on that beast every month simply to serve me caller ID. ha!
Bitches.

5 thoughts on “”

  1. That wouldn't work. CID needs to be instantiated at the local switch; if it's not turned on, you won't get any data.

    I knew AMT (ie SWB) was charging more for unpub, but $5 is just plain ridiculous. It's probably because they need to spend so much more on employees since most of them wind up going for daytime dalliances and/or falling asleep in their trucks during work hours…

    1. I think what he's saying is to take off my unlisted number, remove caller ID with name (leaving the number only one intact), and answer the phone with my modem if the number is private or anonymous.

      I agree this isn't such a hot idea. See the problem here in detroit, is we get fax spam. Lots of it. Like I was getting one a day on my fax data line. I know you can sue for it, but I simply don't have the time to track them down, especially when the call is anonymous.
      If my modem shows live as a modem, they'll start fax spamming me. I simply don't want my phone to ring unless it's someone I gave the number to. Since I subbed that line to the unlisted service the minute I ordered the line (actually in the same call I requested caller ID with name and unlisted number), I absolutely never get solicitation calls. Problem is that I pay that much for the privelege of silence.
      I also use the caller ID service on it to allow the modem to selectively answer for numbers that I recognize as authorized dialin users (like the circuit switched number on my cellphone), and it will pick up and give me a getty on my firewall. yea, I know how easy it is to spoof caller ID with a PRI, but anyone who is exerting that much effort is gonna get in no matter what I do. heh.

      1. * I'm quite acquainted with fax spam myself. You could probably set up your computer to answer with a simple program that would require single or multiple digit
        input (even a simple voicemail program would do this), and drop to a) phone b) message
        c) fax d) data depending on the input. You'd relieve yourself of the wretched ringing
        by simply turning off the ring til the appropriate conditions were met, and then creating
        a pseudo (computer-generated) ring at the line site. That, of course, though, would
        create a multitude of other problems (nay, possibilities) which I'll leave as an
        exercise to the reader.

        * I'm surprised you haven't considered MCI's The Neighborhood. It's quite expensive, but
        it's great if you're going to be spending at least that much anyway, you get quite a lot
        of features for "free", and the signal to noise ratio is significantly better (blame it
        on Bell — I always do :))

        * Exerting effort… Erm. Never mind.

        1. 1) I've considered something like this many times. even have a machine set aside for it. Just haven't really gotten around to it yet.

          2) MCI local and I go way back. I can't find the link right now, where the MCI operator informed me that a phone number in the same ratecenter was in a different LATA. She insisted that LATA was the right word to use, and that despite it being in the 340 Detroit LATA, hers showed a different LATA, but couldn't tell me which one.
          Reason? They do something fucked up and prevent you from calling local ISP dialups without paying long distance fees, saying that the service is for residential voice calls only. Sorry, I don't think so.
          Then, on top of that, they only charged me a few dollars less than ameritech, and were never available to answer questions, etc, etc.
          But then, on top of that, I decided I'd give them a chance when I moved to move my line with me. They were completely unable to help me though the process, asking me to put in alot of footwork with Ameritech to have them move the line for me. I said no thanks, and to disconnect my line immediately.
          4 months later, I was still being billed for it. They bitched and bitched, and eventually disconnected it for me, then told me I owed them $125 for the line, and I told them to fuck off, because I asked for disconnection a long damn time ago.
          MCI is a bunch of pain in the ass scammers.
          Besides, I placed 3 local calls last month, and 4 long distance calls (using my PIC carrier, Total Call International, 0.0039 a minute) on that line. That and I have a free vonage unlimited line (I refer a lot of people to them, and have months on end completely free) so I don't really use that line for much of anything.

          The problem is that I guess covad can't get my SDSL line serviced without a working POTS line served by the ILEC being in the apartment, and I guess the ILEC tends to shut off all circuits into my apartment when I cut off my ILEC service, including the covad SDSL circuit. That's what my ISP tells me, and they have no vested interest in my maintaining an ILEC circuit, so I'd be inclined to believe them. Especially since signing up for my SDSL required me to type in an ILEC voice line in the signup form to continue, despite having no real need for one to begin with. Ugh. I really hate stuff imposed on me because of non-technical requirements. Fuckers…

          3) Bleh, I expend effort all the time. πŸ™‚

          So want to identify yourself? I'm curious who I'm talking to.

          1. 1) I've considered something like this many times. even have a machine set
            aside for it. Just haven't really gotten around to it yet.

            Hear that. Seems like there's a lot better things to do than worry about a fiver…
            That's how they get ya, every time πŸ™‚

            2) […MCI Local…]

            I've dealt with MCI Local; they have some strange ways of doing things. It really
            does depend on the person and the way they use their line, though. Perhaps I
            just tolerated it more because I used such a huge amount of long distance. AT&T's
            local digital service was actually not too bad, but there was little in the way of
            fringe benefits. It cost about the same as a landline through (Verizon, Qwest, etc),
            or perhaps a little less. Almost all of their ilk require you to hook up through your
            local provider first, which has always seemed rather sleazy to me (and I'll admit,
            MCI's always been sleazy — but then most of the EA providers do the same thing; money
            matters, I guess…) At least we're not spending as much as our parents once did.
            Hm. I'm going nowhere with this, so I'll move on… (Side note: Your PIC charges you
            only 3/10ths of a cent per minute!?!? ;))

            3) Bleh, I expend effort all the time. πŸ™‚

            I do too, but I'd rather exert effort toying with a [C,I]LEC… Relatively more (and better)
            fringe benefits than toying with any given individual… Or so I have heard, at any rate.

            * Perhaps later.

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