Subj : Nodelist Phone Field (consistency?)
To   : Ozz Nixon
From : Bj”rn Felten
Date : Wed Jun 20 2018 06:40 pm

 ON> Pinched myself, yep... real. I am just working on my new nodelist
 ON> compiler, and this was the first inconsistency I have shared, that would
 ON> actually benefit those still on dial-up. I have two MODEM nodes still
 ON> running (not in nodelist, as I have not finished QuickBBS rewrite to TCP
 ON> - then they will be published nodes too).

   Many moons ago, before binkp was invented, someone came up with the 
brilliant idea to put internet connection via TCP/IP into the nodelist, in a 
way that didn't break any existing software.

   The idea was to give the IP numbers the country code of 000. So, e.g. my 
"phone number" today would be 000-90-227-100-38. FrontDoor was one of the first 
mailers that could handle this.

   Unfortunately some ignorant kid in Australia claimed that this could lead to 
mailers calling their emergency number (000). Happily ignoring the fact that 
*all* POTS mailers back then had to translate the "raw" node number in the node 
list to a number that the modem could dial. And if the node could dial the NC 
(a requirement) there's no way that the node could start dialling 000.

   Almost all of us knew that. Back then nodes (half a dozen I seem to recall) 
in New Delhi, India had the country and regional number starting with 91-1, but 
we never had any reports about mailers calling the US emergency number.

   But all five ZCs back then except Z1C fell for the hoax and banned this 
brilliant idea. The rest is, as the saying goes, history.

   Nowadays we obviously don't need this bright idea any more, now we have 
binkp and several mailers supporting that protocol, thanks to our Russian 
friends.  <3



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