Re: How relable does the Internet need to be? (Was: Re: ConvergedNetwork Threat)

[Crist Clark]

Sam Stickland wrote:
> Michael.Dillon@radianz.com wrote:
>
> > P.S. I think a solution lies in the general direction
> > of converting the entire world to use 112 for emergency
> > services and having the VoIP services set up an automated
> > system that rings back whenever your phone connects using
> > a different IP address and asks you where you are.
> For what it's worth, I believe here in the UK dialing just 99 will also
> connect you to the emergency services. The rational is that if you are
> behind a switchboard you have to dial 9 to get an outside line, and in the
> heat of the moment you might forget to dial four nines. That's definately an
> advantage that 999 has, taht 911 and 112 don't?
No, 911 wouldn't work that way, but I do know that just dialing '91'
will get you there too (in some places anyway). I'm so used to typing
'9' before "dialing out" from the office that sometimes at home I
hit the '9' first. I did it once before trying a long distance number.
I hit '91,' and perhaps another digit, but definately not another '1,'
before realizing what I had done and hung up. A few seconds later
my phone rang. A 911 operator was on the other end asking me if
everything was OK.

So, if '99' works there and '91' here, I'm not sure if it is an actual
intended feature or an explanation someone thought up after the fact
(like what does "USR" in /usr stand for?). Also, '9' is common, but by
no means the universal digit to get an outside line for a PBX.

To steer a little ways back on topic, perhaps looking at the standards
for how mobile phones deal with emergency services is better analogue 
for mobile IP phones than how POTS does things.
--
Crist J. Clark                               crist.clark@globalstar.com
Globalstar Communications                                (408) 933-4387