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From: jsol@bu-it.bu.edu
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Reminiscing: Mass Calling Prefixes (213) 520, etc.
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Date: 23 Sep 89 03:54:55 GMT
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X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 397, message 2 of 7

Ah yes, I have stories about the mass calling prefixes (or numbers) in
Connecticut (there weren't any) and elsewhere.

First of all, the Mass Calling Prefixes (as I were told they were
called) were designed as others have described them to limit the
number of calls to one exchange or number so that hundreds of
thousands of calls wouldn't interfere with the normal operation of the
phone network. Nowadays this is only needed for the local exchange
network, the long distance carriers have computers to restrict the
number of calls to a given number to no more than a couple from each
tandem.

The 900 number used to call the President way back when was the
experiement that led to this. I won't go into the details of this
because someone already described the system, but they basically set
up regional centers which took limited numbers of calls and sent them
to a target spot in Washington and two lines to the president (one for
the Call In Progress and one Waiting).  *Everybody* else got a
recording saying try again. It was toll free unless the call was
answered. I had fun.

In Hamden (a suburb of New Haven, CT), there was a small radio
station, WCDQ (I was friends with the son of the owner of the
station). The station was within the walking distance of my home.
Their number was on the 203-281 ESS #1 exchange, as was mine.

This was before the days of "user settable speed calling". I had
WCDQ's phone number programmed in as *1 (it was *1 to *8 then, not 2#
to 9# like it is now).  When they announced a contest, I was quick on
the trigger. All the other phones in the area were on step-by-step
machines. I had the *fastest* route to the station. I was caller 2, 4,
6, 8, and the winner, 10. every time.  They eventually told me I could
only win one contest a month. Sigh. They almost told me I couldn't win
anything since I was friends with the Station Owner..... but .....

My first experience with a MCP was in NYC, 212-955 (now also 718-955).
I was calling in Long Distance from Hoboken, NJ, so it wasn't so bad.
I did manage to win a few times. The system there seemed to be geared
towards callers from outside of the 212/718 area codes. Maybe because
I was in 201 helped since the lines went through ATT.

In LA I found 213-520 (and now 818-520). Interesting about them was
that they did two things. They 1) prevented you from flooding the
network, and 2) prevented you from using speed dialing. The way they
did that was to insert pulse dialing between the last tandem and the
target machine. In additon, calls from that machine went out to the
tandem FIRST so they would be treated the same as outside calls.

I am fairly sure that 520 had a step tandem of sorts, because you
always got the familiar rapid busy signal if you overloaded the tandem
switch.  Bop bop bop bop bop bop............. At the very least it was
a step front end to the final machine making it impossible to be
quick-on-the-fingers.

I got around that by using several lines.

--jsol

[Moderator's Note: Jon Solomon was the founder of TELECOM Digest and the
moderator for several years.  PT]