Cofran's LD Book

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COFRAN'S LD BOOK

TABLE OF CONTENTS OF COFRAN'S BOOK:

"TECHNOLOGY OF LONG DISTANCE SERVICES

IN THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS MARKETPLACE"

By George L. Cofran, BSEE, MBA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PREFACE

ABOUT THE FIRM AND AUTHOR

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1 - BASIC BUILDING BLOCKS

A) CARRIERS, PARTICIPANTS & THE PUBLIC TELEPHONE NETWORK . . 1-1

B) LATA AREAS AND EQUAL ACCESS TO LD CARRIERS . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5

C) FEATURE GROUP ACCESS AND DESIGNATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6

D) TYPES OF CARRIER CIRCUITS AND MEDIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7

E) NUMBERING PLANS FOR ACCESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8

F) DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN PROVIDERS, SELLERS & INFLUENCES . . 1-9

CHAPTER 2 - CUSTOMER ACCESS METHODS, CALL CONTROL & PORT REQUIREMENTS

A) SWITCHED VS DEDICATED ACCESS FOR LD CALL ORIGINATION . . 2-1

B) CALL TERMINATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

C) SPECIAL DIALING TECHNIQUES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

D) ANSWER SUPERVISION, CALL TIMING, & ROUNDING ACCURACY . . 2-4

E) PRIVATE NETWORK ARRANGEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6

F) SIGNALING ARRANGEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7

G) CUSTOMER PORT REQUIREMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8

CHAPTER 3 - RELATED LD SERVICES

A) INTERNATIONAL ACCESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1

B) 800 IN-WATS SERVICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2

C) TRAVEL CARD SERVICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3

D) OPERATOR SERVICE PROVIDERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8

E) 900 AND 976 "DIAL-IT" SERVICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8

F) PAYPHONE ACCESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9

G) IN-FLIGHT ACCESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10

H) CELLULAR PHONE ACCESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10

CHAPTER 4 - DATA COMMUNICATION SERVICES

A) DATA LINES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1

B) ANALOG vs. DIGITAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2

C) PROTOCOLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3

D) A FEW DEFINITIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4

E) LATEST DIGITAL TRANSMISSION TECHNIQUES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5

CHAPTER 5 - MISCELLANEOUS TECHNICAL BACKGROUND

A) TRAFFIC ANALYSIS AND GRADE OF SERVICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1

B) CALL MANAGEMENT REPORTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2

C) PROJECT AND AUTHORIZATION CODES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3

D) BEATING THE SYSTEM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3

E) BELL AND DIVESTITURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4

EXHIBITS

1) NUMBERING PLAN SUMMARY

2) AREA CODES AND STATES

3) COUNTRY CODES

4) CALL ROUNDING ERRORS

5) HOW TO SELECT A LONG DISTANCE CARRIER

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION

This book presents a thorough introduction to the rapidly evolving arena of long distance services in the US. The material is suitable in scope and depth for office administrators and telecommunication managers, employees and agents of LD carriers, interconnect equipment employees, and college students. This is a practical guide emphasizing definitions, interpretation and hints to understanding and working with the technology of these services, and is the foundation for a series of seminars and workshops for the same audience. This book is not an engineering manual or a catalog of carrier-specific products and services.

We intend to update this work occasionally as changes occur in the technology and marketplace, so we welcome your detailed comments and suggestions. Those interested in our seminars on this subject should contact us at the above address. We welcome your inquiries.

May 1, 1995

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COFRAN & ASSOCIATES, INC.
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