[BC] Verizon T1 and batteries

[RichardBJohnson at comcast.net]

Many areas are now served, not by a central office, but by basically a mini-cell. Telephone coming/going to those areas have local transcriber boxes mounted on the poles. If power is out in the neighborhood, you get no telephone as a bonus. Furthermore, even FIOS requires some active connectors (optical switches) which, if the power is lost, you have no service as well.

TELCOs have convinced the regulators (those that still exist) that a power outage is such a remote possibility and if the power is out, the lines are surely down as well, that there is no need to continue to power the local loop.

If you want truly reliable communications nowadays, you need point-to-point microwave links with uninterruptible power on both ends. The FCC is no longer licensing terrestrial microwave for mere civilians I have been told. Even existing TV microwave is being phased out so there are no NEW applications allowed.

However, there are license-free bands that are usually reliable, except during rainstorms, snowstorms, blowing sand, high winds, and the whiff of cigar smoke. http://www.meridianptpwireless.com/#chart

If you have a good visual shot between the two end-points, with adequate Fresnell zone protection, http://www.terabeam.com/solutions/whitepapers/plan_micro_link.php you just might be able to take the so-called utility companies out of the picture.

Cheers,
Richard B. Johnson
Book: http://www.AbominableFirebug.com/

----- Original Message -----
From: "rj carpenter" <rcarpen at comcast.net>

Quote ===========
There have long been 200 lines going to a "rotary device" in the some 
what remote neighborhoods that supply telephone service to perhaps 2,000 
houses.  If a plane crashed nearby, 90% of the people would get a busy 
signal instead of a dial tone.
=================

And what would happen if all 2000 tried to use their cell phones?

Any service based on "typical" usage will fall down in the extreme, 
extreme case.