The Holmes Page: The Soap Box 1997/03/12

Home

Web Design

Programming

Fairlight CMI

Soap Box

Downloads

Links

Biography

About...

Site Map

THE SOAP BOX 1997/03/12

BACK TO
SOAP BOX

1997/03/12: Long-Distance, or Not? A few years ago, the 416 area code grew too big. They said it was because of faxes and modems. The "core" Toronto area kept the 416 code while the surrounding regions changed to 905. The 905 area code stretches from the Niagara River, around the western end of Lake Ontario at Hamilton, over the north of Toronto, and then eastward.
I now live in the 905 area code, not too far from Niagara Falls. I accept the fact that a phone call to the 416 area code in Toronto is long-distance, because it is on the other side of Lake Ontario. So a call to a friend north of Toronto is also long-distance, but what bugs me is that he has the same area code that I do. This causes problems with my dialer software, which assumes that the same area code means a local call.
Some calls, which I think are to nearby destinations, are actually long-distance. I often forget to dial a "1" before the 7-digit number. I either get connected to a stranger, or I get a recorded message telling me to add the "1". On the other hand, sometimes a number is in a different area code, but it is not long-distance. If I dial a "1" and then the area code, the voice tells me not to do it and hangs up. So I dial again without the "1", but still I still include the area code.
Why can't I just dial a phone number in a standard way and get charged long-distance if it is long-distance, and not get charged if it is not? The phone company obviously knows whether a call is long-distance or not, so why can't they figure it out?
The front of my phonebook is filled with a list of office codes, "from" and "to", which indicate local calls. Am I supposed to memorise this mess? I just want to dial 1(xxx)nnn-nnnn and have the phone company charge me long-distance, or not.

Previous: 1997/02/26 - The Cost of "Free"
Next: 1997/03/26 - Big Drives, Big Clusters