Wiley telecom for dummies apr 2006 ISBN 047177085x

TelecomforDummies
byStephenP.Olejniczak
JohnWiley&Sons2006(386pages)
ISBN:047177085X

Includinganoverviewofthemajorplayersinthe
telecomindustryandanexplanationoftheexisting
infrastructure,thisbookhelpspeoplepinpointthe
telecomservicesbestsuitedtotheirbusinessneeds,
understandbilling,andtroubleshootproblems.

TableofContents
TelecomforDummies
Introduction
PartI-TheABCsofTelecomService
Chapter1 - ABuyer’sScooponTelecom
Chapter2 - Making(AndLivingwith)Telecom
Decisions
Chapter3 - GettingAroundtheTelecom
Neighborhood
PartII-ReviewingTelecomProductsandPrices
Chapter4 - UnderstandingDedicatedService
Requirements
Chapter5 - MeetingToll-FreeService,theRedHeadedStepchildofTelecom
Chapter6 - GettingtheNon-Accountant’sGuideto
YourPhoneBill
PartIII-OrderingandSettingUpTelecom
Service
Chapter7 - OrderingRegularPhoneLinesandNew
Long-DistanceService

Chapter8 - OrderingDedicatedService
Chapter9 - OrderingToll-FreeService
Chapter10 - ActivatingYourDedicatedCircuitandTollFreeNumbers
PartIV-TakingCareofYourTelecomSystem
Chapter11 - MaintainingYourTelecomServices
Chapter12 - TroubleshootingSwitchedNetworkIssues
Chapter13 - TroubleshootingYourDedicatedCircuits
PartV-What’sHot(OrJustGeeky)inthe
TelecomWorld
Chapter14 - TransferringData,NotJustVoiceContent
Chapter15 - RidingtheInternetWave:VoIP
PartVI-ThePartofTens
Chapter16 - TenAcronymsandWhatTheyReally
Mean
Chapter17 - TenTroublesomeTelecomTraitstoAvoid
Chapter18 - TenPlacestoGoforHintsandHelp
Appendix - MakingaLoopbackPlug
Index
ListofFigures
ListofTables
ListofSidebars


BackCover
Worldwidetelecomspendingwasover$4trillion
in2004,andvirtuallyall12millionbusinessesin
theU.S.buyphoneandothertelecomservices
Ourbookshowspeopleatsmall-andmediumsizedbusinesseshowtomakesenseoftelecom
lingoandgetthebestdeals

Includesanoverviewofthemajorplayersinthe
telecomindustryandaneasy-to-understand
explanationoftheexistingtelecominfrastructure
Helpspeoplepinpointthetelecomservicesbest
suitedtotheirbusinessneeds,understandbilling,
andtroubleshootproblems
Coversemergingindustrytrends,suchasVoice
overInternetProtocol(VoIP),andhowtheycan
helpbusinessescutcosts
AbouttheAuthor
StephenOlejniczakistheDirectorofOperationsforATI
Communications,andhasovertenyearsoftelecom
experienceunderhisbelt.Hisinitialjobintelecomwas
provisioningdataservices,eventuallytakingaposition
asthecustomerservicemanagerforasmalllongdistancecompany,andfinallyasitsmanagerof
dedicatedprovisioning.
Stephendidnotstartoutinlifeasatechie,onlyfalling
preytotheglamourandeasymoneyafterfailingto


findacareerthatenabledhimtousehisBachelors
degreeinCulturalAnthropology.


TelecomforDummies
byStephenP.Olejniczak
Publishedby
WileyPublishing,Inc.
111RiverStreet
Hoboken,NJ07030-5774

www.wiley.com
Copyright©2006byWileyPublishing,Inc.,Indianapolis,Indiana
PublishedbyWileyPublishing,Inc.,Indianapolis,Indiana
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AbouttheAuthor
StephenOlejniczak(pronouncedole-en-ee-check)istheDirectorof
OperationsforATICommunications,andhasovertenyearsoftelecom
experienceunderhisbelt.Hisinitialjobintelecomwasprovisioningdata
services,eventuallytakingapositionasthecustomerservicemanager
forasmalllong-distancecompany,andfinallyasitsmanagerof
dedicatedprovisioning.
Stephendidnotstartoutinlifeasatechie,onlyfallingpreytothe
glamourandeasymoneyafterfailingtofindacareerthatenabledhimto
usehisBachelorsdegreeinCulturalAnthropology.Hecurrentlylivesin
thequainthamletofLagunaBeach,California,withhiswife,Kayley,and
acollectionoffountainpens.
Dedication
Thisbookisdedicatedtotheentiretelecomindustry.FromtheCEOsof
largecarrierstoeveryonethatsupplies,sells,orusesphoneservice(I
guessthatiseveryoneintheworld),Igiveyouthistomeofinformation.
TheprimarygroupintheindustrytowhomIdedicatethisbookarethose
newemployeeswhohavejustenteredthewildworldoftelecom.The
learningcurveintelecomisverticalforatleastthefirstsixmonths,andit
iseasytofeelover-whelmed.Don’tletanyonetalkdowntoyou,because
weallstartedoutknowingnothing.
Author’sAcknowledgments
Thegreatestmotivationandsupportforthisbookcamefrommybeautiful
wife,Kayley.Iamgladthatitiscompleteandwecannowtravelagain.

Thisbookwouldnotbecompletedifitweren’tfortheguidanceofmy
Wileyeditor,NicoleHaims,whotookthroughtheentireprocess.Imust
alsoacknowledgethegreatworkputforwardbymytechnicaleditor,
FrankPiotrowski,whovalidatedeverythingIwrote,downtothe
molecularlevel.AdditionalpropstoKeziaEndsleyforcopyediting
assistance.IalsoreceivedinvaluableinputfromBradyKirby,ofAtlas
VoIPCommunications,aswellasmyfriends,ChrisLynchandCarl,who
keptmeontrackandrunninginthedatasections.Theseareonlya
handfulofthebrilliantpeopleIhavespokenwithovertheyears,from
whomIhaveextractedvaluableinformationthatwasquicklyusedto
mentormyemployeesandcustomers.
Finally,Imustgivethankstoeverycustomer,salesperson,andcoworker
whoaskedmethesamequestionsoverandover(andover)again.I
wasn’tpraisingyouafterwechattedat3:30a.m.onaSaturdaybecause
youwantedtoknowthecountrycodeforSierraLeone,butnowIrealize
youhavegivenmethedepthandbreadthofinformationnecessaryto
writethisbook.
Publisher’sAcknowledgments
We’reproudofthisbook;pleasesendusyourcommentsthroughour
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Introduction
WelcometoTelecomForDummies,abookforpeoplewhoworkin
telecom(99percentofwhomcomeintotheindustrythroughnofaultof
theirown).You’reprobablyaverysmartperson,andsoyourboss
decidedtogiveyoutheresponsibilityofhandlingthatexpensive
communicationnetworkthatkeepsthecompanyinbusiness.Don’t
worry!Thisbookcanhelpyouworkthroughalmostanyquestionyou
haveabouttelecom.Intheend,youwillbeverycomfortablewithyour
newenvironmentandyouwillcontinuetoimpressothersasthewonder
kidtheyalwaysbelievedyoutobe.
Thisbookcontainseverythingyouneedtoknowtoorder,maintain,and
troubleshootbasicphoneservice.Itcoversthenutsandboltsofhow
phonesystemswork,whytheywork,andwhyitsometimestakessolong
forthemtowork.Whenyouhavequestions,simplytrackdownthe
chapterandsubsectionthatcoverstheissueinquestion,andafteralittle
reading,youwillbeabletotalktoanytechnicianwithconfidence.


AboutThisBook

Thisbookwasnotintendedforbedtimereadingfromcovertocover.Itis
averyhelpfulreferencefortelecomproducts,applications,and
troubleshooting.Thefirstfewpartscoverfindingaphoneservicethat
bestsuitsyourbusinessneeds.Anotherpartprovidestheinsandoutsof
orderingwhatyouneed.Ifyoualreadyhaveaphonesystemsetup,
movetothepartthatcoverswhatyouneedtoknowtotroubleshootthe
circuitsandsystemsyou’veinstalled.
Everychapterhasbeenwrittenwithyou,notanMITtechnician,inmind.
Theinformationiseasytounderstandanddigest,evenifyouhave
absolutelynopriortelecomknowledge.Ifadditionalinformationmightbe
helpful,Ireferyoutoanotherchapterformoreinformation.
TelecomForDummiesisapplicabletoalmostallphoneserviceinNorth
America,includingCanada,manyoftheCaribbeancountriesandGuam.
Theregulationsandinfrastructurefortelecomvarybetweenmost
countries,andalthoughsomeaspectsmaybeapplicableinEuropeand
Asia,thestepsfororderingandtestingsystemsvary.


ConventionsUsedinThisBook
We’veusedafewconventionsinthisbooktomakeiteasierforyouto
spotspecialinformation.Herearethoseconventions:
Newtermsareidentifiedbyusingitalicandfollowedbyashort
definition.
Websiteaddresses(URLs)aredesignatedbyusinga
monospacefont.
IfItellyoutodialanumberortypeaspecificcommand,the
commandappearsinboldface.


WhatYouDon’tHavetoRead

Youdon’thavetoreadanythingthatdoesn’tapplytoyourneeds.Ifyou
don’thaveaphonesystem,ordedicatedcircuits,orplaceany
internationalcalls,forexample,youcanignorethesectionsthatcover
them.Thebookcontainsenoughgreatinformationthatyouwon’thurtmy
feelingsbyjumpingfromchaptertochapter(orevenfromsectionto
section).


IconsUsedinThisBook
TelecomForDummiesincludesiconsthatpointoutspecialinformation.
HerearetheiconsIuseandwhattheymean:
TipThisiconmakesyoufeellikearealtelecompro.Ithighlightsspecial
tricksandshortcutsthatmakeunderstandingandmaneuveringwithinthe
vasttelecomworldeveneasier.Don’tskipthisinformation!
RememberThisiconremindsyouofimportantinformationthatcanbe
fartooeasytoforgetandwhichcancausealotoffrustrationwhenyou
doforget.
Warning!Becarefulwhenyouseethisicon.Itpointsoutanareawhere
you’llwanttobeextracautioussothatyoudon’tcauseyourself
problems.Italsotellsyouhowtoavoidtheproblems.
TechnicalStuffTechnicalStuffisinformationforfolkswhowantto
knowallthegeekydetails.


FoolishAssumptions
Iassumethatyouhaveseenaphone,dialedaphone,andhavehada
conversationonaphonebefore.Inadditiontothat,yourjobissomehow
linkedtobuying,selling,using,orsupportingsomekindof
telecommunicationsservice.Iassumethefollowingaboutyoureveryday
contactwithtelecomtoolsandsystems(perhapsyoudon’tfitinevery

oneofthesescenarios,butyourecognizeyourselfinatleastafewof
them):
Youhavetomakedecisionsonbuyingorupgradingphone
services.
Youhavehadproblemsorderingphoneserviceinthepastand
wanttoknowsometipsonhowtokeepmovingforwardwithout
unnecessarydelays.
Youhaveaninventoryoftoll-freenumbersthatyoumust
manage.
Youwanttofindthemostefficientwaytospeaktoyourcarriers
andhardwarevendorssotheyunderstandyourneedsand
expectations.
Youwouldliketohavethepowertotroubleshootissues,suchas
failedcallsandqualityissues,withoutrelyingonsomeoneelse
foranswers.


HowThisBookIsOrganized
TelecomForDummieshassixparts.Eachpartisself-contained,butall
thecontentissomewhatinterconnected.Thatwayyou’llseethemost
usefulinformationwithoutalotofboringrepetition.

PartI:TheABCsofTelecomServices
Thispartexplainsthelandscapeoftelecom,thekeyplayers,andhow
theyworktogether.Idescribethedifferencesinresponsibilitiesbetween
local,long-distance,andwirelesscarriers.Ialsoincludeinformationthat
introducesthebasictelecomfeaturesandoptions.

PartII:ReviewingTelecomProductsandPrices
Noteverytelecomproductisrightforeverycustomer.PartIIreviewsthe

mostcommontelecomproductssothatyoucanevaluatewhichofthem
arerightforyourbusiness.Thispartcoversawiderangeofservices,and
helpsyouanalyzewhetheryoushouldjumpfromregular(switched)
phoneservicetodedicatedphoneservice.Italsogivesyouthelayofthe
toll-freelandandhelpsyoumaneuverthroughyourphonebill,lookingfor
areasthatarecostingyoumoremoneythantheyshould.Stopthe
bleedinginthispart,andfigureoutwhichofyourpotentialtelecom
investmentswillgiveyouthebestreturn.

PartIII:OrderingandSettingUpTelecomService
Thesecondmostpainfulaspectoftelecomisorderingnewservice(see
PartIVforthemostpainfulaspectoftelecom).Thispartguidesyou
throughtheorderingprocessforallservices,fromregular(switched)
phonelinestodedicatedcircuits,totoll-freeservice.Becausededicated
andtoll-freeservicesarecomplicated,Iincludeachapterinthispartthat
goestheextramile,showingyouhowtoactivatetheseservicesafteryou
orderthem.Allalongtheway,Itellyouaboutpotentialpitfallssothatyou
cansuccessfullyavoidthem.

PartIV:TakingCareofYourTelecomSystem


Themostpainfulaspectoftelecomistroubleshootingproblems.The
issueafflictingyoursystemmaybehugeormicroscopic,butyoustill
needtofixit.PartIVcoverstroubleshootingswitchedphonelines,
dedicatedphonelines,andtoll-freeserviceinastep-by-stepmannerthat
enablesyoutomakequickworkofalmostanyproblem.Byfollowingthe
rulesIsetoutforyouinthispart,youcansystematicallyidentify
problemsandkeepyourtechniciansfromgoingonawildgoosechase.

PartV:What’sHot(OrJustGeeky)intheTelecomWorld
ThechaptersinPartVcovertheworldoftelecom—beyondvoicephone
calls.Icoverthebasicsofdatatransfertechnologies,andthehottest
buzzwordintelecomrightnow,VoIP.PartVwon’tshowyouhowtowrite
thecodetotransferthedata,butitdoesgiveyouanoverviewofthe
newestandgreatesttechnology,givesyousomehintsonpricing,and
tellsyouaboutthehardwarerequiredtocreateadata-transferinterface
withyourcarrier.

PartVI:ThePartofTens
PartVIcoversindustrybuzzwords,personalitydisorders,andwhereto
goforhelp.How’sthatforamélange?Whenyouusecommonacronyms
casuallywhenspeakingtoyourcarrierrepsandtechnicians,theyknow
thatyou’renotcluelessabouttelecom.Thesectionontelecomtraits
providesbehaviortolookoutforandhintsonhowtoavoidit.Finally,the
lastchapterlistsresourcestotapintowhenyouareatyourwit’send.
AttheendofthePartofTensisanappendixItackedontoshowyou
howtomakemaleandfemaleloopbackplugs.Theselittlegadgetsare
simpleandsmall,buttheyareinvaluabletotroubleshootingphone
systems.


WheretoGofromHere
ThebestplacetostartonthisbookistheTableofContentsorIndexif
youwanttokeyinoninformationaboutaspecifictopic.Notsurewhether
youhaveadedicatedcircuitorwhatyourlocalcarrier’sresponsibilities
are?Chapter1canhelpyougetyourbearings.
Dependingonthespecificaspectoftelecomyouneedtoresearch,you
maywanttojumptoChapter6tofindoutaboutwhat’sgoingonwith
yourphonebill,orifyou’reexperiencingamajormalfunctionrightnow,

skiptoChapter13tofigureouthowtotroubleshootyourdedicated
circuit.Thisisyourbuffetoftelecomgoodies;checkouttheentire
offeringanddiveintothesectionsyouthinkaretasty.


PartI:TheABCsofTelecomService


ChapterList
Chapter1:ABuyer’sScooponTelecom
Chapter2:Making(AndLivingwith)TelecomDecisions
Chapter3:GettingAroundtheTelecomNeighborhood


Inthispart...
Yougetanoverviewofthekeyplayersintelecom,aswellasan
introductiontothestructuresthatallowtheseplayerstoworktogether.
Thispartalsooffersyouguidelinestoidentifythephonesystemyouare
currentlyusing,tohelpyoudeterminewhetheryourbusinessisagood
candidatefordedicatedphoneservice,andtohelpyouidentifythe
hazardsoftelephonefraud.Thispartwrapsupwithanoverviewofhow
callsareclassifiedandexplainswhyyourinternationalcalltoCanada
doesn’trequireyoutodial011.


Chapter1:ABuyer’sScooponTelecom


InThisChapter
Gettingageneralunderstandingoftelecom

Checkingouttheplayers
Planningandimplementingeffectivetelecomsystems
Makingmajortelecomdecisions
Findingpeopletohelpyoumaketherightchoices
Settingupforfutureexpansion
Troubleshootingyourtelecomsystem
Everybusinessintheworldeitherusesorcouldbenefitfromusingphone
service.Evenifyourbusinessdealsdirectlywiththepublic,youstillneed
tocallyourmanufacturerforupdatesonshipments,checkontheadsyou
havegoingout,andmakesureyouraccountanthasallofyourfinancial
information.Asyourbusinessgrows,sodoesyourneedforphonelines,
notjusttoenableyoutospeaktoyourcustomersandsuppliers,butalso
totransmitdatabetweenoffices,andpossiblyevenmaintainaWebsite
toreceiveandtrackorders.
Growthinbusinessisgreat,butyoumayeasilyfindyourself
overwhelmedbythelogisticsinvolvedinallthechanges.Thephone
systemyouhad2yearsagomayhavebeenperfectforyouatthetime,
buttodayyouhave20newemployeesinhouse,5newoutsidesales
reps,andtheWebsiteforInternetordersisbeingreleasednextweek.If
thatisthecase,youhaveprobablyout-grownyouroldtelephonesystem.
Theimportantthingtoknowishowtogaugethetechnologyyouhave,
whereyouaregoing,andwhattechnologyyouneedtogetthere.Inthis
chapter,Ihelpyoufigureoutwhatyou’redealingwithandgetyoustarted
onyourquesttoimproveyourtelecommunication,ortelecomsystem.


AssessingYourTelecomServicesAsTheyAre
Now
Atthemostbasiclevel,telecomreferstoanyservicethatisprovided
overphonelines.Includedinthisdefinitionare

Internetconnectionsoverdedicatedcircuitsordial-upmodems
Regularphonelinesusedtoplaceandreceivecallstoyourmom
High-speeddatalinksusedfortransmittinginformation
Whenyouboilthingsdown,allphoneservicecanbereducedtothe
samebasicprinciplesoftransmittingandreceivingsignalsoverfiberoptic
orcopperwire.
Forexample,ifabackhoecutsthroughafiberopticcablethatsupplies
yourInternetconnection,alongwiththeservicefromyourlocalcarrier,
youronlyconnectiontotheoutsideworldbecomesyourmobilephone.If
yourmobilephoneprovideralsousesthatlinktocompletecalls,youstill
maynothaveaconnectiontotheoutsideworld.Withtheincreasein
redundancybeingbuiltintothelocalandlong-distancenetworks,you
shouldn’thaveanoutagethatcompletelyshutsdownyourservice.Ifyou
haveagoodtelecomsystem,when(notif)abreakdowninthenetwork
occurs,stoppingcallsfrompassingthroughtheeastsideoftown,your
systemcanautomaticallyroutecallstoanalternativenetworkonthe
westside.
Manycompaniesrelyheavilyupontheirphoneservice,andanyoutage,
nomatterhowsmall,hasalargeimpact.Sometimestheproblemisan
actofGod,(sayyourcarrier’sswitchisstruckbyaboltoflightening,
reducingittoasmolderingbrickofsiliconandsteelvaluableonlyasa
pieceofmodernart).Otherissuesmaybetheresultofbottlenecksin
yourownphonesystem,orjustaneedformorephonelines.Thefirst
steptotakingcareoftheseissuesistoassessthephoneserviceyou
needrightnow.