Long-distance calling and Cát Bà Island: Difference between pages
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'''Cat Ba''' is an island of approximately 140 sq.km in [[Ha Long Bay]], Northern [[Vietnam]]. It is commonly used as an overnight hotel stop on inexpensive package tours to [[Ha Long Bay]] run by travel agents from [[Hanoi]]. |
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'''Long distance''' in [[telecommunications]], refers to [[telephone call]]s made outside a certain area, usually characterized by an [[area code]] outside of a [[local call]] area (known in the United States as a local access and transport area or [[LATA]]). Long-distance calls usually carry long-distance charges which, within certain nations, vary between [[phone company|phone companies]] and are the subject of much [[competition]]. [[International call]]s are calls made between different countries, and usually carry much higher charges. These calls are charged to the [[calling party]] unless the [[called party]] accepts a [[collect call]]. |
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Cat Ba is the largest island in the Bay and approximately half of its area is covered by a [[List_of_national_parks_of_Vietnam|National Park]], which is home to the highly endangered [[Cat Ba Langur]]. This golden-headed [[langur]] is rarely seen, as fewer than 100 specimens are thought to survive in the wild, although it is the subject of a well-organised conservation programme. The Park covers both land and marine areas and has a high [[biodiversity]], although it is at risk from too rapid an increase in tourism. Other mammals in the Park include [[civet]] cats and [[oriental giant squirrels]]. |
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==Categories and charges== |
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[[Image:Cat Ba 2.JPG|left|300px]] |
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[[Image:Catba-Feb06.jpg|thumb|Cat Ba town, showing the limestone hills behind the waterfront strip]] |
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Many tour operators include an option of trekking in the National Park or canoeing on three-day tours; shorter tours generally only stay overnight in the small town of Cat Ba (population about 8,000) or on boats moored in Cai Beo bay, about 2km away from Cat Ba town. Cat Ba itself is attractively situated around a bay teeming with small boats, many of which belong to pearl or shrimp farmers, and can become very busy at weekends and during public holidays. The promenade has illuminations and a large fountain which only plays after dark; it is backed by a strip of cheap hotels and bars, but dominated by the wooded [[limestone]] hills behind. The island is a national park of Vietnam and was recognized by UNESCO in December 2004 as a Biosphere reserve of the world. |
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In the [[United States]], long distance can refer to two different classes of calls that are not [[local call]]s. The most common class of long-distance is often called ''interstate long-distance'', though the more accurate term is ''inter-LATA interstate long distance''. This is the form of long-distance most commonly meant by the term, and the one for which [[long-distance carrier]]s are usually chosen by telephone customers. |
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* [http://www.catbalangur.org/Langur.htm The Cat Ba Langur.] Cat Ba Langur Conservation Project. Accessed [[2008-07-15]]. |
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*[http://www.seacology.org/projects/individualprojects/VIETNAM_catba2002.htm Seacology Cat Ba Langur Project] [[Seacology]] |
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Another form of long-distance, increasingly relevant to more U.S. states, is known as ''inter-LATA '''intra'''state long distance''. This refers to a calling area outside of the customer’s [[LATA]] but within the customer's state. While technically and legally long-distance, this calling area is not necessarily served by the same carrier used for "regular" long distance, or may be provided at different rates. In some cases, customer confusion occurs as, due to rate or carrier distinctions, a local long-distance call can be billed at a higher per-minute rate than interstate long-distance calls, despite being a shorter distance. |
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*[http://www.ecofriendlyvietnam.com Good reputation tour operator and boat company] |
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{{coord|20|48|00|N|106|59|59|E|region:VN_type:isle|display=title}} |
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Often, in large [[LATA]]s, there is also a class known by the oxymoronic name ''local long distance'', which refers to calls within the customer's [[LATA]] but outside of their local calling area. This area is normally served by the customer's local telephone provider, which is usually one of the [[RBOC|Baby Bell]]s, despite attempts by some [[CLEC]]s to compete in the local telephone market. |
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Callers are usually offered a variety of rate "plans" depending on usage, although which plan is cheapest for a given amount of usage is often not obvious. For example, the largest carrier, AT&T (as of February 2007) offers three plans in the United States: $30 per month for unlimited calling, $10 per month for 120 minutes plus 10 cents per minute thereafter, or $2 per month and 10 cents per minute. Graphing rate vs. usage shows that the $2 per month plan is cheapest if calling 80 minutes or less per month, the $10 per month plan is cheapest if calling 80 to 320 minutes per month, and the $30 per month plan is cheapest if calling over 320 minutes per month. Smaller companies including [[MCI Inc]] and [[Pioneer Telephone]] may offer plans in similar variety at different prices. Some of these plans can be found on sites like [http://www.phonedog.com PhoneDog] that compare a variety of long distance phone and phone card options, giving consumers useful and timely information. |
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==Carriers and trends== |
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While there have traditionally existed [[long-distance carrier]]s who provided only long-distance services, today most if not all of the Baby Bells can offer service for all long-distance classes as well as local service, competing with the long-distance carriers. While the benefit of this arrangement is simplicity of billing and support for the customer, long-distance carriers can often offer lower rates or money-saving service plans. |
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Major long-distance carriers in the US include [[Sprint Corporation|Sprint]], (former) [[MCI Worldcom]], [[Pioneer Telephone]] and [[AT&T]]. The market security for [[landline]] long-distance has been affected negatively by many smaller less known carriers. These organizations usually provide specialty deep discounted long distance calling plans. |
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The rapid growth of Voice over Internet Protocol [[VoIP]] has drastically altered the long-distance competitive landscape, due to its radically lower cost. VoIP providers such as [[Vonage]] allow regular phones to use a high-speed internet connection and allows unlimited long-distance and local calling for a flat monthly rate. Software such as the proprietary [[Skype]] allow completely free (aside from the [[sunk cost]] of the internet connection itself) calls between computers and allow calls between computers and landlines or cellphones for a small per-minute fee. Although the cost of VoIP is drastically lower, the issue of how well 911 emergency line works, namely the ability of the 911 center to locate callers, is a major issue. |
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== Terms == |
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* LEC - [[Local Exchange Carrier]] |
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* CLEC - [[Competitive Local Exchange Carrier]] |
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* PIC - Preferred Interexchange Carrier |
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* PIC Freeze - A customer's arrangement with the local exchange carrier (local telephone company) to prevent unauthorized changing of their long distance telephone carrier (oral or written). This prevents slamming. This feature is free of charge and many customers don't know they have it, which may cause a new long distance order to be delayed up to several weeks. If you do have a PIC freeze on your line, you must remove it before submitting the long distance order. |
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* [[Telephone slamming]] - The illegal practice of changing a consumer's telephone service - local (intralata), toll (interlata intrastate), long distance (interlata inter-state), or international - without permission. |
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==History== |
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AT&T built an interconnected long-distance telephone network, which reached from [[New York]] to [[Chicago]] in [[1892]], the technological limit for the wiring used. Users often did not use their own phone for such connections, but made an appointment to use a special long-distance [[telephone booth]] or "silence cabinet" equipped with [[four-wire circuit|4-wire telephone]]s and other advanced technology. The invention of [[loading coil]]s extended the range to Denver in [[1911]], again reaching a technological limit. A major research venture and contest led to the development of the [[Vacuum tube|audion]], which provided the means for telephone signals to reach from coast to coast, which was made possible in 1914, but not showcased until the [[Panama-Pacific Exposition]] in [[1915]]. At this time, long distance calling was performed via manual patching by a series of [[long-distance operator]]s in the route of the call; connecting a coast-to-coast call in this way could take up to 23 minutes. |
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The first customer-connected long-distance telephone call was made on [[November 11]], [[1951]] when Mayor [[M. Leslie Downing]] of [[Englewood, New Jersey]] called Mayor [[Frank Osborne]] of [[Alameda, California]] using [[AT&T]]'s [[Direct Distance Dialing]] feature. This was the first call dialed with an area code, using what would now be called [[10-digit dialing]], and was connected automatically within 18 seconds.<ref>[http://www.corp.att.com/attlabs/reputation/timeline/51trans.html 1951: First Direct-Dial Transcontinental Telephone Call], [[AT&T]]. Accessed [[June 8]], [[2007]]. "Nov. 10, 1951: Mayor M. Leslie Downing of Englewood, N.J., picked up a telephone and dialed 10 digits. Eighteen seconds later, he reached Mayor Frank Osborne in Alameda, Calif. The mayors made history as they chatted in the first customer-dialed long-distance call, one that introduced area codes."</ref> In addition to area codes, this development also came with the introduction of a national 7-digit standard for local number length. |
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Until the early 1980s, a called party could instantly recognize an incoming Long Distance call by its hiss and/or low level, due to the inherent signal loss and introduction of noise common with all-analog long-distance telecommunications circuits of the era. The introduction of digital technology such as [[T-carrier]] circuits by AT&T starting in 1961 (and adopted by their long distance networks on a larger scale starting in the early-to-mid 1970s) let long distance calls approach the high voice quality of local calls. |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist}} |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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*[[ |
*[[Cat Ba National Park]] |
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*[[Long-haul communications]] |
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*[[Trunk vs Toll]] |
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*[http://www.att.com/attlabs/reputation/timeline/15tel.html First Transcontinental Telephone Call] |
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*[http://www.att.com/attlabs/reputation/timeline/51trans.html First Direct-Dial Transcontinental Telephone Call] |
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*[http://www.fcc.gov/slamming/ Slamming Reference] |
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*[http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Telephone_Cables.html 1922 Britannica supplement] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Islands of Vietnam]] |
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[[Category:Biosphere reserves of Vietnam]] |
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[[Category:National parks of Vietnam]] |
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[[Category:Hai Phong]] |
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[[de:Cat Ba]] |
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[[yi:לאנג דיסטענס]] |
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[[vi:Quần đảo Cát Bà]] |
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[[zh:長途電話]] |
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Revision as of 21:50, 10 October 2008
Cat Ba is an island of approximately 140 sq.km in Ha Long Bay, Northern Vietnam. It is commonly used as an overnight hotel stop on inexpensive package tours to Ha Long Bay run by travel agents from Hanoi.
Cat Ba is the largest island in the Bay and approximately half of its area is covered by a National Park, which is home to the highly endangered Cat Ba Langur. This golden-headed langur is rarely seen, as fewer than 100 specimens are thought to survive in the wild, although it is the subject of a well-organised conservation programme. The Park covers both land and marine areas and has a high biodiversity, although it is at risk from too rapid an increase in tourism. Other mammals in the Park include civet cats and oriental giant squirrels.
Many tour operators include an option of trekking in the National Park or canoeing on three-day tours; shorter tours generally only stay overnight in the small town of Cat Ba (population about 8,000) or on boats moored in Cai Beo bay, about 2km away from Cat Ba town. Cat Ba itself is attractively situated around a bay teeming with small boats, many of which belong to pearl or shrimp farmers, and can become very busy at weekends and during public holidays. The promenade has illuminations and a large fountain which only plays after dark; it is backed by a strip of cheap hotels and bars, but dominated by the wooded limestone hills behind. The island is a national park of Vietnam and was recognized by UNESCO in December 2004 as a Biosphere reserve of the world.
External links
- The Cat Ba Langur. Cat Ba Langur Conservation Project. Accessed 2008-07-15.
- Seacology Cat Ba Langur Project Seacology
- Good reputation tour operator and boat company
20°48′00″N 106°59′59″E / 20.80000°N 106.99972°E