[LINK] Voice on the NBN

[Roger Clarke]

At 8:43 AM +1000 8/9/16, Tom Worthington wrote:
>... I disconnected my FTTN phone after a few years and just used the mobile. That was 13 years ago ...

As we say in Canberra, 'where were you on 18 Jan 2003?'.

Clearly not in Weston Creek, as at least one Canberra-based linker was.
(Not that making phone-calls was uppermost in people's minds at the time).

I was overseas, calls to my home-phone rang out (consistent with an abandoned but still existent house, plus a power-outage), and I was unable to get through to any mobile numbers on any of the networks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_Canberra_bushfires
>Mobile telecommunications were severely affected due to increased traffic, causing serious disruption to mobile phone networks and the ESA's own radio and dispatch networks


Mind you, the TransACT VDSL service runs along the ridge above us, and all of that (then newly-installed) aerial infrastructure was completely destroyed - cables, boxes and poles.  

When NBNCo eventually acquires the now VDSL2 network and redefines it as being within their technology mix, it will retain the same vulnerabilities.  (And the forests are re-growing - never say 'never again').


> ... and I have not missed having a home phone.

And I've never missed not having a mobile phone.  This year's looking likely to match the count in previous years.  About 6 times p.a. I'd use one if I had one with me;  and none of the now many scores of missed opportunities since 1987 has been in the least bit tragic.  Now ask me about my kids ...


-- 
Roger Clarke                                 http://www.rogerclarke.com/
			             
Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd      78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA
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Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Law            University of N.S.W.
Visiting Professor in Computer Science    Australian National University