Re: Imagine
how much simpler life would be if roaming between networks was allowed
Some time ago I came up with what I thought was a brilliant scheme both to increase coverage in blackspots that the phone companies don't seem bothered about covering, and to keep "uneconomical" phone boxes alive in remote locations. No, it won't handle (much) data, but it would have made a decent fist of getting voice coverage increased, which at the time was the major problem; some poor soul broken down half way up the Llanberis pass in the middle of the night with no mobile signal, a disconnected phonebox just up the road, and a two mile trek back to civilisation.
Upgrade phoneboxes to ISDN (128kbps over lots of distance) and install small 2G cells, which I'm sure would run just fine on the power already in the box for the lighting. Allow all phones to roam onto these small cells and charge a termination fee as is currently done anyway. 128kbps is good for quite a lot of 2G phone calls (perhaps nine or ten "full rate" duplex conversations at once - remember ISDN is 128kbps in each direction). Use profit to keep the phone box alive, even if its actual takings are low.
Unfortunately, the ideal time for that scheme was some time in the mid to late 1990s...
M.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
