The TestCall

@PatReady I've been thinking about that for a long time but I might have just thought of a way to do it with a small donation and hidden menu item based on inbound caller-id. Hmmm. Outbound calls cost real money so I need to protect from abuse.

@TheTestCall Thanks for keeping this up! Been using your stuff for years. Need a way to set up call backs for inbound troubleshooting!

Apologies for the recent downtime! Migrated to a new Ubuntu 24.04 server and I suspect this process tried to restart things unsuccessfully: systemd[1]: Starting apt-daily-upgrade.service - Daily apt upgrade and clean activities...

@BoscoMac That HP 'calculator' gear circa the 9825A was legit quality compared to everything else then. My dad would bring them home for a few months between 'deployments' and they were so fun to tinker with.

NASA Deep Space Network with a 34 meter antenna on a HP 9872C plotter with HP-GL.

More holiday gifts! Our friends @Flynumbers have provided a Mexico City number: +52 55 9317 0592 #TheTestCall #VoIP #Voice ready to take your test call! TheTestCall.blogspot.com

@davepl1968 No TECO ... I am sad.

Log into my PDP-11 live! Just please don't break it, it hasn't had a security update in 40 years :-) telnet davepl.dyndns.org

And now with what I believe are the true OG IVR prompts enjoyed by so many up until 2023's redo. Thank you #TheTestCall fans for helping get this right. Lots of #VoIP fun.

Happy Holidays! As requested we have created an OG Retro-TestCall with the #IVR prompts from 2015. +1 631 380 8152 is ready for calls now. Only a couple channels, take turns! #VoIP #Voice #VoIPTest

@davepl1968 I love that! I remember watching field service do work on a DEC RP06 (built by Memorex) and with all the covers off watching it throw the head assembly back and forth was impressive.

This is the linear actuator (head stepper motor) of an RK05 disc pack in a PDP-11/34. It currently held into shipping position with the small tab above the orange sticker that's retained with a hex bolt. Current hard drive stepper mechanisms are the size of a coin, but this is the size of a large tomato juice can!

@crosstalksol I started the 30 day 'Dump Comcast Business'. While they might use separate frequencies for business modems vs consumer modems (I don't know), you do share a fiber node and mine only has battery life for 45 minutes when the power goes out. Full house generator doesn't solve it.

Just renewed my Comcast Business Internet (my only option). Here's the detail: 800/40 Mpbs - 5 static IPs 2 year contract - $287.89/mo. About $100 cheaper per month that my last 2-year contract. Also got a mobile phone number for $20/mo. that came with an $800 gift card.

#Kamailio upgraded to 5.8 and moved to a cloud server! Now using #rtpengine as well on a modern #debian host. #Voip #VoipTesting

@ChristianLempa I don't trust any disk to store data reliably so I use ZFS everywhere I can for peace of mind.

I'm wondering if you really need ZFS in a HomeLab? A simpler and less resource hungry file system seems like a great alternative... 🤔

And yes, it is about time to move this service to the cloud 🌩️ where the Internet never goes down 🤣

We are down for a few hours. #Comcast @XfinitySupport batteries are very weak on our fiber node and only last for 20 minutes. Our generator is running just fine, but no bits are flowing on the HFC plant without juice on the fiber node.

@crosstalksol My friend taught me to cut both ends of that bad cable. I had one Ethernet home patch cable with 2 spared lives that cost me 8 hours over 3 events that I will never get back.

Sorted - it was a bad cable.

@projectpayphone OMG, I love that. I worked in a 'Factory of the Future' during the mid-80s and that is exactly the sort of cryptic stuff you would do on a dialup modem.

"The most complicated trigger ever used to kill a man." Phone booth phreaking from an unexpected source: A 1974 episode of "Barnaby Jones." Dude kills his boss from a phone booth. The modem sounds bring back twitchy memories. youtu.be/KvIFJN5EmEA

Without cluttering up the already full main menu of the @TheTestCall IVR, we've added an experimental submenu: Press * at the main menu then enter a four digit code for extended features. First one: 1001 - looping GMT hour/minute time readout as requested. #VoIP #TestCall

@JackRhysider youtube.com/watch?v=xbNXXS…

Feeling inspired. Send songs that'll give me wings.

By popular demand, added the ability to leave the test conference bridge with *8 (star eight). Keep those suggestions coming (option zero at the main menu). We listen and we care! #VoIP #testcall #IVR #Voice thetestcall.blogspot.com

Finally refreshed all voice prompts! This was a long time in the making and hope you enjoy the new voice prompts. #TestVoIP #TestCall #VoIP Leave us feedback with option 0/Zero

@projectpayphone We will miss your test calls 212-599-8694 !

Grand Central calling? Nope. Not anymore. This was the last working payphone at Grand Central Terminal, downstairs near the Lost & Found. Seen today. GCT has no access to public communications stations. RIP: 212-599-8694