[VoIP] Introduction

[Donald Froula]

Since I'm fairly new to the group, John suggested that
I introduce myself.

My age is 54 and I live in the Chicago area. I've been
a telecommunications engineer for 30 years. I was
involved with the development of the very earliest
cellular and pre-cellular radio telephone systems and
switches in the early 80's. I became interested in
telephony during the phone phreak phenomenon of the
70's. I spent hours "experimenting" and reading Bell
System Technical Journals in college and learned
enough to decide to change career paths. I still have
a real affection for the old network and equipment.

I'm also a licensed ham since 1971 and enjoy working
QRP CW on twenty meters and also some of the newer
digital modes, like PSK-31.

My setup at home is modest...a dedicated PC running
Asterisk with a few ATA's for connecting my old rotary
phone collection into CNET. My CNET US exchange is
762. I have a Mitel Smart-1 between the ATA and the
dial phones to do the DP to DTMF translation. I have a
Berry 314A test set wired into a port for testing. As
many know, my Asterisk box has a "ProjectMF"
arrangement - two additional NICs running SF/MF
in-band signalling over a trunk group of 24 T1 over
Ethernet links. This allows "Blue Boxing", like the
old days....my tribute to those times. Nice to give
others a taste of what it was like.

I designed a portable MF and tone "box" that runs on a
microcontroller. It generates tones through sine wave
synthesis. I wrote the code in 6505 assembly language.
It uses a cheap R-2R ladder network as a cheap D to A
converter.

I'd love to get a modest small PBX or step-switch
arrangement going some time, but time these days is in
rather short supply. I've really enjoyed the email and
conversations I've had with members the past weeks.

Enough for now.

Best,

Don

--- John Novack <jnovack at stromberg-carlson.org> wrote:
> Don - many of us don't know you at all, so perhaps
> an introduction is in 
> order.
> Or did I miss that somewhere??
> 
> John Novack
>