Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
earlier,.and.settled.2.years.before.that,.inally.went.into.effect..
AT&T.agreed.to.divest.their.infrastructure.and.open.it.up.to.
other.companies.in.return.for.a.chance.to.get.into.the.com-
puter.business.
In.January.of.that.year,.AT&T.split.all.of.their.local.groups.
into.what.became.known.as.the.“Baby.Bells,”.although.it.held.
onto. its.entire.long.distance.infrastructure..Eventually.it.lost.
much.of.that.market.to.competitors.as.well,.so.that.now.when.
you.make.that.call.to.grandma,.the.computer.switch.also.has.
to. check. to. see. which. long. distance. company. you. have. an.
account.with.and.connect.you.via.their.switching.network.
Now.that.you.have.a.better.idea.of.how.all.of.this.works.
when.you.pick.up.your.home.or.ofice.phone.and.punch.in.
those.numbers,.let's.talk.about.the.digital.records.that.result.
Oh,. and. don't. worry,. we. aren't. forgetting. about. those.
smart. phones.. But. cell. technologies,. and. especially. smart.
phones,.open.up.a.whole.different.aspect.and.level.of.digital.
records.that.deserve.its.own.chapter,.so.stay.tuned.and.we'll.
get.to.that.soon.
Let's.go.back.to.the.beginning.and.begin.to.think.about.all.
of.the.records.that.are.accumulated.as.you.make.that.call.to.
see.how.the.weather.is.in.Miami.before.you.commit.to.having.
Thanksgiving.with.grandma.Betsy.
You. pick. up. your. phone. and. push. the. Talk. button.. A.
record.was.just.made.in.several.places..First,.in.many.cases.
there.may.be.a.record.on.your.phone,.as.it.may.begin.stor-
ing.information.on.the.call.so.you.can.use.the.redial.feature..
Second,.at.the.computer.switch.that.you.just.connected.to,.a.
record.is.made.of.the.time.and.date.your.phone.connected.
to. the. network,. information. that. identiies. your. phone. and.
your.ownership.of.it.(account.name,.number,.etc.),.informa-
tion. about. the. circuit. you. are. connecting. from. and. to,. and.
information.about.your.phone.provider.
Now.you.dial.a.number..Again,.a.record.was.created.or.
appended. in. your. phone. in. many. cases.. And. in. the. local.
switching. station,. the. computer. there. recorded. the. number.
you.are.dialing.and.information.about.that.number,.such.as.
