The New York City Labor Chorus
And it's nine o'clock in the evening on a Wednesday.
And that means that it's time for Off the Hook.
And that's the cue for the phone to give the off-hook tone.
Go ahead, phone.
The telephone keeps ringing, so I ripped it off the wall.
I cut myself while shaving, now I can't make a call.
It couldn't get much worse, but if they could, they would.
Bum, diddly bum, but I best expect the worst.
I hope the thunder's good.
Bum, diddly bum!
Bum, diddly bum.
Bum, diddly bum.
Bum, diddly bum.
Bum, diddly bum.
Good evening.
Good evening to everybody.
The program is Off the Hook.
This is Emmanuel Goldstein, and we're with you until 10 o'clock.
And what we have tonight are a whole range of interesting things.
But first, I'd like to share this with you.
We've managed to tap into what appears to be every single phone call going on in the country.
We have a microphone in front of a to bank, We've managed to tap into what appears to be every single phone call going on in the country.
Oh, girl, I know six or seven months.
She didn't have way before she went in the hospital,
about to get her car ready,
and she made her drive way over there,
and she didn't drive on the street.
You know, it's all here.
You know, it's all here.
You know, it's all here.
You know, I think they gave her a job permit.
Everybody can't go in your car.
You know, it's all here.
You know, it's all here.
You know, it's all here.
It's all here.
You know, it's simply amazing what you can do
with a little luck.
Has this ever happened to you,
where you're on the telephone,
and all of a sudden, you're speaking to everybody?
You may hear a busy signal way off in the distance,
and that was the call that we were attempting to make.
Happened to be busy, but, as you can see,
we got kind of a noisy line.
There's all kinds of ways for your conversations to be overheard.
This really isn't one of them.
But you could be monitored at any time on a satellite,
on a radio if you're using a cellular or mobile phone,
or by a computer.
There are even ways to do it using a touch-tone phone.
So, next time you find yourself on the telephone,
just remember, you might be broadcasting over the radio.
This is the last of our shows during the marathon,
so this is the last opportunity for people to call us
and show support.
And I sure hope a lot of people do,
because we had a pretty good showing last week.
This week, though, we need to finish off with a bang,
just to let people know that technology is important.
We're not turning our backs on it,
and we're doing everything we can to conquer it,
to learn about it, and to control it.
And that's what this program is all about.
We've got lots of news for you tonight.
I'd like to get right into it.
First of all, there's a late-breaking story out of Holland
that we're going to be updated on in a matter of moments,
so stay tuned for that.
There's also a bit of news coming out of all areas
of the New York metropolitan area concerning caller ID,
some rather surprising news about that.
The latest issue of 2600 has hit the newsstands.
Actually, that's not true.
It hasn't hit the newsstands.
It's currently being delivered to the newsstands,
but it's just an expression.
It's out.
It's hot off the presses or what have you.
And contained in this particular issue of the hacker quarterly
are all kinds of viruses that you can put on an MS-DOS computer
for educational purposes only, I assume,
but then again, it's none of my business.
Viruses that were run in batch
that will affect .com files,
plus a really kind of neat trick
that will annoy clerks in stores that have computers.
It will annoy them no end.
It won't do any harm,
but imagine if there was a message
that you conveyed on a particular computer screen
and no matter what they did,
they couldn't get rid of that message,
such as,
this store is too expensive.
And no matter what they did,
turning the computer off,
unplugging the computer,
throwing the computer against the wall,
they cannot get rid of that message
that appears on the screen.
Unless
they know a thing or two,
and in this day and age,
the threat of that is rather remote.
Okay, what else is in this latest issue
that just hit the stand, so to say?
We have an article on hacking a bulletin board system.
That's right, actually getting into a BBS
and manipulating it
and possibly taking it over.
Some tips on how to use a silver box.
Silver boxes are those telephones
that have been modified
to have the extra four digits
A, B, C, D
to the right of 3, 6, 9 pound.
A lot of people
have those tones,
but they don't know what to do with them.
Well, we have some suggestions.
Some rather important frequencies,
actually frequencies of the Secret Service
and Disney World,
both together on the same page
as they are in real life many times.
A Unix password hacker,
or if anybody is on a Unix system,
there's an alternative way
of finding out people's passwords.
A program that you can enter yourself
and run yourself
and actually see if it works.
This particular one allows you
to enter the word
that you think somebody might have.
A lot of people use the word password
as a password.
You can type this into this program
and it will search the entire computer system
and tell you who
has that particular password.
Rather quickly, too.
A rather interesting article
on how to take apart a payphone.
I won't give any editorial comments on that,
but this is, of course,
assuming that you somehow possess a payphone.
A guide to the Australian phone system,
as well as a review of Steve Jackson's new game,
Hacker,
and a complete list of where all the simplex locks are
around the country.
Most incredible.
Plus phone numbers, letters,
and all kinds of advertisements.
We have a late-breaking story.
And hopefully on the phone with us
is Bill from Amsterdam.
Bill, are you there?
I am right here.
Okay, Bill, first of all,
let me tell you that
all that noise that you hear
is not your phone connection.
It's a phone connection that we had
that connected us
to just about everybody in the world.
Can you hear those voices?
I hear a lot of voices in the background, yes.
Has anything like that ever happened to you?
Oh, that's okay.
No, is it going through your studio?
It only happened when you answered your phone.
No, actually, this is on tape.
This is something that we recorded a bit earlier,
but it is something that happened
that enabled us to hear
all kinds of people together.
I was wondering if you had ever
encountered something similar.
Yes, it's a very common occurrence.
On the DMS-100 switch,
it is a low-cost implementation
of something similar to the 5ESS
made by Northern Telecom,
and doing almost anything
on a DMS-100 switch,
like tapping the switch hook
at certain parts
as the call goes through,
will enable you to hear
other people talking,
usually one person at a time,
and if that conversation is boring,
you can tap the switch hook again
and get the next conversation
and go on until you find one
that is worth listening to,
a 100, perhaps.
And this is a common feature
of a DMS-100?
Yes.
They would call it a bug.
I think people that like to listen
to things that are none of their business
would consider it a feature, yes.
Okay.
We'll tell people how they can find out
if they have a DMS-100 serving them
or not serving them,
as the case may be.
But, Bill, you have something
far more important to talk about,
and let me just get rid of
all these thousands of people here
while you tell us just what it is
that happened over in Amsterdam.
Yes.
On Wednesday morning,
that was yesterday,
or I guess it's still Wednesday there,
at about 9 a.m. Central European time,
one of Holland's best-known hackers
was arrested by some men
that showed up at his house
pretending to be salesmen
for a company he has formed
that sells computers,
and they arrested him in his home
in Utrecht
by their local police
in conjunction with
what they call the pilot team.
It's kind of Holland's
own little Operation Sun Devil,
and I'm sure your listeners
are quite aware of that,
what Sun Devil is,
and it's kind of a similar thing
happening by the pilot team,
and it's kind of a test
to see if people in Holland
will actually go along
with the USA saying
you've got to do something
about hackers.
I think most people here
are pretty wise to that.
So these people came
and, what,
they arrested him?
Yes, they came and arrested him.
It's essentially
an intimidation and harassment
motive, in my opinion.
Loosely translated,
the charges are like
racketeering.
In other words,
there's a section of the law here,
like there is in the United States,
that says if you
are dealing with a corrupt
organization,
or organized crime,
that is a crime in itself,
which gives them
the authority
to do other things
that I will mention
a little bit later.
Also, he was charged
with fraud and vandalism.
Because he was charged
with the racketeering,
or, you know,
organized crime,
mafia and stuff,
they took some equipment,
including a PC
that was owned by his father,
who, like his mother,
and obviously himself,
do not support
any of this action,
and basically are
madder in hell
at the police
and the system.
I see.
Now, did you give
the name of this hacker,
the handle, rather?
I'm probably okay
by giving his handle.
I cannot give his name.
It is, one, illegal,
and I strongly feel
unethical to ever
release the name
of someone who
has been arrested
and not convicted.
In fact,
it is illegal
even to publish
the name of someone
who has been convicted,
or to allow the public
to even have knowledge
this person was ever
arrested and convicted.
That's certainly
different than
in the United States,
but if you can give us
his handle,
I guess that would
be good enough.
He goes by RGB,
and that is probably okay
because they will
probably report it
in the newspaper
as that handle.
Uh-huh.
Latest I've heard
is that no confession
has been entered,
and I don't think
any is likely
because obviously
it's not racketeering.
he has no connections
with any organized crime
unless they can somehow
think that we're all
part of that,
which then I think
we all better lay low.
And it's definitely
not fraud
because this is a hobby.
This hobby costs money
and makes nobody
any money.
And it's certainly
not vandalism
because there's no
physical damage
to any property,
or for that matter,
there is no virtual damage.
And what I mean by that
is that this guy
is an expert
computer user.
He knows the systems
inside and out
and does not damage
alter files
or anything of that sort.
All he did was
got into the system,
took advantage
of their internet
connections and telnet
and all the stuff
that a lot of us
just take for granted
and, you know,
basically,
basically was up
to no damage.
Uh-huh.
Well, I've met RGB
and I know that
he's not a vandal.
He's a conscientious person
and he's into,
as many of us are,
exploration and learning.
And unfortunately,
it seems that that's
becoming more and more
of a crime.
Now, the difference here
is that this is happening
in Amsterdam,
Amsterdam being considered
for many years.
Well, Holland.
Let's just say Holland then.
But for many years,
Holland being considered
the last refuge
of computer hackers.
Is that coming to an end?
I think they're trying
to bring it to an end,
but again,
as I strongly believe,
this is just part
of the old crap,
I'd rather use other terms
than I can't on the radio,
about the new world order.
And I just think
that we're kind of feeling
the fallout
of the demise
of the United States
and it's starting
to affect us here.
and this is just
a one possible
thing about it.
You know,
they're going to,
the U.S. is going
to try to tell
other countries
what to do
when they can't even
manage their own affairs.
Now, RGB is in jail now.
Has anybody been in touch
with him since this
happened this morning?
No, by policy,
I'll explain.
He is not in,
like, prison.
He's in a police
holding tank.
And in the holding tank,
you have a right
to contact an attorney,
which will,
if you can't afford one,
the attorney of your choice
will be provided for you.
And he must communicate
through this person.
This period of silence
during the arraignment
and then possibly
some subsequent
holding periods
of six days each
is to allow
the investigators
to build a case.
And then,
at that point,
when it has been determined
that he will not
flee the country,
and he certainly won't,
they will then release him.
And chances are,
like in the other case
that was reported
in 2600 Magazine,
they will just sit on it
and very possibly
just kind of do nothing.
It is like,
well, hey, U.S.,
we're doing something
about it, you know.
Well, let's keep an eye
on this situation.
As far as the case
that we reported on
several months ago,
how has that turned out
with two other hackers?
They were released
and there has been
absolutely no further action.
It's like it's been forgotten.
Everybody wonders it.
I don't think
they are going
to do anything.
Again,
it's a way
to send a chill
to people
that are playing
with computers.
There are some countries
like the U.S.A.
that is highly
concerned
about people
looking to see
what people have
in computers
on a public network.
And it's all show.
All right, Bill,
I want to thank you
very much
for updating us
with that information.
And, of course,
we'll be keeping
a close eye on that
in the weeks to come.
And you let us know
if anything new happens
and give our best
to anybody over there.
Will do.
Okay, thanks again.
All right, thank you.
That was Bill reporting
live from Amsterdam
on the situation
in Holland.
One of Holland's
most famous
computer hackers
known as RGB
has been arrested
and charged
with all kinds
of things.
Racketeering,
vandalism,
probably hooliganism,
too,
if they can figure out
the spelling on that.
And we'll be
following that.
We'll be seeing
what happens
to Holland.
Holland, by the way,
I've been there
several times now.
You realize
after you go there
the first time,
just, um,
it sounds really
unpatriotic to say this,
I suppose,
but how full of crap
we really are over here.
And believe me,
we are,
because it's, um,
it's one thing
to be concerned
with law and order.
It's another thing
to be obsessed with it
and to worry about
every little action
that you are
possibly engaged in.
Now, in Holland,
people act like people.
They act naturally
they ask lots of questions.
They, uh,
have this sort of
natural, uh,
abhorrence of authority.
There's nothing wrong
with that.
Authority is something
that, uh,
deserves to be questioned.
And, uh,
by doing so,
the Dutch have not, uh,
lapsed into anarchy
and the streets
are not burning
and people are not
filled with hatred.
There's just this, uh,
this natural, uh,
questioning attitude
and defiance.
It comes from being invaded
over the, uh,
course of several centuries.
It comes from
Nazi occupation.
It comes from
all kinds of things.
But, uh,
that particular attitude
has, um,
has served Holland
well over the years
and now it's served
computer hackers well
because it's a place
where you can, uh,
actually experiment
a little bit.
Not, uh,
do any physical damage.
Not, uh,
create vandalism
as they say.
It's, uh,
it's a place
where you can learn.
Learn by doing.
And not have to worry
about always
looking over your shoulder
to see who's watching
and to see whether or not
by copying a particular file
or by entering
a particular system
using a default password
whether you've broken
some kind of federal law
and are facing
50 years in jail.
That kind of, uh,
that kind of pressure,
that kind of, uh,
constant fear
and paranoia,
uh,
doesn't serve
creative minds
very well.
And hackers are
very creative people.
They figure things out.
They manipulate technology.
They make things work
in ways that, uh,
the designers
never anticipated.
And 95% of the time
those ways
are an improvement.
So, um,
needless to say
some of the most
brilliant people
in the world
now live in Holland.
But it's, uh,
it's an ominous sign
what's been happening
over there
over the past few months.
And we're wondering
if, uh,
if things are at an end.
You know, we all, uh,
we're all living
on borrowed time
to a degree.
Whether it's, uh,
by displaying art forms,
uh, listening to
particular records
that are acceptable
one day
and, uh,
labeled the next.
You know,
I remember 10 years ago
records didn't have
labels on them.
You were able to, uh,
to play virtually
anything on the radio.
But now,
we've got to worry
about the FCC rulings.
We've got to worry
about whether or not
we're playing something
that has a sticker on it.
That some, uh,
some person
with the,
with a six-year-old son
might be offended
by at three o'clock
in the morning.
You know,
something that might
criticize religion
or criticize a nation
or criticize a way of life
and be looked upon
as bad because of that.
It's, um,
there's a very strong link
between what the hackers
of the world are facing
and what BAI people
are constantly facing.
It's, um,
no small feat
to keep WBAI
on the air
to, uh,
keep the programming
coming your way.
And this is, uh,
one of three times
during the year
that we ask
for your support.
We ask for your help
to keep it going.
If, uh,
WBAI were not here,
the only report
that you would hear
about what we, uh,
what we just talked about
with Bill in Amsterdam,
the only report
is what you will read
in the tabloids
over the next few days
where some terrorist,
uh,
computer hacker
that could have, uh,
wiped out
every pacemaker
in the world
with a single keystroke,
uh,
he is now safe
behind bars
and the world
can go on breathing.
Uh,
WBAI gives you
more than that.
We give you, uh,
a chance to, uh,
to delve a little deeper
into the stories.
And that's why, uh,
we need to be able
to continue doing this.
Nobody is going
to take over
if we stop.
And we will stop
if we do not get
the support
because, uh,
our creditors
don't really share
our viewpoints
on, uh,
freedom of speech
and the First Amendment
and that kind of thing.
212-279-3400,
that is the number
to call,
and I'd like to see
a nice strong flurry
of, um,
of calls come in now
so we can continue
with the program.
What we're doing
is, uh,
offering,
as we did last week,
uh,
a free copy
of 2600 Magazine,
the most recent issue,
the one that, uh,
we were just describing,
uh,
with every pledge,
regardless of, um,
how big or how small.
Of course,
the, the big ones
are especially nice,
but mostly we want
to, uh,
to reach out to people,
especially those of you
that have never called before.
Those of you that have,
uh, listened to the program
or maybe for the first time
tonight are listening
to the program
and have never actually
subscribed
to the radio station.
It's really, um,
a good thing to do.
It's something that, uh,
a lot of us on the air
have already done.
Uh, it's a way
of showing your support
for freedom of speech,
something that, uh,
is, is increasingly,
increasingly fragile,
uh, through the 90s.
Uh, they're, uh,
imposing all kinds
of, uh, of restrictions.
It's getting harder
and harder to survive
with, uh, recessions
and, uh,
and increasing prices
for just about everything
you can imagine.
212-279-3400.
Show your support
for WBAI.
Show your support, uh,
for technological innovation.
Because with the support
that we're able to get,
uh, we can expand,
we can, uh,
actually move forward
instead of, uh,
just standing still.
In other words, uh,
we can improve
our technological, uh,
setup here
and use it in a way
that other people
have not used it.
For instance,
you're not gonna get, uh,
a switchboard
where you call WBAI
and they tell you,
well, if you have
a touch-tone phone,
press this button here.
If you don't have
a touch-tone phone,
well, hang up
because we don't
want to talk to you.
We're not going to, uh,
depersonalize things like that.
But we're also not going
to walk away
from what is being developed
because to do that
is to, uh,
is to turn you back
on the future.
And turning you back
on the future
is never the answer.
At least, uh,
certainly not in my view.
You've got to grasp
the future
and shape it
to, uh,
to your particular needs.
So, yeah,
we'll, we'll get, uh,
particular pieces
of phone equipment
and, uh,
and studio equipment
and we'll make them work
for what WBAI
has always stood for.
Freedom of speech,
innovation,
and a wide diversity
of thought.
212-279-3400.
I see we have
four people on the line
and, uh,
we have seven phones
all together.
So that means
all we need to do
is get in three more calls.
Three more calls
and everybody
in the tally room
will have something to do.
And right now, uh,
sounds kind of quiet.
Oh, there's a few people talking.
Yeah, but, uh,
let's, let's get those phones
ringing really loudly
and, uh, and consistently.
212-279-3400.
Those of you in, uh,
New Jersey,
those of you on Long Island,
Connecticut,
wherever you are,
please give us a call now.
This is the time
that we need your support.
212-279-3400.
There are no other stations
like WBAI
on the entire FM dial.
And not just in New York.
If you go, uh,
throughout most of the country,
you won't find stations
like WBAI.
Imagine yourself,
imagine yourself
in some part of the world,
some part of the country,
let's stay in this country
for now,
where you couldn't hear
things like this.
Where all you could hear
are the commercial stations
playing the same songs
over and over again.
I mean, yeah,
that's okay for when you're,
uh, you know,
doing something
in a factory, perhaps,
but occasionally,
don't you like to sit down
and listen to the radio?
I mean, really,
listen to the radio?
Hear something?
Hear, uh,
commentary and thought?
And, yes,
get angry.
You ever want to throw
something at your radio
when you're listening
to WBAI
because you hear something
that's just so incredibly
outrageous
that you've just got to react?
Well, that's great.
It's great that radio
can do that to you.
And increasingly, uh,
increasingly few numbers,
stations,
are able to do this.
The, the, the thing these days
in the broadcasting industry
is not to ruffle
anybody's feathers,
to appeal to as many people
at once
as you possibly can.
Did you ever try to, uh,
please everybody
in your life?
You become rather, uh,
dull and uninteresting
when you do that.
And that's what most
of the radio stations
have become,
is dull and uninteresting.
You know,
they don't play anything
that, uh,
that really, uh,
ruffles your feathers.
When's the last time
you heard hardcore
on, uh,
on commercial radio?
Hardcore being a style
of music.
Uh, or even something
like reggae.
You know,
you don't hear that.
You don't hear anything, uh,
different or in the slightest
bit controversial.
And there's another,
another reason for this.
The reason being that, uh,
commercials,
in addition to not wanting
to offend your listeners
in any way,
you don't want to offend
your sponsors at all.
And here at WBAI,
in case, uh,
you haven't noticed this,
we do not have any commercials.
Not one.
Not a single commercial.
We're not allowed to.
It's part of the Pacifica
Charter.
We never will as long
as this station is here.
But whether or not
this station remains here,
that's up to you.
212-279-3400.
Show your support
for non-commercial radio,
innovative radio.
You know,
we could sell this frequency
and move to another
less desirable frequency
and probably be able
to survive off that.
But don't you think
it would be a lot better
to survive off the people
who get something
out of WBAI
and keep the station strong,
and keep the station
where it is now.
212-279-3400.
Please show your support.
We need to know
you're out there.
We really do.
We need to know
that you support programs
like Off The Hook.
212-279-3400.
Remember,
everybody that calls in
will get a free copy
of 2600,
the Hacker Quarterly,
the most recent edition.
The magazine that, uh,
certainly has a lot of enemies.
And that's because, uh,
it uncovers things
and reveals things
that a lot of people
would wish they did not reveal.
There's no other way
to, uh, to put it.
But like any, um,
any, uh, journalist,
any particular news magazine,
or anything in the slightest bit
having to do with
investigative journalism,
you're going to make enemies.
You have to deal
with that particular fact.
You're going to make enemies.
You're going to, uh,
make people upset.
But you're also
going to enlighten
the vast majority
of other people
who will get something
from what you do
that they never would have
gotten in the first place.
212-279-3400.
If you think you've gotten
anything at all
out of WBAI
that you wouldn't have gotten
in any other way,
please show your support now.
It's not so much
that you're giving away
money to us,
it's that you're
investing in us.
You're investing a,
a small bit of
whatever it is
you can afford.
And we will pay off
in the future.
We have paid off
in the past.
WBAI brings
you all kinds
of, uh,
of terrific programming,
unique programming,
innovative, uh,
programming.
And you need a book,
literally,
a monthly book
to follow it all.
And you will get
that monthly book
mailed to you
every month,
wherever it is
that you happen to be,
uh, with any pledge
that you, uh,
call in to us.
212-279-3400.
Please show your support
for this radio station,
for Pacifica,
uh, for innovation
in New York City
in the tri-state area.
Yeah, there are,
there's other
non-commercial radio stations
and some of them
are quite good,
but none of them
are quite like WBAI.
None of them have
the, the wide-ranging
number of people
that, uh, do radio programs
and, and span the globe
and talk to people
all over the world
about, uh,
emerging situations.
We bring you the latest
out of Thailand,
uh, where there's, uh,
pro-democracy movements
going on.
We bring you the latest
out of Nigeria,
out of, uh,
Eastern Europe,
the former Soviet Union,
all kinds of places
throughout the globe.
And no other station,
no other radio station
is interested in doing that.
Other radio stations
simply want to bring you
the latest hits
and make money off of you.
Well, we're not trying
to make money off of you
by, by selling commercials.
We're asking you
to support us.
There's a big difference
between the two concepts.
By supporting us,
you're giving a vote,
uh, in our favor.
And you're showing us
that, uh, WBAI
actually does make a difference.
2-1-2-2-7-9-3-4-hundred.
Couple more calls,
then we'll go back
to the, uh,
to the program.
We have, uh,
a few surprises,
a few interesting things
to, uh, to share with you.
And, uh, we'd like to, uh,
to see that those calls
are actually, uh,
coming in.
2-1-2-2-7-9-3-4-hundred.
Those of you on Long Island,
of course, uh,
you get our signal as well.
People in Connecticut,
uh, New Jersey,
I happen to know
the signal travels
into Pennsylvania
because, uh,
I was actually driving around
listening to WBAI.
Uh, but of course,
we don't, uh,
have the money
to, uh, to make our signal,
uh, travel as far
as some of those
other radio stations.
We can't just simply
buy out stations
and have them simulcast
our signal.
It just doesn't work
that way for, uh,
for non-commercial stations.
But, uh, we can do
as well as we can
with what we have
and that's all
we're trying to do.
2-1-2-2-7-9-3-4-hundred.
The program is
off the hook.
Uh, we come your way
every Wednesday night
at 9 o'clock.
We bring you, uh,
different innovative, uh,
ways of dealing
with technology
that would not be aired
were it not
for this radio station.
There are no other
radio stations
that would air
this particular program.
And that's a fact.
That's a fact
because, uh,
I know people
at other radio stations
and they wish
they could air
what we do here.
They wish they could
show people
how to use their phones
and what computer
hackers really do.
But, in order to do that
they would have to
offend their sponsors
and as we said before
that simply
is not allowed.
Well, we don't have sponsors.
Our only sponsors
are our listeners
and so far
our listeners
seem quite happy
with what we're doing.
Please, show that happiness.
Not that your,
your unbounded joy
and it by itself
doesn't mean something.
It does.
But, uh,
we can't pay the bills
with that, unfortunately.
So, if you can
reach into your pocket
for, uh,
whatever it is
you can afford.
Remember, we do take
Visa and MasterCard
in case you, uh,
have a Visa and MasterCard
uh, and, uh,
you can pay it off
that way
however, however much
or however little
you, uh, you feel like doing.
Uh, that makes things easier
for, for lots of us,
uh, by, by using
that particular way
of doing it.
Uh, call up
212-279-3400.
Show your support
for the radio station.
It'll only take
a couple of minutes.
You'll talk to a volunteer,
uh, who has, uh,
taken time off
from, from their
busy schedules
to actually come in
and answer the phones.
And, you know,
anybody out there
can do that.
That's how most of us
on the air got our start
by simply coming into
the radio station
and answering phones
and hearing from
some other
WBAI listeners.
212-279-3400.
Show your support.
Give a call to us.
You'll feel good about it.
You really will.
212-279-3400.
Okay.
We have a full switchboard.
Every single line
on the, uh, phone is lit.
That's very good.
Very nice sign there.
And we'll see, uh,
how many of those
are actual pledges.
And, of course,
I don't have to tell you folks
that, uh, uh,
once you make the pledge,
you're halfway there.
You still have to pay the pledge.
It's very important
that you pay the pledge.
And I know, uh,
99.9% of you, uh,
will do that.
Okay.
212-279-3400 is the number.
If you're getting
a busy signal now,
please, please,
don't give up.
Don't give up
because, uh,
we do need your support.
Every individual listener
counts here.
You all mean something to us.
All right.
Um, there is a surprise,
uh, going on
in various, uh,
various parts of New York,
of the tri-state area.
Something that, uh,
the phone companies
are not telling you.
And I, I don't suppose,
uh, that comes as a surprise
to too many people.
And it's not,
it's not things like this
so much,
where you have
tens of thousands of people
talking to each other
all of a sudden.
Boy, that,
that just does something to me.
Let's just listen to this
for a couple of seconds here.
Now, if you dig down
into the law books,
you can probably figure out
that we're breaking
some kind of law
by, by broadcasting, uh,
all these conversations
without getting the permission
of each and every one
of these people.
But,
I think it's
so much more fun
to, uh,
simply show you
what's going on out there.
Yeah.
Really?
Okay.
You're good.
Thank you.
What do you think about,
right?
There's, uh,
there's a lot of things,
um,
that are happening
where if you
look carefully
at the laws,
you'll never get
anything done.
For instance,
our recent call
to, uh,
uh,
to make a collection
of overheard
cellular phone calls.
People are sending us,
uh,
cassettes of, uh,
cellular phone calls
that they are able
to hear simply
by tuning their radio.
Now,
if you look at the laws,
it's illegal
to listen.
But,
who says we're listening?
Now,
something else
that, uh,
has just started happening,
um,
if you recall,
a month or two ago,
caller ID was,
uh,
approved for the New York
metropolitan area.
In fact,
for all of New York State,
uh,
the Public Service Commission
said,
yes,
it's okay to offer
caller ID
as long as
you provide a means
of blocking,
as long as
consumers are not
forced to give out
their phone numbers.
Well,
something rather startling
has, uh,
has occurred over the
past, uh,
couple of weeks.
Uh,
actually,
it's,
it's not so much
startling,
it's just kind of,
uh,
well,
I guess there's a difference
between surprising
and startling.
It's kind of surprising,
but not really startling,
you know?
You have to read the
daily news to know
what the difference is.
But,
the thing is,
caller ID is
already working.
That's right.
It's already here
in very many places,
anyway.
Now,
the way I found out
about this was,
was quite by accident.
Uh,
somebody I know
said,
hey,
do you know,
if I dial this
particular sequence,
I can call back
the person that just
called me.
And I said,
no,
no,
no,
no,
that's not possible.
That hasn't come yet.
It's not going to be
for at least another year
that caller ID is,
is available in the
New York area.
Well,
of course,
being the curious
person I am,
I decided to try it.
And guess what?
It worked.
Now,
we're going to have
a new vocabulary
very soon
that will,
um,
that will dictate
the way we live
our lives.
Uh,
caller ID is going
to,
of course,
change the way
that we deal
with telephones.
No longer will you
be able to call
somebody and say,
surprise,
it's Uncle Buddy
from Florida.
Uh-uh.
It's not going to work
that way anymore
because they're
going to know
Uncle Buddy
is on the phone
calling before
they even pick up.
In fact,
they'll be able
to decide
whether or not
they want to talk
to Uncle Buddy
or send him
someplace else,
forward him
to a disconnected
recording,
or just pretend
they're not home,
or have a choice
comment to say
about the last time
that he visited,
or just have
a particular script
already for the next
time Uncle Buddy
calls.
When you see him
ringing your phone,
you, uh,
you access that
particular script
on your computer
and begin reading it.
It's going to change
our lives,
and we're going
to have new words
to deal with,
and one of those words,
one of those words
is going to be
the phrase 69.
They're going to,
uh, be saying things
like, uh,
I'll 69 you,
or,
can you 69 that,
dear?
Now, you're wondering,
what in the world
I'm talking about?
69?
What kind of a,
what kind of a verb
is that?
How could anybody,
uh, uh,
use a, a word
like 69?
Well, you see,
there's a feature,
a feature called
Star 6-9,
and you're all
going to become
very familiar with it
real soon.
In fact,
there's a chance,
a fairly good chance,
and, and something
that we can, uh,
sort of take a poll
on tonight,
a fairly good chance
that Star 69
already works
where you are.
I know it works
in at least
one major area,
and, uh,
there's a chance
it works where you are.
Star 69 is the,
um, is the code
to access the
caller ID feature
known as
return call,
and what this does
is it gives you
the last number called.
It, uh, lets you
dial it just by
dialing Star 69.
Let's say somebody
calls you,
and you're in the
shower,
and you hear the
phone ringing,
and you fall over
yourself trying to
get to the telephone,
and you just make it,
and, lo and behold,
they hang up
just as you get to it.
Well, no longer
do you need to cuss
and swear and throw
the phone against the
wall and do all kinds
of other horrible things.
You can simply
pick up your phone
and dial Star 69,
and guess what?
That person's phone
will ring,
and you'll be able
to say,
yeah, what did you
want?
Now, as of now,
of course,
this only works
in a local area,
but you better
believe,
and I can tell
because all the
codes around the
country seem to be
the same thing.
Star 69 is not
by any means a
local phenomenon.
In future years,
if somebody from
California calls you,
you'll be able
to 69 them.
It's as simple
as that.
Now, we're going
to try something
because we have
a particular phone
system here.
I doubt very much
it's going to work,
but here is our
particular WBAI
dial tone.
Of course,
we have to dial
9 to get out.
Okay, now we're
outside.
It doesn't sound
like we did
anything differently.
Now we're going
to dial Star 69.
And it hung up
our phone.
Well, that's the
BAI phone system.
Let's try it again
and hopefully it
won't do that.
Okay, let's see
what happened.
Well, in the usual
New York Telephone
recording style,
we're getting one
of their error
messages.
I don't know how
they expect anybody
to understand this.
Huh.
That's horrible.
Horrible sound there.
What we had there
is an error message.
Actually, we played
that one a couple
of weeks ago.
What I suspect it
means is that our
particular phone
system here is
completely blocked
from doing anything
interesting.
We can't reach
700 numbers, 900
numbers, or all
kinds of other
things.
It's for our own
protection, actually,
because when you
have a large number
of people working
in an establishment,
it's possible
somebody might,
let's just say,
dial the wrong
number and get
something that
charges $100 a
minute.
I'm not quite sure
why it's blocking
particular features
like star features
that are used
for caller ID
features.
But a way you
can test it
is to pick up
your phone,
assuming you're not
calling in a pledge
right now,
and dial
star 69.
Now, if you get
an error message
that sounds
kind of different,
says something like,
this feature is not
yet working,
or your phone
has not been called,
or something different
that you have not
heard before,
then there's a good
chance star 69
will work in your
area.
Now, of course,
those of you in New
Jersey have had
caller ID for quite
some time.
In fact, New
Jerseyans were among
the first in the
country to get
caller ID.
For us here in New
York, though,
it's a bit new,
something we're still
getting used to.
So try it.
Try star 69.
In fact, the best
way to test it is to
have somebody call you.
If you have two
phones in your home,
dial star 69.
Actually, call one
phone with another
phone and hang up
before the other
phone has the chance
to answer.
And then from the
other phone, pick up
and dial star 69
and see if your
first phone rings.
Okay?
It's quite possible
that it will.
There's another
feature, too, called
star 57, which is
called trace.
Now, call trace is
different than
return call.
It doesn't return
the call.
However, it does make
a note of the phone
number, and it
forwards that
information to the
authorities, and the
authorities go and
kill the person who
made the phone call.
Oh, wait, I'm ahead
of myself.
I'm sorry.
That's not scheduled
to be implemented for
another three years.
What it does is alert
the authorities.
We'll just stop there.
And if you want to
press charges, you can.
There's all kinds of
other variations.
In fact, we did a
feature on this in the
winter issue of 2600.
Selective call
acceptance, call
screening, distinctive
ringing, preferred call
forwarding.
Some people get
forwarded, some people
don't.
All kinds of things
that we're all going
to be subjected to.
But what I think is
the most significant is
that there's no way to
block your number from
being 69'd.
In other words, if you
have caller ID blocking,
or as we all do right
now, no caller ID at
all, you cannot prevent
your particular number
number from being
called back.
It's that simple.
You cannot stop it.
So even when caller
ID is in effect and
you think that you're
protecting yourself by
not having your particular
phone number show up,
you're only kidding
yourself because you can
call somebody and they
can call you right back.
And while technically
they may not have your
telephone number, they
will be able to call
you.
Make no mistake about
that.
And a lot of us will
be able to get the
phone number from that
bit of information.
So our privacy is
definitely, it's going
to change.
It's going to change
rather drastically.
So that's the latest
on class features.
I do want to show you
one thing that is kind
of a clue as far as
how we got that
particular bit of
information.
What have we here?
Uh, there is a 50
cent charge for every
star 69 dial.
Well, that's somebody
just called in that bit
of information.
Uh, that might be
true, uh, in New
Jersey, but it can't be
true in New York yet
because the service does
not yet exist.
So when the service
exists, they may charge
you, uh, 50 cents for
that particular.
Tell you what, here's
the best, uh, the best
way to find out.
Always the best way is
to get an operator on
the phone.
So let's, uh, see if
we can actually get an
operator here that
will, uh, give us
information.
New York Telephone's
finest.
Can I help you?
Uh, yes.
Hi.
Is this the New York
Telephone Operator?
Yes.
Hi.
I'm trying to find out,
uh, what the, uh,
star 69 feature is on
my telephone.
All right.
Hold a moment, please.
Thank you so much.
I don't know where
I'm going.
You have reached the
New York Telephone
Repair Service.
All attendants are
presently...
Repair Service?
We will be with you
shortly.
Huh.
My phone's not
broken.
This is what happens
if you ask a question.
Thank you for calling
the Ontario Repair Service.
Mrs. Fields, may I help you?
Uh, yes.
Hi, Operator.
I think this might be a
mistake.
I called my operator
and she transferred me
to you.
I just had a question
about my telephone.
Okay.
About the star 69 feature.
Do you know anything
about that?
Yes.
Ah, what is it?
Okay, you have, um...
Uh-huh.
Phone mate, right?
Uh, phone mate.
I do not.
That's what you...
You do not have
phone mate?
Not that I know of.
What is phone mate?
Oh, that's star 69.
It's a feature that they
add on your line.
Ring phone smart.
Okay, what is phone smart?
Okay, hold on.
Okay, phone smart is
something similar to a
call forward and call
waiting, those type of
features.
And it's a feature that
they add on your line.
And what does it do?
Oh, it does a lot of
things.
Repeat dialing, call
return.
If you want to reach a
person, right, and you
keep dialing the person
at home, you can
program the telephone.
You can dial star 66, and
it will keep dialing that
number for you until the
party answers.
Okay.
Same thing with star 69.
Star 69 is call return.
If they're calling you and
you're not home, it will
continue calling you until
you answer.
So by dialing star 69, I
can call back the last
person that called me.
Right.
Is that part of caller
ID?
No, that's not caller ID.
That's phone smart.
Uh-huh.
But doesn't it get the
person's phone number that
calls you?
Caller ID, which is part of
phone smart.
Yeah, it is a form of
caller ID, which is part of
phone smart service that has
been approved by the New
York City, PSC.
And how long has this been
offered for?
Oh, where are you at?
What area call you in?
212.
You're in the 212?
Yeah.
I don't know if it's
offered in the 212.
Do you have it?
Uh, well, somebody told me
about it, and I'm simply
investigating it a little
further.
I don't think it's in the
212.
I know it started off in the
914 area.
Right now, it is in the
516 area.
Let me check if it's in the
212 area, okay?
Hold on for a minute.
Okay.
We're, uh, checking into
this a little further,
getting some more
information.
And we have some other,
uh, information that we
want to pass along to you.
Obviously, we can't
while we're on hold,
but, see, folks, if you
support us, we'll be able
to talk and, uh, hear the
other person at the same
time.
You see, I could read this
other story now, but then
I wouldn't be able to hear
the person when they came
back.
And then they'd be
talking, and I wouldn't
hear them, and mass
confusion will result.
But what I can do is say,
please give us a call,
and, uh, show your
support.
I see we're at $807 for
the show, which is great,
but we need to reach
$1,000.
So please give us a call
now, 212-279-3400.
You won't get the run
around from us.
And you will get, uh,
more bits of information
as we find them out, and
we will share them with
you.
See, operator there.
I'm thinking seriously of
dumping her.
Okay, I'm afraid, uh, I'm
afraid we can't do this.
Uh, no, I'm sorry, we just
can't do this.
Okay.
I was a patient person, but,
uh, you just can't stay on
hold on a 50,000-watt FM
radio station in the middle
of New York for too long.
Uh, any event, it looks like
I was wrong about one thing
anyway.
The service is being
announced publicly by New
York Telephone, although I
certainly don't, uh, know
anything about it being in
the area where it's being
offered.
Uh, you might not know that
it's in your area, but it is
in your area.
Slowly emerging.
And while they may not say it's
a form of caller ID, you tell
me what the difference is.
Tell me what the difference
between having somebody's
number show up on the screen
and being able to call them
right back is to somebody's
privacy.
You can't block this.
You can't turn this off.
You can return a phone call
even if it's blocked.
Now, another bit of
information.
Actually, there's something
else I wanted to show people,
but first, let me appeal one
more time.
212-279-3400.
Please show your support.
Those of you ringing the
other lines, we're not going
to have time for phone calls
this, uh, this week.
We won't be on next week.
We're being preempted next
week, but we'll be back in two
weeks and we'll be able to
take phone calls then and,
uh, hopefully be able to
discuss a lot of this
information.
Now, you can find out, as we
were talking to Bill from
Amsterdam before, if you have
a particular, uh, so-called
feature that allows you to be
tied into, uh, hundreds, maybe
thousands of people at the same
time or, in all likelihood,
one or two.
It's a feature of a, uh, of a
switch known as the DMS-100.
And, uh, by calling a
particular number, you can
find out if you have a DMS-100.
Listen to this.
You have reached the
verification test number for
the Ronkonkoma number 5ESS,
serving exchanges 467-468-471-585-588-737-981
and the 516 area code.
Okay, that was what's known as a
verification number.
And by calling your exchange,
followed by 9901, you can find out
if, uh, if you have a DMS-100,
which is made by Northern Telecom,
or a number 5ESS, or something else.
In most exchanges, that works
in New York.
And if you have the DMS-100,
there's a good chance that, uh,
you'll get all kinds of interesting
crosstalk connections and things like that.
We'll go more into detail on that
in future programs, um,
and give you as many details
as we find out.
The caller ID, though, is something
that we will be following very closely
and telling people what the threat is
and what the non-threats are,
because there are some advantages to it,
but, uh, for the most part,
it means our way of making phone calls
is going to change dramatically.
Okay, we have to get serious now
because we haven't gotten any phone calls
in the last, uh, few minutes.
We've been bringing you lots of little
bits of information,
and as you can see,
we're learning things, too,
as we go along.
Uh, the only way to, uh,
to share this information
is to call people
and, uh, find out straight
from the horse's mouth, as it were.
Now we need to hear from, uh,
some people out there,
212-279-3400,
uh, 212-279-3400.
Those of you out in Long Island
that just found out
that you have this particular service,
yes, it exists.
Even if you haven't asked for it,
it exists.
Uh, these kind of things
are, uh, are being snuck upon you.
Uh, things like, um,
free call waiting.
There's an area out by me
that, uh, is upgrading,
finally, from a mechanical
central office switch
to something electronic,
and that means a caller,
call waiting will be available
for the first time.
You can imagine places
that don't have call waiting.
They still exist.
But what they've done is
they've said,
everybody is going to get
call waiting free
for two months,
and then they'll have to pay for it.
They're, they're sneaking it onto you.
They're getting you hooked on it,
and then they're saying,
okay, now pay for it.
It's really, uh, pretty sleazy
because if you don't do anything,
if you don't call them and say,
no, no, I don't want caller ID
or call waiting, I'm sorry.
I'm getting confused now.
If you don't do that,
you'll get it.
You'll hear this strange
little beep on the phone,
and you won't know what it means,
and you won't know
what to do with it,
and then after a couple of months,
you won't be able
to live without it,
and then you'll have to pay for it.
I was just on the phone
with the phone company
a few days ago
ordering a new phone line,
and the person on the other end
had the gall to say to me
that, uh, you know,
I don't think the second phone line
is going to work
unless you get touch tones,
unless you pay
for touch tone service.
Now, I don't think
I have to explain
what that statement
amounts to,
but it's incredible
what people will try
to tell you
if they feel that
you don't understand technology.
That's what we're trying
to alleviate here.
We're trying to let people know
how things really work
and why things really work.
Please,
help us continue to do that.
212-279-3400
is the phone number.
Show your support.
We only have a couple of minutes
left in the program.
This is the last chance
that we will have
on this particular radio program
to get support from listeners.
212-279-3400.
Everybody that calls to contribute
will receive a free copy
of 2600,
The Hacker Quarterly,
the brand new edition
that just came out today,
in fact,
today being the first day
that it was in the mail
and on newsstands.
212-279-3400.
Please show your support.
The Personal Computer Show
is coming up next.
They're going to be bringing you
all kinds of interesting
bits of information
as they always do.
But we need to see
one final flurry
of phone mania here.
212-279-3400.
We want to be able
to come back in two weeks
holding our heads up high
and continuing to bring you
the latest in information.
212-279-3400.
We want to thank all those people
that called in.
We have three callers on the line.
Let's fill up that switchboard.
Should I get out of here?
Okay, I have to get out of here now.
Please show your support.
212-279-3400.
Thanks to everybody
that did call in
and thanks to those of you
that have your fingers
on the dials.
This is Emmanuel Goldstein.
I'll see you in two weeks.
The telephone keeps ringing
So I ripped it off the wall
I cut myself while shaving
Now I
Thank you.
All right.
How's it going now?
Bye.