<May 2
MCI WorldCom has built a specially hardened concrete bunker to house its new “Catastrophe Call Center,” the company announced today. The call center, which has already been staffed with more than 100 “team members,” will ensure no interruption in America’s supply of cold-calling and dinner-time telemarketing in case of national emergency. The company said that, “In a time of global catastrophe, every American will feel the pressure to hoard what few resources they have. MCI WorldCom’s low long-distance rates will leave Americans more precious dollars to spend on firewood and pemmican. In good times and bad, MCI WorldCom will be there for you.” The company’s shares rose $2 to $23.75 on the news.

Like we need to save THAT money pit. MCI & WorldCom, btw, are listed separately for a very sound reason. WorldCom carries MCI. WorldCom is the corporate and private internet connect service that the world uses, where MCI is just a rinky-dink long distance phone company. Where WorldCom leads the way in internet access, our revenue is greater than -- I say again, greater than -- our next 7 leading competitors, combined.

So, where’s MY freaking bunker?!

Dan
--btw--
As an FYI, I’ll be propagating our TR nodes (Terminal Nodes) beginning the week of the 11th, so some of you might experience a sudden disconnect. We don’t hit all the TRs at a given site, so redialing should get you right back in.

A TR node is a network node that interfaces between the network (www) and a customer’s dialup terminal. Your modem dials to the TR node in a local connect to the web (or, it should be local). The node is sometimes shared among transaction services customers (stores with POS [point of sale] ports, such as VISA card readers), and it is enabled with access to tables, which path all network routing data, thereby allowing connectivity via dialup to the appropriate www -- or other -- host.

Seems the internet has become so much a part of everyday life that people look on it as a given. Like the TV droning on and on in the background, you never really miss it until it’s turned off.

IT. Be a real shame to lose all that...