Free calling on Christchurch payphones - goodonya, Telecom
What a horrible weekend for Christchurch and the South Island. My friends there are unhurt, thank goodness, and unbelievably enough, it appears nobody was killed. The repair and clean-up work after the 7.1 quake will be massive though, and I hope there won't be a strong aftershock as has been predicted. The communications infrastructure seems to have held up well in the area. I hear that quite a few providers are running on generators, but overall, things seem to be trucking along. I use Snap in Christchurch as a second ISP, and their service certainly didn't skip a beat during the disaster. Chorus, Telecom's infrastructure arm, says the infrastructure held up well and has now sourced enough power generators with fuel keep the cabinets going. Was sent a picture from Christchurch of a Whisper cabinet with an expansion plinth, powered by a generator. Telecom has meanwhile announced that payphones in Christchurch will be free to use, which is a great initiative to help people get in touch with each other and for public safety. Hope it won't get abused. Here's the media release Telecom sent out: 5 September, 2010 Telecom makes Christchurch payphones free Telecom has made around 300 payphones in and around Christchurch free for local, national and mobile calls. There are still some parts of Christchurch without landline services, due to prolonged loss of power and damage caused by the earthquake. Alan Gourdie, CEO Telecom Retail, said that despite the fact that overall Telecom's network is holding up well there are still many people unable to use their own phones. "We know many people in Christchurch will be facing ongoing disruption and it's important they are able to stay in touch with the people who matter to them. "We hope this gesture will help to make a difference to the people of Christchurch in the aftermath of yesterday's massive earthquake," Mr Gourdie said. Telecom asks people to use the payphones responsibly, by keeping calls brief and making important calls only. Technorati Tags: Christchurch,earthquake,Canterbury,Telecom,telecommunications 
© 2010 GeekZone 11:16am  
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HP buys 3Par, Apple rolls out new gear
Hewlett-Packard swooped in with the better bid to overtake Dell and win 3Par, so now we can all sit back and wait for the next acquisition battle to roll around. Meanwhile, Apple debuted updated iPods and Apple TV to entertain us, among other IT news stories of the week.
© 2010 ComputerWorld US Sat 12:56am |
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