Tuesday, October 31, 2000 Glitch leaves UCR phones on dead lines

By Matthew Tresaugue The Press-Enterprise RIVERSIDE

UCR's telephones were on the fritz Monday because of a system glitch that stumped those trying to fix it.

It is uncertain when the phones will be functioning again, but an expert was expected to arrive today and begin working on the university's aging telecommunications system.

In all, about 7,000 campus phones stopped ringing shortly after midnight as the system gave itself a periodic diagnostic test. About 4,000 UCR customers couldn't make or receive calls, while the other 3,000 people with campus phones, including students in Pentland Residence Hall, were able only to make calls.

Emergency lines, on-campus safety call boxes, pay phones and e-mail were unaffected. Also, some phones have been plugged in where fax machines were stationed, allowing most offices and residence halls to have a line that would work.

A temporary system was expected to be established soon.

Coincidentally, campus leaders had planned to replace the 14-year-old system by next September. The multimillion-dollar project had been scheduled for bids in the coming weeks, UCR spokesman Jack Chappell said.

"In hindsight, we should have replaced the equipment, but it was kept going and working fine," he said. "In telephone years, this equipment is very, very old."

It's so old that the system is no longer supported by its manufacturer, Chappell said.

The problem baffled campus technicians, who spent a frustrating day trying to figure out what went wrong, so the university summoned an outside specialist. There was no evidence of sabotage, Chappell said.

http://www.inlandempireonline.com/news/stories/103100/phone31.shtml

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), October 31, 2000

Answers

UCR phones should work again today

The Press-Enterprise RIVERSIDE

UCR's telephones should be working again by the end of today, ending more than 48 hours of silence.

About 7,000 campus phones stopped ringing early Monday after the aging telecommunications system malfunctioned. Technicians found that a bad electrical device told the system that it was working at 100 percent capacity, thus preventing phones from receiving calls.

The repair will cost roughly $15,000, UCR spokesman Jack Chappell said. He asked that incoming calls be limited during repairs because they cause stress to the system.

Emergency lines, on-campus safety call boxes, pay phones and e-mail were unaffected, and some phones were plugged in where fax machines were stationed.

The university plans to replace the 14-year-old system sooner than next September, as originally scheduled.

Published 11/1/2000

http://www.inlandempireonline.com/news/stories/110100/phone01.shtml

-- Doris (reaper@pacifier.com), November 01, 2000.