Hi Tom, 
        On 17 Aug'97, at 00:02, in a message to Ray Madison, you wrote: 
 TM>  RM> I understand authentication to be a 
 TM>  RM> chip installed that issues a 
 TM>  RM> signal  of some sort unique to the 
 TM>  RM> phone itself irregardless of the ESN 
 TM>  RM> or  type/model. I have a Motorola 
 TM>  RM> Piper that has that ability. 
 TM> How can you tell which phones ahve that feature or not?  I have a 
 TM> CDMA sony and it has a feature called 
 TM> privacy (switch enhanced/standard) but 
 TM> neither the phone company or sony knows what it does :(... HMM>....
As for your first question, I don't think it's hard to figure out, 
especially if you've dealt with the company. Here's how I figured it 
out- Prior to the Motorola Piper, I had a AT&T 3610. Great phone, in my 
book, just a bit bulky. With that phone, I had to enter a pin number on 
every call I made, regardless of where my physical location was. (Home 
area or roaming) When I got the Piper, I no longer had to use the pin 
code in my own area, but still I had to use it if I roamed. I called 
the cellular company, and they told me that my new phone has the 
authenticating ability, so a pin code wasn't needed in my home area. 
As for your SECOND question, my wildest guess is it could be a 
mute/hold button. 
Ray Madison 
70661.2471@compuserve.com 
madisonr@auhs.edu 
... If all else fails, RTFM!
... QWKRR128 V5.10 [R]
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