On 9/27/96 BRIAN LINGARD wrote FRANK VLAMINGS: "Why?"
BL> Some people in Canada with a cottage on an island or who live in
BL> a suburban area sign up for the evening/weekend plan and use a
BL> cellular phone to get a big city calling area or get dial tone at
BL> the cottage.
BL> You can get beam antennas that will give you a lot of gain and
BL> make communication more reliable if you are at the fringe of a
BL> cell site's coverage area.
Yes I already have checked into this, and I can purchase these types
of antennas for around $50. They are 9-db gain, and should be quite
suitable for the purpose. I would erect that two feet long antenna and
check on my field strength meter, where the site location is... 
Then I would secure that direction, and it is ready for use.
I am on the fringe of the reception area. Though the Cell company has
told me, that they will erect more sites, and especially close to my
location, it doesn't happen all too soon, and in the meantime, I have
to put up with this problem of cut-offs and losing carrier.
BL> Bag phones are usually analog and digital at the moment is a dead
BL> issue.
As far as this is concerned, Digital is the one technology here, that
is highly advertised, and promoted. We live here in a very dense cos-
mopolitan area, the San Francisco Bay area, East bay and other areas,
all in that same local calling area. I would guess there are well over
10 to 13 million people living here.
However the cell company is also Analog, and my present phone has both
capabilities. I prefer digital. The sound is very clear, but analog
can also be received. I have tried both modes on my phone. Analog at
times gives some strange sounding voices, and I hear the other side of
the phone complaining about it. Then I switch over to Digital, and the
noise has gone. Now I hope that a bag phone with higher transmission
power will compensate for it. Strange that now in the 90s we are still
working this all out. May be it is that we get overcrowded here, and
too many people try to get on the same cell site...?
BL> Canadian cellular providers are going to cdma from tdma to
BL> improve the digital network's sound quality.
I don't know, what we have here. It just says digital, and that is it.
The sound indeed is extremely clear here, provided, the filed strength
of the site is average to good. When it gets on that fringe bit, I am
in trouble, and loose my connection.
BL> While I lived in Toronto I knew a couple of bridges you could go
BL> under talking to one person and come out talking to someone else,
BL> often much more interesting.
Hahaha. That sounded like a joke, and I almost fell of my chair
laughing about that one....  I didn't know, that you had all
those "options" on your cell phone.... :-)))))
BL> In Ottawa here, I switched between my party and another one a
BL> couple of times in one conversation and we had a great time.
Well that cell phone then has paid off handsomely. Should not complain
about that one, right? Thanks very much for your response. I am very
appreciative to learn about the cell phones. Bye.. :-)
-= Frank Vlamings Monday, September 30, 1996 at 03:44 pm in Newark, CA =-
---
 * RM 1.31 0282 * Guillotining him would make only an aesthetic difference.
--- QScan/PCB v1.19b / 01-0067
---------------