On Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:48:59 +0000 (UTC), Spamtastic Spastic
 wrote:

>>> You can hardly expect a caller to search through the telephone book to
>>> see whether the number they intend to call appears anywhere in it, can
>>> you?
 
>> No - many of them use automatic diallers, so they can run through the
>> entire numbering range of an exchange if they want to.

Exactly my point.

>No way! Do they have the 16K ram pack then?

No need for any RAM at all.  They dial the numbers sequentially
regardless of whether the number is in service, and stop every time
the equipment detects a ring tone.

-- 
Cynic

On Tue, 22 Sep 2009 18:43:38 +0100, Cynic ate alphabet spaghetti and shat
out:

> On Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:24:12 +0000 (UTC), Spamtastic Spastic
>  wrote:
> 
>>>>No way! Do they have the 16K ram pack then?
>  
>>> No need for any RAM at all.  They dial the numbers sequentially
>>> regardless of whether the number is in service, and stop every time
>>> the equipment detects a ring tone.
> 
>>Yeah, but the program to do that is not going to sit in a standard 1k
>>ZX81, is it smart arse ;-)
> 
> Absolutely it will.  I could write a Z80 assembler proggie that fits
> into 256 *bytes* of RAM
> 
> But I could also do it with a few relays and no CPU at all  :-)

I yield. I meant Sinclair Basic, but indeed, with Z80 code you could. 
Damb. He's got me there.




-- 
political correctness: The safety net protecting deaf blind disabled 
ethnic minority gays & lesbians with odd religious beliefs from reality