Phil Kane wrote:
On Mon, 24 Mar 2008 07:48:10 EDT, wrote:
Actually, there were, just not in the same form as in radio. The
licenses were regulations; the Elmers were people who developed
easier-to-use systems.
Yes, there were "licenses" to users but it was a one-way deal. My
former FCC Bureau Chief went to the Reagan White House as the
Assistant Chief of Staff for Administrative Services, which included
overseeing the White House Communications Agency (staffed by the
military, not the Secret Service which has its own comm net). He was
given an ARPANET connection at home and WHCA mobile phone in his car.
When Reagan left office and George Bush I put his own Chief of Staff -
John Sununu - in place, my guy was replaced because of a personality
conflict and his ARPANET connection and mobile phone were physically
removed from his house and car with less than two hours notice.
I've dealt with the WHCA folks on several occasions. The last was
during the '97 Clinton-Yeltsin Helsinki Summit. It is plain why WHCA is
staffed with military people: They don't get overtime. :-) Those I
worked with were very dedicated and hardworking. The flurry of activity
preceding a Presidential visit--for things like frequency clearances
from the host government, the size of the PBX and number of lines for
the visit hotel(s) and the number of cellular phones, is phenomenal.
That Helsinki Summit was a double whammy in that it also involved a
SECSTATE visit which meant that State's commo team was also on the
ground with an entirely different set of communications requirements.
Dave K8MN