i think it was part of the north american numbering plan. the first 3 digits represented the lata. the second 3 represented the excntral office. the last four represented the address.

the numbering format allowed the switched network to route calls. the central offices would direct calles through trunks, switches and cable pairs from one subscriber to another.

back in the day, i was a telephone repairman. probably more than you ever wanted to know about phone numbers.

I knew this girl named Jenny her number was 867-5309

remember dog n' suds??????

Spuds Mckenzie

We took the Iowa Basics in Maryland every year I was in elementary school (57-63).

Thanks, Shaw. and sorry to all about the "math" thing.

Back then, you knew where a person lived by his or her phone number. The area code was a lock, of course, but the next three, "excntral office," told you where in the area code you lived. For instance, in the Tampa area:

681, 685 meant you lived in Brandon
985 menat you lived in Temple Terrace
971, 977 meant you lived in Forest Hills

and so on, and so on, and dooby dooby doo bop.

Wait. Does that count as a dooby reference?

You mean I can know where I live by my phone number????


Now, if I could only remember my number......

In Florida...you have to pass the FCAT to graduate....

TYS or someone can explain it better than I.

First there was Comp. Ed. (Compensatory Education, or, as the students referred to it: BOOM BOOM).

Then we moved on to something else (the name escapes me), and on to the Florida Comprehensive Aptitude Test. FCAT highlights include:

hiring $10-an-hour workers (degree? We don't need no stinkin' degrees!) to grade computer screens that look like the rubriks they have seen. Don't dare think -- or draw! -- outside of the box

losing student exam sheets

publishing incorrect results data

constantly changing the target goals so that nobody knows what is going on

And you wonder why we can't count votes!!!!!!!!!