At 0:00 -0500 01/01/3, kilopascal wrote:
>Europe (etc.) has variable-length numbers. Why can't we?
Not really true. Just as an example, my phone numbers :
02 9927 2588 (home)
06 8168 8605 (cellular)
All cellular phone numbers begin with 06. The fixed phone numbers
begin with 01, 02 ... 05 depending on the region in France. There are
also numbers beginning with 08 (free toll numbers), 07 (special
numbers), etc. Wherever you are in France, whatever the company you
use, you have to dial these 10 digits. Of course you will charged
different price according to your location.
Now, what about you calling me from, say, Belgium ? You have to dial :
00 33 2 9927 2588 or 00 33 6 8168 8605.
00 is the International access code. 33 is the country number for
France, 32 for Belgium, 44 for UK, 253 for Luxemburg (no region
number). You always drop the initial 0 when calling outside the
country.
All European countries have identical or similar numbering systems.
Just to summarize, 10 digits within a country and 13 digits outside.
Is that you meant by variable-length numbers ?
Louis
