In view of the ongoing confusion and misinformation on numbering issues facing deaf and hard of hearing consumers–Dr. Z went to his laboratory and did some brainstorming and he came up with a new prescription.  The prescription has the objective of making the deaf and hard of hearing population in American get well from the confusion and misinformation on numbering issues by going on a national tour to talk to America about numbering.  Since America ain’t small, Dr. Z has brought in a new associate, Dr. Z, Junior  (Russ Stein) into his expanded practice.  Dr. Z will cover the eastern part of the country and his associate will cover the western part of the country. Russ comes with an extensive background in the VRS industry and will be presenting the same material as Dr. Z. We look forward to communicating with you in person. Visit this website for dates and cities where you can meet us! If you want us to come visit you in your community, send an email to drzvrs@zvrs.com and we will try our best to come to see you!

Numbering 101-Review Questions

If you feel comfortable answering the questions below, you are in good shape understanding the 10-digit numbering issue for VRS. We will continue to come up with more lessons next week.

1-Did you register your number with your VRS provider? (Link to Lesson 1)

2-What happens after you register your number? (Link to Lesson 2)

3-What is the national database? (Link to Lesson 3)

4-How is 911 and numbering related? (Link to Lesson 4)

5-What is a 10-digit number? (Link to Lesson 5)

Dr. Z is here to help you. We want you to communicate happily ever after!

Numbering 101-Lesson #5

What is a 10-digit number?

1-Some of you have expressed confusion as to what a 10-digit number is in the eyes of the FCC. A regular phone number has 10 digits; for example, (201) 213-1212 has 10 numbers, and that is 10 digits if you count how many numbers.

2-Is your 10-digit number a valid or good one? If you have not registered the number, then it is not valid and will not work after November 12th. Your videophone provider should have automatically given you a 10 digit number if you got your videophone after January 1, 2009.

3-What if you got your videophone before January 1, 2009, and you have not heard from your videophone provider, it is recommended that you contact them to be sure your 10-digit number is valid. If you have heard from your videophone provider and they provided you with a new number and you have given your name and address to the provider, you should be in good hands. If you want to be sure, you should call your videophone provider to be sure.

4-How do you know who/where to contact your videophone provider? Go to their website and look for “contact us”–usually there is an email or a phone number for you to call their customer service department. After you call, they should be able to verify if your number is registered.

5-Is a 800, 866, 877, 888 a valid 10-digit number? If you have just a 800 number and do not have a local number, it is most likely that you do not have a registered 10-digit number. In this case, you should call your videophone company to register for a new local number.

Dr. Z is here to help you. We want you to communicate happily ever after!

Numbering 101-Lesson #4

How is 911 and numbering related?

1-If you don’t register for a 10-digit number, then your videophone will not work after November 12th, 2009 and you won’t be able to make 911 calls from your videophone.

2-Why is that the case? When you register with your videophone provider for a 10-digit number, you are also asked to provide the address where the videophone is located. The address is used after checking with you when you make a 911 call before sending the first responder (police, fire, ambulance) out to your place.

3-What if I have several videophones in the house? You need to register each videophone with the videophone provider and you will get an unique 10-digit number for each videophone…also you will be providing your location address to each provider of the videophone. After you do that, you will be able to make 911 calls from any of the videophones in your house.

4-When you make a 911 call, how does it work? When you dial 911 from your videophone–the videophone company is required to move your call to the top of the list so you should not have to wait. After answering the call, the video interpreter will verify the address before sending the first responder over.

5-What if you are incapicitated (fainting, on floor can’t move)? The video interpreter will answer the call and send the first responder to the address that is tied with the number you are calling from. (That is why it is important to have the right address at all times.)

6. What if I move my videophone to a different location? Be sure to inform your videophone provider of the location change so 911 assistance can be sent to the right address.

Dr. Z is here to help you. We want you to communicate happily ever after!

Numbering 101-Lesson #3

What is the national database?

1-When people talk about numbering, they always refer to the national database.

2-What is it? It is a place on a computer where everyone’s phone number and their IP address are saved.

3-Who controls and handles it? The FCC contracted with a company named Neustar. Neustar works with all VRS providers to keep track of their IP addresses and phone numbers. If an IP address changes, the VRS provider informs Neustar of the change. If a new phone is registered, the videophone company informs Neustar of the newly registered phone number along with the related IP address.

4-When you make a call, how does it work? When you make a videophone call, before the call is connected, the call goes from your videophone to your VRS provider who checks the national database. If the call-to phone number is there, the national database returns the IP address of the person who you are calling to the VRS provider who makes the connection. If the number is not there, this means the call is going to a hearing person. The national database then tells the VRS provider that the number is not there, then the VRS provider connects you to a video interpreter to make the call to the hearing person.

5-Why do we use a phone number address to connect calls? Why not use IP addresses? Videophones use the internet and telephones use the phone system–they both do not talk to each other. The 10-digit number you are getting is a phone number which works only on the internet with your videophone. The national database is the place where they connect the phone number with an IP address. The IP address is used to make connections on the internet with your videophone. The phone number helps find the IP address. Phone numbers are easier to remember and are more convenient than IP addresses. IP addresses change; phone numbers don’t change.

Dr. Z is here to help you. We want you to communicate happily ever after!

Numbering 101-Lesson #2

What happens after you register your number?

1-Check to make sure people can call you using your registered local number from any device. (Z150, Z340, Z-Ojo, VP-100/200, MVP, P3, VPAD, etc.)

2-If there are problems, check with your videophone provider to be sure your number is on the national data base.

3-If there are no problems, you know your videophone is registered.

4-To be on the safe side, check with your videophone provider to be sure they have the address where your videophone is in the right place. (This is for 911 calls.)

5-If you take your videophone with you to another location, be sure to inform your videophone provider of the change of address. (This is so that the 911 first responder – police, fire, ambulance- will go to the right location in case of a 911 emergency.

Dr. Z is here to help you. We want you to communicate happily ever after!