More complicated than that. Traditionally K=1000 and M=1,000,000, but in the computer world K=2^10=1024 and M=2^20=1,048,576.

Often, bits (b) are measured using the 1000 and 1,000,000 definitions, while bytes (B) are measured using the 1024 and 1048576 definitions. And bytes are indeed 8 bits.

 

[Translates to what the heck are you talkin' about????]

[QUOTE]DrCloud

 

Oh, yeah, Mike's right about the powers of two thing for computer stuff. I forgot.

Anyway, in most places, the phone lines aren't hollow, so water doesn't get into them. I guess in Virginia, they're like little tubes with funnels on the end, that you talk into. (Here, at least, we have strings with cups on the ends.) No wonder they don't work for computers.

What I want to know is, how do all those moving picture things fit through that skinny TV cable, anyway? HPH

 

You're so funny. Apparently what was happening to our line was occurring at a junction box and moisture would accumulate during rainy times. The effect was that our line was "stuck open", giving any callers in a busy signal but we had no dialtone. One of my phones has a light that glows when the line is in use. That light was always glowing when the phones went out. All the electric and phone lines here are old, having been installed back in the 50s. Sometimes we have power outages because the squirrels enjoy chowing down on the insulation on the power lines. Poor little squirrels.

 

My parents had a problem with interference from people speaking Spanish on the line. It was crazy. Took several calls, but a guy finally came out and fixed it. I think it was related to copper in the wires and not being grounded properly, or something like that.

 

Crosstalk is not uncommon, especially in older neighborhoods. For some reason the squirrels love to eat the wires. Once the insulation is gone water seeps into the cable and shorting/crosstalk can occur.