[plug] [OT] Possible fire hazard

[W.Kenworthy]

Australian Telecommunications Authority - the regulator for all things
communication.  An AUSTEL licence has a number of levels, some of which
include data and comms cables.  Institutions cant escape it, they must
use licenced people to install their data cables to their standards - at
a nice premium to the cost I might add.  When I looked at doing the
licence some years back, it seemed that non-AUSTEL cabling was treated
similar to unlicenced electrical work - which means seriously!

BillK

On Fri, 2005-04-08 at 14:53 +0800, Richard Meyer wrote:
> On Fri, 2005-04-08 at 14:36 +0800, Craig Ringer wrote:
> > On Fri, 2005-04-08 at 14:31 +0800, Richard Meyer wrote:
> > 
> > > Anyone who can give me the name and contact details of who to approach
> > > to set this person right. (Not that I think she'll ever be set right -
> > > I've told her twice, and the owner says he's told her that they are data
> > > cables, but they become "electrical cables" and become a fire hazard
> > > AGAIN)
> > 
> > It sounds to me like you just found a very good reason to upgrade to
> > fibre :-P
> > 
> > More seriously, they are electrical cables really. The fact that they
> > carry vastly less power than a phone cable (or at least operate at a
> > lower voltage - not sure what the current is like in an Ethernet cable,
> > but I imagine minimal), let alone a power cable, does kind of make it
> > pointless though.
> 
> The Western Power people laughed at the suggestion that rows of houses
> were burning down in areas that had ADSL with ethernet ;-)
> 
> Maybe it's a sign that I need wireless.
> > 
> > Maybe you should just explain that they're like phone cables for
> > computers to talk to each other over? "Data cable," "ethernet", etc is
> > likely to go "woosh" over some people's heads.
> 
> I suspect she doesn't WANT to be enlightened.
> > 
> > It's also possible the agent just wants to be rid of you / wants to make
> > trouble and is looking for excuses, no matter how dumb. It wouldn't be
> > the first time such a thing has happened.
> 
> That is exactly what I think is happening. The agent is new, and the
> owner let slip that they were friends, so I presume she told him that
> she could rent the place for more. 
> 
> Other things she bitched about include leaves and dust on the verandah -
> I mean, please, it's often dry in Perth, and the wind has been known to
> blow. Apart from that there are spider webs in the eaves, which upset
> her for some reason. I need them to keep the flies in control ;-)
>