“BREAKING IN” OF NEW ’PHONE SUB-EXCHANGE

Wanganui Chronicle, 8 October 1946, Page 4

“BREAKING IN” OF NEW ’PHONE SUB-EXCHANGE

The difficulties Wanganui East and Aramoho telephone subscribers are experiencing under the new semiautomatic system are being ironed out, but mistakes are still occurring, and will continue until all become conversant with the new procedure. Two difficulties which the department faced when the change-over was effected was the training of the staff and the training of the public. The latter is by far the bigger job. There still appears to be some confusion among subscribers of the subexchange on how to communicate with that part of Wanganui which is on automatic. The procedure is simply to pick up the receiver, and when exchange answers ask for automatic, then dial in the ordinary way.

There was very heavy traffic yesterday, the first working day for the sub-exchange. The abnormal load is explained away by officials as being due to many people trying out the new system. Whatever the reason, the operators were kept busy, and quite a portion of their time wa» taken up in explaining the workings. From the technical point of view the opening of the sub-exchange haa been carried through without a hitch, the operators are settling down quickly to their new type of work, and it is anticipated that the public will likewise soon become accustomed to the semi-automatic system, which is more automatic than semi-.