首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
考研
The staggering variety of free stuff available on the Internet sometimes seems to have repealed the first law of economics: Ther
The staggering variety of free stuff available on the Internet sometimes seems to have repealed the first law of economics: Ther
admin
2017-04-13
73
问题
The staggering variety of free stuff available on the Internet sometimes seems to have repealed the first law of economics: There’s no such thing as
a free lunch
. But as so often happens, the dismal science actually has it right. When it looks like you’re getting something for nothing, somebody is paying, and it’s often instructive to know who that is.
I’ve been testing a new phone service called ooma that provides an interesting case in point. Once you pay $399 up front for a box called the ooma Hub and connect it to your phone and the Internet via your home network, you are promised free, unlimited phone calls over two lines, plus voice mail. The system works fine and is simple to set up.
When a voice-over-Internet call has to go to a regular phone number, a service such as ooma usually has to pay a "temination fee" to a carrier such as Verizon. Skype, for example, charges 2% per minute for calls outside the Skype network. But ooma avoids this by using some of its customers—those who have kept regular phone lines—to serve as gateways onto the local phone network at no charge.
When you want to call outside the ooma network, the call moves from your Hub over the Internet to a second landline-connected Hub within the destination’s local calling area The Hub dials the target number and patches the call through. In effect, ooma customers with landlines pay to keep the whole system going. You don’t even notice if your landline is being used because your own phone calls go out over your broadband connection, with your flat-rate monthly phone bill covering the ooma traffic. In fact, this improves the efficiency of the phone system by putting idle lines to work. But if ooma ever gains real traction, I expect a legal assault from big phone companies, which are losing income from termination fees.
Web services do take advantage of genuine economies. The phone network is more expensive than the Net. Lots of Net players build on these advantages. Skype relies on selected users who act, often without their knowledge, as "super nodes" to manage the system. FreeConference.com provides calls by taking advantage of regulatory quirks—namely, the stiff termination fees long-distance carriers must pay to certain rural phone companies that handle calls into their territory. In effect, the free conferences are subsidized by customers and shareholders of the long-distance carriers. You may as well enjoy free calls while you can. But it’s always a good idea to read the fine print. If it isn’t obvious who’s paying for a free service, it might well be you.
One cannot notice if the landline is being used by others because
选项
A、the ooma traffic cannot be calculated by the outside network.
B、your monthly phone bill still remains stable with new traffic.
C、your Hub will dial the target number from a second Hub.
D、the whole system keeps going with the broadband connection.
答案
B
解析
推理判断题。第四段第四句指出人们不会注意到电话费的变化,因为每月的电话费几乎都是固定的,故选B。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/fnbZ777K
0
考研英语一
相关试题推荐
WholesalepricesinJulyrosemoresharplythanexpectedandatafasterratethanconsumerprices,【C1】______thatbusinesseswer
AninternationalconferenceonglobalwarmingwillbeheldinBeijinginDecemberthisyear.Theorganizationcommitteeisnowl
Advancingagemeanslosingyourhair,yourwaistlineandyourmemory,right?DanaDenisisjust40yearsold,but【C1】______she’s
HansenstartsbyarguingthattheicemeltingonandaroundGreenlandandAntarcticawill【B1】______risesinsealevelthatarem
HansenstartsbyarguingthattheicemeltingonandaroundGreenlandandAntarcticawill【B1】______risesinsealevelthatarem
HansenstartsbyarguingthattheicemeltingonandaroundGreenlandandAntarcticawill【B1】______risesinsealevelthatarem
Someoneaskedmelastweek,"Inthelongrun,istechnologyoursaviourorourdemise?"Ithoughtitover,andthethingis,we
AmazontodayunveiledDashButtons,aneasywayforcustomersto【C1】______selectbulkgoods【C2】______aninternet-connectedbutto
AmazontodayunveiledDashButtons,aneasywayforcustomersto【C1】______selectbulkgoods【C2】______aninternet-connectedbutto
ReadthefollowingtextandanswerthequestionsbychoosingthemostsuitablesubheadingfromthelistA-Gforeachnumberedp
随机试题
公司甲与业余发明人乙订立了一份技术开发协议,约定由乙为甲开发完成一项电冰箱温控装置技术,由甲为乙提供技术开发资金、设备、资料等,并支付报酬。在约定的时间内乙完成了合同约定的任务,并按约定将全部技术资料和权利都交给了甲公司。此外,乙在完成开发任务的过程中,还
Theoldmanislookingforwardto______Shanghai.
关于卵巢分泌的激素,错误的是( )。【2005年考试真题】
据临床统计,约有多少患者需要心理诊断和治疗
甲公司接受乙公司赠与房屋一套,该房屋在乙公司账面上的原值为200万元,净值为80万元,税务机关参照房屋买卖的市场价格核定该房屋价值为450万元(不含增值税)。已知适用的契税税率为3%,甲公司应缴纳的契税为()万元
为继续推进我国经济沿着科学道路前进,要重点把握的方面有()。
以往,境内企业进出口只能以美元或第三方货币结算,在合同签约至合同执行完毕期间汇率的变化会使企业的实际盈收出现波动,现在银行推出了人民币结算业务。由于人民币是境内企业的本币,合同计价和企业运营的主要货币相一致,境内企业在合同签订前能够切实了解交易的成本和收入
由当χ→0时,1-cosχ~[*]χ2得[*]
计算机网络中的结点在相互通信时必须遵循统一的()。
Itisaholidayandpeopledon’tworkthenPeoplecanseemanyofthemintheevening.
最新回复
(
0
)