Acronyms to last a lifetime...
I spent 40 years as a techy type in Western Electric, later becoming the spun off Lucent, now collapsed to Alcatel-Lucent, ALU.. Telecom, wireless switching were worlds of their own, the later #5 ESS (Electronic Switching System) had glossaries in the back of the handbooks, training materials that would choke a horse.. And some were the same acronyms used in other systems maybe a generation back... Wireless was similar, but a few new twists... Toss in some other systems from Japan or Canada, and it all became a blur at times... Get a few of us discussing issues in the same room and it's a foreign language to anyone not part of the game..
So, back in 2002, I bailed, shredded all the paperwork, DVDs, and walked away.. But we still gather as retirees for luncheons with fellow workers from the old Bell folks, a lot of years of great jobs, state of the art technology, and we all, well, most survived.. Dinosaurs with benefits, pensions... But some still fall back into those acronyms, they're burned in, one triggers another, and off they go...
weco
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