Does anyone know of an alternative number to the 0844 338 **** (where **** is the room extension)?
Steve

See what happens when you ring...01484 478 816 and let us know if it gets you anywhere

There is an existing thread for Huddersfield University - Storthes Hall here.

It's a couple of years old, but it may still be the same system and hence same underlying 01/02 numbers.

Please can you provide as much information as possible to help us help you find the number?

For example, who operates the system, eg Keycom. Do they have a website? When you call someone, does it give any number or is it number withheld? Try calling your mobile and see what happens.

sherbert wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 3:02pm:

See what happens when you ring...01484 478 816 and let us know if it gets you anywhere

I call that one and get "number error" and a long beeping sound.

I'm trying to find out about the company.  It's my girlfriend who's living there and the room phones seem the only way to communicate due to the lack of ANY mobile signal...

If you are calling the 0844 number, ring from a landline if possible. BT call rates are the highest allowed on 0844, that's 5p/min at all times.

I'm trying to avoid using the landline as I've a silly amount of minutes on my mobile contract that I'd rather use.

I've tried all the suggested numbers on the previous threads but always get the "number error" and the long beep.

The official website for this accommodation is:

http://www.campusdigs.com/storthes-hall.php

An aerial shot can be found here:

http://www.virtualhuddersfield.com/Campus_Digs.htm

It is in a rural area and a there used to be a psychiatric hospital next to it.

I have been unable to find any clues as to who operates the room phone/internet system or how to pay for the service. If she uses internet in her room, as her to visit www.whatismyip.com and tell us what it says her IP address is as this may yield some clues.


You said that there is lack of "ANY" mobile signal. If this means that there is no coverage for all four GSM networks (O2/Vodafone/Orange/T-Mobile) or 3's 3G network (3 is very doubtful in a rural area), then there's not a lot we can do. If these haven't been tried, then it may be an option that she has a SIM card for one of the networks which does have coverage. This will allow you to call her.

Is she on the ground floor? A look at Ofcom's Sitefinder shows there are mobile base stations nearby for all four GSM networks. That does not necessarily mean that one can receive a signal in any one location.

The internet provider is http://www.mcwstudents.co.uk/home.asp?locationID=34

It's common with all the residents there that mobile phone signal is a rarity but people say that Vodafone is the better of the four.  I'm going to visit her tomorrow so will try a Vodafone SIM out.

After checking the Ofcom website it shows there are base stations for O2, T-Mobile, Vodafone, 3 and Airwave, no sign of Orange, which we're both on...
And she is on the ground floor  :(

steevie_b wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 6:26pm:

The internet provider is http://www.mcwstudents.co.uk/home.asp?locationID=34

Thanks. I will have a look at that and see if it gives us any leads.


steevie_b wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 6:26pm:

It's common with all the residents there that mobile phone signal is a rarity but people say that Vodafone is the better of the four.  I'm going to visit her tomorrow so will try a Vodafone SIM out. After checking the Ofcom website it shows there are base stations for O2, T-Mobile, Vodafone, 3 and Airwave, no sign of Orange, which we're both on... And she is on the ground floor  :(

You can usually select your network operator from the menu manually, although all except that of your SIM card will be disallowed. This will tell you what signals are available at the location. Those disallowed ones usually have a telephone symbol with a line through.

The reason I asked if she was on the ground floor was because it's more likely to get a signal the higher up you are.

If your inclusive minutes apply to any network, then you might be able to leave her with the Vodafone mobile for use in her room.

Dave wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 6:41pm:

If your inclusive minutes apply to any network, then you might be able to leave her with the Vodafone mobile for use in her room.

I think that's what the plan is going to be but apparently even getting Vodafone signal is hard.

I emailed Orange about this asking them if they were planning any new base stations in the area, before our contracts are up for renewal  ;)

steevie_b wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 6:44pm:

Dave wrote on Sep 17th, 2008 at 6:41pm: If your inclusive minutes apply to any network, then you might be able to leave her with the Vodafone mobile for use in her room. I think that's what the plan is going to be but apparently even getting Vodafone signal is hard. I emailed Orange about this asking them if they were planning any new base stations in the area, before our contracts are up for renewal  ;)

As of yet, no reply...

steevie_b wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 6:26pm:

The internet provider is http://www.mcwstudents.co.uk/home.asp?locationID=34

FWIW, there is a case study on the MCW website here:


Quote:

Upgrading and managing a very large internal network and ensuring the availability of sufficient bandwidth Storthes Hall, Huddersfield    * Owned and managed by Ubrique Investments Limited The challenge Storthes Hall is a very large site with 1,500 student rooms located in several buildings. Students have the option to rent a Premium Room, which has a 512k broadband connection as standard. Other rooms offer students the option to subscribe for Internet services up to 1 Mbt. MCW faced the challenge of upgrading and managing the very large internal network and ensuring the availability of sufficient bandwidth for 1,500 students. Cat 5 cable was already installed. The solution MCW installed a Core Ethernet switch and created Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs) to separate the apartment blocks. A packet shaper was installed to control peer-to-peer traffic. BT provided the analogue lines, which were converted to ADSL. To ensure resilience, there are several ADSL lines from various ISPs, providing 80 Mbt bandwidth. MCW provides and manages the Internet access and an optional Internet gaming service. New in two buildings for December 2006 is the facility for IP TV (Internet Protocol TV) with over 30 UK Freeview channels, which will be phased into all rooms over the next 12 months. A large plasma screen is installed in the reception for Internet announcements and information. This is updated daily by MCW remotely.

If she calls you from her landline phone, is it number withheld?

She's tried to dial out but the line cuts off part-way through the dialling.

steevie_b wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 7:10pm:

She's tried to dial out but the line cuts off part-way through the dialling.

Has she registered to make outgoing calls?

The service appears to be provided by Catalyst Management. They provide services to accommodation under the names Dog n Bone Zone and more recently Uni-Tel. Huddersfield University appears on both of these websites.

This may give us some more leads on the incoming geographical numbers.

Dave wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 3:22pm:

There is an existing thread for Huddersfield University - Storthes Hall here.

Did you try the 01484 60xxxx number suggested in that thread (where xxxx is the extension)?

steevie_b wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 2:41pm:

Does anyone know of an alternative number to the 0844 338 **** (where **** is the room extension)? Steve

From what I can tell, they must have a very small range of 0844 numbers since a quick Google for this range reveals:
1xxx - Dell Support
50xx - Birmingham Hippodrome
55xx - Europ Assistance
63xx - CheapTravelInsurance.com
7000 - Hippodrome
8000 - Hippodrome
9000 - Hippodrome
(This isn't an extensive list!)

jgxenite wrote on Sep 17^th, 2008 at 9:22pm:

Dave wrote on Sep 17th, 2008 at 3:22pm: There is an existing thread for Huddersfield University - Storthes Hall here. Did you try the 01484 60xxxx number suggested in that thread (where xxxx is the extension)?

steevie_b, do try this one.

Alternatively try these prefixes followed by four-digit extension:

• Telewest:
  
  • 01484 38 (05/1996)
    
  • 01484 39 (06/1997)
  
  
• Your Communications:
  
  • 01484 24 (07/2004)
    
  • 01484 33 (04/2001)

Hi,
I tried the 01484 60****, that got me through to someone but wasn't who I wanted...

I've also tried the other four numbers you suggested, all give "number error" and the long beep.

I'm going there tonight so I'll see about if she has to register the phone to be able to make out-calls.

If I can't find an alternative number for her, is there a pre-dial for 0844 numbers?
Such as an 0800 or a regular landline number?

Thanks for all your help.

Steve

Was the someone you got on the 60xxxx range in Storthes Hall?

jgxenite wrote on Sep 18^th, 2008 at 8:14am:

Was the someone you got on the 60xxxx range in Storthes Hall?

Unfortunately not :(

steevie_b wrote on Sep 18^th, 2008 at 6:22am:

If I can't find an alternative number for her, is there a pre-dial for 0844 numbers? Such as an 0800 or a regular landline number?

No because the higher cost of the call goes towards revenue sharing.

The total capacity of all student accommodation across all sites is 2,338. I presume that they will all have the same phone system and hence will have a block of consecutive numbers of that magnitude.

We have successfully found the geographical numbers for some university accommodation systems, so it is possible. I hope that below, I won't be presenting too many things to try which will take you too long. I will understand if you decide to abandon the search for the geographical numbers and perhaps use a mobile instead.

I think that the 60 prefix is a non-starter because it is the one for BT in the Kirkburton and surrounding area.


In addition to Telewest and Your Communications, there are a number of other 01484 prefixes for other providers which are known to operate university accommodation telephone systems:

• Affiniti:
  
  • 01484 82 (07/1994)
    
  • 01484 83 (05/1999)
  
  
• Thus: 01484 74 (10/1999)
  
• NTL:
  
  • 01484 00 (06/2000)
    
  • 01484 30 (01/1995)
    
  • 01484 31 (01/1995)
    
  • 01484 32 (04/1997)
    
  • 01484 34 (03/1998)
    
  • 01484 35 (10/1998)
    
  • 01484 36 (03/2000)

It's worth noting down which ones you've tried and which ones answer and how they answer, eg fax, personal voicemail. Remember that it's likely that the block of numbers we are looking for contains student rooms for the other sites, so asking if the person is in Storthes Hall and getting the answer "no" does not necessarily mean that you aren't getting warm.

Another possibility is that the extension number has been shifted by a number of thousand. For example, ext 2345 maps to 01484 386345. You could try substituting the digit in bold with 0 through to 9. I appreciate that this increases the number of possibilities ten-fold. Again, note down which answer.

These are all suggestions which you might like to try when you have some time. As I say, I will understand if you decide to give it a miss.

Thanks.
I've tried all the numbers you've suggested, three of them rang but wrong numbers (30, 31 and 32).
Going to try the other method this weekend.
I'll report back with anything I find.
Thanks again.
Steve

I've looked on these communication providers' websites for clues as to whether they operate this service. They like to have case studies and news releases on this sort of thing, but I've found nothing. Same goes for Googling the internet in general. For that reason, I can't see any way we can narrow the list down to one provider.

Think I'm going to have to go with the trial and error method.

Thanks for all your help.

I very much doubt that the geographic alternative will be in the ranges 30, 31 and 32 - these numbers are used throughout Huddersfield for people on ntl/Virgin Media.

Have you tried at all asking the University directly? It is probably unlikely they can give you an alternative but, from past experience, it is highly unlikely that the University is going to be ringing the 0844 numbers if they need to contact the students in halls.

On further examination of the http://www.mcwstudents.co.uk/ website, I note that only Storthes Hall and Ashenhurst sites get a mention, so perhaps it only covers them. In which case, it is still a possible 1,712 lines that they operate.

It seems that Ashenhurst halls start with 01484 54****.
Think that'll be first one to try out...
Steve

steevie_b, have you had time to try any numbers?