Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Making a call using voip

Analogue Telephone Adapter (ATA) - With VoIP, you are able to use your existing telephone handsets, eliminating the cost of having to purchase any additional hardware. Currently, the most commonly used VoIP method is using an ATA which simply connects to your regular telephone and to your Internet connection. The ATA is an analogue-to-digital converter (ADC) which takes the analogue signal (your voice) from your regular phone and converts it into digital data ready to be transmitted over the Internet. An ATA can either be purchased or provided free when you sign up with a VoIP Service Provider.

Utilising an ATA is very basic, simply plug the cable from your phone into the ATA instead of the wall socket, and you're set.IP Phones- IP Phones look just like standard telephones. They have a handset, buttons and a cradle. IP phones use an RJ-45 Ethernet connector instead of the standard RJ-11 phone connector. They already contain the relevant circuitry to convert your voice into digital data. An IP phone is more convenient for taking advantage of many of the extra features that are included free with your VoIP account - call display, call waiting, call forwarding, voicemail plus many other others.

Wi-Fi IP phones are also now available allowing you to make VoIP calls from any Wi-Fi point. An additional benefit that makes VoIP so attractive for home and small business users is flexibility. With VoIP, you can make a call anywhere there is broadband connection. Incoming VoIP calls can be automatically re-directed to your VoIP phone regardless of the location, as long as it is connected to the Internet. For business travellers, this means they can take their phone or ATA with them on their travels, and never miss a home phone call.Computer-to-Computer - Also known as SoftPhones, this is the most traditional and possibly the easiest way to use VoIP.

With this method you can make free Internet phone calls worldwide. All that is required is a PC connected to a broadband internet connection, and a headset consisting of earphones and microphone connected to the soundcard of your computer. You will also need to download and install VoIP software. With the software installed, invite all your friends to download the same software and when someone is up and running, give them a call! VoIP software is free to download, and allows you to make completely free VoIP calls to other users of the same software, regardless of distance.

Instant messenger programs based on VoIP such as Skype, Yahoo! Messenger, and Gizmo Project also have the ability to be mobile, enabling you to receive and make phone calls using VoIP technology

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

How Voip Beneficial

Is VoIP Beneficial for Your Business?
Even today, because the majority of costs for telephone services are fixed and considerable, all but the largest companies are excluded from the market.
As a result, long-distance carriers have been cashing in on toll charges for decades. But once technology was invented, a relatively new entrant to the telecom world, Voice over Internet Protocol (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.), has threatened to take on the telecom giants.
As you'd expect, the battle doesn't come without controversy. On one hand, VoIP reduces inter-office and long-distance charges dramatically by transmitting voice calls through data lines instead of traditional networks. Since these lines—Local Area Networks (LANs), Wide Area Networks (WANs), or simple internet connections—are already in place, hardware expenses aren't prohibitive. On the other hand, VoIP's quality of service just isn't what most people want it to be.
Is VoIP a valuable service…or just another over-hyped technology?
How VoIP worksTraditional phone services transmit analog signals over closed circuits. Once digital technology was invented, this process was quickly deemed inefficient. By converting analog signals to digital packets and compressing them (using a codec), transmissions can be sent quicker using less bandwidth.
There are 2 different VoIP protocols that define how devices communicate with each other: Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and H.323 protocol. Both work fairly well and each has its own advantages. SIP is specifically designed for voice transmissions and is better suited for VoIP use. Because H.323 protocol is used for data transmissions, videoconferencing, and a host of other applications, it is not as efficient. But since it has been deployed on a much larger scale, H.323 may be to SIP what the VHS was to Beta. In other words, though SIP is superior for VoIP applications, it isn't going to eclipse H.323 anytime soon.
How VoIP works in business Initially, Private Branch Exchanges (PBXs) and key systems were designed to reduce the amount of human intervention needed to make and receive phone calls. They also kept the number of required cords to a minimum. But as data transmission technologies expanded, many PBX makers began to integrate VoIP to help their users save money. If your PBX isn't VoIP-enabled, not to worry—you can enable it yourself. By connecting an IP gateway between your PBX and your intranet, calls will be routed through your data line and will circumvent long-distance carriers.
PBX manufacturers aren't the only people dodging traditional phone lines. Long-distance carriers themselves—though careful not to abandon their lucrative circuit-switching business—have been using VoIP technology behind the scenes for years. Though you probably haven't realized it, a lot of your calls, especially international ones, are currently directed through data lines.
So how good is VoIP?Businesses with extensive overseas contacts or high call volumes will benefit the most from VoIP. But many international companies and call centers have been reluctant to dive in because of significant previous investments in circuit-switched platforms. And then there's the issue of transmission quality…
During periods of high network congestion and limited bandwidth, digital packets are often dropped, making for poor call quality and lost connections. But if you're using VoIP over internal data lines (such as your intranet), bandwidth is more predictable and you should experience less data loss. Intranet users can also use more sophisticated VoIP programs that support full-duplex, real-time voice communications.*
Another reasonable complaint of VoIP is that when fully adopted, what happens when your network goes down? No computer. No phone. Unfortunately, this is a hazard you have to live with for now.
But then there are the undeniable advantages. Given that VoIP circumvents long-distance tolls, calls will typically cost from a few pennies per minute to nothing at all. Aside from this cost savings, the dream is to have the ability to collaborate with multiple people on projects without worrying about the different applications required. You won't have to call each other on the phone and e-mail each other revisions back and forth; you'll simply sit down at your workstation and collaborate on projects as if co-workers and clients are seated directly in front of you.
The future of VoIPOverall, quality of service problems will improve as faster transmission systems become available. Microsoft has recently included VoIP software in their Windows XP and promises to make net-based calling as good as regular phone services. The software giant's presence alone should improve the VoIP market considerably. But even if their bold promise isn't fully realized in the near future, intranet users can still experience distinct advantages from VoIP technology right now.