Archive for July, 2006

VoIP Tutorial

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

To put it in the simplest terms VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol is a way of using internet to make and receive telephone calls. Those of us, who have used MSN or Yahoo Messengers to talk with headsets, must be having at least some idea of how VoIP works. It basically converts your voice into digital signals that travel over internet.

The reason why it is gaining so much of popularity is its affordability. With VoIP you can make long distance calls at a fraction of cost that you used to pay to your telephone companies. It is primarily because of the fact that transferring digital signals over internet is quite cheaper than transferring analog signals over the traditional telephone lines. Also, VoIP offers you great convenience in terms of mobility. It can literally travel with you by enabling you to make long distance calls from anywhere in the world where you can get broadband connectivity without even changing your phone number. This means you have a roaming mobile phone service whose call rates are cheaper than a fixed line phone. Also, the services that are charged separately by telephone companies, like call waiting, three-way calling, call forwarding, caller identification, repeat dial, last call return, come as standard services with VoIP. In addition to these services there are a host of other services that are not offered by traditional telephone companies. For instance, with VoIP you can set up call filtering options and can thus regulate how calls from certain numbers are handled. If you don’t want to receive a call, you can give the caller a busy signal or play a not in service message. Also, you can forward the call to a particular number or send the call directly to voicemail. Moreover, the voice mail can be checked on internet and you can attach messages to an e-mail that are sent directly to your computer or handheld. These services can prove to be very helpful in solving your day to day problems and above all they come at no extra cost.

Voip Lowdown

VoIP – A Business Solution

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

Communication is an important part of any business in today’s world. Whether this communication is internal or external to the business, the channels need to be efficient and cost effective, as their inefficiency can add a significant amount to the already huge operating costs of a business. This tough target of making the communications cheap and yet efficient can now be achieved by the business organizations by adopting VoIP.

VoIP is the latest telecom revolution that has proved to be a boon for the business organizations, many of which are going global nowadays. It is a means of communication between two people over a high speed broadband connection. Its most prominent feature is its affordability. With VoIP you can make long distance calls at a fraction of cost that you used to pay to your telephone companies. It is primarily because of the fact that transferring digital signals over internet is quite cheaper than transferring analog signals over the traditional telephone lines. Also, VoIP offers you great convenience in terms of mobility. It can literally travel with you by enabling you to make long distance calls from anywhere in the world where you can get broadband connectivity without even changing your phone number. This means you have a roaming mobile phone service whose call rates are cheaper than a fixed line phone. Also, the services that are charged separately by telephone companies, like call waiting, three-way calling, call forwarding, caller identification, repeat dial, last call return, come as standard services with VoIP. In addition to these services there are a host of other services that are not offered by traditional telephone companies. For instance, with VoIP you can set up call filtering options and can thus regulate how calls from certain numbers are handled. If you don’t want to receive a call, you can give the caller a busy signal or play a not in service message. Also, you can forward the call to a particular number or send the call directly to voicemail. Moreover, the voice mail can be checked on internet and you can attach messages to an e-mail that are sent directly to your computer or handheld. These services can prove to be very helpful in solving day to day problems of a business and above all they come at no extra cost.

VoIP Solution

Vonage VoIP

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

With the VoIP gaining popularity day by day, everyday a new player is jumping into the already crowded VoIP provides’ market. But there remain some outstanding providers who always lead the market with others merely following their footsteps. Vonage is one of these leaders.

Vonage is a leading player in the VoIP marketplace with over a million subscribers worldwide in a short lifespan of three years. It is one of the largest and most popular VoIP or Voice Over Internet Protocol providers. Like all VoIP programs, Vonage requires a DSL or Cable internet connection. When you call Vonage customer service for a connection, Vonage sends you a tiny box, which you have to plug to your telephone and your cable modem or DSL. You are now set to start a Vonage conversation. With a Vonage connection, you have access to your telephone through your computer and the broadband connection. The other big difference from a traditional phone service is cost effectiveness; with a Vonage, you can cut your telephone bill significantly, and converse worldwide by buying local telephone numbers from Vonage. Vonage also differs from its competitors like Skype in its cost structure. Vonage offers a number of monthly packages, offering allotted minutes or unlimited use. These allotted minutes can be used for calling anyone throughout the US. For calls outside the US, however, there is a long-distance charge applied per minute. Just like with land lines, the rate depends on the location called. But unlike landlines, the rates are always clearly posted, and are much cheaper. Thus, if you have a dependable broadband connection, need to make frequent international calls, and travel to different destinations in the world, Vonage is for you.

VoIP Reviews Online

Web Conferencing and VoIP

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

With its ever growing popularity, VoIP has become more useful with the introduction of web conferencing services using VoIP. Web conferencing has attracted many business organizations towards it and has become an instant hit among them.

Some of the advantages of web conferencing are it gives people the ability to interact with hundreds of others in real time, allowing them to exchange ideas or show examples to others anywhere in the world. The files can be shared over the net with full multi-media presentations, Flash animations and Power Point presentations. Besides just being able to watch what others are presenting, everyone in the web conference room are able to participate with each other using VoIP voice chat, text chat or video from a web cam. Like today’s current VoIP software phones there are conferencing solutions that are using peer to peer software because of which they no longer have to depend on using just the resources from one web server to handle the job. This is how hundreds of people are able to join in at the same time, and not have to pay per minute usage like some of the older out dated conferencing solutions. Thus, to use web conferencing you basically just need an up to date web browser and a good internet connection. Using a dial up connection is possible, but you really need a broadband connection to get the greatest benefits from a web conference call.

Web Conferencing Solutions by Peter Black

Why VoIP?

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

Besides those who are enjoying and experiencing the full benefits of VoIP by adopting it instead of their traditional phone lines, there are some people who are still wondering sitting on the VoIP fence, watching other people make free or nearly free Internet phone calls all over the world, and asking the question “why VoIP”? They are under the notions that VoIP is too complicated for them to use or it possesses low quality of service as compared to the regular phones. However, all these notions have been proved false by the popularity gained by VoIP in a very short period of time.
VoIP may sound unfamiliar to many but it is the hottest buzzword in the telecom industry. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is basically a process which converts your voice into digital signals that travel over internet. Its most prominent feature is its affordability. With VoIP you can make long distance calls at a fraction of cost that you used to pay to your telephone companies. And you don’t need a degree in telephony to use it, either. Moreover, it provides the best in terms of quality and value added features. It can literally travel with you by enabling you to make long distance calls from anywhere in the world where you can get broadband connectivity without even changing your phone number. Also, the services that are charged separately by telephone companies, like call waiting, three-way calling, call forwarding, caller identification, repeat dial, last call return, come as standard services with VoIP. In addition to these services VoIP provides a host of other services that are not offered by traditional telephone companies. Thus, choosing VoIP over your regular phone is not only a smart but also a wise choice.

Eric S. Brown

What is VoIP?

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Telephony is the process of routing voice conversations over an Internet Protocol network, rather than through traditional circuit-switched telephone lines. The voice information is converted into digital data packets and then transmitted over an IP network, such as the internet, or a local area network. Hence, in other words, VoIP Internet Telephony is a method by which the internet can be used to carry voice information, and replace the need for a traditional telephone line.

One very interesting feature of VoIP is that a VoIP call can actually be made in three different ways. The simplest is PC-to-PC internet telephony, which involves two computer users talking to each other using microphones. This is essentially the same as regular instant messaging, except that the voice data is exchanged, rather than plain text. Many popular messaging platforms allow users to use this type of VoIP at no cost whatsoever, no matter how far away they are, www.skype.com is one such VoIP service.

Another way of using VoIP is by connecting your regular telephone to your computer or Internet connection via ATA (analog telephone adaptor). This is the most common method for using VoIP right now. Unlike PC-to-PC telephony, this technology usually does involve some cost, but it is negligible compared to the cost of using a regular phone line.

The third technique for using VoIP is through IP phones. IP phone uses an RJ-45 Ethernet connector instead of the standard RJ-11 phone connectors. It connects directly to your router and all the hardware and software is already built inside to handle your VoIP calls.

VoIP and Packet Switching Technology

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

One of the reasons VoIP is so successful and advantageous is it uses packet switching technology rather than circuit switching technology to provide phone services. Most phone companies use circuit switching technology. Packet switching technology is different in that it allows multiple phone calls to occur within the same space a single phone call would occupy using a circuit network.

This means less transmission time is used and less expense is incurred for the same phone call placed using packet switching versus circuit switching technology. How does packet switching work? Basically you pick up the receiver or initiate a phone call, which sends a signal. After dialing a phone number the tones are converted into digital data your computer can read and stored temporarily until the VoIP company sends the phone number you punch in to their call processor. The processor maps the phone number to an IP address. That is nothing more than someone’s computer address, then connects the two computers together using a soft switch device.

Your Computer and VoIP
Your computer is basically acting as an intermediary, passing voice messages much like it would an e-mail to another user. You can talk for any length of time necessary, and all the while your computer and VoIP software will be transmitting data packets of information from one computer to the other, translating analog information into digital virtually automatically. The entire process takes just seconds and allows a higher volume of calls than a traditional phone line would.

Understanding What VoIP Has To Offer

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

Advantages and Features of VoIP

Studies suggest that millions of households will soon be using VoIP phone services in the next couple of years. One of the reasons VoIP is catching on so fast is it offers a wealth of features and advantages over traditional phone services. Here is just a brief review of some of the benefits and features VoIP has to offer:

Cost savings
VoIP technology allows consumers to save money. Most companies currently offering VoIP offer plans that are less expensive than many cell phone plans.

Competitive Features
Companies providing VoIP services are offering plans that include standard features like Caller ID, Call waiting, Repeat Dial and Three Way Calling.

Voicemail Superiority
You can check your mail while surfing the Web when using VoIP technology. Better yet you can attach messages to emails using VoIP and send them directly to consumers.

Flexibility
You can call someone from anywhere you have broadband access when using VoIP technology. That means if you travel frequently for business you can take an IP phone with you and access your home phone if you need to. You can also attach a phone to your laptop and place calls from anywhere in the world while connecting to the Net. This is a very appealing option for business consumers in particular.

Last but not least the technology VoIP uses is extremely efficient, meaning your calls are placed through non congested and inexpensive lines. This allows computers to communicate with one another and accept information relatively easily, without long waits or disconnects.

Getting Started With VoIP

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

Finding Free VoIP On The Web

If you are interested in trying out Voice Over Internet Protocol the good news is you can upload some free software to try before you by. Many Internet sites offer free software that takes a matter of minutes to upload and start using. Even better, have a family member do the same and start calling one another using VoIP. This way you and your friend will start understanding how to use VoIP and the many advantages VoIP has to offer.

Just Google VoIP for a list of qualified providers. Most people are already making calls using VoIP without even realizing it. Phone companies have used VoIP technology for some time to route phone calls from one place to another. Many phone company’s route calls through an IP Gateway. This reduces the amount of bandwidth they have to use when transferring calls to local switches.

VoIP Advantages

While IP phone use is just now making headlines, phone companies have known for some time that using VoIP is the most practical way to conduct business. Commercially VoIP has been doing well, now consumers just need to jump on the bandwagon and start learning how VoIP can benefit them when placing calls. Roughly 10 percent of the population is currently using VoIP technology. This is likely to change rapidly as consumers start realizing how beneficial digital data packets of information are when communicating. You can not only communicate over the net but store information, search, copy and combine converted data to use in any way you see fit. Corporations are slowly realizing that VoIP may offer competitive advantages. Consumers are starting to take advantage of the cost savings.

VOIP Business Guide

Sunday, July 30th, 2006

Technology never has limits. It has made communication between people located at distant places from simpler to simplest and is now making conversation between them from cheaper to cheapest. Long had people desired to keep chating on phone with their loved ones who resided far off? The huge costs incurred on conversation through typical phone lines have overridden their desire for communication. Even businesses tend to suffer from heavy bills on telephones. The latest advancements in technology in the form of VOIP have come as a rescue form these and make communication much simpler and economical.

Internet services have always been in increased demand and ever growing in popularity. The attractiveness of Internet is again enhanced through VOIP technique for vocal communication. Conversing through voice talk adds a personal touch to a discussion and helps one express oneself better. Traditional phone calls are now rapidly giving way to new VOIP technologies that makes use of Internet to transfer calls between stations. A VOIP system can enable talking over phone just free of cost using an Internet connection.

Although other forms of interacting at similar economical price exist in form of chating over net yet these forms have their inherent disadvantages. VOIP is much more personalized and offers greater chances for self-_expression. As opposed to textual chatting on net it is almost impossible commit identity theft on VOIP. Since each person has a unique accent, modulation and style of speech, it is unachievable to deceit a person’s voice. These factors have led to growing demand for VOIP services and devices that enable transfer of voice over Internet protocol.

The technique behind VOIP lies in converting analog signals through traditional phone lines to digital signals that can be transferred over web and again retransforming digital signals at destination to analog signals that enable a person to hear from their regular telephones. Using VOIP software it is possible to make Internet phone calls at any destination, international or local free of cost. An inherent outcome of this facility is that it leads to deceiving phone companies of their rentals. Contrarily VOIP services are going to greatly increase business for web service providers and augment the market for VOIP device manufactures.

Traditional phone lines use circuit-switching process for transmission where as VOIP technique relies on packet switching data transfer methods. Having dedicated phone line for every connection over net would obviously lead to slower outputs. Hence amore complex network of paths is established between stations that open and close according to requirement. Data flowing through these frenzied network travel in small packets that are small bifurcations of entire massage. Hence the name packet switching has been derived. IP phones or ATAs allow great amount of flexibility, as they can be administered from any place wherever there is Internet connection. Even price for VOIP is very tempting.

With such facilities and economy VOIP promises to revolutionize present voice communication methods. The speed at which VOIP is spreading just indicates that it would replace all existing phone lines in very near future.