VoIP is the name of a revolutionary technology that has made telephoning come together with the internet to provide maximum benefits to the users. The term VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. This is the new age alternative to making phone calls over the land line. It is a technology thereby which voice calls are made over a high speed internet connection.
There are two basic sources that can be used in order to make VoIP calls. The first is your computer which needs to have an internet connection for it to be used in order to avail this technology. The other way in which you can make use of this technology is by purchasing specially developed VoIP phones.
The thing that sets VoIP phones apart is the fact that the service is much cheaper than making calls from landlines. It is important for users to understand how come VoIP is able to run on such low costs. VoIP technology is actually a computer application that functions on already existing systems. You can continue to make use of all other forms of internet communication such as email and instant messaging because VoIP does not make any difference to that.
In some ways VoIP technology can be said to be similar to email but it isn’t free like email is. There is however certain ways in which VoIP is free. You can connect with other users of the technology absolutely free of charge through the internet. It is only when you use the technology to call on a landline or a cell phone that you will have to pay a certain amount of money. Nonetheless VoIP is still pretty cheap as compared to regular land lines.
Generally speaking we find that home and business users have switched to VoIP because of the reduced costs of the service. However this is not the only benefit that the service has to offer to its customers. VoIP is an internet based service. This allows you to take your phone number with you no matter where you go. Another very powerful feature of VoIP is the flexibility that it has to offer. For instance a business based in Atlanta can actually have a local number of Washington D.C. This feature has attracted many businesses to VoIP.
With all these advantages you may be wondering where the catch is? Actually there is a downside to VoIP despite its many advantages. The major drawback that users have to face with VoIP is that it doesn’t work during power outages.
Many businesses have purchased backup systems but not all the VoIP services have this kind of feature. The other problem is that you might not be able to have phonebook listings in the white pages with some of the VoIP service providers.
Tags: voip
Telephones have served as an essential means of audio communication for quite some time now. The advent of the internet has however revolutionized the concept of making phone calls. An amalgamation of the telephone and the internet has resulted in a revolutionary new technology that allows you to make telephone calls over the internet. This is what VoIP is.
The technology utilizes Voice over internet protocol which converts the voice into digital signal that can be transmitted over the internet. Special VoIP phones have been developed for this purpose. These phones are now widely available and users can enjoy the VoIP technology through them. The basic protocols of the technology are H.323, SIP or protocols similar to the proprietary ones such as Skype.
This is a relatively new phenomenon to hit the world market. Many people are still unaware of how the voice is transmitted through this technology. The voice transfers through the VoIP phone into the broadband router through which it makes its way to the internet and eventually finds itself at the VoIP service provider.
It is not necessary for an individual to purchase a separate VoIP phone in order to make use of this technology. Rather interested people can make use of their regular analogue telephones and connect them to a VoIP phone adapter in order to enjoy the benefits of the technology.
You will be able to find a number of service providers that will enable you to make use of the technology through your analogue phone. If you have a VoIP adapter then not only do you need to have a VoIP rather you don’t even need to have a computer system in order to be able to avail the VoIP service. Your analogue phone will be connecting to the broadband router by making use of the adapter. The router would then connect to the internet.
Basically this is how the cycle works: You start with your standard analogue telephone and connect that to the VoIP adapter. This in turn connects with the broadband router which connects to the internet and you find your way to the VoIP service provider.
There are certain broadband routers that come with a built in VoIP. These routers can also be used as adaptors. You can easily search for the broadband routers online and even make the purchase without having to leave your home.
However you do need to know what things you require in order to avail the VoIP service. The VoIP hardware consists of VoIP phones that can be plugged straight in to the network as well as a broadband router. If you are going to be making use of an analogue telephone then you will require VoIP adapters.
You can make use of software such as softphone using which you can operate from the PC and use the internet connection to make the VoIP calls. In addition you will need to have an internet connection and a subscription to a VoIP service.
Tags: voip
Ekiga (formely known as GnomeMeeting) is an open source VoIP and video conferencing application for GNOME. Ekiga uses both the H.323 and SIP protocols. It supports many audio and video codecs, and is interoperable with other SIP compliant software and also with Microsoft NetMeeting.
Tags: GnomeMeeting, voip, voip conference calls