In Trouble? Dial 9-1-1
When you dial 911 on your regular phone, you are connected with the nearest PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point), which routes your call to the proper emergency services like the fire department, police, etc. As your wired phone number is hooked to the national 911 network, your call is automatically sent to the PSAP nearest to your phone location and the emergency personnel can respond immediately to it.

911 emergency calling has saved numerous lives from the time it started in 1969, becoming a part of the American way of life. Over the years, the communication system has seen many changes and upgrades. one such improvement is E911

E911 – How It Works

E911, short for Enhanced 911, is an improvement over the basic 911 calling system. It uses the location technology to pinpoint the physical location of the phone from which the emergency call originates. In most part of America, when you dial 911, your name and street address appear on the screen when the phone is picked up by the operator at the other end.

In this way E911 saves a lot of precious time which otherwise would be wasted in getting the location details from the caller. The only thing that caller has to convey is the emergency situation he is facing and the call is directed to the appropriate emergency department. Because of this, even in situations when the caller is not able to speak, the message of emergency reaches the PSAP.Click here for tips on 911 emergency calling.

E911 and VoIP Telephony

The traditional telephone system is connected to the national 911 network. When someone dials 911 on it, the call location is instantly identified because the landline phone number is tied to a physical location such as your home or office. But with VoIP the scene is different. Your broadband telephone number does not relate with your location. Moreover, you can have a broadband phone number with an area code different from where you live. (See VoIP Features). When you make a 911 call on such a phone, your call may reach hundreds of miles away from where you live.

This is why VoIP telephony lacked E911 facility in its early days. Now because of the FCC ruling that the wireless phones also should have this facility in place by a certain date, the VoIP service providers have started offering this service. However, when signing for a VoIP service, do look at the kind of E911 service you would be getting. Also don’t forget to register your address on the VoIP phone web site at the time of joining. This should be updated when you take your broadband phone to another location.

Also visit the FCC site for more information.

You are on E911 – Your Helpline page Click here to go to home page.

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Cisco enjoys international brand recognition which ensures that its products come with high quality performance. That is why Cisco SPA 504G 4-Line IP Phone enjoys popularity among IP phone users.

So if you are looking for an IP or Internet Phone for your home or business that need an IP Phone with high grade quality in voice then this Cisco IP Phone can be for you. With its voice communication mobility and flexibility it is highly suited to your home as well business establishments that require quality performance at a very affordable price tag.

Product Description:

The Cisco SPA 504G 4-line IP Phone provides small businesses a rich user experience with a monochrome backlit display for ease of use, aesthetics, and on-screen applications; HD voice for unsurpassed voice clarity; enhanced full duplex speaker phone for clear conversations across the desk; and an integrated switch port to connect your computer.

Salient Features of Cisco SPA 504G 4-line IP Phone

• Supports four phone lines
• Full-duplex Speakerphone, headset, message waiting indicator, dynamic softkeys for phone functions
• 4-way navigation key to easily scroll through phone features, call history directories, and on phone applications
• Dedicated buttons for Mute, Headset, Speakerphone, Volume, Hold, Menu settings and Voicemail access
• Integrated Ethernet switch port to connect a computer and reduce cable cost
• HD Voice for unsurpassed voice clarity and enhanced speaker quality
• Support for up to two Cisco SPA 500S Expansion Modules, which provide an additional 64 phone lines
• Monochrome backlit display for ease of use, aesthetics, and on-screen applications
• Paper label for bottom four line buttons
• Supports both Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and Smart Phone Control Protocol (SPCP)
• A standard 90-day software warranty and 12-month hardware warranty.

Check out Cisco SPA 504G 4-Line IP Phone at Amazon for more information as well as discounted pricing.

Actual User Experience

And this is borne out by a number of customers who actually have used this Cisco SPA 504G 4-line IP Phone. Most consumers have had a positive experience with this IP Phone. However one customer did have a problem with its backlights but was resolved by Cisco.

Click here to buy Cisco SPA 504G 4-Line IP Phone.

If you are interested in making free calls, this is yet another way – free phone to phone calls.

No, they are not VoIP calls because they don’t go through the internet. But they work very much like VoIP calls because they depend upon advertising done through the internet. This is one of the reasons for this special page on this VoIP site.

Another, and more important, reason is to provide our site visitors with one more avenue for making free calls.

How Free Phone To Phone Calls Work

Free phone to phone calling operates very much like free pc to phone calls in the way that you have to earn free minutes by completing offers or visiting advertiser sites. The difference is that here you use your traditional phone instead of the VoIP phone to make these calls.

Global Free Calling

Global Free Calling is an example of a site where you can make free phone to phone calls. You earn free calling time by completing various offers on the site and make calls from US. Signup is free and the site as of now is open to US residents only.

Free Phone To Phone Calls With Rebtel

Free phone to phone calling is usually not free but there is a way to do that as mentioned above which entails advertising on the part of the call provider.

But Rebtel is one service provider which allows you to make free international calls from phone to phone.

You can also make free international phone to phone calls with Rebtel.

Click here to start making free phone to phone calls now.

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You are on Free Phone to Phone Calls page, click here to go to home page.

It would be surprising if VoIP wasn’t popular with so much going for it.

So what’s so special about VoIP?

Can you imagine a technology for talking to your friends across the globe as long as you like (or until they hang up on you) or maybe catch up with your family members living away from you or across the street without worrying about expenses?

VoIP is that technology. It lets you make calls either free or at rates which you can’t imagine with any regular phone system in the world.

What Is Free With Internet Phone Technology?

You can make pc to pc calls to any place in the world without paying anything anytime. Register with any of the free VoIP providers, download its software and you are on for free calls. The only requirement is that the person with whom you want to call is also registered with the same free VoIP provider. This is how free VoIP works.

Moreover you don’t need any fancy equipment for making the free calls either. What usually comes with the present day computers – mike and speakers – would do, though you can go for other equipment if you like.

What Is Not Free?

Internet calls to landline or mobile telephone are not free.

But here also the rates are unbelievably low – around two cents a minute for an overseas call and limitless domestic calls for a flat monthly fee which could be around $25 a month.

The rates for overseas calls may vary from country to country and with various calling plans from the broadband phone providers. But one thing is for sure – you pay lots less, sometimes as much as 90%, than what a regular telephone company would charge you for making such calls.

As if all this were not enough to make VoIP any body’s favorite, there is yet another side to it.

Free Pc to Phone Calling – Best of Both Worlds

This one beats both free and paid VoIP. It goes beyond free VoIP to let you make phone calls to landline phones but unlike in paid VoIP you don’t pay any money for these calls. Instead you have to put in some effort here. Even then free pc to phone calling is VoIP at its best if you have some time for it.

With all this going for this technology, do you still wonder why it is so popular? In fact as the VoIP advances it is going to be even more popular with added features which are not available with the traditional phone lines.

You are on Why Is VoIP So Popular? page, click here to go to home page.

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Dependence On Power And Internet
One of the main VoIP disadvantages or limitations is that VoIP Telephony needs both power and internet to work. When the power goes out, you don’t have VoIP.

The same thing occurs when your ISP (Internet Service Provider) doesn’t have power or is down for maintenance. In this situation, if you don’t have an additional landline phone, you are left with no means of communication with the outside world.

Here is where the traditional phone line scores over the VoIP telephone system. Even when there is no power in your house or office, your traditional landline phone works as it is powered by the electricity at the phone company.

Emergency Calls
Power outage may not be much of a problem if it is for a shortPower outage may not be much of a problem if it is for a short duration, but this can cause severe difficulty if you want to make an emergency call during this time. One way to get around this problem is to have a back up power system -  universal power supply – or maintain a regular landline phone for such emergency situations.

Another area where your traditional phone has advantage over the VoIP telephone is that when you dial 911 on it, you are immediately connected to the nearest PSAP (PublicSafety Answering Point), a physical location where 911 emergency telephone calls are received and then routed to the proper emergency services.

Inability to make 911 calls on VoIP phones was a serious issue, but this VoIP disadvantage has been largely overcome because now most VoIP service providers offer E911 feature with their services.

If emergency calling is your concern and if you plan to replace your landline phone with an internet phone, sign up with a service provider which provides acceptable E911 facility with its service.

Here the thing to remember is that even the best E911 service from your VoIP provider will be of no use when your internet connection goes down because your ISP has power outage or is down for maintenance.

Other Related Issues:

• Home Security
  If you have a home security system which runs on your traditional telephone line, it will shut down when you replace your landline phone with an internet phone. The solution here is to go for a VoIP-compatible or independent wireless security system. You can find such companies serving your area by making a search on the internet.
• DSL Internet Connection
  If you have broadband DSL connection coming through a wired telephone line, you will have to replace it with cable broadband when replacing your landline phone.
• You Lose Your Phone Number
  Still another VoIP disadvantage is that when you give up your regular phone in favor of an internet phone, you get a new phone number. You have to inform your relatives, friends and business contacts about this change. A way to overcome this VoIP disadvantage is to keep your old phone number -one of the many VoIP features  offered by VoIP service providers
• PC Power
  One of the advantages of VoIP is that you can make a VoIP call and surf the internet at the same time. This can turn into a VoIP disadvantage if your pc has limited process capacity. Your call can be affected or totally crash if you are downloading a big file or running a program that needs lots of process power.

VoIP Security

Still another VoIP disadvantage is that VoIP can suffer the same security threats that your pc does – viruses, identity theft, phising and spam. If you have been using your pc to surf the internet you know that there are ways to safeguard yourself against such threats. It is the same with VoIP. Here also you can certainly take a number of steps toward VoIP security and enjoy the many benefits of VoIP.

With such VoIP disadvantages, should you give up on VoIP?

No, certainly not. VoIP has lots of benefits along with some drawbacks like any other system.

The regular phone system has been around for more than a century and has faced a number of problems before attaining its present status. In comparison, VoIP is a toddler learning to take its first steps.

But compared to the traditional telephony, it has made big strides in a short time. So you can expect the voip technology to overcome these disadvantages in not too distant a future.

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You are on VoIP Disadvantages page click here to go to home page.

Go to VoipBuster, a Betamax group VoIP provider. It lets you make pc to landline calls to 32 countries free.  The only thing to do is to download the application, register your account and make a credit deposit.

Buying credit entitles you to 120 “Freedays”. This means you can call, for a period of 120 days (unless stated otherwise), all destinations marked as “Free” for free! When you have run out of Freedays, you can call these destinations at a minimal rate.

The other condition is maximum 300 minutes per week of free pc to phone calls, measured over the last 7 days. If limit is exceeded, a minimal rate is charged.

If you deposit Euro 10, this works out to Euro 0.083 a day to make free calls to 32 destinations. Or work out the charge per minute and see if it isn’t better than free way to make pc to phone calls.

The deal gets even sweeter if you consider that you can use your credit to make calls to non-free destinations. Moreover you don’t have to earn free minutes here which costs you internet service charges if nothing else. Add up all the factors and draw your own conclusions.

(Number of free countries and freedays is correct at the time of updating this page (Nov. 14, 2006). These and other terms and conditions may be altered anytime by the VoIP providers so please refer to the site for the latest info.)

Free PC to Phone Calls Providers

Other Betamax Free VoIP Providers

As I said above VoipBuster has 33 free destinations which may not include the country of your choice. But it could be in any of the other VoIP providers from the Betamax group with similar features I InternetCalls, VoIPcheap, VoIPstunt, VoIPCheap, VoIPCheap UK, Voipdiscount, Sipdiscount. Netappel, Poivy VoipStunt and Free Call.

Every one of them has its list of free international destinations to which you can make free pc to phone calls. You also get various features with them such as free phone-in numbers for selected destinations and call forwarding.

By the way, you can try any of these VoIP providers for free. Most give you 1 minute free make a trial call to any of the free destinations. The active period and free destinations and other conditions could change. So check out the sites for currently available features.

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Looking for Free Pc to Phone Calls, click to go to home page.

All the free VoIP providers below let you make free pc to pc calls – the condition is that you and the person you call should have the same software on your computer and both should be online at the same time.

No special equipment needed – speakers or headset and mike is what you need to make free pc to pc calls.

Free VoIP Providers

Google Talk
We use Google to search the web and send emails by Gmail. With Google Talk, it has now joined the ranks of free voip providers. Use Google Talk to talk free with anybody anywhere in the world. Click here for more info

Yahoo Messenger
Like Google talk, you can use Yahoo Messenger to make pc to pc calls on Yahoo Messenger.Click here for more info

Skype
If you have heard of VoIP, you have heard of Skype. The pioneer in free pc to pc calling. Click here for more info.

AOL Messenger
AOL is a great source on the web. Now it lets you make free pc to pc calls too. Check it out here

Gizmo Project
Gizmo Project uses your internet connection (broadband or dial-up) to make calls to other computers. With the click of a mouse, you’re connected to friends, family, and colleagues anywhere on earth. It’s just that simple. You talk clearly. For as long as you want. For free. Click here for more info.

Free World Dialup
FWD enables anyone with a broadband connection to communicate over the Internet, whether it be instant messaging, voice, or video. Click here for more info.

vBuzzer
Simply sign up a free account, download the software, you can get Vbuzzer for free, and you can make free pc to pc calls now. Click here for more info.

Globe7
With Globe7, it is absolutely free to make calls from PC to PC. Make free calls to your Globe7 buddies and save money on your phone service. Click here for more info.

SharpVoice

The SharpVoice Network is a Peer-to-Peer Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) system that provides clear PC-to-PC and PC-to-Phone communications over a dial-up or broadband connection. It includes client software that you download onto your system and a suite of services that we provide to allow additional services such as buddy lists.Click here for more info.

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You are on Free VoIP Providers paga.  click here to go to home page

There are basically two types of VoIP solutions – software-based and hardware-based – depending upon how the VoIP system works.

It is on these types of VoIP Solutions that the large and small business VoIP solutions and residential VoIP solutions are based.

While the software-based VoIP solution is mostly used to make personal calls and can be used for residential use, you need hardware-based VoIP solution for your business as this solution replicates the traditional phones that we are used to.

Here is how these kind of VoIP Solutions work:

Software-based VoIP Solution:

Softphone

Software-based VoIP works on a software which you can download free from most VoIP provider sites. Besides this all you need is a broadband or DSL connection and a headset or microphone and speakers connected to your computer. Now you are ready to make VoIP calls right from your computer to another computer or a regular landline phone anywhere in the world.

So this is downloadable VoIP which can be used in two ways:

1. Pc-to-Pc or Free VoIP

This is the most basic kind of VoIP and is almost always free – no matter how long you talk to anybody in the world. Click here to read about this cheapest VoIP solution Free VoIP.

2. Pc-to-Phone VoIP

With this software-based VoIP solution, you use your computer to call other landline phones free or at ridiculously low rates. Free pc to phone calling is also possible with certain VoIP service providers. Click here to read about Pc-to-Phone VoIP and Free Pc to Phone Calls.

Hardware-based VoIP Solution:

Internet Phone or Broadband Phone

This is a more flexible VoIP solution. In this VoIP solution, your regular telephone turns into an Internet or Broadband Phone. It connects to the broadband internet connection through your computer. An additional piece of software converts the voice (analog) signals of your phone to digital signals which are carried over the internet. You dial the number from your regular phone and the person you call doesn’t feel the difference that you are calling from a VoIP phone because the voice quality with this solution is generally better than a software-based or softphone. This is because with this VoIP solution you will be using your regular handset to talk and listen instead of a headphone or speakers and mike.

IP Phone

This is the most flexible VoIP solution – the ultimate in VoIP telephony.

It is a special VoIP phone. It looks like any normal phone but all the software and hardware needed to make a VoIP call is included in the IP Phone. You don’t have to keep your computer switched on to use this phone because it connects directly to your internet connection through a router device.

Click here to read about Internet Phones

Wi-Fi Phone

This is yet another VoIP solution like the IP Phone, but with the difference that it looks like a regular cell phone – actually it is a mobile VoIP phone that you can carry in your pocket. Now Wi-Fi Phones are starting to come into the market for use from Wi-Fi Hotspots.

You are on VoIP Solutions page Click here to go to home page.

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You probably have heard that you can save lots of money using VoIP to make calls, but haven’t tried it yet. The reason may be you are not sure what VoIP is all about or what equipment you need for it.

If this is what holds you back from taking advantage of VoIP, let me tell you that though you need not know the technology of VoIP to use it, the basic concept behind behind VoIP is not hard to understand. Neither do you need lots of fancy and costly equipment to use it. In fact you may already have all the equipment you need to start making VoIP calls right now.

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. Now don’t let that put you off. What it simply means is that when you use VoIP to call a friend,  your voice travels over internet to reach your friend. Likewise when your friend replies, that voice also comes back to you over internet.

This means that the only difference between VoIP and regular phone calls is that VoIP technology uses the internet instead of the regular phone cable lines to carry voice back and forth between the callers.
So it follows that to make VoIP calls you need equipment which allows you to send and receive voice data over the internet.

Essential VoIP Equipment

Because you are reading this you already have the most basic VoIP equipment or VoIP hardware: a computer connected with broadband internet.

Now what if you have a dial up connection? You can still make VoIP calls but the quality of sound may not be as good as it would be with a broadband connection.

Therefore if you want to enjoy VoIP to the fullest, broadband is what you need. In the past broadband used to be very costly compared to dial up internet connection. But not so now. With development in technology broadband has become very much affordable and widely available.  Now there are lots of broadband VoIP providers around with different service plans. So you can easily shop around for the service option most suited to your needs.

A sound card is another piece of  VoIP equipment you need on your computer for VoIP calls. If your machine is fairly new it most probably has a sound card already installed on it as well as has a mike and speakers with it.

This is all you need to start making VoIP calls – a computer with internet and sound card and mike and speakers.

Now the only thing you need is to sign up with a VoIP service provider and you are on. Depending upon what kind of calls you want to make, you have three options choose from:(1) Free VoIP Providers, (2) Pc to phone VoIP Providers or (3) Broadband Phone Providers

Additional VoIP Equipment

Headphones

A mike and speakers would do very well for your normal needs but if you want to have your hands free when making a call, you can use a headphone with your computer.

ATA (Adapter)

And if you would like to have the convenience of using the phone handset for making VoIP calls, you can easily do that by investing in an adapter. This is a piece of equipment which connects your regular landline phone to your computer turning it into a VoIP phone with the convenience of using it as a regular phone when you want.

Internet Phone

You can also get a special phone to use with VoIP. Called an IP phone, this looks and works like a regular phone but it connects directly with your internet connection so you don’t have to keep your computer on to make and receive VoIP calls.

In the end what it all comes to is that depending upon what kind of VoIP you use, you can decide how much or less to spend on VoIP equipment.

For full-fledged broadband VoIP you may go for an IP phone if you wish but you can have the same convenience to make calls with your regular telephone by connecting it with an adapter.  For pc to pc or pc to phone VoIP, you need not invest in an adapter either. A headphone or plain mike and speakers would do as well. If you have these at least, you have got all the basic VoIP equipment it needs to explore and enjoy the advantages of the VoIP technology.

You are VoIP Equipment page, click here to go to home page.

What Is A Phreak Attack?
The words “phone” and “freak” combine to coin the term “phreak” to describe a phone hacker. The phreak tries to break into your telephone network with the intention of listening to your conversations or making costly calls at your expense.

In other words, phreaking is a VoIP security threat to internet phone network as well as to conventional phones and can do lots of damage to you.

Necessity of VoIP Security Measures

Why VoIP Is More Vulnerable to Phreak Attacks

Phreaking is not something new. For years the traditional phone lines have been victims of this illegal activity. However, over the years, the phone lines have got smart. They have tightened the security around their communication networks and made it difficult, if not impossible, for the hackers to penetrate them.

On the other hand the VoIP telephone technology which is comparatively a new kid on the block often provides opportunities to the hackers to get into them and do their nefarious work. The reason is that VoIP works on internet and is vulnerable to the same security threats that internet is prone to.

So if your VoIP service has some security loophole, a phreaker can not only make calls at your expense but also can spy on you and learn about your personal financial information if you give it out while using your phone.

What can result from such attack can be easily imagined. Somebody can take over your identity and do immeasurable financial and other kind of damage as well as commit acts for which you could be blamed. If you are using VoIP service for your business, a phreaking intrusion can result in your business secrets being passed to your competitors.

How Real Is Phreak Threat?

Phreak attack is like an auto accident.

You don’t expect to smash your car every time you drive out. But deep down you know that such a thing can happen with you. That’s why you take precautions while driving and also take out auto insurance.

In the same way, while all VoIP phones are not attacked, any phone can be a victim. So like taking auto insurance, it pays to be aware of the threat and do what you can about it to guard yourself.

So What Can You To Guard Against Phreaking?

Before registering with a VoIP service, shop around. Look at various VoIP service providers. See what security measures are built into their services. Visit VoIP forums where members talk about their experience with different VoIP services. If a friend or a business associate is using a VoIP phone, learn if they are experiencing any problems.

And once you start using a VoIP service, check your billing statements with care. Unusually high calling charges or calls made to unknown numbers or destinations should raise a warning flag that somebody could be making calls at your expense.

If you find any such suspicious or unexplained items on your bill, promptly get into touch with your service provider for an explanation and redressing.

All these precautions would go a long way to keep safe when you are using VoIP telephones. Last but not the least, learn about VoIP security. Being aware of possible dangers is the first step towards guarding against them.

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