Asterisk 1.8 Released With Support For Google Voice 83
Thinkcloud writes with a note that long-standing open-source VoiP software Asterisk has just been updated, and it's packed with more than 200 enhancements, security updates, and new features — including calendar integration and support for Google Voice and Google Talk. Asterisk's fully-featured PBX includes call waiting, hold and transfer, caller ID, and other useful tools so it's a great option for small businesses that need to watch costs."
Can I do this with Asterisk? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Don't use Google Voice for anything critical (Score:2, Interesting)
These issues you name actually happen with all companies.
Re:Small businesses that need to watch costs? (Score:5, Interesting)
Unfortunately, the small business is HIGHLY unlikely to have any of the skill set to get asterisk running, negotiate the Voip mine-field, and not lose calls and voice mail, and generate crippling telephone disruption for the entire business.
The benefits it offers just start to make it worth while at about 25 users or so, due to the falling prices of cat5 phone systems which you can pick up for pretty cheap these days, especially on the used market.
Asterisk is probably not really warranted until you have a hundred desks or so, and only then if you happen to have a fairly good geek on staff.
It is scalable, but not for the entry level technician unless all you want it to do is handle voice mail.
Re:What can a home user do with askerisk? (Score:2, Interesting)
You just need a SIP provider like Gizmo5. They are now owned by Google. This lets me make and receive unlimited free calls to anywhere in the US from any device that has a SIP client like my PC or my iPhone. As long as data is unlimited then calling is unlimited since its all VoIP on my end. Google Voice provides the link to PSTN.
If I call out, Google voice calls my Gizmo5 SIP number and my other party. If someone calls my Google Voice number, Google calls my SIP and connects me with the caller.
Re:Small businesses that need to watch costs? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Small businesses that need to watch costs? (Score:4, Interesting)
Crikey, I've run my house on asterisk with very little maintenance for the best part of a decade. I have multiple incoming numbers, least cost routing, Direct Inward System Access on a 1-800 number which I can use from hotels/airports etc, conference calling that gets used for family calls and work. An added bonus is the easy NAT traversal of the IAX protocol. It's easy to get a box up and running behind a domestic router.
For anyone looking for a really easy set-up, there's things like Trixbox.
Certainly it can seem daunting and there are pitfalls to beware of. However, small businesses are often spending a fortune on telephony that could be better placed, or they could be enjoying a feature set well beyond that currently available to them. As an example, we had a Nortel PBX with about 20 extensions and were looking for an extra two lines. Either we needed a card installed to provide the extra lines, or they could make a software change to enable VoIP and we could have added two SIP phones using our existing networking. The cost of either option was > $3,000.
Re:What can a home user do with askerisk? (Score:1, Interesting)
"If you want to light up your in-house phone lines, it's $200 for an FXS card. If you want to use an existing landline as a trunk, it's $200 for an FXO card."
A Linksys 3102 has both 1 fxo and 1 fsx and costs about $60. A Linksys PAP2T has 2 fxs ports and costs about $50 (only downside is the lack of t38 (but that shouldn't matter much for home use)).
Re:Don't use Google Voice for anything critical (Score:1, Interesting)
I've been testing Google integration in Freeswitch and there's WAY too much latency to use this for anything other than a novelty.