Toshiba Phone System

For a small business, what is better - VOIP or physical phone lines.. what phone system? I am starting a small business with three employees. I would like to know whether it would be best to have a VOIP system or actually put in phone lines with a phone system. I will be working in the office and at my home at times while the others will be in the office mostly.

A not too pricey VoIP phone system for a small business? We have a small business with a few offices and are looking for a VoIP phone system. Anyone out there running a small business have one they are happy with that did not break the bank?

I'm looking for a new phone system for my small business - anyone suggest a VOIP service?

What phone system do you recommend? I manage a small business and everyone works from home. Do you know of a VOIP phone system that I could get virtual numbers with extensions, then have calls answered by an answering service...then forwarded to the worker's number at home? I tried Skype, but I don't think it does that. or does it?

Wireless IP phone small office system? I have a small business that I would like to run VOIP system in but: a) I don't want to pay thousands of dollars for such system and b) I'm renting an old office space that does not have LAN capabilities and I'm having a hard time negotiating a deal with the property manager. How would I go about a Wireless IP phone system that would allow me to run my business better and not go through construction, wiring closet, wall ethernet ports, etc I've been looking at some Wireless IP phones but I don't think it is as simple as turn on a wireless IP phone, connect it to your wireless router, and you are all set. Can someone give me an idea on what other equipments are needed?

Any suggestions for alternative to land line phones for small business? My family owns a small business & we are having a terrible time with our local (it's a small company) phone company. We purchased our phone system through them about 2.5 years ago & have had nothing but problems since. They seemed to resolve them & we haven't had many problems for about 6 months now. However, this last week we are having problems with calls being dropped, echos, etc... Many of our customers & vendors when they do get through are complaining that it's taken them several tries to get through. So- we've had it, we are fed up! Does anyone know of any other alternative multi-line phone systems we could use? I've looked into VOIP but am not sure if it's available in our area. Are there any cell phone providers that provide business services with multi-line phones? We need a minimum of 4 in-coming lines. Thanks~

Need Internet phone system with PBX features? I have a small buisness and over the years have a rigged up hone syetem that is surely costly and inefficient. Want to explore new options: One main line with a greeting message and ability to transfer to a maximum of five office lines. One fax. Need to transfer between lines. I have seen the VOIP lines and they look super. Does anyone have a suggestion for a flexible system that can be managed by a small business owner with moderate computer skills. Thank you!

Internet Upgrade for Small Business? Well this is what I'm looking at. 15 people at the business. Main program we use is a Web based Application. Have like a hybrid VoIP system. VPN is being done every now and then, but just for work outside the office on weekends, by an employee or two. And we are experiencing slow internet problems. We currently have a T1 connection, and to get another T1, its twice the price, nearly $750 a month w/ router. And that doesn't include the Phones. So im looking at a Business class DSL. With the DSL I can get 22 up and 5 down for a fraction of the price. The only things I'm curious about is how that works with the VoIP and VPN, any problems or what not. Being as small as we are, I don't see for needing the benefits of T1 over DSL... any incite?

What kind of phone system would work for this? I am setting up a small business and need multiple lines with dedicated numbers set up in my home office, each with separate voice mails. Each line would belong to a different client and each needs their own separate number. For instance I need to know if line 1 is ringing that is client A's clientele calling and if its line 2 ringing then I know that is client B's clientele calling. I would only need up to 4 lines to begin with the possibility of more in the future and I only need one phone station as I do not have any employees. Does anyone know what kind of service this would be? Or who might offer a good option for me? I have talked to AT&T but I wasn't in love with their solution and I do not want to go with a VOIP service. Everything else I look into seems geared towards bigger small business. Additional Details I know I could handle the volume of calls on 1 or 2 lines but the business that I am providing will need each client to have their own line, as I will be answering their dedicated line as if I was in their office with their personal greeting. And they need a number that is theres alone and not shared with another one of my clients. Its my clients clientel that is calling on separate lines hence the need for separate numbers. I need answer the phone like this "thank you for call client A, how can we assist you." or if it is client B's clientele I would need to say "Thank you for calling clinet B's business how can we assist you" I can just pick up the line and say r u calling for this company, that company or this company. The objective is to sound as if I am working solely for one company in their office when in fact I am working from home for several different clients.

Magic Jack USB VoIP Device. What's the difference between Magic Jack and Vonage? I have Vonage, which is VOIP, but we pay for Vonage to have our business phone numbers (4 of them) and pay about $50 to $75/month for this and we love it. Plus, we have 1 bellsouth phone landline because we have a security system that requires a landline. I also have a Vonage V-Phone, which is a small USB phone that plugs into any computer with broadband connection. The V-Phone does connect through our vonage account. I'm trying to figure out what the difference in Vonage and Magic Jack is? For Magic Jack, the video said you pay $40 for the usb device and your calls are free. When I went to ebay to see prices for Magic Jack, the description says Magic Jack VoIP Free Calls To and From USA. What's the real difference??? The short video I was sent is here: http://www.magicjack.com/site/index.html

can you help me improve our office telephone system.? Hi, my boss asked me to to figure out a way to cut down drastically on our telephone expenses. Although I don't handle telephone systems per say, I'm a computer IT guy and figure I can handle this. We currently have a 30 year old dinosaur phone system supported by Avaia and it's routing four phone lines from ATT..then a fifth dedicated fax line which goes to a computer with fax software. Total 5 telephones, it's a small office. My goal is to cut down the telephone lines to 2 or 3 as business is very slow (we only advertise one number too). I'm hoping to get rid of the whole telephone system (which looks like a big switchboard and currently takes up a large closet) and get rid of the avaya bill too..phones can be bought on ebay for cheap when they break...we're only paying for Avaya to keep the dinosaur alive, and they don't want to do it. Basically the only features we need in office are the ability to put calls on hold and the boss likes his speed dialing...intercom would be nice. Any suggestions..what would you do? Links to telephone routers or voip or something would help. Thanks.

Anyone care to proof read my cover letter for an employment application? i know it's far from perfect but any suggestions would be greatly greatly appreciated! if you want to email me back any changes my mail is nfrank89@gmail.com here's the AD im responding to http://seattle.craigslist.org/skc/sad/1106300052.html Hello! My name is Nick Franklin and I am responding to your craigslist ad for an IT Support Specialist. The thing that really caught my eye from your ad was not the title; it was the “jack-of-all trades” statement as that is what I have always considered myself to be! Reading further only added to the excitement as line by line I read about the perfect job for me! I currently work part time for a small startup IT/Customer support business in Seattle called In City Networks, LLC. I have a great relationship with my boss and my clients but the business is on the back burner right now and we are not actively acquiring new clients so there isn’t quite enough work to pay the bills. However, I love the job. In City Networks is similar to Best Buy’s Geek Squad, we provide Hardware and software support, peripheral installation/support, we even help setup home theater systems. And all of our services are provided remotely or in person. I am also familiar with documenting my work and using that as a tool to troubleshoot future problems and keep track of steps already performed so I do not waste time and money implementing steps and procedures which have already taken place. As I said before, I am a jack-of-all trades. Not only in the IT field though, have my skills ranged from automotive repair to cooking to just about anything! I am motivated to succeed at any task that is thrown my way and I do so very thoroughly with attention to detail. Whenever I come across a problem that I cannot troubleshoot on my own I put my research skills to work. I use all tools made available to me to find the answers to any question or solve any problem I may have. I also provide excellent customer service and communication, two things I learned while working as a cashier at QFC. Throughout my educational career I have served as both a great team player and leader. As a team player I do my part to make sure all that is expected of me is organized and completed on time. As a team leader I use my communication skills to keep in touch with all group members and to motivate those who may be slacking or having trouble. I’ve covered some of my knowledge and skills but I’ll focus more on that now. Problem solving is not only a skill, but a hobby of mine. I enjoy the challenge and the praise after solving problems. I like to feel that what I do is important and helpful and this motivates me to work harder. I can see that this position is one of importance and I believe that I will perform well. I am quite familiar with traditional phone systems and less, but also familiar with VoIP systems. (Nothing a little research can’t fix!) Again, my main duty with In City Networks is to provide customer service and technical support so I am already experienced with remote and in person assistance, contract negotiation, and procedure documentation. Another thing we believe in at In City Networks is teaching our clients as we go and helping them prevent future problems. Bringing this skill to your company can definitely increase productivity over time by helping employees understand how to solve and prevent common issues. And finally, I am familiar with network devices such as AP’s and firewalls. I can easily research or be trained to use any equipment that I am not familiar with. I am currently unable to finish college due to lack of funds but still wish to begin my career. Please consider my application. If the position is no longer available then I would be interested in an internship if that is something you can offer. Anything I can do to get my foot in the door because this job seems to be exactly where to begin my career. Thank you very much for your consideration, -Nick Franklin

Cheapest PBX? Hello, How does a small business set up the most affordable pbx system? Lets say we do not want to set up an actual phone system - such as the one which connects the box in the phone/wire room, and the jacks all go out through that phone box. Rather, how does one set up a phone system which would be connected through the computer, or a phone handset. I believe there are some voip/computer solutions, but i fail to understand how it works. Could someone please provide detail step by step guide as to how to set up an affortable pbx through the technology of desktop computer/voip, etc? Thanks! P.S: The functions that are expected from the pbx system, is that when someone wants to make a phone call, they can dial the main number, and then dial the appropriate extension, so that the caller would be routed to the appropriate person.

Office telephony system? Im in the Uk i need to set up a telephone system possibly runnign on Voip - i want to be able to have diffrent extensions, every sales agent has his own voicemail and direct line - wi want to be abel to have a group setting where all phones ring once a main 0800 number calls through - how much would this cost me im a small business user 10 - 20 users...

Living privately, off grid and out of the system.? I read a article about how a business man wanted to find out what it would be like to suddenly disappear from his life and start over again with a new identity and be untraceable. When he was ready he published a contest for people to find him and win a $5,000 prize. It lasted a couple of months along with a blog plotting the investigations progress. Out of the security experts, former FBI agents, and others it was actually a kid in High school who figured it out and finally got him. Depending on how well known your face is it seems like half the problem of disappearing would be easy. Just stop using credit card/ debit cards. Never accept checks so you don't have to cash it. Use voip instead of a cell phone. Alfa wireless antenna to get internet signals for a mile around along with a booster that looks like a big Pringals Can would make it 3+ miles. Move to a city that has excellent public transportation. Rent a room/apartment from a private owner instead of landlord. Or set up a RV in the woods with solar panels and river nearby (but that would require a car + insurance. Then again... if you buy a car used and keep the plates, drive carefully without being pulled over and don't do insurance.) The only issue left is how would you receive postal mail. PO boxes require ID. Receiving mail from another persons private address is cheating because they would know your identity. What if you wanted to travel the country; flying, train, and even greyhound bus would be out of the question. That leaves only driving or car pool. Would there be any other inconveniences? For making money a person could sell their services as a contracted worker. I freelanced for a couple of years when I got back from over seas and with a little in advertising it easy to get clientele going for all kinds of hobbies become profession. But if you were like the Wikileaks guy Assange then you couldn't go out much without being recognized. Perhaps a internet business for income. This is just a what if scenario. What if the government takes a turn towards fascism, or you became a political enemy, or famous and wanted to be left alone. Personally I wish I could set up a small house somewhere out in the woods - completely self sustainable with electricity, water, and heat efficiency along with a large garden and small animals. I'd still want to go into the city and internet is a requirement for my sanity. Who knows what the future will hold and it's nice to have a plan B, im sure the jews thought so living in the 1940's Germany, or a Japanese American around the same time in a USA internment camp. A child in the 1920's industrial revolution, a woman in the 1950's, marijuana user in the 1960's, or a black person... pretty much any time in the last three hundred years in the western world. What are your thoughts on the privacy thing. How would you do it.

Can you use your VOIP service remotely from outside landline? I have a small business and my field workers sometimes need to make long distance calls within the US. We have broadband connection with 2 VOIP companies, Vonage and OptimumVoice. Both of these carriers already offer us unlimited long distance within the US. For my field workers some locations they visit dont have either phones or don't have long distance service. Im asking if there is a way they can remotely connect to our office broadband VOIPs service and use the long distance service from there? Almost like a calling card system but its running off our current broadband VOIP services. Is this possible??

Need Internet phone system with PBX features? I have a small buisness and over the years have a rigged up hone syetem that is surely costly and inefficient. Want to explore new options: One main line with a greeting message and ability to transfer to a maximum of five office lines. One fax. Need to transfer between lines. I have seen the VOIP lines and they look super. Does anyone have a suggestion for a flexible system that can be managed by a small business owner with moderate computer skills. Thank you!

help i have no idea wat this means some body explain in short text 10 points best answer in plain explantion? Overview Instant messaging (IM) and chat are technologies that facilitate near real-time text based communication between two or more participants over a network. It is important to understand that what separates chat and instant messaging from technologies such as e-mail is the perceived synchronicity of the communication by the user - Chat happens in real-time before your eyes. For this reason, some people consider communication via instant messaging to be less intrusive than communication via phone. However, some systems allow the sending of messages to people not currently logged on (offline messages), thus removing much of the difference between Instant Messaging and e-mail. Instant Messaging allows instantaneous communication between a number of parties simultaneously, by transmitting information quickly. Some IM systems allow users to use webcams and Microphone which made them more popular than others. Due to this feature users can have a real-time conversation. In addition IM has additional features such as: the immediate receipt of acknowledgment or reply, group chatting, conference services (including voice and video), conversation logging and file transfer. IM allows effective and efficient communication, featuring immediate receipt of acknowledgment or reply. In certain cases Instant Messaging involves additional features, which make it even more popular, i.e. to see the other party, e.g. by using web-cams, or to talk directly for free over the Internet. It is possible to save a conversation for later reference. Instant messages are typically logged in a local message history which closes the gap to the persistent nature of e-mails and facilitates quick exchange of information like URLs or document snippets (which can be unwieldy when communicated via telephone). [edit] History In early instant messaging programs each character appeared when it was typed. The UNIX "talk" command shown in these screenshots was popular in the 1980s and early 1990s.Instant messaging actually predates the Internet, first appearing on multi-user operating systems like CTSS and Multics[1] in the mid-1960s. Initially, many of these systems, such as CTSS'.SAVED, were used as notification systems for services like printing, but quickly were used to facilitate communication with other users logged in to the same machine. As networks developed, the protocols spread with the networks. Some of these used a peer-to-peer protocol (eg talk, ntalk and ytalk), while others required peers to connect to a server (see talker and IRC). During the Bulletin board system (BBS) phenomenon that peaked during the 1980s, some systems incorporated chat features which were similar to instant messaging; Freelancin'_Roundtable was one prime example. In the last half of the 1980s and into the early 1990s, the Quantum Link online service for Commodore 64 computers offered user-to-user messages between currently connected customers which they called "On-Line Messages" (or OLM for short). Quantum Link's better known later incarnation, America Online, offers a similar product under the name "AOL Instant Messages" (AIM). While the Quantum Link service ran on a Commodore 64, using only the Commodore's PETSCII text-graphics, the screen was visually divided up into sections and OLMs would appear as a yellow bar saying "Message From:" and the name of the sender along with the message across the top of whatever the user was already doing, and presented a list of options for responding.[2] As such, it could be considered a sort of GUI, albeit much more primitive than the later Unix, Windows and Macintosh based GUI IM programs. OLMs were what Q-Link called "Plus Services" meaning they charged an extra per-minute fee on top of the monthly Q-Link access costs. Modern, Internet-wide, GUI-based messaging clients, as they are known today, began to take off in the mid 1990s with ICQ (1996) being the first, followed by AOL Instant Messenger (AOL Instant Messenger, 1997). AOL later acquired Mirabilis, the creators of ICQ. A few years later ICQ (by now owned by AOL) was awarded two patents for instant messaging by the U.S. patent office. Meanwhile, other companies developed their own applications (Excite, MSN, Ubique, and Yahoo), each with its own proprietary protocol and client; users therefore had to run multiple client applications if they wished to use more than one of these networks. In 1998 IBM released IBM Lotus Sametime, a product based on technology acquired when IBM bought Haifa-based Ubique and Lexington-based Databeam. In 2000, an open source application and open standards-based protocol called Jabber was launched. Jabber servers could act as gateways to other IM protocols, reducing the need to run multiple clients. Multi-protocol clients such as Digsby,Pidgin, Trillian, Adium and Miranda can use any of the popular IM protocols by using additional local libraries for each protocol. IBM Lotus Sametime's November 2007 release added IBM Lotus Sametime Gateway support for XMPP. Recently, many instant messaging services have begun to offer video conferencing features, Voice Over IP (VoIP) and web conferencing services. Web conferencing services integrate both video conferencing and instant messaging capabilities. Some newer instant messaging companies are offering desktop sharing, IP radio, and IPTV to the voice and video features. The term "instant messenger" is a service mark of Time Warner[3] and may not be used in software not affiliated with AOL in the United States. For this reason, the instant messaging client formerly known as Gaim or gaim announced in April 2007 that they would be renamed "Pidgin"[4]. [edit] Cooperation Standard free instant messaging applications offer functions like file transfer, contact lists, the ability to have similtaneous converstations etc. These may be all the functions that a small business needs but larger organisations will require more sophisticated applications that can work together. The solution to finding applications capable of this is to use enterprise versions of instant messaging applications. These include titles like Jabber, Lotus Sametime, Microsoft Office Communicator, etc., which are often integrated with other enterprise applications such as workflow systems. These enterprise applications, or Enterprise Application Integration (EAI), are built to certain constraints, namely storing data in a common format. There have been several attempts to create a unified standard for instant messaging: IETF's SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) and SIMPLE (SIP for Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions), APEX (Application Exchange), Prim (Presence and Instant Messaging Protocol), the open XML-based XMPP (Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol), more commonly known as Jabber and OMA's (Open Mobile Alliance) IMPS (Instant Messaging and Presence Service) created specifically for mobile devices. Most attempts at creating a unified standard for the major IM providers (AOL, Yahoo! and Microsoft) have failed and each continues to use its own proprietary protocol. However, while discussions at IETF were stalled, Reuters head of collaboration services, David Gurle (the founder of Microsoft's Real Time Communication and Collaboration business), signed the first inter-service provider connectivity agreement on September 2003. This agreement enabled AIM, ICQ and MSN Messenger users to talk with Reuters Messaging counterparts and vice-versa against an access fee. Following this, Microsoft, Yahoo! and AOL came to a deal where Microsoft's Live Communication Server 2005 users would also have the possibility to talk to public instant messaging users. This deal established SIP/SIMPLE as a standard for protocol interoperability and established a connectivity fee for accessing public instant messaging clouds. Separately, on October 13, 2005 Microsoft and Yahoo! announced that by (the Northern Hemisphere) summer of 2006 they would interoperate using SIP/SIMPLE which is followed on December 2005 by the AOL and Google strategic partnership deal where Google Talk users would be able to talk with AIM and ICQ users provided they have an identity at AOL. There are two ways to combine the many disparate protocols: One way is to combine the many disparate protocols inside the IM client application. The other way is to combine the many disparate protocols inside the IM server application. This approach moves the task of communicating to the other services to the server. Clients need not know or care about other IM protocols. For example, LCS 2005 Public IM Connectivity. This approach is popular in Jabber/XMPP servers however the so-called transport projects suffer the same reverse engineering difficulties as any other project involved with closed protocols or formats. Some approaches, such as that adopted by the Sonork enterprise IM software or the Jabber/XMPP network or Winpopup LAN Messenger, allow organizations to create their own private instant messaging network by enabling them to limit access to the server (often with the IM network entirely behind their firewall) and administer user permissions. Other corporate messaging systems allow registered users to also connect from outside the corporation LAN, by using a secure firewall-friendly HTTPS based protocol. Typically, a dedicated corporate IM server has several advantages such as pre-populated contact lists, integrated authentication, and better security and privacy. Some networks have made changes to prevent them from being utilized by such multi-network IM clients. For example, Trillian had to release several revisions and patches to allow its users to access the MSN, AOL, and Yahoo! networks, after changes were made to these networks. The major IM providers typically cite the need for formal agreements as well as security concerns as reasons for making these changes. [edit] Mobile Instant Messaging Mobile Instant Messaging (MIM) is a presence enabled messaging service that aims to transpose the desktop messaging experience to the usage scenario of being on the move. While several of the core ideas of the desktop experience on one hand apply to a connected mobile device, others do not: Users usually only look at their phone's screen — presence status changes might occur under different circumstances as happens at the desktop, and several functional limits exist based on the fact that the vast majority of mobile communication devices are chosen by their users to fit into the palm of their hand. Some of the form factor and mobility related differences need to be taken into account in order to create a really adequate, powerful and yet convenient mobile experience: radio bandwidth, memory size, availability of media formats, keypad based input, screen output, CPU performance and battery power are core issues that desktop device users and even nomadic users with connected network. [edit] Friend-to-friend networks Instant Messaging may be done in a Friend-to-friend network, in which each node connects to the friends on the friendslist. This allows for communication with friends of friends and for the building of chatrooms for instant messages with all friends on that network. Emotions are often expressed in shorthand. For example; lol. But a movement is currently underway to be more accurate with the emotional expression. Real time reactions such as (chortle) (snort) (guffaw) or (eye-roll) are rapidly taking the place of acronyms.[citation needed] [edit] Business application Instant messaging has proven to be similar to personal computers, e-mail, and the WWW, in that its adoption for use as a business communications medium was driven primarily by individual employees using consumer software at work, rather than by formal mandate or provisioning by corporate information technology departments. Tens of millions of the consumer IM accounts in use are being used for business purposes by employees of companies and other organizations. In response to the demand for business-grade IM and the need to ensure security and legal compliance, a new type of instant messaging, called "Enterprise Instant Messaging" ("EIM") was created when Lotus Software launched IBM Lotus Sametime in 1998. Microsoft followed suit shortly thereafter with Microsoft Exchange Instant Messaging, later created a new platform called Microsoft Office Live Communications Server, and released Office Communications Server 2007 in October 2007. Both IBM Lotus and Microsoft have introduced federation between their EIM systems and some of the public IM networks so that employees may use a single interface to both their internal EIM system and their contacts on AOL, MSN, and Yahoo!. Current leading EIM platforms include IBM Lotus Sametime, Microsoft Office Communications Server, and Jabber XCP. In addition, industry-focused EIM platforms such as IMtrader from Pivot Incorporated, Reuters Messaging, and Bloomberg Messaging provide enhanced IM capabilities to financial services companies. The adoption of IM across corporate networks outside of the control of IT organizations creates risks and liabilities for companies who do not effectively manage and support IM use. Companies implement specialized IM archiving and security products and services like those from Secure Computing, Akonix, SurfControl, and ScanSafe to mitigate these risks and provide safe, secure, productive instant messaging capabilities to their employees. [edit] Practical Use in Enterprise The popular embrace of IM technology for sharing information has quickly led to organizations adopting IM solutions for the perceived advantages that can be brought by it. As organizations are becoming more information based (McNurlin & Sprague, 2006, p.499) the need for effective knowledge sharing, team working and collaborative environments amongst employees has become vital, especially within more geographically dispersed teams. Typically IM conversations tend to have a certain "character", they are often short and only cover one topic. Media-switching and multitasking are common throughout, however IM might also be used between established coworkers and friends for longer, more intermittent conversation. In their report of IM use at the workplace Nardi et al. (2000) identifies the four primary functions of IM which are often cited in other reports, These primary functions are: Quick Questions and Clarifications Coordinating and scheduling tasks Coordinating impromptu social meetings Keeping in touch with friends and family IM is perhaps best suited to "Quick Questions and Clarifications" as this is the most often mentioned attribute in other reports. A user can "respond rapidly without the overhead of telephone or FTF interaction. For example, IDC reports, "Users see IM as a medium for quick, semi-permanent ‘flashes’ that beg a near-immediate response" (Isaacs et al., 2002). Nardi's second and third observations are enabled in part due to the "Presence Awareness" feature of IM clients in which the user knows who is "available". This is the most relevant for colleagues who share the same physical space as each other and even paves the way for other mediums to take up the task of communication e.g. F2F or Phone. The implication is that viable communication of any sort can in someway be encouraged through IM's "Presence Awareness" feature. (Issacs et al, 2002) supports this view, "IM in business might not be the main tool for of communication, it could just be the meeting point for another type of media e.g. conference calls. Nardi's third and fourth observations focus on the social use of IM, which have also been widely publicized in other report. That IM is used for keeping in touch with friends and arranging social events has led some employers to believe that it is used primarily for this purpose. According to (Issacs et al, 2002) a market study found that "'Fear of losing employee productivity’ was the greatest concern of businesses in regards to instant messaging". The study by (Issacs et al, 2002) goes on to suggest this fear is unfounded as it was found that on average "only 13% of conversations contained personal topics", and "only 6.4% were exclusively personal". [edit] Review of Products "IM solutions can typically be catagorised into two types: Enterprise Instant Messaging (EIM) and Consumer Instant Mesaging (CIM). Enterprise solutions use an internal IM server, however this isn't always feasible, particularly for smaller businesses with limited budgets. The second option, using a (CIM) provides the advantage of being inexpensive to implement and has little need for investing in new hardware or server software. However, in recent years open source IM clients such as Jabber have emerged that provide free EIM grade solutions. (Wikipedia,. 2008) For corporate use encryption and conversation archiving are usually regarded as important features due to security concerns. Sometimes the use of different operating systems in organizations calls for the use of software that supports more than one platform. For example many software companies use Windows XP in administration departments but have software developers who use Linux. Most people have had experience of using online chat and messaging over the internet whether it is with Microsoft's Windows Live Messenger, Skype or e-mail. One form of chat and messaging currently popular is Bebo. It is a non-corporate form of messaging which allows its user to create and maintain a social network. Libraries use chat applications and Morris Messenger is an application commonly used by them. This is a power based instant messenger, which uses Perl, SQL, and small Java. It accepts input from both staff and regular customers and saves important information in an SQL database built for the system. [edit] Risks and liabilities Although instant messaging delivers many benefits, it also carries with it certain risks and liabilities, particularly when used in workplaces. Among these risks and liabilities are: Security risks (e.g. IM used to infect computers with spyware, viruses, trojans, worms) Compliance risks Inappropriate use Intellectual property leakage Crackers (malicious "hacker" or black hat hacker) have consistently used IM networks as vectors for delivering phishing attempts, "poison URL's", and virus-laden file attachments from 2004 to the present, with over 1100 discrete attacks listed by the IM Security Center[5] in 2004-2007. Hackers use two methods of delivering malicious code through IM: delivery of virus, trojan, or spyware within an infected file, and the use of "socially engineered" text with a web address that entices the recipient to click on a URL that connects him or her to a website that then downloads malicious code. Viruses, worms, and trojans typically propagate by sending themselves rapidly through the infected user's buddy list. An effective attack using a poison URL may reach tens of thousands of people in minutes when each person's buddy list receives messages appearing to be from a trusted friend. The recipients click on the web address, and the entire cycle starts again. Infections may range from nuisance to criminal, and are becoming more sophisticated each year. In addition to the malicious code threat, the use of instant messaging at work also creates a risk of non-compliance to laws and regulations governing the use of electronic communications in businesses. In the United States alone there are over 10,000 laws and regulations related to electronic messaging and records retention.[6] The more well-known of these include the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, HIPAA, and SEC 17a-3. Clarification from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") was issued to member firms in the financial services industry in December, 2007, noting that "electronic communications", "email", and "electronic correspondence" may be used interchangeably and can include such forms of electronic messaging as instant messaging and text messaging.[7] Changes to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, effective December 1, 2006, created a new category for electronic records which may be requested during discovery (law) in legal proceedings. Most countries around the world also regulate the use of electronic messaging and electronic records retention in similar fashion to the United States. The most common regulations related to IM at work involve the need to produce archived business communications to satisfy government or judicial requests under law. Many instant messaging communications fall into the category of business communications that must be archived and retrievable. Organizations of all types must protect themselves from the liability of their employees' inappropriate use of IM. The informal, immediate, and ostensibly anonymous nature of instant messaging makes it a candidate for abuse in the workplace. The topic of inappropriate IM use became front page news in October 2006 when Congressman Mark Foley resigned his seat after admitting sending offensive instant messages of a sexual nature to underage former House pages from his Congressional office PC. The Mark Foley Scandal led to media coverage and mainstream newspaper articles warning of the risks of inappropriate IM use in workplaces. In most countries, corporations have a legal responsibility to ensure harassment-free work environment for employees. The use of corporate-owned computers, networks, and software to harass an individual or spread inappropriate jokes or language creates a liability for not only the offender but also the employer. A survey by IM archiving and security provider Akonix Systems, Inc. in March 2007 showed that 31% of respondents had been harassed over IM at work.[8] Companies now include instant messaging as an integral component of their policies on appropriate use of the World Wide Web, e-mail, and other corporate assets. Within the company there is also the risk of employees using instant messaging to release confidential information and project details to an outside source. This issue is best controlled by a combination of written policy and technology. An organization's policies on use of IM in the workplace should be an integral part of the overall computing and network use policies, and should be published and communicated at least annually. In addition to written policy, organizations should implement "gateways" or IM security products to monitor content of inbound and outbound messages. Products from IM security providers (See section on IM security) typically allow administrators to set alerts and enforce policy (i.e. allow or block messages) based on keywords and regular expressions within instant messages. Employees may also misuse IM to communicate on a personal level with friends and family. This is poor use of a business’s time and resources, as the employee’s effectiveness will most certainly decrease due to the added distractions. (Licari, J., May 2005). Businesses often use IM security products to monitor and archive IM conversations for the purpose of minimizing this type of productivity drain. [edit] Security and archiving In the early 2000s, a new class of IT security provider emerged to provide remedies for the risks and liabilities faced by corporations who chose to use IM for business communications. The IM security providers created new products to be installed in corporate networks for the purpose of archiving, content-scanning, and security-scanning IM traffic moving in and out of the corporation. Similar to the e-mail filtering vendors, the IM security providers focus on the risks and liabilities described above. With rapid adoption of IM in the workplace, demand for IM security products began to grow in the mid-2000s. By 2007, the preferred platform for the purchase of security software had become the "appliance", according to IDC, who estimate that by 2008, 80% of network security products will be delivered via an appliance.[9] [edit] User base Note that many of the numbers listed in this section are not directly comparable, and some are speculative. Some instant messaging systems are distributed among many different instances and thus difficult to measure in total (e.g. Jabber). While some numbers are given by the owners of a complete instant messaging system, others are provided by commercial vendors of a part of a distributed system. Some companies may be motivated to inflate their numbers in order to increase advertisement earnings or to attract partners, clients, or customers. Importantly, some numbers are reported as the number of "active" users (without a shared standard of that activity), others indicate total user accounts, while others indicate only the users logged in during an instance of peak usage. Service User count Date/source AIM 53 million active September 2006 >100 million total January 2006 Jabber 40-50 million total January 2007, based on calculations of Jabber Inc 90 million total Based on calculations of Process-One: Process-One uses ejabberd as Jabber server software. If it is assumed that ejabberd has a 40% market share amongst public and private open source server deployments, there are 50 million users using open source servers. With Jabber Inc's numbers, this adds up to the 90 million number stated here. eBuddy 35 million total October 2006, including 4 million mobile users Windows Live Messenger 294 million active worldwide November 2007 Yahoo! Messenger 22 million total September 2006 QQ 20 million peak online (majority in China) 3 June 2006 221 million "active" (majority in China) 3 June 2006 IBM Lotus Sametime 17 million total (private, in enterprises) November 2007 ICQ 15 million active July 2006 Skype 12 million peak online February 2008 309 million total April 2008 Xfire 10 million total May 2008 MXit 7 million total (>560,000 outside of South Africa) 10 August 2007. Note that these users are part of the Jabber user base as MXit federates with the Jabber network. Gadu-Gadu 5.6 million total June 2006 Paltalk 3.3 million unique visitors per month August 2006 IMVU 1 million total June 2007 Mail.ru Agent 1 million active (daily) September 2006 Meebo 1 million total October 2006 PSYC 1 million active (daily) (majority in Brazil) February 2007. Total count cannot be accurately estimated due to the decentralized nature of the protocol. VZOchat >200,000 October 2007 [edit] IM Language Users sometimes make use of internet slang or text speak to abbreviate common words or expressions in order to quicken conversations or to reduce keystrokes. [edit] See also Comparison of instant messaging clients Comparison of instant messaging protocols Instant messaging manager LAN messenger Text messaging it is a question

Purchasing PBX System and need a comprehensive list of services that can be provided.? I cant find a detailed list of services that a pbx system can provide. So Im going to start a list here and if you can provide me a yes or no I would be appreciative. I also need websites that give a DETAILED and LONG LIST of EVERY PBX service I could provide. I have scoured the internet, but I don't also know the most popular voip and pbx sites. I would again appreciate any help but that list of services is crucial. Thanks. Yes or no? 1. A paging system : page using a person ext using a pbx provided # 2. SMS Gateway : text from a website 3. Extent ion services: One number 25 extent ions for a small business 4. IVR : Do I need additional software? List of IVR services too 5. Wake up services: Wake up calls for small hotels 6. Agent call recording: I assume that's based on free hard drive space 7. Click to call services: Click a link, enter your number, your phone rings, you pick up and hear a call ringing 8. Calling Card Services: We provide a card with a number and pin and charge accordingly. That's all I can think of due to my limited knowledge. Yes or No would be great. If they are all services I could provide just reply YES ALL. Thanks... People I need that list, its crucial info I will need to determine if I will purchase and at what level I will purchase. See the guy below "Jana" wasnt clear. Im aware of trixbox but you didnt tell me if all of the numbered services I wanted to do is covered in a pbx system nor did you send me to websites that can tell me more. Im aware of Trixbox, and about 50 others. Jana didnt listen.