What Is SkypeIn?

SkypeIn™ is a Skype feature which allows you to receive your own telephone number. This is beneficial when your friends or family members do not have Skype service and want to call you by dialing a regular number.

Here is an example: Let’s assume you have a New York based SkypeIn number, but you are temporarily living in London. Your friends, family members, or business associates can dial your SkypeIn number, and you will automatically receive the call in London! Here is the best part: if any of the people mentioned call, they would only pay the price of a call to New York

Another example of the SkypeIn service is if people from anywhere in the world calls your SkypeIn number, and your number is in the US and they call from another country, they pay for the price of an international call. You can also arrange to receive up to ten SkypeIn numbers in different locations.

In addition, to make your SkypeIn experience more enhanced, it comes with a free Skype Voicemail subscription. Let’s say a cousin calls you, but you’re not online, he can leave a voicemail message. You will be able to listen to it when you are available.

It is well worth noting here that the Skype Voicemail service is still being tested, therefore, be aware there may be some initial problems. Remember, you can get up to ten SkypeIn numbers in total from United States, United Kingdom, Brazil, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Poland, Sweden and Switzerland. As we speak, Skype is working on having additional numbers available in many more countries around the world.

SkypeIn is a fantastic service which allows anyone, anywhere to call you even if they do not have Skype service. Think about it! You may also want to call everyone you know and tell them about Skype and the features it offers. They may also want to subscribe to this unique and extremely popular service!

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What Is SkypeOut

Another unique feature in the Skype service is called SkypeOut. This allows you to call your friends or family members on regular phones and mobile phones for free, within US and Canada. Even these calls are entirely free until the end of the year, wouldn’t it be great for you to be able to call all of your family and friends during the holiday season absolutely free!

With SkypeOut, you can make international calls to friends and family members as well you have regular and mobile phones. You will have to pay local rates, as well as buy Skype Credit to make international calls. To obtain more information, log on to Skype today. Note: To use SkypeOut service, ensure you have the latest version of Windows, Mac OS X, Linux and Pocket PC.

If you are wondering how to get started, it is quite simple. If you are located in the US or Canada, and want to call local numbers, all you have to do is to open up Skype, enter the phone number, hit the green call button and start talking. Did we mention these calls are free until the end of 2006?

If you need to make calls internationally, go to your account page and click on the link in the tools menu in Skype. Select the amount of Skype credit you need to buy and make the payment using any major credit card. Return to Skype; enter the phone number, click the green button and your conversation can begin. Note: if you run out of credit, just return to your account page and buy more. Skype credit remains active for 180 days after your last SkypeOut call.

How much does it cost? With Skype, you receive a straight price per minute to call wherever your family or friends are. No matter what day, time, weekday or weekend, the price is the same. Because this has become such a popular feature, Skype has also come out with one rate for the 20 most popular destinations: the SkypeOut Global rate which incurs a cost of 2.1 cents per minute. How terrific is that?

Again, this is one service that can’t be beat. Log on to Skype.com to check out this feature.

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Choose The Right Residential Broadband Service

The first thing you need to know is what is Broadband access?

Broadband is defined as any data transmission that exceeds 600 bits per second. There are also residential and commercial versions of broadband and they are very different from each other. This is in terms of price, size and ability and, for the purposes of this article, we will be focusing on residential. For business, even a small business, they are much further ahead with a T1 line, but that is a different story.

There are three primary versions of Broadband Internet access available to the typical residential subscriber. The three kinds of broadband are DSL, cable and satellite. Each has its pluses and minuses and you should be familiar with them because these differences will help you decide which service is best for you and your individual needs.

DSL Digital Subscriber Service

Local and national phone companies offering broadband access offer this service. It accomplished the required data transfer rates by using two separate channels. One channel is used for data and one is used for voice communications. This allows them to push more information through the same size pipe.

The first advantage that most people like is that their phone calls do not interrupt their Internet usage or the other way around also works. You can achieve the higher speeds (128Kbs to 24,000Kbs) that you need to take advantage of most of the offerings on the Internet. The costs are also low, which for some is an advantage. For the best speeds with DSL you need to be within 2Km(1.25 miles) of a central office, beyond that and your speed drops dramatically. DSL is offering by most phone companies (although it is normally the most expensive option) as well as both local and national carriers.

Cable

This is exactly what it is, a coaxial cable of the same variety you use for receiving your cable TV signal. Your local cable company provides this service. Speeds are generally 1.5MB, 3MB and even 5MB in some markets. Your area has to have access to cable service in order for you to be able to have cable Internet service.

This is known as an always on service in that you are always connected and that is a two edged sword. You have instant access to everything that you want and it is a bad thing because the bad guys also have instant access to your system. It is highly recommended that you use a firewall and anti-virus software to protect your system from those that are up to no good.

Satellite

This service is available through companies like DirecTV, Dish Network and Hughes. They provide access to the Internet through both a phone line and a satellite dish. The upload is achieved using a phone line and the download side is through the satellite dish. This will mean longer time to upload files and faster times downloading files.

The advantage to this is that you only need access to a phone line and a satellite subscriber service. This frees you in having service anywhere there is a phone line installed. The disadvantage to this is that, during high wind events or severe storms, you may lose your satellite service and, thus, your Internet access. Also note that many satellite providers will LIMIT how much you can use the system over the month, and when you reach that limit, they will “throttle” your connection down to a much slower speed.

Note that even the top-end satellite systems are not going to be as fast as the majority of DSL or cable options. Also note that some things are not available to you with satellite Internet service, such as the ability to use VOIP phones. VOIP will not work reliably on a satellite connection, simply because of what is called “latency”, or the time it takes for the signal to get processed after it goes to the satellite and comes back to earth.

Author: Jon Arnold
www.dsl-cable-inside-info.com

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Disadvantages of VoIP

Voice over internet protocol (VOIP) is changing the way that the average consumer makes long distance phone calls. The technology is rapidly advancing because companies all over the world are now competing to be your VOIP provider. However, there are still some disadvantages of VOIP - especially when it comes to using the technology for functions beyond the one caller to one caller scenario.The disadvantages of VOIP can be annoying, but are relatively limited for the consumer. The main complaints regarding VOIP have to do with providing the level of quality of service that customers are accustomed to with regular telephone technology.
The reason for this is multifold. VOIP requires a large amount of data to be compressed and transmitted, then uncompressed and delivered, all in a relatively small amount of time. Problems develop in VOIP conversations when this process takes too long and the callers experience one of two problems; echo or over-talk.

Standard phone calls function with a delay of no more than 10 milliseconds. But one major disadvantage of VOIP is that there have been delays of up to 400 milliseconds, meaning that the callers won’t hear each other fast enough to make the
conversation flow easily. They will either hear themselves talking or they will start talking again before they have heard
the other person respond. Although these problems won’t necessarily happen every time a call is made, it can happen
often enough to be annoying.

The disadvantages of VOIP are usually tolerable if the callers are using a free service and the calls are for individual,
personal communication. But once a network of users, such as a business, wants to use VOIP, the problems become a little more complicated. Part of the reason is that most networks have a firewall; and most firewalls don’t know how to route a VOIP call once it is received - which phone does it go to?

Plus, multiple users create a problem when judging what amount of bandwidth can be and should be used at any time. If multiple users need to make VOIP calls, it can be difficult for the company to know exactly how much bandwidth to provide  especially if internet access, video conferencing or other data transmission services are using the same path.

Overall, the disadvantages of VOIP aren’t significant enough to dissuade the average consumer from using the technology;
especially with the fact that they know that the calls they are making are free. But we can rest assured that the technology
will only get more reliable as time goes by.

Author: Van Theodorou
President of WorldNet Solutions, Inc.

Are You Ready For VoIP?

So does the abbreviation VoIP leave you dumb struck? Don’t
worry; even I was when I heard about it for the first time. The
clouds parted when I discovered what it stands for: Voice over
Internet Protocol.

Have you ever been left hapless at the sight of immensely long
queues outside phonebooks? And that too when you need to
make a call to your aunt in LA and wish her on her 65 th birthday.
And, though you brave the queue for seemingly endless minutes or
hours, the constantly rising bill makes you our or conversation
too short to even cal it conversation. International calls are
still not dirt cheap and now that the world and its brother have
PC’s and Internet connection, even technophobes should have
enough sense to download software that enables you to make
phone calls using the Internet! Yes, you read it right. Make phone
calls using Internet. Just need to catch hold of an IP phone and
a software like Skype and you are ready for a futuristic roller
coaster experience!

Calling anywhere on Earth for three or four rupees a minute - at
most, is a pretty darn good idea, and one that’s catching on big
time. VoIP, in layman’s terms is the use of certain hardware and
software that makes you call up any other person on this planet.
Thereafter, you only need a good headset to have a chat and
assuming of course, that you have a multimedia PC and not a
BBC micro.

In a poll conducted worldwide, as many as a billion people have
abandoned telephone for IP telephony. In fact, you can make a
phone call to the US on dialpad coin for as little as 75 paise a
minute. The internet does not know or care whether the data
that’s rushing through its ‘routers’ began as a phone
conversation or a movie or a search for Pamela Anderson.
As long as it is in digital packets, it can find its’ way to the
Internet Protocol (IP) address it’s meant for. And so what is
happening is more and more phone calls are getting made
through Internet.

You can do it in either of the following of two ways: by going
to a site like dialpad.com or perhaps your own Internet service

provider’s site (if they offer the service), or by just picking
up an IP phone at a broadband Internet call? If you make the call
usingyour computer all you have to do is to go to the website, buy
a prepaid package that suits you using your credit card, and enter
the destination number.

Another way is Skype. Skype is a free software for Internet
phoning. It’s so simple that even technophobia can’t be an
excuse. Check out whether your computer has Windows 2000 or XP,
400 MHz or a more powerful processor, 126 MB or more RAM, a
sound card, speakers and microphones and atleast 33.6 kbps
dial-up-modem connection. A broadband connection is best. Make
sure your hard drive has atleast 15MB space to download Skype.
If the above is Greek to you, just ask any geek to check out
your system parameters.

Now, go to skype.com click on the download link, save the
program on your desktop, open it and double click on the
installation file. Once Skype is installed, take out your
lastmonth’s phone bill and have a good laugh.

With Skype, you can call another Skype-user anywhere in the
world for free (you only pay for the net usage, not calls).
Skype has an option for landline calls that requires payment
charges depend on where you are calling. But rates are still
cheaper than landline costs.

The voice may break or come in snatches if the connection is
slow. But things are likely to get vapidly better in that
matter. My experience has been that if your soundcard,
microphone and headsets are of good quality, Skype gives you
fairly good service.

Also, IP telephony scores over messenger services offered by MSN
or AOL. In the letter, if your net connection speed is different
from your interlocutor’s, its’ hard to talk simultaneously. With
Skype, this makes no difference.

The broadband wagon has started to role, so its’ success seems
assured. In fact, it could even affect mobile telephony. New
Scientist reported earlier this year that cellphones with built
in Wi-fi capability that link to low-cost internet connection
are nearly for launch long-distance call costs can take another
big fall.

The flip side is, if you are calling Skype-to-Skype, the called
party will have to be online and pretty near the computer.
Similarly, if a Skype-contact calls you and you are offline or
online but missing about in the other room, you’ll miss the call.

That’s a disadvantage so do as the experts suggest. Just spread
the word on your online habits among your Skype - contacts or
pre - arrange a chat by email or via a short, normal phone
conversation. But the whole purpose of the technology is
defeated by the cost of Skype - enabled phones still, with IP
telephony, I sometimes wish to give all the phone booth things a
piece of my mind - at little cost and from a safe distance.

Author: Willie Reynolds
http://www. voipactivity.com

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Preparing Your TCP/IP Data Network For Voice Traffic

As much as vendors would like you to believe, employing voice
applications over your existing TCP/IP data network is certainly
not as simple as plugging in VoIP-enabled phones and installing
software to make them work. Combining voice and data networks
into one seamless operation can be tricky.

Before you attempt to run voice communication over your TCP/IP
network, familiarize yourself with the following key issues in
order to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

Voice vs Data

VoIP enables the human voice to be sent over networks as data
“packets”. These packets are then reorganized into the human
voice upon reaching their final destination. One would think
that non-voice traffic travels over the network in the same
manner as data traffic. After all, data is data, right?

Wrong. The reasons are that TCP/IP networks do not generally
deliver “packets” of data in the same order, along the same
route, or even within the same time frame. This is not a problem
for normal data downloads or data transfer, but for voice
conversations it is critical that “packet” information is
transferred without packet loss or latency.

Bandwidth

It goes without saying that in order to run voice over a TCP/IP
network, sufficient bandwidth is required. Most network services
customers are familiar with the raw bandwidth of each of their
connections. The key issue here is not to confuse “available”
bandwidth with “total” bandwidth. For example, a T-1 devoted to
data networking may have 1.5 Mb of raw bandwidth. That does not
mean, however, that the entire 1.5 MB of bandwidth will be
available for voice applications.

Packet Loss

Inherent in any network is the inevitability of “packet loss”.
Packet loss refers to the percentage of data packets that travel
the network then fail to reach their final destination. Packet
loss can be tested and measured using network analysis tools. If
you test and determine a packet loss of 3% or more, your
existing network will not successfully handle voice traffic.

Keep in mind that packet loss increases dramatically when a
network is overloaded with traffic. In fact, a network may even
become unusable for voice applications when approaching their
maximum bandwidth capabilities.

Jitter

Packets of voice information traveling across a network take
varying amounts of time to go from one end to the other. This
variation is referred to as “jitter”. The receiving end of a
VoIP voice call “buffers” packet information so it can be played
as a smooth and unbroken stream of voice audio. The depth of
jitter (measured in milliseconds) can and should be measured.
Always be sure that jitter settings match the behavior of the
network. Dropouts may occur if the setting is too low, and
delays in the audio will occur if the setting is too high.

Latency

The total amount of time it takes for a packet of voice
information to get from one end of the network to the other is
called latency. Latency is also measured in milliseconds. A
latency of 200 or more milliseconds can result in echo,
especially if the connections at the receiving end are not all
digital. A latency of more than 400 milliseconds results in both
parties of the call constantly “interrupting” each other, then
waiting for the other person to finish. This situation is simply
not acceptable for even the most patient of callers.

Codecs

A codec is responsible for converting the analog voice signal of
a phone call to digital packets of information - then converting
them back to analog voice audio. There are many types of codecs
available depending on available bandwidth and the quality of
the audio that is desired. First determine the amount of voice
data traffic you anticipate having, then choose the appropriate
codec. The G.711 codec is widely used throughout North America
and although it consumes up to 83 kB per second of bandwidth it
provides toll-quality voice connections.

Configuration for Quality of Service (QOS)

The most complicated and difficult issue you will encounter will
be how to successfully configure the network to handle both data
and voice packets simultaneously. File downloads and other data
transfers that occur at the same time as voice calls can easily
interfere and even interrupt these voice conversations if the
network is not configured properly.

It is the job of the routers to treat voice packet information
in a special way. Without routers giving voice packets special
treatment, they will almost always lose the battle when in
direct competition with data packets. The configuration of
routers to do this properly is called “Quality of Service”, or
QOS. There are four types of configurations of QOS. Each provide
different levels of efficiency for handling voice and data
traffic simultaneously.

1) Best-Effort QOS
This configuration is the most
inefficient and one that most network routers are configured by
default. Voice traffic may sound fine with this configuration,
although any large data downloads will easily interrupt voice
conversations.

2) Differentiated Service
One way to solve the problem of
competition between voice and data packets is to configure
routers to simply determine the difference between the two types
of information, then handle them accordingly. Differentiated
service allows for routers to use different schemes for handling
the two types of traffic.

3) Dedicated Service
Routers can be configured to ensure
that sufficient bandwidth is always available for voice traffic.
This configuration tells the router to never use the dedicated
bandwidth for data transmission. Although it can be complicated
to configure routers with dedicated service, it does a good job
of eliminating the problem of data traffic interfering with
voice communications. One major disadvantage, however, is that
the “dedicated” portion of the network will go unused when there
is no voice traffic.

4) Guaranteed Service
The most complex and expensive
option to packet competition is guaranteed service. This
configuration allows routers to set up dedicated but temporary
bandwidth for each individual call. When a call has ended, the
bandwidth then becomes available for other voice calls or data
traffic.

The ability to use data networks for voice applications is an
attractive one although not always simple and straightforward.
Proper planning and testing will help you avoid the inevitable
pitfalls of configuring voice applications over data networks.

Author: Robert Potter
www.teconassociates.com

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How Do I Make a Call Using VoIP Service?

The first step is to install the software. Downloading Skype will allow you to try out the service for free. If you have a computer with a soundcard, the only other tools you will need are a mic and headset. However, if you already have these, your cost to try out this service will be next to nothing. It will also give you the time you need to determine if you are happy with VoIP or not.

Let’s review how to make a call using VoIP. Very simply, you go online, pull up the software, and type in the party’s name and number. If the party is available, they will be alerted on their computer screen that there is a caller, and it will display who is calling as well. The connection is made and the conversation can begin.

There is an additional VoIP service which should be mentioned. Your service provider may provide you with a router, which allows you to connect your regular telephone to your DSL, Cable or Broadband service. This router will also afford you the opportunity to connect more than one computer to the same Broadband service. The good news is that this setup is free of charge. While you will need your computer to initially set up the service, you can then use your traditional telephone to make calls without the computer.

Is this service becoming a more viable need in your home or business? Go online, research VoIP and its providers. Talk to friends or business associates to receive feedback on their providers and features. Ask many questions such as: “Is there a problem with the clarity of the calls?” “Do you hear any echoes?” “Did you experience any dropped calls?” The more you know, the more educated you will become when taking the leap and signing up with a VoIP service provider.

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Latest News

Recent Voip News

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How Secure Is Skype?

As with any new technology, there are always security concerns. How long did it take you to use your credit card on line? Most skeptics took a very long time to decide whether it was safe to even type ones name and address on line, let along add credit cards to sites. With online banking, shopping, auctions and the like, it is a well known fact that security is not 100%, by any means.

The same holds true with VoIP. Just as the data we send every day is vulnerable to malicious attacks, so too are the calls made by large corporations or small business owners. The kinds of attacks used with VoIP service may be akin to wire-tapping strategies used by the FBI or CIA. If hackers want information, they certainly know how to obtain it. Being able to intercept calls may allow a hacker to obtain vital information such as your identity or phone number. So too, while some corporations record conversations for their own files, these conversations can easily be accessed by intruders.

Regarding the privacy issue, Skype has infused encryption tools to prevent intruders. However as stated earlier, if a hacker wants information, he or she will use whatever resources are available to obtain it. It should also be noted that while Skype does not record or log conversations, it does have the capability to record instant messaging conversations. In addition, Skype users can determine if other Skype users are logged in.

Additional security concerns are viruses and spamming. Although these are a daily concerns among most internet users, they are not to be taken lightly. Anti-virus software and firewalls should protect you from such intruders. However, a more dangerous area of attack is on your phone itself. For example, if corrupted data is sent via the internet phone, it could render your phoe useless.

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How Do I Choose A VoIP Service Provider?

You can certainly choose a free VoIP service, or you can use Skype. What is Skype?

It is an internet service that allows you to make free calls via the internet to those friends, relatives or business associates who also have the Skype service within the US and Canada.

With Skype, you can make and receive calls, and use their voicemail feature as well. Additionally, if you are calling someone on their land line telephone or mobile phone, that is free as well. Or, if you wish to make long distance calls, Skype offers a low cost service which affords you the opportunity to call anyone you like anywhere in the world. Check out Skype for yourself to determine why this is such a cost effective and valuable service. Its user friendly service costs nothing to download, and you will enjoy the many features this company offers.

If you prefer a free VoIP service, there are literally hundreds to choose from. It would behoove you to research all of the different free VoIP services available to determine which the best package is for you. There are a wide variety of VoIP companies offering

free services, as well as a plethora of packages which come with a variety of features depending upon your individual needs.

Another company which offers a similar service is VoIPBuster. While this service is currently available for Window users only, it has features similar to other VoIP companies which allow you to buy credits toward your VoIP usage. For one hundred and twenty days, you will be able to call anyone, anywhere until your credit expires. This is more akin to a pay as you go type of service which is common among telephone companies today.

Whichever provider you choose, it is incumbent upon you to check out all of the features, the service agreements, and decide for yourself which is more cost effective and offers the best package.

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