SolveYourProblem
eLearning Series
VoIP (Voice
over Internet Protocol)
How
To Make Free VoIP Calls
by Jeff Cohen
I
am sure you have heard the adage, “There’s no such thing
as a free lunch”. Well, obviously the person famous for that
saying hadn’t yet heard of VoIP. VoIP is Voice over Internet
Protocol- or in simple terms, the ability to transmit voice
over the Internet. VoIP has been gaining in strength and
popularity as a telecommunications of choice. Many small
businesses are opting to go VoIP. It is a viable source for
businesses to make long distance calls virtually free, or
at a significantly lower cost when compared to other telephone
service providers.
With
a High Speed Internet connection, you too can experience
the power of VoIP. In fact, you may have already
tried this technology without even realizing it. There
are many services and programs that have been available
for free, on the Internet, for the past ten years that
have embraced VoIP.
Dialpad was
known for allowing people to connect a microphone and speakers
to their computers and then make long distance calls virtually
world wide for free. Well, Dialpad isn’t free anymore,
but if you do purchase their monthly service, they do provide
an option for unlimited long distance calling. This service
is still comparable to other telephone providers.
Currently
most of the free VoIP have begun to charge a monthly fee
for their services. There is still one program
left that is absolutely free. That is Ad Calls. This program
displays various advertisements on their display while
you can use the service to make free calls. There are limitations
to this program however. You can only use the service for
ten minutes at a time, and you are unable to call toll
free numbers.
The
major VoIP programs that embrace free calling left on the
Internet are bundled with your Instant Messaging programs. Programs
such as Yahoo Messenger have recently been redesigned with
the ability to make free voice phone calls using VoIP.
You won’t be able to call a landline telephone however.
You will need to use the program to call another member
who is using the same program. For example, if you have
the newly VoIP enabled Yahoo Messenger downloaded to your
computer, yet your buddy (who lives across the world) is
using the old Yahoo Messenger, you can send them a link
to download and upgrade their current version. Once they
have installed the new Yahoo Messenger, you will see a
“call” button with a phone icon at the top of your Yahoo
Messenger chat box. By clicking call, you will be using
VoIP technology to send a phone call to your buddy’s computer.
The receiving computer will actually ring, like a standard
telephone, and your buddy will have the option of accepting
or declining the phone call. All that is needed is a high
speed Internet connection, this provides the best audio
quality and speed), a microphone, and speakers. You and
your buddy are free to talk as long as you like. The other
advantage to Instant Messengers that allow free VoIP calls
is the ability to call more than one person. You can call
people on your buddy list, and invite them for a conference
call. This has unlimited potential and can be used by small
businesses for free training calls, and by people everywhere
who just want to stay in touch with friends and family.
Other
Internet Messaging services that have embraced VoIP calling
include MSN messenger, AOL Instant Messenger, and Google
has begun their new service, Google Talk.
VoIP
is a preferred method of telecommunications due to the fact
that you can integrate audio, video, and web based applications
with one program. The Instant Messaging programs are perfect
examples of how audio and web based communications are working
together to increase communication. Also included with many
Instant Messaging programs is the ability to hook up a digital
camera or web cam and incorporate video with your audio and
web based application.
VoIP
Telephones are also beginning to incorporate video with
their VoIP services. This will be a very popular
trend in the future. As there are over 900 million Instant
Messaging subscribers, people are already experiencing
the power and freedom of converged communications.
Cellular
phones are realizing that people want to combine video with
their audio, and many videophones are being released. Some
phones have gone the next level and have combined audio,
video, and graphics by allowing you to store pictures in
your telephone, and use it as a camera.
As
the technology of VoIP continues to advance, we can rest
assured that more “Beta” programs will be released and as
that occurs, keep your eye out for more free VoIP programs.
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