The VoiP Misunderstanding.

July 12, 2005
BY: Jay Harper

Understanding VoiP is really important these days. Does it really hold any benefits for your company? Is it here? Does it Exist? Does it work? What the heck is it really?

It does exist, and yes, it is still in it's early phases. One day and one day soon, no phone system will exist without Voice over IP capability. Truth is, it really does do some pretty nifty stuff.

HOWEVER, it is often misunderstood. I get a lot of phone calls and questions at speaking engagements about the same VoiP idea. That the POINT of VoiP has everything to do with toll bypass (in laymen's terms, not having a long distance bill!)

If you are thinking of VoiP from a simple standpoint of never having a long distance bill, you are already barking up the wrong tree. YES, you can have no long distance by using VoiP, however, this doesn't always have a lot to do with your phone system.

I hear you think.. huh?

Well see, the way to save the long distance bill is to utilize pure VoiP phone lines for all of your outbound calling. This means using a service like Vonage. Companies like vonage essentially rent you a little box that magically turns a digital "IP" signal into a regular old analog signal and back.

See normally all of your incoming and outgoing voice is carried from your phone to your phone system, to the phone companies phone system and on to where ever it needs to go.... 100% over the phone companies networks.

But you have to think of this as more like that internet. When you turn on your computer and yank up a web page, THAT request is sent out through your internet connection and on to your internet provider (say road runner or EV1) and then on to the computer that holds the website you want to see.

Ok.. so now imagine for me if you will, that instead of requesting a web page and receiving a web page to view you send a packet of "voice data" and receive a packet of "voice data".

Well that's pretty much what VoiP "LINES" or digital phone service is all about. You speak into your phone, the handset sends it down the line as always but at the other end is a Vonage box that wraps your voice up in pretty little IP packet and sends it out over your internet connection, completely bypassing the phone companies switching network.. thus, no long distance.

You have to imagine what it would be like if every time you requested a web page, somebody charged a little bit for the time it took to get to you.. no way jose you say!

OK so.. these little boxes, the magical item that converts your voice to data and back, the ones the the VoiP service provider rents to you. Once your packets come back OUT of it, on YOUR side, the signal is EXACTLY like any other analog phone service signal.

What's this mean?

This means your phone system DOESN'T CARE! It really doesn't know any difference. It does it's job and your little converter box does IT's job. And as time goes by, they seem to do their job better. Are they perfect? No way! Is it getting close.. well....... almost :)

So really, the bypass long distance is kind of a misnomer as there is SOOO much more that VoiP CAN do, and will most certainly be doing soon.

See an interesting point is that pretty much everything to do with VoiP is all built and maintained by the Internet Generation. Microsoft, Cisco, Big Players .. heavily investing in bright minds and fast computers and even quicker switching equipment. The basic internet back bone of the USA makes the phone network look like an Edsal if you ask me (don't ask the phone company, they are still proud, not proud enough to have good service, but what the hey!)

So to make the point a bit clearer, most "VoiP Phone Systems" are actually all baited up to take regular old phone lines, they happen to use their VoiP capabilities in other very neat ways.

And I will discuss that in detail in another article.

	The VoiP Misunderstanding. July 12, 2005 BY: Jay Harper Understanding VoiP is really important these days. Does it really hold any benefits for your company? Is it here? Does it Exist? Does it work? What the heck is it really? It does exist, and yes, it is still in it's early phases. One day and one day soon, no phone system will exist without Voice over IP capability. Truth is, it really does do some pretty nifty stuff. HOWEVER, it is often misunderstood. I get a lot of phone calls and questions at speaking engagements about the same VoiP idea. That the POINT of VoiP has everything to do with toll bypass (in laymen's terms, not having a long distance bill!) If you are thinking of VoiP from a simple standpoint of never having a long distance bill, you are already barking up the wrong tree. YES, you can have no long distance by using VoiP, however, this doesn't always have a lot to do with your phone system. I hear you think.. huh? Well see, the way to save the long distance bill is to utilize pure VoiP phone lines for all of your outbound calling. This means using a service like Vonage. Companies like vonage essentially rent you a little box that magically turns a digital "IP" signal into a regular old analog signal and back. See normally all of your incoming and outgoing voice is carried from your phone to your phone system, to the phone companies phone system and on to where ever it needs to go.... 100% over the phone companies networks. But you have to think of this as more like that internet. When you turn on your computer and yank up a web page, THAT request is sent out through your internet connection and on to your internet provider (say road runner or EV1) and then on to the computer that holds the website you want to see. Ok.. so now imagine for me if you will, that instead of requesting a web page and receiving a web page to view you send a packet of "voice data" and receive a packet of "voice data". Well that's pretty much what VoiP "LINES" or digital phone service is all about. You speak into your phone, the handset sends it down the line as always but at the other end is a Vonage box that wraps your voice up in pretty little IP packet and sends it out over your internet connection, completely bypassing the phone companies switching network.. thus, no long distance. You have to imagine what it would be like if every time you requested a web page, somebody charged a little bit for the time it took to get to you.. no way jose you say! OK so.. these little boxes, the magical item that converts your voice to data and back, the ones the the VoiP service provider rents to you. Once your packets come back OUT of it, on YOUR side, the signal is EXACTLY like any other analog phone service signal. What's this mean? This means your phone system DOESN'T CARE! It really doesn't know any difference. It does it's job and your little converter box does IT's job. And as time goes by, they seem to do their job better. Are they perfect? No way! Is it getting close.. well....... almost :) So really, the bypass long distance is kind of a misnomer as there is SOOO much more that VoiP CAN do, and will most certainly be doing soon. See an interesting point is that pretty much everything to do with VoiP is all built and maintained by the Internet Generation. Microsoft, Cisco, Big Players .. heavily investing in bright minds and fast computers and even quicker switching equipment. The basic internet back bone of the USA makes the phone network look like an Edsal if you ask me (don't ask the phone company, they are still proud, not proud enough to have good service, but what the hey!) So to make the point a bit clearer, most "VoiP Phone Systems" are actually all baited up to take regular old phone lines, they happen to use their VoiP capabilities in other very neat ways. And I will discuss that in detail in another article.