Voice over Internet Protocol: Free phone calls via the Net<\/p>\n
By Vishnu K. Mahmud<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): \"Hello?\"<\/p>\n
\"Hey, Cap! What's (krrzzk) up?\"<\/p>\n
\"Dude, this is a very bad line!!\"<\/p>\n
\"Really? I ... trying this (krrzzk) ... net phone!\"<\/p>\n
And thus began my experiment with Internet Telephony,
\notherwise known as Voice over Internet Protocol. VoIP is an
\nalternative method of calling people over the Net. Armed with a
\ncomputer, headset and an Internet connection, I successfully
\ncontacted my friend on his home phone in the U.S.<\/p>\n
Internet Telephony provides an alternative to long-distance
\ntelephone calls, for which Indonesia has some of the most
\nexpensive rates in the world. VoIP uses the Internet to connect
\ncalls, thus avoiding the entire costly long-distance
\ninfrastructure.<\/p>\n
The underlining concept of VoIP is simple. The computer
\nreceives the voice via a sound card, breaks it down into data
\npackets and sends it to the other side. The receiving computer
\nthen reconstitutes the packets and the sound\/voice is produced.
\nTechnically, the sound should be relatively clear, or at least be
\nequivalent to a cellular call. In practice, this is not always
\nthe case.<\/p>\n
I later made another call to the U.S. and the quality was
\nbetter then I expected. In contrast, my friend in Florida tried
\nto call her parents in Kansas and said the experience was rather
\ntraumatic. She said it was like calling Mars with all the static
\nand echoes. She would talk, wait for the sound to reach her
\nparents, hear her parent's response and then talk again. It is
\nsimilar to Ship-to-Shore radio where you must end your sentence
\nwith the word \"over\". Do you copy, over?<\/p>\n
Bandwidth is always an issue for VoIP. I use a cable modem
\nwhile my Floridian friend (yes, she did vote and is rather
\nannoyed at all the election brouhaha) had a regular modem and
\ndial up account. The faster the packets can arrive at their
\ndestination, the less likelihood of delays, pauses or
\ninterference. But VoIP sound quality is not clear compared with
\ncurrent long-distance lines, where you can (supposedly) hear a
\npin drop.<\/p>\n
Traffic too comes into play. You may have a 56k modem but if
\nyou call at night when no one else uses the Internet, you may
\nhave full reign over your Internet Service Provider's bandwidth.
\nHowever, you may have a cable modem but if everyone else uses the
\nsame facilities at the same time, your conversation will be like
\nET phoning home.<\/p>\n
For consumers, there are many methods for using VoIP: PC to
\nPC, PC to Phone and Phone to Phone. Some of you may have actually
\nused Phone-to-Phone VoIP services without even knowing it. You
\nmay have seen the ads for cheap international calling cards or
\neven seen the cards in various malls. The prices are up to 80
\npercents cheaper then Indosat or Satelindo IDD (International
\nDirect Dial) rates. Why? Because they use the Internet to link
\nyour call.<\/p>\n
IP Star Phone (www.ipstarphone.com) is another Phone-to-Phone
\nVoIP company that targets the regular consumer. No computer is
\nnecessary. The catch is you must buy their specialized hardware
\nto utilize their service. The apparatus is attached to a regular
\nphone (or DSL\/Cable connection) and the user dials as with a
\nnormal telephone call. But instead of connecting via their
\nregular long-distance carrier, they connect via their ISP. Priced
\nfrom US$230 upward, the IP Star device offers free long distance
\nfor subscribers using their hardware and excellent rates for non-
\nIP Star users.<\/p>\n
Net2Phone (www.net2phone.com) also offers free long distance
\nbut no specialized hardware is needed. Using your PC (sorry, no
\nMacs) and Net2Phone's specialized software, you can call friends
\nfor free who also use Net2Phone. Competitive rates are offered
\nfor PC-to-Phone telephone calls. The unique thing about Net2Phone
\nis that it offers a variety of options apart from regular voice
\nservice. They also have PC-to-Fax (fax from your computer to
\nanywhere in the world) and Voice E-mail services (send, receive
\nand listen to voice e-mail messages).<\/p>\n
Dialpad (www.dialpad.com) is a unique website that offers free
\nPC-to-Phone calls to the U.S. from anywhere on the planet. The
\nuser can make free unlimited calls to anyone in the United
\nStates, including 800 numbers. At the moment, Dialpad has just
\nlaunched a service for calls to Korea as well. This site is
\naccessible at www.dialpad.com.kr. The only problem with Dialpad
\nis that they sometimes have problems connecting if the user is
\nbehind a corporate or personal firewall.<\/p>\n
Hot Telephone (www.hottelephone.com) also offers free PC-to-
\nPhone long distance, and they are not limited to the U.S. You can
\ncall up to 30 countries (including Australia, Canada and
\nSingapore) using their software, which must be downloaded.
\nHowever, like Dialpad, if you are behind a firewall you will not
\nbe able to connect to the destination number.<\/p>\n
If you are curious about this whole Voice over IP thing but
\nare too lazy or cautious to download any software onto your
\ncomputer, try out Yahoo!'s chat room (www.yahoo.com). Apart from
\nthe regular on-line chatting, users can record and send short
\nvoice messages for all in the chat room to hear. This feature can
\nbe turned off if you have low bandwidth and can sometimes be
\nannoying if everyone decides to send a voice message of their own
\nat the same time (It gives the chat term \"flooding\" a whole new
\nmeaning!)<\/p>\n
Voice over Internet Protocol has come a long way since it was
\nfirst introduced. Where at first the link was poor and sound
\nalmost nonexistent, VoIP providers now advertise that their
\nservice is almost like a cellular phone (depending on bandwidth
\nsize and traffic, of course). However, VoIP is still far from
\nbeing used in day-to-day business applications due to its
\nquality. But if you have a friend you have not spoken to in a
\nwhile and do not mind the Mission to Mars-like transmission, it
\nmay be an option. (vmahmud@yahoo.com)<\/p>",
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