BearItAll <spam@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> espoused:
> Mark Kent wrote:
>
>>
>> As you use Skype, they are completely proprietary, and rather expensive
>> for off-net calls, too. If you were to use something like Asterisk for
>> your VoIP on-net calls, then at least you would be able to connect to
>> anyone.
>>
>
> The first problem with Asterix is the web site, it doen't tell me enough for
> me to decide if it would be viable for either home or work. (I have sales
> reps on Skype and we use it to talk to other offices around the world (all
> free)).
Asterisk is PBX, but you can access it from over the internet, ie.,
anywhere since you just host a local copy.
You can also put them on multiple sites and directly link them so it
acts as a single larger PBX.
Also, it has good integration with a CRM system, so that your sales guys
can track their leads, contacts and so on, and the system can call
people for them, all integrated together.
>
> The features list seems to cover everything, certainly more than I get with
> Skype. But without actually downloading and installing it I don't see
> really where it fits in, because the Asterix web site makes no attempt to
> tell you.
The feature list is very comprehensive, it does voice-mail, will email
your voice-messages onto any address or forward to phones, it has
IVR systems so that you can do call steering, you can even set up a
smallish call centre on it.
>
> Then in the downloads there is the Linux gz, so what do I do about my
> Windows users? I did get one of the tutorials of setting up a system to see
> if it was all so clear cut that it wasn't necessary to offer any
> documentation, turned out to be 15 pages of slapping themselves and each
> other on the back. Then an in depth look at telephony, that might be
> interesting reading at some time. But then comes the install. The compile
> of each module seperately, thats ok, but the set up of each module goes on
> and on over many pages. I was on page 60 something and still in the setup
> part of the manual.
They need a client, not a PBX on their machine. You can also use it
with standard analogue phones with the appropriate cards. If you find
it a bit tricky to set up (there is a LiveCD - trixbox?) you can get
their pre-build appliance.
>
> Asterix is certainly not meant as a Skype alternative. It is a means of
> turning your PC into a telephone with built in mobile phone like features.
>
Asterisk's a full-blown, commerical-grade PBX package, like a Nortel
Meridian or Ericsson MD110 or Cisco Call Manager, except it also has
direct integration with CRM software, and it's all free. Skype is just
a means of making calls...
I don't think your sales guys could ever easily integrate Skype with CRM
and remotely access it - you can with Asterisk.
--
| Mark Kent -- mark at ellandroad dot demon dot co dot uk |
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