What phone systems are people using?

[Guest guest]

So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys, including telephones. I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am sure is out of country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell me. They sound like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone that I buy?? Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your system? Anyone have any other phone sytems they are using?

I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be the cheapest w the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox offers? Can't imagine that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900 # is more profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is something like that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not getting paid to do medical care over the phone. Just joking

-- M.D.www.elainemd.comYou only go through this life but once. Go in the directions of your dreams and live the life you've imagined.

[Guest guest]

You may want to reconsider Vonage for business use, not because I have

a grudge against the company, but rather many broadband providers

throttle the port traffic for these services (although they will never

admit it). Throttling such connection causes jitter, staggers,

dropped connection and overall poor voice quality.

I ended up collaborating with <http://www.webfones.com> which offers

true business-class telephony with excellent, personalized customer

service (no financial connection/s)

- Jack

> So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys, including telephones.

> I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am sure is out of

> country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell me. They sound

> like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone that I buy??

> Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your system? Anyone have

> any other phone sytems they are using?

> I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be the cheapest w

> the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox offers? Can't imagine

> that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900 # is more

> profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is something like

> that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not getting paid to do

> medical care over the phone. Just joking

>

> --

> M.D.

> www.elainemd.com

> You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions of your dreams

> and live the life you've imagined.

>

>

--

Jack Forbush, DO

Osteopathic Center for Family Medicine

603 Main Road North

Hampden, ME 04444

office:

fax:

www.ocfm.com

[Guest guest]

I have been using Vonage for over a year and am happy with

it. I have one voice and one fax line with them. The

biggest problem is that when you are talking with someone and someone else

calls, the sound of the second call interrupts the first call, requiring the

first caller to repeat what was being said when the second call interrupts.

Their visual voicemail is very handy and saves me a lot of

time.

dts

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of

Sent: Tuesday, September 09, 2008 6:21 PM

To: practiceimprovement1

Subject: What phone systems are people using?

So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys,

including telephones. I called vonage, like the price but their call center I

am sure is out of country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell

me. They sound like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone

that I buy?? Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your system?

Anyone have any other phone sytems they are using?

I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be

the cheapest w the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox offers?

Can't imagine that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900 # is

more profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is something like

that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not getting paid to do

medical care over the phone. Just joking

--

M.D.

www.elainemd.com

You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions of your dreams and

live the life you've imagined.

[Guest guest]

I am investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses. Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco "deal" by entering smartphone in the Costco.com search box. THey have negotiated a substantial discount. The gist is you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest free" and receive your first two phone lines free during that time. The second year you pay about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an automated attendant at $20 per month that can route calls to whichever extension you choose and follow you anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my calls going through the automated attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can

get the fax to email option and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

I would be able to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system and in the deal, increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more. They allow you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue, I won't be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to record a call as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to use that and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation...

carla

[Guest guest]

carla,

If you decide to do the new phone system, let us know how it goes.

Sharon

---- Carla Gibson wrote:

> I am investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses.

Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco " deal " by entering

smartphone in the Costco.com search box. THey have negotiated a substantial

discount. The gist is you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest

free " and receive your first two phone lines free during that time. The second

year you pay about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an

automated attendant at $20 per month that can route calls to whichever extension

you choose and follow you anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at

onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want

to have most of my calls going through the automated attendant (to reduce

receptionist time) I will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can

get the fax to email option and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

>

> I would be able to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system

and in the deal, increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more.

They allow you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue,

I won't be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

>

> I saw on the webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to

record a call as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to

use that and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation...

>

> carla

[Guest guest]

carla,

If you decide to do the new phone system, let us know how it goes.

Sharon

---- Carla Gibson wrote:

> I am investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses.

Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco " deal " by entering

smartphone in the Costco.com search box. THey have negotiated a substantial

discount. The gist is you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest

free " and receive your first two phone lines free during that time. The second

year you pay about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an

automated attendant at $20 per month that can route calls to whichever extension

you choose and follow you anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at

onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want

to have most of my calls going through the automated attendant (to reduce

receptionist time) I will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can

get the fax to email option and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

>

> I would be able to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system

and in the deal, increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more.

They allow you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue,

I won't be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

>

> I saw on the webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to

record a call as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to

use that and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation...

>

> carla

[Guest guest]

I just added up my costs with Vonage for the last year, and they

averaged $79.09 a month. I am presenting this to help people compare with

other services. I have around 800 patients and am scheduled to see

patients about 20 hours a week. My wife answers the majority of phone

calls during business hours, which eliminates lots of voice mails.

The basic rate for the Residential Unlimited Premium Plan is

$24.99, and the basic rate for the fax is $9.99. There are about $10.00

in taxes and regulatory fees every month, and the rest (about $35.00) is

the cost for the visual voicemail and overage costs for faxes.

I would probably save about $10.00 a month if I switched to the business

unlimited plan, which includes 500 outbound fax minutes, but I keep hoping that

I can get the electronic prescribing working better and eliminate most of the

outbound faxes. Between fax and voice, I currently use a total of

about 1400 minutes a month.

The above included:

·

1 voice line with unlimited minutes

·

1 fax line with unlimited inbound and 250 outbound minutes, with

3.9 cents per minute charged after the first 250.

·

Voice mail which can be accessed from a web interface or

from dialing in from an office phone or outside phone

·

Visual voice mail – all messages are transcribed to text

and emailed to me along with a .wav file of the actual message

·

Visual voice mail as SMS text messages to my cell phone for all

messages

·

Robust options for call forwarding, including forwarding to a

back-up number if your internet goes down

·

The ability to have different messages on the voice mail come on

at different times of the day

The system works fine for me, and the only annoyance is

the clicking sound that comes on to notify call waiting, which I could

eliminate if I turned call waiting off.

In would be interested in seeing what people with similar sized

practices pay each month for their services, but I am not at all unhappy with

< $80.00 a month.

dts

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of Carla Gibson

Sent: Wednesday, September 10, 2008 9:12 PM

To:

Subject: Re: What phone systems are people using?

I am investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service

for businesses. Accessline is the company name. You can access the

Costco " deal " by entering smartphone in the Costco.com search

box. THey have negotiated a substantial discount. The gist is you

purchase phones from them over one year 'interest free " and receive your

first two phone lines free during that time. The second year you pay about

$50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an automated attendant

at $20 per muy onth that can route calls

to whichever extension you choose and follow you anywhere after

hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited

to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my calls going

through the automated attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I will likely

need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can get the fax to email option

and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

I would be able to save at least $75 per month over my

current phone system and in the deal, increase the functionality of the

system by 1000% or more. They allow you to return the package within 30

days - so if quality is an issue, I won't be committed for the year.

Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the webfone site recommended in another post that

they allow you to record a call as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do

that. Would be nice to use that and perhaps convert from speech to text for

documentation...

carla

[Guest guest]

I need to talk to you in person about this. and I are setting up a remote office and will not have access to typical land based lines. Vonage sounds like the perfect solution, but there are certainly details to my future set up that do not lend themselves to email.

Could you call me at or page me to your number at ?

Subject: RE: Re: What phone systems are people using?To: Date: Thursday, September 11, 2008, 1:52 AM

I just added up my costs with Vonage for the last year, and they averaged $79.09 a month. I am presenting this to help people compare with other services. I have around 800 patients and am scheduled to see patients about 20 hours a week. My wife answers the majority of phone calls during business hours, which eliminates lots of voice mails.

The basic rate for the Residential Unlimited Premium Plan is $24.99, and the basic rate for the fax is $9.99. There are about $10.00 in taxes and regulatory fees every month, and the rest (about $35.00) is the cost for the visual voicemail and overage costs for faxes.

I would probably save about $10.00 a month if I switched to the business unlimited plan, which includes 500 outbound fax minutes, but I keep hoping that I can get the electronic prescribing working better and eliminate most of the outbound faxes. Between fax and voice, I currently use a total of about 1400 minutes a month.

The above included:

· 1 voice line with unlimited minutes

· 1 fax line with unlimited inbound and 250 outbound minutes, with 3.9 cents per minute charged after the first 250.

· Voice mail which can be accessed from a web interface or from dialing in from an office phone or outside phone

· Visual voice mail – all messages are transcribed to text and emailed to me along with a .wav file of the actual message

· Visual voice mail as SMS text messages to my cell phone for all messages

· Robust options for call forwarding, including forwarding to a back-up number if your internet goes down

· The ability to have different messages on the voice mail come on at different times of the day

The system works fine for me, and the only annoyance is the clicking sound that comes on to notify call waiting, which I could eliminate if I turned call waiting off.

In would be interested in seeing what people with similar sized practices pay each month for their services, but I am not at all unhappy with < $80.00 a month.

dts

From: Practiceimprovement 1yahoogroups (DOT) com [mailto:Practiceimp rovement1@ yahoogroups. com] On Behalf Of Carla GibsonSent: Wednesday, September 10, 2008 9:12 PMTo: Practiceimprovement 1yahoogroups (DOT) comSubject: [Practiceimprovemen t1] Re: What phone systems are people using?

I am investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses. Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco "deal" by entering smartphone in the Costco.com search box. THey have negotiated a substantial discount. The gist is you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest free" and receive your first two phone lines free during that time. The second year you pay about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an automated attendant at $20 per muy onth that can route calls to whichever extension you choose and follow you anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my calls going through the automated attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can get the fax to email option and voicemails

are accessible by email as well.

I would be able to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system and in the deal, increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more. They allow you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue, I won't be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to record a call as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to use that and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation. ..

carla

[Guest guest]

AT & T called us last week. We are

getting an unlimited business plan for $10/line/month for the next 12 months.

We have 6 lines (2 faxes and 4 phone lines), so for $60/month we will have

unlimited local and long-distance. The “introductory rate”

will end after 12 months, but the “regular” rate is

$20/mo/line. We also have our DSL through AT & T for $40/month.

Pratt

Office Manager

Oak Tree Internal Medicine P.C.

From:

[mailto: ] On

Behalf Of T. , MD

Sent: Wednesday, September 10,

2008 11:52 PM

To:

Subject: RE:

Re: What phone systems are people using?

I just added up my costs with Vonage for the last year, and they

averaged $79.09 a month. I am presenting this to help people compare with

other services. I have around 800 patients and am scheduled to see

patients about 20 hours a week. My wife answers the majority of phone

calls during business hours, which eliminates lots of voice mails.

The basic rate for the Residential Unlimited Premium Plan is

$24.99, and the basic rate for the fax is $9.99. There are about $10.00

in taxes and regulatory fees every month, and the rest (about $35.00) is

the cost for the visual voicemail and overage costs for faxes.

I would probably save about $10.00 a month if I switched to the

business unlimited plan, which includes 500 outbound fax minutes, but I keep

hoping that I can get the electronic prescribing working better and eliminate

most of the outbound faxes. Between fax and voice, I currently use

a total of about 1400 minutes a month.

The above included:

·

1 voice line with unlimited minutes

·

1 fax line with unlimited inbound and 250 outbound minutes, with

3.9 cents per minute charged after the first 250.

·

Voice mail which can be accessed from a web interface or

from dialing in from an office phone or outside phone

·

Visual voice mail – all messages are transcribed to text

and emailed to me along with a .wav file of the actual message

·

Visual voice mail as SMS text messages to my cell phone for all

messages

·

Robust options for call forwarding, including forwarding to a

back-up number if your internet goes down

·

The ability to have different messages on the voice mail come on

at different times of the day

The system works fine for me, and the only annoyance is

the clicking sound that comes on to notify call waiting, which I could

eliminate if I turned call waiting off.

In would be interested in seeing what people with similar

sized practices pay each month for their services, but I am not at all

unhappy with < $80.00 a month.

dts

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of Carla Gibson

Sent: Wednesday, September 10,

2008 9:12 PM

To:

Subject:

Re: What phone systems are people using?

I am

investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses.

Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco " deal " by

entering smartphone in the Costco.com search box. THey have negotiated

a substantial discount. The gist is you purchase phones from them over one

year 'interest free " and receive your first two phone lines free during

that time. The second year you pay about $50 for the two phone lines per

month. You can pay for an automated attendant at $20 per muy onth that can

route calls to whichever extension you choose and follow you anywhere after

hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited

to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my calls going

through the automated attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I will likely

need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can get the fax to email option

and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

I would be able

to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system and in the deal,

increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more. They allow

you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue, I won't

be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the

webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to record a call

as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to use that

and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation...

carla

[Guest guest]

Damn that's cheap. Is that through one of their VIOP offerings (if they have one)?

[Practiceimprovemen t1] Re: What phone systems are people using?

I am investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses. Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco "deal" by entering smartphone in the Costco.com search box. THey have negotiated a substantial discount. The gist is you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest free" and receive your first two phone lines free during that time. The second year you pay about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an automated attendant at $20 per muy onth that can route calls to whichever extension you choose and follow you anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my calls going through the automated

attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can get the fax to email option and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

I would be able to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system and in the deal, increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more. They allow you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue, I won't be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to record a call as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to use that and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation. ..

carla

[Guest guest]

I thought so, and nope, it’s a regular

land line.

Pratt

Office Manager

Oak Tree Internal Medicine P.C.

From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of Wayne Coghill

Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2008

1:42 PM

To:

Subject: Re:

Re: What phone systems are people using?

Damn that's cheap. Is that through one of their VIOP offerings

(if they have one)?

[Practiceimprovemen t1]

Re: What phone systems are people using?

I am

investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses.

Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco " deal " by

entering smartphone in the Costco.com

search box. THey have negotiated a substantial discount. The gist is

you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest free " and receive

your first two phone lines free during that time. The second year you pay

about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an automated

attendant at $20 per muy onth

that can route calls to whichever extension you choose and follow you

anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo

plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my

calls going through the automated attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I

will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can get the fax to

email option and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

I would be able

to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system and in the deal,

increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more. They allow

you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue, I won't

be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the

webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to record a call

as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to use that

and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation. ..

carla

[Guest guest]

Wow! . That seems like a good deal. What speed of DSL is included in this price and in which region/state are you located? ATT quoted me about 340 q month for 3 yr contract with 3 phone lines and 1 fax/dsl line( 6MG/512) with unlimited long distance.

[Practiceimprovemen t1] Re: What phone systems are people using?

I am investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses. Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco "deal" by entering smartphone in the Costco.com search box. THey have negotiated a substantial discount. The gist is you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest free" and receive your first two phone lines free during that time. The second year you pay about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an automated attendant at $20 per muy onth that can route calls to whichever extension you choose and follow you anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my calls going through the

automated attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can get the fax to email option and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

I would be able to save at least $75 per month over my current phone system and in the deal, increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more. They allow you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue, I won't be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to record a call as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to use that and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation. ..

carla

[Guest guest]

We’re in San Ramon, CA,

1 block from AT & T World Headquarters, which may be part of it. DSL is high

speed, not sure what speed, but it is just as fast as our cable internet at

home. The “regular” price is $20/line for the phone lines. And they are

calling me, offering me these great deals. There is a lot of competition in

the area right now between the VOIP systems and AT & T.

Pratt

Office Manager

Oak Tree Internal Medicine P.C.

From:

[mailto: ] On

Behalf Of Nivedita Bijoor

Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2008

12:47 AM

To:

Subject: Re:

Re: What phone systems are people using?

Wow! . That seems like a good deal. What speed of DSL is

included in this price and in which region/state are you located? ATT quoted me

about 340 q month for 3 yr contract with 3 phone lines and 1 fax/dsl line(

6MG/512) with unlimited long distance.

[Practiceimprovemen t1]

Re: What phone systems are people using?

I am

investigating a Costco partner for VoIP phone service for businesses.

Accessline is the company name. You can access the Costco " deal " by

entering smartphone in the Costco.com

search box. THey have negotiated a substantial discount. The gist is

you purchase phones from them over one year 'interest free " and receive

your first two phone lines free during that time. The second year you pay

about $50 for the two phone lines per month. You can pay for an automated

attendant at $20 per muy onth

that can route calls to whichever extension you choose and follow you

anywhere after hours/weekends. I was looking at onebox but the $50/mo

plan is limited to 2000 minutes per month and since I want to have most of my

calls going through the automated attendant (to reduce receptionist time) I

will likely need more than 2000 minutes per month. You can get the fax to

email option and voicemails are accessible by email as well.

I would be able to

save at least $75 per month over my current phone system and in the deal,

increase the functionality of the system by 1000% or more. They allow

you to return the package within 30 days - so if quality is an issue, I won't

be committed for the year. Plus, I've always loved fancy phones.

I saw on the

webfone site recommended in another post that they allow you to record a call

as an mp3- not sure that Accessline can do that. Would be nice to use that

and perhaps convert from speech to text for documentation. ..

carla

[Guest guest]

So, Jack, what kind of price range are we talking about? and for what kind of services? We've been happy with Vonage until recently, but we've started to have a lot of stutters (or blank space between the stutters) on some calls. Can't figure out a pattern, and hope switching from DSL to broadband will help (when we get a chance; it's been promised), but we're considering other options. Thinking about a remote office, too, so communication will be all the more critical.

Thanks,

Sujay

> So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys, including telephones.> I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am sure is out of> country and I can't say I

believe what the sales people tell me. They sound> like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone that I buy??> Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your system? Anyone have> any other phone sytems they are using?> I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be the cheapest w> the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox offers? Can't imagine> that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900 # is more> profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is something like> that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not getting paid to do> medical care over the phone. Just joking>> --> M.D.> www.elainemd. com> You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions of your dreams> and live the life you've imagined.>> -- Jack Forbush,

DOOsteopathic Center for Family Medicine603 Main Road NorthHampden, ME 04444office: fax: www.ocfm.com

[Guest guest]

Sujay, Using webfones, <http://www.webfones.com>Your stutters and jitters are likely related to port throttling by your ISP. Do they offer a VOIP? If so, this re-emphasizes my suspicion that they are port throttling Vonage.You say "switching from DSL to Broadband" although DSL is broadband. What are your upload and download speeds? -- Jack Forbush, DOOsteopathic Center for Family Medicine603 Main Road NorthHampden, ME 04444office: fax: www.ocfm.com Please consider the environment before printing this email. So, Jack, what kind of price range are we talking about? and for what kind of services? We've been happy with Vonage until recently, but we've started to have a lot of stutters (or blank space between the stutters) on some calls. Can't figure out a pattern, and hope switching from DSL to broadband will help (when we get a chance; it's been promised), but we're considering other options. Thinking about a remote office, too, so communication will be all the more critical. Thanks,Sujay> So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys, including telephones.> I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am sure is out of> country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell me. They sound> like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone that I buy??> Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your system? Anyone have> any other phone sytems they are using?> I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be the cheapest w> the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox offers? Can't imagine> that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900 # is more> profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is something like> that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not getting paid to do> medical care over the phone. Just joking>> --> M.D.> www.elainemd. com> You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions of your dreams> and live the life you've imagined.>> -- Jack Forbush, DOOsteopathic Center for Family Medicine603 Main Road NorthHampden, ME 04444office: fax: www.ocfm.com

[Guest guest]

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. I'm glad you're happy with your system. Do you use a lot of the bells and whistles? (See also my comments below.)

Sujay

> So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys, including telephones.> I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am sure is out of> country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell me. They sound> like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone that I buy??> Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your system? Anyone have> any other phone sytems they are using?> I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be the

cheapest w> the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox offers? Can't imagine> that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900 # is more> profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is something like> that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not getting paid to do> medical care over the phone. Just joking>> --> M.D.> www.elainemd. com> You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions of your dreams> and live the life you've imagined.>> -- Jack Forbush, DOOsteopathic Center for Family Medicine603 Main Road NorthHampden, ME 04444office: fax: www.ocfm.com

[Guest guest]

I've been enormously happy with my system (which offers some of the best

customer service around) and as far as the bells and whistles are

concerned, I use all that are at my disposal. This includes the obvious

voicemail to e-mail setting, caller ID, conference calling, " follow me "

and forwarding, SMS messaging, etc.

As far as making contact with them, I do know that they been updating

their website integration and suspect that you may have just caught them

at the wrong time. I'll get in touch with my contact at the

organization sending them your contact information.

With regard to your broadband connection, online gaming is an enormous,

and I mean enormous, bandwidth hog. There are several online services

which allow you to test for your connection speed. The site that I

commonly use is <www.speakeasy.net/speedtest>, but there are several

others. " Buyer beware " speakeasy does offer its own VOIP, however I was

never able to make any contact with them and simply use their speed test

ignoring all the other marketing pieces.

I doubt that you will actually need to get a second connection at home,

but would be well served to double check your connection speed and

possibly upgrade your home package to business-class service. This

upgrade may come with some restrictions, however may be more cost

effective option for you. Having not dealt with Comcast, I don't know

what services they do and do not offer.

One other thing to keep in mind when comparing DSL and cable is to

consider how many people will be on the same cable node as you as this

can negatively affect your performance. VOIP requires a fairly

consistent connection speed, albeit somewhat light compared to online

gaming, but nonetheless it is best if you are able to at least achieve

256K or 384K both ways. More times than not, home packages for cable

Internet services do not always meet that upload requirement and this

may be another limiting factor causing your " jitters " and " stutters " .

I guess my troubleshooting recommendations at this point would include:

1. Connection speed testing either through speakeasy or some other portal

2. Assessing the available " upgrade " options for either cable or DSL, I

suspect your DSL connectivity is more than sufficient for VoIP

3. Put some restrictions on the times that your son plays online gaming

as this will negatively affect your VoIP quality of service (perhaps the

most challenging recommendation)

For what it's worth (and to allay the fears of other list members that I

may have crossed some line), I have no financial interest in webfones

other than being a very satisfied customer.

- Jack

Shlifer Staff wrote:

> *Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. I'm glad you're happy with

> your system. Do you use a lot of the bells and whistles? /(See also my

> comments below.)/*

> *//*

> *Sujay*

>

>

>

>> > So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys,

>> including telephones.

>> > I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am

>> sure is out of

>> > country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell

>> me. They sound

>> > like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone

>> that I buy??

>> > Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your

>> system? Anyone have

>> > any other phone sytems they are using?

>> > I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be

>> the cheapest w

>> > the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox

>> offers? Can't imagine

>> > that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900 #

>> is more

>> > profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is

>> something like

>> > that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not

>> getting paid to do

>> > medical care over the phone. Just joking

>> >

>> > --

>> > M.D.

>> > www.elainemd. com

>> > You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions

>> of your dreams

>> > and live the life you've imagined.

>> >

>> >

>>

>> --

>> Jack Forbush, DO

>> Osteopathic Center for Family Medicine

>> 603 Main Road North

>> Hampden, ME 04444

>> office:

>> fax:

>> www.ocfm.com <http://www.ocfm.com/>

>>

>>

>>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Thank you, Jack. I'll look forward to hearing from them.

I suspected you knew way more than I about computers. Just about everyone does, including my son and my MA! I just try to keep up.

I have no problems with Vonage at home (where we already have Comcast cable), even with my son's gaming, so I'm sure we'll be happy once we're able to make the change at work. We had decided the stutters had to do with heavy traffic on the system, as it was not consistent with concurrent use of the net in our own office. I suppose it could be due to a nefarious plot, but it sounds like webfones has figured out the technology to get around it.

I checked out your website and see that you do prolotherapy. That makes a lot of sense to me, and some of my patients have benefited. I was planning to rent out a room in my office to a physiatrist to make the procedure more available to my patients over here on the peninsula (across from Seattle), but when my insurance company got wind of it they threatened to pull my policy! I couldn't believe it! Unfortunately, there are very few insurance companies offering medical malpractice in the state, so I just had to let it go. (I hope Gordon hasn't run into any difficulties in that department.)

Have a lovely weekend. Enjoy all those colors! The leaves here turned quite suddenly, and now we're even getting some snow in the mountains.

Sujay

J. Shlifer, MD

Sound Health and Wellness Center, Inc.

19735 10th Avenue, NE

Suite S-102

Poulsbo, WA 98370

office:

fax:

email: shliferstaff@...>> > So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys,>> including telephones.>> > I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am>> sure is out of>> > country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell>> me. They sound>> > like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone>> that I buy??>> > Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your>> system? Anyone have>> > any other phone sytems they are using?>> > I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be>> the cheapest w>> > the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox>> offers? Can't imagine>> > that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900

#>> is more>> > profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is>> something like>> > that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not>> getting paid to do>> > medical care over the phone. Just joking>> >>> > -->> > M.D.>> > www.elainemd. com>> > You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions>> of your dreams>> > and live the life you've imagined.>> >>> > >>>> -- >> Jack Forbush, DO>> Osteopathic Center for Family Medicine>> 603 Main Road North>> Hampden, ME 04444>> office: >> fax: >> www.ocfm.com <http://www.ocfm.

com/>>>>>>>>>

[Guest guest]

Thank you, Jack. I'll look forward to hearing from them.

I suspected you knew way more than I about computers. Just about everyone does, including my son and my MA! I just try to keep up.

I have no problems with Vonage at home (where we already have Comcast cable), even with my son's gaming, so I'm sure we'll be happy once we're able to make the change at work. We had decided the stutters had to do with heavy traffic on the system, as it was not consistent with concurrent use of the net in our own office. I suppose it could be due to a nefarious plot, but it sounds like webfones has figured out the technology to get around it.

I checked out your website and see that you do prolotherapy. That makes a lot of sense to me, and some of my patients have benefited. I was planning to rent out a room in my office to a physiatrist to make the procedure more available to my patients over here on the peninsula (across from Seattle), but when my insurance company got wind of it they threatened to pull my policy! I couldn't believe it! Unfortunately, there are very few insurance companies offering medical malpractice in the state, so I just had to let it go. (I hope Gordon hasn't run into any difficulties in that department.)

Have a lovely weekend. Enjoy all those colors! The leaves here turned quite suddenly, and now we're even getting some snow in the mountains.

Sujay

J. Shlifer, MD

Sound Health and Wellness Center, Inc.

19735 10th Avenue, NE

Suite S-102

Poulsbo, WA 98370

office:

fax:

email: shliferstaff@...>> > So I am at the stage of deciding on lots of new toys,>> including telephones.>> > I called vonage, like the price but their call center I am>> sure is out of>> > country and I can't say I believe what the sales people tell>> me. They sound>> > like they are reading a script. They say I can use any phone>> that I buy??>> > Does anyone out there have Vonage? Any problems w your>> system? Anyone have>> > any other phone sytems they are using?>> > I am thinking of using Vonage and onebox. That seems to be>> the cheapest w>> > the most funtionality. Anyone get the 800# that onebox>> offers? Can't imagine>> > that little me could have my own 1 800#, although a 1 900

#>> is more>> > profitable (maybe have the worng lead code but it is>> something like>> > that)...does it charge by the minute? Could solve our not>> getting paid to do>> > medical care over the phone. Just joking>> >>> > -->> > M.D.>> > www.elainemd. com>> > You only go through this life but once. Go in the directions>> of your dreams>> > and live the life you've imagined.>> >>> > >>>> -- >> Jack Forbush, DO>> Osteopathic Center for Family Medicine>> 603 Main Road North>> Hampden, ME 04444>> office: >> fax: >> www.ocfm.com <http://www.ocfm.

com/>>>>>>>>>