In 1876 Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone as he was trying to develop a new telegraph system that would allow more than one telegraph to be transmitted simultaneously. It wasn t long before the first telephone line was established and many more followed.
There was no way Bell could know at the time what he was creating. Since then, telephones have become an integral part of our daily lives. They are our main means of communication; our lifeline to the rest of the world. But even lifelines need to be replaced once in a while.
Unfortunately, not much has been updated in our telephone system since shortly after it was established. Sure, there have been some advances, such as improvements in switches, but for all practical purposes, the telephone technology that you use today is the same technology that Bell used when he made his first call to his assistant, Thomas Watson. That call, which consisted of less than ten words exchanged over a copper wire, changed the way the world communicates.
The time has come for another change. The traditional telephone has served us well for more than 125 years, but advances in technology now give us other options. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is one of those options, and though it s still in its infancy, it s shaping up to be an excellent option. It brings with it the promise of a future that s better than the past.
Indeed, VoIP might be the first step in the next shift in the way you communicate, but before far-reaching changes can happen, VoIP must take hold. It s a matter of time. In that time, consumers will learn how VoIP has matured and changed. You ll be drawn to the technology by the price, which is considerably less than that of traditional telephone service. But as the technology matures and gains market strength, VoIP will become the future of communications.
It all sounds pretty technical, doesn t it? Don t fret. This is all just a way to say, VoIP is here to stay. People are ready to get out from under the big telecommunications companies. People are ready for choices. VoIP gives you those choices.
To that end, this book is your VoIP consultant. In the pages that follow you ll learn about VoIP, how to decide what s right for you, and how to get it set up and operational. You ll find all of the information you need to make a decision about VoIP and then to put that decision to work.
The following pages contain information about VoIP and how it compares to traditional telephone service, as well as resources to help you decide if VoIP is right for you. If you decide it is, then you ll find resources to help you find the right VoIP service and service provider.
Along the journey there are checklists, Web site resources, tips, and notes to help you understand VoIP and get the most from it. You ll find guidelines for installing and configuring the VoIP service that you choose, and examples of real VoIP services that you can try before you make your decision.
I m excited about VoIP, and not just because it s a new technology, but because of the choices that it finally gives us for communications. Those choices have been a long time coming. Now that we have them, the future of communications once again looks bright.
It is an interesting technology, but even more interesting is the potential that the technology brings to the telecommunications industry. Not for more than 125 years have we seen this kind of a shift in the way people communicate. VoIP is one step in that direction, and it looks like it could be a very interesting journey.
