Vonage <- kicks ass

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:32 am

Just to clarify...

Disconnected from "the street" is probably unplugging your house from the POTS provider at the "point of demarcation". This usually is a box on the exterior of your house. The phone company owns the wire, etc. up to that box (they probably own the box as well). From the box on, it is your responsability. The "easy" way to do VOIP is to just unplug yourself from this box. Your interior wiring is now no longer connected to the POTS provider. Then you can plug your VOIP adapter into any phone outlet in the house. As all of your outlets are wired together, they now all can use the adapter via your normal phones. I think this is how most people do it.

Jason Mauldin · **Posted:** Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:34 am

Can't you just leave one phone plugged into that box, and connect all the others to VOIP. 911 still works without phone service, right?

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:45 am

Jason Mauldin wrote:

Can't you just leave one phone plugged into that box, and connect all the others to VOIP. 911 still works without phone service, right?

Jason,

What I did was run a line from the box outside into my house and this is terminated in a regular phone outlet. In my crawl space I have all of my interior lines run to a single point. I also have my VOIP adapter down there. So by using a simple jumper cable, I can either plug my interior lines into the adapter or the line the runs to the box outside. So I can switch back and forth between VOIP or POTS if needed.

Or as you say, I could pick an existing extension (or run a new one) that plugs into the line the runs to the POTS box. So I could have regular POTS on a single phone for emergency situations when/if VOIP does not work. Doing this is a personal decision. Maybe some people want a red "Bat" phone that they make all 911 calls on. I CAN see the advantage, but I personally don't feel the need to do this.

Jason Mauldin · **Posted:** Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:52 am

I agree, there's not a need to do it. But in my mind, it makes any emergency concerns a moot point. In this situation, most of us here would have three different options when trying to contact the officials..

Frank Catena · **Joined:** Wed Aug 27, 2003 1:08 pm **Posts:** 418

By "POTS box" I assume you mean the NID or NIU (Network Interface Device/Unit). Don't assume that your local telco won't remove the NID when you drop local service. Also don't assume that because your NID is still on your house that the pairs into the NID are still connected at the local cross connect box (those vertical boxes in the neighborhoods). Even if all that still exists, don't assume you have dialtone at the NID.
Best thing to do is to check by plugging a phone into the NID if you intend to use it as backup. Even then, no guarantees that it will work later.

Some carriers (i.e. Verizon) now offer "naked" DSL where you can have a DSL connection w/o POTS service. You can also port your POTS phone number to your VoIP line. With DSL starting at $15/month or so it can be a pretty attractive low cost offer.

Caveats as before ...

Frank

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Thu Oct 27, 2005 2:39 pm

Frank,

All very good points about the NIU (yes, that is what I was talking about).

Frank Catena wrote:

Some carriers (i.e. Verizon) now offer "naked" DSL where you can have a DSL connection w/o POTS service.

Do you have any links you can provide about Verizon offering this currently? Especially here in the Triangle? Verzion was my telco and I did have DSL with them before, but the ONLY reason I dropped DSL and went Cable Modem with TWC is because of the requirement to have a POTS along with your DSL. My Verizon DSL was rock solid and never had problems. Telcos need to focus on supporting naked DSL.

Frank Catena · **Joined:** Wed Aug 27, 2003 1:08 pm **Posts:** 418

The page to order Verizon DSL is:

http://www22.verizon.com/

you'll note that you can now qualify your line based on street address.

While I don't deny that the original issues with naked DSL had a revenue component, Vz also had significant "back end" system issues to deal with when customers didn't have a phone number. "BTN" or Billing Telephone Number is to a telco what a Social Security number is to the Social Security folks ....

Frank

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Thu Oct 27, 2005 4:58 pm

Frank,

Thanks for the link. I had actually tried that earlier. I try to qualify my address and it says "no". I did have DSL at that address perviously. :whoknows:

So I am a bit puzzled. I may try to give them a call and see what the deal is in my area.

Richard

Frank Catena · **Joined:** Wed Aug 27, 2003 1:08 pm **Posts:** 418

While wire distance to the nearest DSL equipped CO is one test, some DSALMs (the central office equipment that connects to the DSL modem in the home) in Durham are full. Sometimes its just a records updating problem.
If you want to send me your address, I'll see what I can find. Either a PM here or

frankpc@verizon.net

will work.

Frank

David Teague · **Posted:** Thu Oct 27, 2005 10:13 pm

I have had Vonage for about 2 years not and have never had it any issues with it. The big deal about hte 911 thing was that people did not realize they had to activate/sign upe to get it 911 to work with the psap, of course every news letter they send me they tell me they are adding more and more e-911 coverage so hopefully it will be in raleigh soon. I pay 14.95 for 500 minutues of ld and all features, and I have yet to use all thoose minutes bettween it and my sell phones. the unlimted plan is 24.95.

Dustin Fredrickson · **Posted:** Fri Oct 28, 2005 11:00 am

David Teague wrote:

I have had Vonage for about 2 years not and have never had it any issues with it. The big deal about hte 911 thing was that people did not realize they had to activate/sign upe to get it 911 to work with the psap, of course every news letter they send me they tell me they are adding more and more e-911 coverage so hopefully it will be in raleigh soon. I pay 14.95 for 500 minutues of ld and all features, and I have yet to use all thoose minutes bettween it and my sell phones. the unlimted plan is 24.95.

E911 was a requirement for me, though I will have the Red "Bat Phone" in my garage as well (I have no "service" but get a dial tone and a message stating "911 use only..." if I try to dial out). Vonage couldn't tell me if my address had E911 yet, but said all numbers would have it by end of Nov.

FWIW, Broadvoice, which gets slightly higher reviews, quoted the same availability, and Packet8 said it was available now at my address in N. Raleigh.

Charlie Guthrie · **Joined:** Thu Aug 28, 2003 8:14 pm **Posts:** 832

The big question on my mind regarding Vonage is: What do you about the loss of phone number listing? I still have people who want to contact me (who are not phone solicitors) and they use the phone book or on-line phone books. To my knowledge, there are no web-based providers who list your number.
One sales representative who I deal with recently boasted that he was planning to do away with his traditional land line. When I asked what would happen to his Yellow Pages listing he hadn't given it any thought.
So, just how do you find a phone number for someone who has Vonage?
Charlie Guthrie

Todd Breakey · **Posted:** Tue Nov 01, 2005 9:43 pm

My phone number will be listed in the local phone directory just like everybody else. We had to fill out a form to give Vonage permission to give it to the printer. We will find out next year, we just got Vonage at the beginning of this year.

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Wed Nov 02, 2005 5:05 pm

Good points about the phone book listings....

I would assume that the yellow pages people would gladly take your money for a listing (even if your phone is not with "them"). But then again I don't know how yellow page listings work. For example is the small one line entry "free" and you have to pay for everything else?

For white page listings, I would be suprised if someone like Verizon or Bell South would list the Vonage numbers. I know that there is competing phone books that go out. That there is the ones you get from your local telco and then there is the "generic"free one that just shows up. I assume that the generic one is something created so they can sell yellow page adds and could care less what is in the white pages (do those have white pages?).

Todd, how exactly did that work for you with Vonage? Do you have a URL for that form or instructions on Vonages site for this? Is your entry going to be in the phone book for the telco that would otherwise serve your area or in the generic phone book that is not put out by the telco?

Charlie Guthrie · **Joined:** Thu Aug 28, 2003 8:14 pm **Posts:** 832

The thing that puzzels me is that I did an on-line tech help with Vonage and the tech said that there would be no listing in the white pages. I want the reference to the "form" that releases your number. I have a funny feeling that "releasing" the number gives Bell South "permission" to publish your number but may not "require" them to do so. Where is the financial incentive for THE Phone Company?
Charlie G

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