If you’ve been an internet user for a few years, you may have tried, or knew someone who tried, or at least heard about, using your computer to make free long distance phone calls. All you needed was an internet connection, telephony software, and a computer with a microphone and speakers. You entered the phone number you wanted to call into the software, clicked a button, and you were talking long distance for free.

Like any new technology in its fledgling stage, there were some kinks to iron out. Sitting at your computer is often the least comfortable (and private) place to carry on a conversation. Most people had dial-up internet connections, so they may have been using up their monthly internet minutes just to talk over the internet for free. After the novelty wore off internet telephony faded into obscurity.

Enter cable modems and DSL. High-speed internet, connected all the time. Apple and others brought videoconferencing to the masses with products like iChat. On the voice side, the “next big thing” is called Voice over Internet Protocol (or VoIP, for short).

VoIP allows you to make telephone calls using a broadband internet connection instead of a regular analog phone. VoIP converts the voice signal from your telephone into a digital signal that travels over the internet. If you are calling a regular phone number, the signal is converted back at the other end.

Some VoIP services allow you to only call others who use the same service. Others can connect you with anyone who has a phone number, whether it is local, long distance, or international call. Some services work only over your computer or a special VoIP phone, while others let you use a regular phone with a special adaptor.

What are some advantages of VoIP? It doesn’t require a dedicated phone line, and can provide additional features, now and in the future, that an analog line cannot and probably will not. VoIP also doesn’t require the computer to be on – just an active internet connection.

Some downsides? If your power goes out, or your internet connection dies, your VoIP dies. On some systems, dialing “911” in an emergency won’t seamless connect with, or be traceable by, emergency dispatch centers. And, some VoIP providers may not offer any kind of directory assistance.

© 2004 Peter F. Zimowski