Making local phone calls from PC

Since this is a telephony question I'm posting here, seems to be the closest match:

I have only one phone line so I have my wired lan connected the Bell modem that then connects to the phone line. I have no need for a cellular phone as I don't use the phone much, BUT when I do I need to unplug the modem and plugin the phone to make the rare call. I can split the line and have both but then my internet speed suffers greatly.

I was looking into how I could make local phone calls straight from my computer. I downloaded and tried a few programs but some have limited time or say you are out of time right from the start even though they claim to be 'free'. I don't want to have to pay to make a local call, I'd just like to use the phone line I have now but from the computer instead of on a landline/cordless phone.

I tried the Phonelite program but it needs an SIP server which Bell does not provide with its internet service (or Voip for that matter).

Is there any way I can use the setup I have to be able to just call local numbers from my computer without having to unplug/plug my phone in? I heard about Google Voice but apparently it's not available in my location in Canada yet (Montreal).

Any other possibilities?

 

Did your ISP not provide you with a DSL splitter with a noise filter? Noise from telephones can interfere with DSL signals, and it sounds like that is what is happening to you.

Sounds like you need to contact your ISP and describe the problem to them.

Have you tried Skype?

 

James.http://www.skype.com/en/what-is-skype/

I think that page explains what you can and cannot do with Skype. Neil.

Mikenowo, Have you thought about getting a larger capacity PSU? 220W is working hard with your system.
If you are on Broadband - as James said, you should have a filter installed at the phone wall jack 1st, and depending on the phone cabling used you may need the splitter.
I use 5 jacks and each has a filter installed and the phone cable connects into the filter. (one jack is for the Sky TV Network).
We are still using copper cable phone lines as there is quite a cost involved in connecting to the Fibre Optic (UFB) cable and all the necessary wireless boxes to the internals in the house. If you have a filter on the line and you are getting noises, you may have a faulty filter.
The filters don't last forever and I've had to renew 2 of them over last 12 years.
If you have a look at the link I Posted, you will find that unless the people you are calling on Skype are using Skype as well, you will need to pay for calls but at a lesser rate than through your Telco. Neil.

 

Are you on Dialup? Sounds like it. You could try Google talk. I have used it on occasions. Don't use it anymore as I have DSL now.

 

When I was using Juno dialup, I had to disconnect from the internet before I could even make a phone call, and no calls could be made or taken as long as I was online.

EDIT: Sounds like you have DSL to me. I'd call your ISP and explain the situation to them.

 

It sounds like you are going to need a dedicated line in order to connect to the internet. With your current set up while you are connected to the internet any incoming calls are going to get a busy signal and any out going calls are going to require that you disconnect from the internet. I had the same problem when I tried to use dial up. I now use Optimum.

 

Skype charges for local calls so it's not an option.

No they did not provide me with a splitter (bought my own) but I do have filters BUT the tech that came to the house said there's a filter applied at the source box so no others were necessary <shrug>. Are you saying that if I put a filter, then my own phone splitter and connect both the phone and the modem that I won't lose 1/2 my internet speed (which is happening now if I split it)?

 

I can't really mess with the PSU, this is a laptop based mini-desktop (has small parts inside) and replacements aren't worth looking into. Not sure why you are mentioning the PSU though, how would that effect internet slowdown when I split?

As for the filter.. as I mentioned in reply to James: I do have filters BUT the tech that came to the house said there's a filter applied at the source box so no others were necessary <shrug>.

 

No I'm on DSL.

As for Google Talk it's not available in Canada, at least not where I live. I tried it and that's the message I got, not available.

 

I think people are misunderstanding what my problem is and what I'm looking for:

-Right now my internet connection works FINE (DSL), what happens is that if I split the phone line with a splitter so that I can connect both phone and DSL modem, then the phone works fine BUT my internet speed drops drastically (I've checked it on speedtest.net and other sites before and after splitting and this is the case). I can get calls, call out and use the internet fine BUT internet speed is slowed.

I USED two have two lines running into this room but one went defunct. The house is too old to start wiring new lines as they would still come from the same box and isn't worth the effort.

-ALL I was hoping to do is find a way to call local numbers from my computer instead of having to use an actual phone (i.e. the computer software would BE the phone), but this seems more complicated than I expected. There doesn't seem to be a way for a phone program/software to simply access the voice capabilities of the phone line through the DSL modem connection to the phone wall socket (I thought there would be).

-It seems that you have to use a google talk or other type of 'provider' to just make local calls. Again Google talk/voice isn't available here so that's not an option. I tried Icall, but as soon as I connected it told me I was already out of time.. if I have to BUY time from them it's hardly 'free'. Same thing with a few other supposedly 'free' software programs, after creating an ID and logging in any call I try to make says I'm out of time, so they aren't free.. don't know why they claim to be.

==

SO I'm at the point where I have to use a phone upstairs to make calls which is inconvenient. This is why I was hoping to make calls from the PC itself on the one line downstairs that I also connect to the internet with (via DSL). So right now seems my options may be:

--
1-I did find something else that MAY be viable but am wondering if anyone else (preferably in Canada) has tried it:

-From the http://www.fongo.com/platforms/ link you can click on the 'Sign Up' button in the 'Desktop for Mac and PC' section to "Get the desktop application from Freephoneline, powered by Fongo "
-It then takes you to the 'https://www.freephoneline.ca' site to register. They ask for a contact number there, which I assume would be my phone number. I'm just concerned that they don't use THAT number as some sort of conduit for themselves or others and I end up getting charged on that line :-/
Has anyone ever tried 'Fongo/https://www.freephoneline.ca' in Canada? If so, is it legit?
--

2-Trying a filter THEN the splitter on my current line and see if I still lose internet speed (if I understood James Martin correctly in an earlier post)

--

*OR*

Something else that wasn't discussed yet?

 

Well go figure:

Just to test it out once more, I put the splitter in again and then connected both the DSL modem and filtered phone and now the internet speed is fine. This is the same thing I tried before (the phone was connected to a filter then to the splitter) and internet speed was cut in half. Just now I tried again and the internet speed is as it should be. No idea why it degraded last time.

Anyhow, the phone seems to work fine now along with internet through teh splitter, so I'll see how this pans out.

 

Have you looked into magicJack?

It's available in the USA and Canada.

Another option is to get a cordless phone with an extension and place the extension near your computer location. As a matter of fact, that is the exact same setup I have now.

What I proposed was a special all-in-one ASDL splitter / noise filter similar to this one. It doesn't have to be the same brand, and you would not require a separate splitter either. Course, your idea of adding a filter to a split line may get the same results.

Mr.Bill used to work for AT&T; maybe he can offer some insight here.

 

Thanks, Neil. I thought Skype would allow someone to make free local calls, but I see I am wrong.

For what it's worth, I know a young lady that used to commune with her husband in Iraq, via Skype, using her laptop's built-in camera and mic. You could actually see and hear him from thousand's of miles away. (instant letter from home )

 

Hi Mikenowo, Sorry I did not check your model to see it was a laptop. 220W for a Desktop PC would be minimum - pushing the packet.

Regarding the filter/splitter, I have a filter which is installed from the phone jack in front of me.
The filter has two outlet connectors - one is the Telephone flat connector (for Panasonic Mobile phone) and the other has an RJ45 which connects to the NetComm Modem. I have no problems with speed or phone noise. This unit is all in one and measures 60x35x20m/m. Neil.

 

I guess you didn't catch my last quick post above (after my long one ;-p), but I tried the splitter again and now the phone and internet work fine together. No loss of speed on internet at all.. soo .. who knows?

 

I did catch it, but I offered some suggestions if case the problem arises again.

 

Nice to see you're all OK again. Neil.

 

The filter that the tech put outside should be on 1 pair of wires going straight to your Modem. You telephones are on the other pair. This is 35 years of phone experience speaking here (Bell and AT&T). Easiest thing to do is go outside and where the splitter is at in the NED or NIC or what ever they call it up there and make sure that the DSL is on the Yellow/Black. The phones should then all be on the Red/Green. Get you a double jack from Wally World or Radio shack or else get you a adapter that is marked Line 1 and Line 2. The DSL will be on Line 2 (Yellow/Black) and the Phone on Line 1 (Red/Green) That is the easiest way. The splitter in the box outside has the DSL on the top one and the phone on the bottom one. If you had 2 lines like you mentioned before, do you have double jacks in that room?