[Asterisk-Users] Another Newbie Question

[Steven Critchfield]

On Sat, 2003-06-28 at 02:10, Jim Gottlieb wrote:
> On 2003-06-27 at 14:24, Chip Mefford (cmefford at avwashington.com) wrote:
> 
> > Is anyone actually using * as a primary phone system in
> > a small/medium sized business with more than a dozen
> > stations and a real receptionist who handles calls?
> 
> As impressed as I am with asterisk, and as happy as we are with it as
> the basis for our IVR/conferencing application, I don't think it is
> ready to replace a real PBX for general office use.

I would have to disagree. The only reason I hadn't answered this message
before is Chip wanted to know about setups with a receptionist. Our
office has been using asterisk as our pbx for over a year now. Granted
we are a small office of only 5 people, but it hasn't failed us yet. 

> And it doesn't have to because they can work together.  There are a lot
> of very reasonably priced systems on the used market.  For example, we
> use an Eon Millennium (ne ITT 3100) that we picked up fully loaded for
> a few thousand dollars, and for VoIP/IVR/ACD/VM we connect to an
> asterisk server through its PRI interface.  But the PBX itself provides
> the standard features like nice feature phones (available refurbished
> for one-third the price of a Cisco 7960), busy lamp / DSS consoles, and
> ARS tables, that are nicer than anything you could cobble together
> easily with asterisk at this point.

When you remove the need for a receptionist and if your IVR is setup up
well enough that a caller doesn't need to be transfered usually after
connected to a user, then all those features on a fancier phone aren't
used. I consider the company we had split from to me fairly average, and
all the extra buttons on their Intertel system only makes it more likely
to drop a call. 

I think if you consider the average company and down to home use, then
add in those companies that are willing to simplify the phone system,
you will see a large amount of people ready for a asterisk system. You
point out how asterisk can make headway into the those systems that need
more.

-- 
Steven Critchfield <critch at basesys.com>