[Asterisk-Users] Outline For Asterisk Book - Please Review & Comment

Michael Manousos manousos at inaccessnetworks.com
Fri Nov 21 11:46:53 MST 2003


Hi Steven,

I think this is a great idea and the best way to make
users more familiar with Asterisk and its configuration and usage.
I can and will provide input for all H.323 related sections.

Michael.

Steven Sokol wrote:
> Asterisk Users
> 
> In an attempt to help Asterisk move forward, a number of us have decided
> to create a book.  It would initially be released as an "ebook" that
> could be sent to newbies to help them up the rather steep learning
> curve.  Ultimately I would like to see it published and sold in
> bookstores (preferably by O'Reilly & Co.).
> 
> Below is the outline for the book.  We REALLY need as much input as we
> can get.  I would like to completely flesh-out the outline, then I would
> like to start accepting submissions from the user community for each of
> the sections/chapters/topics covered in the outline.
> 
> I have to stress here that I AM NOT AN ASTERISK GURU.  I need help from
> the real gurus (especially: Steven Critchfield, John Todd, Tilghman
> Lesher, Olle Johansson, and where possible/necessary Mark and Martin).
> 
> If this works, it will help Asterisk achieve the same kind of global
> success as Apache, Samba, and other Linux staples.  If you want to chat,
> I am lurking in the #asterisk-doc channel on Freenode IRC.  I'm
> 'ssokol'.  Others on this project (so far) are Jared Smith and Leif
> Madson.
> 
> A "living" copy of this outline can be found at:
> http://www.sokol-associates.com/outline.htm .  I will try to update it
> daily with your suggestions.  It will also be the basis for the project
> outline (completion %, assignments, etc.).
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Steve Sokol
> Sokol & Associates, LLC
> 
> [Outline Guide]
> The following outline describes the layout for the book.
> 
> 1. <- Section
> 	a. <- Chapter
> 		1) <- Sub-Chapter
> 			i.  <- Topic Heading
> 			*.  <- Sidebar Heading
> 			1}  <- Graphic or Chart
> 			1>  <- Table
> 
> [Outline]			
> 1.  Introduction to Asterisk
> 	a.  Introductory letter from Mark Spencer
> 		1)  Whatever Mark has to say...
> 		2)  Digium Reference Information
> 			i.  Web Site
> 			ii. Phone Number
> 	b.  The Business Case For Asterisk
> 		[Somebody From The Business Side Writes This]
> 	c.  General concept of asterisk
> 		1) Asterisk: Swiss Army Knife of Telephony
> 		2) PBX, IVR, ACD
> 		3) What To Expect
> 			i.   Asterisk Is Not A Turnkey System
> 			ii.  Don't Like It?  Change It Yourself.
> 			iii. Opensource, GPL and LGPL Licensing
> 	d.  Asterisk architecture
> 		1)  The Big Picture
> 		2)  Channels
> 		3)  Codec Conversions
> 		4)  Etc.
> 	e.  Key components
> 		1) Asterisk software
> 			i.   Asterisk (Main PBX & Channels)
> 			ii.  Zaptel (Drivers for Zaptel Hardware)
> 			iii. Libpri (ISDN PRI Drivers for Zaptel)
> 		2) Zaptel Hardware
> 			i.   Overview
> 			ii.  X100P - Single Port FXO Line Interface
> 			iii. S100U - Single Port FXS USB Interface
> 			iv.  TDM400P - 4 Port FXS Analog Interface
> 			v.   T100P - Single Span T1/E1 Interface
> 			vi.  TE410P - Quad-Span T1/E1 Interface
> 		3) Channels
> 			i.   Zaptel Devices/Channels
> 			ii.  The IAX Protocol
> 			iii. SIP
> 			iv.  MGCP
> 			v.   Skinny
> 			vi.  H323
> 		4) Applications
> 			i.   Dial and Other Basics
> 			ii.  Voicemail
> 			iii. Dial-Plan Scripting
> 		5) Extensibility
> 			i.   AGI
> 			ii.  Custom Applications
> 	f.  Add-On/Optional Components
> 		1) Software
> 			i.   Gnophone
> 			ii.  VoIP Soft Phones
> 			iii. DIAX
> 			iv.  Gastman
> 			v.   Open H.323
> 		2) Hardware
> 			i.   VoIP Hard-Phones
> 			ii.  VoIP Gateways
> 			ii.  Channel Banks
> 
> 2.  Installing Asterisk
> 	*.  Asterisk Quickstart
> 		1)  Install PC Hardware
> 		2)  Download Asterisk Software
> 		3)  Build Asterisk
> 		4)  Install Asterisk
> 		5)  Configure Autostart
> 		
> 	a.  Requirements
> 		*)  Picking A Solid System
> 		1)  PC Hardware Requirements
> 			i.   SOHO/Residential System
> 			ii.  Small Business System
> 			iii. Medium Business/Small Call-Center System
> 			iv.  Enterprise System
> 			v.   VoIP Carrier System
> 		2) Linux Requirements
> 			*.   Linux Installation Is Not Covered
> 			i.   Tested Distributions
> 			ii.  Minimum Kernel Version
> 			iii. Required Packages 
> 			*.   Other Operating Systems
> 				- Free BSD
> 				- Mac OS-X
> 				- BeOS?
> 				- Win32/Win64?
> 	b.  Hardware Installation
> 		1)  IRQ Sharing Issues
> 		2)  Digium Wildcard Cards
> 		3)  LineJack and PhoneJack Cards
> 		4)  Other Cards (ISDN, VoiceTronix, Etc.)
> 	c.  Downloading Asterisk from CVS
> 		1)  What is CVS?
> 		2)  The Asterisk "Versioning" Issues
> 		3)  Your Initial Download
> 		4)  Updates
> 		*.  Adding Custom Patches (patch/diff)
> 	d.  Compiling Asterisk
> 		*)  Why Do I Have To Compile The Code?
> 		1)  Using 'make'
> 		2)  Compiling The Software
> 			i.   Zaptel
> 			ii.  Libpri
> 			iii. Asterisk
> 		3)  Making The Samples/Demo
> 		4)  Making Code Documentation (Doxygen)
> 			i.   Why build code documentation?
> 			ii.  What Is Doxygen?
> 			iii. Code Doc Layout
> 		5)  Common Build Errors/Warnings
> 			i.   Via C3 Is NOT An i686
> 			ii.  Building on Little-Endian Systems
> 			iii. Etc.
> 	e.  Loading drivers (zaptel/ztdummy)
> 		*)  Read Ahead (Section 3, Chapter C1) For Zaptel Setup
> 		1)  Linux Kernel Loadable Modules
> 		2)  Using modprobe
> 		3)  Adding zaptel modules to your startup file
> 		*)  RedHat Is Weird
> 	f.  Starting Asterisk
> 		1)  Manual Starting and the CLI
> 		2)  Starting using safe_asterisk
> 		3)  Accessing the CLI when Asterisk Is Running
> 		4)  Logging/Tracing and Verbose
> 	g.  Configuring Autostart w/ safe_asterisk
> 		1)  Linux Runlevels (the init sequence)
> 		2)  Modifying The Startup Manually
> 		*)  RedHat Is Still Weird
> 
> 3.  Basic Asterisk Configuration
> 	*.  Overview Of Asterisk Configuration
> 		1) System Layout
> 		2) Configuration Files
> 		3) Command Line Interface
> 	a.  File Layout (The Asterisk Directory Structure)
> 		1) /etc/asterisk
> 		2) /var/lib/asterisk
> 		3) /var/spool/asterisk
> 		4) Etc...
> 	b.  .conf files
> 		1) What Is A .conf File?
> 		2) Common File Structures
> 		3) Reloading Asterisk Configuration
> 	c.  Configuring Phones & Channels
> 		1)  The zapata.conf File
> 			[All About zaptel/tormenta configuration]
> 		2)  The IAX.conf File
> 			i.  ?? - Anbyody Know This Well?
> 		3)  The sip.conf File
> 			i.   The General Section
> 			ii.  Supported Codecs/Codec Order
> 			iii. Registration of "peers"
> 			iv.  SIP Device Entries
> 			v.   Unsupported codecs/G729.a/b
> 			vi.  Common SIP Devices
> 				a)  Cisco 79XX Phones
> 				b)  Cisco ATA-186 Adapter
> 				c)  Grandstream Phones
> 				d)  SNOM Phones
> 				e)  Xten X-Lite/X-Pro
> 				f)  SoftJoy SJ-Phone
> 			*.   Asterisk and 'Reinvite'
> 		3)  The oh323.conf File
> 			i.  ?? - Anybody Know This Well?
> 		4)  The skinny.conf File
> 			i.  ?? - Anybody Know This Well?
> 		5)  CAPI/ISDN?
> 			i.  ?? - Anybody Know This Well?
> 	d.  Configuring Applications
> 		1)  Music On Hold: The moh.conf File
> 			a) Don't Forget The Timing (Part A)
> 		2)  Voicemail: The voicemail.conf File
> 			a) Basic SMTP Configuration
> 		3)  Meet-Me:  The meetme.conf File
> 			a) Don't Forget The Timing (Part B)
> 	e.  Configuring Your Dialplan
> 		*)  The Dialplan: Center Of The System
> 		1)  Everything Is An Extension
> 		2)  Basics Of Pattern Matching
> 		3)  Keeping It All In Context
> 		*)  Security, Toll-Fraud and Asterisk
> 		4)  Creating Outbound Calling "Extensions"
> 		5)  Creating User (Station/Channel) Extensions
> 		6)  Creating Application Extensions
> 	f.  Sample Configurations
> 		[LOTS OF SAMPLES HERE]
> 		
> 4.  Common Issues
> 	a.  Music On Hold/MP3 Playback
> 		1) Proper Version of MPG123
> 		2) Zaptel Timer or Ztdummy
> 	b.  DTMF Over SIP
> 		1)  Inband Only Works On G.711 MuLaw/ALaw
> 		2)  SIP-INFO
> 		3)  RFC___?
> 		4)  The "Flash"
> 	c.  Internationalization of Asterisk
> 		1)  Tones and Ringback
> 		2)  Call Supervision
> 	d.  SIP and NAT
> 	e.  Optional/Added Codecs
> 		1) G.729
> 		2) G.723
> 	f.  Message Waiting Indication
> 	g.  SIP Service Provider Issues
> 		1) Free World Dialup (FWD)
> 		2) Iconnect
> 		3) Sipphone
> 		4) NuFone
> 	h.  Common Hardware Device Issues
> 		1) Grandstream BT100 Series
> 		2) Cisco ATA-186
> 		3) Cisco 79XX Series Phones
> 		4) SNOM VoIP Phones
> 		5) Carrier Access Channel Banks
> 	*.  How to politely use the Asterisk-Users List
> 	*.  How to politely use the Asterisk IRC channel
> 
> 5.  Advanced Asterisk Configuration
> 	a.  Agents and the Asterisk ACD
> 	b.  Text-To-Speech: Festival
> 	c.  CLASS Features (John Todd?)
> 	d.  Fax (Software Fax)
> 	e.  Sphinx Speech Recognition (ASR)
> 		
> 6.  Scripting And AGI Extensions to Asterisk
> 	a.  What Is AGI?
> 	b.  What Languages Can I Use
> 	c.  
> 	AGI In: c, perl, php, etc.
> 7.  Creating Asterisk Applications In C
> 
> 8.  Appendicies	
> 	a. Sources Of Additional Information
> 		1) Digium Site/Asterisk Site
> 		2) The Asterisk WiKi
> 		3) The Asterisk-User and Asterisk-Dev Lists
> 		4) The #Asterisk IRC Channel
> 	b. Glossary of Asterisk & Telecom Terms
> 		[Large Glossary Of Asterisk & Telecom Terms]
> 	c. Applications Reference
> 		[Detailed Explanation Of All "Standard" Applications]
> 	d. CLI Commands Reference
> 		[Detailed Explanation Of All CLI Commands]
> 	e. Manager Commands Reference
> 		[Detailed Explanation Of All Manager Commands/Events]
> 	f. The Asterisk C API Reference
> 		[Some Detail On The ast_ functions]
> 
> 
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