[Asterisk-Users] Newbie has a few basic questions please.

[Stewart Nelson]

>> Thanks for the replies.  I do have vonage phone service and they have 
>> provided me a motorla device I plug into my broadband and also plug my 
>> phone into to make calls. this is a nice service for 30 bucks, but as 
>> with all things linux, why cant one connect to the PSTN for free?
> 
> I suspect that somebody, possibly you, paid for the computer you're 
> running Linux on.  Connecting to the PSTN costs money for pretty much 
> the same reasons.  As a personal aside, you do appear to be a bit hung 
> up on the free beer aspect.
> 

Hi Bruce,

If you use infrastructure owned by others, you will obviously have to
pay, by the month and/or by the minute.

One way to talk over long distances without depending on others'
facilities is amateur radio.  Unfortunately, the equipment can cost
you several thousand dollars, communication is unreliable and the
quality is often poor.  If you learn enough and expend the effort to
acquire and repair old gear, it might cost only a few hundred dollars.
Most amateurs take up the hobby for reasons other than 'free' calls.
More info at http://www.arrl.org/ .

You can get free incoming-only access to the PSTN.  The provider
receives a small portion of what people pay to call you.
See http://www.ipkall.com/ .

Two people with Internet connections can talk for free (other than
the cost of Internet service) using a variety of softphones or
instant messaging software.  Some of this software is open source.
For example, see http://myphone.sourceforge.net/ .
The quality is not the best, and there are various inconveniences.

You can buy an IP phone or an adapter similar to the one provided
by Vonage for < $100.  If the other end is similarly equipped,
you can talk without any additional monthly or per-minute charges.

A group of people with softphones, IP phones, and/or adapters
can call each other via registry services, some of which are
free.  See http://www.pulver.com/fwd/ .

A number of VoIP providers allow you to call the PSTN for $0.03
per minute or less, with no monthly fee.  This is a good choice
for those using less than 1000 minutes per month.

--Stewart