[Asterisk-Users] Receptionist

[Joseph]

> Quick question.  With an old phone system a receptionist receiving a
> call has 1 button to push to transfer calls to a specific extension,
> with Asterisk, a receptionist would actually put the caller on hold,
> pick up another line, call the extension, ask if the person is
> available, hang up pick up the caller again and transfer.  To me it's
> seems a long way to simply do a receptionist job.  Is there a way we
> can program the system, or make an application, that would provide the
> same functionality ? 

Asterisk does what you are looking for.
The process described above is a bit of redundant.  "...pick up another
line, call the extension, ask if the person is available, ...", just
transfer the call, if that person is available he/she will pickup the
line if not it the call will go to the mailbox, there is no need to
check if the person is available.

If you meant, to check if the person is willing to take that call is
another story, and asterisk does that as well. Here is the scenario:
You receive a call, 
press flash (puts the customer on hold)
call the person's extension if he/she is willing to take the call
if yes, you hang up and the call has been transfered, or if not, you
press flash again and tell the customer that the person at extension "x"
is not available etc.

if you want to do it in a formal way with "ring".  The person you called
and he/she is willing to take the call, hangs up the call with you.  You
press "flash", again and tell that person to stay on line as you are
transferring the call. Press flash again (to put the customer on hold)
dial the extension of the person you are transferring the call to and
hang up.  The phone of the person you transfered the call to will ring.
Is this what you are looking for?

-- 
#Joseph