Free Voip Setup

Yes, there is such a thing as free Voip

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If you know me, you understand I am a very frugal man. Some would even go so far as to denounce me as cheap. But that is no matter to me, for it is my budget and the curse of never having any money rather than my disposition which dictates my actions. Now, I am trying to make my internet connection pay for itself, or at least make me think it’s paying for itself. The Goal: Free Voip. That is essentially a free phone line.

The original crux of the operation was Skype. Skype is an internet phone service through which users can call landlines as well as other computers. Recently skype made a new announcement that for the rest of the year (2006) all “Skype Out” calls would be free – that is all PC-to-phone calls. This would have been great in and of itself but around the same time AOL introduced its new service – AIM Phoneline. Therein individualswho use their popular instant messaging program would be granted a local number to receive toll free calls on their computer.

Many people saw these two services as competing for different sectors of the Messaging market. PC World wrote a quality review of the two services, noting the free aspects on differing sides of the equation. But is was Voip-News.com that had the idea of “Mashing up the services for free calling.”

The concept is simple. You use AIM Phoneline to receive phone calls on your free local number, and then use Skype to make all of your outgoing phone calls. Although the result would require you run both services at once, it would equate to a free phone line.

The next step was a cordless phone hooked up to my PC so I don’t have to sit next to the computer to make a call. There are two different approaches to this problem. One is a cordless phone designed to work with a PC via USB cable. The other is an adapter that changes your RJ11 line (a standard phone line) into two 1/8” line for headphone and mic. Many companies out there sell both – the USB cordless phones run from $45 to hundreds and the phone line adapter is made by one company: Chat-Cord and runs about 25 bucks.

But Wait, couldn’t you do this for free? Of course, that’s what the internet is for! With a little help from google I was able to locate instructions for both the Cordless Phone and the RJ11 adapter approach. It is important to note that the former instructions include a plugin for skype that enables the user to dial and send calls while away from the computer by mean of the cordless phone. See the video there.

In conclusion, I am collecting all I need right now. I have already acquired an old cordless phone which I plan on taking apart and soldering in a couple of 1/8” cables so I can hook it into the computer. Free voip is just around the corner. After I get it all set up I’ll write and tell you how things are working out.