ACD – Automated Call Distribution
This system includes a range of sophisticated call management solutions employed in call centres.
ADSL – Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line
A broadband technology that delivers very high data transfer speeds over existing telephone lines. More bandwidth is delivered downstream than upstream; ie you can download items faster than you can upload them. This is ideal for residential connections or businesses not running a server.
Alternative carriers (also known as CPS)
This feature allows the telephone system to be programmed to select more than one carrier (telephone line provider) for your calls. You program the system to recognise which type of call is to be carried over which network at which time of day. This enables you to always get the lowest available call rates.
Analogue lines
The original telephone lines. They are still the common choice in smaller telephone systems; however, current technology has resulted in a shift towards more cost-effective options such as ISDN and SIP trunking.
Auto attendant (see IVR)
An automated answering system that uses prompts to guide the caller to the correct department or extension by pressing keys on the telephone handset, eg ‘For appointments, press 1’.
Bandwidth
A measurement that gives an indication of the amount of data that can be sent through a connection.
BlackBerry
A handheld device that gives you mobile phone, email and other useful functionality away from the office.
Call forwarding
This feature enables incoming calls to be forwarded automatically to a different number, eg a mobile or home number.
Carrier
The telephone company or the provider of telephone lines into your facility.
Centrex
Centrex is a PBX-like service providing call handling at the main telephone exchange of the telephone company, such as BT, instead of at the customer’s premises. Typically, the telephone company owns and manages all the communications equipment and software that is necessary to implement the Centrex service and then sells various services to the customer.
Channel
This is another word for telephone line, usually in the context of digital lines.
CPS – Carrier Pre-Selection
This feature allows the telephone system to be programmed to select more than one carrier (telephone line provider) for your calls. You program the system to recognise which type of call is to be carried over which network at which time of day. This enables you to always get the lowest available call rates.
CTI – Computer Telephone Integration
Also known as unified messaging, this system provides one centralised mailbox for all email, voice and fax messages, and all messages can be received, replied to, saved or deleted in this one inbox.
CLI (Calling Line Identification) Presentation
Clever technology that displays the telephone number of the caller on the receiver’s telephone display.
DDI – Direct Dial-In
This is the ability to assign individual telephone numbers (DDI numbers) to extensions, faxes, computers and departments, enabling callers to dial them directly and automatically through the switchboard without having to go via a receptionist.
DECT – Digital Enhanced Cordless Telephony
DECT handsets provide wireless communications within an office, building or site, and they can be fully integrated into the company telephone system.
DSL – Digital Subscriber Line
This technology brings high-bandwidth information to homes and small businesses over telephone lines. It can carry both data and voice signals (see ADSL).
Hosted
This phrase is used to describe a service that is provided to the customer using equipment that is located remotely from their facility.
IP – Internet Protocol
This is the generic term to describe the way that voice and data signals can be sent between devices connected to a network, including across the internet and LANs.
IP Centrex
IP Centrex provides similar functionality to Centrex but calls are handled via a broadband connection.
IP PBX
An IP telephone system.
IP telephony
IP telephony is the use of IP signalling methods to send voice traffic across a data network. It can eliminate the need for separate voice and data networks by converging all traffic on one network, and it provides a wide range of other benefits for business telephone users.
IP/VoIP gateway
A gateway for existing telephone systems, converting traditional telephony traffic into IP for transmission over a data network. Using an IP gateway can be considered as a ‘migration path’ towards IP telephony, as you can gradually transfer to IP telephony while adding longevity to your existing telephone system.
ISDN – Integrated Services Digital Network
ISDN is a digital public network for voice and data communications with charges for line rental and calls. ISDN is available as ‘ISDN2e’, where the lines come in pairs, or as ‘ISDN30e’, which comes in groups of up to 30 lines, the minimum order being eight.
IVR – Interactive Voice Recognition (also known as auto attendant)
An automated answering system that uses prompts to guide the caller to the correct department or extension by talking instead of by using telephone keys, eg ‘What do you want to do? Book appointments? Order a repeat prescription?’ The caller then tells the system what they want to do based on the suggested options.
LAN – Local Area Network
A computer network within a limited area, eg within a building or a specific floor of a building.
MAC or Moves/Adds/Changes
These are the processes of moving staff to a different desk location, adding an extension or changing an extension number at a certain location.
Network
A computer network consists of two or more computers that are connected to each other so that they can share and exchange resources.
PBX (or PABX) – Private Branch Exchange
A private business telephone system.
Pots vs. Pans
One of our favourite acronyms: Plain Old Telephone Systems versus Pretty Amazing New Systems!
PSTN – Public Switched Telephone Network
This network was traditionally analogue but now includes digital (ISDN).
QoS – Quality of Service
This is used to provide acceptable voice quality across IP networks.
SIP trunking (Session Initiation Protocol)
In order for your telephone system to be fully IP enabled, you will need a SIP trunk. A SIP trunk is a pure IP connection between your premises and the national telephone network. SIP trunks can work on broadband and other types of data connectivity such as leased lines.
Smartphone
A mobile phone that is like a mini-computer and can browse the internet, receive email and let you work on documents and spreadsheets while on the move.
Softswitch – Softphone
A software application providing server-based telephony, eg a softphone on your laptop allows you to make calls from it.
Telephone extensions
The number of extensions that you will require depends on how many staff you have needing desktop phones.
Telemedicine
The prefix ‘tele’ originated from the Greek meaning ‘far off’ or ‘at a distance’; medicine being defined as ‘the science and art concerned with the treatment, alleviation and prevention of disease and the preservation of health’. Telemedicine is a telecommunications and computer technology that allows medical care to be delivered for remote patient care, continuing education and research using electronic signals to transfer information from one site to another, irrespective of location.
Telecare
The term ‘telecare’ is used to refer to care for the chronically sick, who are usually being managed at home from a health centre or hospital. It is seen to be part of telemedicine as a whole.
Trunk
Not to be confused with the front end of an elephant, in telephony a trunk is another way of saying a ‘line’ or ‘channel’ that you need for making a call.
Unified messaging
Also known as CTI, this system provides one centralised mailbox for all email, voice and fax messages, and all messages can be received, replied to, saved or deleted in this one inbox. When used in conjunction with CLI (Caller Line Identification), information is selected automatically that relates specifically to the incoming caller’s ID and can ‘pop up’ on receptionists’ PCs.
Virtual
This phrase is used to describe a service that is provided to the customer using equipment that is located remotely from their facility.
Voicemail
Allows callers to leave messages in individual mailboxes. These messages can often be retrieved remotely.
VoIP – Voice over Internet Protocol
VoIP = IP telephony. VoIP is the transmission of voice traffic over a WAN, VPN or the internet.
VPN – Virtual Private Network
Linking telephone systems and/or data networks together across the internet. A VPN is a fast and secure way to transfer data between remote sites.
WAN – Wide Area Network
A computer network that covers a large area rather than being limited to one building or site.
WCA – Web Content Accessibility
Web content is accessible when it may be used by someone with a disability.
There are no case studies in this section.
