Sidux/Useable applications/VoIP telephony

VoIP telphony (Voice over Internet Protocol) lets making calls to landlines or mobiles with cheap prices.

Requirements

If you want to make VoIP calls you have to do 3 things:

1. Create an account on any VoIP provider web side.

2. Pre-paid your account.

3. Install one of available VoIP application.

VoIP providers

There are two providers I tried by myself, more you can find on a web side below.

1. Skype Out http://www.skype.com/intl/en-gb/features/allfeatures/call-phones-and-mobiles/

2. Freeconet http://www.freeconet.pl/en/

3. or check it here: http://www.voip-catalog.com/press_releases.html

Kphone

Kphone is very small but fully working VoIP application.

1. Installation:

apt-get install kphone libqt3-mt

2. The installation script doesn't make Menu entry, so you can do it yourself:

sux
mousepad /usr/share/applications/kphone.desktop

copy and past text below in:

[Desktop Entry]
Name=Kphone
Comment=VoIP telephony
Exec=kphone
Icon=/usr/share/icons/oxygen/64x64/apps/internet-telephony.png
Terminal=false
Type=Application
Categories=Application;Network;

and save the file (the icon patch can be vary).

3. Run it from: Menu-> Network-> Kphone

4. As a first step configure your account:

a. In "User part of sip URL" type your user name or number you got from VoIP provider.

b. In "Host part of sip URL" type VoIP provider sip address such as: sip.address.com

c. In "Authentication Username (optional)" type your user name again.

d. As a next step type your password marking "Save password".

4. In: Preferences tab-> Phone Book you may add your contacts.

5. To make a phone call type a phone number in search fild and click on phone icon.

Kphone home page: http://sourceforge.net/projects/kphone

More about Kphone on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KPhone

Others applications

There are not too many configuration differents for all VoIp applications so I suggest to try:

1. Linphone: http://www.linphone.org and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linphone
2. Ekiga: http://ekiga.org/ and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ekiga
3. X-lite: http://www.counterpath.com/x-lite.html
4. Zoiper: http://www.zoiper.com/
5. Twinkle: http://www.twinklephone.com/

More about VoIP on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_over_IP