Internet Telephony Guide for Beginners

Internet telephony has become wildly popular all over the world. Millions of web users enjoy its ease of use and low costs on a daily basis. Others are still intimidated by this technology. Here are how you can make your first online call with the market leader of all VoIP services, Skype, in a heartbeat.

By Marc Baumann

Do you have associates or family abroad, and do you shy away from calling them more frequently because the numbers are complicated and the rates are high? In this case, you obviously have not yet discovered the advantages of making phone calls by Internet. With a technology known as “Voice over Internet Protocol” telephone calls can be made via computer networks which have been developed according to Internet standards.

Unlike classic telephone systems, VoIP does not use “phone lines”. Instead, speech is transported in small packages via data lines of the World Wide Web.

All you need for VoIP (or simply IP) telephony is a computer with an integrated or external microphone, a broadband Internet connection, a headset, and the applicable telephony application. The most highly recommended program by far is Skype, the most popular provider in this field with over 270 million users worldwide. The software is free, quickly installed, easy to operate, and allows you to make phone calls at very reasonable rates.

The best part is this: calls between Skype users are absolutely free of charge – regardless of when and where you call and how long you talk. You can also use Skype to call your associates and friends on landlines or cell phones whenever you want. These calls are fee-based, but certainly much more cost-effective than the rates of conventional telecommunication providers. For example, the charge for a VoIP call to a landline between the U.S. and Europe is only around 3 euro cents per minute, which allows you to make calls, especially international calls, at huge savings through the Internet.

If you want to be able to receive calls from landlines, you can subscribe to the “SkypeIn” service. Incoming calls are then forwarded to a telephone number of your choice. Skype can also accept voice messages for you when you’re not available to take phone calls.

Plus, with the VoIp service of Skype you can also make video phone calls at no charge (you need a webcam for this), organize a telephone conference (up to 25 participants), or send a text message or a photo attachment to another Skype user through the integrated Instant Messenger. Especially when you don’t have time to make phone calls, simply click on the blue chat logo to send a text message quickly and easily to your contact. And last but not least, for a small fee, text messages can be sent to conventional cell phone users.

The following instructions are intended to help you better understand Internet telephony and open your own VoIP account with Skype. This is how it works:

Go to the Skype website and download the free software to your computer at no charge.
Click on the downloaded application and follow the instructions to install Skype.
Click on the installed software and open a new Skype account, including user name and password.
Open your account with the help of the Skype Start Assistant. With the user-friendly search function you can track down friends and acquaintances using Skype around the world in the Skype telephone directory and add them to your contact list.
Anybody you add to your contact list will automatically receive an instant message with your contact request. Check to make sure that you have received a contact confirmation from these people. You will need this confirmation to see in your personal Skype telephone directory if your contacts are currently online, absent or not available.
Of course, you can also define your own online status in your settings to determine if and when you are available. At the click of a button, you can also import conventional telephone numbers of contacts without a Skype account to your Skype list from widely used e-mail programs, such as Outlook.
Click on “Skype Test Call” on your contact list and make a test call to ensure that the Internet telephony application you just installed works properly.
Make you first call with Skype – there’s nothing to it and it works almost like a conventional telephone system.
- To reach another Skype user on your contact list, first click on the green button next to the name of the contact you want to reach (green means ready to talk) and then click on the logo with the telephone receiver in the window that pops up. You will hear a dial tone. Wait until your contact answers the call.
- To call one of your friends who is not familiar with Internet telephony at a conventional number (landline or cell phone), click on the green button next to his or her name, as described above, provided that you have already added the name to your Skype contact list. The system will then automatically dial the telephone number stored in the contact information.

If you would like to use Skype to spontaneously call a person whose telephone number you just received, then go to the top horizontal menu bar and click on “call phone” under “calls”. A window with a keypad will appear. Simply enter the desired number. Just like a normal telephone call, you will hear a dial tone. Wait until your contact answers the call.

A requirement for fee-based VoIP calls to landlines and cell phones, however, is that you have a credit balance in your Skype account. To do this, go to “Account” on the horizontal menu bar in your Skype application and click on “Go To Account Page”.

The Skype website will then automatically appear in your Internet browser. Log on to your account, click on the link “Add Credit” and follow the instructions. A minimum amount of 10 euros /10 U.S. dollars is required and can be transferred, among other things, by credit card or via Paypal.

For more information on “Skype Credit” and general questions about Skype, please see the list of useful Internet addresses below.

Useful Links:

- Overview of Skype services (free of charge and fee-based)

- Skype international rate list for VoIP calls to landlines and cell phones

- Information about Skype Credit

- Skype text messages

- Frequently Asked Questions

- Skype support section

- Online payment system Paypal

Published March 2008 in the magazine of AOSpine International, a worldwide community of surgeons and other experts for spine surgeries.

Other samples from my portfolio:

- Booming Doctors Rating Websites
- Brussels: Europe’s Vibrant Capital
- Copywriting for Babystyle.com