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Can I initiate a call from my computer but talk on my rotary phone with Obi200?

Started by SteveLL, January 09, 2016, 02:22:35 PM

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SteveLL

Hi All,
Brand new user. My wife inherited an old rotary phone from her grandfather and I thought it would be nice if I could put it to use for her. I bought the Obi200.

Again - it's rotary, so even registering the device was hard. I ultimately used a telephone tone generation app to play the ObiTalk registration tones through my desktop computer's external speakers into the rotary phone's mouthpiece. It took a couple tries, but I did successfully register the device that way.

It's configured with Google Voice now, which I think is working. (I'm brand new to GV too).

General confirmation that GV is good is that I can make and receive GV calls from my mobile phone and from the desktop computer. And if I call my GV number from my work phone, the rotary phone rings and I can answer and the call works.

But I want to be able to make outgoing calls. I don't want to buy a pulse->touchtone convertor, though I know that would be an option. I considered trying to make outgoing calls the same way I registered the device, by playing a wav file through my computer's speakers into the old rotary phone mouthpiece, but it doesn't work well (truthfully, it hasn't worked once - I tried a few times). I bet it would work sometimes but not consistently enough to be the solution.

This rotary phone is gong to sit on my wife's desk right next to her computer. I want her to be able to initiate the calls from the computer but use the rotary phone as the handset once the call is placed (like GV can do with a mobile phone). In my head I was thinking of my work situation where I can do this, but that's an enterprise VOIP system and the handset and software is all sold together by the VOIP provider.

I'm disappointed (my expecations were probably unfair) that so far at least, I don't see away to generate a call from the Obi200's webserver or from my ObiTalk account.

My wife could even use her mobile phone if that helps.

I'm not saying this desire to get this rotary phone working is practical, given that we could just use the computer as a GV softphone or her mobile phone. It's just one of those things that would be cool.

All I've really done so far is play with the Google Voice integration. Maybe there's no way to do it with GV? I am willing to try another supported service, other than GV. Though it would have to be one of those $2-3 per month services that charges for calls over 200 minutes or what-have-you. The phone isn't going to be used much so paying $20/month isn't something we can justify budget-wise.


So, has anyone solved this problem already? Or have an idea you think I should pursue?  I'm hoping this is the kind of thing at least some other Forum members have worked through. Maybe not. I know rotary phones are old, old school.

FWIW, I did try to search the Forum for a posting on this, but I didn't turn anything up (except the pulse->touchtone convertor notion, which I appreciate but think will be too clumsy for my wife to deal with).

Like I said, I'm new here. Maybe I missed something painfully obvious. If so, I apologize in advance.

Thanks, all.

Taoman

I'm watching a playoff game so you get the condensed version:

1)Get yourself a free DID number from Callcentric, IPComms, or IPKall (IPKall would require free VoIP account from provider that accepts forwarded calls via SIP URI like Anveo)
2)Configure/register your OBi (on an open SP trunk) with the VoIP provider/number you chose in step 1
2)Add the number to your Google Voice account as a forwarding number, check the box, and uncheck the box for Google Chat

Incoming calls to your GV number should continue to ring your OBi-connected phone but thru the VoIP provider you chose (and registered to) instead of thru Google Chat.

You could then use the "click to call" method on Google Voice by clicking on the Call button and selecting your VoIP provider from the drop-down list as the callback number. The outgoing call will be connected after your OBi-connected phone is answered.

SteveLL

Thanks, Taoman.
I have to pick my moment to try your solution (when my wife isn't around since if it works this is a birthday present for next week and still a surprise at this point) but it sounds promising. I'll dig into it this week sometime and post the outcome. I'm optimistic. Thanks again.

SteveInWA

Quote from: SteveLL on January 11, 2016, 09:05:13 AM
Thanks, Taoman.
I have to pick my moment to try your solution (when my wife isn't around since if it works this is a birthday present for next week and still a surprise at this point) but it sounds promising. I'll dig into it this week sometime and post the outcome. I'm optimistic. Thanks again.

This should work just fine.  I have 1947 Western Electric 302 rotary phone that I enjoy having around as um, a conversation piece.  ;D  The ringer scares the hell out of people.  I've retrofitted mine with a Rotatone DTMF microcontroller, but Taoman's description of making calls via the CALL button on the website will work with anything that can answer a phone call.  The lack of * and # keys makes rotary phones pretty useless otherwise.

Use Callcentric.  IPKALL is banned, as they're a major source of scam calls.  See the photo below of their HQ, conveniently located next to a crack house here in Seattle.

Taoman

Quote from: SteveInWA on January 11, 2016, 03:10:14 PM

IPKALL is banned, as they're a major source of scam calls.  See the photo below of their HQ, conveniently located next to a crack house here in Seattle.

I knew there had been routing/CID issues with IPKall but I didn't know they were actually banned. Not that I don't trust you (just hadn't heard about it) but I had to try it for myself. Sure enough, got myself a free IPKall number which worked just fine. Tried to verify it in my Google Voice account and it absolutely will not verify after trying repeatedly. Thought maybe a 253 area code might work. Nope!

Thanks for the heads up on this. Guess I won't be recommending IPKall anymore for a free DID number.

SteveInWA

Quote from: Taoman on January 11, 2016, 04:56:03 PM
Quote from: SteveInWA on January 11, 2016, 03:10:14 PM

IPKALL is banned, as they're a major source of scam calls.  See the photo below of their HQ, conveniently located next to a crack house here in Seattle.

I knew there had been routing/CID issues with IPKall but I didn't know they were actually banned. Not that I don't trust you (just hadn't heard about it) but I had to try it for myself. Sure enough, got myself a free IPKall number which worked just fine. Tried to verify it in my Google Voice account and it absolutely will not verify after trying repeatedly. Thought maybe a 253 area code might work. Nope!

Thanks for the heads up on this. Guess I won't be recommending IPKall anymore for a free DID number.

Heh heh.  Their DIDs should come with a canister of Clorox disinfectant wipes, and a business card for "Better Call Saul".

LTN1

Steve...my IPKall number, received years ago, is still working fine in one of my GV accounts (just tested it a few minutes ago). I used it mainly as a backup number in case my other numbers have temporary issues. Was the ban across the board on every IPKall number?



SteveLL

Hi All,
Thanks. It worked. CallCentric and my Obi200 play very well together. The greatest challenge was verifying my new CallCentric number with GV since it was obviously a recycled number. My experience of registering the Obi200 in the first place was that it was more forgiving of touch tone wav files being played into my rotary phone from computer speakers than GV's two digit tone verification process was. I finally worked on like the 30th try.

So now I'm good. Placed an outbound call using from the GV call button on https://www.google.com/voice. GV called my CallCentric number, my rotary phone (connected to the Obi) rang, I picked it up, and GV completed the call to my desired outbound number.

Thanks again, everyone. Hopefully my wife thinks it's cool too.

SteveInWA

Great!  I hope your wife thinks of Grandpa when that mechanical bell ringer goes off.

For future touch tone needs, just plug an actual touch tone phone into the jack temporarily, to respond to prompts, etc.  As you found, the old carbon microphone in the rotary phone doesn't have the best sound reproduction.