asterisk users - Sep 2010 - misc newbie VoIP questions

asterisk-users at lists.digium.com

Please excuse the ignorance of these questions.  (I still have yet to
install and configure a VoIP solution.)  Depending on the feasibility
of some of these questions, I was going to try my hand at installing
something...

--Is there a way to pick the best SIP service for each country?  So,
let's say I buy service from several companies, and one country is 50c
per minute and another service offers 45c, how do the VoIP servers
(Asterisk, Trixbox, FreePBX, etc) auto switch between the best rest
rate?

--Can people's VoIP phones be a part of several extensions (on
different VoIP solutions)?

--Say about 10-20 of us want a virtual receptionist, and want to
rotate them so that calls work in different times zones (autoswitch on
certain times, auto go to a different receptionist if one is busy,
etc).  Where might I look to think about this?

--Google Voice will not forward texts and calls to foreign numbers, so
what type of solution would I need to accept calls (to a US number)
and then forward the texts / calls to foreign cell phones?

--Can DID number I buy intelligently forward faxes to one number and
all other calls to another number?

Thanks for any advice you might have.  I'm very new to all of this...

On Mon, Sep 27, 2010 at 5:04 AM, Rogelio <scubacuda at gmail.com> wrote:
> Please excuse the ignorance of these questions. ?(I still have yet to
> install and configure a VoIP solution.) ?Depending on the feasibility
> of some of these questions, I was going to try my hand at installing
> something...
It would be a good idea to read at least one book about the subject.
You can download a free copy of Asterisk TFOT book here:
http://downloads.oreilly.com/books/9780596510480.pdf

> --Is there a way to pick the best SIP service for each country? ?So,
> let's say I buy service from several companies, and one country is 50c
> per minute and another service offers 45c, how do the VoIP servers
> (Asterisk, Trixbox, FreePBX, etc) auto switch between the best rest
> rate?
This would be done by the dialplan. Look at http://voip-info.org for
more about dialplans. I recommend reading the book first, though.
> --Can people's VoIP phones be a part of several extensions (on
> different VoIP solutions)?
Definitely. Extensions are part of the dialplan.
> --Say about 10-20 of us want a virtual receptionist, and want to
> rotate them so that calls work in different times zones (autoswitch on
> certain times, auto go to a different receptionist if one is busy,
> etc). ?Where might I look to think about this?
The dialplan takes care of this kind of switching.
> --Google Voice will not forward texts and calls to foreign numbers, so
> what type of solution would I need to accept calls (to a US number)
> and then forward the texts / calls to foreign cell phones?
A USA number. Get a free one from ipkall.com or go to on.com or
sipgate.com or teliax.com and buy a pay as you go DID. Forward GV
number to the US number.
> --Can DID number I buy intelligently forward faxes to one number and
> all other calls to another number?
See "Dialplan".
> Thanks for any advice you might have. ?I'm very new to all of this...
Take the first advice, look for a book, there are many but Asterisk
The Future of Telephony is excellent and you can get everywhere.

/r