Programs for incoming phone calls

Factual Questions
1

This isn’t an earth shaking thing but I could use help nontheless.

Does anyone know of a shareware or freeware program that will monitor my phone when I am on-line and kick me off when I have an incoming call? I have call waiting and occasionally it does this on it’s own but not very often.

I’ve checked every download source I can think of and all the programs I’ve found use call forwarding and require signup. They flash a message on the screen to inform you of the call and basically act like an answering machine.

I can’t afford a second phone line right now and I don’t want to add call forwarding. I just want something to boot me off when I get a call.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

2

This is simpler than you make it. You do not need any program, just to configure the modem differently.

The modem can be programmed as to how long it waits after loosing the carrier to hang up. If you make this period too short you may have trouble with the modem being disconnected by glitches.

If you make it too long, call waiting won’t make it disconnect either (and that is what some people want).

So you just need to set this parameter to whatever works.

As you do not give any info about what moden you have I cannot tell you the exact way to do it but it will by adding a few characters in the initialization string of the modem. Check the modem’s manual.

3

Thanks, sailor,

I’ll dig out the manual (although I think I know the hang-up configs you’re talking about) and play with it.

BTW, it’s a 56kbs US Robotics Win-modem. Thanks again.

4

I have heard of the software you were asking about. If you get a call [you need call waiting] then it prompts you. You can then take the call and lose the connection, or ignore it and stay connected.

I’ll try to find a link.

5

I have an offbrand winmodem and they probably have the same chipset. I used to have somewhere a document with all the AT commands but, as ususal, I cannot find it now. I am sure you would have no trouble finding the information in your manual or online.

If I remember correctly it is register S10 that controls this so you would initialize it by putting the correct string in

modem properties / connection / advanced / extra settings

6

VaHermit

I was wrong. The ones I found were the same as yours. While free, they do require call forwarding, not call waiting.

7

Sure enough, after I posted I found the document. Ok, it is register S10. i do not know what you have it set to but you can check by using hyperterminal direct to the comm port and typing ATS10? and it will tell you. Mine is set to 20 which means 2 seconds between loss of carrier and modem disconnecting. It seems pretty long to me and my guess is you can make that 10 or 5. just try different values and see what works

The string to change the value is ATS10=12 (or whatever value you want to set in tenths of a second)

8

Okay, another question, somewhat related:
I have DSL. I have Caller ID. The CID box is in another room. Is there any reliable freeware/shareware out there for having Caller ID show up on my monitor? I mean, it’s all on the same line…

9

Don’t forget, every modem manufacturer likes to customize the at commands.

for your US Robotics, open up hyperterminal so you have a connection to the modem, and type these commands:

at$
ats$

they give you a list of what each command does and what parameters can be passed to them.

10

I saw a box the other day $50 does this with NO call waiting. Light flashes & a noise happens when a call is coming in…sigh forgot wher i saw it but probably in my tigerdirect.com catalog

11

handy… hmmmm , no call waiting? and you can get another call in?

If I have no call waiting and you call me you get a busy signal and I get nothing… yes?
So what does the box do? Can you expand on this?

12

sailor, a call comes in when you are online & the box flashes & makes a noise, then you can hang up & answer the phone call.

13

Handy, unless you explain to me how that works I have to believe it is not possible if you do not have call waiting.
The way I understand it is that if I do not have call waiting and my modem has the line busy another call cannot get through no matter waht. It just gets a busy signal. Am I missing something? Can someone explain this to me?

14

Just got my new tiger catalog, it called ‘Catch A Call’, $47 from tiger made by International electronics, no call waiting needed, doesn’t say so, other models do. How it works? who knows.

15

Handy, I wish you would check your information before making statements without base. It DOES require call waiting as you can see here.

You cannot just say “it does work without call waiting and I don’t know or care how it does it”. The truth is it doesn’t work without call waiting.

16

sailor, boy there web page sucks, eh? Anyway, it was a long long day at the wharehouse yesterday & I didn’t have the time to look at their web page but the catalog does not mention call waiting… there web page says you need call waiting for caller ID to work, dunno about the rest, but what a sucky web page :-). Well, thanks.