Save money with an Internet phone service on your Mac.
Voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) services provide low-cost or free telephone calls using a computer and high-speed Internet connections. While many VOIP applications work on Windows computers, several Internet phone services provide applications for Mac OS X. Skype provides a Mac version for users to place free calls to other Skype users or call land lines and mobile phones at very low rates. The Telephone project provides a basic program designed only for the Mac for users to place free calls through an Internet phone provider's network, such as InternetCalls, called a SIP gateway.
Instructions
Skype
1. Visit the Skype website and click the "Download" tab for the latest version of the application for your Mac computer (See Resources). Click the "Download now" button
2. Click and hold the "Skype" icon in the new Finder window and drag this program file to your "Applications" folder to install.
3. Open the Applications folder and double-click "Skype" to launch the program.
4. Connect your microphone and headset to the corresponding computer jacks.
5. Click the "Don't have a Skype Name?" link on the Welcome screen.
6. Type your desired user name (Skype Name), password and email address in the corresponding fields. Check that you agree to the terms of service and check the other options as desired--such as "Remember my name and password on this computer" or "Launch Skype when I log in to Mac OS X"--before clicking the "Create" button.
7. Double-click the "Skype Test Call" to test the levels for your microphone and headset to place a test call.
8. Follow the voice prompts on the test call recording and speak at the prompt.
9. Listen to the recorded playback of your voice message and adjust your microphone and/or speaker headset volumes as needed using the Preferences settings. If needed, repeat Steps 7 to 9 to test your sound levels.
10. Select "View Account" under "Account" in the top menu bar.
11. Click the "Buy more credit' or "Buy credit" button at the top left section of the window to purchase credit for calling land line and mobile telephones. You can place free calls if you contact a Skype user using his Skype name, rather than dialing a telephone number.
12. Type your payment and billing information, such as PayPal, for your account and click the "Submit" button.
13. Select the amount of credit to purchase and then click the "Buy Credit" button to add credit to your account.
14. Select "Call Phones" under "Call" in the top menu bar to open a window containing a dial pad.
15. Switch to the "Call Phone" window, containing the dial pad, to place an Internet call to a telephone number.
16. Select "United States +1" from the drop-down menu for "Select Country or Region" and then type the desired telephone number in the field "Type number"--by clicking the numbers on the screen or by pressing numbers on your keyboard.
17.Click the green button on the lower right-hand corner of your screen to place the call.
18. Hang up your Internet phone call by clicking the red button on the window for the call.
19. Click the "Save" or "Add contact" button to add the telephone number to your contact list. Type the name of the person in the contact field and click the "Save" button.
Telephone + Internetcalls
20. Visit the InternetCalls.com website and click the link, "Mac and Linux users click here" (See Resources).
21. Register for a free InternetCalls account by typing a user name, password and your email address.
22. Open the email from InternetCalls and click the link to verify your account to complete set up.
23. Visit the Google project web page for Telephone (See Resources) and click the latest "dmg" file under "Featured Downloads" in the directory on the right.
24. Switch to the "Telephone" window in the Finder and drag the Telephone icon to the Applications folder.
25. Plug your computer microphone and headset into the corresponding jacks on your computer.
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Double-click the Telephone application to launch.
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Type your name in the field next to "Full Name," type "sip.internetcalls.com" in the field next to "Domain," type your InternetCalls user name and password in the corresponding fields and click the "Done" button.
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Select "Preferences" under "Telephone" in the top menu bar.
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Click the "Network" button at the top of the window and type "stun.internetcalls.com" in the field next to "STUN Server" before closing the Preferences window.
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Type the desired telephone number in the Telephone window, making sure to use "+1" before the area code and phone number for calls to telephones in the United States. Press the "Return" key to place your call.
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Click the dark gray button with the "X" on the lower right corner of the Telephone window to hang up your call.
Tags: telephone number, Internet phone, Applications folder, field next, free calls, microphone headset, name password