[VoIP] Naive question

[Steph Kerman]

PC Geeks don't understand that there are people who prefer to use the PC 
as a tool rather than learning about how to fix Windows when it breaks.  
They're not mechanics and don't work on their cars.  They just drive 
them and perhaps occasionally fix a flat.  Perhaps not even that.

Likewise, there are people who see the phone as an instrument for voice 
communication.  They are not switching geeks, don't own any switching 
equipment and do not WANT to own any switching equipment, but do 
subscribe to a commercial Voip service provider for purely economic 
reasons. 

Such people would have no desire to run and maintain another PC for the 
purpose of CNET connectivity but might be open to at least having 
inbound access from CNET, perhaps mostly for the convenience of their 
CNET friends reaching them.  They might not even much care whether they 
had outbound CNET access.

I am not talking about myself here.  Though I have little appetite for 
monkeying with Windows, I do fix my own car, enjoy playing with 
switching equipment and will set up an * box of my own at the right time 
for me.  I'm exploring the idea as a means to expand the actual utility 
of CNET to something beyond what ham radio is mostly about: an end in 
itself where 90% of the conversation consists of people talking about 
their rigs.

Steph

John Novack wrote:
> All require HSIA of some sort, so why wouldn't anyone interested set 
> up their own Asterisk box? Machine requirements are minimal, depending 
> on what the goal is. I know of one CNET member that is running an AMD 
> K6-233 with a small amount of memory and a 10-15 Gig HD.  Those can be 
> had at thrift shops for next to nothing these days.
>
> John Novack
>
>
> Steph Kerman wrote:
>> Is there any practical mechanism by which people who subscribe to
>> commercial Voip services could be called on a direct Voip basis by CNET
>> users, without going out into the PSTN and NANP?
>>
>> Steph
>