Caller Display is now fully compatible with the IYONIX
pc. Existing users can upgrade to the 32-bit version by sending a
£15 cheque payable to Octopus Systems together with their master
disc. Alternatively you may send a cheque and supply your serial number
and Email address for an update by Email, you can contact us on
or see the contacts page for
our postal address.
Network Caller Display is now available and shipping. It runs on any RISC
OS computer with RISC OS 3 or later, including the IYONIX pc, on an Access,
Access+ or TCP/IP network.
New calls are displayed on every computer on the network: each user sees
the details of incoming calls as soon as a phone rings so they can decide whether to answer
or whether to let a colleague answer.
Each user can search, list or update the database, and changes are immediately shown on
all of the other user's screens. Several telephone lines can be monitored simultaneously by
adding an additional Caller Display unit for each line.
Several companies are now offering low cost calls by dialling a prefix before
the number. For example, OneTel users dial 1877 before the telephone number
to obtain a discount off the standard BT rate.To use such a service with Caller
Display, open the Choices window and enter the prefix in the "Dial out prefix" box.
With some services you may need to add a comma after the prefix to provide
a short pause.
The "Local area code" box must be blank to use one of these services,
as the area code must be dialled even with local calls.
Anonymous Call Rejection
There has been much discussion about Anonymous Call Rejection (ACR) which
will enable you to automatically bar calls from withheld numbers. If you
enable this service and a caller withholds their number they will hear a
message telling them that you will not accept their call. They can then
redial using a 1470 prefix before your number to reveal their identity.
This service is currently undergoing field trials in some BT areas and it
is expected to be available soon. Contact BT for more details.
BT Engaged Message
Some BT exchanges have been updated so that a call to an engaged number results
a spoken message saying "The number you have called is busy. To use ringback please press 5...".
This can affect Caller Display and modem diallers which will not realise
that the number is busy until they hear a busy tone (which is eventually
played after the message). If you have problems with this new system you
should call BT and ask them to disable the message on your line - you can
still use RingBack if it is available (although it is not available on
every call).
PMC Electronics
Sadly, PMC Electronics, makers of Pace voice modems, went into receivership
in August 1999. Pace modem firmware upgrades, offering V.90
and possibly better Caller ID performance, are still available from http://www.infoserve.com/drivers/drivers.htm
We shall continue to develop and supply our Caller Display system
using our dedicated Caller ID unit, which is unaffacted, and existing Pace
modem users will continue to benefit from upgrades to our software. We
also hope to find an alternative modem that supports the BT Caller Display
standard.
TeleButler Home Information System
When a call is received the computer shows the caller's details on the screen and
it can speak the caller's name, but to make it even more useful, it is now possible
to make the caller's details appear on every TV set in your home.
This is achieved by installing a Computer Concepts Teletext card into the computer
and connecting the RGB output of this card to your TV sets, either by via an RGB type
SCART lead, or by using an RF modulator to mix the signal into the main UHF aerial
feed which is already connected to your TV sets.
The directory enquiry service is now available on the Internet
for finding business and residential numbers. It is also possible to
search for all business of a particular type in specific area.
Oftel and the phone companies have introduced new area codes
to cope with increased demand and new services. This change rationalises
the numbering system so the first two digits indicate the family:
FAMILY SEQUENCE:
00
International access
01
Existing area codes
02
New area codes
03
(future area codes)
04
(future use)
05
(future use)
06
(future use)
07
Mobile and "Find me anywhere" services
08
Special services
09
Premium services
More details are available on the offical website: www.numberchange.org and we shall be producing an update for Caller
Display with all of the new area codes.
New Caller ID Messages
Some new messages have just started appearing through the BT Caller Display
system. They are:
Other operator
This seems to be
generated when a call is received from another network which did not
provide the caller's number
CLI is Private
This seems to replace Number Withheld
So far BT deny any knowledge of the change and cannot confirm the precise
meaning, so please contact us at
if
you discover any more details.
Incompatibility with IClear
If you use Martyn Fox's IClear utility module you may have a problem
with Caller Display showing a squashed window or even crashing.
This is because of a problem in earlier versions of IClear and it
can be resolved by upgrading to IClear v1.30 or later.
The IClear utility enables you to clear a line of text in a dialogue box
by simply double-clicking to highlight it and then typing to replace it,
and it saves pressing Ctrl-U to clear it.
Pace Modem V90 Upgrade
The Pace 56k external modem may be upgraded to the new V90 standard. This
may make the modem a fraction faster (I obtained 47k bps connections instead
of 44k bps), but more importantly it will make your V90 compatible. This is
useful since the V90 standard is set to replace the older K56Flex and
X2 standards although most ISPs are expected to support all three systems
for a while.
See http://www.infoserve.com/drivers/drivers.htm
for details. Note that it can take a long while to complete the upgrade
and you should see a series of fullstops being displayed (one every second)
for a couple of hours. Do not interrupt the process at this stage as it
will leave the modems memory in a corrupt state and you will need to return
it to Pace for a repair! Contact Pace support if you have any difficulties
(tel: 01274 537031).
If you use the ANT Internet suite with the Pace56k driver you will also
need to change it as follows:
Load !InetSuite.Internet.Modems.Pace56k, and change this line:
AT&F S95=46 +MS=56,1,32000,56000
to
AT&F S95=46
You will now need to go into the configuration window and choose Pace56k
again from the list (even though it may already be set).
New features in v2 software
New Calls List in Version 2
Improved display showing day name and year as well as date, time and line number
Year shown for each call
Distance of caller (in miles or km) shown on map
Extra fields for entering notes or addresses
Better support for using multiple Caller ID units
CSV file format fully compatible with Datapower
Wakes monitor up when a call is received (if it has powered down)
Uses less memory
Extra messages to notify other applications of call state
Drag and drop of the name or number into other windows
Powertips window shows useful hints whenever Caller Display starts up
Improved interactive Help
Dial out prefix and local area code can be entered in Choices
Dialling out via a modem (any modem)
Graphs show call statistics for each day
Ctrl-Tab hotkey to dial number or find a name
and when used with the new version 2 hardware unit:
Outgoing calls displayed as they are dialled
Outgoing calls logged (even if dialled from another telephone extension)
Call duration recorded for incoming and outgoing calls (see above example)
Shows whether each incoming call was answered
When used with a Pace modem:
Outgoing calls logged (when dialled through modem)
Call duration recorded for incoming and outgoing calls
Shows whether call was answered (incoming and outgoing calls)
New Call Window has Map, Area, List and Dial Buttons
Upgrading from Version 1
If you have Caller Display version 1 you can upgrade to version 2 software
for £35
inc VAT and P&P. This new software works with your existing Caller ID unit
and offers all the features described in the above v2 software list but not
the logging of outgoing calls or call duration.
Alternatively you can buy the full Caller Display 2 system with new Caller
ID unit for £129. This price includes VAT and P&P but regrettably
we cannot offer a trade-in scheme (although you should be able to sell
the original unit privately).
In all cases the new software will work with your existing directory
and calls list so you will not lose any information. It will even add
the correct year to your existing Calls list. We would also strongly recommend
buying Jonathan Duddington's Speak
software which enables Caller Display to verbally announce the caller
when the phone rings.
To order the upgrade or a new unit just send a cheque payable to Octopus
Systems. Version 2 is available now and all items are in stock. See the
main Caller Display
page for more details and prices.
BT Telephone Bills Online
BT telephone bills can now be downloaded from www.bt.com. You need to register
on the site, and then choose the appropriate option under the View My Bills
section. It allows you to download any of your last 3 bills in an itemised
csv file in format:
Date,Time,Destination,Number,Type,Duration,Cost
It is apparently quite slow and a bit unreliable but worth trying.
Datapower 2 Update
Datapower 2, v2.19 and later versions, has a facility which enables
external scripts to search for particular records. This means that a
Datapower 2 query can be run when the telephone rings, and Datapower
will then open the relevant customer record.
To do this requires a little programming knowledge at the moment. When
the telephone rings CallerID will attempt to run the !CallerID.NewCall
(if it exists). A small BASIC program can be written to generate a Datapower
2 query script and execute it. In turn Datapower 2 will load the relevant
database and perform the search.
Please note, at this stage we cannot provide any more details about
the Datapower script language, but see the details on this page: DataPower
2 Script Documentation.
Please let us know if you use this facility.
Pace Modems with Voyager
To use the Pace 56k voice modem properly with Voyager you need a new
driver which is available from us at
(we will put it on the web site soon). You can use the Pace MobiFax driver
but Caller Display will not work correctly after it has been used. The
new driver solves this problem completely.
Many thanks to Roger King for his help in solving this problem.
Computer Freezes when Phone Rings
A handful of users have reported that their computer freezes when the
phone rings. This appears to be due to a problem in some SCSI/CDFS
implementations which do not support the CDFS Stop command.
You can easily test your system by typing this command into a task window:
*CDFS:Stop
It should stop a music CD if one is playing, otherwise it should do nothing
and it should return immediately (without starting up the CD drive).
If you have this problem, it can easily be overcome by turning off the
option to "Mute Audio CD" in Caller ID Choices.
Improving the Line Quality
When using the Pace modem for the Internet it typically connects at 44k or
46k and you can see this in the CONNECT message in the ANT Logging Status
window if you are using the ANT Internet Suite. If you obtain connections
of around 31k or 33k it is because you are not using a K56Flex number and you need
to ask your ISP for a different modem number to dial. If you achieve
speeds of around 40k you are using the correct number but suffering from poor line
quality. If you call your telephone company (154 for BT) and explain that you
are using a 56k modem they may be able to improve your line quality or boost the
gain balance which may improve the situation.
Speak the Name
Caller Display can be made to speak the caller's name using Jonathan
Duddington's excellent Speak
software. Many users find this invaluable as it anounces the caller's
name just after the first two rings and it is surprisingly intelligible
even when pronouncing unusual surnames (and I should know). It is especially
useful when you are away from the computer and if used with some small
external speakers it can easily be heard throughout your house or office.
Using a Caller ID Unit on an A300 or A400
The Caller ID unit takes its power from the computer's serial port and it needs
around +7V on the DTR or RTS line (it draws around 4mA). Old Acorn
computers such as the A300 and A400 only generate around +5 or +6V on the
serial port which is insufficient, so we normally recommend fitting an
Atomwide triple serial port card to these machines (alternatively a Pace
modem could be used).
However, it is still possible to use a Caller ID unit on an old computer
providing the power is supplied from another source. You can either take the
power from the +12V supply within the computer or use an external source such as
a 9V battery or a small mains power supply. You will need to modify the
wiring from the Caller ID unit so that the computer's RXD and ground lines
are still connected to the unit, but the DTR line (pin 4) and RTS line
(pin 7) must both be disconnected from the computer and connected to a
power supply voltage between +8 and +12V.
Please note that we cannot accept responsibility for any damage caused to the
computer or the Caller ID unit as a result of this modification, but we
will do our best to advise.
LEDs on the Caller ID Unit
Our newer Caller ID units have two LEDs although the manual refers to a single
LED. If everything is working you can ignore the LEDs, but if you have any problems,
the LEDs should help you find out whats wrong:
When the unit is plugged in and CallerID software is running the red LED
should light. If it doesn't and you are using an Atomwide triple serial
port card check the Caller ID configuration to ensure that you have set
it for the port that you are using. If it still doesn't light try the
standard port and if that fails please contact us at
or see the contacts
page for our phone number and postal address.
When a call is received:
Red LED should go out briefly (before the first ring)
Green LED should flicker as Caller ID data is received (before the first ring)
Red LED should go out in time with each ring
If the red LED doesn't go out before the first ring and the green LED
doesn't flicker no Caller ID information is being received and you should
check with your telephone company that Caller ID has been enabled on the
line.
Dialling Telephone Numbers
The telephone number dialling facility should work well on a Risc PC using
the internal speaker. If you find that dialling is unreliable try
reducing the speaker volume slightly so that it isn't distorting
and try again. You can reduce the internal speaker volume using the Acorn
Configure utility (inside Apps on old computers, or double-click on !Boot
on Risc PC and A700 computers). You can easily test it by dialling your
own telephone number which should of course be engaged.
Multi-Line Users
If you use more than one line for incoming phone calls you need
a Caller Display unit for each line, and each unit will need its
own serial port. The software will then monitor all of the ports
simultaneously and even tell you which line the call was on.
If you wish to monitor more than four lines we can supply a six
line version which can be daisy-chained to allow up to 24 lines
to be monitored by a single computer using a single serial port.
BT Call Minder Service
The new BT Call Minder service provides an answering machine facility
in the BT exchange. It can answer calls when you are out or even when
you are busy on another line, but disappointingly it will not store
the caller's number for calls that it answers. It is likely that BT
will fix this in the future, but until then you're better off with
an answering machine.
UK Telecoms Information on the Internet
For more information about UK Telecoms refer to the uk.telecom newsgroup or the FAQ on:
