Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!bloom-beacon!tc.fluke.COM!jeff
From: jeff@tc.fluke.COM (Jeff Stearns)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Special Spkr Phone wanted...
Keywords: auto answer
Message-ID: <3848@fluke.COM>
Date: 23 May 88 21:08:21 GMT
References: <775@shuksan.UUCP>
Sender: daemon@bloom-beacon.MIT.EDU
Organization: John Fluke Mfg. Co., Inc., Everett, WA
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Approved: telecom@xx.lcs.mit.edu


In article <775@shuksan.UUCP> evans@shuksan.UUCP (Roger Swann) writes:
>
>I had an idea for the phone used in a lab area:
>
>The situation is one where there are persons in the room, but no
>one is usually near the phone. So, when the phone rings someone
>has to walk over 20ft to get the call. And as a result, no one 
>_wants_ to answer the phone. Callers that let the phone ring many,
>many times, are usually the only ones to get answered.
>
>My solution would be to hookup a speakerphone type device that would
>automatically answer the line after a few rings. Then anyone in the
>room could answer the phone by just speaking loadly after the line
>had been _picked up_. If no one happened to be there to catch the
>call, so what, no problem.
>
>Does anyone out there know if such a device is currently being
>marketed???

I have a friend who used to live in Switzerland; he tells me that he was fond
of such a feature in his father's office phones.  All telephones could act as
speakerphones.  The handset did not need to be lifted to answer a call;
any ringing telephone could be answered simply by speaking to it.

He tells me that it was common practice for officeworkers to yell
"He's not here!" at ringing phones to shut them up.

Sorry; he doesn't know the manufacturer (this was more than 10 years ago).

    Jeff Stearns			jeff@tc.fluke.COM
    John Fluke Mfg. Co, Inc.	(206) 356-5064
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		 Jeff Stearns
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