I am evaluating SQLphone, can I get support?

Yes. All pre-sales email technical support is free.

What kind of phone lines can SQLphone connect to

SQLphone telephone answering software connects to standard voice lines. Sometimes called analogue POTS (plain old telephone service), or PSTN (public switched telephone network).

What are the PC system requirements?

Minimum system: Pentium processor with 128MB RAM, Sound Blaster 16 or 100% compatible sound card. Microsoft Windows 2000/XP/2003.

What databases can SQLphone connect to?

Just about any database. SQLphone telephone answering software uses ODBC, and you can connect it to any database using an ODBC driver from your database vendor. Supported database include: Access, AS/400, CSV/Text Files, DB2, dBASE, Informix, MySQL, Oracle, Paradox, SQL Server, Sybase, Sybase SQL Anywhere and Visual FoxPro.

Can SQLphone make outbound calls or transfer calls?

Yes. You can use SQLphone telephone answering software to build a dial-out system. Also, SQLphone telephone answering software can perform call transfer using the hook-flash or earth-recall mechanism, which is supported by most PBX's.

Can I plug-in my own code to add features?

Yes. SQLphone telephone answering software can call any functions exported from DLLs. If you know how to code DLLs, you can expand SQLphone to carry out your custom tasks and have telephone answering software that’s tailored to your business logic. Read the SQLphone Designer help file for more details.

How reliable is it? Can SQLphone deliver 24/7 availability?

We know how important it is for a telephone answering system to have 100% up-time. We continually run soak-tests, and we have partner-customers who give us operational feedback. The first SQLphone Runtime program we delivered has been running since 1997, taking over 5000 calls per day. It has stopped only on a few occasions, and then because of PC hardware failure.

Can I run a telephone answering system on my desktop PC?

Yes, but we don’t recommend it. To keep your system as reliable as possible, it is important to install SQLphone telephone answering software on a stable, stand-alone PC. That is, on a PC you don’t use for everyday desktop applications like email or word processing. This will help to prevent problems caused by interactions with other applications, driver clashes, etc.

What kind of expertise do I need to develop my own answering system?

You should have some SQL and/or general programming experience. For example, experience with Microsoft Access is useful. The Designer program help file explains how you can do most things, and it includes SQL examples. You can also study the sample flowcharts on our website, to see how these work.

I want to evaluate the Runtime program. Is functionality restricted?

Yes. The evaluation version of the program will not answer calls continuously. After it has answered five calls, you must press a restart button to answer more calls. This gives you access to all functionality, but prevents you from deploying the telephone answering software as your answering system.

Can I get a corporate discount?

Yes. We do not give a discount on the first site license. But we can negotiate a discount on subsequent volume orders.

Can SQLphone perform text-to-speech synthesis?

Yes. SQLphone telephone answering software uses Microsoft SAPI to do this. You can use the free Microsoft speech engine, or buy a third party speech engine. Read the Designer help file for more details.

Can SQLphone detect caller ID?

Yes. See tutorial topics for more details.

Can SQLphone control my PABX, or use my Centrex features?

Yes. SQLphone telephone answering software can perform hook-flash and earth-recall operations, which are normally used to control call transfer.

Can SQLphone send faxes?

No. However, it is possible to build fax-back systems using Microsoft Fax drivers and Microsoft Access. Contact us for detailed information.

Can SQLphone perform voice recognition?

No. We don’t have any current plans to do this.

Who makes SQLphone?

SQLphone telephone answering software was developed by Sharepaper Ltd, a software engineering company based in Cambridge, UK. See About Us for more details.