Business Landline Glossary
A glossary of terms relating to business landline phones.
A
| Abbreviated Dial | a stored number which can be dialled by entering a short code |
| ACD (Automatic Call Distribution) | a system to distribute calls evenly between a number of connecting telephones |
| ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Loop) | a new service allowing permanent data connection and voice to SOHO style users over their existing telephone line wiring |
| ARS (Automatic Route Selection) | a system which chooses the cheapest available network by which to dial a call |
| Automated Attendant | a system which answers incoming calls, playing a greeting message and requesting a response which it uses to route the call to the required destination, offering the opportunity to choose an alternative destination or taking a message if the destination is busy |
B
| BRI (Basic Rate Interface) | 2 bearer channel interface to ISDN |
| BPS (Bits Per Second) | indicating the speed of data transfer across telephone lines |
| Brokers Call | one telephone making two calls and switching between them as required |
C
| Call Barring | a method of controlling the calls which can be made from a telephone |
| Call Divert / Call Forward | a facility to re-direct an incoming call to another designated telephone |
| Call Intrude | the ability to break into another call |
| Call Pick Up | allowing a telephone to answer a call ringing at another telephone |
| Call Waiting | signalling into a call indicating another call is trying to get through |
| Calling Line Identity | the calling party's number is sent to and displayed at the receiving telephone |
| Camp On | a call waiting that will ring through when the called telephone becomes free |
| CCU | Central Control Unit of a telephone system |
| Centrex | a system where a section of a large exchange can be rented and used as a sub-system where all telephones are extensions of the large system. |
| Chain Dialling | dialling a sequence of memory locations stored in another memory |
| Co-ax Co-Axial cable | a central conductor surrounded by an insulator and metal stranded sheath |
| Conference Call | a single call connecting more than two parties all able to talk to each other |
| COS Class of Service | a set of parameters governing how a telephone can be used |
| CPC | a signal from the exchange to tell the receiving equipment that the caling party has cleared |
| CPU Central Processing Unit | the "brain" of a piece of equipment |
| CRA | Call Routing Apparatus |
| Cross Talk | the interference by a call into other calls |
| CT2 | Cordless Telephone 2 digital cordless telephone standard |
| CTI | Computer-Telepone Integration, allows these devices to operate |
D
| DASS / DASS II Digital Access Signalling System | protocols used on UK ISDN |
| DCE | Data Communication Equipment |
| DDI Direct Dialling Inwards | a part of the dialled number is passed to the destination equipment and used to route the call to the required telephone |
| DECT | Digital European Cordless Telephone specification |
| DID Direct Inward Dialling | a specific line is set to ring a specific extension |
| DISA Direct Inward System Access | the system answers the incoming call and accepts DTMF dialling from the caller to determine the required destination extension |
| DND Do Not Disturb | prevents incoming calls ringing |
| DPNSS | Digital Private Network Signalling System |
| DTE | Data Terminal Equipment |
| DTMF Dual Tone Multi Frequency | the sending of tone combinations to represent the numbers required |
E
| Earth Recall | a signal from telephone to the exchange/PBX to hold a call or access a feature |
F
| FAX | facsimile machine or facsimile transmitted document |
| FAXTAM | facsimile with built in telephone answering machine |
| Flash | a signal to clar the current call and retain the line for a follow on call |
H
| Headset | similar to hi-fi headphones with a microphone and boom. Replaces the handset. |
| Hold | the speech to and from the caller is muted and in some cases they are played music whilst on hold |
| Hook Switch | the switch which loops (busy) and un-loops (idle) the telephone from the line |
I
| ICM Incoming Message | recorded by a telephone answering machine |
| IDD | International Direct Dialling |
| Inductive Coupler | a device fitted to handsets to allow a telephone to transmit speech to hearing aids for users with hearing impediments |
| ISDN | Integrated Services Digital Network |
| ISDN2 | BT basic rate interface for ISDN |
| ISDN30 | BT primary rate interface for ISDN |
| ITU | International Telecommunications Union, formerly the CCITT |
K
| Key System | a system offering a key and lamp representation of lines and/or extensions, usually requiring proprietary telephones |
| Kilostream | 64 Kbps digital leased line |
| KTS | Key Telephone Set or Key Telephone System |
L
| Last number redial | the last number dialled is stored and can be dialled by a single button or short code at a later time |
| LCD | Liquid Crystal Display |
| Loop Disconnect | see Pulse Dialling |
M
| Megastream | 2mbps digital leased line |
| Memory | storage for a telephone number allowing the number to be dialled using a single button or short code |
| Meter Pulses | signals from the exchange signalling the increment of charge units for a call |
| Modem | MODulator/DEModulator |
| Multiplexer | a device to combine calls onto a single transmission medium |
| Music on Hold | music played through a system to callers placed on hold |
O
| OGM | Outgoing Message, played by the answering machine to callers |
| On Hook Dialling | the ability to dial a number without needing to lift the handset |
P
| PABX | Private Automatic Branch Exchange |
| PAD | Packet Assembler/Disassembler |
| PBX | Private Branch Exchange |
| PCI | Pre Connection Inspection |
| PDN | Private Data Network |
| PIN | Personal Identification Number |
| POT | Plain Ordinary Telephone |
| PRI Primary Rate Interface | 30 bearer channel interface to ISDN |
| Prime Telephone | a domestic telephone which can be connected and operate without the need for additional sources of power or continue to operate if its power source fails |
| PSPDN | Packet Switched Private Data Network |
| PSTN | Public Switched Telephone Network |
| Pulse Dialling | dialling by sending pulses representing the numbers required to the exchange |
| PXML | Private Exchange Master List |
Q
| Q-SIG | an inter-system networking protocol based on Euro ISDN for allowing customer systems at seperated offices to interact and communicate with each other |
R
| RECALL | a signal to the telephone system originally to regain a previously held call, but today can also prefix a system command or feature code |
| REDIAL | re-dials the last number dialled from the telephone |
| REN Ringing Equivalence Number | a measure of the amount of power a telephone will consume when ringing. Most modern equipment has a REN of 1 |
T
| TAM | Telephone Answering Machine |
| TAPI | Telephone Applications Programming Interface for CTI |
| TDM | Time Division Multiplexing |
| TELTAM | Telephone with built in answering machine |
| Time Break Recall | a measured break in connection to signal from telephone to the exchange/PBX to hold a call or access a feature |
| TSAPI | Telephone System Applications Programming Interface for CTI |
U
| UTP Unshielded Twisted Pair | a wiring type used for telephone and computer networking infrastructure and Category 5 cabling systems |
V
| Voice Announce | a simplified Automated Attendant which does not offer the message taking facility if the destination is busy |
| Voicemail | a system for recording messages for a large number of users automatically and then delivering the messages to the users concerned |
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