FREE or Inexpensive VoIP Services

Here is a list of FREE or Inexpensive VoIP Services that are available to the average user:

Google -----------> FREE text messaging to any mobile phone in the USA & Canada, FREE unlimited VoIP telephone calls to anywhere in the USA & Canada, FREE unlimited Video messaging anywhere in the world with another Google user {must have a Google email account, be online, and be signed up for Google Voice & Video Chat}

Skype ------------> FREE unlimited Video messaging or VoIP telephone calls anywhere in the world with another Skype user, $30.00 per year {$2.50 per month} for unlimited VoIP telephone calls to anywhere in the USA & Canada (Computer needed)

MagicJack ------> $39.95 per 1^st year, $19.95 per year {$1.67 per month} thereafter for unlimited [VoIP telephone calls with a computer] to anywhere in the USA & Canada or another MagicJack/MagicJack plus user anywhere in the world

MagicJack Plus > $69.95 per 1^st year, $19.95 per year {$1.67 per month} thereafter for unlimited [VoIP telephone calls with or without computer] to anywhere in the USA & Canada or another MagicJack/MagicJack plus user anywhere in the world

VoIP and the "NEW" magicJack+®

The new magicJacK+® has finally caught up with the Ooma System! The user no longer needs a computer to get VoIP 24 hr service; once the user activates the dongle on their computer {picks their user name, picks their password, and picks their telephone number} with the corporation then they can plug it into a 117V wall socket, run an Ethernet cable from the dongle to a router that is connected to DSL or Cable services, and then connect a telephone system to the phone jack on the dongle. 

All the user has to do is keep their router on 24/7, they can now turn their computer off whenever they want to do so. The user can buy a good router for $49.97:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Linksys-E1200-Wireless-N-Router/16401813

The cost of the magicJack+® dongle and the 1st year of telephone service is only $69.95; then the standard rate of $19.95/per year for each year thereafter OR you can then buy five (5) years of service for $69.95 at a time (that is cheaper that one (1) month of service on Verion, AT&T, Cavalier, or any other land line company.

So for an initial output of around $120.00 the user is up and running! 

Necessary Freeware

Here is a quick list of FREEWARE if used by the “new” computer owner can save a great deal of money that can be put towards other things, like more RAM memory, a blu-ray DVD reader/writer, a Web Camera, and/or a higher resolution monitor, instead of software for the new computer. If fact the amount of money saved could be worth hundreds of dollars to the “new” computer owner!

Software Type → Commercial Name ↔ Freeware Name ↔ (Download Location)
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Virus Suite → Norton ↔ MSE ↔ (http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security_essentials/default.aspx )

Optical Disks → Nero ↔ CDBurnerXP ↔ (http://cdburnerxp.se/)

Office Suite* → Microsoft Office ↔ LibreOffice ↔ (http://www.libreoffice.org/)

Optical Character Recognition ↔ ABBYY FineReader ↔ FreeOCR ↔ (http://www.paperfile.net/)

Image Manipulation → Adobe Photoshop ↔ GIMP ↔ (http://www.gimp.org/)

Sound Editing → WavePad Masters ↔ WavePad Free ↔ (http://www.nch.com.au/wavepad/)

File Compression → WinZip ↔ Ken Ward's Zipper ↔ (http://www.trans4mind.com/personal_development/zipper/index.html)

Registry Cleaner → RegCure ↔ Eusing Free Registry Cleaner ↔ (http://www.eusing.com/free_registry_cleaner/registry_cleaner.htm)

Web Cam → YouCam ↔ Debut Video Capture Software ↔

(www.nchsoftware.com/capture/index.html)

*Here are four online sites that have excellent tutorials for the basic parts of OpenOffice or LibreOffice!

1. Writer: http://www.gcflearnfree.org/computer/topic.aspx?id=102
2. Calc: http://www.gcflearnfree.org/computer/topic.aspx?id=117
3. Impress: http://www.gcflearnfree.org/computer/topic.aspx?id=122
4. Base: http://inpics.net/tutorials/base2/basics.html

Video & VoIP Services

Remember when in the late 1960s and during the 1970s that American Telegraph and Telephone (AT&T) were the only 'game' in town and that they were going to bring the consumer 'Video Telephones' were the consumers could see to whom they were communicating as well as converse with them?

 AT&T presented the consumer with various video telephone models that cost many hundreds of dollars and they charged the consumers a great deal on money for the consumer to have the system installed and to then have the service in their residence or place of business.

 Well look at things now! AT&T is not the only 'game' in town and having a video telephone service is both very inexpensive for both the equipment needed {web cameras with built in microphones can be bought for as little as $25.00} and the costs to have that very same service at the residence or place of business is non-existent {“if it is free, then it is for me”}.

 The advent of 'Voice over Internet Protocol' has made that wondrous service of the all those years ago a common place service of 'modern' times.

There are two such services available to the consumer; both of which can be classified as 'FREE':

1.) Google - http://www.google.com/chat/video
2.) Skype - http://www.skype.com/intl/en-us/get-skype/on-your-computer/windows/

Of these two services right now I personally prefer the Google service because they seem to have better 'technical assistance' than does the Skype service.

However, now that Skype has officially has become a separate division under the umbrella of Microsoft Corporation only time will tell if their 'technical assistance' will improve!

Retro Computing

When I bought my FIRST Home Computer back in 1983, like millions of other users out there it was a Texas Instruments - TI 99/4A. Like many other users out there I learned how to program and use it for technical office processes like word processing (TI Writer) & making and using spreadsheets (Microsoft Multiplan).

Like many a 'first love' that TI 99/4A computer was never completely remembered or wholly forgotten!!

I packed my TI 99/4A away long ago, but recently ran across Cory Burr's Win99/4A, an EXCELLENT simulator of the TI 99/4A with full speech capabilities, sound capabilities, and very good module compatibility that runs on PCs running "Windows". I can now get back into writing programs in Extended Basic, using the Mini Memory Cartridge again, and using the good educational modules for my nieces, nephews, and other children; all this on my PC.

Just go to on the http address below. It will take you directly to where the file is located and can be downloaded.

http://www.99er.net/

Over 200 Cartridges (Modules) in file format are available for download for Win994a. Just go to on the http address below. It will take you directly to where the files are located and can be downloaded.

http://www.99er.net/

Download and uncompress the cartridge(s) item. This may take a little while since the file is roughly 27meg. Uncompress the contents of this file into the "carts" directory under the "Win994a" folder of your hard disk. This will make all 200+ carts available to Win994a next time you start it up. Enjoy.

Try it!

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Win994a-TI-99/4A Simulator for Windows

Win994a is a TI-99/4A simulator written by Cory Burr that installs and runs in the Windows environment.

Win994a is not a perfectly accurate emulation of the TI-99/4a; and it was never intended to be. The author decided not to implement certain aspects of the TI-99/4a either because they are rarely used or were considered of "no-value-added". The author vigorously apologizes to those users who will miss a favorite peripheral or item of functionality. The list below details the various functionality provided by the Win994a Simulator.

General Functionality:

Boots and runs all console ROM and GROM based functions including console BASIC.
CRU bits for the keyboard are implemented; some CRU bits for the Disk Controller and RS232 Interface are implemented.
TMS9918a video chip functionality is implemented.
TMS9919 sound chip functionality is implemented.
TMS5520 speech synthesizer chip is implemented.
Full floppy disk and disk controller functionality.
Full cassette tape functionality for CS1.
32k Memory Expansion supported.
PIO and RS232 ports are supported, but using a different method than the original TI99/4a.
Support for one joystick input (using numeric keypad).
Runs over 200 cartridges correctly. Cartridges that depend on non-implemented CRU bits or non-documented video chip operation will fail.

Specifics:

All TMS9940 CPU instructions are implemented. CPU clock ticks are accumulated for both instructions and fast/slow memory accesses. When enough clock ticks have been accumulated for 1/16 of a second real elapsed time, Win994a checks the high precision clock (available in the PentiumPro and above processors) and gives up enough of the time slice so that accurate running time is maintained.

Console based cassette tape functions for CS1 supported.
Console ROM and multiple console GROM functionality implemented.
Multiple peripheral based ROMs supported.
Multiple cartridge based ROMs, GROMs, and RAM supported.
TMS9918a: Uses DirectX for all operations. Video modes GRAPHICS, TEXT, MULTICOLOR, BITMAP, BITMAP-TEXT, and BITMAP-MULTICOLOR are implemented. Sprites, sprite coincidence, screen blanking, and vertical interrupt operations are implemented.
TMS9919: Uses DirectSound for all operations. All three voices and noise channel supported.
TMS5520: Speech synthesizer functions implemented.
Disk Controller and three floppy drives fully supported.
PIO and RS232 ports are supported, but using a different method than the original TI99/4a. PIO/1, PIO/2, RS232/1, RS232/2, RS232/3, and RS232/4 provide six separate pathways for making printouts through Window's print system. They do not provide input/output capabilities with the PC's actual hardware ports.
Support for one joystick input (using the keyboard numeric keypad) is implemented.

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Using RXB [Rich Extended Basic] and FUNLWEB [Funnel Web] together is as close as one can get to having a "DOS" like operating system for the TI99/4A Computer along with its Emulators & Simulators*. No longer having a physical TI99/4A computer set up, one can imagine this must be the same situation for those users that have the ability to use this physical set up of their computer.

Again this example just shows anyone that is willing to investigate how the potential of this computer was not developed by its parent company in a corporate decision to not have this consumer computer compete with its business computer.

RXB was developed by Richard Gilbertson and FUNLWEB was developed by Tony & Will McGovern, these two groups of gentlemen were thousands of miles apart and probably developed their programs out of a necessity because the 'operating system' that was offered by the parent computer company was so inferior. Sometimes the small group can really out perform the big company.

Now maybe the TI99/4A Computer along with its Emulators & Simulators* users with the RXB & FUNLWEB programs could start a mild rediscovery of this computer type if they each made a concerted effort to publicize the availability of this material worldwide over the Internet

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*Classic99, M.E.S.S., PC99, and Win994a

Users can NOT beat the price!

Five years, 60 months, for $59.95. That is what I paid when I renewed my service contract with YMax Communications (magicJack) after having it the initial year. That comes to one (1) dollar per month for a second phone line in the house.

The Federal, state, and local taxes and fees almost make up 50% 0f the bill!

My current Cavalier Telephone service costs:

unlimited local & long distance plan .... 34.95
listing - non publish ............................... 3.95
energy recovery charge ........................ 2.95
data service recovery chagre ............... 2.00
fed excise tax .......................................... .63
gross receipts ......................................... .25
state special tax ..................................... 2.65
state sales tax ........................................ .82
local sales tax ......................................... .14
emerg. 911 service ................................ 1.00
USF interstate toll ............................... .34
relay surcharge .................................... .08
USF line charge .................................... 1.10
LNP surcharge ..................................... .99
end user access fee .............................. 3.97
end user common line ......................... 9.00
_______________________________________
............................................................... 64.72

so less than what I paid for one (1) month of service with Cavalier Telephone, I was able to get five (5) years of service with magicJack! Of course I ordered the five years of continued service.

magicJack® vs. Skype®

magicJack® vs. Skype®

I have looked into Skype® vs. magicJack® and have determined that the two services are very, very, very much alike! One is hardware based while the other is software based.

If you know from my association with the computer world going back as far as the TI 99/4a that I have always been a hardware man. :-) For that reason, I favor magicJack® between the two services.

magicJack® costs $1.67 per month for calls to anywhere in the U.S.A. or Canada, $1.00 per month with a 5 year license; versus $2.95 per month with Skype®, $1.48 per month with a 1 year account.

They both have conference calling, voice mail, and call forwarding. Skype® charges money for other features that magicJack® does not charge their users, however that is minimum -> however it still costs the user money.

The magicJack® portability feature is the tipping point that makes it the better of the two services.

magicJack® softphone features

* Menu – Switch to headset, download Outlook plug-in, and other configuration options.

* Contacts – This is your list of contacts for quick reference.

* Calls – This provides call history. Using this feature allows you to quickly and easily reconnect to past calls.

* Favorites – This lists your favorite contacts like Mother In Law, Sister In Law etc.

* Redial – redial

* Vmail – This lets you set your own voice mail. To set MagicJack voice mail message you must login to their website and select user options to set voice mail for different locations. I also like the fact MagicJack sends an email with the .WAV file of the voice mail.

* 411 – Is an internet linked to Free411.com.

* Google – A simple hot link to Google for web searching.

* Weather - A simple hot link to the weather channel

* Fix - A simple hot link to software fixes of many minor problems

* 911 Address – This function defaults to your original entry in MagicJack, but it also gives the benefit of adding multiple address in case you use this at work, home, families houses etc.

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Portability - this lets you take or send the magicJack® dongle overseas to call friends, family, business associates, and etc. anywhere in the world for just the cost of the device and its original service contracts. Sure beats a telephone calling card for members of the Armed Services, students, and vacationers.

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magicJack® lets you use your computer's mic/speakers, a headset, or a regular telephone interface with its dongle while Skype® has your computer's mic/speakers or a headset interface.

My brother-in-law uses his magicJack® dongle with his laptop and a headset when he is on the streets of Philadelphia with its FREE citywide Wi-Fi and with a cordless phone when he is in his home.

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