Phonix, Computer and Telephone Integration

<body> <p>This page uses frames, unfortunately your browser doesn't support them.</p> <p>Please go to <a href="http://www.wdc.co.uk/pmain.htm"> http://www.wdc.co.uk/pmain.htm</a> to see Phonix pages without frames. </p> <p>PHONIX utilises your existing computer network and telephone system. One workstation on the network is designated as the 'Phonix Server'. The Phonix Server must be running Windows 95 or 98 software but otherwise can be a fairly low specification PC. The 'Phonix Server' is connected to the telephone system via a Phonix Telephone Interface Box. Incoming or outgoing calls are logged on the Phonix Server, while Phonix 'Client' software running on any other network workstations provides information about incoming calls and their associated Outlook contacts. If Sage Line50 is installed somewhere on the network Sage Purchase, Sales or Stock details are available.  If Sage Line50 is not installed anywhere then the Sage interface is disabled. </p> <p>Sage Line 50 v9. Postcode lookup facility for rapid lookup, ODBC data sources , support for ACT2000,   </p> <p>Provides an instant gateway to all your key Outlook, Sage, and Access Contacts as soon as the telephone rings. </p> <p>Know who’s calling before answering the phone. </p> <p>Key caller information is on screen before you answer the phone. </p> <p>Simple and very FAST Search facility on Name, Telephone Number, Postcode and Outlook Categories </p> <p>View Sage Accounts information without having to have Sage loaded on every PC. </p> <p>Integrates all your key data automatically into Microsoft Outlook and Exchange. </p> <p>Details of calls can easily be added to the Contact record and be shared by all users. </p> <p>Dispense with yellow Post Its with the While You Were Out feature. </p> <p>Easy to use Client software. </p> <p>Log unanswered calls. </p> <p>Maintain ring count. How long does it take to answer your phone?  </p> <p>Simple to use system, no expensive training required. </p> <p>Sage Sales and Purchase Account Contacts are automatically created in Exchange and synchronised. </p> <p>Sage Order information can be automatically added to Exchange Contact records or Journals can be created. </p> <p>Phonix reads Contact Information from Outlook / Exchange Folders, Sage Sales and Purchase Ledger contacts and from any Access format (mdb) database. </p> <p>For Sage Line50 contacts, Account information is also displayed by the Client and the optional Order module allows a Sage Order to be created directly from within the client without Sage having to be loaded on the PC. </p> <p>All incoming and outgoing calls are automatically logged to an Exchange Journal Folder and linked to the Contact record enabling simple tracking of all Contact with a client. </p> <p>Laptop users can have access to Customer Account data when out in the field by synchronising their folders. </p> <p>Phonix now has the ability to simply and easily convert incoming e-mail messages into Sage Invoices or SOP Orders. Incoming e-mail messages are processed to create an order directly in Sage Line 50.  </p> <p>When the order has been processed an e-mail is automatically sent as an acknowledgement to the customer with full pricing information. A second e-mail is sent to the Sales Administrator to alert them to the order. </p> <p>If an e-mail can be sent an order can be placed. </p> <p>Mobile sales staff can input orders via any e-mail enabled device, including the latest (wap) mobile phones. </p> <p>Provide a simple means to take orders from existing customers from a web site. </p> <p>Place orders via your company's Intranet. </p> <p>Written in Visual Basic, PHONIX utilises your existing computer network and telephone system. One workstation on the network is designated as the 'Phonix Server'. The Phonix Server must be running a minimum of Windows 9x software but otherwise can be a fairly low specification PC. The 'Phonix Server' is connected to the telephone system via a Phonix Telephone Interface Box. Incoming or outgoing calls are logged on the Phonix Server, while Phonix 'Client' software running on any other network workstations provides information about incoming calls and their associated Outlook contacts. If Sage Line50 is installed somewhere on the network Sage Purchase, Sales or Stock details are available.  If Sage Line50 is not installed anywhere then the Sage interface is disabled. </p> <p>Pocket PC? Announcing Pocket PHONIX. Sage information on a Pocket PC. Windows CE. Compaq IPAQ 3630 3650<br> Now if you have a Pocket PC ( IPAQ ) you can synchronise with Phonix Server to view Sage Sales and Purchase accounts, Sales and Purchase Orders and Stock information. Sage information for the sales force on the road. </p> <p>TAPI ? Phonix now supports tapi to integrate with ISDN PBX 's such as network alchemy. </p> <p>Provides an instant gateway to all your key Outlook, Sage, and Access Contacts as soon as the telephone rings.<br> Know who’s calling before answering the phone.<br> Key caller information is on screen before you answer the phone.<br> Simple and very FAST Search facility on Name, Telephone Number, Postcode and Outlook Categories<br> View Sage Accounts information without having to have Sage loaded on every PC.<br> Integrates all your key data automatically into Microsoft Outlook and Exchange.<br> Details of calls can easily be added to the Contact record and be shared by all users.<br> Dispense with yellow Post Its with the While You Were Out feature.<br> Easy to use Client software.<br> Log unanswered calls.<br> Maintain ring count. How long does it take to answer your phone?<br> Simple to use system, no expensive training required.<br> Sage Sales and Purchase Account Contacts are automatically created in Exchange and synchronised.<br> Sage Order information can be automatically added to Exchange Contact records or Journals can be created.<br> Phonix reads Contact Information from Outlook / Exchange Folders, Sage Sales and Purchase Ledger contacts and from any Access format (mdb) database.<br> For Sage Line50 contacts, Account information is also displayed by the Client and the optional Order module allows a Sage Order to be created directly from within the client without Sage having to be loaded on the PC.<br> All incoming and outgoing calls are automatically logged to an Exchange Journal Folder and linked to the Contact record enabling simple tracking of all Contact with a client.<br> Laptop users can have access to Customer Account data when out in the field by synchronising their folders.<br> What PC hardware do I need to run Phonix?<br> Ideally, a separate machine to act as the Phonix Server running Windows 95 or Windows 98. This PC does not need to be particularly powerful. Phonix is tested using a Pentium 75mhz notebook with 24 mb of RAM running Windows 95. Many offices have old machines that are no longer used that can be utilised as the Phonix "Server". If you intend to make extensive use of the e-Commerce facilities a faster machine may be desirable.<br> What else do I need?<br> Phonix uses a Caller ID hardware unit that connects to the telephone lines and a serial port on the Phonix Server. This unit is available in 1,3 and 6 line versions. Phonix currently supports the Caller ID units supplied by Teleproducts Limited.<br> Phonix uses the TCP/IP protocol to communicate with it’s clients. Therefore TCP/IP must be installed and configured on all machines running Phonix.<br> Phonix also requires Outlook 97, 98 or 2000 to be installed on each machine that will act as a Phonix server or client. If you require to integrate with Sage, the Sage data files must be accessible from the Network. To share Outlook Contact information between users either Outlook Netfolders must be installed (not available in Outlook 97) or a Microsoft Exchange server must be installed.<br> Do I need to change my Telephone system?<br> Phonix works independently on any telephone system you may have. The Caller ID unit connects to the telephone lines before they get to the PBX. All that is required is for your telephone company to provide caller ID on the telephone lines.<br> Can I connect the Caller ID unit to an extension on my PBX?<br> Most PBX’s do not pass through Caller ID information so this is not a recommended configuration<br> What versions of Sage are supported?<br> Phonix works with Sage Line 50 Version 5 and 6. Version 7 is under testing and will be supported. Older versions are not supported. Phonix does not currently support Sage Line 100 (Sovereign).<br> Does Sage need to be installed on each machine that uses Phonix?<br> No.<br> Can I use Phonix with a standalone version of Sage?<br> Yes, providing Sage is not actually running on any machine on the network at the same time. Once a single user version of Sage is started it "locks" the main Sage data files preventing any other application such as Phonix accessing them.<br> Does Phonix support any other accounting software?<br> Not at the moment. If there is sufficient interest we will consider adding these interfaces. We can develop custom solutions. Detail on request.<br> Can I create Orders or Invoices from within Phonix?<br> Yes, the Enterprise  version of Phonix will create Sales Orders or Invoices directly from the Phonix client, providing that the appropriate Sage software has been purchased. For example, Financial Controller is required if you wish to create Sales Orders and view Stock Levels. Enterprise version due for release Summer 2001.<br> Do I need a web site to use the E-Commerce features of Phonix?<br> No, Phonix is designed to work with anything that can send an E-mail. This could even include vending machines and WAP enabled phones.<br> Will I have to manually enter all my phone numbers into Phonix?<br> No. Phonix reads your Sage sales and purchase accounts and automatically creates corresponding Outlook Contact records. The entire contents of the specified Outlook Contacts folder is then used by Phonix. Phonix automatically synchronises any changes made in Sage to the Outlook Contact records.<br> Does Phonix maintain logs of calls made?<br> Phonix creates an Outlook journal item for every incoming and outgoing telephone call detailing date, time and duration, ideal for organisations that bill by time. In addition, all calls are logged to Microsoft Access format database allowing further analysis by the user.<br> What else can Phonix do for me?<br> Phonix automatically updates Outlook with details of all Sage Invoices. Because Outlook and Exchange can synchronise this information throughout the organisation, all authorised staff can have access to this data, including mobile staff with notebook computers.<br> Authorised customers and internal users can create Sales Orders and request complete Customer History reports via a simple e-mail interface.<br> Unlike an answering machine, Phonix captures all incoming call details. So you know who called even if they don’t leave a message. Phonix allows you to confirm that the person calling is who they say they are by displaying the caller’s telephone number (where this information has not been withheld)<br> How does Phonix interface with Sage?<br> Phonix uses the Sage Data Objects (SDO). These are only available to authorised Sage Developers.<br> Why does Phonix take a long time to load?<br> On start up and at midnight every day, Phonix reads every Sage Account and every Outlook Contact record. The process of reading every Outlook record can be quite slow if there thousands of Contacts. This is a limitation of Microsoft Outlook / Exchange, not the Phonix software. Phonix is designed to be left running, so any time consuming processes are performed overnight when no users are on the system.<br> What does the Display Posted Invoices only option in the Client do?<br> The Phonix client can display All Invoices or just the Posted Invoices. Displaying Posted Invoices only is much faster as the data is read from Phonix’s database which is updated when Phonix Server loads and at midnight every day.<br> If this option is not set, Invoicing data is read directly from the Sage data files. Since Sage do not index these files in a way that allows for fast access to all invoices for a particular customer, this process can take 30 – 60 seconds on a system with a large number of invoices.<br> The account details such turnover, Hold status etc are always read directly from the Sage data files and are thus "live"<i><br> Note that Phonix displays Sage Invoices, not Sales Orders in SOP. Therefore an order is not visible in Phonix until it has been processed and raised as an Sales Invoice.<br> </i>Purchase Orders are handled differently in Sage and thus are always read directly from Sage data files. All Purchase Orders are always shown.<br> What is the difference between Personal Folders, Local Folders and Public folders?<br> Personal Folders – this is the only option when there is no Exchange server on the system. Phonix will use the Contacts Folder in the <i>personal</i> folders of the Outlook client on the Phonix server. The Phonix clients will display the corresponding contact details on an incoming call, but the clients will not be able to go directly to the Contact record (unless Netfolders are installed). Details of phone calls will be recorded in the journal folder in the Personal Folders.<br> Local Folders – If Exchange server is installed, Phonix can use the Contact folder in the users mailbox of the Outlook Client on the Phonix server. Subject to Exchange permissions being set, all Phonix clients will be able to go directly to the Outlook Contact record. Details of Phone Calls will be recorded in the default Journal folder for the mailbox.<br> Public Folders - If Exchange server is installed, Phonix can use a Contact Folder located in the Exchange server public folders This must be a top level folder. Subject to Exchange permissions being set, all Phonix clients will be able to go directly to the Outlook Contact record This is the preferred option. Details of phone calls can be created in any top level public folder.<br>  What do the Process Invoices and Update Contact options do in the Phonix server?<br> Process Invoices causes Phonix server to read all the Sage Invoice data on start up and at midnight. This data is then used to update Phonix’s internal database and either create corresponding Outlook journal items or to add details of each invoice to the Outlook Contact record if the Update Contact option is checked. This is typically the best option. </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> </body>