Phlink 3.0.1 is a telephony mechanisation software for Mac OS X that connects your Mac to a phone ancestry and provide you with a simple hardware and software setup and user interface for handling phone birdcall . Using the include adapter , you could connect both a phone line and a standard , residential phone using one USB port . Once link and set up , Phlink rick your Mac into a telephone set hub designed to preserve you time and enhance the room you shell out with earpiece communication theory .
variant 3 adds a number of worthwhile new features that make it a valuable upgrade for users who are already using version 2.2 ( ) . Most notably , Phlink has impart Call Snooping , which lets Phlink automatically stash away a memorialise written matter of the earphone call ’s audio on your Mac for later review through Phlink or any other app that can wreak AIFF audio files . But sometimes recording glitches can occur . For illustration , Phlink does n’t always know precisely when to bulge out transcription and when to turn back because it rely on quiet detective work . Some recordings may contain sense of touch musical note at the first , prior to the time the call was link , or silence at the end , after the call was ended . Though Phlink ’s call recording capability should work well enough for most users , it ’s worth noting that PhoneValet 4.0 ( ) , a competitor , does n’t demo these minor transcription problems .
Also Modern in version 3 is reinforcement for the YAC ( Yet Another Caller ID ) communications protocol — a signaling criterion that lets you expose the caller IDs of incoming caller-out on your television via a TiVo twist . Phlink 3 ’s call log now declare oneself a ready to hand one - click call - back function , so it ’s a press stud to dial and link return calls . In this release , Ovolab has also added a vocalisation mailbox set - up champion , which simplifies the task of set up Phlink ’s flexile message recorder . translation 3 also addresses audio problems induce by sealed USB hubs . Plus , the new edition is Universal , so it will cruise mightily along on the new Intel - base Macs .
As in previous versions , Phlink 3 lets you ground voice mailboxes to record messages from phoner and design automatise greeting to interact with them . you’re able to also register vociferation or utilize Phlink ’s robotlike dialer to dial entries from Apple ’s Address Book . At its simplest , you may use Phlink to log caller-out ID , prison term , and continuance of every call . On a more complex level , you could programme AppleScripts to link Phlink with other Mac desktop apps to ramp up a phone - accessible home automation or information retrieval system of rules . For lesson , you could ramp up a fax - back system of rules that allows users to request documents to be faxed to them .
As with its rival , PhoneValet , there ’s a lot of flexibility in how the software system can make out with margin call . For instance , you’re able to have automated greeting behave differently base on phoner ID . you may have Phlink save an audio recording of every call , or selectively memorialise a particular call in - onward motion by manually toggle the recording option . If your Phlink call log has a lot of calls in it , you could set up call lists , which are similar to playlists in iTunes . They expose a subset of the call logarithm information .
Phlink bears the brushed - alloy substance abuser interface to which we ’ve develop intimate . Like iLife ’s applications , Phlink ’s interface is clearly - disregard and minimal . It embeds Apple ’s Address Book contact records into its call logarithm web internet browser — which is ideal if you make grave usage of Address Book , but somewhat of a distraction if you prefer a different touch manager . Thanks to Apple ’s Bonjour mesh technology , Phlink lets other Macs receive caller ID telling when incoming calls pass off , so phoner ID pop - ups will appear on their exhibit , too . Phlink ’s support of Apple ’s Automator leave you to , for model , make a leaning of middleman , call them , and represent an announcement or reminder to each of them . Phlink also give Tiger substance abuser two Dashboard widgets , which provide a call log and a dialer .
Macworld’s buying advice
Phlink 3.0.1 . is a well - designed diligence that is ideally suited to individuals who need to get a grip on their 24-hour interval - to - sidereal day phone subprogram . While PhoneValet tender more business - oriented feature , Ovolab has done a superior job of integrating Phlink with OS X ’s unique capabilities like Automator and Dashboard .
[ Ted Wallingford is the author of Switching to VoIP and VoIP Hacks(O’Reilly , 2005 ) and an independent technology consultant based in Elyria , Ohio . He semi - each year updates hisWeb website . ]
