Apple's Telephone Manager has been available to developers for two years and is now built into the operating system with System 7.5. The Telephone Manager is part of the Macintosh Telephony Architecture (MTA), which provides a framework for the integration of personal computers and telephones.
The MTA framework lets developers create sophisticated telephony-based solutions that you can take advantage of with the built-in Telephone Manager support in System 7.5. Solutions include:
Telephony-Aware Applications
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Telephony-aware applications that tie software applications to telephone functions. These include applications such as contact managers that can initiate telephone calls, databases that present information automatically based on incoming calls, calendaring programs that automatically dial scheduled conference calls, accounting applications that can automate accounts receivables follow-up phone calls, and electronic-forms applications that let individuals call the originator of a form before approving it.
Screen-based Telephony Applications
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Screen-based telephony applications that provide you with an interface for a virtual telephone on your Macintosh desktop. At a basic level, these applications provide an easier-to-use, and better integrated alternative to the keypad on a telephone �?- letting you place calls, answer calls, transfer and hold calls, and so on, with a simple, direct-manipulation user interface. Examples include programs that log call times for professionals charging hourly rates, and phone applications for receptionists who juggle many calls simultaneously. Given how frequently most people use their telephones, these applications can quickly become essential to day-to-day productivity.
Programmed Telephony Applications
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Programmed telephony applications that let you script a Macintosh computer to handle incoming calls and interact with callers to create telephone-based information retrieval systems, voice mail, and personal agents.
Telephony applications can be combined with PowerTalk's catalogs technology for the storage of telephone numbers and other personal information. This provides a real-time application of PowerTalk's integration of store-and-forward collaboration to the Macintosh user experience.
By offering built-in support for telephony, System 7.5 helps you benefit from the efficiencies of computer-telephone integration.
Article Change History:
14 Feb 1995 - Reviewed for technical accuracy.
14 Dec 1994 - Added keyword; made minor technical updates.
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