Get the most out of your Inc. online experience by registering and joining the Inc. community today. Get access to all Inc.com content and priority invites to free Inc. networking events in your area.

Login using:


Or login directly through Inc.com

A Telecom Glossary

 

Few fields are as rife with jargon and abbreviations. Here's a guide to some of the terms you will encounter:

Centrex: a PBX (see below) hosted at the local telephone exchange

DID: Direct inward dialing; lets inbound calls go directly to extensions without an operator

PBX: Private branch exchange, a telephone switchboard used exclusively by a private organization

POTS: Plain old telephone service, i.e., a standard analog line

PSTN: Public switched telephone network, the standard network

QoS: Quality of service, an Internet protocol that gives voice traffic priority over data traffic

TDM: Time division multiplexing, a label for traditional, circuit-switched telephone equipment

VoIP: Voice over Internet protocol, a standard for transmitting voice communication via the Internet

vPBX: Virtual PBX, a scaled-down service for inbound calls

Resources

For a clear explanation of VoIP mechanics, see communication.howstuffworks.com/ip-telephony.htm.

See voipproviderslist.com for a worldwide roster of VoIP hosts, including nearly 700 in the U.S.

At shopfordsl.com, you can compare prices for broadband Internet access in your area. (Note: The results are not always exhaustive.)

Billzilla.com offers comparison shopping for long-distance plans and T1 lines, among other telecom services.

Read more:

  • 9 Most Common Start-up Mistakes
  • Accelerator vs. Incubator: What's the Difference?
  • How Pinterest Really Makes Money

    • Sign-up for our Technology Newsletter