How does VoIP work
Skype is great for PC to PC calls, but it’s not a telephony replacement. True, one can get SkypeOut which allows you to make calls to regular phones, and SkypeIn which allows you to receive calls through a regular phone number. But you can’t dial 911 when you use SkypeOut, your SkypeIn number doesn’t show up on the recipient’s caller ID, and Skype is a proprietary protocol.
Standard VoIP is what you want if you really want to replace your home telephone with Voice over IP
VoIP is a revolutionary technology that has the potential to completely rework the world’s phone systems.
VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is a method for taking analog audio signals, like the kind we hear when we talk on the phone, and turning them into digital data that can be transmitted over the Internet.
The interesting thing about VoIP is that there is not just one way to place a call.
There are three different “flavors” of VoIP service in common use today: