Dialectic distinguishes seven call types, and interprets each phone number it is asked to dial as being one of these seven types. The Dialing Rules specific to that call type are then applied to determine the number that Dialectic will actually dial and the Dial Method that will actually be used.
Thus, it is important to understand what the call types are and the logic Dialectic uses to determine the call type of a number.
- Literal. A number is interpreted as Literal if you are holding down the Option key at the time of dialing (or if the number is transformed with a preprocessing AppleScript that designates the number as Literal). In this case, Dialectic will dial the entire phone number exactly as provided. Letters will be interpreted as numbers (if the Convert Mnemonics preference is enabled) and punctuation (such as comma to indicate a pause) will be obeyed, but the number will not be materially altered: for example, no prefix will be added or stripped. Literal Call Settings
- SIP. SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) is a standard set of rules for phone communication over the Internet. Initiation of an Internet-based call can be triggered by the user clicking a link in a Web browser. For example, clicking a link whose URL is sip:myFriendBob@skype.com could mean to call the user named “myFriendBob” using Skype. Similarly, clicking a link whose URL is sip:+14692551234@cisco.com could mean to call the number 14692551234 through a Cisco IP phone. A number is interpreted as an SIP URL if it begins with sip: or sips:, or if it is a pure address (e.g. myFriendBob@skype.com without the sip: URI prefix). SIP Call Settings
- Internal. A number is interpreted as Internal (i.e., a call within an organization such as to a coworker’s extension) if it is not a Literal or SIP call and is shorter than a certain number of digits (4 or fewer by default, but you can change this). Internal Call Settings
- Local. A number is interpreted as Local (within your local calling area) if it is not Internal but is shorter than a certain number of digits (7 or fewer by default, but you can change this) or starts with a Local area code (which you can customize for your locale). Local Call Settings
- Toll-Free. A number is interpreted as Toll-Free if it is not Local and starts with a Toll-Free area code (which you can customize for your locale). Toll-Free Call Settings
- Domestic Long-Distance. A number is interpreted as Domestic Long-Distance if it is none of the preceding types and does not start with the international delimiter (which you can customize for your locale). Domestic Long-Distance Call Settings
- International Long-Distance. A number is interpreted as International Long-Distance if it is none of the preceding types and does start with the international delimiter. International Long-Distance Literal Call Settings
More succinctly, here is the logic path to determine call type:
- A number is considered Literal If you dial while holding down the Option key (or designate the number as Literal by some other means).
- If the number is not Literal but starts with “sip:”, “sips:”, or is a URL such as “user@skype.com”, then the call is identified as a SIP call and routed to the Dial Method chosen for SIP calls (Skype URLs are always sent to Skype). If a call type is not SIP nor Literal, Dialectic looks at the number to see if it starts with your local country code (as defined in your current Dialing Rules) and strips this code if found. The number then goes down the following logic path:
- If the number entered is less than or equal to X number of digits, the call type is identified as Internal. X is predefined as 4 but you may change this.
- If the number entered not an Internal call and it is less than or equal to X number of digits, the call type is identified as Local. X is predefined as 7 but you may change this.
- If the count of digits in a dial string is greater than X as defined in step 2, then Dialectic checks to see if it starts with one of the user-defined local area codes. If so, the call type is identified as Local.
- If the call type has not been identified as Local, it will be checked to see if it begins with one of the toll-free prefixes (e.g., 800 or 888). If so, the call is designated a Toll-Free call.
- If the call type has still not been identified, Dialectic checks to see if the number starts with the international long-distance code as supplied in the International Long-Distance section. If so, Dialectic designates the call type as International Long-Distance, if not, it designates the call type as Domestic Long-Distance.
Configure Call Type. The Configure Call Type pop-up menu of the Dialing Rules pane of the Preferences window allows you to configure the settings for each of the supported call types for the current Location.
Update All Call Type Configurations. If you want to use the current Dial Method configuration for all call types, click the button to the right of the configuration pop-up menu. This allows you to easily set the Dial Method configuration for all call types but you may still need to modify the individual call type settings (such as local area codes) as necessary for proper dialing from your locale.
