Can Asterisk do 'movie phone' type IVR?

Asterisk Asterisk Support
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I have been asked to come up with a system which will allow a caller to get a description of an item by following a few voice prompts (i.e., select a category first, then a sub categeory, then list the items and enter the # of the item to get the actual description).

I have played with Asterisk in the past, but my experience is pretty limited. But I am familiar with how flexible it is, so I figured an Asterisk based solution would be my first choice.

Question is, what do I need? I assume I need a PC with an FXO card and soundcard? Are there any examples showing how to do something similar to get me started? Thanks!

If I posted this in the wrong forum, please move it, I wasn’t sure where this belonged.

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  • will do what you want.

If you have a high speed internet connection, you might want to use an IAX based provider rather then mucking around with an FXO board.

I have used junction networks and you can get a number (normal or toll free) set up for under $20, and it only takes a few minutes.

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Hi Matthew,

Thanks for the response. There is already a phone # in place, so I was told not to worry about that. Do I simply buy an FXO card in order to interface the phoneline?

Do you happen to have any links with examples which really explain the IVR scripting? I checked the wiki site, and some other sites, but none of them focused too much on the IVR part. Thanks!

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danix_2000
I would suggest starting without FXO card. Build the IVR, record menus, prompts, test it while building using SIP softphone. When almost finished with IVR programming, if everything works as you want it to and asterisk fits your needs, go ahead and buy FXO card :smile:

If you’re familiar with programming, for IVR I would recommend AEL (Asterisk Extension Language) which is way more normal for programming than writing the code in extensions.conf.

To get close to AEL, read this -> voip-info.org/wiki/view/Asterisk+AEL

For IVR tips read -> voip-info.org/wiki-Asterisk+tips+IVR+menu

For further details and tips use google :smile:

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georgy,

I did exactly what you recommended, using TrixBox and the X-lite SIP phone, and the concept definitely works well. Judging by a quick look at the AEL link, it would help me out a lot, so thanks for that tip as well!

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[quote=“danix_2000”]georgy,

I did exactly what you recommended, using TrixBox and the X-lite SIP phone, and the concept definitely works well. Judging by a quick look at the AEL link, it would help me out a lot, so thanks for that tip as well![/quote]

Yep, though AEL is very limited compared to PHP programming (I am PHP programmer), it’s much more comfortable and thrifty than extensions.conf, and at the same time is simple and light compared to AGI. (wow, sounds kewl, these words should become words if year :smiley:)

So I find it exactly fitting my needs for building IVRs and dialplans without extra efforts.

I am glad I’ve helped, good luck :smile: