Long Distance Calls
Not all telephones in the University are capable of making STD or overseas phone calls. To change the level of access on an extension you will need to submit a request to change the dialling access via the following online form:
Telecoms Work Request
Types of Access
| Access Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Internal Only | Extension is only able to call other extensions on the university phone network |
| Local | Extension can make calls to other extensions and local calls outside of the university network |
| Mobile | Extension can make Internal and Local calls, can also call mobile phones |
| STD Day | Can call Internal, Local, Mobile and make STD calls during office hours |
| STD | Access to Internal, Local, Mobile and STD calls 24 hours |
| IDD | Can make all other calls and can call Internationally |
Note: Any costs incurred from phone calls will be charged to the account code supplied.
Calling Long Distance from odd devices, from odd places, or to odd destinations
Many long distance calls from the University use Voice over Internet Protocol ("VoIP") across the Australian Academic and Research Network. Calls using Voice over IP across AARNet are significantly cheaper than calls that use the telephone networks supplied by the telecommunications carriers.
Voice over IP uses data compression to reduce the load on the AARNet network. This compression works well for most calls, but can cause problems for the following types of long-distance calls:
- From modems. Use the Internet rather than a modem to connnect to the remote site if possible. Long distance calls using VoIP fail, or connect at a very low data rate. (Most modem calls are to a local number and are not affected by this.)
- From environments with high background noise, such as rooms dedicated to lift motors, air conditioning plant or computers. These callls appear to the listener to be cutting out, as the high background noise is removed when people are not speaking. The call is still successful, but the effect can be confusing.
- To places where extremely high quality is required, such as a long distance call to a radio station for an on-air interview. Voice over IP injects a level of white "comfort" noise. When this noise is then added to the hiss from a radio transmission the level of noise heard by the radio listener is higher than usual. This is nowhere near as bad as the noise heard when people calling from GSM mobile telephones are put on-air. This is only a problem for long-distance calls to the radio station - if the radio station calls you then Voice over IP is not used. Use a high quality telephone handset if you are being interviewed on-air. The quality of the handset has more effectc on the quality of the call than if Voice over IP is being used or not.