I bet you don't NEED to.. just tell them you don't have one... they can't make you give them something you don't have... that's what I do.. I've never had a problem.
Cell phones are not marketed as wireline replacements and they have 911... payphones are not marketed as wireline replacements but I can dial 911 from there.
Yes.. the Vonage TOS clearly specifies that you agree to tell people who come over to your house (babysitters, friends, family members) that you are not using regular phone service.
What do you mean "packet 8 gives 911 service out with all accounts"? How can packet 8 possibly know where I am unless I tell them? Vonage gives 911 out with all accounts too.. but you have to tell them where you are going to be using the service so they can correctly route your 911 call.
According to the Vonage Terms of Service (which EVERYONE HAS TO AGREE TO when you sign up)... You agree to INFORM EVERY person (baby sitters, neighbors who are over), and family members who are in your house that tranditional 911 service is not available on your line.
So yes... if you go into someone's house they should immediately inform you they have Vonage to be in compliance with the Terms of Service.
You use your computer's modem to dial-up to the internet.. should you be able to access 911 over the internet.. just becuase your computer is connected to the PSTN? No... Vonage == VoIP != POTS... as a result services differ (for instance.. FREE voicemail, FREE caller-id, FREE 3-way calling.. you don't see people sueing over these things.. but POTS doesn't provide them FREE)
VoIP is NOT phone service.. it is a box you connect to the public IP network which will take your voice SOMEWHERE.. you can dial by IP to another phone.... or you can access the PSTN....
VoIP is *not* a wireline replacement. Why is it so hard to call your PSAP 7 digit number? I have mine programmed into my cell phone so if my alarm system (at my house) calls me to alert me to fire/break in.. I can call the PSAP from wherever I am and report the problem.
UGH.. her parents are NOT dead.. they were wounded.. they are fine! That's what makes this case even worse....... no one is dead.. and the problem is a result of their own ignorance.
Vonage knew yes.. but they also state OVER AND OVER again that you HAVE to fill in the address where you will be using the adapater and ACTIVATE 911 service.
Mr. Abbott,
I find your lawsuit against Vonage to be incredibly frivolous. First, Vonage is NOT traditional telephone service. It is VoIP. VoIP is NOT regulated, nor is it required to provide 911 service. Vonage has found a way to offer 911 service to consumer by redirecting them to their PSAP, however this can only be done AFTER the consumer has told Vonage where the unit will be used (as you can take it anywhere).
Second, saying you 'want 911' on your VoIP line, is like saying you want your car to be able to move large trees from the country road you live on. It's simply not the same thing. You need a tow truck, or other large vehicle to move the trees.... Likewise, VoIP is NOT traditional land line service, and as a result some things are different. I see no one complaining about FREE 3-way calling, FREE voice mail, and FREE caller-ID... these are certainly NOT services offered by traditional land-line companies.
Are you going to sue Ford because they failed to mention that the car you are purchasing does NOT have side air bags? Are you going to sue Ford because they didn't have a sticker on the car clearly indicating you could be injured more severely in car B then in car A because it didn't have side air bags?
Mr. Abbott, the time has come for American's to take responsibility for their actions. This is clearly a case of negligence (the persons involved failed to setup their 911 service), or ignorance (persons involved failed to read the NUMEROUS warnings that Vonage gives.. even the periodical e-mails if 911 service is not activated, and the BIG RED LETTERS at the top of the dashboard page if 911 is not activated).
Further, in signing up for service, these persons agreed to the Terms of Service, which clearly state that traditional 911 is not offered, and there are limitations to VoIP 911. Additionally, it MUST BE ACTIVATED!
I am asking you, Mr. Abbott, to stop this frivolous lawsuit and move on to more important things, like educating the people of Texas about VoIP, rather then trying to stifle its growth.
I just listened to the sound clip of the call at: http://www.oag.state.tx.us/oagNews/release.ph p?id= 849
I don't see how this lawsuit will have any feet to stand on... first the message CLEARLY states that 911 service is not available on that line.. and instructs you what to do (have a neighbor call or... HEAVEN FORBID!!! call the police number like you used to have to do 5 years ago)... it's not like Vonage is being negligent about this in any way...
VoIP is NOT tranditional phone service.. saying "well because I use it to talk to people.. I should have regular 911" is flawed..
That's like living on a big old country road WAY out there... and having trees fall down often.. well when one falls you have to get a tow truck in there or other large vehicle to move it.
Saying VoIP needs landline quality 911 is like saying you need/want a crain on your car so you can move those trees... after all someone's life might depend on you getting through.
Your car is not designed to move trees... likewise VoIP is *not* regular phone service, and as a result will be DIFFERENT.. (You don't see anyone sueing because they get 3 way calling for free.. do you? That's certainly not a standard for a regular phone line.).
If dialing 911 (cutting trees) is that important to you, then keep a regular land line, or cell phone (get a tow truck).... but don't expect one technology to work like another!
VoIP is NOT tranditional phone service.. saying "well because I use it to talk to people.. I should have regular 911" is flawed..
That's like living on a big old country road WAY out there... and having trees fall down often.. well when one falls you have to get a tow truck in there or other large vehicle to move it.
Saying VoIP needs landline quality 911 is like saying you need/want a crain on your car so you can move those trees... after all someone's life might depend on you getting through.
Your car is not designed to move trees... likewise VoIP is *not* regular phone service, and as a result will be DIFFERENT.. (You don't see anyone sueing because they get 3 way calling for free.. do you? That's certainly not a standard for a regular phone line.).
If dialing 911 (cutting trees) is that important to you, then keep a regular land line, or cell phone (get a tow truck).... but don't expect one technology to work like another!
No.. VoIP is NOT tranditional phone service.. saying "well because I use it to talk to people.. I should have regular 911" is flawed..
That's like living on a big old country road WAY out there... and having trees fall down often.. well when one falls you have to get a tow truck in there or other large vehicle to move it. Saying VoIP needs landline quality 911 is like saying you need/want a crain on your car so you can move those trees... after all someone's life might depend on you getting through.
If dialing 911 (cutting trees) is that important to you, then keep a regular land line, or cell phone (get a tow truck).... but don't expect one technology to work like another!
I'm with Vonage... it starts breaking up and has issues.... leaves a bad taste in my mouth for voip... why am I suddenly going to go to the cable companie's voip service????
Slashdot Mirror
Exactly why my kids will not be getting SSNs!
I bet you don't NEED to.. just tell them you don't have one... they can't make you give them something you don't have... that's what I do.. I've never had a problem.
BaH... I wish I could play the videos.. but nothing on my machine plays any of the formats he has.
Umm.. I dunno where you are getting your information from, but there is NO legal requirement for VoIP providers to offer 911 service...
Cell phones are not marketed as wireline replacements and they have 911... payphones are not marketed as wireline replacements but I can dial 911 from there.
Oh come on.. do you expect a VOIP phone to behave like a POTS phone? If you do you're a moron.
Yes.. the Vonage TOS clearly specifies that you agree to tell people who come over to your house (babysitters, friends, family members) that you are not using regular phone service.
What do you mean "packet 8 gives 911 service out with all accounts"? How can packet 8 possibly know where I am unless I tell them? Vonage gives 911 out with all accounts too.. but you have to tell them where you are going to be using the service so they can correctly route your 911 call.
According to the Vonage Terms of Service (which EVERYONE HAS TO AGREE TO when you sign up)... You agree to INFORM EVERY person (baby sitters, neighbors who are over), and family members who are in your house that tranditional 911 service is not available on your line.
So yes... if you go into someone's house they should immediately inform you they have Vonage to be in compliance with the Terms of Service.
VoIP is NOT phone service.. and SHOULD NOT be required to provide services that POTS offers.
You use your computer's modem to dial-up to the internet.. should you be able to access 911 over the internet.. just becuase your computer is connected to the PSTN? No... Vonage == VoIP != POTS... as a result services differ (for instance.. FREE voicemail, FREE caller-id, FREE 3-way calling.. you don't see people sueing over these things.. but POTS doesn't provide them FREE)
VoIP is NOT phone service.. it is a box you connect to the public IP network which will take your voice SOMEWHERE.. you can dial by IP to another phone.... or you can access the PSTN....
VoIP is *not* a wireline replacement. Why is it so hard to call your PSAP 7 digit number? I have mine programmed into my cell phone so if my alarm system (at my house) calls me to alert me to fire/break in.. I can call the PSAP from wherever I am and report the problem.
UGH.. her parents are NOT dead.. they were wounded.. they are fine! That's what makes this case even worse....... no one is dead.. and the problem is a result of their own ignorance.
Vonage knew yes.. but they also state OVER AND OVER again that you HAVE to fill in the address where you will be using the adapater and ACTIVATE 911 service.
Mr. Abbott,
I find your lawsuit against Vonage to be incredibly frivolous. First, Vonage is NOT traditional telephone service. It is VoIP. VoIP is NOT regulated, nor is it required to provide 911 service. Vonage has found a way to offer 911 service to consumer by redirecting them to their PSAP, however this can only be done AFTER the consumer has told Vonage where the unit will be used (as you can take it anywhere).
Second, saying you 'want 911' on your VoIP line, is like saying you want your car to be able to move large trees from the country road you live on. It's simply not the same thing. You need a tow truck, or other large vehicle to move the trees.... Likewise, VoIP is NOT traditional land line service, and as a result some things are different. I see no one complaining about FREE 3-way calling, FREE voice mail, and FREE caller-ID... these are certainly NOT services offered by traditional land-line companies.
Are you going to sue Ford because they failed to mention that the car you are purchasing does NOT have side air bags? Are you going to sue Ford because they didn't have a sticker on the car clearly indicating you could be injured more severely in car B then in car A because it didn't have side air bags?
Mr. Abbott, the time has come for American's to take responsibility for their actions. This is clearly a case of negligence (the persons involved failed to setup their 911 service), or ignorance (persons involved failed to read the NUMEROUS warnings that Vonage gives.. even the periodical e-mails if 911 service is not activated, and the BIG RED LETTERS at the top of the dashboard page if 911 is not activated).
Further, in signing up for service, these persons agreed to the Terms of Service, which clearly state that traditional 911 is not offered, and there are limitations to VoIP 911. Additionally, it MUST BE ACTIVATED!
I am asking you, Mr. Abbott, to stop this frivolous lawsuit and move on to more important things, like educating the people of Texas about VoIP, rather then trying to stifle its growth.
Sincerely,
Matt Hoppes
http://www.oag.state.tx.us/agency/contacts.shtml#e mail
greg.abbott@oag.state.tx.us
If every slashdotter e-mailed Greg and let him know what they think about this lawsuit, perhaps something will change.
I just listened to the sound clip of the call at:h p?id= 849
http://www.oag.state.tx.us/oagNews/release.p
I don't see how this lawsuit will have any feet to stand on... first the message CLEARLY states that 911 service is not available on that line.. and instructs you what to do (have a neighbor call or... HEAVEN FORBID!!! call the police number like you used to have to do 5 years ago)... it's not like Vonage is being negligent about this in any way...
VoIP is NOT tranditional phone service.. saying "well because I use it to talk to people.. I should have regular 911" is flawed..
That's like living on a big old country road WAY out there... and having trees fall down often.. well when one falls you have to get a tow truck in there or other large vehicle to move it.
Saying VoIP needs landline quality 911 is like saying you need/want a crain on your car so you can move those trees... after all someone's life might depend on you getting through.
Your car is not designed to move trees... likewise VoIP is *not* regular phone service, and as a result will be DIFFERENT.. (You don't see anyone sueing because they get 3 way calling for free.. do you? That's certainly not a standard for a regular phone line.).
If dialing 911 (cutting trees) is that important to you, then keep a regular land line, or cell phone (get a tow truck).... but don't expect one technology to work like another!
VoIP is NOT tranditional phone service.. saying "well because I use it to talk to people.. I should have regular 911" is flawed..
That's like living on a big old country road WAY out there... and having trees fall down often.. well when one falls you have to get a tow truck in there or other large vehicle to move it.
Saying VoIP needs landline quality 911 is like saying you need/want a crain on your car so you can move those trees... after all someone's life might depend on you getting through.
Your car is not designed to move trees... likewise VoIP is *not* regular phone service, and as a result will be DIFFERENT.. (You don't see anyone sueing because they get 3 way calling for free.. do you? That's certainly not a standard for a regular phone line.).
If dialing 911 (cutting trees) is that important to you, then keep a regular land line, or cell phone (get a tow truck).... but don't expect one technology to work like another!
No.. VoIP is NOT tranditional phone service.. saying "well because I use it to talk to people.. I should have regular 911" is flawed..
That's like living on a big old country road WAY out there... and having trees fall down often.. well when one falls you have to get a tow truck in there or other large vehicle to move it. Saying VoIP needs landline quality 911 is like saying you need/want a crain on your car so you can move those trees... after all someone's life might depend on you getting through.
If dialing 911 (cutting trees) is that important to you, then keep a regular land line, or cell phone (get a tow truck).... but don't expect one technology to work like another!
Why not just use mirrordot.org ?
Why not just use mirrordot.org ?
The thing is... Take this scenario:
I'm with Vonage... it starts breaking up and has issues.... leaves a bad taste in my mouth for voip... why am I suddenly going to go to the cable companie's voip service????
Actually, you CAN install it on a windows network and manage it.. see:
http://www.frontmotion.com/Firefox/
Yes.. and you know how much you have to donate? Like $10,000!!! Maybe it's only $5,000.. it's still a whole lot to even start to get itemized...