iData 2 can use a modem connected to your Mac to dial a telephone, using a phone number in a datafile record.
How iData 2 Finds Phone Numbers
The current version of iData 2 has two ways to recognize phone numbers:
1. If there is an active text area containing selected (highlighted) text, iData will send that text to the modem. It does not check to see if the text is a valid phone number--or even whether or not it contains numbers. It will send all selected text to the modem.
2. If there is no selected text, and if you specified a phone number bracket character in Dialing Preferences, iData will look for text enclosed in a pair of bracket characters. It will begin from the current insertion point, and will wrap to the top of the current record, if necessary. This means that if, for example, you have several bracketed phone numbers in the Freeform Text Area, you can click right in front of the number that you want to dial, and that's the one iData will find first. Be sure to read the instructions on Dialing Preferences in this manual.
Dialing Sets and Extension Dialing
Read the instructions on Dialing Preferences in this manual to learn how to use dialing sets and extension dialing to make the dialing feature more useful.
Dialing sets let you automatically add your commonly used prefixes and suffixes to phone numbers before dialing.
Extension dialing provides a way of dialing a series of numbers, waiting for a prompt after dialing each one, before dialing the next.
Using an External Modem to Connect Your Mac to the Phone Line
We have found that third-party external modems will dial more quickly than Apple's external modem. I use a Zoom USB modem for dialing. The Apple modem will usually take two seconds longer before it starts dialing.
If you are using an external modem, a common setup is to plug your phone into one port, and your wall line into the other. Check your modem instructions to see which port to use for which line. However, dialing will work in other configurations as long as the modem and phone are connected to the same phone line.
Using an Internal Modem to Connect Your Mac to the Phone Line
Because the internal modem has only a single phone-line port, you may need a splitter cord to use it for dialing, so that you can connect your internal modem and your telephone to your phone line simultaneously. Splitter cords are available at electronic supply stores, such as Radio Shack. There are several ways to configure the splitter. One is to plug the splitter into the modem port on your Mac. Plug your telephone into one port on the splitter, and plug the line from your wall plug into the other splitter port. Another is to plug the splitter into the phone wall socket and run one line to the phone and another to the Mac's modem port.
Setting Up the Modem
If you are using an external modem, turn it on so that the System will recognize it.
Follow the instructions for Modem Preferences in Chapter 2-36 to set up your modem in iData 2.
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