Each extension gets a mailbox, a message light on the phone, and a number to listen from.
If nobody answers, the caller can now leave a message. This was the first thing every office asked for.
For the caller
After the phone has rung for a while, the system answers, plays a greeting, beeps, and records. Hang up when you are done, or press # to finish. A message under a second long is thrown away, since that is somebody changing their mind.
For the person called
- The message light on the desk phone comes on.
- Dial *97 to listen, newest first.
- 7 deletes, 5 repeats, 6 moves on.
Because the phone has already proven it is your extension, *97 does not ask for a PIN. From someone else's phone, *98 opens your mailbox with its number and a PIN. Three wrong tries end the call, and enough of them lock the mailbox for a while.
On the web
Every person with an extension has a Voicemail page to play and delete messages. Listening there turns the light off on the desk, and deleting on the phone removes it from the page. One mailbox, two ways in, and they never disagree.
How long it rings first
Each extension has its own ring time before voicemail picks up. The front desk may want fifteen seconds; someone who is often across the warehouse may want thirty.
The light
The message light is the detail people notice most. The system tells the phone when the count changes, and again every time the phone checks in, so a phone that was unplugged over the weekend catches up within minutes of being plugged back in.