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Ask Soylent: Alternatives to Google Voice

posted by Woods on Friday May 16 2014, @11:22PM   Printer-friendly
from the contemplating-changing-cellphone-calling-carrier dept.

kristian writes:

I'm currently attempting to wean myself off of all Google services. This is mainly because I would prefer not to have all of my eggs in one basket. Replacing Gmail and Google Calendar was easy enough, but now I've hit a wall trying to replace Google Voice. I've been on Google Voice practically since its inception, and I use it to take all of my calls and to send and receive all of my SMS. I can't seem to locate any information on how to set up a similar service that is self-hosted. I would be willing to pay a reasonable amount for the phone bridge portion of the service, but I would like, if possible, to store the data on my own server (open source is a plus, of course). Suggestions?

 
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  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by edIII on Saturday May 17 2014, @05:36AM

    by edIII (791) on Saturday May 17 2014, @05:36AM (#44586)

    Twillio

    They do it all and have a proprietary platform that merges voice and SMS/MMS together seamlessly. You can use a full IP phone, or software available on many platforms.

    Full API and integration docs allow you to create any number of complicated applications (there is a marketplace) that can fully replicate anything you can do with Asterisk. Asterisk is what is running under the hood of many different projects like Trixbox (God they suck), PBIAF (?), etc. that give you an established frontend. Asterisk barebones takes some experience. There is also OpenSips which is bit more difficult than Asterisk, and some other platforms like Avaya, Cisco, Snom, Aastra, etc.

    If you are willing to put in some work you don't have to give anything up. You can have what amounts to a cellphone using your current number and SMS will be seamless. In fact, it can be better. You can route incoming calls based on CallerID and automatically look them up in SPAM lists (including debt collectors) and route them to an operator intercept (SIT tones) and an out of service message with monkeys fucking. I actually do that now for myself.

    You can't do that with Google Voice. They don't allow you to program for their platform AFAIK.

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