When you select a 'phone number in the directory by left clicking in the entry line or highlighting it and pressing ENTER, what happens depends on your automatic dial settings.

If automatic dialling is not enabled, the number i pasted into the underlying application at the cursor position, as if you had typed it or pasted it from the clipboard. For example, if you are working on a document in your word processor and you display the WintextCom directory by pressing its accelerator key, F10 by default, and select a telephone number, it will be entered into your document.

If automatic dialling is enabled, selecting a telephone number initiates dialling, and a progress window is displayed confirming that dialling is taking place. For standard voice calls, you should lift the telephone handset before you select the number, then WintextCom will dial it as if you had dialled yourself on the telephone pad, and you can take over the call as normal. The progress window closes when dialling is complete. Text-to-text users should reefer to the telecommunications tutorial for details of automatic dialling when text-to-text communications is enabled.

In order to be able to use WintextCom's automatic dialling capabilities, there must be a device called a data modem connected to or installed inside your computer. A data modem enables you to dial telephone numbers from your computer, and to transfer data to or from another computer over a telephone link, as in text-to-text communications. A data modem is different from the "broadband modem" (or wireless modem) that you may use for connection to the Internet with broadband, but if you use dial-up for the Internet, the same modem can be used for WintextCom telephone dialling. You can have both types of modem available to your computer at the same time. WintextCom will dial or enable telephone communication irrespective of the presence of broadband. Many desktop PC's have a data modem pre-installed when you purchase the machine. Laptop computers can use an external modem. Data modems are connected to the telephone socket like a normal telephone, using a lead which plugs either into the modem itself or into the back of the computer if the modem is an internal device.

For standard voice usage, you can quickly enable and disable automatic dialling from the directory Dialling/setup Menu. At the outset, choose the

"P: Modem port"

option. This will scan your computer looking for a data modem suitable for making 'phonecalls. This process may take 10 or more seconds, then, if an appropriate modem is found, its "port number" is displayed in an edit box followed by

"+<H>".

This combination of settings well configure WintextCom for automatic dialling and standard operation in "Hide Mode", where it runs in the background when not being used without showing any icons in the taskbar or system tray. The modem's port number tells WintextCom where to find the modem when you want to use the telephone. Just press ENTER or click OK to accept the settings. The port number is shown in brackets after the modem port option on the Dialling/setup menu.

Once the communications port is established, you can switch automatic dialling on and of with the

"D: Dial telephone numbers"

option at the top of the menu. This option has a check mark beside it if telephone number dialling is enabled. This option can also be used in text-to-text dialling mode, but in that case, the

"M: Modem port and initialisation string"

option on the Communications Mode Settings menu is more appropriate for the initial setup.

Note that the find modem option is provided as a convenient quick start facility. In most ordinary computer configurations, it is likely to be successful in setting up automatic dialling. But sometimes a suitable modem cannot be identified, even if one is present. It is also possible that even if a modem is found, it is not actually suitable for standard telephone dialling, or requires further configuration for the purpose. If you experience problems or wish to perform more comprehensive setup, please refer to the configuration and customisation section of this documentation for full details and guidelines.

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Working with Telephone Numbers