Manual answering enables you to answer an incoming call by pressing the Escape key when WTC is the active application.

With WTC set up in Hide Mode, you can answer a phonecall with just one press of the Escape key whether the directory is displayed or the Braille line is active. If you have File Manager open, however, you must first press Escape to close it, then again to answer the call. You will also need to press Escape twice if WTC is configured to centralise operation on the communications window rather than the directory and you are in the directory at the time a call comes through, the first press of Escape activates the communications window, then the second answers the call.

When a cal is answered, the progress window opens telling you briefly that a call is being answered, then that it has been answered and WTC is waiting for connection. You can press Escape at any time if you wish to abort the answering operation, such as if you think it is not going to succeed and is taking a long time. If the call does not get through, the progress window closes and the Braille line will show a message from the modem indicating that a problem occurred, refer to the section Dialling and Conducting Telephone Calls for more information.

When the call connects, the progress window closes and the communications window displays whatever is being sent by the caller. The Braille display enables you to read this text in Braille and conduct the call exactly as for dialling. A message from the modem indicating successful connection is usual, then a call via Typetalk begins with a few messages from Typetalk explaining the call, and if it is actually a text-to-text call through the exchange, they will say so. It is common practice, but not necessary, for the caller to wait until the answerer speaks first.

Another way to answer the 'phone is to configure WTC to automatically answer a call, if the 'phone is ringing, when it starts up or is switched to. You do not need to enable the answerphone for this setting, WTC merely answers the call and you take it as if you had pressed Escape to answer it yourself. The advantage of this setting is that if you are working in another application and the 'phone rings, all you have to do is press the Windows shortcut key assigned to WTC or click on its desktop or quick launch icon, and the program will come into focus and immediately answer the call. This setup also allows you to close the directory by simply pressing Escape rather than Shift+Escape, But a disadvantage is that if you leave WTC as the active application, it will answer an incoming call immediately, perhaps not giving you time to get to the computer to take it. It is a mater of personal preference whether you use this option. It is possible to configure WTC to let the 'phone ring for a longer period of time before it intercepts the call, but this can also cause problems.

You can also use the text answerphone, described in the next section.

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Manually Answering