expertise. Also starting to look at new phone switches to replace current Norstar ICS, any newer systems you have deployed recently that you like?

We have a few conference cards in it, around 180 stations, 3 PRIs, etc. It's a pretty powerful system but aside from basic setup like DIDs, station creation, button assignment, etc, it's all MOC mode (command line) with a cryptic number/letter system to configure it. ACS is our servicer and our techs are very good, but the NEC phone systems, IMO, are over priced and underfeatured, especially when you compare to Call Manager systems. Our system expands tp 256 stations I believe. Theri big poppa NEC system is teh 2400 which goesinto the thousands.



We're going to go Cisco corporate wide, at some point. For now I have 2 Call Manager Express sytems, and for a phone system on a 2651XM router that supports up to 48 stations, it's damn impressive for the money.

And my IT staff doesnt know how to program them.
But I can call the office in Afghanistan with a 8 digit extension :-)

showing me his nifty new phone that will even host a web page. IIRC, it was a Cisco product. NEC seems like they engineer their systems just to piss people off. It takes 3 minutes, and 12 button pushes to check my voicemail.

There are more then 2 speed dials as well, you just get 2 BUTTONS, and one of those gets used for your extension, both if you setup a dual line. You can store a hell of a lot more and access it via the directory. The 7960 gives you 6 buttons but again, you loose 1 or 2 of them immediately.

A 7940 should cost you somewhere around $230 range, and a 7960 around $280, all depends on your available discount. The 7960 isn't worth the extra money just to get 4 extra buttons, IMO, assuming you have to deploy a few hundred of them.

Most office workers don't even know how to program their speed dials and never use them.

The corporate mumbo jumbo leads me to nothing I can find on how to do it...And our local IT guys have no clue.

I can get into call manager.. figured that out.. but no clue how to bring it up on the phone..

if I remember correctly its in the Directory button. There's 3 different directories, at least on my call manager express sytem. You should have at the least a local and system directory. Once in there, all the buttons on the phone are obvious on how to program your speeds.

If you know the IP of your phone, and your username/password, you can go into your phones IP page and do it that way. You can get the IP through the menus as well.