RE: Interactive Voice Response System/Software

Hi Mark:
Quite a number of years ago we developed a VRS for a ocean shipping
(overseas containers) company so their customers could call in and get
status of where a particular container was or truckers could call in to
get info about pickup and delivery info.  This was back in the 1992-1993
timeframe.  The solution we implemented was from a company called Rydex
(they also sold AS/400 mail software & fax software).  The VRS box was
essentially a PS/2 and connected to the AS/400 via twinax.  To the
AS/400 it looked like a WRKSTN file in RPG.

The way you wrote the code was to write regular RPG/400 code and
imbedded into the RPG were "special" commands that interacted with the
VRS unit.  (ie SAY, DIGITS, etc).  These commands told the VRS unit to
either read a response from the phone or to send a response to the
phone.  There was also the option to have responses to the user send as
a digitized voice (read back a telephone number each digit at a time,
and a digitized voice in the VRS was used), or your could tell the VRS
until to "play" a .wav file as a response.  So you could record your
greeting, save it as a .wav file on the VRS unit and then your RPG
program waited for the VRS unit to go active and then the program
basically said PLAY greeting.wav, and then waited for a response.

The code was actually pretty easy to write (the scripts were actually
bit more challenging than the code).  You then sent your code with the
RPG and VRS commands to a "pre-compiler" that read the VRS commands and
converted them to RPG op codes (or groups of OP codes).  I guess the
theory was it was easier to give a programmer a "high level" OP code
than to have to explain exactly how to code the DDS for the WRKSTN file.
You then simply compiled the output from the precompiled as an RPG
program.

Anyway, the project was fun and 10 years ago we really thought we were
something with an automated VRS system running on the AS400, interacting
with its database.  I am sure there are much more sophisticated
solutions out there today, but ten years ago this was a good solution
and it worked!

Good luck.
cjg

Carl J. Galgano
EDI Consulting Services, Inc.
550 Kennesaw Avenue, Suite 800
Marietta, GA  30060
(770) 422-2995 - voice
(419) 730-8212 - fax
mailto:cgalgano@ediconsulting.com
http://www.ediconsulting.com
AS400 EDI, Networking, E-Commerce and Communications Consulting and
Implementation
http://www.icecreamovernight.com
Premium Ice Cream Brands shipped Overnight

"You ain't gonna learn what you don't want to know" - rw

-----Original Message-----
From: midrange-l-admin@midrange.com
[mailto:midrange-l-admin@midrange.com] On Behalf Of Mark Allen
Sent: Thursday, July 11, 2002 10:25 AM
To: midrange-l@midrange.com
Subject: Interactive Voice Response System/Software


We are looking to automate our overnight repair/trouble calls.  Since
the customer database and current trouble reporting system reside on the
AS/400 it seems to make sense that this system should too but $ may be
an issue and could interface with a PC based system if needed.

Does anyone have any recommendations/gotchas, etc from past experience?

Mark Allen
I.S. Manager
Wilkes Telephone & Electric
A Dycom Company
Phone: (706) 678-9565
Email: allenmark@nu-z.net
http://www.nu-z.net




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