Visual Extended Selection of PhoneMail Greetings

Visual Extended Selection of PhoneMail Greetings

      The conventional approach to working with PhoneMail* greetings
is for the user to access and select the greetings using the
telephone and the PhoneMail menu system.  This is often very
difficult and time-consuming to do because there is no visual display
of the choices and options.  The user must listen and remember the
options available.  Additionally, the number of greetings available
is often limited, so that the user must constantly record new
greetings to keep the message updated with current status
information.

      A technique is provided for Rolm 244PC-type telephones that are
connected to workstations to share PhoneMail greetings with
electronic office systems such that users could visually select a
greeting from a list.  Several greetings could be available and the
user need only click on one to update his or her PhoneMail message.
The user could record greetings vocally as is done today, or the user
could type in a greeting and have the computer generate the audio
message (using current speech-generation techniques).

*  Trademark of Rolm Corporation.